I have to applaud Mr. Faulkner who is working from London, England to advocate an American theatre that too few of us prize. Yes, we have a great many lavish movie palaces remaining, and when the day come that CT will once again accept photos, we will no doubt see the reason that so many more deserve preservation, but for now it seems that the truly BIG projects such as the KINGS or the UPTOWN in Chicago are going to fade away until the point come that taxpayers must pay the millions it will take to clear the eventually dangerous crumbling buildings from any access to vagrants and children who find such hulks irresistible. There is another fabulous Rapp & Rapp theatre sitting in Milwaukee, dark and moldering and it too deserves restoration and reuse. But where will all the money come from? These are financially tight times with wars to pay for and tragic social causes of higher priority. Some ‘angels’ have come along for some theatres, such as the STANFORD in Palo Alto, Calif., and the PABST in Milwaukee, but such ‘sugar daddies’ are rare and getting rarer. Local publicity groups can sometimes help, but one should not break his own heart by deluding himself that an outside group with no real funds can do more than talk. After all, Proposition L to save the theatres of San Francisco, was just defeated at the polls amid speculation rife with doubt as to accountability —and that initiative did not involve any increase in taxes! (http://www.noonl.com/) What hope is there for the KINGS if one would suggest it become a public facility to be restored by, adapted by, and operated by public taxes? As the old saying goes: ‘Wishing isn’t getting.’ Mr. Faulkner is to be admired, but will any locals with dollars step forward to make it a privately-funded reality? We can only hope.
Technically, that “ornamental barricade wall” is just that and is called a COLONNADE, but here it does not support anything aside from its conjoined columns which are in a non-classical styling according to the Orders of Architecture. Most theatres had some provision like this to divide the exiting audience from the incoming audience who stood in rows between the STANDEE RAILS shown in the view on this page: http://www.cinematour.com/tour.php?db=us&id=9940 . In most movie palaces, the space above such a colonnade was a promenade or gallery off of the balcony or mezzanine lobby, as at the MICHIGAN theatre in Detroit where the columns were actually marble-clad piers and between them on the lobby floor level were HOLD OUT GATES of ornate metal that were closed to make the EXIT PASSAGE separate from the incomers on the lobby side of the gates. Here in the VALENCIA, there were probably ropes between the columns put up by the ushers just before a show would let out, and opened when a show was in progress. Thus, traffic pattern or crowd control was just the idea in a time when there were thousands of people that could be milling about a lobby at any one time which would have created tremendous traffic jams without such devices. Because the VALENCIA’S lobby is rather narrow, the architect no doubt thought it best to create such a unique barrier as opposed to a much more closed wall both for aesthetic and ventilation needs. Thus the exiting audience would be directed to the set of doors that led to this EXIT PASSAGE between the colonnade and the outer wall with various exits.
A nice new book with many glossy, colorful pages titled: “THE CORONADO: ROCKFORD’S CROWN JEWEL” is reviewed at this location with ordering address listed there: http://www.cinematour.com/bookshelf.php?id=73
While CT deals primarily with theatres, these sites deal more with the business and technology of film exhibition: www.BigScreenBiz.com and www.Film-tech.com Both are large sites with archives, so you will have to do a good deal of reading to find all the nugets of information burried therein.
Ed, another reason many theatres didn’t open their balconies was that their insurnace carriers forced them to pay a higher premium for the time the balcony was open, and often also added terms such as a specified minimum of ushers up there, guaranteed working aisle lights, repaired seats, etc. Also, many fire codes specified a certain minimum number of working lights —usually set by the building inspector during an inspection —and many theatres did NOT maintain any more lights than they were forced to! Yes, they were cheap about it, but then the owner was only interested in profits, not beauty of theatre!
I don’t live in the Bay area, but I think that this is one of the most progressive and yet rightly historical initiatives in the nation’s history, and I applaud all Californians who support it. BUT, as the saying goes, ‘the devil is in the details.’
Imagine the number of theatres that could have been preserved for posterity had such a law been nationwide!
Hello, Adam, I am not sure that you will find any source of an exact cinema/theatre business plan, but I am told that there are commercial computer programs designed to help you formulate one. This was the result of several inquiries to the site: www.BigScreenBiz.com where there are several FORUMS that discuss the operational aspects of the business. You might go there and first read through the topics of the posts in the LOBBY forum, and if the string of comments there does not help, try the BACK OFFICE forum as well as the FAQs forum. The discussion by the experienced operators there, answering several people wanting to know how to make up a business plan, basically boiled down to the conclusion that one must have apprenticed or worked in a theatre to know the odd nature of the business which they felt was not really well represented in traditional business plans. Such computer programs as might exist may well be oriented to the situation and regulations in the USA, and so you would have to be aware of the differences to you in New Zealand. I would imagine that going to such as www.Google.com and typing in the search term ‘business plan’ would bring a number of vendors, and the various computer magazines might have reviews of the quality and critical compatibility of such. Best Wishes. Jim
It was the scanner or photographic table tripod methods that I was thinking of. When I mentioned their copying policy, I was referring to your legal right to copy via any method their materials, and that you would have to work out with them. Possibly, if you had a written agreement to give them a set of your resulting DVDs or CDs, they might consider them sufficient payment for the risk to their materials. If you view the video “Slow Fires” about the disintegration of paper there, they may agree to sacrifice catalogs for your more permanent digital form. Same goes for THSA. Best Wishes.
