Construction of a drive-in theater at Huntington Beach Blvd. and Trask Ave. in Westminster has been approved by the Orange County Board of Supervisors. The supervisors, in making the approval, reversed a denial for the theater submitted earlier by the county planning commission. The drive-in theater will cost $450,000 and will be built by the Pacific Drive-In Theater chain. It will be known as the Huntington Drive-In Theater and will have the Cinemascope screen. Added feature of the theater is that it will have a super-sized television screen for the presentation of outstanding national events.
Save baby sitter expense! Bring all the kids along. Free bottle
warming service. No parking worry. Plenty of room!
Your car is your private theatre! Eat! Smoke! Chat!
Control your own speaker volume!
You’re in nature’s own air-conditioning!
One low price admits a carload! Your movie
dollar goes further! Free flat tire changing service!
Don’t dress up! Come as you are! Skip supper and eat at our deluxe
cafeteria!
Now shut-ins and invalids can enjoy movies! Early birds get free
newspapers to read ‘til show starts! Refreshments direct to your
car! Cartoon is first on every program!
This 1985 lawsuit mentions a twin theater at 2315 North 60th Avenue, Hollywood, Florida, but I don’t know if it’s the Cine 1& 2: http://tinyurl.com/2wbv5v
There is a nice photo of the Frederick, circa 1940, in the 7/18/95 edition of the Frederick Post. Unfortunately, I can’t reproduce it here. The text is as follows:
The Frederick Theater, since demolished, was located south of the former Social Services building (once JC Penney’s) on North Market Street. It was one of three theaters downtown: The Frederick Theater, The Opera House (old City Hall, next to the Frederick Theater) and The Tivoli Theater (now the Weinberg Center for the Performing Arts).
This blurb is from the April 8, 1965 Chicago Daily Herald, from the days where local papers would print such trivia:
Paul and Jeanne Soucy solved the too-young-for-conversation, too old for pin-the-tail party problem last month. For Michael’s 12th birthday March 14, Paul took the guests out to lunch and then to Chicago for the movie, “Dear Brigitte.” For Joan’s eighth, her group saw “Mary Poppins” at the Glencoe Theatre along with the ice cream and cake at home, 4 Francis Court, March 27.
This theater tried first run films about ten years ago. I don’t know who owned the theater then, but I do recall driving by and seeing a Will Smith movie on the marquee. The success of the Million Dollar is dependent on Angelenos willing to go downtown on a weeknight. The Orpheum has had some success with this. It’s interesting that the Last Remaining Seats program draws lines of people on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, but whether that will happen more than once a year is unknown. You also have to consider the entertainment center being built near Staples Center which will presumably include a megaplex. This will siphon off available patrons for the Broadway theaters.
Here is an article about the opening of the theater dated 2/10/49:
The formal opening of the new Pioneer Theater at Nebraska City, Neb., which was attended by Mr. and Mrs. John Newcomer and Mr. and Mrs. John Irvin of Chillicothe, was a matter of definite interest to the Chillicotheans as the construction of the Pioneer is very similar to that of the new theater under construction here. They were quite impressed. Both the Griffith theaters are of the “stadium type,” which does away with the need for a balcony. About half way back in the auditorium a “ramping” effect of the rows of seats begins. Under the back section is a sunken lounge, with a foyer in front of the lounge and the lobby in front of that.
Murals done in “black lighting” gave an outstanding effect to the auditorium, Irvin found. The local murals will be 14x30 feet on either side and are to depict a local or area scene or one in keeping with the name of the theater. The Nebraska City theater seats about 900 persons. The Chillicothe theater is to seat about 1,050. “If our theater is as nice as that one it will be one of the outstanding theaters in all North Missouri,” Contractor Irvin said. Some refinements in the local plans may be made, based on what was learned in constructing the Nebraska house. Irvin said he hoped to outdo the work in Nebraska.
Here is a lawsuit between William Goldman and Ruth Kahn in 1941. The theater isn’t mentioned by name, but given that the sale was in 1938, it may have been the County. I don’t know if Goldman had any other theaters in Doylestown at that time: http://tinyurl.com/24emfn
This March 1947 article from the Nevada State Journal mentions the Hi-Way:
Slated to open Friday, March 14, is the new Sparks Theater which has been under construction for the past several months. Built to seat 773 spectators, it is one of the most modern in theater design in the state. The 164 loge seats occupy the last seven seat rows instead of being placed in a balcony. An exaggerated slope to the floor will offer better vision to the theater goers and the cement floor will reduce fire hazard. Coated with a special acoustical plaster which prevents sound reverberation, the auditorium part of the theater is barrel shaped and posseses 12 ultra-violet ray germicide lights. The new building is fire-proof and is equipped with an air conditioning system which constantly changes and filters the air.
