Chief Theatre
111-115 S. Main Street,
Eufaula,
OK
74432
111-115 S. Main Street,
Eufaula,
OK
74432
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Opened on November 16, 1937 with “A Star Is Born” along with a few selected short subjects.
CinemaScope was installed at the Chief on December 5, 1954 with “River Of North Return” as its first CinemaScope film. Exactly a year after its installation of CinemaScope, the Chief closed for the final time in January 1956. The nearby Palace would then had the chance to install CinemaScope later on.
Here is the Library of Congress link to the 1940 Russell Lee photo. Enlargeable for greater detail within link.
https://www.loc.gov/item/2017741723/
Street view shows the address is 111-115 S. Main Street. The Eufaula Indian Journal office is in 109, and it is next door to the left. The brick work on 111-115 S. Main matches where it is painted white in the 1940 photo.
Looks like the Palace Theater is just four doors down on the left of this picture! Must of been a decent sized town to support two theaters so close to each other and its Main St that ends after two blocks!
You’re right, roadsideok. The building top has been lowered but that is the Chief Theatre. To see clear vintage shots of this theatre go to link below, and under match all words type “junk drive benefit”,
(Its slow)
View link
From looking at the historic photo in the first post, I believe the reddish building that is 4 storefronts south of Foley Street on the east side of Main is the Chief. It looks like the unique corner building with the window box has been demolished. Any opinions?
Google Street View of the suggested location:
http://tinyurl.com/237y88p
I am doing some research on The Palace Movie Theater that was in Eufaula, OK. I am trying to find some of the old monthly calendars that the theater would put out. It would have what was playing for that month. I would like to find the months of June, July, August, for the years, 1960, 1961, 1962. I would like to find any old pictures or even movie posters or handbills for this theater. I can be reached at the following email address. If you have anything like this that you would be willing to sell, I would be interested in talking with you. Floyd Cleghorn
Click title to see Belle Starr image,
View link
That was Bart Starr’s wife, wasn’t it?
Belle Starr the infamous bandit queen is buried near Eufaula.
Those old instant snapshots crumbled to dust long ago.
I was in my mid teens back then, and my actual intention was to ride my new motorcycle from Tulsa down to McIntosh County to take Poloroid Land pictures of Mr. Ed, the tan palomino of TV fame, who had been retired to a nearby ranch.
When I got there the ranch forman gruffly informed me that due to pesky curiousity seekers Mr. Ed had been moved to a secret location where he could graze undisturbed. So, I headed over to Eufaula’s Main Street to see what was happening. There I took minute pictures of the old Chief Theatre, and some cowboys hanging out on a street corner.
Mr. Ed died in sleep a few years later, it was then disclosed that he had spent his final years in peaceful bliss on a horse ranch in Cleveland County, OK.
Cosmic, why don’t you post your 1972 photos?
In 1972 I was in Eufaula to photograph the closed down Chief Theatre. On the street out front of the old theatre I met a teenage cowboy by the name of Marshall Pruett who told me how the Chief Theatre had been very noisy during Saturday matinees. Seems that ranchers and their families would come to town to shop on Saturday morning, then attend an afternoon picture. Men would sit on back rows to argue politics. Wives sat in side sections to exchange recipes and news. Kids were down front screaming and yelling.
At that time, Marshall thought the old theatre had closed sometime in the mid 1960’s.