Also, the Village is listed as an orange-rated building (second tier, from Red) on the Chicago Historic Resources Survey, which means that it is subject to a 90-day delay on issuance of a demolition permit, during which time it is researched to decide if it is eligible for landmark protection.
Here is a link to the renovation architect’s page. It seems that Burnham Plaza employed a very sophisticated system to avoid noise from the el. The site also includes an early view of the theater.
Also, the theater wasn’t in the YMCA Hotel space, it was in an adjacent addition, so Robert C. Berlin would not really be an accurate architect for this building.
And he actually lived at 218 N Sheridan in Highland Park, so perhaps this was a Betts & Holcomb design attributed to Mann because a Highland Park architect would be more attractive to local investment.
The Alcyon was announced in the Jan 11, 1925 Chicago Tribune, including a drawing.
“Architect William D. Mann believes suburban business buildings should harmonize architecturally with their surroundings. Therefore when he was commissioned to design a film theater for Highland Park, instead of the usual boxlike structure, overloaded with gingerbread designs, he planned the above attractive piece of architecture along old English lines – a thing of beauty and an asset to the neighborhood.
It is being erected on the north side of Central avenue, east of and near to Sheridan road. The owner now operates the Pearl theater in Highland Park. It’ll not be called “The Capitol” or “The Panorama” or “The Orpheum”! A good old English name will probably be selected—a name in keeping with the architectural charm of the building.
According to Mr. Mann, it will have 1,100 seats, with a regulation stage. The interior decorations will be carried out along old English lines. Instead of a balcony there will be a circle of boxes all around the auditorium. The building will have two stores, with studios on the second floor. The exterior will be plastered, with hand carved timbers and with slate roof. Completion date is set for July 1."
Interestingly, Mann’s studio was adjacent to Betts & Holcomb, who built the similarly Tudor Catlow, Glen, and Deerpath theaters. Surely there was some influence between them.
The architect named in the CHRS is erroneous. His name was actually Adolph Werner.
The Village originally was known as the Germania, for the nearby Germania Club, but the name was quickly changed to the Parkside following the US entry into World War I. The operators, as stated above, were Gumbiner Brothers, who were simultaneously building the similarly German Bertha in Lincoln Square. It became the Gold Coast on September 26, 1931, advertised as “Now One of Chicago’s Most Beautiful and Coziest Talking Picture Palaces”. Edith Rockefeller McCormick was mentioned as a frequent patron. Last mention I can find of the Gold Coast is in 1956. It became the Globe Theater, opening May 25, 1962 following a $50,000 renovation. In 1967 it became the Village with another $50,000 renovation, and later that year was targeted for demolition as part of the Sandburg Village redevelopment area (hence the Village name). As the owner was a State Representative, Schoeninger, whose family had built it, this did not happen. In 1977 some legitimate theater went on there; namely ‘1947’, a play about the deaths of Capone, Bugsy Siegel, and Bugs Moran. It was one of the primary venues for the Chicago International Film Festival, and did very good business as a discount and revival house in the 70s and 80s.
Rumor has it that the theater will close very shortly. Relatively little of the original decor is still visible, including a few auditorium doors and some plaster ornamentation near the screens. If it does not function as a theater again, I hope someone has the vision to engage in some fine adaptive reuse. It might make an elegant restaurant. I hope the marquee comes down, it looks even uglier with its front panel gone.
Those particular pictures were taken from the sidewalk at like 9pm; the big door they ripped in the side of the auditorium has a bunch of big gaps along the edges. But sometimes abandoned theaters are be poorly secured; in fact i’m not even sure the doors were locked, I just didn’t care to find out. If a theater is open you generally ask unless you’re going to be undetected which is difficult because a flash is usually necessary. There’s been a good deal of discussion on this topic on the forums at cinematour.com
All right, i’ll give a pretty detailed assessment of what the building is like now, but I have to warn you, you probably won’t want to hear it if you remember it as a grand theater. Today was the first time I have personally seen inside; I saw more extensive photos a year ago. The exterior looks the same as in the photos posted December 14.
