Southland Cinemas
5953 W. Park Avenue,
Houma,
LA
70384
5953 W. Park Avenue,
Houma,
LA
70384
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The new suburban, standalone Sears store had opened here on October 12, 1966. It was a retailing disaster for downtown. But a plan had been drawn up in 1964 that would add other stores between Sears and what would be Woolworth’s some five years later. Prior to the Mall’s opening, both the Southland Cinema and Kirschman’s opened on July 17/18, 1968 (open house / grand opening with “Bondelero!”) and July 19, 1968, respectively. Like many suburban era theaters of its era, the Southland Cinema had wider aisles reducing seat count - here to 600 - and had free parking and other technological amenities not offered in aging downtown venues.
The Southland Mall then opened officially on February 26, 1969 with its Phase I completed. Its original 19 stores were Winn-Dixie Grocers, A&G Cafeteria, K&B Drugs, Shainberg’s, Southland Camera joining Southland Cinema, Kirschman’s, Woolworth’s and Sears. Phase II of the Southland Mall began in 1970/1 bringing new shopping options including the D.H. Holmes department store anchor on the west side and the twinning of the Southland Cinema on May 27, 1971.
Approaching its ten-year anniversary, Gulf upped the ante to four screens on June 1st, 1978. The Southland further expanded with a JCPenney anchor in 1981. In September of 1986, United Artists Theatres circuit bought out Gulf States acquiring the former Woolco Twin and the Southland 4. The venue became the UA Southland Cinema 4 on July 10, 1987.
By the 1990s, the megaplex era had arrived and Houma now had its 10-screen house with Gulf States Theatres re-emerging with the Houma Palace 10 in late 1999. UA cut the Twin on October 21, 1999 and then here on July 20, 2000 and they were “Gone in 60 Seconds,” one of the last UA screenings.
The theatre had an improbable revival as an Atlanta-based pair took on the venue as the Southland Cinemas on May 29, 2004. It was now a deep discount, $1.95 sub-run house. If reports are accurate, the HVAC associated with the first auditorium was not serviced by the Mall and let to two different legal disagreements. Ultimately, it was operated with three venues with its opening films of “Walking Tall,” “Passion of the Christ,” and “Johnson Family Vacation.” The combination of declining attendance, mounting operational losses, and inability to then repair all of the facility’s HVAC (estimated at $40,000) encouraged the operators to move along. (The same operational concerns had been cited by Chick-Fil-A which also ankled the Mall and was a bellwether for the Mall’s impending downturn.) The Southland 4 closed permanently just prior to its 40th anniversary - likely at end of lease - on November 29, 2007. The original Sears store closed in July of 2016.
It was never operated by Woolco theatres. Screens 3 & 4 opened on June 2nd, 1978. Grand opening ads posted.
I worked at Southland Cinema back in the 70’s I was only 14 the summer I started working. Manager I remember was Herb Beasley.
I worked concession and ticket booth. It was a great job, enjoyed the midnight movies.
The Southland Cinema was opened by Gulf State Theatres (Teddy Solomon) in June, 1968. It was the second building to go up (Sears was the first) in the mall. Acutally for the first many months the cinema was not enclosed in the mall, it was just a stand alone building next to Sears on the northwest corner. It was originally a SINGLE screen theatre which was expanded to a twin in 1970. Much later on it was converted to a quad. Jesse Marlowe was the original manager.
I was the original projectionist and ran the very first show ever screened which was El Dorado with John Wayne. The Southland Cinema was in a new mall (Southland Mall) directly across the bayou (Bayou Terrebonne) from the Houma Drivein. At that time there were tall trees and foilage so you couldn’t actually see the mall from the Drive In property. I left the Houma Drive in as projectionist to take the job at the Southland Cinema.
An article from 1977 that announced the closing of this theater: View link