The predecessor of the Rialto that was on the same site, the Grand Theatre, was listed in the 1914-1915 American Motion Picture Directory as the Grand Opera House, but with the address 40 Grove Ave. While it may be that the lot numbers were shifted sometime after the Rialto was built, neither address is in use today, the greater part of that block now being under the footprint of the Fountain Square Condominium project, which uses the address 50 S. Grove.
A history of Elgin has this to say about the Rialto:
“The Grand was rebuilt and opened as the Rialto in April 1921, with Orpheum Circuit vaudeville acts and Norma Talmadge in ‘The Passion Flower.’ It had a seating capacity of about 1,350 and cost upwards of $130,000. Patrons had a complete view of the stage from every section, even though the last row of seats was more than one hundred feet away. The stage had a frontage of seventy-two feet and was thirty feet deep.”
Here is an item from the May 5, 1923 issue of The Moving Picture World:
“Ralph Crocker of Elgin, prominent in the film circles of the northern part of the state, now says that the new house he is building in Elgin will be ready by June 1st. and will be known as the Crocker Theatre. It will seat 1,700.”
We are missing three akas for this house, and its original opening date. It was opened as Lenney’s Elite Theatre on January 22, 1921. The first operator, J. M. Lenney, had owned two theaters in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and sold one to finance his California venture. He bested Sid Grauman in a competition for the lease on the new house and also secured the Long Beach franchise from Associated First National Pictures, Inc., opening with their feature film “Dinty” and an assortment of short subjects.
Despite his experience a an exhibitor, Mr. Lenney did not succeed with the Elite Theatre, and it closed in early May. The owners of the theater then entered an arrangement with the Harry Corson Clarke Players, a stock company. The opening of the renamed Empire Theatre was scheduled for May 30, but delays in preparing the house for stage productions pushed the actual opening date back to June 6.
Sadly, the Clarke Players had no more luck with the house than Mr. Lenney, and the Empire closed on June 9. Another stock company then took over, opening (after another, more extensive remodeling of the stage facilities) on September 11. The third time, however, was not a charm, and the Empire went dark again on October 3. Another stock company attempted to revive the Empire, opening on December 11, but lasted less than a year, as by early October, 1922 the theater had been renamed the Mission and was again presenting photoplays.
After Fox West Coast took control of the house in 1936, it was advertised for some time as the Fox Long Beach Theatre, the second missing aka, before returning to the simple Long Beach Theatre name. In the late 1940s, when Fox West Coast was required to divest itself of many of its theaters, the Long Beach came under the control of the United Artists circuit, and for the last brief period of its existence was advertised as the UA Long Beach Theatre, the last of the missing akas.
This article from the Kirksville Daily Express mentions two early theaters that we don’t have listed at Cinema Treasures (the article also mentions the Gem, Colonial, and Family, and discusses the Princess and Kennedy a bit more.) One we don’t have listed was called the Harrington, which was in a building of its own, not part of a hotel, so it’s possible that this house on Elson Street was the other missing theater, which was called the Liberty.
The article says that the Liberty pre-dated the Princess, so it could have been there in 1914, even though it isn’t listed in the 1914-1915 American Motion Picture Directory. The article also says the Liberty was advertised in October, 1924, and I found it mentioned in the December 13 issue of Exhibitor’s Trade Review that same year. It was then being operated by a fellow named D. J. Michael.
A document from the Missouri Office of Historic Preservation credits local architect Irwin Dunbar with the design of the Kennedy Theatre. While it’s possible that Dunbar only acted as supervising architect for the Levine Company, it’s also possible that he did design the theater. He had designed the Princess Theatre for the same owners a little over a decade earlier, and he designed some local churches and office buildings that are quite as good as the Kennedy.
This article from the Kirksville Daily Express gives the opening date of the Princess Theatre as February 29, 1916. The first event was a five-act play called “Misleading Lady.” The Princess closed in 1957.
A document from the Missouri Department of Historic Preservation says that the Princess Theatre opened in 1915 and was designed by local Kirksville architect Irwin Dunbar.
