Gem Theater

The Gem Theatre was advertised below the “Colored News” column of the Petersburg Progress-Index of February 10, 1954. One of the upcoming events was a live show called A Night on Lennox Avenue. The Gem continued to be advertised on a different page of the paper than other theaters through 1965, but in 1966 the paper’s movie listings were desegregated and the Gem’s ads appeared adjacent to those of other theaters. The Gem did not prosper, though, as by 1969 it was advertising “Adult Entertainment.”