The theatre’s life went from 1899 to 1915. Excerpts from Roger Brett’s Temples of Illusion and the building of the Empire follow:
“The Empire Theater stood on the same side of Westminster Street as the Westminster Theatre and Music Hall and just a few yards from them. Its minuscule entrance was built next to the store which had housed the short-lived Nickelodeon two years before. Empire Street, named for the theater [!!!], now climbs the hill from Westminster toward Weybosset Street where the theater once stood….
“Spitz and Nathanson built their Empire in four hectic months. Work started in May [1899]. (…)
“A short article in the Providence Sunday Journal of August 2th said,
‘There is no longer any doubt as to the date of the opening of the Empire Theater. It will be Monday, September 4th….The interior is finished in Nile green, cream, and yellow, with ornamentation in gold.’ (The carpeting was dark red.) ‘There are reproductions of mythological scenes, and the fibrous plaster work around the boxes and on the proscenium arch is a feature.’ (…)
“In seating capacity it placed somewhere behind Keith’s, and very close to the Providence [Opera House], ahead of the Westminster and far ahead of their own Olympic [Nickel].(…)
“The proper word to use in descrbing the interior of the house is ‘nice.’ Neither extravagant nor drab, it was not too large for the most intimate of plays, not too small for the biggest of musicals. The house was divided into orchestra or parquette, balcony or family circle, and gallery….
“On the morning of opening day, board fencing still blocked the Westmnster Street entrance and seats were still being placed…. At five in the afternoon, the last seat was bolted to the floor. When the Empire opened that evening of Labor Day, 1899, with Johnstone Bennett in A Female Drummer, Abe Spitz became the first Providence showman to have two theaters running simultaneously.”
In addition to City Lights , my favorites are The Kid, The Gold Rush and Modern Times. When Modern Times was re-issued in 1959, I went to Boston to see it at the old Capri (Copley) and I later bought a copy of the soundtrack, which I still have and which is now rare. I also love many of his later films. Limelight with Claire Bloom knocks me out. I now have most of them on video.
Good for you. There was a Music Hall on Westminster Street in Providence too, destroyed by a fire in 1905, as was Infantry Hall in 1942. That link is a direct link to what it takes several clicks to get on the PPL site. But it is what I was referring to. Great pics there. The Albee ones are fabulous.
Yes, I saw that Pastime photo on the Images of R.I. section of the Providence Public Library’s electronic resources. Check it out at www.provlib.org . The picture of the Crown I got from the Images of America book on Pawtucket, so I presume that the theatre was in Pawtucket on North Main. North Main, I understand, is now called Roosevelt.
The Scenic had the same address (156 Main) as the Loew’s Capitol/Center/State. I wonder if it had been demolished or simply renamed. I will use this information and post the theatres that are not listed. Have you ever found any information on the Crown?
Thanks very much, Roland. Although I do believe I saw movie listings for it from the year 1935 when the Providence Journal had a Sunday listing for all the week’s upcoming movies in area theatres, not just Providence. The place could have had multiple uses over the decades. I will re-check tomorrow. It’s certainly good to know exactly where it was…even if I haven’t found a numerical address yet. By the way, I just discovered yesterday that Charlie Chaplin performed in Providence in person before he became famous through films, at the first Empire. Click and read my entry.
Was it closer to East Avenue or up where Broad Street begins? I’m going to check for ads for it in pre-1935 Pawtucket Times years on microfilm. This will merit a listing. Incidentally I have posted a great deal of information on the downtown Providence theatres. Roger Brett’s book Temples of Illusion has been a big help, and I am finding a lot of early Journal articles by using the card file at the Providence Public Library.
An August, 1928 article in the Providence Journal reported that the Publix Theatre Corporation took over the lease of the Keith-Albee interests of the Bijou Theatre that month. The lease had ten more years to run. This had been a Keith-Albee theatre for the previous 21 years. The Bijou seated 960 people.
“Bullock’s, wounded mortally when the Emery opened, changed its name to the Globe Theater for the season of 1915-16 and closed in the spring. After remodeling, it opened as the Globe Roller Rink in November of 1916.”
Roger Brett wrote in Temples of Illusion about Spitz and Nathanson’s Bijou Theatre:
“With its unveiling on March 28, 1908, Abe and Max became the city’s first showmen to operate three theatres at once. This was the original Bijou at the corner of Westminster and Orange Streets, nestled against the big Union Trust Building. A rarity among Providence Theaters, it had only one name and policy, movies, from its inception until its closing in July of 1925.
