Hi Everybody. Great dialog about photos, particularly the multiple/redundant photo issue that we all deal with in the digital era. I’m trying to be very careful about this. For instance, I’m next going to be uploading a set of photos I took of some of the vintage interior features of the office wings of the Fox Oakland, which are now part of a school complex which wraps around the theater, plus some nighttime shots of the Fox Oakland exterior. I have many photos from those visits, some taken at vantage points only available from the office portion of the theater building, but I took many that were similar to each other, in my enthusiasm. I will be culling through them carefully. Even so, it is going to be a fairly large batch, and hopefully, each image will have significantly different information, and I will caption them as to exactly where I was in the building for each shot, as much as possible.
Not having been to Disney World, I can’t second the above comment, but I HAVE been to the Tampa Theatre, in 1999, to see a movie, and it is everything they say it is. It is probably the most perfect place to get the full idea of what an atmospheric theater was like, and should be like. A special treat is that the lobby spaces still have lots of original furniture, not just chairs and sofas, but ornate sideboards, cabinets, tables, and even floor lamps and a model Spanish galleon. So many restored theaters from the Twenties today lack the proper profusion of lobby furniture which originally did so much to make these theaters seem welcoming. In this respect, the Tampa is to restored Spanish atmospherics what the Oakland Paramount is to restored Art Deco theaters.
I remember when the 1981 renovation was done, a trade magazine (it may have been Architectural Record, I don’t recall) did a wonderful feature article on the theater. However, it showed that much of the interior color scheme (with the exception of some of the more intricate details) had been, as the article put it, “toned down to 80s sensibilities.” The photos showed that meant a rather subdued, pastel palette. With the more recent renovation and restoration, it would be interesting to know if that has been changed, perhaps in favor of replicating the original 1920s colors.
The photos posted here are not the Monterey Theatre, which was long ago demolished, but the Regency Theatre, originally known as the Strand and then the Rio.
Those folks are likely models, hired for the photo. I can’t relate to the idea of eating a full meal while watching a movie. If I’m going to the movies, I want to lose myself in the film—not be distracted. I don’t often buy food at the movies (except at the Stanford in Palo Alto, where concessions are cheap!), but when I do, I typically finish my small popcorn by the time the previews are over and opening credits are underway, and then nurse my soda dissociatively throughout the picture.
Great post, Tinseltoes. Wonderful footage of the marquee’s neon animation. It’s amazing that marquee is nearly all intact today, save for the name change to PACIFIC, of course. If the marquee is ever restored, this newsreel would be an invaluable resource for the restorers, as sometimes mechanisms for neon animation are missing, and neon restorers have to puzzle-out how the neon once animated.
Patrick and Ross—
May everything go swimmingly smooth in this Transition.
And I’m looking forward to the potential to post photos with great anticipation.
Gary Parks
Theatre Historical Society
Having seen several musicals at the West Abbey (ex-Osocales/Soquel) Theatre in the early 80s, I can well confirm the estimate of an original capacity of 500 seats. My memory of the room’s size is certainly consistent with that seating number. At the time I attended the musicals, work had been completed to turn the area in front of the cross aisle into cabaret seating. Original seats still filled the stadium section in the rear—but over the months, that area was also terraced and filled with tables and chairs, although I do remember that a couple of rows of original seats were retained.
The auditorium’s ceiling was covered in perforated acoustical tile, and a large sheet metal five-pointed star was affixed to it in the center, which had lavender neon hidden in it, which up-lit the ceiling. The walls were bare, showing the structural concrete pillars and crosspieces with tan brick infill. I’m sure these must have been covered with acoustical material originally, and may have been removed to better serve live theatre use.
My family attended several of the live productions here. The West Abbey opened with a very successful run of “The 1940s Radio Hour.” We also saw “A Chorus Line,” a very nicely presented revival of “George M!,” and a locally-written, family friendly show called “Jubilee Way Out West,” which was a sendup of “Oklahoma,” and other Western-themed stage productions and movies.
