Park Theatre
3955 S. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive,
Chicago,
IL
60653
3955 S. Martin Luther King Jr. Drive,
Chicago,
IL
60653
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Here is the new Boxoffice link
The dance palace that replaced the Peerless Theatre was called the Grand Terrace Ballroom. When Max Slott reconverted the building to theatrical use in 1937, the project was designed by Mark D. Kalischer. Boxoffice ran this article with photos of the reborn Park Theatre.
Holy Michigan Theatre.
I wouldn’t buy a condo with a parking garage like that. It looks like there is still pitch in the floor.
The auditorium is still used as a parking space for the condos.
Here are two recent pictures :
View link
View link
OK, thanks. It looks like South Park, but I guess that was an abbreviation. No longer listed in the 1960 directory.
MLK Jr Drive was previously known as South Parkway and before that Grand Boulevard.
There was a Park Theater listed at 3955 S. South Park Avenue in the 1953 Chicago yellow pages. Was Grand Avenue called South Park at one time?
Here are photos of this theatre.
News Item:
Chicago Evening Post, Saturday, October 27, 1917:
ASCHER’S NEW PEERLESS THEATER OPENS TODAY
Ascher Brothers will add to their string of theaters the Peerless, on Grand boulevard near Fortieth street.
View link Here is the page on the condo development. One of the new businesses set to move in is a Roscoe’s Chicken & Waffles, which I think is the first in Chicagoland. I think the theater will be destroyed (If nature hasn’t already) but it looks like the lobby will be restored.
Friendly people plus ventilation. You can’t beat that combination.
It was built in 1915 as the Grand Oak for the Alfred Hamburger chain and became the Peerless in 1917 for Ascher Brothers. It was noted as having “A very special ventilating system that actually ventilates!”
View link Here is a picture with a portion of the Peerless from December, 2002. I would take this to indicate that it does in fact still exist, although I cannot personally attest to it.