Lothrop Theatre
3212 N. 24th Street,
Omaha,
NE
68110
3212 N. 24th Street,
Omaha,
NE
68110
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The Lothrop Theatre launched with movies and a live orchestra and organ recital on May 2, 1914 on 24th Street just off of Lothrop Street. J.F. Morgan built the venue which was almost shut down because it was legally 320 feet away from a school (the city prohibited theaters within 300 feet of a school) but protestors claimed that the corner of the lot was 280 feet from the school’s yard. William O. Jensen operated the theater in its early days with Charles Martini operating the adjoining Lothrop Theatre Confectionery serving ice cream, soft drinks and Kamer Chocolates. 1920s operators included J.H. Gaylord, R.P. Kissinger and George McArdle. A.H. Bland and Epstein Theatres were among its owners in the 1930s with Sidney Goldberg operating the theater much of its latter existence which included an upgrade to air conditioning in 1939.
The Lothrop celebrated its 40th Anniversary continuing operation until closure with a New Year’s Day 1955 double feature of “House of Frankenstein” and “Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.” The Corinth Baptist Church took on the venue on June 24, 1955 operating it with religious services into 1961. Give the City of Omaha’s inspection unit credit for closing the church in February of 1961 due to safety concerns. On December 26, 1961, the former building turned church collapsed in a pile of rubble ending its existence.
The name of the theatre may have been the Lothrop, not the Lathrop. The intersecting street was Lothrop, and documents that I’ve seen at the downtown Omaha Public Library have it listed as the Lothrop.