“Like the short-lived Lyric, it was a converted store and took up the entire ground floor of a high-ceilinged wood framed building dating from the early 1800’s. It was razed in 1925 and the present [1976] concrete building, for many years occupied by a Waldorf Restaurant, immediately replaced it. (…) When it became a theater a huge false front was erected and the roof appeared to be flat when viewed from Westminster Street.
“In style, this façade can best be described as ‘High Coney Island.’ It was elaborate in the extreme, painted white, and contained 2000 light bulbs. These were not in a sign but were actually mounted on the woodwork and traced the curves, arches, and parapets in brilliant relief for the benefit of evening crowds. Grime, generated by the city’s traffic and chimneys in the early 1920s, forced the management to abandon white paint in favor of green and the Bijou lost some of its amusement park glamour towards the end.
“The Bijou sat 407, all on one level. From the beginning the theater was very popular and consequently very sucessful. Although the term was not in use at the time, the Bijou, along with the Nickel, were Providence’s first-run movie houses. Abe Spitz, improving upon Charlie Lovenberg’s initial booking arrangements, had the necessary contacts with the right people to insure getting the very best films for his theaters. The policy here, as at the Nickel, was always movies and illustrated songs, but no vaudeville.”
Roger Brett wrote in Temples of Illusionon the birth of this theatre:
“Bullock’s Theater and Temple of Amusement” was the jaw beaking name of the next movie house after the [Bijou] to throw open its doors to the public. Taking a lead from Charles F. Allen, Mr. T. R. Bullock leased the lofty Richmond Street Baptist Church with its twin towers faintly suggesting Notre Dame of Paris on a small scale, and opened it as a theater with movies, vaudeville and illustrated songs on May 26, 1909. R. B. Royce was Mr. Bullock’s manager.
“Bullock’s had a balcony of sorts, formerly the choir loft. Seats up there afforded a better view than did those on the flat orchestra floor and Bullock’s had the distinction of being the only theater where balcony seats were priced higher than orchestra seats. They could not have numbered more than 100 and went for 15¢. The orchestra is known to have had 500 seats for 10¢ apiece. Although the interior was remodeled under the direction of a real designer, Rene Quentin, no effort was made to change the outward appearance of the old brick church save for the addition of a few "three-sheet” sign boards.
“It was all very unpretentious, a typical small family theatre of the period and conveniently located on the Eddy Street carline which made it easily accessible to the working class people of South Providence. As its name suggested, it was a very popular temple of amusement.”
And, in fact, there was indeed a “Ben-Hur Drive-In” in Indiana…also a “New Merry Widow Theatre” in St. Louis, possibly named after the operetta rather than the Ernst Lubitsch/Jeanette MacDonald film.
I’m trying to compile a list of movie theatres that were actually named after real movies. So far I have this “Ben-Hur Drive-In,” “Accattone” in Paris after the Pasolini film, a “Cinema Paradiso” in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, “Smultronstället” (Wild Strawberries) in Stockholm, “New Merry Widow Theatre” in St. Louis (may be named after the operetta), “Rear Window” (a series at various Boston locations,) “Grand Illusion Cinema” in Seattle. Any others?
I’m wondering if the original owner named this theatre after Lubitsch’s The Merry Widow of 1934 with Jeanette MacDonald or perhaps because he just liked the Franz Lehár operetta. (The name Komm sounds German.) I’m trying to compile a list of movie theatres that were actually named after real movies. So far I have a “Ben-Hur Drive-In,” in Indiana, “Accattone” in Paris after the Pasolini film, a “Cinema Paradiso” in Florida.
I remember reading that business about the Modern Times seizure at the time it happened. The Birth of a Nation must have been the severely truncated version, about half its original length and with added soundtrack, that was re-issued decades after the 1915 release. That accounts for the showings every two hours with a short included. The tinted integral version is available on video and I think DVD today from Kino.
The theatre’s life went from 1899 to 1915. Excerpts from Roger Brett’s Temples of Illusion and the building of the Empire follow:
“The Empire Theater stood on the same side of Westminster Street as the Westminster Theatre and Music Hall and just a few yards from them. Its minuscule entrance was built next to the store which had housed the short-lived Nickelodeon two years before. Empire Street, named for the theater [!!!], now climbs the hill from Westminster toward Weybosset Street where the theater once stood….
