Stumbled across this on the Haunted History Facebook page.
History & Haunting of
Plymouth’s Reel Cinema,Plymouth, Devon, England
Plymouth’s Reel Cinema has plenty of claims to fame.
It played host to the likes of The Beatles in the 1960s as well as many others.
And now it reportedly hosts a number of ghosts.
The building was erected on the site of the former Theatre Royal.
And ‘Emily’ is a former actress who reportedly haunts the cinema’s ‘screen two’.
Emily is said to have committed suicide in one of the dressing rooms of the old theatre.
One of the projectionists at the cinema has reportedly seen a woman sitting in one of the front rows wearing a 1940s-style dress.
During the Blitz a German bomb reportedly exploded near the front of the building killing a group of people rushing out of the theatre to get to a nearby bomb shelter.
In 2010 a woman visited the women’s toilets and locked herself in a cubicle.
She became startled when someone or something knocked on the cubicle door.
On opening the door, the woman found no-one there.
A strange young man has also been seen walking around another screen at the cinema.
The man reportedly sits behind someone – but all that can be seen is the seat go down as if someone is sitting there. ? :/
Black Cats Paranormal Channel investigation here >
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zuc9EO_XdTU
In 1758 a theatre was built at the top of George Street in Plymouth. Originally known as the Theatre, Frankfort-Gate, it adopted the name Theatre Royal after King George III and his family visited it in 1789.
The decline in theatre-going caused by the rise in cinema attendance resulted in the building being demolished in 1937. It was replaced by the 2,400-seat Royal Cinema, which opened the following year. The cinema survived the Plymouth Blitz during the Second World War, which destroyed the adjoining hotel and assembly rooms. By 1954 the decline in cinema-going caused by the rise of television led to the cinema’s being partly converted back to a theatre and rechristened as the Theatre Royal Cinema. In 1958 it was renamed the ABC Plymouth. It is now a three-screen cinema known as the Reel Plymouth, run by Reel Cinemas.
Twinned Grand Opening June 8, 1979 – Tom Skerritt and Sigourney Weaver in Ridley Scott’s “Alien” and Ali MacGraw, Dean Paul Martin and Maximilian Schell in Anthony Harvey’s “Players” at the newly twinned Capitol Cinemas in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Print ad, article and photo added courtesy Stephen Leigh.
This is the original Moveum Theatre which was located at 211 Minnesota Avenue N, and is still standing today as a Radio Shack. It was renamed the Electric and then possibly Rialto before the new one was built at a different address. The Moveum operated 1909-1937. Though this photo was dated 1905, so possibly opened earlier. Courtesy Brian Marsh.
I added a page for the Moveum Theatre which was located at 211 Minnesota Avenue N, and is still standing today as a Radio Shack.
That one was renamed the Electric and then Rialto before this one was built. It closed when this one opened in 1937.
Grand Opening as Rialto 1 & Rialto 2 was on June 7, 1974.
Image and description added courtesy Stephen Leigh.
“Oliver Reed, Raquel Welch and Charlton Heston in Richard Lester’s "The Three Musketeers” and George C. Scott and Trish Van Devere in Mike Nichols' “The Day of the Dolphin” open at the newly twinned Rialto Theatre in Edmonton, Alberta."
Description credit Urban Remains, pertains to subsequent photos.
“i’ve been collecting admission tickets for shows held at adler anid sullivan’s garrick theater (1892) from the time it was converted into a television studio in 1951. the most recent acquisition is an original 1954 "welcome travelers” unused complimentary admission ticket offered by the cbs television network.
the recently digitized 8 x 10 photographs document garrick theater’s transition from movie house to television studio (housed in the auditorium). these seldom seen images, taken by everett h.lang, photographers, date to the early 1950’s. note the control booth jammed under the balcony. several early tv programs were filmed at the garrick, with sets and scenery built around the stage.
images courtesy of ryerson and burnham archive, art institute of chicago and bldg. 51 archive."
“The five hundred seat Victoria Theater was built in 1908 as a vaudeville house named Brown’s Opera House by Edmund Joseph Brown, grandfather of Governor Jerry Brown.”
1980 photo as Dave Cooper Cinemas added courtesy Ron Dahme.
So Dave Cooper Cinemas should be added to Previous Names.
Banner and flags look to possibly have been a Grand Re-Opening as such.
1964 photo credit William Reagh.
Stumbled across this on the Haunted History Facebook page.
