McLuen Theatre
209 State Street,
Guthrie Center,
IA
50115
209 State Street,
Guthrie Center,
IA
50115
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This theatre seems to have been built in 1911, on a vacant lot at the west end of downtown. It was a tall one-story brick building with a small wooden awning over the entry. The 1916 map shows that it was equipped with a stage and scenery.
No later maps are available online, but the building was extended to the rear at some point. Closed long ago, it had suffered a truly hideous remodel, perhaps in the 1970’s. The city redid the facade, which is now likely a rough approximation of its historical appearance. It was used as a community center, but may have closed sometime late-2023 or early-2024.
Contributed by
Seth Gaines
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Recent comments (view all 2 comments)
The McLuen Opera House is one of two theaters that the 1914-1915 American Motion Picture Directory lists at Guthrie Center. The other was called the Motz Opera House. The McLuen (without the appellation Opera House or Theatre) is mentioned in Moving Picture World issues for July 7, 1917 and August 24, 1918. The former mentions Powd McLuen as manager of the house. A June, 1914 newspaper item mentions the McLuen Theatre, though, so the Theatre and Opera House appellations were probably used interchangeably for this theater.
The June 7, 1919 issue of Moving Picture World had this brief item: “Powd McLuen, of Guthrie Center, was a recent Des Moines visitor. He reported business as excellent in his town.” That’s the last mention of the name McLuen in connection with Guthrie Center I’ve found in the trade journals.
By 1926, the FDY listed two 450-seat theaters at Guthrie Center, but they were called the Garden and the Empress. The Garden was still in operation in the early 1950s. If the Garden was one of Guthrie Center’s early theaters under a new name, it would certainly have been the McLuen rather than the Motz, as the latter was an upstairs house opened in 1882. Early photos of the Motz can be seen on this web page. The Motz building was still standing and recognizable as of 2018. I’ve been unable to find photos of the McLuen or Garden.
I’ll add the Motz, which looks much better than when I saw it in 2010.