The Pastime Theatre launched here in 1926. It then added sound to remain viable. At its ten-year mark, the Thumb Theatres Circuit owned by C. Harold Shuckert gave the venue a streamline moderne makeover renaming it as the Cass Theatre in 1936. That structure was completely gutted by fire on November 29, 1939 with the structure in place. The theatre was rebuilt using its existing walls. Bathed in blue carpeting and blue and orange seating by Irwin Seating, the theatre reopened on March 1, 1940 with walls covered in Nu-Wall wood paneling. The opening features were Jackie Cooper in “Seventeen” and Andy Devine in “Mutiny on the Blackhawk.” The grand opening marquee can be seen in the photo section.
In 1981, it was renamed the Studio Cinema and returned to English-language films for the next five years. It then reverted back to the moniker of Studio Theatre in its final months of operation.
Architectural plans for the modest $70,000 venue were made by Walter L., Culver, Sr. of San Bernardino for Cabart Theatres Circuit in 1935. In 1990, the theater showed up on the delinquent tax roster and was auctioned off. The theatre appears to have ceased operations on January 28, 1988 - likely at the end of a 10-year leasing agreement - with “Cold Steel” and “Rolling Vengeance.”
Cabart Theatres announced this $125,000 project in 1945 as the War was ending. The theater was designed to hold 1,000 patrons and its interesting feature was to allow for the usage of television which Cabart felt would be important post-War. Its streamline moderne design by architect Hugh Gibbs featured a 110 foot sign tower. Starting out well, the theatre quickly struggled to retain its audience in the correctly-predicted world of television. The theatre had launched May 29, 1946 with Fred MacMurray in “Pardon My Past” & Deanna Durbin in “Because of Him.” But just 7.5 years later, it ended operations with Doris Day in “Calamity Jane” and Peter Lind Hayes in “5000 Fingers of Dr. T.”
Hugh Gibbs was brought back to the project to redesign the facility as a bowling venue. It launched as the Santa Fe Bowl on November 7, 1958. It closed and was demolished in favor of multi-family residences.
The Rivoli was operated by Cabart Theatres Circuit owned by C.A. Caballero and Milt Arthur (Cabart) (and Fanchon & Marco). Harry Arthur had the St. Louis Amusement Circuit that became Arthur Enterprises. Related and yet not the same. The Rivoli closed September 17, 1979 with “The Wanderers” and “American Hot Wax.”
William H. and George F. Brayton launched the Brayton Theatre on July 29, 1925. They added sound to stay current. After shutting down in 1950 for films, the Brayton - then owned by Milton Arthur as part of the Cabart Theatre Circuit - was used as a church and a lodge. But the Brayton made an improbable movie comeback thanks to the community in 1966. The Brayton appears to have finished its run as an ultra-discount double-feature house where all double-features cost just 49 cents a ticket. It appears to have ceased operations on February 25, 1971 with Lee Marvin in “Monte Walsh” playing with Jimmy Stewart in “Cheyenne Social Club”.
Now called the Regal UA Regency, the theatre closed for the COVID-19 pandemic on March 16, 2020. It reopened in July of 2020 but closed in early October along with virtually the entire Cineworld/Regal circuit’s locations. The Regal UA Regency reopened on May 21, 2021.
This theater was announced in May of 1994 and was similar to the 17-screen theatre proposed in Dallas at Forest Lane and Inwood Road that was vetoed by the city two months prior. (That project would end further west on Forest Lane at Webb Chapel Road.) Tinseltown Grapevine was on a 17-acre tract of land off of Highway 114 not far from the DFW Airport in Grapevine and the city was pleased with the 4,000-seat megaplex.
The $20 million theatre had two large, 600-seat auditorium with stadium seating and 75-foot screens. It was across the street from a former Rand Theatre turned Trans-Texas 8-screen location that was aging poorly. Tinseltown launched on December 8, 1995 four months after the Dallas Cinemark 17 had launched. As a gesture, Cinemark donated projection equipment to the downtown, single-screen Palace Theatre.
