Paramount Theatre
169 Peachtree Street NE,
Atlanta,
GA
30303
169 Peachtree Street NE,
Atlanta,
GA
30303
7 people
favorited this theater
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Here is a movie ad for The Paramount
View link
While demolishing the Paramount, the facade was preserved and now adorns a home in Moultre Georgia. I have some pictures that I need to find. What looks like the second floor frontage is now the front of the house. It still looks very impressive.
To whom it may concern,
My name is Robert Napier. I am doing a documentary about Atlanta theaters. I am in search of locating an abandoned theatre and using the documentary as a catalyst to support renovations to the existing theatre. We are also looking for Atlanta locals who are between the ages of 40 & 70 who have exciting stories about their cinema experience at the time. For more information, please visit
http://segregatedseats.ning.com/
John —Thank you for removing the cobwebs from my mind. Although the mention of live performances by Elvis in Atlanta did ring a bell, I could not distinctly remember them. Of course, I was much to young to have attended any of them on my own. Admission was $1.25!!! That’s roughly ten dollars in today’s economy – cheap at twice the price! What a different time that was!
What a beautiful-looking old theatre that was!! Thanks for sharing.
In reference to the appearance of Elvis Presley at the Paramount.
He appeared June 22-24 in 1956 for 10 shows that weekend. 3 shows on Friday, 4 on Saturday, and 3 on Sunday. All seats where $1.25! The ads do not say who is appearing with him except that it is a All New Variety Show. the movie between the shows was “Fury at Gunsight Pass"
He also appeared earlier that year at the Fox Theater, March 14 and 15, for a total of six shows. Appearing with him at the Fox where the Blue Moon Boys, Rod Brasfield, Uncle Cyp, Mother Maybelle and the Carter Sisters, and the Jordanaires. The movie between the shows was "The Square Jungle” starring Tony Curtis and Pat Crowley.
In reference to an earlier posting by Ken Clarke Sept.18, 2006, Yes there was another theater in Atlanta going by the name “Paramount"
On Monday Feb. 11, 1924 The Paramount Theater opened at 92 ½ Auburn Avenue and was a "colored” theater, this was a renovation of an earlier theater and renaming. In 1929 the Howard Theater changed its name to the Paramount per decree of the Publix corporation. As to the colored Paramount retaining its name I am not sure since both were showing Paramount pictures
The photo posted appeared in Ben Hall’s “The Best Remaining Seats"
C. Sharpe Minor was engaged for a two week run in April of 1924,
which he played the theatres Robert Morton. Mr. Minor toured all around the country, before coming to
Atlanta he played in St. Louis, Dallas, Philadelphia. Like many of the organist they toured around the country playing at a theatre for several weeks or months then went to thenext theatre. Mr. Minor later became a spokesman for the Link Organ Company.
Here is a 1924 photo. I saw C. Sharpe Minor mentioned in an article about an LA theater in the 1920s. Either he got around or that was a popular alias at the time.
http://tinyurl.com/396bao
John – I can’t begin to tell you how much I am enjoying your articles on the Atlanta Chapter ATOS website! As a native Atlantan, I grew up seeing movies at the Paramount Theatre in the ‘50’s. My father remembered it from its beginning as the Howard Theatre. As much as I loved the Fox Theatre, the Paramount had a special place in my affections. You are correct when you write that there was no public outcry when the Paramount was slated to be demolished. That is not to say that it was unmourned. Personally, I really missed seeing movies at the Paramount.
Like the Fox, the Howard/Paramount had a special atmosphere. Possibly that was because both theaters were designed by local architects. You are correct when you say that the Paramount had a unity of design and construction. Attending the Fox and the Paramount seemed to enhance the experience of seeing whatever was on the program.
Don: just type in to Google Atlanta Chapter ATOS and it will come up, go to the newsletters online, and pull up the October newsletter also the may newsletter has part two to the PAramount article.
also pull up the other newsletters for other theatres. the web master is supposed to be fixing it so that the newsletters don’t rotate off so that these article will be available.
Hi, J. –
Can you give me the actual URL for the Atlanta chapter ATOS newsletter? I’d love to see those articles!
Here is an interesting billboard for Paramount Theater back in the ‘30’s. View link
Over the past year I have been doing a series of articles on Atlanta’s movie theatre’s that had pipe organs in them. These articles were published in the Atlanta Chapter ATOS newsletter. In these articles I tried to include not only a history of the organ but also some of the history of the theatre along with many photo’s of both interior and exterior. The Howard/Paramount covers two issues.
Oct. 2006 and MAy 2007. These article are only on the chapters web site for a limited time (1 year)Just go to the newsletter portion of the website and click on the month and then search through the newsletter for the article.
