The building no longer exists. On the Google picture above, it was situated on the grassy lawn between the fast-food joints (to the viewer’s left) and the brick supermarket (right). The undistinguished entrance faced the strip-mall parking lot, in the distance; the theater’s back faced the street, in the foreground. The foyer offered little more than a refreshment stand. The theater[s] were basic single-level boxes. After the building multiplexed, patrons could sometimes listen to two or three sound-tracks simultaneously. This was not one of the great movie palaces of yore!
The Google Map picture has been corrected. The Granada Theatre was located in the park shown. Its marquee and entrance, facing Michigan Street, were situated more-or-less where the prominent row of trees now stand.
The Granada Theatre was located in the parkland situated to the right side of the Google Map picture heading this CT page. The building, formerly at the NE corner of Michigan St. and Colfax Ave., is gone. The (fuzzy) theater in the picture’s left distance is the Morris Arts (ex-Palace). None — none! — of this display’s linked photos show the Granada; for the most part, they show the Morris or the State, other theaters still on South Bend’s Michigan Street. One photo of the Granada’s exterior is linked among the “Comments”.
The five-story commercial building that once accommodated the entrance and foyer of Proctor’s Theater still stands on the west side of Gramatan Avenue (North 4th), several blocks northeast of the Google Map photo currently heading this CT page. The picture should be re-directed there.
There’s irony here. The Google Map picture topping this page shows the current South Bend Tribune building squatting on the site. The SBT demolished the lovely and historic Colfax Theatre, listed in the National Registry of Historic Places, to put up its brick hulk. Sic transit gloria mundi….. Sigh!
The Google Map picture that now pops up in this post’s heading shows a stretch of Bainbridge Avenue, too far east of the Windsor to show any of the theater’s building. The posting needs a gizmo to allow a viewer to navigate around the block and fix the correct view. The Windsor’s façade still faces East Kingsbridge Road.
A fire ended the building’s career as a theater. Storefronts occupied the building’s lobby until, at least, the early 1990s, when I last visited the neighborhood. Google Maps now appear to show a two-floor commercial building in the old Kent’s place. Sad!
I just checked Google Maps. The Sun is in one’s face, so it’s hard to distinguish details. But I think the old building is gone, replaced by a one-floor storefront. Sad! “Craft Printing” is still located up the Road.
According to the 12 June 2009 “South Bend Tribune”, the State Theatre us up for auction. The evangelical community that claimed it failed to meet its goals. Details may be found at URL: View link
As I reported earlier, I remember the Lido vividly. I was just a post-Depression kid, many decades ago, but the Lido was my introduction to genuine “elegance”. Whenever the family wanted to do something really fancy, Grandma took us to the Lido — real tablecloths, great breadsticks, and more than enough suave to stun an incipient delinquent. For some reason, I remember the restaurant was shaped like an upside-down “L”. The best tables were in the back, away from Kingsbridge. We could not have gone more than a dozen times, but the Lido remains one of my fondest New York memories. It was a magnificent place!
This was a nice little neighborhood theater, when I moved to South Bend in the 1970s. Unfortunately, no bus line ran between my house and River Park, so I did not visit it as often as I should have. (South Bend’s other public transportation systems consist of feet!) After a while, in the mid-1980s, this lovely little movie house just disappeared, and I hardly noticed — until it was far too late. It’s sad.
There is a large (and expandable) aerial photo of the Grant Heights Housing Complex at: View link The theater is near the midpoint. Again, apologies for the delay.
Much closer maps of the Grant Heights neighborhood (in Tokyo) may be found at: View link Grant Heights was in the northwesternmost district of the City,“Nerima-ku”. Sorry for the delay; I just found this link. We ancient geezers (I’m almost 75) don’t recollect stuff too swiftly.
The “Comment” box is a little small. Hence, Volume Two. If one Googles “Nerima”, one can find a map of Tokyo and its neighborhood, including the location of Nerima-ku, the district in question. The US military housing complex was acquired in 1948, and returned to the Japanese in 1973. Grant Heights has since become “Hikarigaoka,” a high-rise housing complex for workers interspersed with very pleasant parks — and now even served by an extension of Tokyo’s vast subway system! Before the US arrived, Narimasu Air Base was home to Ki-84 Type 4 “Hayate” fighters of the Imperial Army Air Force. Toward the end of WWII, it was a base for kamikaze. Strange, how things go….
