Riviera Theatre
1103 Hixson Pike,
Chattanooga,
TN
37405
1103 Hixson Pike,
Chattanooga,
TN
37405
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July 7th, 1973: Another transformation! The theater reemerged as Rivervue, now showcasing adult movies.
1976: Yet another name shift, this time to Riverveiw.
1983: The final curtain fell, and the theater closed its doors for good.
August 29th, 1935: The Riviera Theatre first graced the stage, brought to life by Independent Theatres.
1958: Unfortunately, the curtains fell, and the Riviera Theatre closed its doors.
June 11th, 1965: A phoenix-like revival occurred! The theater reopened as the New Riviera, now dedicated to showcasing art movies.
October 8th, 1965: A name change ensued, and it became the Riviera Art.
Closed Again: Alas, the Riviera Art’s lights dimmed once more.
October 16th, 1970: A triumphant return! The theater emerged anew as the New Riviera (yes, again!). Its grand reopening featured the film “I am Curious (Yellow)”.
October 20th, 1970: But fate had other plans. The vice squad descended upon the New Riviera, casting a shadow over its vibrant screens.
More to come. Grand opening ads posted.
Grand opening ad:
Riviera Theatre opening 29 Aug 1935, Thu Chattanooga Daily Times (Chattanooga, Tennessee) Newspapers.com
Actually, The Chattanooga Daily Times Reports That The Riviera Theatre Opened On August 29, 1935 At 2 P.M. EDT With Shirley Temple In “The Little Colonel”.
The Riviera Theater opened in 1936. The first movie shown was “Anthony Adverse,” which I attended as a young child. The Riviera was the theater attended by all of the neighborhood children on Saturday afternoons of movies, cartoons, newsreels, and serials for nine cents plus a penny tax.
The Riviera and Brainerd Theatres were both originally operated by Independent Theatres. At the time the Brainerd was under construction, the December 20, 1947, issue of Boxoffice Magazine ran an item which said that the chain’s Riviera Theatre had been built “…several years ago.”
I can’t find an exact opening year for the Riviera. It might have been built pre-war, but the earliest reference to it I’ve found in Boxoffice is in the October 19, 1946, issue, when a series of seven foreign films were booked for the house.
In 1955, the Riviera was remodeled and reopened with an art film policy, according to the April 23 issue of Boxoffice that year.
i believe the Riviera Theater in North Chattanooga, screened in parallel with the Brainerd Theater. I remember one Sunday my dad and I (I was a kid) took a reel of “Halls of Montezuma” or “Red Skies of Montana” from the Brainerd to the Rivera and swapped a reel as each theater had two of the same reels and was missing one. That was like 55 years ago. (showing my age).