Homewood Theatre
18110 S. Dixie Highway,
Homewood,
IL
60430
18110 S. Dixie Highway,
Homewood,
IL
60430
3 people
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When I lived in Glenwood, the first movie I saw at the Homewood was “Norma Rae” in March 1980, three months before I graduated from Marian Catholic High School in Chicago Heights.
But when the theater went to an all-“repertory” format in June of that year, I got to enjoy some “oldies” on the big screen, some of which I only saw on TV before, as well as some encores of some recent favorites.
These included: 1980 “The Wizard of Oz” (1939) “Gone With the Wind” (1939)
1981 “Time After Time” (1979) “Love and Death” (1976) “Yellow Submarine” (1968)
1982 “Kramer vs. Kramer” (1979)
Shortly thereafter, however, the Homewood became entangled in problems with the film distributors, and thus discontinued their “repertory” format. They didn’t show anything I cared for after seeing “Kramer vs. Kramer” again, and I didn’t go back since (especially because within the next few months in 1982 my family was in the process of moving to New Jersey; my father had just taken a managerial position at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York City. We moved into our new Jersey home in May of 1983).
I’m sorry to hear the Homewood has been demolished (I now live in the small town of Charlotte, Michigan, outside Lansing; I haven’t been back to Illinois since I left in 1983, and don’t have any foreseeable plans to revisit the area, now or in the future). It was a great place to see the “oldies,” and the inside of the auditorium was very unique (there were multicolored shields on the walls, and there were two Greek statues at each of exits at the screen). Too bad the theater wasn’t somehow preserved – shame.
I worked at the Homewood Theater 1959/1960, while going to HF High School. It was a great little place to work, I started at a whopping .75 per hour and got a raise to .85. One of the “dreaded” tasks was changing the marquee, at 10pm, in the icy cold winters. I used to love working the Saturday matinees, seeing all the old westerns, which I now am watching all over again, on the westerns channel on Cable…LOL!!! I have seen them all!! I bought my first “Elvis” record at the Melody Mart, next door. I totally agree with Beadee, above, the folks of the Homewood/Flossmoor area should have kept up their support of that unique little theater..it was a treasure!
From the 1940s a photo postcard view of the Homewood Theatre in Homewood.
Although long since removed from the area, there are certain places I will never forget. The Flossmoor Bakery, Aurelio’s, Dog & Suds and one of the truly unique movie theaters of its time-the Homewood Theater.The concept was simple-combine lesser known or obscure films with refreshments at intermission in a nostalgic one screen venue. My last memorable impression of the Homewood Theater was running into a former girlfriend during the intermission for the movie appropriatelty titled “ Don’t Look Now”.
I used to love going to the movies there, smiling at the Greek
statues on the sides of the theatre and then they’d stop
the movie in the middle and all the patrons would waltz out to enjoy tiny squares of cake & coffee in the very small front lobby and talk to your fellow patrons. Then lights would flicker to tell you the movie was starting again.
Quirky but endearing.
Such a great little theater. Shame on the folks in Homewood for not keeping it going.
Melody Mart has taken over the corner now and ironically the parking is available now. If you walk behingd the downtown buildings, they have painted the wall to look like the old theater. I will post a photo one of these days.
I drank enough Dr. Nut to drown in around 1982-1984. We lived over the Rigewood Tap and went to see the double feature of Flashdance and 48 Hours about 7 times. After you could walk across the street to Three Brothers restaurant or Record Swap to buy the soundtrack.
When they reopened w/ art films I can also remember marble statues in the lobby.
Nice looking theatre.
I seem to remember that the Homewood Theatre only ran movies at night and that parking could be a problem.
I can’t believe it, but I never got into the Homewood Theatre and have been regretting it ever since.
The Homewood was a great old theater although by the time I was going there it was really run down. In the early 1980s, it played art house, foreign and independent stuff. I remember seeing “Diva” there for a high school class and they had great midnight showings of the Rocky Horror Picture Show.
Here is a HAARGIS profile on the theater, including a picture