First of all, this film may be VERY flammable and hazardous Nitrate stock, so keep it in a cool dry place OUT OF THE HOUSE.
(look at the sides of the film next to the sprocket holes—-the word NITRATE should be printed every foot or so)
This footage may exist elsewhere, so it may not be worth a whole lot, but the people over at www.35mmforum.com can give you an idea.
The big problem is—even if you sell it, most shipping services will not ship nitrate-based film due to its flammability, so do some research as to whether UPS or FedEx has a class of service for it.
Glad to hear the State is still used. I inspected what was left of the Wurlitzer around 1990 or 91. All that was left then was the console and a few chests. Most of the pipework and other parts were already gone to points unknown—perhaps “midnight organ supply”.
Theatre was interesting architecturally. Seems there was another theatre downtown beside the State, if my memory serves me correctly.
The photo submitted by Chuck1231 is definitely NOT the Ohio Theatre in Toledo. As a Toledo resident and theatre historian, the theatre pictured is the old Hollywood Theatre on Stickney Avenue.
Update on Ohio Theatre: The facade is the only part of the building in question at this time. City inspection department ordered the front sidewalk barricaded as a precaution. Evaluation is underway to address all issues.
The earlier view of LaGrange & Central Avenues showing the Ohio Theatre’s original marquee dates from the 1920s—the building under construction was a bank—now serves as both a drugstore and coffee house.
I would love to sift through all the junk in the basements and attics….as well as looking inside the organ chambers.
Hilgreen-Lane, however, were not true theatre organs as were Wurlitzer, Robert Morton, etc. They were “straight” organs on low pressure, rarely having a tibia rank. This is why this organ was 23 ranks—each rank probably had no more than 2 stops playing it, as opposed to unified organs like Wurlitzer that drew many stops from each rank. Hilgreen-Lane organs basically were church organs with some percussions and effects thrown in. As such, there is very little value to their parts today.
Detroit’s Harper Theatre was converted to a rock night club many years ago—the vertical Harper sign changed to Harpo’s. I assume the building is still there, visible from I-94.
Many sign companies can replicate old fashioned marquees nowadays—with satisfying results. A reproduction of an old-time marquee will last much longer and be attractive—if someone is involved with designing it who knows what they looked like originally. Try Theatre Historical Society for input. www.historictheatres.org
This depends on your market area. Nowadays, operating a mainstream theatre is a challenge—but when you narrow the focus of your audience, unless you are doing it as a hobby with no regard for profit or loss, you have to have other attractions to bring money in the door. Not everyone likes scary movies, just like not everyone likes comedies, romance, etc.
For theatre distribution, not all old horror pictures are available—but when you can find them, the cost is usually in the $200-$300 minimum range or 35 to 45% of ticket sales, whichever is greater. You also have to pay shipping both ways for the prints—and if you are running a platter system in your booth, some distributors won’t rent you their prints—since film scratching is common to platter projection.
NOT funny—the reality is that countries like China now hold vast amounts of our currency, they have taken most of the manufacturing jobs out of our country, and we, as Americans continue to buy their products slowly bleeding dry our once strong economy. And these great leaders we have just let it happen—-the big corporations contribute huge sums to elect leaders that put them first.
2006 is here—time to vote out these people who are selling out our future.
I would contact Theatre Historical Society and they could put you in touch with their New York Director—that person would have the “in” to some of the very cool theatres available to see.
phone 630-782-1800
I ran my own theatre for 5 years and always did my own booking. Bookers just add considerable expense to a marginal single screen operation. Get a copy of Boxoffice magazine or do a web search and you can find the booking offices for the major distributors. They were all easy to work with.
I ran classics for a very short time—unless you are in a hot college or artsy community, very few regular patrons will pay to see them now.
The Strand did indeed have this Kilgen organ, Beside being listed in the Encyclopedia of American Theatre Organs, pictures of the theatre interior in the late 1920s show the console in the orchestra pit. As with many theatre organs, it was probably removed in the 1950s or 1960s. There is a good chance it wound up in a church for many years, since the original 5 ranks would be useful for church music. The name uncovered on the console could be an organbuilder who reconditioned it for church use. In the late 1970s, this console and many organ parts were donated to the Redford Theatre (Motor City Theatre Organ Society) in Detroit by the Campbell family. The console was on display in the foyer of that theatre for a long time. I bought this console from them in 1985, first installing it in my home theatre, then moving it to a small theatre I owned at the time in Morenci, Michigan, where it played 6 ranks for a few years. 10 years later I sold it to the man who has made the first posts on this thread.
What I meant was with permission of the movie’s distributor you could run a digital version instead of the film. Nowadays copyrights are taken very seriously in the business.
I assume you are asking if these movies can be run theatrically in a digital format (DVD) I would contact KINO.com, the distributor of Metropolis to see if they license that film to be run in a digital format. Obviously these titles are on DVD, and with a good, bright auditorium-designed digital projector they could be shown from DVD.