When it was converted to the New Wave nightclub, Dexters, the section forward of the cross aisle was leveled for dancing. The thrust stage that West Abbey had built was mostly removed, and a new stage more appropriate for live bands and DJs and “house dancers” was build, extending just a little beyond the concrete proscenium opening.
Comparatively trivial memories—but they are a part of history: On the hill above the theatre sat Soquel High School. It goes without saying that kids would walk down the hillside paths and try to take a peek inside during the porn days (certainly they did this during the theatre’s mainstream movie days as well). My best friend at the time time went to Soquel High (I went to Aptos High), and he told me that this one acquaintance of his bragged that he was going to go take such a peek. After he and some other guys did so, it was plainly obvious that his young eyes got a bit more than he bargained for.
A family friend—part of our church-affiliated circle—confided in me several years later that he was relieved when the porn policy ended and the West Abbey took over, as he had taken to popping by the theatre on occasion to catch an adult film. As a traditionally religious person, he was wracked with guilt for this. He has been gone for many years now, and will remain anonymous, but his feelings were no doubt typical of many folks who patronized adult theatres in the days before video and the switch to adult entertainment being experienced privately.
Word reached me today via someone who owns a business nearby that Club WET is finis. Apparently an indoor rock climbing facility is taking the space. Supposedly the building has been rezoned so that it cannot be a nightclub again.
Last night I got to see a single pencil-on-vellum longitudinal section drawing of the Rivoli which has been owned by a friend of mine for nearly ten years, but I hadn’t seen it as it had been in storage. The drawing (from Jorgensen’s drafting table) shows the auditorium’s ornamental scheme exactly as one sees it today—that is, what survives. The drawing also shows that there was much cove lighting. I realize now that I didn’t pay much attention to the lobby in the drawing, but it was rather low. The box down in the lower right corner names the theatre as the “West Berkeley Theatre.” Clearly, this was the proposed name at the time of its design. Perhaps the name change to Rivoli was to save money on sign design and maintenance.
Last night I got to see two original pencil-on-vellum drawings of the Grove Theatre which have been owned by a friend of mine for nearly ten years, but were stored-away, inaccessible until recently. One drawing is a full sheet Longitudinal Section of the whole building, and the other has elevations of the ticket lobby and main lobby, plus a full size (!) outline drawing for an ornamental floral plaster insert panel to be used as part of the lobby decoration. The drawings reveal what a beautiful little theatre this once was, and further confirm the look shown in the rendering which Tom DeLay mentions, and which I have also seen, including the plaster bears. The drawing also confirms the structure and location of the organ chamber located above the stage, which spoke through a tone chute over the proscenium. Also shown, and thusly labeled, is a wooden ladder which climbed straight up the rear wall of the stage to access the organ chamber.
While Cantin (that’s the correct spelling) did the remodel, the original 1920s design was by A. W. Cornelius. Other Bay Area theatres by him include the Strand (Elmwood) and T&D (California) in Berkeley, the T&D (Fox, UA) in Richmond, the California in Pittsburg, and the T&D (Fox California) in Salinas.
The Padre closed on June 1, 1965. I do remember that part of the block being bare dirt when I first snooped around Downtown San Jose in the Spring of 1982, photographing its theaters.
Pacific Manor is the original name for the central section of the area now the city of Pacifica. This is already listed as the Seavue Twin, under Pacifica. A book I have co-authored, and is now at the publisher, will cover this theatre (among many) in some detail.
Yes, the American Classic Images photo is indeed the State. There had once been a vertical sign, but it was removed in the 1970s. A little after that photo was taken, the marquee and the entrance and storefronts were painted blue-grey, in accordance with the color palette of the 1980s. In 1989, the Loma Prieta Earthquake damaged the theater. During the time it was closed (presumably for repairs), some vagrants built a fire inside to keep warm, and the theatre went up in flames. After the debris was cleared away, only a damaged terrazzo sidewalk remained. This bore mute witness to the vanished theatre for many years afterward. Not having been in Hollister in the better part of a decade, I am not sure if anything new has been built on the site.
