According to the norwoodstage.com website, the balcony partition which created the upstairs screen has been removed, so the auditorium is now whole or “single” again.
The Strand in Rome is listed under Kallet Theatres Inc. of Oneida NY in the 1942-43 Motion Picture Almanac. At the time, Kallet also ran the Capitol Theatre and the Family Theatre in Rome.
In the “Theatre Circuits” list in the 1942-43 Motion Picture Almanac, the Strand in Rumford is listed in 2 places. It’s listed as part of the Maine & New Hampshire Theatres Co., 260 Tremont St. in Boston. George W. Lane was Pres. and JJ Ford was Gen. Mgr. It’s also listed under Paramount Theatres, unit 30, John Ford.
No, they don’t offer tours to the public. However, they have provided tours to groups such as the Theatre Historical Society, the Cinema Theatre Association; also, the League of Historic American Theatres toured the Orpheum, I think. I went on a couple of these; someone from the theater greeted the group upon arrival, spoke about the house’s history; then we were free to wander around on our own for 45 minutes or so. All of these tours were in the late-morning or early-afternoon.
Greenliner- I don’t have the actual screen size; however, when the Modern opened it undoubtedly had a small screen as movie theaters in the 1910’s era all had relatively small screens. But by the time I went to the flicks there in the 1950s, 1960s, it had a screen typical of a theater of its size (about 700 seats)– not small, but not huge, just an average movie screen.
Yeah, me too. I have no idea where the Boulevard Theatre was in Revere. The MGM Theatre Report doesn’t list an address other than to say that it’s on “the Boulevard”. It was a big theater.
to dave1954- 1) there was no Empire Theatre on Mass Ave, or any unaccounted-for theater on Mass Ave near Huntington Ave. 2) I have a very vague memory that there was a fairly large German-American restaurant next to the Esquire/Boston Univ. Theatre, to its left, way back around 1950 or so. If you have the exact addresses for these 2 locations, you can go to the Boston Landmarks Commission office in Boston City Hall and look at what they might have there.
The original Bangor Opera House, which Joe Vogel mentions above, was listed in the 1897-98 edition of the Julius Cahn Official Theatrical Guide. The seating was 1,100; the theater was on the ground floor (there are no street addresses in this Guide, unfortunately),Frank and David Owen ran it. The proscenium opening was 31 feet square, and the stage was 38 feet deep. The theater had gas illumination, and 5 musicians in the house orchestra. The 1897 population of Bangor was 25,000.
The Boston Herald today quotes the operator of the new Bijou restaurant and night club opening in Oct on Stuart Street as saying “I wanted to hit on something that really had a history in Boston. ‘Bijou’ really stuck out because it was the first theater in the country to have electricity, and nightclubs are all about lighting, sound and electricity.” The Bijou’s electrical system was installed by Thomas Edison himself and was touted at the time as the first 100% electric theater operation in the USA. I don’t how valid that claim is. Certainly it was one of the very first.
According to the info in the link posted above, there will be Open Houses in Sept. after all, in addition to the Wednesday tours. There will be Open Houses from 4PM to 6Pm on Thurs-Fri, Sept 23-Sept 24; plus from 10AM – 6PM on Sat Sept 25.
The Music Hall is listed under Tarrytown in the 1897-98 edition of the Julius Cahn Official Theatrical Guide. George Vanderbilt was the Mgr; there were 900 seats, and admissions ranged from 35 cents to 75 cents. The theater was on the ground floor and had both gas and electric illumination. The proscenium opening was 26 feet wide X 24 feet high, and the stage was 35 feet deep. Newspapers were the Tarrytown Argus and the Sunnyside Press. Hotels for show folk were the Franklin House, Perry House and Germania House. The railroads were the New York Central & Hudson River, and the New York & Putnam. The 1897 population of Tarrytown was 9,000.
Under Nashville TN in the 1897-98 edition of the Julius Cahn Official Theatrical Guide is a “Theatre Vendome”. T.J. Boyle, who was also the manager of the Grand Opera House in Nashville, was the Mgr. The seating is shown as 1,841 but the breakdown does not quite add up to that: Orchestra 575,Balcony 425, Gallery 800, Boxes 64. There was both gas and electric illumination. Admissions ranged from 25 cents to $1.50. The theater was on the first floor and there were 9 members of the house orchestra. The proscenium opening was 35 feet wide X 40 feet high, and the stage was 45 feet deep. Other Nashville theaters listed were the Grand Opera House with 1,650 seats and the New Masonic Theatre with 1,200 seats. The population of Nashville in 1897 was 100,000.
I have heard that the planned Open House on Sept 25-26 has been dropped. Instead, tours of the Paramount were offered on certain Wednesdays during the month of August.
Another event at the new Modern Theatre will take place in October when Emerson College will receive an award for the design of the Paramount Center nearby.
A follow-up news story about the Taunton City Hall fire says that the Star Th. is indeed located in the old red-brick building on the right side of City Hall. City Hall is also over 100 years old.
