Panida Theatre Receives Governor’s Award

posted by Patrick Crowley on August 30, 2002 at 9:24 am

COUER D'ALENE, ID — The historic Panida Theatre is not only celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, but has just been awarded the 2002 Governor’s Awards in the Arts, reports the Couer d'Alene Press.

Karen Bowers, executive director of the Panida, says in the article that, in addition to switching from 16mm to 35mm projectors, the theater will be “spruced up” for its anniversary. A gala fundraiser is being held September 14th, including a perfomance by the Couer d'Alene Orchestra and appearances by actors Jack Bannon and Ellen Travolta, Couer d'Alene natives.

The Panida, which is a combination of the words “Panhandle of Idaho”, opened in 1927, and originally was a vaudeville house before switching to movies, which it continued to show until the mid 1980s. Today, the theater screens classic and foreign films, hosts concerts, and live theater.