I can’t really tell what, if any, work has gone on there beyond installing the door. There are some cracks around the edges of the door and the auditorium floor is visible. The terra cotta panels removed to install the door are stacked inside the auditorium. I can see what LTS means about the main floor being split and not the balcony; the church must have taken the partition out while they were there. And the balcony is clearly too small to have been split in half, but I can see how it might have worked as a single. Anyway, the interior matches photos i’ve seen from october 2004 exactly. In those photos, the entire interior is shown having been painted, murals and all, in light blue, dark blue, white, gold, and silver. It’s really jarring to do a side-by-side comparison of its 1982-3 condition and its present- it is so stark and unadorned without the murals. I don’t know when this paint dates from- the triplexing? The same debris seen in the 2004 photos, an old RC fridge and a freezer, still sits near the stage in precisely the same position, so I think it’s likely that virtually no work has gone on. It looks to me like the main damage done to the theater in the triplexing was the front of the main floor. Probably, having the murals painted over did much more harm. I don’t think it will ever be restored to its original glory, but maybe, just maybe, the renovation could possibly be completed. At this point, I think it looks bleak. I have photos, but I hesitate to post them.
Well, there’s the Central Park (but that’s in pretty iffy shape) Riviera (poorly painted), the Fine Arts (built as legit), and if we expand to 1920, the Portage. Not having seen it in person, it’s hard to judge, but it may well be the best-kept example.
The balcony was split in two, and the floor theater was seperated from the balcony with a horizontal floor from the balcony to the proscenium. Also, I don’t think this has been mentioned yest, but in 2003 there was consideration of putting senior apartments on the site. And as of 1994 it was a church called “Rest for the Weary Ministries”.
It wasn’t originally a Regal, not until 1999. It had been operated by Rhyan Management. In 1998 there were plans to make it 24-screen to head off the Deer Park theaters, but these never materialized. It originally had 10 screens, adding two, plus party rooms and drive-through ticketing in July 1998. During the planning process Rhyan assured residents that rumors that he would build a 10-, not 8-screen as announced, were untrue.
Broan
commented about
Rochauson
Apr 3, 2006 at 5:50 am
Also, the Village is listed as an orange-rated building (second tier, from Red) on the Chicago Historic Resources Survey, which means that it is subject to a 90-day delay on issuance of a demolition permit, during which time it is researched to decide if it is eligible for landmark protection.
Not that i’m saying anything here, but generally, paying your rent helps to keep your landlord from evicting you.
I notice that in that view, the canopy and vertical sign are missing, and the Cineplex sign is intact. Were those alterations from Meridian?
Here is a link to the renovation architect’s page. It seems that Burnham Plaza employed a very sophisticated system to avoid noise from the el. The site also includes an early view of the theater.
Also, the theater wasn’t in the YMCA Hotel space, it was in an adjacent addition, so Robert C. Berlin would not really be an accurate architect for this building.
According to records at the Chicago Historical Society, this was one of Rapp & Rapp’s earliest projects.
It was originally the Central
The Wilmette was used as the John Colburn Film Studio before reopening in 1966.
If this was actually situated at the SW corner of Clark and Chestnut, then it’s been demolished for some time now.
And he actually lived at 218 N Sheridan in Highland Park, so perhaps this was a Betts & Holcomb design attributed to Mann because a Highland Park architect would be more attractive to local investment.
Mann also designed an addition to the old Moraine Hotel in Highland Park and stores at the SW corner of Sheridan and Park
The Alcyon was announced in the Jan 11, 1925 Chicago Tribune, including a drawing.
“Architect William D. Mann believes suburban business buildings should harmonize architecturally with their surroundings. Therefore when he was commissioned to design a film theater for Highland Park, instead of the usual boxlike structure, overloaded with gingerbread designs, he planned the above attractive piece of architecture along old English lines – a thing of beauty and an asset to the neighborhood.
It is being erected on the north side of Central avenue, east of and near to Sheridan road. The owner now operates the Pearl theater in Highland Park. It’ll not be called “The Capitol” or “The Panorama” or “The Orpheum”! A good old English name will probably be selected—a name in keeping with the architectural charm of the building.
According to Mr. Mann, it will have 1,100 seats, with a regulation stage. The interior decorations will be carried out along old English lines. Instead of a balcony there will be a circle of boxes all around the auditorium. The building will have two stores, with studios on the second floor. The exterior will be plastered, with hand carved timbers and with slate roof. Completion date is set for July 1."
Interestingly, Mann’s studio was adjacent to Betts & Holcomb, who built the similarly Tudor Catlow, Glen, and Deerpath theaters. Surely there was some influence between them.
The architect named in the CHRS is erroneous. His name was actually Adolph Werner.