While researching in the 1990s for the restoration of the Golden State Theatre in Monterey, we found out that the same team of artisans who were assigned to repaint the decorative patterns on the Golden State ceiling during a 1930s redecoration did so at the Hollister State at about the same time. the results of their beautiful repaint job still remain intact in Monterey.
The Hollister State also had etched glass entrance doors. The theatre also had a stage fly tower.
Yes, that is the Michigan auditorium in “The Island.” Also, according to the Theatre Historical Society Annual which was published about the Michigan several years back, those horses in the inner lobby area were an actual marble statue.
My cousin lived in Wayzata for a couple of years in the early 1980s and went to this theatre somewhat regularly. He said that at the time the Wayzata name on the marquee lit up as did the bulbs on the soffit, but none of the decorative bulbs on the face of the marquee lit up. He also said there wasn’t much to see on the inside—I think it was all draped or painted over. I seem to recall him mentioning some ventilation grilles featuring some kind of Deco pattern, but that was all. It would be interesting if anyone else has memories of any kind of decorative scheme on the interior. I didn’t see the theatre myself until after its virtual demolition and the restoration of the original marquee on the new construction. I saw it in 2000.
I’m not a former theatre employee in the strict sense, but I’ve worked on theatre restorations, and I’ve helped present silent movie shows and other events in historic theatres. I’m surprised that more people involved in theatre maintenance and operation when talking about vermin seem to focus on mice and rats. Few—if any—speak of that other bane of theatres…Rats of the Air, aka Pigeons!!
Well, at least that’s one badly-needed patch of land where rain will fall on Los Angeles and actually soak into the ground to join the watertable, instead of being swept down the gutters and down the concrete channel of the Los Angeles River and out to sea.
Note: The art glass company through which I completed this job no longer exists.
Correction: That SHOULD say, “…hidden behind the later auditorium walls installed in 1941.” (not 1924)
Hi Everybody. Great dialog about photos, particularly the multiple/redundant photo issue that we all deal with in the digital era. I’m trying to be very careful about this. For instance, I’m next going to be uploading a set of photos I took of some of the vintage interior features of the office wings of the Fox Oakland, which are now part of a school complex which wraps around the theater, plus some nighttime shots of the Fox Oakland exterior. I have many photos from those visits, some taken at vantage points only available from the office portion of the theater building, but I took many that were similar to each other, in my enthusiasm. I will be culling through them carefully. Even so, it is going to be a fairly large batch, and hopefully, each image will have significantly different information, and I will caption them as to exactly where I was in the building for each shot, as much as possible.
Amen, guys! Can’t put it any better myself.
Not having been to Disney World, I can’t second the above comment, but I HAVE been to the Tampa Theatre, in 1999, to see a movie, and it is everything they say it is. It is probably the most perfect place to get the full idea of what an atmospheric theater was like, and should be like. A special treat is that the lobby spaces still have lots of original furniture, not just chairs and sofas, but ornate sideboards, cabinets, tables, and even floor lamps and a model Spanish galleon. So many restored theaters from the Twenties today lack the proper profusion of lobby furniture which originally did so much to make these theaters seem welcoming. In this respect, the Tampa is to restored Spanish atmospherics what the Oakland Paramount is to restored Art Deco theaters.
I remember when the 1981 renovation was done, a trade magazine (it may have been Architectural Record, I don’t recall) did a wonderful feature article on the theater. However, it showed that much of the interior color scheme (with the exception of some of the more intricate details) had been, as the article put it, “toned down to 80s sensibilities.” The photos showed that meant a rather subdued, pastel palette. With the more recent renovation and restoration, it would be interesting to know if that has been changed, perhaps in favor of replicating the original 1920s colors.
There were many theatres named Isis, but this is the first I’ve heard of named after Isis' husband, Osiris.
Hooray!
The photos posted here are not the Monterey Theatre, which was long ago demolished, but the Regency Theatre, originally known as the Strand and then the Rio.
