State Theatre
Checotah,
OK
74426
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Following information comes courtesy of Joe Vogel, "Checotah had a population of a little over 2,000 when the Gentry Theatre opened as the town’s second house in the spring of 1941, according to the May 31 issue of Boxoffice Magazine that year.
Johnny Jones, operator since the early-1930’s of what had been Checotah’s only theatre, the Cozy Theatre, then hastily remodeled an existing building into yet another theatre which opened as the State Theatre on May 28, 1941 with Alice Faye in “The Great American Broadcast”. This 300-seat house had only a two month existence as it was destroyed by fire on August 1, 1941. The fire also claimed five other businesses, according to the August 16, 1941, issue of Boxoffice.
The Cozy Theatre had been offered for sale in the January 7, 1930, issue of Motion Picture Times, so it dated from the 1920’s or earlier. The ad claimed 600 seats for the Cozy Theatre. I’ve been unable to find an address for the house, which continued to operate until at least 1954.
In 1950, Jones partnered in the construction of the 69 Drive-In with Dick and David Crumpler, then operators of the Gentry. The Crumplers took over operation of all three theaters in 1952 when Jones moved to Arkansas.".
Contributed by
Jeff Chapman
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The State Theatre launched on May 28, 1941 with its opening film, “The Great American Broadcast.” Its last film was just two months later when fire destroyed the building and five neighboring business on August 1, 1941.