New Ownership, website & Facebook page below introduction:
“Hello! đź‘‹
We wanted to take a moment to introduce ourselves and to say thank you.
We are the Matsakis and Cantillo families. Monica and Chris Matsakis and Jose and Kristi Cantillo have had the privilege of taking the baton from Wendy, whose decades of dedication to The Skokie Theatre kept this building alive in the hearts of this community. Wendy, we are deeply grateful for everything you built here, and we don’t take lightly what you’re passing on to us.
We fell in love with this building for the same reason so many of you have, that it has a soul.
Our vision is to reimagine it as The Skokie — a 150-seat live entertainment venue and a home for comedy, storytelling, live music, improv, classes, and the kinds of nights you talk about for years. A place where this community gathers, laughs, creates, and connects.
Since word got out, the warmth and excitement we’ve felt from Skokie residents, neighbors, and local businesses has genuinely moved us. This town clearly loves this theater and that tells us everything we need to know about the road ahead.
We’re just getting started, and we want to build this with you. If you’re a local business, artist, performer, educator, or someone who simply loves live entertainment and wants to be part of what’s coming — our door is open. Reach out. Let’s talk.
More to come very soon at TheSkokie.com. We can’t wait to show you what’s next.”
As mentioned above the building is currently The Hub, an Assembly of God teen/community center. The correct address is 14 Broadway. Street view confirms both.
[ca.1923] Proscenium arch, Egyptian Theatre. Meyer & Holler designed the Egyptian Theatre (6708 Hollywood Blvd.) which opened in 1923. The first of the “fantasy” movie palaces on Hollywood Blvd., the Egyptian retains the forecourt with original Egyptian-style paintings. (Security Pacific National Bank Collection)
Courtesy Photo Collection - Los Angeles Public Library
“It was located west of East Slope Cemetery and opened April 5, 1970. It would close 12 years later on October 24, 1982.
It was owned by Mid-America Cinema, but managed by Ralph Lee Sutton.
As General Manager for Mid- America Cinema, he built and operated the first twin drive-in and the first multiplex indoor theater in the Midwest.”
Comfortably Cool, they did add “Brooklyn” above “Stage and Screen Show” on the marquee in the center. It is just very dark in the above photo, but is visible.
I am adding a page for Theatre Delight at 220 Locust Street.
That building is still standing across the street from where the Rex/Hudson Theatre was.
Additional history below:
“Owner of the theater was Clarence Mickelson (1873-1954), who had come to Hudson in 1917 and bought the existing movie house—Theatre Delight (Knoke’s Chocolates and Nuts is there today). To improve his business, Mickelson built the new building at 205 Locust Street.”
“The first film to be shown in the new movie house featured Mary Pickford in her newest hit, “The Backdoor.” In September of 1927, a pipe organ, played by the owner’s daughter Helen Mickelson, was installed at the theater to provide music for the silent films. Sound movies were introduced in 1930, opening with the Will Rogers’ hit “So this is London.”
“After Mickelson sold the Rex in 1938, the name was changed to Hudson Theatre, and a series of owners operated the movie house, including J.G. Heywood, Arthur and Ethel Peterson, Donald Buchholz, and Stephen O’Connell.”
(Historic Hudson column by Willis Miller. Hudson Star-Observer. April 29, 1993)
Per the below portion from the Beaver County Times, Friday, April 6, 1973, the New Colonial was not demolished, but remodeled into the Granada Theatre in 1928.
“The theater building was erected in 1911 as the Colonial Theatre. It became the New Colonial in 1917. Then in 1928 the theater underwent extensive remodeling in a Spanish Moresque style that became the Granada Theatre. The auditorium contained 1,600 seats."
The full 1973 article is over on the Granada’s CT page.
Additional history credit Beaver County Times, Friday, April 6, 1973.
(2 Former names need to be added to CT)
Below history is renovation plans announced in 1973.
“The theater building was erected in 1911 as the Colonial Theatre. It became the New Colonial in 1917. Then in 1928 the theater underwent extensive remodeling in a Spanish Moresque style that became the Granada Theatre. The auditorium contained 1,600 seats.
The Granada showed its final movie on November 30 1960. The building eventually met the wrecking ball in April 2010 and now a medical center sits on the site."
“ A project to renovate the vacant Granada Theatre in Beaver Falls was unveiled. The building located at 1121 Seventh Avenue would be converted into an indoor shopping complex at a cost of $250,000.
