Trying to make sense of this. Chuck’s entries are always full of errors, and he can’t be relied upon for even something simple like an address. That said, this summary is a bit confusing.
The December 1906 map shows no movie theaters, aside from the Morton (later Garrick/Capitol).
The October 1912 map shows nothing on W. Center (then Centre or Main Cross), but does show a theater at what was then 111 E Centre (now 11 E Center). That building is still there, but cannot be the one in the picture since it only has 3 windows.
The September 1923 map shows a theater at 209 W. Centre (now 109 W Center). That must be this theater. The map shows that it was the west half of a building, with a different building of the same height to the west. This matches what we see in the photo. The entire block has been demolished for a big post office and parking lot. The theater on E Center has disappeared on this map.
I don’t see any evidence that a theater was at 24 W Center. It may have operated for only a few years and fallen into a gap between maps. I will fix the address and status, and use 1917 as the opening date. I think Cameo #1 must have been the 11 E Center theater. I’m not clear on where the original Dixie was, and the Capitol/Kentucky part is difficult to follow.
No, there’s nothing to indicate that isn’t true. I could have sworn this entry used to say that the theater opened in 1914. I think this is a duplicate of the unidentified Park Row theater that I submitted some time ago. If we can all agree on the dates, then I will combine the listings.
I think we have this in the wrong place. 416 was the Columbia, which was replaced by the Capitol. The picture of the entry for that theater is clearly a different building. If this was on Park Row, the problem is that 411 is a theater in 1909, but NOT in 1914, when this supposedly opened.
I think we should probably separate the Columbia out, since it was one door over, in a building that was demolished in the 1939 remodel. The Capitol auditorium was behind the older buildings. At any rate, we’ve finally put the 1890 opera house nonsense to rest.
This building and the neighboring structures have been progressively ruined by cheap sheet metal trash. Some of the original structure can be seen on the blurry 2008 streetview.
I have given the address of the EMBA building, although the theater space may have been entered from 6th St. The building is in perilous shape. It appears to have been vacant since at least 2014. The location of the gym/theater space is now some cheap metal sheds housing the city hall and fire department.
This theater appears on the Dec. 1912 Sanborn. This is the earliest map available, so no history on the building is available. The Princess was the southernmost of five storefronts in a large one story brick structure with a tin front. Rebuilt by May 1915 at the latest (it appears in the 1914-15 AMPD), it was now a two story brick building (possibly only one story at the rear). The theater remained a ground floor operation with a photo studio upstairs through at least 1925.
It appears at some point that the upper story was removed. The facade survived until sometime between 2014 and 2023. The interior had long been gutted, and the space used as a patio.
I’ve added a 1918 map view, including city hall (which was also destroyed in the 1923 fire and rebuilt on the same site). This shows how the channel was widened. Based on that view, and the later postcard, plus some pictures of the fire, I believe that the original structure was likely reused in the 1932 incarnation.
I’ve added a 1918 Sanborn view of the theater. The theater does not appear on the 1910 map, nor is it listed in the 1914-15 AMPD. The 1927 and 1950 maps are not available online. The entire two block frontage on the east side of Main, and going back most of the block behind, has been destroyed and replaced by a really depressingly ugly urban ‘renewal’ mall.
There is no 500 block of Pine, which exists only between 6th and 7th Avenues. It looks like 601 is an older building covered in sheet metal. It’s rather large for only 197 seats.
Trying to make sense of this. Chuck’s entries are always full of errors, and he can’t be relied upon for even something simple like an address. That said, this summary is a bit confusing.
The December 1906 map shows no movie theaters, aside from the Morton (later Garrick/Capitol).
The October 1912 map shows nothing on W. Center (then Centre or Main Cross), but does show a theater at what was then 111 E Centre (now 11 E Center). That building is still there, but cannot be the one in the picture since it only has 3 windows.
