During the 1930’s a number of theatres in California were named (or renamed) with the alternate spelling of ROXIE (in San Francisco, Oakland, Los Angeles). I can only assume this was for legal reasons, or maybe named after the heroine of the 1926 play “Chicago”, Roxie Hart.
I thought about the Variety after making the statement, but my last impression of it from the eighties was that it was a bit dowdy. However, it did remind me a bit of the Hippodrome. I am glad it is being restored and look forward to seeing it next time I get to Cleveland.
Thanks Ken, I should have mentioned the Hilliard Square in my comment. I also went to it many times during the 40’s. It is surprising that with all the Eberson atomospherics in Northern Ohio (Akron, Marion, Canton) that he didn’t do one in Cleveland.
The architect for this theatre should be Rapp & Rapp, per records in the Theatre Society of America. The horseshoe boxes were a feature of many of the big Rapp & Rapp theatres. Thomas Lamb was the architect for Loew’s Park, a block down at 103rd and Euclid. It was similar in size and was built around the same time (1922).
I checked my 1929 Film Daily YB and it shows an Oriental at 9th and Superior with 1,500 seats. It well may be the theatre at corner of 9th and Chester – pretty close to Superior.
I have an old postcard with an aerial view looking north on 9th from Euclid. There is a theatre on the NE corner of Chester and 9th, which puts it right across from the Roxy. Afraid I cannot make out name on the marquee or roof signage. Period looks like mid 20’s. Apears to be a fair sized theatre of about 1,500 seats with a large stagehouse. Closer to Euclid on the present site of the present large bank there looks like another theatre. It would be on the east side of 9th between Euclid and Chester. Can only see the facade with a large window, and top of the marquee.
To Ken mc. Your photos from 2005 were of the entrance to the Crystal Market. It was never a theatre. Beyond the signage was a large indoor market which was the delight of downtown food shoppers. It had a large glass ceiling and went all the way back to Mission St. and beyond the buildings over to 8th St. It was torn down to build a huge hotel complex (Del Webb’s Townhouse) which is now being slated for demolition to build new housing.
I am also trying to run down this photo. The large triangular rails server as a additonalattraction board over the marquee were used mostly in the east and midwest. I don’t know of them ever being used on the west coast. In Ohio they were used on the Cleveland Palace and Alhambra, and in Columbus on the Palace and Grand, in Chicago on the Garrick and modified to one side on the Palace, Oriental, State-Lake and others. This is not the Uptown in Cleveland which was over 3.000 seats. The entrance area was several sets of doors, as was the entrance to the Chicago Uptown. This theatre photo shows only two or three sets of doors, and I would guess it to be a theatre of about l200 to 1500 seats.
The Bella Union was gutted to the brick walls and was only one story high. The Movie at Kearney and Broadway is a likely candidate. It operated from 1957 into the 80’s. However, there were many small theatres opened in the North Beach area during it’s last revival.
Orlando Lopez, New York Director of The Theatre Historical Society of America in their NewsFlash identified this theatre as the Olympic Theatre Concert Hall in the Bronx on Propect Ave. Their is a CT listing under that name. He said the interiors and exteriors are both of that theatre, but the marquee was added by computer graphics.
I may have missed it in the earlier comments, but probably the main reasor for the closing of the Warner was that the city of Beverly Hills passed a law that no place of entertainment could operate after 10PM, thus pretty much ruining evening performances. I think this was mainly done to stop the rock shows at the theatre.
Ken, this would have been the San Francisco Tivoli. Blumenfeld operated it all during the 40’s till it’s demolition (which was in two parts. The auditorium went down in the early fifties to become a parking lot, but the office structure stood until the early sixties). The office part contained a large street level bar and a famous second floor after hours-club (Coffee Don’s).
I would like to add the theatre listed in CT as the Embassy 2, 3 and 4. It has a long history as the Columbia, Mayfair and DeMille. It has been standing vacant, covered with billboards, for years.
The name Newsreel was on three threatres on Broadway during the 40’s and 50’s. First was the Palace (Orpheum)at 630 S. Broadway), then the Globe (Morosco,President) at 744 S.Broadway and lastly the Tower at 802 S. Broadway. The only theatre on the north side of 8th St. would have been the Olympic (Bards) at 313 W. 8th St. I do not know of it ever being a Newsreel theatre.