In the Beaver County Times published Friday, April 6, 1973 Chi-Mar Inc., owners of the building, stated that remodeling would begin immediately and be completed by late September 1973. The climate controlled mini-mall featured a tobacco shop, photo and camera shop, carpet store, decorator shop, bakery, bath boutique, uniform shop, fabric shop, infant shop, ladies and men’s wear shop, and jewelry store. A restaurant seating 70 diners was planned in the basement.
A 12-foot wide corridor extending down the mall lead to two entrances for easy access to municipal parking lots. The exterior of the building was professionally washed and cleaned with floodlighting added. Some 18,000 cubic feet of fill was required to level the sloping floor of the theatre."
Evanston Round Table article about the Hoyburn and other theatres.
https://evanstonroundtable.com/2026/07/29/evanston-movie-theater-history-part-2/?utm_content=bufferb3253&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer&fbclid=IwY2xjawTYaNVwZG9mBWV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkEDIyMjAzOTE3ODgyMDA4OTIAAR4I8LSdD32PhyHTX6e8mP9AYBwIV3SMvN0Dok8c8sz-5m1vyE8y3nyIHbIR_w_aem_Gb0tFswbI8to6Jzo9e6uUA
Address is 1208 N. Green Street. New website link below. (Old link is to dangerous spam)
https://vixenmchenry.com/
Book about Wm H. Malone “Hundred Cents on the Dollar”.
https://hundredcentsonthedollar.com/?fbclid=IwY2xjawTPAhBleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETE4MEQ3OFd4SElDSFlYbDBMc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHlkQAEb7fRLaJHKjceQ8vHE8VXM4WOMewOk1GCkZdIcD1M4NAP_Dyg2czp-T_aem_DzdEXBbbVwAH-zlTdnO-JA
Full size version here:
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1671004361699688&set=a.440956844704452
New Ownership, website & Facebook page below introduction: “Hello! đź‘‹ We wanted to take a moment to introduce ourselves and to say thank you. We are the Matsakis and Cantillo families. Monica and Chris Matsakis and Jose and Kristi Cantillo have had the privilege of taking the baton from Wendy, whose decades of dedication to The Skokie Theatre kept this building alive in the hearts of this community. Wendy, we are deeply grateful for everything you built here, and we don’t take lightly what you’re passing on to us. We fell in love with this building for the same reason so many of you have, that it has a soul. Our vision is to reimagine it as The Skokie — a 150-seat live entertainment venue and a home for comedy, storytelling, live music, improv, classes, and the kinds of nights you talk about for years. A place where this community gathers, laughs, creates, and connects. Since word got out, the warmth and excitement we’ve felt from Skokie residents, neighbors, and local businesses has genuinely moved us. This town clearly loves this theater and that tells us everything we need to know about the road ahead. We’re just getting started, and we want to build this with you. If you’re a local business, artist, performer, educator, or someone who simply loves live entertainment and wants to be part of what’s coming — our door is open. Reach out. Let’s talk. More to come very soon at TheSkokie.com. We can’t wait to show you what’s next.”
https://www.theskokie.com/?fbclid=IwY2xjawS7RZ9leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETF0T1ZxYUhlZHIyZ3FWTnI1c3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHpwvJLywtTs1MHykaXuanWRC85e2oGbWnN-TGCVAgA-RxLw7oM4kZBmcjR4P_aem_fgeBpI_kbGlYxiJpHHOqOA
https://www.facebook.com/skokietheatre
As mentioned above the building is currently The Hub, an Assembly of God teen/community center.
The correct address is 14 Broadway.
Street view confirms both.
Link with multiple photos of Center Theatre. Copy & paste to open.
https://aadl.org/taxonomy/term/63194
Yipsilanti Opera House at bottom.
[ca.1923] Proscenium arch, Egyptian Theatre. Meyer & Holler designed the Egyptian Theatre (6708 Hollywood Blvd.) which opened in 1923. The first of the “fantasy” movie palaces on Hollywood Blvd., the Egyptian retains the forecourt with original Egyptian-style paintings. (Security Pacific National Bank Collection)
Courtesy Photo Collection - Los Angeles Public Library
https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1627981202670826&set=a.606238478178442
Background left.
Additional history credit Gary Brenner.
“It was located west of East Slope Cemetery and opened April 5, 1970. It would close 12 years later on October 24, 1982. It was owned by Mid-America Cinema, but managed by Ralph Lee Sutton. As General Manager for Mid- America Cinema, he built and operated the first twin drive-in and the first multiplex indoor theater in the Midwest.”
Comfortably Cool, they did add “Brooklyn” above “Stage and Screen Show” on the marquee in the center. It is just very dark in the above photo, but is visible.