For a panoramic view of the theater and its neighborhood, see: View link
The photo dates from the very early 1970’s. The theater’s façade had been improved. The buildings shown are (L to R) the Dispensary, the PX Commissary, and the Grant Heights Theater. A common parking lot is in the foreground. This block, near the center of the US housing complex, was bordered by Narimasu Road [on the west; the former N-S runway of the Imperial Army’s Narimasu Air Base], Commissary Ave [on the north], East St, and Theater Ave. The theater (“Building 769, in military jargon) was at the corner of East and Theater.
The Avon was an upscale “art” theatre (spelled with a terminal “-re”) while I was an undergraduate at Notre Dame in the 1950s. It mostly showed “foreign films,” not regular movies. It aimed to attract patrons who would not condescend to visit the many other theaters in town — and it largely succeeded, which is why only professors and snobs knew it was open for business. Its regular clientele consisted of folks who liked to imagine they were in New York or Paris. If an ND undergrad’s date was a foreign-language or fine arts major from St. Mary’s College, he might suffer going there too, occasionally. :–)
I recollect Park Hill as a very nice theater, around 1970 or so. We used to drive over from Woodlawn, to see flicks here. The only real problem was finding a parking place nearby. The neighborhood deteriorated, later.
That bloody clock appears to have been the Kent’s most memorable feature — like the Rockettes, at Radio City Music Hall! The clock should be memorialized with a humongous statue, at the corner of McClean and Kimball!
Love ya' all! Say “hello!” to St. Barnabas for me.
I saw Audie Murphy in the B&W “Red Badge of Courage” here, as an ND undergrad, three or four or five times in succession. I skipped a lot of classes to see the movie. After an interlude in the Air Force, I wound up as a Civil War historian, for almost 30 years. I can’t blame an entire lifetime on my wasted afternoons at the Granada, but they surely contributed!
The very last movie I saw at the Kent was “There Was a Crooked Man”, starring Kirk Douglas and Henry Fonda. Maybe I saw it in 1971 or so. There was a “B” feature too, but memory has blanked regarding that one. I wish I could recollect what the first flicks I saw at the Kent were, back during WWII, but I have no clue at all. Saturday afternoon B&W “action” movies from those days all merge together in my dimming memory — Westerns, War movies, Bogart, and lots of boring stuff starring Bette Davis or Irene Dunne, my Mom’s favorite actresses. I kept waiting for Bogart to eliminate the ladies, so John Wayne could get on with his “action” scenarios….
In early 1946, when I was in the 7th grade, I remember walking from Woodlawn (where I lived) to Yonkers Avenue, and then adventuring a 5¢ ride on the old Number 7 trolley to the wilds of Mount Vernon, which I had never dared before. Because I was playing hookey, I figured a movie house would be a smart hideout, for a couple of hours. I chose the first one I could see — which, in those days, must have been Proctor’s, on Gramatan Avenue. (Anyway, I could navigate back from Proctor’s; Loew’s Mount Vernon would require me to turn a corner or two). I have no clue what the movies were, that day. But I survived the trek, and somehow returned to civilization alive! It was a great day.
My thanks to Mr. Kovar and Mr. Zornig. Old geezers romanticize, but the Woodlawn folks who shared the Kent with my family were an especially nice lot. Work has exiled me to the Midwest since the early 1970s — nothing but inhumane suburban-mall Multiplexes around here (groan!) — so I hardly ever go to movies any more, except for “Harry Potter” flicks with my grandkids. It’s sad.
I just discovered Cinema Treasures about a month ago, after acquiring a snazzy new iMac. My old steam-driven boxy Mac was about 19 cyber generations out-of-date. This Website brings back many, many happy memories.
Happy New Year!
Cinema Treasures should cross-list the Morris under the name “Palace Theatre”, which is the name by which many old-timers remember it. I know there are gazillions of other “Palace” theaters listed under that name, but that’s precisely why it is frustrating to dig through the whole pile without finding South Bend’s “Palace”.
