Strand Theatre

Union Square and Middle Street,
Lewiston, ME 04240

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rivest266
rivest266 on May 10, 2022 at 1:04 pm

This opened as the Lewiston theatre on December 31st, 1914 and renamed Union Square on January 1st, 1916 and Strand on March 24th, 1917 and closed in 1962. Grand opening ad posted.

DavidZornig
DavidZornig on October 20, 2015 at 11:31 am

1951 photo added courtesy of TimePassagesNostalgia.com.

Joe Vogel
Joe Vogel on May 23, 2015 at 3:55 pm

I’m not related to the author Joe Vogel as far as I know. It’s not an extremely common surname, but it’s not extremely rare either, so probably only a modest percentage of the Vogels in the United States would be my distant cousins. I grew up in Los Angeles, and back in the 1960s people I met who were in the movie industry sometimes asked if I was related to the Joe Vogel who was then the head of MGM, but I wasn’t.

Chris1982
Chris1982 on May 23, 2015 at 7:47 am

Joe, are you related to the Joe Vogel that wrote “Man In The Music”?

Joe Vogel
Joe Vogel on May 22, 2015 at 2:30 pm

There’s much information about the Priscilla (later Belview and then Parkview) on this web page from the Cinema Data Project. If someone wants to submit it to CT go ahead. I’m being run off my feet lately and won’t have the time.

rsalters (Ron Salters)
rsalters (Ron Salters) on May 22, 2015 at 2:18 pm

OCRon mentions in his post of 5/22 the Priscilla Theatre. Recently I began looking through the MGM Theatre Report cards in the Theatre Historical Society archive. (cards for ME,NH, RI and VT). So far I have found only one which does not have a listing here in CT – the Priscilla in Lewiston-Auburn. There may be others, too. The report card says the Priscilla is on Pine St., but 116 Blake, around the corner, may have been the correct address. It was operating in 1941.

Joe Vogel
Joe Vogel on May 22, 2015 at 5:09 am

Lewiston passed through a time warp in 1961, briefly occupying the year 19611. The good news is that they didn’t bring any future human diseases back with them, but unfortunately they did bring the computer keyboard glitches which have since plagued the world.

Joe Vogel
Joe Vogel on May 22, 2015 at 3:39 am

An article in the February 4, 19611, issue of the Lewiston Evening Journal said that the Lewiston Theatre had opened on December 30, 1914.

Joe Vogel
Joe Vogel on May 21, 2015 at 5:50 pm

The May 4, 1985, issue of the Lewiston Journal ran a vintage photo of the Lewiston Theatre which can be seen at Google News.

A brief item about the Union Square Theatre appeared in the September 23, 1916, issue of The Moving Picture World:

“Lewiston’s Union Square Reopens.

“LEWISTON, ME.—The Union Square theater, Lewiston, reopened Thursday, August 31, under the management of Dennault Bros., of Providence, R. L, who run theaters throughout New England. The bills are given over to photoplays and vaudeville, with musical comedy once a month. An eight-reel play, ‘God’s Country and Women,’ was shown the opening night. E. C. Dennualt is the new local manager. With wide experience and a genial personality, he is sure to be a popular Lewiston theatrical manager.”

rsalters (Ron Salters)
rsalters (Ron Salters) on May 21, 2015 at 2:39 pm

The Theatre Historical Society archive has the MGM Theatre Report card for the Strand; it’s Card # 394. There is an exterior photo made May 1941. Address is Main St. Condition is Good. The theater was over 15 years old, and was showing MGM films. There were 1,203 orchestra seats and 682 balcony seats, total 1,885 seats, which is 1,000 less than what is listed above.

IBLSKeith
IBLSKeith on July 10, 2011 at 3:53 pm

Wurlitzer installed their Opus 261 (1919) in the Strand. The organ survives and is being installed in a private residence in Maine

spectrum
spectrum on November 16, 2010 at 12:28 am

I compared that image above with google street view – found the building in the background with the large arches up top. That looks much better now after renovation but the Strand building is demolished probably long ago – the new building on the site has an early 1960s look to it.

Don Lewis
Don Lewis on June 20, 2010 at 12:49 am

From 1950 an image of the Strand Theater on Main Street in Lewiston.

Ret. AKC (NAC) CCC Bob Jensen, Manteno, Illinois
Ret. AKC (NAC) CCC Bob Jensen, Manteno, Illinois on June 19, 2010 at 10:40 pm

AKA:

LEWISTON

UNION SQUARE.

This was the largest theater in the state?

January 1, 1915 Lewiston Theater?

1915 renamed Union Square?

1917 renamed Strand?

1920 taken over by Nathan H. Garden & William P. Gray?

1925 owned by Garden & Gray?

1930-1961 Maine & New Hampshire Theaters Co. of Boston?

1940 John Ford (Paramount)?

1961 Closed?

All this info should be verified.

Is the theater still standing? Could use an address, more info, photos or postcards.

rsalters (Ron Salters)
rsalters (Ron Salters) on June 19, 2010 at 1:25 pm

The Strand in Lewiston is listed in the 1942-43 Motion Picture Almanac as being run by John Ford, a Paramount affiliate. At that time John Ford/Paramount operated 3 additional theaters in Lewiston: the Empire, the Music Hall, and the Priscilla Theatre. John Ford operated a number of theaters in Maine, plus a few in New Hampshire, Vermont and Mass. The John Ford theaters were not part of Mullin & Pinanski/Paramount at that time, but listed seperately.