The old Hiway Theater, under lease to the T. and D. Enterprises, may run on a part time basis, showing Spanish movies and others on the weekends, the management announced.
The Coliseum Theater at Ninth Avenue and Clement Street, one of San Francisco’s largest neighborhood theaters, was swept by a major fire causing undetermined damage early today. An unidentified motorist at 2:30 a.m. notified a special policeman two blocks from the playhouse that he had seen smoke issuing from the building as he drove past it. An alarm summoned firemen, who broke down the heavy doors of the main entrance. This action, they said, resulted in a draft which caused the entire balcony section of the theater to burst into flames. A second alarm brought additional men and apparatus to the scene and a stubborn battle against the flames began. Five hours later the battle was still in progress.
Reports from the scene said the whole balcony section of the theater had been destroyed and the main floor seriously damaged by smoke and water. Valuable projection and sound equipment also was lost, the report said. The origin of the fire had not been determined, but fire department officials expressed belief that it was caused by a carelessly discarded cigaret in the balcony section, where smoking was permitted. The theater is owned by the San Francisco Theater Corporation, with offices at Taylor Street.
The interior of the vacated Apollo theater at Randolph and Clark Streets in Chicago’s Rialto was destroyed by fire Thursday morning. The fire apparently started in the pit under the stage of the old movie theater and burned up through the roof of the building. The cause of the blaze was not determined immediately. Fire officials did not estimate damages to the structure.
Two wooden buildings, both landmarks of Hancock’s earlier days, were virtually destroyed by fire of undetermined origin Thursday night. The Mason building was gutted by flames that spread in an adjacent apartment building.
The Mason building, which had two apartments upstairs, was built by the late Col. William Mason before the turn of the century. Among the Mason structures threatened was the Orpheum Theater, Hancock’s last. The Kenesaw Theater was destroyed by fire in April.
This article is dated 11/7/60. The total loss comment was apparently premature:
Fire Destroys Alma Theater
ALMA (UPI)â€" An early-morning fire destroyed Alma’s only movie house, the Strand Theater, today with firemen fighting the blaze for more than four hours. Alma Police Chief Robert V. Reed said the blaze was discovered by a newsboy picking up his papers in front of the theater at 4:28 am. The newsboy ran next door to the city hall where the police station is located and shouted, “Mr. Reed, there’s a fire at the Strand.”
Reed said the theater closed at 9 p.m Sunday night, almost 7 ½ hours before the blaze broke out. He said the fire apparently started at the rear of the building and spread rapidly. The roof collapsed and the front of the building caved in. “I’d say it is a total loss.” Reed said “The theater is owned by a Mrs. Cassidy of Midland. But we understand she is in Chicago now and we haven’t been contact her for a loss figure.”
Reed said there was no damage to the city hall or other nearby buildings. One firemen was overcome by smoke and was hospitalized.
Broadway stretches through the heart of Camden, a wide street lined with struggling shops and rotting rowhouses, a three-mile tour of desperation and lost hope. Prostitutes flit between vacant stores and abandoned banks, plying an older form of commerce, while drugs are sold on side streets. The old Towers Theater at Broadway and Pine has been replaced by a Citgo gas station. This road has been down a long time – many of the businesses that didn’t burn during the 1971 riots fled.
According to the Mason City Globe-Gazette, the Cecil opened on June 3, 1912, replacing the Wilson Theater, which was in the same location but had burned to the ground.
I was a member of the LA Conservancy a few years ago. They have interesting walking tours of downtown LA, including a tour of the theaters on Broadway.
Here is a newspaper article dated 9/28/54:
Westminster Gets Drive-In Theater OK
Construction of a drive-in theater at Huntington Beach Blvd. and Trask Ave. in Westminster has been approved by the Orange County Board of Supervisors. The supervisors, in making the approval, reversed a denial for the theater submitted earlier by the county planning commission. The drive-in theater will cost $450,000 and will be built by the Pacific Drive-In Theater chain. It will be known as the Huntington Drive-In Theater and will have the Cinemascope screen. Added feature of the theater is that it will have a super-sized television screen for the presentation of outstanding national events.
Here is an ad dated 3/19/52:
SPRING OPENING OF THE BRADDOCK DRIVE-IN
It Pays To Go The Braddock Way!
