Route 66 Movie Theatre

24 S. Main Street,
Webb City, MO 64870

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Related Websites

Route 66 Movie Theatre (Official)

Additional Info

Previously operated by: Dickinson Theatres

Architects: Robert O. Boller, Larry P. Larsen

Functions: Movies (First Run)

Styles: Art Deco

Previous Names: Dickinson Theatre, Larsen Theatre, Civic Junior Theatre, Route 66 Music Theatre

Phone Numbers: Box Office: 417.438.1775
Manager: 417.673.1155

Nearby Theaters

Route 66 Movie Theatre

Originally part of the Newland Hotel, it was opened as the Dickinson Theatre on March 3, 1946 and was operated by Dickinson Theatres. It was renamed Larsen Theatre in August 1950 and operated until at least 1957.

Following many years of closure, it was reopened as a music venue in 1999. In 2005 it became a movie theatre again.

Contributed by Brady Moses

Recent comments (view all 9 comments)

kencmcintyre
kencmcintyre on September 8, 2007 at 10:58 pm

Here is an ad for the Dickinson theater in Webb City. I don'r believe this theater has been listed as of yet:
http://tinyurl.com/29f2qo

kencmcintyre
kencmcintyre on October 4, 2008 at 5:26 am

Advertised as the Larsen in 1951.

kencmcintyre
kencmcintyre on October 4, 2008 at 2:26 pm

Which may be misspelled. The ad spelled Larsen with an E and and not an O.

richardg
richardg on September 12, 2010 at 2:55 am

The Route 66 theatre marquee doesn’t have the a normal milk glass background. Since it was daylight when I saw the theatre, I wasn’t able to determine if the background is opaque or not. The marquee does list the current movies with normal lettering but whether this is visible at night is questionable.

RoadsideArchitecture.com
RoadsideArchitecture.com on December 16, 2010 at 3:14 am

A bit of history about this theatre here:
View link

“The theater was originally built as the Shapiro Shoe Store and in about 1952 was converted to the Dickinson Movie Theater. Dixie and Howard Larsen purchased the theater from Mr. Dickenson… Prior to being the Route 66 Movie Theater, the building was the Route 66 Music Theater which featured Branson-style music variety shows. In the 1950’s, the theater was known as the Larsen Theater.”

Trolleyguy
Trolleyguy on October 20, 2015 at 3:42 pm

According to the theatre website, “The building once served as the Newland Hotel before becoming a movie theater managed by Dickinson Theaters in 1945. After being sold it sat empty for many years but was restored by a local family music group in 1999. They renamed the theater the Route 66 Music Theatre with live music as the primary source of entertainment. It was sold and renovated in 2003, but the theater closed again after less than a year. However, the screen didn’t stay dark for long. It was purchased in 2005 by Nancy and Scott Hutson.”

Website: http://www.rt66movie.com/

MichaelKilgore
MichaelKilgore on September 27, 2021 at 10:04 pm

The teaser ads called it “new,” and the Dickinson held its grand opening on March 3, 1946 in Webb City. Webb City Dickinson grand opening adWebb City Dickinson grand opening ad 03 Mar 1946, Sun Joplin Globe (Joplin, Missouri) Newspapers.com

The 1950 Film Daily Year Book said that the Dickinson Theatre (466 seats) was on Main Street, as was the Junior (550).

MichaelKilgore
MichaelKilgore on October 12, 2021 at 2:23 am

Motion Picture Herald, Aug. 12, 1950: “Howard Larsen, manager and co-owner of the Civic and Junior theatres at Webb City, has purchased the Dickinson theater. The Dickinson now will be known as the Larsen theatre.”

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