If you are in Atlanta, go to the downtown Atlanta Public Library and check the microfilm records of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution for that era. It can be a laborious process, and very eye fatiquing, but it’s probably your most reliable source. Hopefully, one day this material will be transferred to a digital data base that will be easier to access.
Although I vividly remember the long lines of teenagers lined up at the Paramount for the original run of LOVE ME TENDER, I don’t actually remember any live appearences by Elvis. The line for the box office wound across Peachtree Street, around the corner to Ellis Street and all the way down the block to Juniper Street and down the street from there. One look at that line told me that Elvis was more than a passing fad.
Does anyone here have any recollections of the Elvis Presley shows that were played at the Paramount Theater from June 22-24, 1956? Or of Elvis playing any other places in that vicinity at any time? Thanks -Kip
For more on the Atlanta Paramount/Howard Theatre go to the Atlanta Chapter of the American Theatre Organ Society’s web site and pull up the October 2006 Newsletter. Many photographs of the interior.
William – The Temple Theatre on Cherokee Avenue near Grant Park was much too small to hold 1000 seats. If memory serves, the entry for the Temple on cinematreasures lists the capacity at 300 seats. Could you be referring to another theater with the same name?
To add to that list was the Lennox Theatre.
During 1945 the Bailey Theaters chain in Atlanta was.
Ashby Theatre (480 seats)
81 Theatre (1500 seats)
Harlem Theatre (400 seats)
Lincoln Theatre (300 seats)
Royal Theatre
Strand Theatre (500 seats)
The Empire & Grove Theatres seated 800 each and the Temple Theatre seated 1000.
As of that time the Lennox Theatre was closed.
Jack – I believe that your information is correct. However, there was another African-American theater on Forrest Avenue (now Ralph McGill Boulevard) called the Forrest Theatre. Unfortunately, I have no idea as to whether or not it was part of the Bailey Circuit. The theater is listed in the “Current Amusements” section of the Atlanta Journal under “Colored Theaters”. My uncle had a grocery store on Forrest Avenue across the street from the present day location of the Atlanta Civic Center. The Forrest Theater was roughly a block further east on the same side of the street. The Forrest Theatre had a large billboard that prominently displayed movie posters for its attractions.
Since I never attended the Empire, the Grove, or the Temple I wouldn’t know about their admission policy. Of course, we are talking about the era of segregation. And yes, I can remember the time when black passengers were required to ride in the back of the bus. This seemed odd to me as a child. Looking back as an adult it seems pretty ghastly
Apart from that, I have no knowledge of any other Atlanta theater named the Paramount. That doesn’t mean that it might not have existed.
Researching old Auburn Avenue Paramont and Decatur Street’s 81. Will get back shortly.
Anny
A majority of the African American theatres in Atlanta were part of the Bailey’s Theatre circuit and included:
The Ashby at 925 MLK Jr Dr
The Eighty-One at 81 Decatur St
The Harlem at 531 McDaniel St
The Lincoln at 407 Mitchell St
The Royal 323 Auburn Ave NE
The Strand 51 Decatur St
The following theatres were later acquired by the Bailey circuit and catered to mixed audiences:
The Empire at 42 Georgia Ave
The Grove at 1576 DL Hollwell Pkwy
The Temple at 456 Cherokee Ave
A majority of the theatres in the early 1920s were the one reel hand cranked nickelodeons with relatively short life spans.
Was there a black theater called the Paramount on Auburn Avenue in Atlanta in the 1920s? The address was 192 ½ Auburn Avenue. I am researching an independent filmmaker who worked in Jacksonville during that decade. His personal records from the time refer to a Paramount Theater on Auburn Avenue.
Also does anyone know anything about these black theaters in Atlanta from the ‘20s? Theater 81, Theater 91 and the Crystal? The first two were on Decatur Street, the last one might have been on Hunter Street. (His handwriting is unclear on that one.)
Thanks a lot.
Anny, thanks for this clarification.
Georgia Tech’s Elizabeth Dowling, an authority on Architect Philip Shutze and author of American Classicist: Architecture of Philip Trammel Shutze, notes “attribution is often not ‘provable’ unless there is written documentation from all involved.” The safest result is using the firm’s name.
In the Howard Theatre’s case architectural firm of Hentz, Reid, and Adler (HRA) designed the structure as noted in the Atlanta Constitution’s article on the opening.
William R. Mitchell, Jr. in his book J. Neel Reid Architect notes “George Troup Howard, Howard Theater was the firms job #369. The interiors were by W.E. Browne Co.,
The remodeling job #590 was in 1925, according to Mitchell and he notes AHS which would be Adler, Hentz, Shutz.