$1.00 plus tax – Full Carload
Save baby sitter expense! Bring all the kids along. Free bottle
warming service. No parking worry. Plenty of room!
Your car is your private theatre! Eat! Smoke! Chat!
Control your own speaker volume!
You’re in nature’s own air-conditioning!
One low price admits a carload! Your movie
dollar goes further! Free flat tire changing service!
Don’t dress up! Come as you are! Skip supper and eat at our deluxe
cafeteria!
Now shut-ins and invalids can enjoy movies! Early birds get free
newspapers to read ‘til show starts! Refreshments direct to your
car! Cartoon is first on every program!
The drive-in was damaged by high winds in May 2002:
http://tinyurl.com/2l74kq
On 2/21/60, the Oswego was showing “Ben Hur”. Telephone number was FI 3-3750. The ad states that the Oswego was a Schine theater.
Here is a 1980 obscenity lawsuit involving the Studio Eleven:
http://tinyurl.com/2mdmps
This 1985 lawsuit mentions a twin theater at 2315 North 60th Avenue, Hollywood, Florida, but I don’t know if it’s the Cine 1& 2:
http://tinyurl.com/2wbv5v
There is a nice photo of the Frederick, circa 1940, in the 7/18/95 edition of the Frederick Post. Unfortunately, I can’t reproduce it here. The text is as follows:
The Frederick Theater, since demolished, was located south of the former Social Services building (once JC Penney’s) on North Market Street. It was one of three theaters downtown: The Frederick Theater, The Opera House (old City Hall, next to the Frederick Theater) and The Tivoli Theater (now the Weinberg Center for the Performing Arts).
This blurb is from the April 8, 1965 Chicago Daily Herald, from the days where local papers would print such trivia:
Paul and Jeanne Soucy solved the too-young-for-conversation, too old for pin-the-tail party problem last month. For Michael’s 12th birthday March 14, Paul took the guests out to lunch and then to Chicago for the movie, “Dear Brigitte.” For Joan’s eighth, her group saw “Mary Poppins” at the Glencoe Theatre along with the ice cream and cake at home, 4 Francis Court, March 27.
This theater tried first run films about ten years ago. I don’t know who owned the theater then, but I do recall driving by and seeing a Will Smith movie on the marquee. The success of the Million Dollar is dependent on Angelenos willing to go downtown on a weeknight. The Orpheum has had some success with this. It’s interesting that the Last Remaining Seats program draws lines of people on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, but whether that will happen more than once a year is unknown. You also have to consider the entertainment center being built near Staples Center which will presumably include a megaplex. This will siphon off available patrons for the Broadway theaters.
Here is an article about the opening of the theater dated 2/10/49:
The formal opening of the new Pioneer Theater at Nebraska City, Neb., which was attended by Mr. and Mrs. John Newcomer and Mr. and Mrs. John Irvin of Chillicothe, was a matter of definite interest to the Chillicotheans as the construction of the Pioneer is very similar to that of the new theater under construction here. They were quite impressed. Both the Griffith theaters are of the “stadium type,” which does away with the need for a balcony. About half way back in the auditorium a “ramping” effect of the rows of seats begins. Under the back section is a sunken lounge, with a foyer in front of the lounge and the lobby in front of that.
Murals done in “black lighting” gave an outstanding effect to the auditorium, Irvin found. The local murals will be 14x30 feet on either side and are to depict a local or area scene or one in keeping with the name of the theater. The Nebraska City theater seats about 900 persons. The Chillicothe theater is to seat about 1,050. “If our theater is as nice as that one it will be one of the outstanding theaters in all North Missouri,” Contractor Irvin said. Some refinements in the local plans may be made, based on what was learned in constructing the Nebraska house. Irvin said he hoped to outdo the work in Nebraska.
Here is a lawsuit between William Goldman and Ruth Kahn in 1941. The theater isn’t mentioned by name, but given that the sale was in 1938, it may have been the County. I don’t know if Goldman had any other theaters in Doylestown at that time:
http://tinyurl.com/24emfn
There was a Sparks Theater that opened in March 1947, but apparently was not the one listed above.
This March 1947 article from the Nevada State Journal mentions the Hi-Way:
Slated to open Friday, March 14, is the new Sparks Theater which has been under construction for the past several months. Built to seat 773 spectators, it is one of the most modern in theater design in the state. The 164 loge seats occupy the last seven seat rows instead of being placed in a balcony. An exaggerated slope to the floor will offer better vision to the theater goers and the cement floor will reduce fire hazard. Coated with a special acoustical plaster which prevents sound reverberation, the auditorium part of the theater is barrel shaped and posseses 12 ultra-violet ray germicide lights. The new building is fire-proof and is equipped with an air conditioning system which constantly changes and filters the air.