The building no longer exists. On the Google picture above, it was situated on the grassy lawn between the fast-food joints (to the viewer’s left) and the brick supermarket (right). The undistinguished entrance faced the strip-mall parking lot, in the distance; the theater’s back faced the street, in the foreground. The foyer offered little more than a refreshment stand. The theater[s] were basic single-level boxes. After the building multiplexed, patrons could sometimes listen to two or three sound-tracks simultaneously. This was not one of the great movie palaces of yore!
The Google Map picture has been corrected. The Granada Theatre was located in the park shown. Its marquee and entrance, facing Michigan Street, were situated more-or-less where the prominent row of trees now stand.
The Granada Theatre was located in the parkland situated to the right side of the Google Map picture heading this CT page. The building, formerly at the NE corner of Michigan St. and Colfax Ave., is gone. The (fuzzy) theater in the picture’s left distance is the Morris Arts (ex-Palace). None — none! — of this display’s linked photos show the Granada; for the most part, they show the Morris or the State, other theaters still on South Bend’s Michigan Street. One photo of the Granada’s exterior is linked among the “Comments”.
The five-story commercial building that once accommodated the entrance and foyer of Proctor’s Theater still stands on the west side of Gramatan Avenue (North 4th), several blocks northeast of the Google Map photo currently heading this CT page. The picture should be re-directed there.
There’s irony here. The Google Map picture topping this page shows the current South Bend Tribune building squatting on the site. The SBT demolished the lovely and historic Colfax Theatre, listed in the National Registry of Historic Places, to put up its brick hulk. Sic transit gloria mundi….. Sigh!
The Google Map picture has been corrected. Compare to the old picture linked in Lostmemory’s posting of July 2, 2008
The Google Map picture that now pops up in this post’s heading shows a stretch of Bainbridge Avenue, too far east of the Windsor to show any of the theater’s building. The posting needs a gizmo to allow a viewer to navigate around the block and fix the correct view. The Windsor’s façade still faces East Kingsbridge Road.
A fire ended the building’s career as a theater. Storefronts occupied the building’s lobby until, at least, the early 1990s, when I last visited the neighborhood. Google Maps now appear to show a two-floor commercial building in the old Kent’s place. Sad!
I just checked Google Maps. The Sun is in one’s face, so it’s hard to distinguish details. But I think the old building is gone, replaced by a one-floor storefront. Sad! “Craft Printing” is still located up the Road.
According to the 12 June 2009 “South Bend Tribune”, the State Theatre us up for auction. The evangelical community that claimed it failed to meet its goals. Details may be found at URL: View link
As I reported earlier, I remember the Lido vividly. I was just a post-Depression kid, many decades ago, but the Lido was my introduction to genuine “elegance”. Whenever the family wanted to do something really fancy, Grandma took us to the Lido — real tablecloths, great breadsticks, and more than enough suave to stun an incipient delinquent. For some reason, I remember the restaurant was shaped like an upside-down “L”. The best tables were in the back, away from Kingsbridge. We could not have gone more than a dozen times, but the Lido remains one of my fondest New York memories. It was a magnificent place!
This was a nice little neighborhood theater, when I moved to South Bend in the 1970s. Unfortunately, no bus line ran between my house and River Park, so I did not visit it as often as I should have. (South Bend’s other public transportation systems consist of feet!) After a while, in the mid-1980s, this lovely little movie house just disappeared, and I hardly noticed — until it was far too late. It’s sad.
Seven weeks later, the Morris still hasn’t been cross-listed with the other 367 “Palace” theaters, where most old-timers will look for it. Too bad!
There is a large (and expandable) aerial photo of the Grant Heights Housing Complex at: View link The theater is near the midpoint. Again, apologies for the delay.
Much closer maps of the Grant Heights neighborhood (in Tokyo) may be found at: View link Grant Heights was in the northwesternmost district of the City,“Nerima-ku”. Sorry for the delay; I just found this link. We ancient geezers (I’m almost 75) don’t recollect stuff too swiftly.
The “Comment” box is a little small. Hence, Volume Two. If one Googles “Nerima”, one can find a map of Tokyo and its neighborhood, including the location of Nerima-ku, the district in question. The US military housing complex was acquired in 1948, and returned to the Japanese in 1973. Grant Heights has since become “Hikarigaoka,” a high-rise housing complex for workers interspersed with very pleasant parks — and now even served by an extension of Tokyo’s vast subway system! Before the US arrived, Narimasu Air Base was home to Ki-84 Type 4 “Hayate” fighters of the Imperial Army Air Force. Toward the end of WWII, it was a base for kamikaze. Strange, how things go….