On the local Boston TV news today was a story about a fire in the attic of Taunton City Hall. To the right of City Hall is a large, old, red-brick building. I assume that this is the building which contains the Star Theater ??
I’ve read enough about Moore not to trust him or believe what he says. He is a propagandist. But his Leftist heart is in the right place with this project. Maybe the big lovable slob can get some results with these closed-up small-town theaters. Enjoyed reading the lively comments above!
Any idea where this rather odd and unattractive name came from? Was there a cabbage patch nearby? Or maybe a wholesale produce exchange? Or perhaps it was originally built by someone named Cabbage, or named for an earlier meeting hall in the area??
As Staub’s Theatre this house is listed under Knoxville in the 1897-98 edition of the Julius Cahn Official Theatrical Guide. It was managed by Fritz Staub and had 1,150 seats. There was gas illumination, and the theater was on the ground floor. The proscenium opening was 30 feet square, and the stage was 38 feet deep. There were 7 in the house orchestra. On the same page in the Guide there are ads for the Hotel Imperial in Knoxville and the Knoxville Transfer Company which handled theatrical scenary and baggage. Newspapers were the Tribune, Journal, and Sentinel, and hotels for show folk were the Flanders, Imperial, Palace, and the McMillon. Railroad was the Southern. The 1897 population of Knoxville was 45,000.
The Relay House was a hotel in Nahant. Around 1890, it was a seafood restaurant, but it was expanded into a 40-room hotel, and later 10 cottages were added. It was also near the steamboat dock which served local steamboats from Boston. In the circa-1900 era, people did not go far for their summer vacations. Nahant to the north, and Nantasket to the south, were summer “destinations” for folks from Boston. It’s easy to see why the management of the Relay House added a cinema, the Relay Theatre. Got this info from Google.
There is a Grand Opera House listed under Danville in the 1897-98 edition of the Julius Cahn Official Theatrical Guide. Is it the same as the Lincoln Opera House? (there are no street addresses in this Guide, unfortunately). The Grand OH had 1,000 seats, gas and electric illumination, was located on the first floor, had a proscenium opening 32 feet square, and a stage 40 feet deep. There were 7 in the house orchestra, tickets priced at 25 cents to $1. A. Heinly was the house Mgr. The 1897 population of Danville was 18,000.
According to the norwoodstage.com website, the balcony partition which created the upstairs screen has been removed, so the auditorium is now whole or “single” again.
The Strand in Rome is listed under Kallet Theatres Inc. of Oneida NY in the 1942-43 Motion Picture Almanac. At the time, Kallet also ran the Capitol Theatre and the Family Theatre in Rome.
In the “Theatre Circuits” list in the 1942-43 Motion Picture Almanac, the Strand in Rumford is listed in 2 places. It’s listed as part of the Maine & New Hampshire Theatres Co., 260 Tremont St. in Boston. George W. Lane was Pres. and JJ Ford was Gen. Mgr. It’s also listed under Paramount Theatres, unit 30, John Ford.
No, they don’t offer tours to the public. However, they have provided tours to groups such as the Theatre Historical Society, the Cinema Theatre Association; also, the League of Historic American Theatres toured the Orpheum, I think. I went on a couple of these; someone from the theater greeted the group upon arrival, spoke about the house’s history; then we were free to wander around on our own for 45 minutes or so. All of these tours were in the late-morning or early-afternoon.
Joan Cutler, whose family name is on this theater, passed away a couple weeks ago, age 80.
Greenliner- I don’t have the actual screen size; however, when the Modern opened it undoubtedly had a small screen as movie theaters in the 1910’s era all had relatively small screens. But by the time I went to the flicks there in the 1950s, 1960s, it had a screen typical of a theater of its size (about 700 seats)– not small, but not huge, just an average movie screen.
Yeah, me too. I have no idea where the Boulevard Theatre was in Revere. The MGM Theatre Report doesn’t list an address other than to say that it’s on “the Boulevard”. It was a big theater.
to dave1954- 1) there was no Empire Theatre on Mass Ave, or any unaccounted-for theater on Mass Ave near Huntington Ave. 2) I have a very vague memory that there was a fairly large German-American restaurant next to the Esquire/Boston Univ. Theatre, to its left, way back around 1950 or so. If you have the exact addresses for these 2 locations, you can go to the Boston Landmarks Commission office in Boston City Hall and look at what they might have there.
The original Bangor Opera House, which Joe Vogel mentions above, was listed in the 1897-98 edition of the Julius Cahn Official Theatrical Guide. The seating was 1,100; the theater was on the ground floor (there are no street addresses in this Guide, unfortunately),Frank and David Owen ran it. The proscenium opening was 31 feet square, and the stage was 38 feet deep. The theater had gas illumination, and 5 musicians in the house orchestra. The 1897 population of Bangor was 25,000.
