Lisbon Theater

An old movie theater ad from 1949 for the Lisbon Theater.

At the corner of Lancaster and Lisbon, a shopping area was developed opposite the new U.S. Veterans Hospital as Dallas expanded to the South. The concept of the theater plus two adjoining retail stores was from Jack W. Jones Agency. Raymond F. Smith architected and Arthur K. Garwick built the 40’ x 115’ Lisbon Theater managed by Irving Lambert under the O.K. Theaters nameplate. The theater’s name was from the Lisbon creek just about a block from the back of the auditorium. On July 11, 1940, the Lisbon launched with “Broadway Melody of 1940” as its first feature.

The Lisbon showed second run features as a traditional suburban. O.B. King replaced Lambert and while remaining fairly consistent did – on March 12-14, 1951 – show the Lisbon’s first foreign language film showing “Devil in the Flesh”. King said that if the public wanted more foreign fare, he would deliver. Apparently they said, “non.” Since art films weren’t what the audience sought, King rebranded the Lisbon as an African American house serving the community until closing in 1958.

After being empty for a period, in 1959, the Isley Theater Circuit took on the Lisbon giving it new carpeting, projection, sound, and reupholstered seating. It opened with “Onionhead” and “White Wilderness.” The neighborhood was indifferent and the new Lisbon floundered within the calendar year. A classified ad on January 14, 1960 offered all of the theater seats in the Lisbon Theater for sale at $1 each. “First come, first served.” Demand must’ve been lackluster because the ad repeated a week later. The theater was converted into usage as a garage by Emery’s Automotive Service which operated into the late 2000s before being bulldozed. And the street containing the theater’s namesake is also no more.