Another alternative would be to rent the film and show a digital instead….I would contact the distributor, since commercial digital theatre projection is on the horizon.
By all means this is a job for a heating contractor. A lot depends on the old system in the building now. The only disadvantage with hot water heat is the need for air conditioning forced air—which would entail using whatever air circulation plenums are in the theatre.
You didn’t mention the seating capacity, age of the building and type of system it has now.
It depends on the type of heating system used. With natural gas rates climbing faster than heating oil, I would not rule out oil.
It will take some serious web-searches to find out the efficiency of the newest generation of oil-fired boilers versus gas. The only disadvantage with oil is that it cannot be turned down like a gas burner.
For a theatre, the most economical way to heat was how they did it in the old days—-radiator heat with hot water. A boiler can run with much lower fuel usage and shorter cycles to keep water hot versus constantly keeping the air warm.
My years of owning and operating my own historic theatre were wonderful! To tackle this type of project, you should have the following:
Good amount of ready cash, ability to do most restoration and maintenance work yourself or from friends, an ALL VOLUNTEER STAFF, lots of original ideas to keep people coming through the door, and an expectation that you will be lucky to break even at first—or ever.
I ran my theatre as a labor of love, not expecting to get rich. You can see my former theatre on Cinematreasures here: /theaters/467/
Sounds like you have a great desire to bring the place back, but you need a lot more than that. I restored a small town theatre years ago, and you will need lots of money and the following:
Have lots of volunteer help—restoring the building, recreating the theatre interior, reinstalling all systems, as well as volunteers to run the place once it’s reopened.
Expect at best to break even. Single screen theatres are a tough business unless you have a large college crowd to draw from. Lots of money has to keep coming in the door regularly to keep those doors open.
You mentioned “lighting strips” Those are only a feature in newer theatres and would detract from a historic theatre interior. To properly restore a theatre, you need not only pictures of what it looked like before, but lots of source material of what certain era theatres looked like.(check Theatre Historical Society)The old time theatre interior and fixtures is half the fun for your customers.
To me, nothing is worse than seeing a nice old theatre and walking in only to find some horrible modern makeshift remodeling. Take the time to find out how charming the old decor was.
Still, it is a dream worth pursuing—I did it and loved every minute of it. I did the building restoration, projection equipment restoration, booked the films, did the advertising and bought the concession supplies. Without some background in theatres and film it’s going to be a learning experience—get lots of expert help and advice from people who have really done these projects.
Money, and more money—-it will be a “black hole” for a long time that will require lots of cash to get restored and reopened.
Find out what the local building codes are. You may have to retrofit to comply with codes.
First of all, this film may be VERY flammable and hazardous Nitrate stock, so keep it in a cool dry place OUT OF THE HOUSE.
(look at the sides of the film next to the sprocket holes—-the word NITRATE should be printed every foot or so)
This footage may exist elsewhere, so it may not be worth a whole lot, but the people over at www.35mmforum.com can give you an idea.
The big problem is—even if you sell it, most shipping services will not ship nitrate-based film due to its flammability, so do some research as to whether UPS or FedEx has a class of service for it.
Hopefully someone can buy this theatre soon—it has the original 3/8 Barton Theatre Pipe Organ still in place!
Glad to hear the State is still used. I inspected what was left of the Wurlitzer around 1990 or 91. All that was left then was the console and a few chests. Most of the pipework and other parts were already gone to points unknown—perhaps “midnight organ supply”.
Theatre was interesting architecturally. Seems there was another theatre downtown beside the State, if my memory serves me correctly.
The photo submitted by Chuck1231 is definitely NOT the Ohio Theatre in Toledo. As a Toledo resident and theatre historian, the theatre pictured is the old Hollywood Theatre on Stickney Avenue.
Update on Ohio Theatre: The facade is the only part of the building in question at this time. City inspection department ordered the front sidewalk barricaded as a precaution. Evaluation is underway to address all issues.
The earlier view of LaGrange & Central Avenues showing the Ohio Theatre’s original marquee dates from the 1920s—the building under construction was a bank—now serves as both a drugstore and coffee house.
I have an old theatre ticket machine for sale. In Toledo, Ohio. Contact me for more information at
I would love to sift through all the junk in the basements and attics….as well as looking inside the organ chambers.
Hilgreen-Lane, however, were not true theatre organs as were Wurlitzer, Robert Morton, etc. They were “straight” organs on low pressure, rarely having a tibia rank. This is why this organ was 23 ranks—each rank probably had no more than 2 stops playing it, as opposed to unified organs like Wurlitzer that drew many stops from each rank. Hilgreen-Lane organs basically were church organs with some percussions and effects thrown in. As such, there is very little value to their parts today.