For a panoramic view of the theater and its neighborhood, see: View link
The photo dates from the very early 1970’s. The theater’s façade had been improved. The buildings shown are (L to R) the Dispensary, the PX Commissary, and the Grant Heights Theater. A common parking lot is in the foreground. This block, near the center of the US housing complex, was bordered by Narimasu Road [on the west; the former N-S runway of the Imperial Army’s Narimasu Air Base], Commissary Ave [on the north], East St, and Theater Ave. The theater (“Building 769, in military jargon) was at the corner of East and Theater.
The Avon was an upscale “art” theatre (spelled with a terminal “-re”) while I was an undergraduate at Notre Dame in the 1950s. It mostly showed “foreign films,” not regular movies. It aimed to attract patrons who would not condescend to visit the many other theaters in town — and it largely succeeded, which is why only professors and snobs knew it was open for business. Its regular clientele consisted of folks who liked to imagine they were in New York or Paris. If an ND undergrad’s date was a foreign-language or fine arts major from St. Mary’s College, he might suffer going there too, occasionally. :–)
I recollect Park Hill as a very nice theater, around 1970 or so. We used to drive over from Woodlawn, to see flicks here. The only real problem was finding a parking place nearby. The neighborhood deteriorated, later.
That bloody clock appears to have been the Kent’s most memorable feature — like the Rockettes, at Radio City Music Hall! The clock should be memorialized with a humongous statue, at the corner of McClean and Kimball!
Love ya' all! Say “hello!” to St. Barnabas for me.
I saw Audie Murphy in the B&W “Red Badge of Courage” here, as an ND undergrad, three or four or five times in succession. I skipped a lot of classes to see the movie. After an interlude in the Air Force, I wound up as a Civil War historian, for almost 30 years. I can’t blame an entire lifetime on my wasted afternoons at the Granada, but they surely contributed!
The very last movie I saw at the Kent was “There Was a Crooked Man”, starring Kirk Douglas and Henry Fonda. Maybe I saw it in 1971 or so. There was a “B” feature too, but memory has blanked regarding that one. I wish I could recollect what the first flicks I saw at the Kent were, back during WWII, but I have no clue at all. Saturday afternoon B&W “action” movies from those days all merge together in my dimming memory — Westerns, War movies, Bogart, and lots of boring stuff starring Bette Davis or Irene Dunne, my Mom’s favorite actresses. I kept waiting for Bogart to eliminate the ladies, so John Wayne could get on with his “action” scenarios….
In early 1946, when I was in the 7th grade, I remember walking from Woodlawn (where I lived) to Yonkers Avenue, and then adventuring a 5¢ ride on the old Number 7 trolley to the wilds of Mount Vernon, which I had never dared before. Because I was playing hookey, I figured a movie house would be a smart hideout, for a couple of hours. I chose the first one I could see — which, in those days, must have been Proctor’s, on Gramatan Avenue. (Anyway, I could navigate back from Proctor’s; Loew’s Mount Vernon would require me to turn a corner or two). I have no clue what the movies were, that day. But I survived the trek, and somehow returned to civilization alive! It was a great day.
My thanks to Mr. Kovar and Mr. Zornig. Old geezers romanticize, but the Woodlawn folks who shared the Kent with my family were an especially nice lot. Work has exiled me to the Midwest since the early 1970s — nothing but inhumane suburban-mall Multiplexes around here (groan!) — so I hardly ever go to movies any more, except for “Harry Potter” flicks with my grandkids. It’s sad.
I just discovered Cinema Treasures about a month ago, after acquiring a snazzy new iMac. My old steam-driven boxy Mac was about 19 cyber generations out-of-date. This Website brings back many, many happy memories.
Happy New Year!
Cinema Treasures should cross-list the Morris under the name “Palace Theatre”, which is the name by which many old-timers remember it. I know there are gazillions of other “Palace” theaters listed under that name, but that’s precisely why it is frustrating to dig through the whole pile without finding South Bend’s “Palace”.