“Spitz and Nathanson built their Empire in four hectic months. Work started in May [1899]. (…)
“A short article in the Providence Sunday Journal of August 2th said,
‘There is no longer any doubt as to the date of the opening of the Empire Theater. It will be Monday, September 4th….The interior is finished in Nile green, cream, and yellow, with ornamentation in gold.’ (The carpeting was dark red.) ‘There are reproductions of mythological scenes, and the fibrous plaster work around the boxes and on the proscenium arch is a feature.’ (…)
“In seating capacity it placed somewhere behind Keith’s, and very close to the Providence [Opera House], ahead of the Westminster and far ahead of their own Olympic [Nickel].(…)
“The proper word to use in descrbing the interior of the house is ‘nice.’ Neither extravagant nor drab, it was not too large for the most intimate of plays, not too small for the biggest of musicals. The house was divided into orchestra or parquette, balcony or family circle, and gallery….
“On the morning of opening day, board fencing still blocked the Westmnster Street entrance and seats were still being placed…. At five in the afternoon, the last seat was bolted to the floor. When the Empire opened that evening of Labor Day, 1899, with Johnstone Bennett in A Female Drummer, Abe Spitz became the first Providence showman to have two theaters running simultaneously.”
In addition to City Lights , my favorites are The Kid, The Gold Rush and Modern Times. When Modern Times was re-issued in 1959, I went to Boston to see it at the old Capri (Copley) and I later bought a copy of the soundtrack, which I still have and which is now rare. I also love many of his later films. Limelight with Claire Bloom knocks me out. I now have most of them on video.
Good for you. There was a Music Hall on Westminster Street in Providence too, destroyed by a fire in 1905, as was Infantry Hall in 1942. That link is a direct link to what it takes several clicks to get on the PPL site. But it is what I was referring to. Great pics there. The Albee ones are fabulous.
Yes, I saw that Pastime photo on the Images of R.I. section of the Providence Public Library’s electronic resources. Check it out at www.provlib.org . The picture of the Crown I got from the Images of America book on Pawtucket, so I presume that the theatre was in Pawtucket on North Main. North Main, I understand, is now called Roosevelt.
Sic transit gloria Beekmani!
Dave, great shots! I took similar photos a couple of weeks ago and was going to post mine. You saved me the need.
The Scenic had the same address (156 Main) as the Loew’s Capitol/Center/State. I wonder if it had been demolished or simply renamed. I will use this information and post the theatres that are not listed. Have you ever found any information on the Crown?
Thanks very much, Roland. Although I do believe I saw movie listings for it from the year 1935 when the Providence Journal had a Sunday listing for all the week’s upcoming movies in area theatres, not just Providence. The place could have had multiple uses over the decades. I will re-check tomorrow. It’s certainly good to know exactly where it was…even if I haven’t found a numerical address yet. By the way, I just discovered yesterday that Charlie Chaplin performed in Providence in person before he became famous through films, at the first Empire. Click and read my entry.
Was it closer to East Avenue or up where Broad Street begins? I’m going to check for ads for it in pre-1935 Pawtucket Times years on microfilm. This will merit a listing. Incidentally I have posted a great deal of information on the downtown Providence theatres. Roger Brett’s book Temples of Illusion has been a big help, and I am finding a lot of early Journal articles by using the card file at the Providence Public Library.
An August, 1928 article in the Providence Journal reported that the Publix Theatre Corporation took over the lease of the Keith-Albee interests of the Bijou Theatre that month. The lease had ten more years to run. This had been a Keith-Albee theatre for the previous 21 years. The Bijou seated 960 people.
I found a 1935 listing for a “Music Hall” in Pawtucket. Any idea of what or where this was? Other names?
This theatre still existed in February, 1935, according to a Providence newspaper listing of films playing.
I also found a 1935 listing for a “Music Hall” in Pawtucket. Any idea of what or where this was? Other names?
I found a 1935 listing for a “Music Hall” in Pawtucket. Any idea of what or where this was? Other names?
In 1924, when this theatre was known as the Empire, it showed the film He Who Gets Slapped with Lon Chaney.
Rhett, post your comment on the Walter Reade page. Who knows?…it might draw some attention.
This theatre also went by its Italian name, “Teatro La Sirena.”
Epilog…from Roger Brett’s above mentioned book:
“Bullock’s, wounded mortally when the Emery opened, changed its name to the Globe Theater for the season of 1915-16 and closed in the spring. After remodeling, it opened as the Globe Roller Rink in November of 1916.”
Loew’s State Theatre (now Providence Performing Arts Center) and adjacent shops in the theatre block eventually replaced both this theatre and the Gaiety.