Detroit’s Harper Theatre was converted to a rock night club many years ago—the vertical Harper sign changed to Harpo’s. I assume the building is still there, visible from I-94.
Many sign companies can replicate old fashioned marquees nowadays—with satisfying results. A reproduction of an old-time marquee will last much longer and be attractive—if someone is involved with designing it who knows what they looked like originally. Try Theatre Historical Society for input. www.historictheatres.org
This depends on your market area. Nowadays, operating a mainstream theatre is a challenge—but when you narrow the focus of your audience, unless you are doing it as a hobby with no regard for profit or loss, you have to have other attractions to bring money in the door. Not everyone likes scary movies, just like not everyone likes comedies, romance, etc.
For theatre distribution, not all old horror pictures are available—but when you can find them, the cost is usually in the $200-$300 minimum range or 35 to 45% of ticket sales, whichever is greater. You also have to pay shipping both ways for the prints—and if you are running a platter system in your booth, some distributors won’t rent you their prints—since film scratching is common to platter projection.
NOT funny—the reality is that countries like China now hold vast amounts of our currency, they have taken most of the manufacturing jobs out of our country, and we, as Americans continue to buy their products slowly bleeding dry our once strong economy. And these great leaders we have just let it happen—-the big corporations contribute huge sums to elect leaders that put them first.
2006 is here—time to vote out these people who are selling out our future.
Wonderful news! Couldn’t help noticing the very common mis-spelling of the theatre “marquee”
Any pics of the theatre and history to submit to Cinema Treasures?
I would contact Theatre Historical Society and they could put you in touch with their New York Director—that person would have the “in” to some of the very cool theatres available to see.
phone 630-782-1800
Do a web search under: Sony Pictures, Buena Vista Entertainment, Boxoffice Magazine (they can help you with specifics, too)
I ran my own theatre for 5 years and always did my own booking. Bookers just add considerable expense to a marginal single screen operation. Get a copy of Boxoffice magazine or do a web search and you can find the booking offices for the major distributors. They were all easy to work with.
I ran classics for a very short time—unless you are in a hot college or artsy community, very few regular patrons will pay to see them now.
The Strand did indeed have this Kilgen organ, Beside being listed in the Encyclopedia of American Theatre Organs, pictures of the theatre interior in the late 1920s show the console in the orchestra pit. As with many theatre organs, it was probably removed in the 1950s or 1960s. There is a good chance it wound up in a church for many years, since the original 5 ranks would be useful for church music. The name uncovered on the console could be an organbuilder who reconditioned it for church use. In the late 1970s, this console and many organ parts were donated to the Redford Theatre (Motor City Theatre Organ Society) in Detroit by the Campbell family. The console was on display in the foyer of that theatre for a long time. I bought this console from them in 1985, first installing it in my home theatre, then moving it to a small theatre I owned at the time in Morenci, Michigan, where it played 6 ranks for a few years. 10 years later I sold it to the man who has made the first posts on this thread.
What I meant was with permission of the movie’s distributor you could run a digital version instead of the film. Nowadays copyrights are taken very seriously in the business.
I assume you are asking if these movies can be run theatrically in a digital format (DVD) I would contact KINO.com, the distributor of Metropolis to see if they license that film to be run in a digital format. Obviously these titles are on DVD, and with a good, bright auditorium-designed digital projector they could be shown from DVD.
Another alternative would be to rent the film and show a digital instead….I would contact the distributor, since commercial digital theatre projection is on the horizon.
By all means this is a job for a heating contractor. A lot depends on the old system in the building now. The only disadvantage with hot water heat is the need for air conditioning forced air—which would entail using whatever air circulation plenums are in the theatre.
You didn’t mention the seating capacity, age of the building and type of system it has now.
It depends on the type of heating system used. With natural gas rates climbing faster than heating oil, I would not rule out oil.
It will take some serious web-searches to find out the efficiency of the newest generation of oil-fired boilers versus gas. The only disadvantage with oil is that it cannot be turned down like a gas burner.
For a theatre, the most economical way to heat was how they did it in the old days—-radiator heat with hot water. A boiler can run with much lower fuel usage and shorter cycles to keep water hot versus constantly keeping the air warm.
My years of owning and operating my own historic theatre were wonderful! To tackle this type of project, you should have the following:
Good amount of ready cash, ability to do most restoration and maintenance work yourself or from friends, an ALL VOLUNTEER STAFF, lots of original ideas to keep people coming through the door, and an expectation that you will be lucky to break even at first—or ever.
I ran my theatre as a labor of love, not expecting to get rich. You can see my former theatre on Cinematreasures here:
/theaters/467/
Sounds like you have a great desire to bring the place back, but you need a lot more than that. I restored a small town theatre years ago, and you will need lots of money and the following:
To me, nothing is worse than seeing a nice old theatre and walking in only to find some horrible modern makeshift remodeling. Take the time to find out how charming the old decor was.
Good Luck!