The Royal was in operation by 1921, when the July 2 issue of Exhibitors Herald said that Mrs. H. M. Goodson had installed a new ventilation system in the house.
The only theater listed at Norborne in the 1914-1915 American Motion Picture Directory was called the Phoenix Theatre, which must have been the 300-seat upstairs house listed that year as the Phoenix Opera House in Gus Hill’s directory. I doubt the Royal and Phoenix were the same theater.
The only movie house listed at Prague in the 1914-1915 American Motion Picture Directory was called the Picture Show Theatre. Was this an aka for the Savoy, or was it a rival theater?
Numerous issues of Boxoffice from 1948 and 1949 have capsule movie reviews from an R. E. Halstead of the Tri-Town Theatre in Lindstrom. I wonder if this could have been the Princess reopened under a new name? The October 1, 1949 Boxoffice reported the sale of the Tri-Town, and the last reviews by Mr. Halstead appear in that same issue. There are later mentions of the house from other sources, the latest being the 1951 yearbook from the local high school, but I’ve found nothing more in the trade journals.
Chakeres' Fairborn Theatre opened on January 27, 1948, according to Boxoffice of April 3 that year. The architects were Zeller & Hunter (Lloyd Zeller and Herman Hunter) of Springfield, Ohio. The building was listed on the NRHP in 2005.
The October 2, 1948 issue of Boxoffice said that the Family Outdoor Theatre recently opened near Grayslake had been designed by architects Arthur Swanson and Associates.
A comment by architect George A. Eheling in the September 22, 1948 issue of The Exhibitor says that he designed the Bridge Theatre in Bedford, Virginia.
A comment by architect George A. Eheling in the September 22, 1948 issue of The Exhibitor says that he designed the Lee Theatre in Roanoke. It’s likely that Eubank & Caldwell acted as supervising architects for Eheling, whose office was in Cleveland, Ohio.
Also, note the correct address and current use for the Lee’s building in my previous comment.
A list of theaters operated by Balaban & Katz as of October 1, 1949 included the Princess in Toledo. This has me wondering if the September 29, 1948 item in The Exhibtor that says “[p]lans for the modernistic B and K house in Toledo, 0., were completed by Holabird and Root, architects….” was about the Princess. The only other Publix house we have listed in Toledo was the Paramount, and I can’t find anything about a remodeling of that theater in 1948, while there are multiple references to the Princess being remodeled that year.
This house apparently did operate as the Columbia Theatre for a while before being renamed Princess. It was listed as the Columbia in the 1914-1915 American Motion Picture Directory. The name was probably changed not long after the Directory went to press, though, as the original Princess on Summit Street had already closed. The “modernistic” 1948 remodel must have been mostly on the inside, as in later photos the basic form and many details of the exterior were still recognizable from original architect Sidney E. Aftel’s 1913 photo of the Columbia.
An item about the 35th Anniversary of the Cote Theatre appeared in The Exhibitor of September 29, 1948. It said that the house originally opened on November 21, 1913.
A book called Lost Auburn: A Village Remembered in Period Photographs, by Ralph Draughon says that the Tiger Theatre closed on April 26, 1984. Downtown Auburn’s two other movie theaters, the Village and the War Eagle, both closed the following year.
The Village was opened in May, 1969. It was situated on Gay Street, a bit north of Magnolia, and was either converted into or replaced by a building for Auburn Bank. It ran its last movies on September 26, 1985.
This house opened in late 1948. There might also be a problem with the address of this theater, unless the street name has been changed since 1948. 1948 trade journal items about the new house under construction at Stowe give its location as Smugglers Notch Road. It might be that the Mountain Road address belonged to an earlier Stowaway Theatre, of which the October 2, 1948 issue of Boxoffice said “[t]he Stowaway Theatre, Stowe, Vt., has been closed permanently and all the equipment has been pulled out. The town will not be long without a theatre, however, as a new 350-seat house is under construction and should be ready for a December opening.”
