Needham Cinema

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Uploaded on: April 18, 2019

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The Needham Theatre opened in 1926, and closed in 1989 when the economics of the movie business no longer favored small community cinemas.  A property dispute left the theater building in legal limbo for more than ten years, during which there was no maintenance.  By 2001, the building was deemed dangerous and was taken over by the town for demolition.  Jack Cogswell, at the time a Selectman and member of the Needham Historical Society’s board of directors, took the opportunity to take some last photos of the theater and rescue (with permission) a few of the decorative plaster brackets for the Society’s collection. By the time the theater was demolished, its elegant interior had sadly decayed.