Englewood Theater

This piece aired this morning on “CBS Sunday Morning”. There are a few shots of the Englewood Theater. Copy & paste to view.

http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/madisen-ward-and-the-mama-bear-music-and-family-go-together/

Trying to get the support to get this reopened showing classics. “Bring Back The Englewood Theatre!” is the Facebook page with some information

I was hoping that the Englewood Theater was going to re-open last Summer, but that did not happen. Rumor is that there were problems between the owner and Independence City Government. I was out in that are last week and several of the neighbors have heard sad news that the Englewood will be gutted in the near future with all the contents going to another Theater project outside of Independence, MO. I think it is going on more than 3 years since it was last opened, so the info must be true. I know that the Fine Arts Theater has never opened for the same reason – problems with permits and the Shawnee City Government. Maybe the Fine Arts Group or Mr. Williams should come to Lee’s Summit, MO where they will be greeted with opened arms and full assistance especially if they were to open a vintage style movie theater in the historic downtown district. When I think of all the movies that I would have loved to have seen at the Englewood – it just pains me to see this beautiful retro movie theater closed (guess I could say the same thing for two downtown theaters in Kansas City, KS – The Granada and the Avenue Theaters

Loved going to the Englewood in the 90s when they ran classic films on that 50 foot screen. Ben Hur in particular comes to mind. I sincerly hope it can reopen as a revival house and show the old movies again.

I spoke to Mr. Williams, the owner of the Englewood. I’m sorry to say he was very discouraged. He is having trouble with the city over a building permit for the company working on the theater. He mentioned having spent thousands to update the theater to its present state and wanted some cooperation from the city.
We live about an hour from the theater, but always enjoyed dinner and an Englewood movie. We were disappointed that the local folks did not support this great theater with more attendance. A step back in time to great seats, good popcorn, good prices, and that great 50 foot screen.

The theater’s been closed for quite some time. I think the Fine Arts Group is adding a second screen next door where the old Ben Franklin used to be but I’m not sure. They did a nice job with the renovation a few years ago but I miss the place being a revival house. First run movies are fine but some of the things they show there are kind of odd for the neighborhood. I don’t think art house fare will play that well in that part of Independence. I went there every week when it was a revival house. I saw great movies like Lawrence Of Arabia, Raiders Of The Lost Ark, Ben Hur, Gone With The Wind, and many, many others there. I hope it reopens soon and they start playing classic movies again.

I grew up in Independence and as a child, either walked or got dropped off at the Englewood on many occasions. My very first memory of the Englewood was when my mother took me there to see “Song of the South”. During the scene where the little boy was gored by the bull and close to dying, I started crying so hard that my mom had to take me into the “cry room”. It was a small room at the back and to the side where you could still hear the movie and watch it through a big glass window, but crying children didn’t disburb the other movie goers. As a teen, I found it a great place to hang out (and “make out”). Up until about 2 years ago, the Englewood was showing old classic movies. We saw several there—Show Boat, Rear Window, White Christmas and others, including Grease. Grease was great (I saw it there 3 times) because the audience would sing along with John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John. I always took my kids and their friends—it was a blast. The “Passion” is playing there now and I plan on seeing it one day next week. The huge screen should work well for the Passion. I would encourage anyone that comes to historic Independence to make the Englewood Theater one of your stops. It’s only minutes away from the Harry S. Truman Library and the Truman home. It’s a step back in time that really brings back wonderful memories for me.