The new house was described in this item from the October 9 issue of Boxoffice:
“Two enterprising young skiing enthusiasts, Holmes Welch of Boston and John Flint of Bellows Falls, Vt., former classmates at Harvard, have completed plans for a resort center in Stowe, Vt., which will house a 350-seat theatre.
“Designed by John Pierce in association with Anderson & Beckwith, Boston architects, the center is located on Smugglers Notch road in the Mt. Mansfield section. The center includes the theatre, a sporting goods store, bowling alleys, an outdoor ice skating rink, a dance hall and restaurant. The interior of the building, decorated in curly birch, is so arranged that each section can be seen from the main entrance. This results from the free use of glass partitions and the many floor levels which give the interior a rambling, old-fashioned appearance. The trim, wide-eaved building will gleam barn-red in the snow.
“The theatre itself has acoustics designed by the MIT Acoustical Laboratory as well as modern ventilation and sound systems. Kroehler pushback seats have been ordered. An interesting feature of the theatre is the pitch of the floor is steeper than necessary for the 350-seat space, thus allowing ample room to expand the theatre by pushing back the rear wall should the occasion arise. The entire center will cost $230,000 and is set for an early December opening. The theatre will be operated by Welch and will have evening shows and matinees when the weather is bad. It is the fore-runner of several such resort centers in popular winter and summer sports sections throughout the country.”
I’ve been unable to find anything about John W. Pierce, and it occurs to me that he might not have been a licensed architect, but maybe was the person who came up with the overall concept of the project. Lawrence B. Anderson and Herbert L. Beckwith were quite well known, though, being principals of the firm of Anderson, Beckwith & Haible. Both were professors at MIT, Anderson eventually becoming dean of the School of Architecture and Planning. Beckwith was a major figure in the Modern movement, with many significant commissions to his credit.
This item datelined Stowe appeared in the September 1, 1948 issue of The Exhibitor, and also gives the location of the project as Smugglers Notch Road:
“A theatre of 350 seats is nearing
completion on the Smugglers Notch Road. It is part of a physical plant which will also contain a bowling alley and a recreation center, all of which will be open for year-round business. The building is located within eight miles of Waterbury, Vt., and not more than four miles from Morrisville, Vt. The structure-to-be is the property of the Stowe Center Associates, Inc., a concern which plans to duplicate this project in other sections of the country which cater to vacationists. One of the skiing centers, Mt. Mansfield, is in this area. Incidently, [sic] Lowell Thomas has interests in this sector. Architects for the theatre are John W. Pierce, Lawrence Anderson, and Herbert L. Beckwith, all of Boston.”
The predecessor of this house must have been the project noted in the September 1, 1948 issue of The Exhibitor, which was to be a 350-seat theater operating as part of a complex that included a bowling alley and a recreation center, all to be open year-round.
The August 18, 1948 issue of The Exhibitor said that the Dipson circuit’s new theater in the Lyell Avenue shopping center was designed by architect R. E. Van Alstine. I’ve been unable to find any other references to an architect of that name, though it does sound vaguely familiar. Perhaps a typo was involved, but if so I can’t puzzle out what the name should have been.
The predecessor of the Rialto that was on the same site, the Grand Theatre, was listed in the 1914-1915 American Motion Picture Directory as the Grand Opera House, but with the address 40 Grove Ave. While it may be that the lot numbers were shifted sometime after the Rialto was built, neither address is in use today, the greater part of that block now being under the footprint of the Fountain Square Condominium project, which uses the address 50 S. Grove.
A history of Elgin has this to say about the Rialto:
This theater is listed in the 1914-1915 American Motion Picture Directory as the Grand Opera House, and the address is given as 40 Grove Ave.
Here is an item from the May 5, 1923 issue of The Moving Picture World:
We are missing three akas for this house, and its original opening date. It was opened as Lenney’s Elite Theatre on January 22, 1921. The first operator, J. M. Lenney, had owned two theaters in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and sold one to finance his California venture. He bested Sid Grauman in a competition for the lease on the new house and also secured the Long Beach franchise from Associated First National Pictures, Inc., opening with their feature film “Dinty” and an assortment of short subjects.
