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Taken on: July 25, 2023

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Pine Tree Theater 706 Main Street, Klamath Falls, OR

PINE TREE THEATER, 1922 – Photo & text courtesy of The Klamath County Museum

Klamath County Museum’s Photo of the Week for Oct. 30, 2022, shows the interior of the Pine Tree Theater at 706 Main Street, the first building constructed in Klamath Falls to serve specifically as a modern movie house. The theater opened Oct. 31, 1922, during the era when theaters typically featured both silent films and vaudeville stage shows.

Other movie houses in Klamath had been operating for several years in various commercial buildings. The Pine Tree was the city’s first large theater to feature custom designed seating, lighting and ventilation. Construction costs of about $100,000 were funded by a group of investors in Sacramento, an expression of confidence in the future of Klamath Falls at a time when the town was the fastest-growing city in Oregon.

A sound system for “talkies” was added in 1929.

Seen in this photo of the stage area is the orchestra pit, proscenium, and organ pipe chambers on each side. The organ alone was reported to cost $25,000. A 50-foot-tall fly loft above the stage allowed curtains and rigging to be concealed behind the main curtain. A sound system for “talkies” was added in 1929.

The final showing at the Pine Tree occurred Feb. 5, 1952

The popularity of the Pine Tree Theater faded following the opening of three larger and more modern movie houses, including the Pelican, Esquire and Tower theaters. The final showing at the Pine Tree occurred Feb. 5, 1952.

Contributed by Greg Lynch -