Theatre opened as the Cinema in 1928. Shortly later Warner Brothers took it over and renamed it the Lake. It functioned as mainly a mover-over house from the Hippodrome for most of the 30’s and 40’s. In 1948 it was taken over by Community Theatres and, after a complete renovation, renamed the Esquire. It was operated for several years as the prime “art house” theatre downtown, but about the mid-fifties the exterior was completely remodeled and the entire building became a radio/tv studio. Last time I saw it (in 2000) it had become a parking lot.
Hope is enternal as long as a theatre is not demolished. I scouted out the theatres of Miami Beach in 1993 and found the structures of all the theatres I knew in the 40’s still stood, with the exception of the Plaza. The Lincoln is now home to the New World Symphony, the Cinema Casino a successfull night club and the Colony home to a local theatre group. However, the Carib was gutted for stores. The Variety and Cameo had gone to porn, but still were there in somewhat original condition.
San Francisco had a true reverse theatre. It was the Theatre St. Francis on Geary near Powell. It opened in October 1916 but closed as a theatre just a few years later. The building still stands. The very theatrical street facade is acutally the old stage house and the auditorium was to the back. It has been Lefty O'Doul’s Hofbrau for many years.
I worked part time at this theatre while attending USC, and I was chief chef and bottle washer till it closed in December 1952. I was partially responsible for the closure as I wanted to go home to Honolulu for the holidays. The owner, Bess Midnick (who also owned the La Tosca) didnt’t want to work the boxoffice, etc for the two weeks and decided to close till I came back. When I returned she told me she was renting the space out to a dental supply company. It was used for commercial purposes till finally being torn down – probably in the 80’s. It was very plain, and resembled many other small LA nabs.
I was in the theatre once – very nice but fairly plain. The auditorium with another entrance was on the next next street over and ran parallel to the street. The Main St. entrance was quite long and narrow to reach the 200 or so feet to the auditorium.
My error. Years ago it was the Morris Civic Auditorium, but after the more complete restoration it became the Morris Performing Arts Center. By the way, the only other theatre I know with the curving boxes is the Orpheum in Minneapolis. However, there are three individual curving boxes not one long one like in the Palace.
During the 1930’s a number of theatres in California were named (or renamed) with the alternate spelling of ROXIE (in San Francisco, Oakland, Los Angeles). I can only assume this was for legal reasons, or maybe named after the heroine of the 1926 play “Chicago”, Roxie Hart.
I thought about the Variety after making the statement, but my last impression of it from the eighties was that it was a bit dowdy. However, it did remind me a bit of the Hippodrome. I am glad it is being restored and look forward to seeing it next time I get to Cleveland.
Thanks Ken, I should have mentioned the Hilliard Square in my comment. I also went to it many times during the 40’s. It is surprising that with all the Eberson atomospherics in Northern Ohio (Akron, Marion, Canton) that he didn’t do one in Cleveland.
The architect for this theatre should be Rapp & Rapp, per records in the Theatre Society of America. The horseshoe boxes were a feature of many of the big Rapp & Rapp theatres. Thomas Lamb was the architect for Loew’s Park, a block down at 103rd and Euclid. It was similar in size and was built around the same time (1922).
I checked my 1929 Film Daily YB and it shows an Oriental at 9th and Superior with 1,500 seats. It well may be the theatre at corner of 9th and Chester – pretty close to Superior.
I have an old postcard with an aerial view looking north on 9th from Euclid. There is a theatre on the NE corner of Chester and 9th, which puts it right across from the Roxy. Afraid I cannot make out name on the marquee or roof signage. Period looks like mid 20’s. Apears to be a fair sized theatre of about 1,500 seats with a large stagehouse. Closer to Euclid on the present site of the present large bank there looks like another theatre. It would be on the east side of 9th between Euclid and Chester. Can only see the facade with a large window, and top of the marquee.
There is a CT site for this theatre under Paramount (the one on Clinton Ave.)
This is the Piccadilly (1912-1974, 2259 seats.) in Rochester, New York. It was later known as the Paramount and Century.
To Ken mc. Your photos from 2005 were of the entrance to the Crystal Market. It was never a theatre. Beyond the signage was a large indoor market which was the delight of downtown food shoppers. It had a large glass ceiling and went all the way back to Mission St. and beyond the buildings over to 8th St. It was torn down to build a huge hotel complex (Del Webb’s Townhouse) which is now being slated for demolition to build new housing.
The architect was S. Charles Lee, who also did (the much more spectacular) Tower Bowl complex directly across the street.
