Polar Bear Theatre

Barrow, AK 99723

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Previous Names: Barrow Village Theatre

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Barrow Village - Barrow, AK

Located in Barrow (aka Utqiagvik). Built in 1952 by the local Eskimo population as a community effort, the Barrow Village Theatre was a small single-screen theatre with bench seating, two heating plants - one burning oil, the other coal, to keep the patrons warm in the -40 degree temperatures outside. Primarily showing westerns, cartoons and newsreels, the theatre was decorated in Eskimo style. By 1981 it was operating as the Polar Bear Theatre.

Contributed by John Story

Recent comments (view all 2 comments)

rsalters (Ron Salters)
rsalters (Ron Salters) on May 24, 2018 at 12:36 pm

Barrow is located in far northern Alaska. In early- winter there is no daylight and the temp could easily drop to -40 degrees F. So a cinema would need a good heating plant. The local people are Inuit; “Eskimo” is no longer used.

Rainbow Angels Ensemble
Rainbow Angels Ensemble on August 1, 2024 at 7:36 am

It was still around in 1981 as the polar bear theater

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