Granada 4
24 W. 1st Street,
Reno,
NV
89501
24 W. 1st Street,
Reno,
NV
89501
3 people
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Like so many UA theatres they kept on twinning the place. I think this cinema got flooded out many times from the Truckee River nearby.
1926 photo added courtesy of Stephen Gennerich‎.
July 15th, 1983 grand opening ad as Granada 4 in photo section
2 screens on November 15th, 1974. Grand opening ad in photo section.
Uploaded the grand opening ads from 1916 as T & D, 1917 as Rialto, as Granada from September 21st, 1926 September 1st, 1949 after major renovations.
The March 8, 1916, issue of The Moving Picture World had a couple of paragraphs about the T & D circuit’s theater in Reno, which had opened recently. I haven’t yet been able to establish a definite connection between the T&D house and the original Granada, but I suspect that they were the same theater. The T & D was reported to have 1,600 seats, and the original Granada certainly had a large enough footprint to accommodate that many. The only other candidate, the Majestic, was built in 1910.
This weblog post, mostly about the Majestic, says that the Granada opened in 1915 as the Rialto Theatre and was renamed the Granada in 1926. It might have been called the Rialto for a while, but all the first Turner & Dahnken houses in a given city that I’ve come across so far were originally called the T & D Theatre.
Here are the paragraphs about the unnamed T & D house at Reno from the 1916 article:
Architect George A. Ferris established his practice at Reno in 1906, and became one of the region’s leading architects, designing such landmarks as the El Cortez Hotel in Reno and the Governor’s mansion in Carson City, as well as a large number of the public schools in the region.I was looking for David Stewert also, but I have not located him even on Facebook. I thought it would be fun to talk of old times.
Does anyone know what happened to David Stewart? I worked with him and curious of what he is doing.
I wish I had taken pic. but I didn’t. If there are any out there during the time line of the 1960’s I would love to see them.If I remember right the Mgr name was either Mr Shuck or Shock something close to this ,not sure.
I have created a Flickr group for any photos of the Granada or any employee related events. If you have any photos of the Reno Granada/UA Cinema 1 & 2 please post them here. Please list people if you know who they are.
http://www.flickr.com/groups/granadamovietheaterreno/
I worked at the Granada from 1961 to march of 1962. I was 19 when I started . I loved that time of my life, I got to meet Mickey Rooney and we had the Premier of The Misfits(Marilyn Monroe and Clark Gable)Thanks for the Great Memories.mjp
I wonder if anyone has any interior shots of the old Granada (pre-fire). As I had only been in Reno about two years at the time of the fire I have virtually no memory of what the interior looked like. I have a fair amount of memories of the Majestic although I do not recall multiple curtain openings before the movie. Anyway, it would be nice to see what the original Granada looked like. Thank you.
Great memories! I went to high school with one of the young ladies in the photos.
This was an awesome, clean theatre. Auditorium B had steep stadium style seating but the rows were so close together that you could hang your legs over the chairs in front of you.
Thanks to all for adding to this theatres legacy!
Here are a few Granada photos:
Lew Bergstrom, manager of the Granada in the 80’s, David Stewart, Manager of the UA Sparks Cinemas, and Les Taylor, asst manager of the Granada View link
The candy counter at the Granada View link
The flood of 1986 and all sand bagged up at the Granada View link
Here is a photo taken during the fire in 1953:
http://tinyurl.com/y9t3pjn
Yes, the original Granada suffered major damage during a fire in the early fifties. The roof caved in and the only things left standing were the four walls. When rebuilt it had stadium type seating, at least for the rear of the theater, which was eventually to become theater #2. I remember that fire well as Cecil B. DeMille’s “Greatest Show on Earth” was playing there at the time and I never got to see it.
The United Artists GRANADA THEATRE on W. 1st St. was operating as a twin theatre up until the flood of 97, which devastated the theatre and every business around it. Every building on that side of the street was torn down due to unrepairable damage. My wife and I got an inside view of the Granada from the front door and the entire lobby was in 3 to 4 feet deep in silt. We were unable to pass through the front doors. It was soon demolished and replaced with a beautiful 14 floor condo building. A new 12 plex CENTURY CINEMA sits directly across the street, entrance facing the Truckee River.
