Parma Theatre

Bill Dobbs purchased and remodeled the 1920s era Parma Theatre in 1950 into a completely new venue.

A 1928 listing in Film Daily Yearbook gave it 583 seats while a 1940 listing was 300 seats. Karen Cornwell, Dobbs daughter, in an interview by the Idaho State Historical Society said the new Parma had 390 seats. In 1953, with movie attendance in decline Dobbs built the local Motor Vu Drive-In, which is still in seasonal operation today. Karen states that during the early 60s the Parma started playing Spanish-language films on Sunday afternoons and then moved the films over to the Motor Vu for Sunday and Wednesday evenings.

In 1976, Cornwell and her husband started managing both theatres and then built the Linden 3 in Caldwell in 1980. The Parma, however, would stay open until about 1985 when it finally closed. The building has been used for retail uses in recent years such as a video store, which was in operation in 2007.

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