Tinseltown was a success with short order food and ice cream available at its pizza snack bar and large game room. Tinseltown’s success drove the Hollywood 8 across the highway to sub-run, discount status and then closure. Cinemark would add its branded, XD “Extreme Digital” and D-Box motion seating to the venue. In 2018, it would move the theater to all-recliner seating under the banner of Cinemark Tinseltown Grapevine and XD.
Thanks for that update! Indeed, the Home Theatre’s front did collapse on March 10, 1933 during the earthquake. Unfortunately, one woman was killed when the canopy fell on her. The theatre closed permanently on March 9, 1933 with two features supported by a Charlie Chaplin short and a serial. The building does appear to have been rebuilt for other retail purposes.
Original architect was Robert C. Aldrich in 1924/5 who described the venue as a Spanish architectural theme with a sloped floor with six feet pitch for clear viewing angles. The Style D Wurlitzer organ was said to be the biggest in town.
Seminole Mall opened theatre-less in 1965. The center was enlarged in 1970 bringing about what was announced as a four-screen theatre by American Multi-Cinema (AMC Theatres) which was expanding with four locations in Florida in 1970 including its fourth six-plex in Tampa. When AMC launched the Seminole 2 on June 17, 1971 with “True Grit” and “Cactus Flower” it had obviously been reduced to a twin-screen venue. A formal grand opening was held two days later.
In 1979, the AMC Seminole 2 was demoted to discount, sub-run $1 house. AMC dropped the theatre on January 30, 1994.
Renamed Teatro Azteca in 1938. Played Italian films and Spanish language films and was operated by Diertrich & Feldstein. A dance hall was housed on the second floor. In the 1940s, it dropped Italian films switching to full time Spanish langauge films for more than four decades. The theatre was remodeled in 1971 as the New Azteca Theater and the early 1980s as Teatro Azteca. It was closed by law enforcement on March 31, 1989 for safety reasons and appears to have closed permanently. Its proper name is Teatro Azteca which it operated as for more than 40 years closing with that name.
Alfred Morganstern launched the Broadway Theatre on Third Street on July 11, 1904 with live vaudeville opening with Maude Still and after five live acts, new moving pictures. On April 2, 1907, the remodeled Broadway became the Unique Theatre with vaudeville opening with Tommy Ryers and his trained monkeys and the Unique-o-Scope with some pictures on the screen. On October 5, 1913, the remodeled Unique became the Savoy Theatre opening and closing the evening with movies on the aluminoid screen and five live vaudeville acts between. On October 7, 1921, the remodeled Savoy became the Rialto Theatre.
A nitrate film explosion on March 21, 1930 closed the theater in need of a new projection booth. Lester P. Humphrey (no “s”) was the tough luck new operator of the charred venue. A remodeling effort took place with the theater relaunching remaining as the Rialto Theatre. Humphrey then sold the venue to James and Donald G. Knapp on July 9, 1932. The elder Knapp also had run the Temple and Strand prior to his death in 1933. The theater got a new marquee and a streamline look in 1936. Dietriech and Feldman remodeled the Rialto in 1946. The theatre devolved into a house playing exploitation and “adults only” film titles closing at the end of 1948.
On May 4, 1949, the theatre came back under new operators as the State Theatre with Jackie Cooper in “Where Are Your Children?” and “Are These Your Parents?” The operators promised “always a good show” for 25 cents - a rule that was violated on the very first day of operation. The State Theater’s policy changed to burlesque on September 21, 1951 with comedian “Little Jack Little” direct from Las Vegas and Lorraine Lee. Shows were 83 cents. That may have ended after the November 3, 1951 show that also featured Dempsey v. Willard boxing highlights. In 1953, the venue was used as a house of worship “at the State Theatre” and then called the Revival Center in 1958.
Likely shouldn’t be referenced as the Savoy Theatre.
The Fox West Coast California Theatre reopened after a major remodeling in June of 1955. The circuit dropped the Fox thereafter on June 21, 1955 with “The Magnificent Matador” in CinemaScope and “Hell’s Island” in VistaVision. In June of 1956, the Salvation Army converted the space for storage.