History & Haunting of Plymouth’s Reel Cinema,Plymouth, Devon, England Plymouth’s Reel Cinema has plenty of claims to fame. It played host to the likes of The Beatles in the 1960s as well as many others. And now it reportedly hosts a number of ghosts. The building was erected on the site of the former Theatre Royal. And ‘Emily’ is a former actress who reportedly haunts the cinema’s ‘screen two’. Emily is said to have committed suicide in one of the dressing rooms of the old theatre. One of the projectionists at the cinema has reportedly seen a woman sitting in one of the front rows wearing a 1940s-style dress. During the Blitz a German bomb reportedly exploded near the front of the building killing a group of people rushing out of the theatre to get to a nearby bomb shelter. In 2010 a woman visited the women’s toilets and locked herself in a cubicle. She became startled when someone or something knocked on the cubicle door. On opening the door, the woman found no-one there. A strange young man has also been seen walking around another screen at the cinema. The man reportedly sits behind someone – but all that can be seen is the seat go down as if someone is sitting there. ? :/
Black Cats Paranormal Channel investigation here > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zuc9EO_XdTU In 1758 a theatre was built at the top of George Street in Plymouth. Originally known as the Theatre, Frankfort-Gate, it adopted the name Theatre Royal after King George III and his family visited it in 1789. The decline in theatre-going caused by the rise in cinema attendance resulted in the building being demolished in 1937. It was replaced by the 2,400-seat Royal Cinema, which opened the following year. The cinema survived the Plymouth Blitz during the Second World War, which destroyed the adjoining hotel and assembly rooms. By 1954 the decline in cinema-going caused by the rise of television led to the cinema’s being partly converted back to a theatre and rechristened as the Theatre Royal Cinema. In 1958 it was renamed the ABC Plymouth. It is now a three-screen cinema known as the Reel Plymouth, run by Reel Cinemas.
October 2019 street view shows the facade still standing, semi trailers stacked in front.
2012 link with additional early history.
https://skyscraperpage.com/forum/showpost.php?p=6868501&postcount=25404&fbclid=IwAR0HGK1dngzixQJzN1JbV1bHlbAzlbQKqbY5zxv1aFz1jow1Al5wIRbJ99E
1931 newspaper image added courtesy AL L Guevara.
New page for the original Moveum Theatre down the street.
http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/62608
Twinned Grand Opening June 8, 1979 – Tom Skerritt and Sigourney Weaver in Ridley Scott’s “Alien” and Ali MacGraw, Dean Paul Martin and Maximilian Schell in Anthony Harvey’s “Players” at the newly twinned Capitol Cinemas in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Print ad, article and photo added courtesy Stephen Leigh.
This is the original Moveum Theatre which was located at 211 Minnesota Avenue N, and is still standing today as a Radio Shack. It was renamed the Electric and then possibly Rialto before the new one was built at a different address. The Moveum operated 1909-1937. Though this photo was dated 1905, so possibly opened earlier. Courtesy Brian Marsh.
Astor marquee on the left. Circa June 1960 photo credit Angelo Cozzi\Mondadori via Getty Images.
https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/couple-walking-hand-in-hand-in-front-of-a-cinema-in-news-photo/472125388?irgwc=1&esource=AFF_GI_IR_TinEye_77643&asid=TinEye&cid=GI&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=TinEye&utm_content=77643
“The Girl Who Came To Supper” premiered at the Broadway Theatre December 8, 1963.
Address is 411 Central Avenue N.
Still standing and for rent, advertised as 6000 square feet.
Last tenant was Downtown Intimates lingerie and CBD products as June 2019. Original facade has been stuccoed over but shape remains.
1938 photo added credit Star Tribune. Description beneath photo.
1919 WWI scrap metal drive photo added courtesy Brian Marsh.
I added a page for the Moveum Theatre which was located at 211 Minnesota Avenue N, and is still standing today as a Radio Shack. That one was renamed the Electric and then Rialto before this one was built. It closed when this one opened in 1937.
Grand Opening as Rialto 1 & Rialto 2 was on June 7, 1974. Image and description added courtesy Stephen Leigh.
“Oliver Reed, Raquel Welch and Charlton Heston in Richard Lester’s "The Three Musketeers” and George C. Scott and Trish Van Devere in Mike Nichols' “The Day of the Dolphin” open at the newly twinned Rialto Theatre in Edmonton, Alberta."
Link with a 1968 article about the Wometco Air Conditioning with photo.
https://www.pbase.com/image/95202644
1950 photo.
Circa 1910 photo as The Capitol Theatre added courtesy Paul Durako.
Enlargeable version of the Overview photo.
http://www.idaillinois.org/cdm/ref/collection/p16614coll2/id/65?fbclid=IwAR21WbupkK1XWehK13neZ846oN_DruTZUyfN2lXrX0UvmTZZMrn6xJY4GaI
Description credit Urban Remains, pertains to subsequent photos.
“i’ve been collecting admission tickets for shows held at adler anid sullivan’s garrick theater (1892) from the time it was converted into a television studio in 1951. the most recent acquisition is an original 1954 "welcome travelers” unused complimentary admission ticket offered by the cbs television network. the recently digitized 8 x 10 photographs document garrick theater’s transition from movie house to television studio (housed in the auditorium). these seldom seen images, taken by everett h.lang, photographers, date to the early 1950’s. note the control booth jammed under the balcony. several early tv programs were filmed at the garrick, with sets and scenery built around the stage. images courtesy of ryerson and burnham archive, art institute of chicago and bldg. 51 archive."
Additional history from below link.
“The five hundred seat Victoria Theater was built in 1908 as a vaudeville house named Brown’s Opera House by Edmund Joseph Brown, grandfather of Governor Jerry Brown.”
https://noehill.com/sf/landmarks/sf215.asp
1980 photo as Dave Cooper Cinemas added courtesy Ron Dahme. So Dave Cooper Cinemas should be added to Previous Names. Banner and flags look to possibly have been a Grand Re-Opening as such.
The Carmen Theatre was the site of the first victims in the 1943 Zoot Suit Riots.
https://www.zinnedproject.org/news/tdih/zoot-suit-riots/