Also, have you contacted any large libraries? Many libraries have collections of ‘Trade catalogs’ and the Theatre Catalog may be among them. It may also be filed as a magazine or book, in which case it is cataloged and most all libraries' catalogs can be searched via the OCLC on-line index through a librarian at your local library. Also, the Library Of Congress in Washington,D.C. has a huge collection of such catalogs, but most of them are not cataloged due to lack of personnel and funds, but it may be possible that they will grant you a Researcher’s Pass to go the locked storage of these to see what is there. You will have to ask about their copying policy.
It is possible that the Archive of the Theatre Historical Soc. of America in Elmhurst Illinois outside of Chicago has a number of these, and you might be able to make arrangements to copy theirs via a camera set up at their headquarters by prior arrangement. Go to their web site: www.HistoricTheatres.org and send their Ex. Director an E-mail about your wishes. They may be willing to assist you in advertising the availability of the DVDs in their Newsletter or MARQUEE magazine. Best Wishes in your quest.
According to a Tour Brochure I was given, Tour times are: Weekdays: 8:30AM to 5:PM (the last tour begins at 4:PM); Saturdays and Sundays: same, but tours are given only if no assembly is in session on those days. Tours last approx. one hour and include a 15-min. slide presentation of the history of the facility and the great effort undertaken in restoring and adapting it. No religious information is presented. Parking is available at reasonable cost across the street at the Kinney Parking Garage. It is best to confirm this schedule by phoning the Hall at: (201) 659-1892
Note that one can enter during any Assembly session when there are no tours, but no darkening of the ‘sky’ and appearance of the ‘stars and clouds’ will be made, and no film/slide show will be offered. Admission is always free of charge. Tour brochures with full color photos as well as color post card scenes are available by calling, or writing to the Hall at: 2932 Kennedy Blvd., Jersey City, NJ 07306.
A previous comment mentioned the present day photos of the KINGS as taken and posted by this French member of the Theatre Historical Soc.’s tour last year: http://www.silverscreens.com/thsa.php and part of the site is also in English, though the photos speak the international language.
AS to why there is no description. That is probably because CT staffer William Gabel, who originally entered the theatre into their data base, did not submit a description/history at that time. Perhaps it was not a house that he was personally familiar with; perhaps he had no adequate resources available from which to bring together a description of merit; or perhaps he did not have sufficiently recent information to round out an article that would reflect the venue today as opposed to only yesterday. In any case, writing a complete and accurate description is not as easy as it appears in that the writer must strike a balance between a tract and a monograph. While CT does allow “unlimited” text in that area, one must still have a balance of information available, a sufficient knowledge of the genre to put the location in perspective, and current information to make the article timely and valuable to those wanting to know status and the possibility of a tour. While I love the works of Rapp & Rapp and especially the KINGS (one of my ‘Favorites’), I do not live in NYC and have never been in the KINGS, and while photos of it do make me want to know more and to appreciate what was, they are not enough with which to write a decent article, since this grandiose palace deserves much, much more than a mere verbal sketch.
Will CT accept a submitted Description/History at this point? You will have to get their reaction as their time permits. (You cannot use the Add-A-Theatre form, due to the fact that the theatre already exists here.)
It is ironic indeed, considering how they were dismissed years ago as old, musty, and outmoded, yet today the movie palaces that remain are often the most imaginative and artistic structures remaining in our cities. The irony is that we seek to preserve on film what we so seldom seek to preserve in life as living art works as well as memorials to our past. Of course, it is, as always, a matter of money and keeping something alive today that was intended to have thousands pay to enter it each day, is a Herculean task with few having the deep pockets needed to do the job. In the new book “Cinema Treasures” the authors make the observation that using such palaces as the LOS ANGELES has become a cottage industry for many such, and is often all that stands between them and the wrecking ball. A few multiplexes, such as the COLUSUS in Toronto are so large and elaborate as to almost be movie settings themselves, but such multiplexes are in the minority, and we are more and more left to notice the painful contrast between the opulent palaces of yesteryear and the spare and uninspired screening rooms of today.
