63rd Street Theatre

702 E. 63rd Street,
Chicago, IL 60637

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Additional Info

Previously operated by: Alfred Hamburger Theaters, Gollos Brothers

Previous Names: Langley Hippodrome, Langley Theatre

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Newspaper ad from Aug. 15, 1945 Chicago Herald-American showing what was playing at the 63rd Street Theatre

The Langley Hippodrome opened on October 7, 1911 for the Alfred Hamburger circuit in the Woodlawn neighborhood, and was located on E. 63rd Street at N. Langley Avenue. In 1915, it was renamed Langley Theatre. It was equipped with a Smith organ.

In 1945, the theatre was remodeled by the Gollos Brothers chain which operated it by that time and renamed the 63rd Street Theatre. The theatre was closed four years later. The building that housed the theatre has since been demolished.

Contributed by Bryan Krefft

Recent comments (view all 3 comments)

Mister_Comics
Mister_Comics on September 23, 2017 at 11:35 pm

Old newspaper ads show the address as 702 E. 63rd. But newspapers have been known to make mistakes.

yingli0521
yingli0521 on October 14, 2019 at 12:56 pm

Does anyone know what hippodrome indicated for a movie theater? Was it a different type or subtype of movie theaters or entertainment venues?

Broan
Broan on October 14, 2019 at 3:25 pm

Hippodrome was used at this time to indicate high-class vaudeville. It could also refer to theaters with water or circus acts but the usage had broadened by this point. The October 14, 1911 issue of Variety indicates that the Langley opened October 7, 1911. The actual address was 702 E. 63rd. The Sanborn Map, V16 Sheet 26, indicates actual seating capacity as of 1926 was 870 despite the claimed 1911 capacity of 1100. The initial policy was “not more than five acts [vaudeville], one booked for the entire week”.

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