Flickr user Indignico provides this photo showing the old Granada. Other pictures of the set, all depicting Reno during a 1950s flood, have cars in them, and the newest cars I can spot look to be about 1949-50 models, so I’m guessing this particular flood was the one in 1950 (the Truckee River used to inundate downtown Reno every few years.) This has the be the pre-fire Granada Theatre. Still haven’t found a picture of the 1954 Granada.
Here is a 1946 ad from the Nevada State Journal:
http://tinyurl.com/29leb5
Correction: Majestic was E FIRST Street.
The NEW Granada Theatre (the one after the fire) was a stadium type theatre with no balcony. This is the theatre that was later converted to two-screen. Ken Workman, the district manager quoted in the Gazette article, was also the manager of the co-owned Majestic Theatre a few blocks away on E 2nd and Lake Street.
There is an article in the Nevada State Journal dated 1/23/53 which describes the total destruction of the Granada in a fire. Presumably the new Granada opened in 1954 as seen in the article above.
Here is an article from the Reno Gazette in August 1954:
MOVIE STARS HAIL RENO’S NEW THEATER
CONGRATULATORY MESSAGES FROM FILMDOM’S ELITE ARE
RECEIVED BY LOCAL MANAGER
Stars of the motion picture world have been sending congratulatory telegrams to the managers of the T & D Junior Enterprises in Reno.
Upon hearing that the Granada theater would open on Wednesday
at 7:30 o'clock, many of the top stars, all of them well known to
Reno theater goers sent their bestwishes for the success of the west’s most modern show place.
Although not in the picture, Bing Crosby, a Nevada resident, very
well known in Reno where he is a frequent visitor said:
“Congratulations” on the grand opening of the Granada theater
and to all patrons who will enjoy this excellent new showplace.
It is another first for Nevada."
James Stewart, who stars in “Rear Window,” and who, a few
short years ago was parading down the street on which the Granada
theater stands with Mrs. Stewart, waving gayly to the people who
soon would be honoring him with the “Silver Spurs” award for his
“She Wore a Yellow Ribbon,” wired Homer Le Ballister, Granada
theater manager as follows:
“Just heard the great news that you are opening the fine Granada theater. Naturally I am honored that "Rear Window” will be the first picture to play there. All my best to everyone in Reno. That is one city I will never forget, and always love."
POLICY OF NEW THEATER IS SET
Popular prices will prevail at the new Granada theater, it was
announced. Despite the fact that all of the modern devices are to
be found in Reno’s new show house which will open its doors at
7:30 Wednesday evening, the popular prices that were in vogue
when the old Granada was serving the people of the community will
prevail. Ken Workman, district manager, and Homer Le Ballister,
resident manager, stated this morning that the Granada would
be a first run theater, showing only the top films obtainable. It
is not expected that any picture will run at the Granada “for more
than one week. If the demand is so great that the picture cannot
satisfy the Reno audiences in a week at the Granada it will be
moved to another T & D theater. Thus, it is believed, that only
the finest productions will be shown in Reno’s newest playhouse.
Equipped as it is to show every type of picture, the Granada can
afford to be very choosy in selecting the films to be shown.
I had nothing but EXCELLENT viewing experiences at this theater. I grew up in the ‘70’s and 80’s and this, to me, was the best theater in town. I saw: Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Aliens, Empire Strikes Back, Porky’s, Return of the Jedi, Dances With Wolves, Madonna Truth or Dare…all great films on a huge screen with the best sound (at the time) in Reno in the main auditorium. The second auditorium (the former balcony) had it’s share of great films: Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, Nothing in Common, Popcorn and Silence of the Lambs…to name a few. It was this audiorium’s stadium seating that I LOVED. Never a bad view even in the front row.
GREATLY MISSED by us!
The theater was sadly displaying on the marquee “End of an Era” before it was finally torn down to make way for a multiplex across the street. Disappointing this multiplexing is.
My hubby & I went to the movies together for the very first second times together in late 1989 early 1990. I was so sad when they tore it down.