Roger Brett wrote in Temples of Illusion about Spitz and Nathanson’s Bijou Theatre:
“With its unveiling on March 28, 1908, Abe and Max became the city’s first showmen to operate three theatres at once. This was the original Bijou at the corner of Westminster and Orange Streets, nestled against the big Union Trust Building. A rarity among Providence Theaters, it had only one name and policy, movies, from its inception until its closing in July of 1925.
“Like the short-lived Lyric, it was a converted store and took up the entire ground floor of a high-ceilinged wood framed building dating from the early 1800’s. It was razed in 1925 and the present [1976] concrete building, for many years occupied by a Waldorf Restaurant, immediately replaced it. (…) When it became a theater a huge false front was erected and the roof appeared to be flat when viewed from Westminster Street.
“In style, this façade can best be described as ‘High Coney Island.’ It was elaborate in the extreme, painted white, and contained 2000 light bulbs. These were not in a sign but were actually mounted on the woodwork and traced the curves, arches, and parapets in brilliant relief for the benefit of evening crowds. Grime, generated by the city’s traffic and chimneys in the early 1920s, forced the management to abandon white paint in favor of green and the Bijou lost some of its amusement park glamour towards the end.
“The Bijou sat 407, all on one level. From the beginning the theater was very popular and consequently very sucessful. Although the term was not in use at the time, the Bijou, along with the Nickel, were Providence’s first-run movie houses. Abe Spitz, improving upon Charlie Lovenberg’s initial booking arrangements, had the necessary contacts with the right people to insure getting the very best films for his theaters. The policy here, as at the Nickel, was always movies and illustrated songs, but no vaudeville.”
Roger Brett wrote in Temples of Illusionon the birth of this theatre:
“Bullock’s Theater and Temple of Amusement” was the jaw beaking name of the next movie house after the [Bijou] to throw open its doors to the public. Taking a lead from Charles F. Allen, Mr. T. R. Bullock leased the lofty Richmond Street Baptist Church with its twin towers faintly suggesting Notre Dame of Paris on a small scale, and opened it as a theater with movies, vaudeville and illustrated songs on May 26, 1909. R. B. Royce was Mr. Bullock’s manager.
“Bullock’s had a balcony of sorts, formerly the choir loft. Seats up there afforded a better view than did those on the flat orchestra floor and Bullock’s had the distinction of being the only theater where balcony seats were priced higher than orchestra seats. They could not have numbered more than 100 and went for 15¢. The orchestra is known to have had 500 seats for 10¢ apiece. Although the interior was remodeled under the direction of a real designer, Rene Quentin, no effort was made to change the outward appearance of the old brick church save for the addition of a few "three-sheet” sign boards.
“It was all very unpretentious, a typical small family theatre of the period and conveniently located on the Eddy Street carline which made it easily accessible to the working class people of South Providence. As its name suggested, it was a very popular temple of amusement.”
Yes, the back-ends of the two auditorums were on opposite ends of the lobby, as I recall. They were not contiguous.
And, in fact, there was indeed a “Ben-Hur Drive-In” in Indiana…also a “New Merry Widow Theatre” in St. Louis, possibly named after the operetta rather than the Ernst Lubitsch/Jeanette MacDonald film.
I’m trying to compile a list of movie theatres that were actually named after real movies. So far I have this “Ben-Hur Drive-In,” “Accattone” in Paris after the Pasolini film, a “Cinema Paradiso” in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, “Smultronstället” (Wild Strawberries) in Stockholm, “New Merry Widow Theatre” in St. Louis (may be named after the operetta), “Rear Window” (a series at various Boston locations,) “Grand Illusion Cinema” in Seattle. Any others?
“Smultronstället” (Wild Strawberries) in Stockholm and “Grand Illusion Cinema” in Seattle were also named after movies.
I’m wondering if the original owner named this theatre after Lubitsch’s The Merry Widow of 1934 with Jeanette MacDonald or perhaps because he just liked the Franz Lehár operetta. (The name Komm sounds German.) I’m trying to compile a list of movie theatres that were actually named after real movies. So far I have a “Ben-Hur Drive-In,” in Indiana, “Accattone” in Paris after the Pasolini film, a “Cinema Paradiso” in Florida.
I remember reading that business about the Modern Times seizure at the time it happened. The Birth of a Nation must have been the severely truncated version, about half its original length and with added soundtrack, that was re-issued decades after the 1915 release. That accounts for the showings every two hours with a short included. The tinted integral version is available on video and I think DVD today from Kino.
Simple, post them on Photobucket.com and then link to the images.