Despite his experience a an exhibitor, Mr. Lenney did not succeed with the Elite Theatre, and it closed in early May. The owners of the theater then entered an arrangement with the Harry Corson Clarke Players, a stock company. The opening of the renamed Empire Theatre was scheduled for May 30, but delays in preparing the house for stage productions pushed the actual opening date back to June 6.
Sadly, the Clarke Players had no more luck with the house than Mr. Lenney, and the Empire closed on June 9. Another stock company then took over, opening (after another, more extensive remodeling of the stage facilities) on September 11. The third time, however, was not a charm, and the Empire went dark again on October 3. Another stock company attempted to revive the Empire, opening on December 11, but lasted less than a year, as by early October, 1922 the theater had been renamed the Mission and was again presenting photoplays.
After Fox West Coast took control of the house in 1936, it was advertised for some time as the Fox Long Beach Theatre, the second missing aka, before returning to the simple Long Beach Theatre name. In the late 1940s, when Fox West Coast was required to divest itself of many of its theaters, the Long Beach came under the control of the United Artists circuit, and for the last brief period of its existence was advertised as the UA Long Beach Theatre, the last of the missing akas.
This article from the Kirksville Daily Express mentions two early theaters that we don’t have listed at Cinema Treasures (the article also mentions the Gem, Colonial, and Family, and discusses the Princess and Kennedy a bit more.) One we don’t have listed was called the Harrington, which was in a building of its own, not part of a hotel, so it’s possible that this house on Elson Street was the other missing theater, which was called the Liberty.
The article says that the Liberty pre-dated the Princess, so it could have been there in 1914, even though it isn’t listed in the 1914-1915 American Motion Picture Directory. The article also says the Liberty was advertised in October, 1924, and I found it mentioned in the December 13 issue of Exhibitor’s Trade Review that same year. It was then being operated by a fellow named D. J. Michael.
A document from the Missouri Office of Historic Preservation credits local architect Irwin Dunbar with the design of the Kennedy Theatre. While it’s possible that Dunbar only acted as supervising architect for the Levine Company, it’s also possible that he did design the theater. He had designed the Princess Theatre for the same owners a little over a decade earlier, and he designed some local churches and office buildings that are quite as good as the Kennedy.
This article from the Kirksville Daily Express gives the opening date of the Princess Theatre as February 29, 1916. The first event was a five-act play called “Misleading Lady.” The Princess closed in 1957.
A document from the Missouri Department of Historic Preservation says that the Princess Theatre opened in 1915 and was designed by local Kirksville architect Irwin Dunbar.
The Royal was in operation by 1921, when the July 2 issue of Exhibitors Herald said that Mrs. H. M. Goodson had installed a new ventilation system in the house.
The only theater listed at Norborne in the 1914-1915 American Motion Picture Directory was called the Phoenix Theatre, which must have been the 300-seat upstairs house listed that year as the Phoenix Opera House in Gus Hill’s directory. I doubt the Royal and Phoenix were the same theater.
The only movie house listed at Prague in the 1914-1915 American Motion Picture Directory was called the Picture Show Theatre. Was this an aka for the Savoy, or was it a rival theater?
Numerous issues of Boxoffice from 1948 and 1949 have capsule movie reviews from an R. E. Halstead of the Tri-Town Theatre in Lindstrom. I wonder if this could have been the Princess reopened under a new name? The October 1, 1949 Boxoffice reported the sale of the Tri-Town, and the last reviews by Mr. Halstead appear in that same issue. There are later mentions of the house from other sources, the latest being the 1951 yearbook from the local high school, but I’ve found nothing more in the trade journals.
I forgot to include the fact that the War Eagle was a Martin Theatres operation, Auburn’s first chain theater.
Chakeres' Fairborn Theatre opened on January 27, 1948, according to Boxoffice of April 3 that year. The architects were Zeller & Hunter (Lloyd Zeller and Herman Hunter) of Springfield, Ohio. The building was listed on the NRHP in 2005.
