At least there’s hope for other aging theater palaces. The Genesee theater was fully restored several years ago and is absolutely beautiful! I saw a concert there last year and because I had volunteered to run the merch tables (got me in for free), I was in the lobby during the opening act. I was talking to the workers and a guy that works there knew of Nortown. I forget if he said he worked there too, but he was telling me how they fought to save the Genesee from the wrecking ball and literally managed it as the wrecking ball was outside, waiting to take a swing the next morning.
Life, yeah I was there in ‘09, stopped by to see the old place on my way back from checking out Le Cordon Bleu and I was surprised at how small the lot was. I remember the building being HUGE and then the stores next to it went up to Woolworth, or at least it seemed like it. It’s funny that I don’t even remember that alley access, growing up.
I took a few pictures with my cell phone of the lot and the ads that were painted on the buildings, hidden away for close to a century. The pictures are on facebook right now but can upload them to flickr if anyone’s interested.
I was just there today, saw Get Smart and it was nice and clean. That was the first time I’d been there in a couple years. It’s interesting that the theater has only been there since ‘95. I moved up this way a couple years later and when my sister told me about it, I thought it had been there for a number of years.
photobucket.com and flickr.com are a couple other options. With these two (don’t remember if you can do this with image shack as well) you can set up your own account and organize the images in folders and such.
Ken, that picture is great! I’d love to see any and all pictures of Nortown like that, that people have. Still breaks my heart that she was destroyed and is now gone.
Nortown, my sister thought she was seeing things. She swore she saw one on rand in Lake Zurich when we were going to Kirklands last week but we didn’t see it and guessed it was closed since information didn’t have the number.
check out their website though, they’re still on Devon.
yep, was playing with that last week after my sister mentioned Villa Palermo. It will still entact when I saw it, but there was a dumpster out front. don’t know if things have changed since then.
It was even better before they split it. Although they did revert back to a single screen when they tried to save it before closing as a theater for good.
I just ran into someone on LJ in a MFU group of all places that is a fellow west (east) rogers park gal who was surprised to hear me mention that the nortown’s gone now.
nope, actual plywood. we bought a new construction home 10 years ago and I came into the house when it was framed. I don’t know about the homes built in more recent years, but ours has actual plywood studs.
very cool. It’s funny you should post this. I drive down to Sycamore on a regular basis for work and the first time I went there I saw the old, original hospital. I walked in and it was great. I wanted to learn more about it. You don’t see workmanship like that anymore. Now you have houses that are slapped together with wood frames and sealed off with vinal siding. Doesn’t feel very sturdy on very windy days.
I keep thinking if I ever have the money, I’m going to build a house like they used to. Good quality materials, solid wood. None of this hollow core door crap.
I was even thinking of doing a basement into a theater. A brief idea popped into my head right after that (I should add, I spend way to much time in my car alone with my thoughts) I was thinking of doing it in an artdeco theme or maybe a little touch of Nortown.
huh, I have never heard it called west ridge before. I’ve always and only known it to be West Rogers Park. In fact, there’s a marker by Loyola that says Rogers Park. granted it’s not right there by the theater, but I did grow up across the street from nortown.
sadly, I have no pictures of the place. wish I did! Would love to seen any and all pictures people have of the old place.,
thanks for the pictures. I must be a sadist because I keep wanting to see pictures of demo since I couldn’t get down there for it, yet it’s so heartbreaking to see her go like that.
The pictures reminded me of the cadillac theater (if I’m remembering correctly, the one Spamalot is/was at).
I really want to go inside there now and see it for myself. I had no clue it was so nice. I guess I’m used to seeing it when it sat dormant back in 99 my last semester at CLC. It was another abandonded building to me since I’d never been inside before.
Antioch isn’t a palace but an old movie house, still 1 screen, little place kind of like the old Skokie theater. Complete with balcony. Best part of all this is they are a first run theater with prices you haven’t seen since the 70s, if not 60s.
Don’t forget, you have worse parking with the multi plexes, the more screns, the worse the parking is. There’s a 20 screen about a mile from my house and the parking lot is packed. If you’re lucky you can get a close spot. If not then you are parking the equivilent of about half a block away and walking there. Even though it’s in the same lot as a strip mall with a kmart, few restaurants and hollywood video.
I like the big places like that sure, but we need to preserve the older places and go out of our way to see movies there. That’s why I either go to Fox Lake (even though they expanded it in recent years) or Antioch. I actually go out of my way to go to the one I live behind (the above mentiond theater).
Also the trend in theaters now is to go back in time and make a movie palace, although that’s not what their calling it. It’s now being dubbed as theme or something like that.
you can’t tell me an old palace like Nortown wouldn’t make it if it were kept up.
Too, for the above poster, that neighborhood has changed so much in the past 30+ years. I remember what it was like in the 70s and 80s… night and day difference compared to what it is today.
If I ever have the money, I will seriously rebuild the Nortown some place in Lake County.
Parking is a nightmare there, but until it closed, it served the neighborhood folks since opening. People walked there and they can take the bus there. So realistically, the parking around there is suitable for those that choose to drive.
Granted, I lived across the street, so I’d just walk through the alley, cut through the parking lot and then cross Western and I was there. Took me a couple minutes to walk it.
Jayne, would you mind scanning and uploading the pictures? I would love to see them.