With all due respect to the San Bernardino Public Library, the theater opened as the Family Theatre. The original Family Theatre had opened in 1899 elsewhere in downtown. But this venue’s theatrical history dates back to when the Family Theatre converted here launching August 16, 1911 with Luigi Romano Borgnetto in “The Fall of Troy” and supposedly the West Coast premiere of Mutt and Jeff in “Mutt and Jeff Break Into Society.” The theatre became the Liberty Theatre on February 2, 1912. On August 6, 1913, it relaunched as the Isis Theatre with “The Long Strike,” Baby Earle in “An Energetic Member,” and “The Fear.” Even though it was still listed in the 1932 directory, it appears that Mrs. E.H. Loring closed up after showings on December 2, 1929 as more modern showplaces were getting the audiences - if not superior sound reproduction and presentation.
E.H. Dowell opened here as the Auditorium Theater on May 16, 1910 with motion pictures. Dowell was also manager of the La Petite and Star theatre in the Nickelodeon, show-store era. This theatre was an advance with an orchestra and multiple projectors. Carl Ray took on the venue and it was converted after a $10,000 refresh to the Strand Theatre on March 8, 1917. It converted to sound and changed names to the Ritz theatre on March 6, 1930. It became an adult theater just after Christmas of 1968. It closed in 1991 under the operation as a Pussycat Adult Theatre and was demolished.
The Temple Theatre opened with motion pictures on November 19, 1909. It rewired for sound to stay relevant continuing into the television era. It was reopened as the short-lived Capri Theatre on August 18, 1959 and repositioned as an art house playing “Henry V” for Fox West Coast Theatres. The art policy was discontinued in March of 1960 and the theatre became a grind house with double-features playing continuously. The theatre losed permanently on July 4, 1960 with “Alias Jesse James,” “Pork Chop Hill” and an edited version of the Johannson v. Patterson prize fight. The theatre was then razed for a parking lot.
The Pastime Theatre launched here in 1926. It then added sound to remain viable. At its ten-year mark, the Thumb Theatres Circuit owned by C. Harold Shuckert gave the venue a streamline moderne makeover renaming it as the Cass Theatre in 1936. That structure was completely gutted by fire on November 29, 1939 with the structure in place. The theatre was rebuilt using its existing walls. Bathed in blue carpeting and blue and orange seating by Irwin Seating, the theatre reopened on March 1, 1940 with walls covered in Nu-Wall wood paneling. The opening features were Jackie Cooper in “Seventeen” and Andy Devine in “Mutiny on the Blackhawk.” The grand opening marquee can be seen in the photo section.
Listed as a Cabart Theatre in 1936, Fox took control of this location on September 15, 1936 - its third location in town.
In 1981, it was renamed the Studio Cinema and returned to English-language films for the next five years. It then reverted back to the moniker of Studio Theatre in its final months of operation.
Architectural plans for the modest $70,000 venue were made by Walter L., Culver, Sr. of San Bernardino for Cabart Theatres Circuit in 1935. In 1990, the theater showed up on the delinquent tax roster and was auctioned off. The theatre appears to have ceased operations on January 28, 1988 - likely at the end of a 10-year leasing agreement - with “Cold Steel” and “Rolling Vengeance.”
Cabart Theatres announced this $125,000 project in 1945 as the War was ending. The theater was designed to hold 1,000 patrons and its interesting feature was to allow for the usage of television which Cabart felt would be important post-War. Its streamline moderne design by architect Hugh Gibbs featured a 110 foot sign tower. Starting out well, the theatre quickly struggled to retain its audience in the correctly-predicted world of television. The theatre had launched May 29, 1946 with Fred MacMurray in “Pardon My Past” & Deanna Durbin in “Because of Him.” But just 7.5 years later, it ended operations with Doris Day in “Calamity Jane” and Peter Lind Hayes in “5000 Fingers of Dr. T.”
Hugh Gibbs was brought back to the project to redesign the facility as a bowling venue. It launched as the Santa Fe Bowl on November 7, 1958. It closed and was demolished in favor of multi-family residences.
hpThe Towne was opened by Cabart Theatres Circuit owned by C.A. Caballero and Milt Arthur (Cabart) (and Fanchon & Marco).
Opened October 15, 1936 with Swing Time and Adventure in Manhattan for Cabart Theatre Circuit.
