Grand Theatre

In the mid 1970s (I can’t remember exact dates) as manager I hired a local high school senior to work as my Doorman to take tickets. His name was Brett Smith. He was a great kid – smart, funny, hard working, and always willing to help on any project. He was the perfect employee! Brett also played high school football. One Friday evening he did not show up for work, which certainly wasn’t like him. I made a few calls trying to locate him and found out that he was in the hospital. During a footbal game a day earlier he and another player “hit heads” really hard. So hard it broke Brett’s helmet! Sadly he passed away several days later due to the injury. The entire Village was in mourning. While he worked for me Brett had said that his favorite movie was “American Grafitti”. After talking to the rest of the theatre employees we decided to hold a benefit in Brett’s name. I contacted the local distributing agency in Buffalo and they were able to get me a free copy of “American Grafitti”. We advertised the benefit in the Westfield Republican. We were only going to show the movie once on a weekday night when the theatre typically was not open. On that night we sold out all 621 seats and had a few customers standing in the back! It was a great success! All of the money that we took in was given to the Wesfield Academy & Central School to create the Blatt Bros Grand Theatre Brett Smith Memorial Schlorship Fund. The schlorship, which is still awarded today, is given to a high school senior who has worked at a part-time job during their high school years. Brett was a great young man who we unfortunately lost too early. But Brett’s name will always live on through this award. The Grand Theatre touched alot of lives in this community and this memory will always live on in my heart.

The woman listed who is responsible for the listing is Ms. Dibble who at 93 is as sharp as a tack. I had a delightful visit with her this summer at the Patterson Library as she still continues to work there 3 days a week! Amazing!

lostmemory: The site uses the word “proposed” so that was written BEFORE the Lincoln/Bedell park was completed. If we could post photos on CT, I could post a photo of that park with commemorative bricks and benches. It’s very nice, but would rather see the Grand Theatre still standing on that corner and have put Abe and Grace in nearby Moore Park.

I spoke with Tom Tetrault’s wife, Beverly by phone in May but didn’t get to talk with Tom so hopefully I will someday. I will be anxious to read your American Graffiti story! I recently spoke to a man who told me that there was a 6 lane bowling alley in the basement and that some of the wood from the lanes were used to make benches. I know the Westfield address of one bench location so will check it out in the coming days! I was also told that the Patterson Library had 3 Louis Tiffany chandeliers, but they were taken down, stored in the basement and eventually ‘walked off’! I plan to visit the library and take a look at what is hanging over the reference desk now! I realize this has nothing to do with the Grand Theatre, but it’s another interesting Westfield (home to the late, Dr. C.E. Welch who was founder of Welch’s Grape Juice Company) story.

WDG and lostmemory: Thank you so very much for your recent posts about the Grand which is the closest to my heart! This theatre is the one that started my interest in theatres and lead me to CT. I will certainly email you, WDG and now I know the man behind those initials! Is he still in Westfield? Thanks lostmemory for the photos, but the photo is not the art deco theatre that was built in the 1940’s on the corner of Main and Portage after the first Grand Theatre burned. I have photos of the older Grand which was also on Portage but further north on that street. And before the 2 Grand Theatres there was one on Main Street called Main Street Theatre.

And I sincerely hope that your father has exterior and interior photos of the Grand that he can share with me. I know many theatres that are about to close take photos of the marquee and then have prints or paintings made as momentos.

HI, PATSY!!!! SORRY I’VE BEEN OUT OF TOUCH THIS LONG. OUR DRIVE IN IS OPEN NOW AND MY FATHER AND MYSELF STILL REALLY HOPE TO MEET YOU THIS SUMMER. WE OPENED LAST WEEKEND. IF ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO TALK WITH MY FATHER ABOUT ANY PREVIOUSLY OWNED BLATT BROS. THEATRES THEY CAN E MAIL ME AT AS HE WORKED FOR THEM SINCE A TEENAGER AND THE DRIVE IN WE OWN NOW WAS PURCHASED FROM BLATTS, THE CORRY DRIVE IN. I HAVE WORKED THER SINCE A CHILD. MY DAD MANAGED LAWERENCE PARK DRIVE IN, LAKEVIEW DRIVE IN, THE GRAND(WHICH HE OWNED ALSO), AND THE STAR DRIVE INS. HE IS GREAT FRIEND WITH THE BLATT FAMILY STILL TODAY.

The presence of the Grand gave Westfield a visual ‘anchor’ and seemed to give the town a Norman Rockwell-ish feel…a piece of Americana! I still find it hard to believe that the town made such a decision which seemed so ‘right’ at the time…if only it could have hung on it might have become a restored treasure by 2005!

WSL: Do you also have any interior photos as I would truly love to see them! :–)

WSL: I’ve posted many times on this CT website, but the one theatre that is the closest to my heart is the Grand so when I receive notice of a Grand comment that puts a smile on my face though bittersweet as we are discussing a special theatre that is no longer with us. Westfield is a special town in western NYS and the Grand marquee could be seen from almost anywhere on main street so it brought a special atmosphere or aura to the area. And I’m quite sure that most folks of my generation have fond memories of going through the doors of that theatre to see any number of movies starring Hollywood’s best of the best. I do feel that the lighted curved marquee is what truly made the Grand so grand!

WSL: Thanks again for your follow-up Grand memories. Was so nice of Tom to give you a key so you could take your daughter through Westfield’s former ‘house of dreams’! And to read that what Tom said in reference to the town museum wanting to put a projector in the McClurg Mansion was very nice though I don’t believe it was ever done. Do you have any information on what may have happened to some of the interior items such as seats, concession stand, popcorn machine, projectors, etc.? I have mentioned this before, but will mention it again here….I have one of the cement smooth tiles that were part of the exterior walls as a Westfield man was selling them for $1 each so I have that part of the Grand which is some comfort. I don’t recall the wall fabric that you mentioned with the theatre masks, but enjoyed reading your description. I only wish I could have taken one last tour through the building before it was taken from us! I would be very interested in having a set of the Grand photos so would be willing to pay for them. Are the photos digital or 35mm? If they are digital, you could just email them to me. My email address is on my profile page, but it is Upon receiving an email from you I will provide my mailing address. Thanks so very much.

The marquee was curved so that on the corner it actually covered 180 degrees. One end of it could be seen looking south on North Portage Street while the other end of the marquee could be seen on West Main Street looking east from on the viaduct. For years and years it just said “Blatt Bros” on those ends. The theater had a fire at one time (in the 40s I believe), so before then is probably when there was a different marquee. The only marquee I ever knew from my childhood until the end was the big one.

I knew Mr. Mascaro and I also know Mr. Tetreault. I started working there right about the time that Tom left as manager and Bill Gollnitz took over. It was owned by the Blatt Bros Theatres chain the entire time I was there.

I have not lived in Westfiled since 1977, but have returned on a few occasions. Before the theatre was razed I returned to visit it one last time and took my 11 year old daughter with me to show her the house of dreams from my childhood. I called Tom and he gave me the key so I could go in the place. There was no power, but with flashlights the place was able to bring a smile to my face.

I remember being disappointed that the wall fabric featuring the comedy and tragedy masks had been torn down, but the seats remained when I was there. It was also strange that the projectors had been removed. I remember Tom telling me that they wanted to put one in the town museum (the McClurg Mansion). That would have been nice.

I took pictures that I would be glad to share with you.

WSL: When having a recent phone conversation with Joe Kirsch he told me that as far as he knew there never was a bowling alley in the Grand basement even though that has been the story told for years! What can you tell me?