D & R Theatre
205 South I Street,
Aberdeen,
WA
98520
205 South I Street,
Aberdeen,
WA
98520
5 people
favorited this theater
Showing 1 - 25 of 164 comments
The website for this theatre is down. Nothing has been scheduled on Facebook since 2016. Phone is disconnected. It appears that the status should be closed.
The July 12, 1924 issue of Moving Picture World said that the new D & R Theatre in Aberdeen (the “Finest in Southwest Washington”) had recently opened after ten months of construction. The September 15, 1923 issue of Pacific Builder & Engineer had noted that construction was underway on a new theater at Aberdeen for Dolan and Ripley. The architect for the project was George B. Purvis of Seattle.
The April 1, 1937 issue of Film Daily said that the Evergreen States circuit had acquired the D & R and Weir theaters in Aberdeen and the Seventh Avenue Theatre in Hoquiam.
Two reports said that George B. Purvis had drawn the plans for the Dolan-Ripley / D & R Theatre in Aberdeen in 1923 and the theater at opening appears to have deviated little from those plans.
The group who had previously tried to restore the theater (called the Harbor Arts Foundation), did have tons of pictures of the interior of the theater as they found it in 2005. I remember they had specific pictures of the back stage, dressing rooms, projection booth, snack bar, etc on their website back then. The pictures have all vanished since the demise of the group and their website. All that is left of their website is at the wayback machine.
http://web.archive.org/web/20060203145136/http://harborartsfoundation.org/
Unfortunately, the current theater owners have posted very few pictures at all of the interior as it is now (restored). I’d like to see current pix of the projection booth interior and back stage.
Yes I agree. I liked it with the 1940’s Fox decorations. But I saw it before John Yonich took it over and it was a wreck, one step away from being demolished. So even though the auditorium is now kinda plain and there are no draperies, or murals. It’s saved, and all the decoration can be easily added in the future. It’s just paint and drapes. And an added bonus is when Mr. Yonich re-furbished the auditorium he put up new drywall with an air space between the new and old walls which act as a form of insulation and vapor barrier so the walls are no longer damp in the winter. The original walls were plaster laid right over the concrete so they were wet and falling apart in places. At the very least they should put some drapes on the stage.
Prefer the way the interior looked when my dad managed it; the black box look destroyed the integrity of the theatre. A real shame.
Thanks, really liked the “History” section. Mostly due to the fact that I wrote the entire thing up to the part where the theatre closed in the 1980’s. I posted all that here on CT and the theatre people cut and pasted it to their web site verbatim. At least a brief history is preserved. A small credit to me and Cinema Treasures would have been a nice touch. ;–} Overall the theatre does look nice and its no longer a rundown warehouse awaiting a wrecker.
Yes the theater has been re-opened again and has a new website:
http://www.dandrtheatre.rocks/
Be sure to check out the “history” and “neighbors” pages there. :)
I believe this theatre has now re-opened again and the status should be changed to “open”.
The last article I read stated that the businesses are going to re-open under new corporate names. With John Yonich as the owner. But it’s all up to the courts.
Here’s the newspaper story about the bankruptcy:
http://thedailyworld.com/news/local/closed-aberdeen-businesses-open-under-new-names
Understand Mr. Yonich is going thru bankruptcy. Wonder how this will effect the theatre operation. Hopefully it will remain open. It’s the only bright spot in Aberdeen.
An illustrated Two page article about the D&R Theatre in Aberdeen appeared in the June 29, 1935, issue of Motion Picture Herald. Plans for the recent remodeling were by architect Bjarne Moe.
7th Street in Hoquiam is a beautiful restoration project! My father managed that venue as well as the D & R from 1955-1965. Had an opportunity to tour the 7th Street 2 yrs ago and it was a joy to see what has been done.
I understand that some kind of screen has also been installed so it looks like he may also start to show movies along with the concerts. Just what I’ve been told as I havn’t been in Aberdeen for awhile but lets hope all parties concerned can work together to keep this venue open and maybe bring other business into town.
Whatever issues the two sides had, apparently have been solved. They had a Re-Opening on April 13th with a free concert. I, however, have yet to see inside this theater. I drove over 5 hours to spend a birthday weekend in Aberdeen. Sadly, the concert was canceled and the only communication to ticket holders was thru their Facebook page. Management dropped the ball big time. The artist that night, Scot Bruce, said as much to me later. He eventually booked another gig at the 7th Street Theater in nearby Hoquiam.
I called the theatre last night and there is no mention of the closure on the v/m message. If Mr. Yonich has closed the venue, what arrangements have been made to return ticket monies to purchasers? The information also needs to be posted on the theatre’s website. I sincerely hope something can be done to rescue this treasure.
My understanding about the seat removal is some were removed but no where near all. I think the public speaking out to the city is a very good thing. Aberdeen needs to wake up and realise that their town is not very healthy as far as downtown business and they need to do what ever they can to promote business not drive it away. Including working with owners in reguards to inspections. I remember growing up in Aberdeen and there was a thriving downtown with lots of foot traffic, now it looks like a goast town as the traffic just passes thru. The city needs to contact Mr. Yonich and ask what can they do to get this venue reopened. And then do whatever he requests!!!
From KXRO radio on March 14th:
The Aberdeen City Council heard from many members of the public on both sides of the issue of the closing of the D&R Theatre and what the city can do to help keep businesses in Aberdeen.
The public spoke for over an hour collectively and covered a broad spectrum of issues that they are hoping the city can help with business.
Aberdeen City Councilwoman Kathi Hoder said that the city council was just as surprised about the closing as everyone else was.
According to newspaper accounts from March 3 through March 7 this year (2013), the theater is closed as well as the other stores/eateries in the building. A wooden wall has been erected around the theater building to keep out bums. One of the stories mentioned workers removing the seats. However, the theater’s website is still showing business as usual and selling tickets to shows.
I wonder why he did not try to run movies, at least once in a while?
I noticed the same thing when I hit the theatre’s website. There is nothing to indicate that the shows have been cancelled or any information for patrons holding tickets to the shows.
Interesting that the theatre’s web page is still up and running and has several shows listed as upcomming with tickets for sale. So maybe there’s more to come and this closure is just temporary. Who knows..
I agree, even when I worked there in the 1980’s at the end of its run as a movie theatre it still has a faded elegance about it. My favorite theatre! I understand the owner has no plans to try and sell the theatre. It’s just going to sit boarded up for now. Shame.