Those folks are likely models, hired for the photo. I can’t relate to the idea of eating a full meal while watching a movie. If I’m going to the movies, I want to lose myself in the film—not be distracted. I don’t often buy food at the movies (except at the Stanford in Palo Alto, where concessions are cheap!), but when I do, I typically finish my small popcorn by the time the previews are over and opening credits are underway, and then nurse my soda dissociatively throughout the picture.
Great post, Tinseltoes. Wonderful footage of the marquee’s neon animation. It’s amazing that marquee is nearly all intact today, save for the name change to PACIFIC, of course. If the marquee is ever restored, this newsreel would be an invaluable resource for the restorers, as sometimes mechanisms for neon animation are missing, and neon restorers have to puzzle-out how the neon once animated.
Patrick and Ross—
May everything go swimmingly smooth in this Transition.
And I’m looking forward to the potential to post photos with great anticipation.
Gary Parks
Theatre Historical Society
Having seen several musicals at the West Abbey (ex-Osocales/Soquel) Theatre in the early 80s, I can well confirm the estimate of an original capacity of 500 seats. My memory of the room’s size is certainly consistent with that seating number. At the time I attended the musicals, work had been completed to turn the area in front of the cross aisle into cabaret seating. Original seats still filled the stadium section in the rear—but over the months, that area was also terraced and filled with tables and chairs, although I do remember that a couple of rows of original seats were retained.
The auditorium’s ceiling was covered in perforated acoustical tile, and a large sheet metal five-pointed star was affixed to it in the center, which had lavender neon hidden in it, which up-lit the ceiling. The walls were bare, showing the structural concrete pillars and crosspieces with tan brick infill. I’m sure these must have been covered with acoustical material originally, and may have been removed to better serve live theatre use.
My family attended several of the live productions here. The West Abbey opened with a very successful run of “The 1940s Radio Hour.” We also saw “A Chorus Line,” a very nicely presented revival of “George M!,” and a locally-written, family friendly show called “Jubilee Way Out West,” which was a sendup of “Oklahoma,” and other Western-themed stage productions and movies.
When it was converted to the New Wave nightclub, Dexters, the section forward of the cross aisle was leveled for dancing. The thrust stage that West Abbey had built was mostly removed, and a new stage more appropriate for live bands and DJs and “house dancers” was build, extending just a little beyond the concrete proscenium opening.
Comparatively trivial memories—but they are a part of history: On the hill above the theatre sat Soquel High School. It goes without saying that kids would walk down the hillside paths and try to take a peek inside during the porn days (certainly they did this during the theatre’s mainstream movie days as well). My best friend at the time time went to Soquel High (I went to Aptos High), and he told me that this one acquaintance of his bragged that he was going to go take such a peek. After he and some other guys did so, it was plainly obvious that his young eyes got a bit more than he bargained for.
A family friend—part of our church-affiliated circle—confided in me several years later that he was relieved when the porn policy ended and the West Abbey took over, as he had taken to popping by the theatre on occasion to catch an adult film. As a traditionally religious person, he was wracked with guilt for this. He has been gone for many years now, and will remain anonymous, but his feelings were no doubt typical of many folks who patronized adult theatres in the days before video and the switch to adult entertainment being experienced privately.
Word reached me today via someone who owns a business nearby that Club WET is finis. Apparently an indoor rock climbing facility is taking the space. Supposedly the building has been rezoned so that it cannot be a nightclub again.
Last night I got to see a single pencil-on-vellum longitudinal section drawing of the Rivoli which has been owned by a friend of mine for nearly ten years, but I hadn’t seen it as it had been in storage. The drawing (from Jorgensen’s drafting table) shows the auditorium’s ornamental scheme exactly as one sees it today—that is, what survives. The drawing also shows that there was much cove lighting. I realize now that I didn’t pay much attention to the lobby in the drawing, but it was rather low. The box down in the lower right corner names the theatre as the “West Berkeley Theatre.” Clearly, this was the proposed name at the time of its design. Perhaps the name change to Rivoli was to save money on sign design and maintenance.