The Village originally was known as the Germania, for the nearby Germania Club, but the name was quickly changed to the Parkside following the US entry into World War I. The operators, as stated above, were Gumbiner Brothers, who were simultaneously building the similarly German Bertha in Lincoln Square. It became the Gold Coast on September 26, 1931, advertised as “Now One of Chicago’s Most Beautiful and Coziest Talking Picture Palaces”. Edith Rockefeller McCormick was mentioned as a frequent patron. Last mention I can find of the Gold Coast is in 1956. It became the Globe Theater, opening May 25, 1962 following a $50,000 renovation. In 1967 it became the Village with another $50,000 renovation, and later that year was targeted for demolition as part of the Sandburg Village redevelopment area (hence the Village name). As the owner was a State Representative, Schoeninger, whose family had built it, this did not happen. In 1977 some legitimate theater went on there; namely ‘1947’, a play about the deaths of Capone, Bugsy Siegel, and Bugs Moran. It was one of the primary venues for the Chicago International Film Festival, and did very good business as a discount and revival house in the 70s and 80s.
Rumor has it that the theater will close very shortly. Relatively little of the original decor is still visible, including a few auditorium doors and some plaster ornamentation near the screens. If it does not function as a theater again, I hope someone has the vision to engage in some fine adaptive reuse. It might make an elegant restaurant. I hope the marquee comes down, it looks even uglier with its front panel gone.
Those particular pictures were taken from the sidewalk at like 9pm; the big door they ripped in the side of the auditorium has a bunch of big gaps along the edges. But sometimes abandoned theaters are be poorly secured; in fact i’m not even sure the doors were locked, I just didn’t care to find out. If a theater is open you generally ask unless you’re going to be undetected which is difficult because a flash is usually necessary. There’s been a good deal of discussion on this topic on the forums at cinematour.com
Okay, here they are.
View link
All right, i’ll give a pretty detailed assessment of what the building is like now, but I have to warn you, you probably won’t want to hear it if you remember it as a grand theater. Today was the first time I have personally seen inside; I saw more extensive photos a year ago. The exterior looks the same as in the photos posted December 14.
I can’t really tell what, if any, work has gone on there beyond installing the door. There are some cracks around the edges of the door and the auditorium floor is visible. The terra cotta panels removed to install the door are stacked inside the auditorium. I can see what LTS means about the main floor being split and not the balcony; the church must have taken the partition out while they were there. And the balcony is clearly too small to have been split in half, but I can see how it might have worked as a single. Anyway, the interior matches photos i’ve seen from october 2004 exactly. In those photos, the entire interior is shown having been painted, murals and all, in light blue, dark blue, white, gold, and silver. It’s really jarring to do a side-by-side comparison of its 1982-3 condition and its present- it is so stark and unadorned without the murals. I don’t know when this paint dates from- the triplexing? The same debris seen in the 2004 photos, an old RC fridge and a freezer, still sits near the stage in precisely the same position, so I think it’s likely that virtually no work has gone on. It looks to me like the main damage done to the theater in the triplexing was the front of the main floor. Probably, having the murals painted over did much more harm. I don’t think it will ever be restored to its original glory, but maybe, just maybe, the renovation could possibly be completed. At this point, I think it looks bleak. I have photos, but I hesitate to post them.
Well, there’s the Central Park (but that’s in pretty iffy shape) Riviera (poorly painted), the Fine Arts (built as legit), and if we expand to 1920, the Portage. Not having seen it in person, it’s hard to judge, but it may well be the best-kept example.
Send me an email- you can get my address by clicking my name – and i’ll send it to you.
The balcony was split in two, and the floor theater was seperated from the balcony with a horizontal floor from the balcony to the proscenium. Also, I don’t think this has been mentioned yest, but in 2003 there was consideration of putting senior apartments on the site. And as of 1994 it was a church called “Rest for the Weary Ministries”.
Here is its current function: http://www.keytechinc.com/news/KT_PR-mchenry.pdf
There was originally a plan to put a AMC 30 in Burr Ridge, too
It wasn’t originally a Regal, not until 1999. It had been operated by Rhyan Management. In 1998 there were plans to make it 24-screen to head off the Deer Park theaters, but these never materialized. It originally had 10 screens, adding two, plus party rooms and drive-through ticketing in July 1998. During the planning process Rhyan assured residents that rumors that he would build a 10-, not 8-screen as announced, were untrue.
It’s now called the Clearwater Theater. The present website is clearwatertheater.com and a recent photo is at View link
It was last operated as a discount venue by Rhyan Management
Here’s a blog entry mentioning its sale last year