I am also trying to run down this photo. The large triangular rails server as a additonalattraction board over the marquee were used mostly in the east and midwest. I don’t know of them ever being used on the west coast. In Ohio they were used on the Cleveland Palace and Alhambra, and in Columbus on the Palace and Grand, in Chicago on the Garrick and modified to one side on the Palace, Oriental, State-Lake and others. This is not the Uptown in Cleveland which was over 3.000 seats. The entrance area was several sets of doors, as was the entrance to the Chicago Uptown. This theatre photo shows only two or three sets of doors, and I would guess it to be a theatre of about l200 to 1500 seats.
The Bella Union was gutted to the brick walls and was only one story high. The Movie at Kearney and Broadway is a likely candidate. It operated from 1957 into the 80’s. However, there were many small theatres opened in the North Beach area during it’s last revival.
Orlando Lopez, New York Director of The Theatre Historical Society of America in their NewsFlash identified this theatre as the Olympic Theatre Concert Hall in the Bronx on Propect Ave. Their is a CT listing under that name. He said the interiors and exteriors are both of that theatre, but the marquee was added by computer graphics.
I may have missed it in the earlier comments, but probably the main reasor for the closing of the Warner was that the city of Beverly Hills passed a law that no place of entertainment could operate after 10PM, thus pretty much ruining evening performances. I think this was mainly done to stop the rock shows at the theatre.
Ken, this would have been the San Francisco Tivoli. Blumenfeld operated it all during the 40’s till it’s demolition (which was in two parts. The auditorium went down in the early fifties to become a parking lot, but the office structure stood until the early sixties). The office part contained a large street level bar and a famous second floor after hours-club (Coffee Don’s).
I would like to add the theatre listed in CT as the Embassy 2, 3 and 4. It has a long history as the Columbia, Mayfair and DeMille. It has been standing vacant, covered with billboards, for years.
The name Newsreel was on three threatres on Broadway during the 40’s and 50’s. First was the Palace (Orpheum)at 630 S. Broadway), then the Globe (Morosco,President) at 744 S.Broadway and lastly the Tower at 802 S. Broadway. The only theatre on the north side of 8th St. would have been the Olympic (Bards) at 313 W. 8th St. I do not know of it ever being a Newsreel theatre.
Jaffe’s Casino functioned as Pittsburg’s “big time” burlesque house into the fifties.
Theatre opened as the Cinema in 1928. Shortly later Warner Brothers took it over and renamed it the Lake. It functioned as mainly a mover-over house from the Hippodrome for most of the 30’s and 40’s. In 1948 it was taken over by Community Theatres and, after a complete renovation, renamed the Esquire. It was operated for several years as the prime “art house” theatre downtown, but about the mid-fifties the exterior was completely remodeled and the entire building became a radio/tv studio. Last time I saw it (in 2000) it had become a parking lot.
Hope is enternal as long as a theatre is not demolished. I scouted out the theatres of Miami Beach in 1993 and found the structures of all the theatres I knew in the 40’s still stood, with the exception of the Plaza. The Lincoln is now home to the New World Symphony, the Cinema Casino a successfull night club and the Colony home to a local theatre group. However, the Carib was gutted for stores. The Variety and Cameo had gone to porn, but still were there in somewhat original condition.
San Francisco had a true reverse theatre. It was the Theatre St. Francis on Geary near Powell. It opened in October 1916 but closed as a theatre just a few years later. The building still stands. The very theatrical street facade is acutally the old stage house and the auditorium was to the back. It has been Lefty O'Doul’s Hofbrau for many years.
I worked part time at this theatre while attending USC, and I was chief chef and bottle washer till it closed in December 1952. I was partially responsible for the closure as I wanted to go home to Honolulu for the holidays. The owner, Bess Midnick (who also owned the La Tosca) didnt’t want to work the boxoffice, etc for the two weeks and decided to close till I came back. When I returned she told me she was renting the space out to a dental supply company. It was used for commercial purposes till finally being torn down – probably in the 80’s. It was very plain, and resembled many other small LA nabs.
I was in the theatre once – very nice but fairly plain. The auditorium with another entrance was on the next next street over and ran parallel to the street. The Main St. entrance was quite long and narrow to reach the 200 or so feet to the auditorium.
My error. Years ago it was the Morris Civic Auditorium, but after the more complete restoration it became the Morris Performing Arts Center. By the way, the only other theatre I know with the curving boxes is the Orpheum in Minneapolis. However, there are three individual curving boxes not one long one like in the Palace.
This is the Palace in South Bend, Indiana. The unique curving boxes are the giveaway. It is now know as the Morris Civic Auditorium.