Bay Theatre
340 Main Street,
Seal Beach,
CA
90740
340 Main Street,
Seal Beach,
CA
90740
23 people
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It’s great to hear the Bay has a curtain once again! I saw “Searching for Bobby Fisher” there in the mid-1990s after having not been to the Bay since 1973, and the screen at the time was bare, masked by black fabric (the organ is behind). I thought at the time that the organ was a wonderful addition, but I missed the double curtain I remembered from my childhood (one was a waterfall curtain and the other parted), as well as the curved walls on either side with their softly polychromed murals of stylized foliage in the so-called Skouras Style. I’m so glad to hear that a curtain of some sort has returned to the Bay! Now if there’d be a return to the original facade color scheme next time it’s time to repaint, and at the very least a repairing of the surviving pink, green and yellow animated neon display at the center of the marquee—I’d truly be thrilled! Nevertheless, if I were a resident of Seal Beach or the surrounding communities, this would still be a theatre I would attend often.
Forgot to mention one crucial element: they still have a curtain, and they still open it before the movie. Cool huh? Also, most of the shows I have been to recently have had increasingly larger audiences. Still not enough in my opinion, but encouraging nonetheless.
The Bay is always a joy to visit. It is rather small and unimpressive, but the films and presentation are always first rate. I encourage anyone in the area to pay a visit to see one of the classic films here. I have seen The Shining, The Exorcist, Citizen Kane, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and others at the bay and it is always a great evening. Main St. Seal Beach has a wonderful small town feel and has numerous bars and restaurants to visit before or after the movie. Please support this theatre! I have been many times when the screenings have only been attended by 10-15 people. It would be a shame if it closed!
The last major chain to operate the Bay theatre was Mann Theatres in the late 70’s.
This was MY hometown theatre from about age 4 until 10.
The theatre is a product of the Skouras era of the Fox West Coast chain, and still remained with that charming Moderne look when I was a kid.
In later years, a Wurlitzer pipe organ was installed, an instrument which I understand to be a very fine one, though I have yet to hear it. Unfortunately at around this same time—mid 1980s, a heavy remodeling of the facade was undertaken, removing most neon and converting what was once a colorful building into something like an earth-toned pueblo, definitely an aesthetic hangover from the “natural” 1970s. A return to the facade’s original look would be physically feasible, if someone ever had the money.