Closing end of May. Sun-Times article below. “Cash-strapped DePaul closes the curtain on Downtown’s historic Reskin Theatre”
https://chicago.suntimes.com/architecture-design/2026/04/16/cash-strapped-depaul-closes-curtain-downtown-historic-merle-reskin-theatre?fbclid=IwY2xjawROBAdleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEe-STtQ8X83pNlV9wO9WGoEVzdkkNRNbXQ402YnMdGoRrVPU91A72mNNIO6zE_aem_ItPY_Yg-k2ig6nLuFUXDRg
BBC Archive news piece about Fred Clark’s purchase in 1973, via Facebook. Copy & Paste to view.
https://www.facebook.com/reel/4457035077861445/
Update on ongoing renovations.
https://nadignewspapers.com/repairs-start-at-patio-theater-as-efforts-underway-to-reopen-the-historic-venue/?fbclid=IwY2xjawRDdRhleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEe7BhSZBINRSsOHg4ZTMmTPbEC5OYAc_6ITAL-hK0SWHrDTKkRKquFlxb56kw_aem_7FdCHEvapkCnXLiWpd-YFw
I am adding a page for Theatre Delight at 220 Locust Street. That building is still standing across the street from where the Rex/Hudson Theatre was.
Additional history below:
“Owner of the theater was Clarence Mickelson (1873-1954), who had come to Hudson in 1917 and bought the existing movie house—Theatre Delight (Knoke’s Chocolates and Nuts is there today). To improve his business, Mickelson built the new building at 205 Locust Street.”
“The first film to be shown in the new movie house featured Mary Pickford in her newest hit, “The Backdoor.” In September of 1927, a pipe organ, played by the owner’s daughter Helen Mickelson, was installed at the theater to provide music for the silent films. Sound movies were introduced in 1930, opening with the Will Rogers’ hit “So this is London.”
“After Mickelson sold the Rex in 1938, the name was changed to Hudson Theatre, and a series of owners operated the movie house, including J.G. Heywood, Arthur and Ethel Peterson, Donald Buchholz, and Stephen O’Connell.”
(Historic Hudson column by Willis Miller. Hudson Star-Observer. April 29, 1993)
Chicago Sign Museum IG post of the Foremost Liquors sign coming down.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DWRaGJLlb3Y/
Per the below portion from the Beaver County Times, Friday, April 6, 1973, the New Colonial was not demolished, but remodeled into the Granada Theatre in 1928.
“The theater building was erected in 1911 as the Colonial Theatre. It became the New Colonial in 1917. Then in 1928 the theater underwent extensive remodeling in a Spanish Moresque style that became the Granada Theatre. The auditorium contained 1,600 seats."
The full 1973 article is over on the Granada’s CT page.
Additional history credit Beaver County Times, Friday, April 6, 1973. (2 Former names need to be added to CT) Below history is renovation plans announced in 1973.
“The theater building was erected in 1911 as the Colonial Theatre. It became the New Colonial in 1917. Then in 1928 the theater underwent extensive remodeling in a Spanish Moresque style that became the Granada Theatre. The auditorium contained 1,600 seats.
The Granada showed its final movie on November 30 1960. The building eventually met the wrecking ball in April 2010 and now a medical center sits on the site."
“ A project to renovate the vacant Granada Theatre in Beaver Falls was unveiled. The building located at 1121 Seventh Avenue would be converted into an indoor shopping complex at a cost of $250,000.
In the Beaver County Times published Friday, April 6, 1973 Chi-Mar Inc., owners of the building, stated that remodeling would begin immediately and be completed by late September 1973. The climate controlled mini-mall featured a tobacco shop, photo and camera shop, carpet store, decorator shop, bakery, bath boutique, uniform shop, fabric shop, infant shop, ladies and men’s wear shop, and jewelry store. A restaurant seating 70 diners was planned in the basement.
A 12-foot wide corridor extending down the mall lead to two entrances for easy access to municipal parking lots. The exterior of the building was professionally washed and cleaned with floodlighting added. Some 18,000 cubic feet of fill was required to level the sloping floor of the theatre."
Currently For Sale for $115,000. Zillow post below.
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/37-Manchester-St-Glen-Rock-PA-17327/461145107_zpid/
Update: richard nickel and thomas stauffer - both founding members of the chicago heritage committee. courtesy of bldg. 51 archive.
https://wfuv.org/content/morrison-hotel-gallery-gives-long-lost-photos-home
1975 photo credit Myron Dubee - Herald Examiner Collection, courtesy Photo Collection - Los Angeles Public Library.
Photo credit Burlington Historical Society Museum.
Circa July 1942 photo credit Kenosha County History Center.