Rio Theatre
56 Illinois Street,
Chicago Heights,
IL
60411
56 Illinois Street,
Chicago Heights,
IL
60411
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The S.J. Gregory Theatrical Company, incorporated in July 1919 and based in Chicago Heights, IL, was operating the Illinois theater in Chicago Heights at least as early as April 1920. In November 1921 Motion Picture News reported that Fitzpatrick-McElroy had taken over the Illinois theater from Gregory.
In June 1921 Fitzpatrick-McElroy acquired Carley & Hanson’s larger, opulent 1600-seat Lincoln-Dixie theater in Chicago Heights – Film Daily reported the purchase that month. The Lincoln-Dixie theater probably opened on March 15, 1921 – Exhibitors Herald on April 9, 1921, referred to the “recent opening of the Lincoln-Dixie” theater in Chicago Heights (another source has June 23).
1940s post card added via Denise Armstrong. Rio marquee beneath Sears signage.
The Illinois Theatre was mentioned in many issue of the The Chicago Heights Star after 1922, and placed more than a few ads, but most of the notices and ads were not for movies. There were political meetings, school plays, boxing matches, club meetings, and other live events, but the only movies I’ve found were advertised on March 27, 1924, and one of those films had been released in 1923 and the other in 1922. I’ve seen only a few issues of the paper from this period, so there could have occasionally been other movies shown.
That is the Illinois Theater on the south side of Illinois Street between Oak and Halsted. Nice picture, wonder what year that is from.
Believe the Rio was further East, on the south side of Illinois Street, Southeast from the Victoria Hotel.
Might this be it?