Madison Theatre

I lived in East Atlanta in the 1950s and early 1960s and frequented the Madison Theatre. My older brother was in charge of buying tickets, so I don’t remember how much they cost. Back then you could see the movie as many times as you wanted for one admission price. Our Dad drove a taxi on the weekends for East Atlanta Cab, which was right down the street from the Madison. My brother and I would often stay at the theatre all day until Dad got off from work. I had a dime to spend each Saturday and would either get a coke and popcorn or a coke and a big Charms cherry sucker. My brother and I would go every Saturday to see the Sky King, Superman and Batman serials, cartoons and newsreels. It didn’t matter much to us what the feature film was, but if I remember correctly, they were always kid friendly. I first saw the Blob and War of the Worlds there. My first experience getting a finger slammed in a car door was outside the Madison Theatre; my brother was also in charge of closing the car door. :) Saturdays at the Madison Theatre were among my favorite childhood memories. To this day, I love old movie theaters, and over 50 years later, I have vivid fond memories of the Madison Theatre.

I lived in East Atlanta for several years in the late 1990s. During that time the theater was a mattress storage facility. The people there were very shady. I tried with some others to gain access to the main part of the theater but it was not possible due to the people renting it. Along with some others I tried to contact the owners to see about a possible renovation – I had some money at the time – and there seemed to be little interest in that from the people that hold the title.

I would love to go inside or see old pictures of this theater.

I’m a historian and would gladly write the nomination to have the Madison Theater put on the National Register of Historic Places. I also work in the office of Historic Preservation for the state of Georgia. Our office receives all nominations for this designation throughout the state….so I know what they are looking for. There is currently no information on the Madison (or any of the building in the village) in our office, so I am creating a file. Ultimately, the whole of EAV could potentially be listed as a “Historic District” on the National Register. I’ve not done enough research to know that the neighborhood qualifies…..baby steps.

I’d also be willing to write a grant for the renovation of the property once it is listed on the national register.

I’ve begun doing historical research on the Madison property, but wondered if anyone would like to add to the lot of information I’ve already obtained. It sounds like a lot of you have done some research yourselves. Also, oral histories would be desirable in putting the nomination together as well.

View link

JacobA,
Could you please post some contact information. I would like to get in touch with you about leasing. Thanks.
Trip

Does anyone happen to know if the marquee was demolished or if it ended up in someone’s hands? Also, any other information or a direction in which to research would be hugely appreciated. I’ve…got..a…..plan!

Try 404-514-3384. It’s Abe Asher’s cell. He’s tough to track down and not real speedy about returning phone calls. Good luck with whatever.

He’d LOVE to lease it. Problem is he wants about $4500/mo. and it’ll need about $1-1.5m to get the doors open. There’s no plumbing or electrical and it needs a lot of love all around.

I tried to get it historical designation but landlord doesn’t want any part of it. He thinks if he does that then he’ll have to restore it to original condition. No matter how much I talked, he wouldn’t listen.

It’s a wonderful old space but I’m having trouble finding options with the numbers I’m seeing and his lack of vision. You can see a small video of the inside here http://youtube.com/watch?v=w3zM04KYy68

The photos are from my blog, and at the time they were posted someone was working on it, but that ceased quite some time ago. I live about two blocks from the Madison, grew up going to the theater nearly every weekend, and would love to see it restored. I think one of the main drawbacks is the owner, who can be charitably described as eccentric, and who has no interest in historic preservation.

is this in a good area … east atlanta can be rough….

He’s a different kind of guy and East Atlanta’s a different kind of place. Plus, no one ever filed for true landmark status of the property. Otherwise, things might be different now.

Owner says he’s not interested in selling. There are 2 retail spaces on either side of the entrance that probably were part of the theatre that he’s renovating for tenants.

I am on the cusp of getting the Madison Theatre so that she can be reopened. She needs to get Landmark status to enable us to get grants/financial support for the huge project. I am looking for any historical info on her (original owners, famous visitors, important Atlanta events, etc.) for the application for state and National Registry. Any help would be appreciated! b ()