The Boston Herald today quotes the operator of the new Bijou restaurant and night club opening in Oct on Stuart Street as saying “I wanted to hit on something that really had a history in Boston. ‘Bijou’ really stuck out because it was the first theater in the country to have electricity, and nightclubs are all about lighting, sound and electricity.” The Bijou’s electrical system was installed by Thomas Edison himself and was touted at the time as the first 100% electric theater operation in the USA. I don’t how valid that claim is. Certainly it was one of the very first.
According to the info in the link posted above, there will be Open Houses in Sept. after all, in addition to the Wednesday tours. There will be Open Houses from 4PM to 6Pm on Thurs-Fri, Sept 23-Sept 24; plus from 10AM – 6PM on Sat Sept 25.
The Music Hall is listed under Tarrytown in the 1897-98 edition of the Julius Cahn Official Theatrical Guide. George Vanderbilt was the Mgr; there were 900 seats, and admissions ranged from 35 cents to 75 cents. The theater was on the ground floor and had both gas and electric illumination. The proscenium opening was 26 feet wide X 24 feet high, and the stage was 35 feet deep. Newspapers were the Tarrytown Argus and the Sunnyside Press. Hotels for show folk were the Franklin House, Perry House and Germania House. The railroads were the New York Central & Hudson River, and the New York & Putnam. The 1897 population of Tarrytown was 9,000.
Under Nashville TN in the 1897-98 edition of the Julius Cahn Official Theatrical Guide is a “Theatre Vendome”. T.J. Boyle, who was also the manager of the Grand Opera House in Nashville, was the Mgr. The seating is shown as 1,841 but the breakdown does not quite add up to that: Orchestra 575,Balcony 425, Gallery 800, Boxes 64. There was both gas and electric illumination. Admissions ranged from 25 cents to $1.50. The theater was on the first floor and there were 9 members of the house orchestra. The proscenium opening was 35 feet wide X 40 feet high, and the stage was 45 feet deep. Other Nashville theaters listed were the Grand Opera House with 1,650 seats and the New Masonic Theatre with 1,200 seats. The population of Nashville in 1897 was 100,000.
The Victory project recently received some sort of grant award/ tax credit from the state.
I have heard that the planned Open House on Sept 25-26 has been dropped. Instead, tours of the Paramount were offered on certain Wednesdays during the month of August.
Another event at the new Modern Theatre will take place in October when Emerson College will receive an award for the design of the Paramount Center nearby.
A follow-up news story about the Taunton City Hall fire says that the Star Th. is indeed located in the old red-brick building on the right side of City Hall. City Hall is also over 100 years old.
On the local Boston TV news today was a story about a fire in the attic of Taunton City Hall. To the right of City Hall is a large, old, red-brick building. I assume that this is the building which contains the Star Theater ??
Many closed-up former movie theaters in England have been converted into Islamic centers/mosques. Quite common there.
I’ve read enough about Moore not to trust him or believe what he says. He is a propagandist. But his Leftist heart is in the right place with this project. Maybe the big lovable slob can get some results with these closed-up small-town theaters. Enjoyed reading the lively comments above!
Any idea where this rather odd and unattractive name came from? Was there a cabbage patch nearby? Or maybe a wholesale produce exchange? Or perhaps it was originally built by someone named Cabbage, or named for an earlier meeting hall in the area??
As Staub’s Theatre this house is listed under Knoxville in the 1897-98 edition of the Julius Cahn Official Theatrical Guide. It was managed by Fritz Staub and had 1,150 seats. There was gas illumination, and the theater was on the ground floor. The proscenium opening was 30 feet square, and the stage was 38 feet deep. There were 7 in the house orchestra. On the same page in the Guide there are ads for the Hotel Imperial in Knoxville and the Knoxville Transfer Company which handled theatrical scenary and baggage. Newspapers were the Tribune, Journal, and Sentinel, and hotels for show folk were the Flanders, Imperial, Palace, and the McMillon. Railroad was the Southern. The 1897 population of Knoxville was 45,000.
So, is this a bona fide theater or not? If not, then this page should be deleted.
The Relay House was a hotel in Nahant. Around 1890, it was a seafood restaurant, but it was expanded into a 40-room hotel, and later 10 cottages were added. It was also near the steamboat dock which served local steamboats from Boston. In the circa-1900 era, people did not go far for their summer vacations. Nahant to the north, and Nantasket to the south, were summer “destinations” for folks from Boston. It’s easy to see why the management of the Relay House added a cinema, the Relay Theatre. Got this info from Google.
There is a Grand Opera House listed under Danville in the 1897-98 edition of the Julius Cahn Official Theatrical Guide. Is it the same as the Lincoln Opera House? (there are no street addresses in this Guide, unfortunately). The Grand OH had 1,000 seats, gas and electric illumination, was located on the first floor, had a proscenium opening 32 feet square, and a stage 40 feet deep. There were 7 in the house orchestra, tickets priced at 25 cents to $1. A. Heinly was the house Mgr. The 1897 population of Danville was 18,000.