Yes, very sad to see it go. :(
At least there’s hope for other aging theater palaces. The Genesee theater was fully restored several years ago and is absolutely beautiful! I saw a concert there last year and because I had volunteered to run the merch tables (got me in for free), I was in the lobby during the opening act. I was talking to the workers and a guy that works there knew of Nortown. I forget if he said he worked there too, but he was telling me how they fought to save the Genesee from the wrecking ball and literally managed it as the wrecking ball was outside, waiting to take a swing the next morning.
Life, yeah I was there in ‘09, stopped by to see the old place on my way back from checking out Le Cordon Bleu and I was surprised at how small the lot was. I remember the building being HUGE and then the stores next to it went up to Woolworth, or at least it seemed like it. It’s funny that I don’t even remember that alley access, growing up.
I took a few pictures with my cell phone of the lot and the ads that were painted on the buildings, hidden away for close to a century. The pictures are on facebook right now but can upload them to flickr if anyone’s interested.
I was just there today, saw Get Smart and it was nice and clean. That was the first time I’d been there in a couple years. It’s interesting that the theater has only been there since ‘95. I moved up this way a couple years later and when my sister told me about it, I thought it had been there for a number of years.
photobucket.com and flickr.com are a couple other options. With these two (don’t remember if you can do this with image shack as well) you can set up your own account and organize the images in folders and such.
Ken, that picture is great! I’d love to see any and all pictures of Nortown like that, that people have. Still breaks my heart that she was destroyed and is now gone.
Nortown, my sister thought she was seeing things. She swore she saw one on rand in Lake Zurich when we were going to Kirklands last week but we didn’t see it and guessed it was closed since information didn’t have the number.
check out their website though, they’re still on Devon.
yep, was playing with that last week after my sister mentioned Villa Palermo. It will still entact when I saw it, but there was a dumpster out front. don’t know if things have changed since then.
I just heard Wolfy’s is gone.
It was even better before they split it. Although they did revert back to a single screen when they tried to save it before closing as a theater for good.
I just ran into someone on LJ in a MFU group of all places that is a fellow west (east) rogers park gal who was surprised to hear me mention that the nortown’s gone now.
nope, actual plywood. we bought a new construction home 10 years ago and I came into the house when it was framed. I don’t know about the homes built in more recent years, but ours has actual plywood studs.
very cool. It’s funny you should post this. I drive down to Sycamore on a regular basis for work and the first time I went there I saw the old, original hospital. I walked in and it was great. I wanted to learn more about it. You don’t see workmanship like that anymore. Now you have houses that are slapped together with wood frames and sealed off with vinal siding. Doesn’t feel very sturdy on very windy days.
I keep thinking if I ever have the money, I’m going to build a house like they used to. Good quality materials, solid wood. None of this hollow core door crap.
I was even thinking of doing a basement into a theater. A brief idea popped into my head right after that (I should add, I spend way to much time in my car alone with my thoughts) I was thinking of doing it in an artdeco theme or maybe a little touch of Nortown.
huh, I have never heard it called west ridge before. I’ve always and only known it to be West Rogers Park. In fact, there’s a marker by Loyola that says Rogers Park. granted it’s not right there by the theater, but I did grow up across the street from nortown.
sadly, I have no pictures of the place. wish I did! Would love to seen any and all pictures people have of the old place.,
west ridge? that must be new. it’s always been west rogers park as far as I know.
west ridge? that must be new. it’s always been west rogers park as far as I know.
Could be.
not that I remember. I lived across the street from the Nortown until 10 years ago.
that picture really doesn’t do it justice.
88 and 91 myself
my sister… 76 and 80, my older brother 80 and 84….
Stone and Senn. Yeah we went there.
thanks for the pictures. I must be a sadist because I keep wanting to see pictures of demo since I couldn’t get down there for it, yet it’s so heartbreaking to see her go like that.
The pictures reminded me of the cadillac theater (if I’m remembering correctly, the one Spamalot is/was at).
I really want to go inside there now and see it for myself. I had no clue it was so nice. I guess I’m used to seeing it when it sat dormant back in 99 my last semester at CLC. It was another abandonded building to me since I’d never been inside before.
Antioch isn’t a palace but an old movie house, still 1 screen, little place kind of like the old Skokie theater. Complete with balcony. Best part of all this is they are a first run theater with prices you haven’t seen since the 70s, if not 60s.
Don’t forget, you have worse parking with the multi plexes, the more screns, the worse the parking is. There’s a 20 screen about a mile from my house and the parking lot is packed. If you’re lucky you can get a close spot. If not then you are parking the equivilent of about half a block away and walking there. Even though it’s in the same lot as a strip mall with a kmart, few restaurants and hollywood video.
I like the big places like that sure, but we need to preserve the older places and go out of our way to see movies there. That’s why I either go to Fox Lake (even though they expanded it in recent years) or Antioch. I actually go out of my way to go to the one I live behind (the above mentiond theater).
Also the trend in theaters now is to go back in time and make a movie palace, although that’s not what their calling it. It’s now being dubbed as theme or something like that.
you can’t tell me an old palace like Nortown wouldn’t make it if it were kept up.
Too, for the above poster, that neighborhood has changed so much in the past 30+ years. I remember what it was like in the 70s and 80s… night and day difference compared to what it is today.
If I ever have the money, I will seriously rebuild the Nortown some place in Lake County.
Parking is a nightmare there, but until it closed, it served the neighborhood folks since opening. People walked there and they can take the bus there. So realistically, the parking around there is suitable for those that choose to drive.
Granted, I lived across the street, so I’d just walk through the alley, cut through the parking lot and then cross Western and I was there. Took me a couple minutes to walk it.