The Rivoli was operated by Cabart Theatres Circuit owned by C.A. Caballero and Milt Arthur (Cabart) (and Fanchon & Marco). Harry Arthur had the St. Louis Amusement Circuit that became Arthur Enterprises. Related and yet not the same. The Rivoli closed September 17, 1979 with “The Wanderers” and “American Hot Wax.”
William H. and George F. Brayton launched the Brayton Theatre on July 29, 1925. They added sound to stay current. After shutting down in 1950 for films, the Brayton - then owned by Milton Arthur as part of the Cabart Theatre Circuit - was used as a church and a lodge. But the Brayton made an improbable movie comeback thanks to the community in 1966. The Brayton appears to have finished its run as an ultra-discount double-feature house where all double-features cost just 49 cents a ticket. It appears to have ceased operations on February 25, 1971 with Lee Marvin in “Monte Walsh” playing with Jimmy Stewart in “Cheyenne Social Club”.
In January of 1931, it changed names from the Ramona and became the short-lived New Redondo Theatre
The theatre is listed until the end of March 1998 which times out with the end of a 25-year lease - likely the end of the theater’s operation.
Now called the Regal UA Regency, the theatre closed for the COVID-19 pandemic on March 16, 2020. It reopened in July of 2020 but closed in early October along with virtually the entire Cineworld/Regal circuit’s locations. The Regal UA Regency reopened on May 21, 2021.
This theater was announced in May of 1994 and was similar to the 17-screen theatre proposed in Dallas at Forest Lane and Inwood Road that was vetoed by the city two months prior. (That project would end further west on Forest Lane at Webb Chapel Road.) Tinseltown Grapevine was on a 17-acre tract of land off of Highway 114 not far from the DFW Airport in Grapevine and the city was pleased with the 4,000-seat megaplex.
The $20 million theatre had two large, 600-seat auditorium with stadium seating and 75-foot screens. It was across the street from a former Rand Theatre turned Trans-Texas 8-screen location that was aging poorly. Tinseltown launched on December 8, 1995 four months after the Dallas Cinemark 17 had launched. As a gesture, Cinemark donated projection equipment to the downtown, single-screen Palace Theatre.
Tinseltown was a success with short order food and ice cream available at its pizza snack bar and large game room. Tinseltown’s success drove the Hollywood 8 across the highway to sub-run, discount status and then closure. Cinemark would add its branded, XD “Extreme Digital” and D-Box motion seating to the venue. In 2018, it would move the theater to all-recliner seating under the banner of Cinemark Tinseltown Grapevine and XD.
Thanks for that update! Indeed, the Home Theatre’s front did collapse on March 10, 1933 during the earthquake. Unfortunately, one woman was killed when the canopy fell on her. The theatre closed permanently on March 9, 1933 with two features supported by a Charlie Chaplin short and a serial. The building does appear to have been rebuilt for other retail purposes.
Original architect was Robert C. Aldrich in 1924/5 who described the venue as a Spanish architectural theme with a sloped floor with six feet pitch for clear viewing angles. The Style D Wurlitzer organ was said to be the biggest in town.
Seminole Mall opened theatre-less in 1965. The center was enlarged in 1970 bringing about what was announced as a four-screen theatre by American Multi-Cinema (AMC Theatres) which was expanding with four locations in Florida in 1970 including its fourth six-plex in Tampa. When AMC launched the Seminole 2 on June 17, 1971 with “True Grit” and “Cactus Flower” it had obviously been reduced to a twin-screen venue. A formal grand opening was held two days later.
In 1979, the AMC Seminole 2 was demoted to discount, sub-run $1 house. AMC dropped the theatre on January 30, 1994.
Just to clarify that the cinema was the neighbor to the former Kilgore Value Mart Drug turned Rite-Aid now Dollar Tree.
Located in the Rainsville Plaza at 42 McCurdy Avenue North, a Rite-Aid followed by a Dollar Tree were the main features in the plaza.
Renamed Teatro Azteca in 1938. Played Italian films and Spanish language films and was operated by Diertrich & Feldstein. A dance hall was housed on the second floor. In the 1940s, it dropped Italian films switching to full time Spanish langauge films for more than four decades. The theatre was remodeled in 1971 as the New Azteca Theater and the early 1980s as Teatro Azteca. It was closed by law enforcement on March 31, 1989 for safety reasons and appears to have closed permanently. Its proper name is Teatro Azteca which it operated as for more than 40 years closing with that name.