The September 1923 map shows a theater at 209 W. Centre (now 109 W Center). That must be this theater. The map shows that it was the west half of a building, with a different building of the same height to the west. This matches what we see in the photo. The entire block has been demolished for a big post office and parking lot. The theater on E Center has disappeared on this map.
I don’t see any evidence that a theater was at 24 W Center. It may have operated for only a few years and fallen into a gap between maps. I will fix the address and status, and use 1917 as the opening date. I think Cameo #1 must have been the 11 E Center theater. I’m not clear on where the original Dixie was, and the Capitol/Kentucky part is difficult to follow.
No, there’s nothing to indicate that isn’t true. I could have sworn this entry used to say that the theater opened in 1914. I think this is a duplicate of the unidentified Park Row theater that I submitted some time ago. If we can all agree on the dates, then I will combine the listings.
I think we have this in the wrong place. 416 was the Columbia, which was replaced by the Capitol. The picture of the entry for that theater is clearly a different building. If this was on Park Row, the problem is that 411 is a theater in 1909, but NOT in 1914, when this supposedly opened.
I think we should probably separate the Columbia out, since it was one door over, in a building that was demolished in the 1939 remodel. The Capitol auditorium was behind the older buildings. At any rate, we’ve finally put the 1890 opera house nonsense to rest.
This building and the neighboring structures have been progressively ruined by cheap sheet metal trash. Some of the original structure can be seen on the blurry 2008 streetview.
I have given the address of the EMBA building, although the theater space may have been entered from 6th St. The building is in perilous shape. It appears to have been vacant since at least 2014. The location of the gym/theater space is now some cheap metal sheds housing the city hall and fire department.
This theater appears on the Dec. 1912 Sanborn. This is the earliest map available, so no history on the building is available. The Princess was the southernmost of five storefronts in a large one story brick structure with a tin front. Rebuilt by May 1915 at the latest (it appears in the 1914-15 AMPD), it was now a two story brick building (possibly only one story at the rear). The theater remained a ground floor operation with a photo studio upstairs through at least 1925.
It appears at some point that the upper story was removed. The facade survived until sometime between 2014 and 2023. The interior had long been gutted, and the space used as a patio.
Thanks, that takes care of the Ruby mystery.
I’ve added a 1918 map view, including city hall (which was also destroyed in the 1923 fire and rebuilt on the same site). This shows how the channel was widened. Based on that view, and the later postcard, plus some pictures of the fire, I believe that the original structure was likely reused in the 1932 incarnation.
I’ve added a 1918 Sanborn view of the theater. The theater does not appear on the 1910 map, nor is it listed in the 1914-15 AMPD. The 1927 and 1950 maps are not available online. The entire two block frontage on the east side of Main, and going back most of the block behind, has been destroyed and replaced by a really depressingly ugly urban ‘renewal’ mall.
I’ve set the closing date as April 23, but if it did indeed show films until May 12, we can change it.
There is no 500 block of Pine, which exists only between 6th and 7th Avenues. It looks like 601 is an older building covered in sheet metal. It’s rather large for only 197 seats.
Is the address correct? What must be 121 looks like a dealership or garage. It’s likely pre-1956.
Was the capacity ever 350? Is the address correct? If so, this was demolished years ago. The contributor is unreliable, and makes lots of errors.
Thanks for the information!
Sounds like this was most likely the Empress.
2014 streetview still shows the marquee and ticket booth. Now has a cheap, sloppy remodel that destroyed those features.
2008 Streetview still has the marquee up. Bad remodel, and now it’s just a box.
Good enough for me! If it turns out to be wrong, I can always fix it.
It may have been, but the old post office now has a 7400 adress, making 7414 quite sensible for the next lot north.
Curious that it is still listed as the Princess, several years after that closed, and indeed several years after theater use stopped.
So the 1955 name change is bogus?
Thanks, I’ve adjusted the listing.
The Temple name sounds like it must have been here, but the opening date is after the map date.
So just Lyon’s, with no ‘Park’? Odd that the official New Park name was not on the marquee.