Palace Theatre

726 Front Street,
Georgetown, SC 29440

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Additional Info

Functions: Bank

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Palace Theatre

Built in 1936, the Palace Theatre was owned by Carroll and Morris Abrams. The 350 seat theatre lasted through at least 1968. The building now houses the First Citizens Bank.

Any additional information on the Palace Theatre would be appreciated.

Contributed by Chuck

Recent comments (view all 1 comments)

breecejr
breecejr on July 13, 2019 at 6:45 pm

My name is Andy Smalls, but the people in Knoxville TN know me as Marshal Andy or the Knoxville Cowboy. I was born in 1929 in Georgetown, SC & my childhood was encompassed in the one block area between Broad Street & Screven Street which was the main part of the downtown area on the waterfront. On this one block were the Palace & Strand Theaters which were to play a huge part in my childhood & shape my life in more ways than I could ever imagine.

The Palace theater is now a bank, but when it opened in 1936 it was next door to the Gladstone Hotel.  Next to it was Amos Barber shop & next to the barber shop was a bank. Next door to the Palace was the Walgreens Drug store where all kids of Front Street would congregate & hang out. 
                  

The Palace theater was built by Morris Abrams & opened in 1936. I first attended the Palace theater in the fall of 1936 seeing a Charles Starrett movie, or what we would call a B western today. On Saturdays, the Palace would show a serial(these would include Buck Rogers, Our Gang comedies & Fighting with Kit Carson), cartoons(these would include Mickey Mouse, Tom & Jerry & of course, Bugs Bunny), selected short subject films & movie news before the main feature. These would play from 12:15pm to 11:00 pm & would feature western films starring Ken Maynard, Hoot Gibson, Buck Jones & Tim McCoy. As the 1930’s progressed, singing cowboys such as Gene Autry & Roy Rogers became increasingly popular. I remember seeing Tumbling Tumblweeds at the Palace in late 1936 or early 1937 & really enjoyed the singing cowboy westerns genre. With the Blue laws of the day in effect, the Palace wouldn’t open on Sundays until 1:15pm & then wouldn’t open back up until 9:15 at night.

On Mondays & Tuesdays, the Palace theater would show what is now consider to be A production films.  These films included dramas, love stories & westerns & featured such actors as Clark Gable, Henry Fonda, Jimmy Stewart & Robert Taylor.  Wednesday at the Palace was double feature day.  These included westerns & then a comedy or a Tarzan movie.  Thursdays & Fridays the Palace went back to showing matinee idols that were featured on Monday & Tuesdays.  
                
                  As the 1940’s began & WWII loomed on the horizon, I got a job at the Palace theater delivering circulars & taking tickets.  As mentioned earlier, Gene Autry, Roy Rogers & Johnny Mack Brown movies were played.  As WWII raged, more patriotic movies became in vogue featuring more A list stars as Hollywood jumped on board with the war effort.  As the war ended in 1945 & we progressed into 1946, movies such as Back to Batan & To Hell & Back were shown at the Palace.
                
                   One instance of a promotional event at the Palace stands out in my memory.  During the war, automobiles were impossible to get as all production went into the war effort.  After the war,  I had gotten a job at the local Ford dealership(Loyal Ford) doing odd jobs such as cleaning up vehicle & other jobs they asked me to do.  The promotion the Palace  decided to do was a giveaway of a Ford vehicle.  When I reported to work at the Palace the night of the giveaway, I was asked to draw the name of the winner.  Anita Stokes was the lucky winner & she was thrilled because their family couldn’t afford a vehicle.  As the car was unveiled, I realized it was a car that I had washed that very day working at the Loyal Ford dealership!  I really felt good about this & was very appreciative of the work the Palace was doing in the community.
                
                  As I look back on my life, it was hard to imagine the impact the Palace theater would have on my life. For the last 37 years, I have had a show in the local Knoxville TN PBS station, ETPBS, called the Riders of the Silver Screen featuring B westerns, serials & cartoons much as they were featured at the Palace back in the day.  Without my experiences at the Palace in my youth, I truly believe my life would have turned out completely differently.  I feel truly blessed by my experiences at the Palace Theater & want to record this information as best as I can recollect it & save it for future generations to come.  Thanks for reading this & remember, if you don’t wear a white hat, please wear a smile so we can tell you from the bad guys.  
                
                                                                                                                    Andy Smalls
                                                                                                                    Marshal Andy, the Knoxville Cowboy
                  
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