Alfred Morganstern launched the Broadway Theatre on Third Street on July 11, 1904 with live vaudeville opening with Maude Still and after five live acts, new moving pictures. On April 2, 1907, the remodeled Broadway became the Unique Theatre with vaudeville opening with Tommy Ryers and his trained monkeys and the Unique-o-Scope with some pictures on the screen. On October 5, 1913, the remodeled Unique became the Savoy Theatre opening and closing the evening with movies on the aluminoid screen and five live vaudeville acts between. On October 7, 1921, the remodeled Savoy became the Rialto Theatre.
A nitrate film explosion on March 21, 1930 closed the theater in need of a new projection booth. Lester P. Humphrey (no “s”) was the tough luck new operator of the charred venue. A remodeling effort took place with the theater relaunching remaining as the Rialto Theatre. Humphrey then sold the venue to James and Donald G. Knapp on July 9, 1932. The elder Knapp also had run the Temple and Strand prior to his death in 1933. The theater got a new marquee and a streamline look in 1936. Dietriech and Feldman remodeled the Rialto in 1946. The theatre devolved into a house playing exploitation and “adults only” film titles closing at the end of 1948.
On May 4, 1949, the theatre came back under new operators as the State Theatre with Jackie Cooper in “Where Are Your Children?” and “Are These Your Parents?” The operators promised “always a good show” for 25 cents - a rule that was violated on the very first day of operation. The State Theater’s policy changed to burlesque on September 21, 1951 with comedian “Little Jack Little” direct from Las Vegas and Lorraine Lee. Shows were 83 cents. That may have ended after the November 3, 1951 show that also featured Dempsey v. Willard boxing highlights. In 1953, the venue was used as a house of worship “at the State Theatre” and then called the Revival Center in 1958.
Likely shouldn’t be referenced as the Savoy Theatre.
Was a $2.7 million theater with 1,600 seats
The Fox West Coast California Theatre reopened after a major remodeling in June of 1955. The circuit dropped the Fox thereafter on June 21, 1955 with “The Magnificent Matador” in CinemaScope and “Hell’s Island” in VistaVision. In June of 1956, the Salvation Army converted the space for storage.
With all due respect to the San Bernardino Public Library, the theater opened as the Family Theatre. The original Family Theatre had opened in 1899 elsewhere in downtown. But this venue’s theatrical history dates back to when the Family Theatre converted here launching August 16, 1911 with Luigi Romano Borgnetto in “The Fall of Troy” and supposedly the West Coast premiere of Mutt and Jeff in “Mutt and Jeff Break Into Society.” The theatre became the Liberty Theatre on February 2, 1912. On August 6, 1913, it relaunched as the Isis Theatre with “The Long Strike,” Baby Earle in “An Energetic Member,” and “The Fear.” Even though it was still listed in the 1932 directory, it appears that Mrs. E.H. Loring closed up after showings on December 2, 1929 as more modern showplaces were getting the audiences - if not superior sound reproduction and presentation.
E.H. Dowell opened here as the Auditorium Theater on May 16, 1910 with motion pictures. Dowell was also manager of the La Petite and Star theatre in the Nickelodeon, show-store era. This theatre was an advance with an orchestra and multiple projectors. Carl Ray took on the venue and it was converted after a $10,000 refresh to the Strand Theatre on March 8, 1917. It converted to sound and changed names to the Ritz theatre on March 6, 1930. It became an adult theater just after Christmas of 1968. It closed in 1991 under the operation as a Pussycat Adult Theatre and was demolished.
The Temple Theatre opened with motion pictures on November 19, 1909. It rewired for sound to stay relevant continuing into the television era. It was reopened as the short-lived Capri Theatre on August 18, 1959 and repositioned as an art house playing “Henry V” for Fox West Coast Theatres. The art policy was discontinued in March of 1960 and the theatre became a grind house with double-features playing continuously. The theatre losed permanently on July 4, 1960 with “Alias Jesse James,” “Pork Chop Hill” and an edited version of the Johannson v. Patterson prize fight. The theatre was then razed for a parking lot.