The October 2, 1948 issue of Boxoffice said that the Family Outdoor Theatre recently opened near Grayslake had been designed by architects Arthur Swanson and Associates.
The October 2, 1948 issue of Boxoffice noted that the Community Theatre in Catskill was then being operated by the Fabian circuit.
A comment by architect George A. Eheling in the September 22, 1948 issue of The Exhibitor says that he designed the Bridge Theatre in Bedford, Virginia.
A comment by architect George A. Eheling in the September 22, 1948 issue of The Exhibitor says that he designed the Lee Theatre in Roanoke. It’s likely that Eubank & Caldwell acted as supervising architects for Eheling, whose office was in Cleveland, Ohio.
Also, note the correct address and current use for the Lee’s building in my previous comment.
A comment by architect George A. Eheling in the September 22, 1948 issue of The Exhibitor says that he designed the Harrison Theatre in Lynchburg.
A list of theaters operated by Balaban & Katz as of October 1, 1949 included the Princess in Toledo. This has me wondering if the September 29, 1948 item in The Exhibtor that says “[p]lans for the modernistic B and K house in Toledo, 0., were completed by Holabird and Root, architects….” was about the Princess. The only other Publix house we have listed in Toledo was the Paramount, and I can’t find anything about a remodeling of that theater in 1948, while there are multiple references to the Princess being remodeled that year.
This house apparently did operate as the Columbia Theatre for a while before being renamed Princess. It was listed as the Columbia in the 1914-1915 American Motion Picture Directory. The name was probably changed not long after the Directory went to press, though, as the original Princess on Summit Street had already closed. The “modernistic” 1948 remodel must have been mostly on the inside, as in later photos the basic form and many details of the exterior were still recognizable from original architect Sidney E. Aftel’s 1913 photo of the Columbia.
An item about the 35th Anniversary of the Cote Theatre appeared in The Exhibitor of September 29, 1948. It said that the house originally opened on November 21, 1913.
A book called Lost Auburn: A Village Remembered in Period Photographs, by Ralph Draughon says that the Tiger Theatre closed on April 26, 1984. Downtown Auburn’s two other movie theaters, the Village and the War Eagle, both closed the following year.
The Village was opened in May, 1969. It was situated on Gay Street, a bit north of Magnolia, and was either converted into or replaced by a building for Auburn Bank. It ran its last movies on September 26, 1985.
This house opened in late 1948. There might also be a problem with the address of this theater, unless the street name has been changed since 1948. 1948 trade journal items about the new house under construction at Stowe give its location as Smugglers Notch Road. It might be that the Mountain Road address belonged to an earlier Stowaway Theatre, of which the October 2, 1948 issue of Boxoffice said “[t]he Stowaway Theatre, Stowe, Vt., has been closed permanently and all the equipment has been pulled out. The town will not be long without a theatre, however, as a new 350-seat house is under construction and should be ready for a December opening.”
The new house was described in this item from the October 9 issue of Boxoffice:
I’ve been unable to find anything about John W. Pierce, and it occurs to me that he might not have been a licensed architect, but maybe was the person who came up with the overall concept of the project. Lawrence B. Anderson and Herbert L. Beckwith were quite well known, though, being principals of the firm of Anderson, Beckwith & Haible. Both were professors at MIT, Anderson eventually becoming dean of the School of Architecture and Planning. Beckwith was a major figure in the Modern movement, with many significant commissions to his credit.This item datelined Stowe appeared in the September 1, 1948 issue of The Exhibitor, and also gives the location of the project as Smugglers Notch Road:
The predecessor of this house must have been the project noted in the September 1, 1948 issue of The Exhibitor, which was to be a 350-seat theater operating as part of a complex that included a bowling alley and a recreation center, all to be open year-round.
The August 18, 1948 issue of The Exhibitor said that the Dipson circuit’s new theater in the Lyell Avenue shopping center was designed by architect R. E. Van Alstine. I’ve been unable to find any other references to an architect of that name, though it does sound vaguely familiar. Perhaps a typo was involved, but if so I can’t puzzle out what the name should have been.