Last night I got to see two original pencil-on-vellum drawings of the Grove Theatre which have been owned by a friend of mine for nearly ten years, but were stored-away, inaccessible until recently. One drawing is a full sheet Longitudinal Section of the whole building, and the other has elevations of the ticket lobby and main lobby, plus a full size (!) outline drawing for an ornamental floral plaster insert panel to be used as part of the lobby decoration. The drawings reveal what a beautiful little theatre this once was, and further confirm the look shown in the rendering which Tom DeLay mentions, and which I have also seen, including the plaster bears. The drawing also confirms the structure and location of the organ chamber located above the stage, which spoke through a tone chute over the proscenium. Also shown, and thusly labeled, is a wooden ladder which climbed straight up the rear wall of the stage to access the organ chamber.
While Cantin (that’s the correct spelling) did the remodel, the original 1920s design was by A. W. Cornelius. Other Bay Area theatres by him include the Strand (Elmwood) and T&D (California) in Berkeley, the T&D (Fox, UA) in Richmond, the California in Pittsburg, and the T&D (Fox California) in Salinas.
This drive-in featured a playground, and portable car heaters.
The Padre closed on June 1, 1965. I do remember that part of the block being bare dirt when I first snooped around Downtown San Jose in the Spring of 1982, photographing its theaters.
Pacific Manor is the original name for the central section of the area now the city of Pacifica. This is already listed as the Seavue Twin, under Pacifica. A book I have co-authored, and is now at the publisher, will cover this theatre (among many) in some detail.
Yes, the American Classic Images photo is indeed the State. There had once been a vertical sign, but it was removed in the 1970s. A little after that photo was taken, the marquee and the entrance and storefronts were painted blue-grey, in accordance with the color palette of the 1980s. In 1989, the Loma Prieta Earthquake damaged the theater. During the time it was closed (presumably for repairs), some vagrants built a fire inside to keep warm, and the theatre went up in flames. After the debris was cleared away, only a damaged terrazzo sidewalk remained. This bore mute witness to the vanished theatre for many years afterward. Not having been in Hollister in the better part of a decade, I am not sure if anything new has been built on the site.
While researching in the 1990s for the restoration of the Golden State Theatre in Monterey, we found out that the same team of artisans who were assigned to repaint the decorative patterns on the Golden State ceiling during a 1930s redecoration did so at the Hollister State at about the same time. the results of their beautiful repaint job still remain intact in Monterey.
The Hollister State also had etched glass entrance doors. The theatre also had a stage fly tower.
Yes, that is the Michigan auditorium in “The Island.” Also, according to the Theatre Historical Society Annual which was published about the Michigan several years back, those horses in the inner lobby area were an actual marble statue.
My cousin lived in Wayzata for a couple of years in the early 1980s and went to this theatre somewhat regularly. He said that at the time the Wayzata name on the marquee lit up as did the bulbs on the soffit, but none of the decorative bulbs on the face of the marquee lit up. He also said there wasn’t much to see on the inside—I think it was all draped or painted over. I seem to recall him mentioning some ventilation grilles featuring some kind of Deco pattern, but that was all. It would be interesting if anyone else has memories of any kind of decorative scheme on the interior. I didn’t see the theatre myself until after its virtual demolition and the restoration of the original marquee on the new construction. I saw it in 2000.
I’m not a former theatre employee in the strict sense, but I’ve worked on theatre restorations, and I’ve helped present silent movie shows and other events in historic theatres. I’m surprised that more people involved in theatre maintenance and operation when talking about vermin seem to focus on mice and rats. Few—if any—speak of that other bane of theatres…Rats of the Air, aka Pigeons!!
Well, at least that’s one badly-needed patch of land where rain will fall on Los Angeles and actually soak into the ground to join the watertable, instead of being swept down the gutters and down the concrete channel of the Los Angeles River and out to sea.
But it would be nice to have the National back.