Warner Theatre

The Strand Theatre was built by Moe and Mitchel Mark. Their company’s intention to build at Worcester was noted in an item in the April 3, 1915, issue of The Moving Picture World. The company had the Strand Theatre at Lynn, Massachusetts, under construction at the time, and the Worcester house was to be about the same size. The item noted that the Lynn Strand had been designed by Thomas Lamb, who was also the architect of the Mark Strand Theatre in Manhattan. Although the item didn’t say so, it is very likely that the Worcester Strand was also designed by Lamb.

Lobby becomes train station.

“Murray Howard, manager of the Warner, converted the lobby into a railroad station and had the doormen attired as conductors for "Strangers on the Train.”

(item in Boxoffice magazine, July 7, 1951)

The Warner Theatre was part of the Mark Strand New England Circuit acquired by Warner Brothers in 1929. It was known as the Strand Theatre and after Warner Brothers took it over they closed it April 2, 1930 and made renovations and reopend it as the Warner on April 19, 1930. It closed in 1965 after Stanley Warner opened the White City in Shrewsbury. The White City was designed by Drew Eberson.

Thank you, Gerry DeLuca ! I had heard that the Warner at Worcester Academy was a little gem, and that the name had something to do with the Warner family of movie-studio fame. You have confirmed both stories. I wonder if it was in operation while the old Warner Th. downtown was still open ??

to: dwodeyla – I have reports only for the Gorman Th. in Framingham and the Colonial Th. in Natick, both filled out in 1941.

Back in 1941 MGM began a project to identify movie theatres and to note the ones which were presenting MGM product. Some lucky guy got the job of driving around with his camera, finding theatres and snapping a photo of their facades and interviewing the manager and filling out a very brief form. Apparently, the project covered the entire USA, but I’m not sure of that. About 20 years ago, someone, and I can’t remember who, gave me a big handful of Xerox copies of these cards, for theatres in eastern- Massachusetts. Then, Donald King, author of the recent book on Boston theatres, and now, sadly, deceased, gave me a bunch of them, too. I don’t know where he got his. I understand that there are a selection of these cards in the archives of the THSA in Elmhurst IL. Who knows, possibly the MGM company still has the originals on file. Anyway, there is a card for the Warner Th. in Worcester.

This theatre was included in the MGM Theatre Photograph and Report project. The photo (my copy is a washed-out Xerox) is dated May, 1941. There is a narrow entrance with a small square marquee above. Attraction is Betty Davis in “Great Lie”, along with “Strange Alibi”. In the street are trolley tracks. To the left is Brewer & Co. drug store, occupying the corner. To the right is what looks like Prudence Clothes. The report indicates that the Warner is not a MGM customer; that the house is in Fair condition; is over 15 years old, and has 700 seats on the main floor and 600 seats in the balcony. The address was listed as 62 Front St. in Worcester. Although this Warner is now gone from Worcester, there is still a Warner Th. there ! It’s on the campus of the Worcester Academy prep school, just south of downtown. I do not know why the school calls it the “Warner Theatre” .

I am pretty certain that when Stanley Warner closed this Theatre
they moved all the relativly new Norelco 70mm equipment several
miles to the east to their new WHITE CITY Theatre on route 9
in Shrewsbury which was just torn several years ago.