The old Hiway Theater, under lease to the T. and D. Enterprises, may run on a part time basis, showing Spanish movies and others on the weekends, the management announced.
The owner of the Royal was one R.E. Martin, who had quite a few theaters in the area, according to this lawsuit:
http://tinyurl.com/2trl5s
There was a fire at the Coliseum on July 2, 1935:
The Coliseum Theater at Ninth Avenue and Clement Street, one of San Francisco’s largest neighborhood theaters, was swept by a major fire causing undetermined damage early today. An unidentified motorist at 2:30 a.m. notified a special policeman two blocks from the playhouse that he had seen smoke issuing from the building as he drove past it. An alarm summoned firemen, who broke down the heavy doors of the main entrance. This action, they said, resulted in a draft which caused the entire balcony section of the theater to burst into flames. A second alarm brought additional men and apparatus to the scene and a stubborn battle against the flames began. Five hours later the battle was still in progress.
Reports from the scene said the whole balcony section of the theater had been destroyed and the main floor seriously damaged by smoke and water. Valuable projection and sound equipment also was lost, the report said. The origin of the fire had not been determined, but fire department officials expressed belief that it was caused by a carelessly discarded cigaret in the balcony section, where smoking was permitted. The theater is owned by the San Francisco Theater Corporation, with offices at Taylor Street.
The Apollo was gutted by fire on June 2, 1949:
Fire Guts Vacant Theater In Chicago
The interior of the vacated Apollo theater at Randolph and Clark Streets in Chicago’s Rialto was destroyed by fire Thursday morning. The fire apparently started in the pit under the stage of the old movie theater and burned up through the roof of the building. The cause of the blaze was not determined immediately. Fire officials did not estimate damages to the structure.
Here is an anti-trust lawsuit involving the Rialto, Grove and some other theaters in Elgin:
http://tinyurl.com/3arm8a
Here is an account of the fire on June 26, 1959:
Fire Threatens Business Area Of Hancock
Two wooden buildings, both landmarks of Hancock’s earlier days, were virtually destroyed by fire of undetermined origin Thursday night. The Mason building was gutted by flames that spread in an adjacent apartment building.
The Mason building, which had two apartments upstairs, was built by the late Col. William Mason before the turn of the century. Among the Mason structures threatened was the Orpheum Theater, Hancock’s last. The Kenesaw Theater was destroyed by fire in April.
The correct spelling of the town is Estherville.
This article is dated 11/7/60. The total loss comment was apparently premature:
Fire Destroys Alma Theater
ALMA (UPI)â€" An early-morning fire destroyed Alma’s only movie house, the Strand Theater, today with firemen fighting the blaze for more than four hours. Alma Police Chief Robert V. Reed said the blaze was discovered by a newsboy picking up his papers in front of the theater at 4:28 am. The newsboy ran next door to the city hall where the police station is located and shouted, “Mr. Reed, there’s a fire at the Strand.”
Reed said the theater closed at 9 p.m Sunday night, almost 7 ½ hours before the blaze broke out. He said the fire apparently started at the rear of the building and spread rapidly. The roof collapsed and the front of the building caved in. “I’d say it is a total loss.” Reed said “The theater is owned by a Mrs. Cassidy of Midland. But we understand she is in Chicago now and we haven’t been contact her for a loss figure.”
Reed said there was no damage to the city hall or other nearby buildings. One firemen was overcome by smoke and was hospitalized.
Status should be closed/demolished:
Broadway stretches through the heart of Camden, a wide street lined with struggling shops and rotting rowhouses, a three-mile tour of desperation and lost hope. Prostitutes flit between vacant stores and abandoned banks, plying an older form of commerce, while drugs are sold on side streets. The old Towers Theater at Broadway and Pine has been replaced by a Citgo gas station. This road has been down a long time – many of the businesses that didn’t burn during the 1971 riots fled.
There was a speakeasy above the theater in the 1920s:
http://tinyurl.com/3afxos
According to the Mason City Globe-Gazette, the Cecil opened on June 3, 1912, replacing the Wilson Theater, which was in the same location but had burned to the ground.
I hear that the interior is kind of shabby. Maybe someone can comment who has been in there recently.
I was a member of the LA Conservancy a few years ago. They have interesting walking tours of downtown LA, including a tour of the theaters on Broadway.