Legion Theatre
112 W. 1st Street,
McLean,
TX
79057
112 W. 1st Street,
McLean,
TX
79057
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Unfortunately, the Legion Theatre was not renamed the American Theatre and that’s where this entry goes a bit in the wrong direction. The Legion Theatre did move to new digs in late Fall 1927 but wanted a new name. In a naming contest, the new venue was christened the American Theatre (later the Avalon Theatre - has its own entry) opening on November 10, 1927. The old Legion building was sold at that time became Caldwell’s Bakery in 1928.
New operators took on the American and renamed it the New Avalon Theatre with an art deco facing that launched on March 25, 1936. The Lone Star Theatre opened on July 1, 1936. The town had two theaters which would come under a single owner. The two theater town operated until fire claimed the Lone Star. It burned December 18, 1948 ending the operation.
The Legion organization and the event space / hall was established in 1919 taking on the Grand Army of the Republic fraternal building that year on a 40-year leasing agreement. A decision was made in 1921 to open the Hall as a public-facing commercial movie theater. That operation appears to have started December 9, 1921 with the film, “Stepping Out” and operated there until being purchased by the operators of a theater in Shamrock, Texas. With operations generally weekend-only, the Shamrock folks moved the theater elsewhere where there would be no competing interests. That’s the American Theatre followed by the longer-running Avalon.
Missing a few words, but still interesting to me - part of the Lone Star became part of the Derby Drive-In.
McLean News, June 26, 1952: “For the past couple of weeks, there’s been a big brick-cleaning project going on in McLean. Amos and Joe Page have been clearing away the rubbish from the old Lone Star Theatre, which burned two or three years ago. The bricks are being cleaned by boys, and will be used in the construction of the drive-in theater planned xxx. The old wall on the west xxx, part of which is still standing, will be torn down, Amos Page said. The front part of the building will be left intact.”