While it is a shame to have to have a concession stand in the first place, there is a bright side to it: it is not causing the removal of ornament or fixtures from a wall, which is where they would otherwise have had to put it. Being in the middle, it will dominate the room, but then one can still walk around it with his back to it, and take in the restored ornate walls without having to keep the new stand in his mental picture. We must also be realistic about the traffic patterns encountered in the room, since the merchant who eventually uses it will want maximum traffic at all sides of the stand for fastest service as well as to maximize profits. Recall that it is food/refreshments that now really pay for a venue, not what is on a screen, sad to say. Also, there may be practical problems regarding utility feeds (water, sewer, electrical, beverage piping, etc.) that may require the location mid-floor for best access with least significant damage though the floor from basement storage area. There might even be a goods/cartons elevator hidden in the middle of the stand through a new opening in the floor so as to restock in a convenient way, and this too may be better than damaging the ornate plaster walls.
A very good seven-page article about the STANFORD appeared in “Americana” magazine of April 1990, and is replete with photos, both modern ones in color, and vintage in black and white. Most areas of the theatre are shown as well as a portrait of David Packard. The article well describes his loving attention to the details of accurate and complete restoration. Likely the magazine is at some libraries (ask your local librarian to check the Union List of Serials to determine who has it) or it may be available as a back issue for sale from the publisher through their web site; search for it on www.Google.com
There are numerous photos of the SOONER on the www.CinemaTour.com site that show the theatre in original and present day status. They reveal not only how barren the place can appear with all of its draperies removed, but the photos also reveal this to be perhaps the only theatre with its roof trusses (not just beams) in full view, though decorated. Many people wonder how much space is above a traditional theatre’s ceiling, and this photo gives an idea, though on a smaller scale. This is certainly one unusual movie palace.
The absence of adequate parking is one major reason that many movie palaces never reopen. A major expense in planning to reopen such is for an adjacent or nearby parking structure, since it is usually figured that there should be one parking space for every third seat, which would mean a LARGE parking area in the case of the PARADISE. Still, we hope it reopens!
The Portland ORIENTAL was certainly among the most imaginative movie palaces in the nation, and it is indeed a shame that it is gone, but we can relive much of it via the 28-page article about it in the “Marquee” magazine of First Qtr. 1987 where there are 31 black and white photos of it supported by the text of the Historic American Buildings Survey’s 32-page report: “The Oriental Theatre, Portland, Oregon” of 1969.
PHOTOS AVAILABLE:
To obtain any available Back Issue of either “Marquee” or of its ANNUALS, simply go to the web site of the THEATRE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA at: www.HistoricTheatres.org and notice on their first page the link “PUBLICATIONS: Back Issues List” and click on that and you will be taken to their listing where they also give ordering details. The “Marquee” magazine is 8-1/2x11 inches tall (‘portrait’) format, and the ANNUALS are also soft cover in the same size, but in the long (‘landscape’) format, and are anywhere from 26 to 40 pages. Should they indicate that a publication is Out Of Print, then it may still be possible to view it via Inter-Library Loan where you go to the librarian at any public or school library and ask them to locate which library has the item by using the Union List of Serials, and your library can then ask the other library to lend it to them for you to read or photocopy. [Photocopies of most THSA publications are available from University Microforms International (UMI), but their prices are exorbitant.]
Note: Most any photo in any of their publications may be had in large size by purchase; see their ARCHIVE link. You should realize that there was no color still photography in the 1920s, so few theatres were seen in color at that time except by means of hand tinted renderings or post cards, thus all the antique photos from the Society will be in black and white, but it is quite possible that the Society has later color images available; it is best to inquire of them.
Should you not be able to contact them via their web site, you may also contact their Executive Director via E-mail at:
Or you may reach them via phone or snail mail at:
Theatre Historical Soc. of America
152 N. York, 2nd Floor York Theatre Bldg.
Elmhurst, ILL. 60126-2806 (they are about 15 miles west of Chicago)
Phone: 630-782-1800 or via FAX at: 630-782-1802 (Monday through Friday, 9AM—4PM, CT)
Here are the details of the sad fate of the AVALON’s organ which I received from the President of the Dairyland Theatre Organ Soc., the owner of the pipe organ:
Hi Jim
Unfortunately, it’s true. The organ has been removed from the theatre and put into storage. The theatre is not being maintained by the owner and he’s trying to rent it out as office space. There are many roof leaks with the organ chambers suffering much falling plaster from water damage. When some of the large wooden pipes were removed, they were found to be covered with mold and mildew from almost steady dampness. Worse yet, the facility has not been heated for several years and this doesn’t help preserve it. Recently vandals broke in and pried the doors to the organ chambers open. Either they weren’t interested with what they found or were planning to return to take metal pipes for salvage? That’s happened to pipe organs before. And they emptied every fire extinguisher they could find in the theatre over everything. It looked like it snowed! They also took the back of the console off but didn’t do any damage. DTOS then decided to remove the organ to protect it from both vandalism and the elements and it now resides in pieces in a heated warehouse in Racine until it can be returned to the Avalon, should that place be restored, or put into another facility where it can be enjoyed.
If you send me your address, I’ll send you a copy of our last newsletter, the Bartola, where you can read about it first hand and see some pictures. Thanks for your interest.
This just appeared on the Dairyland Theatre Organ Society web site:
“The Avalon Theatre and organ have been separated. Removal of the
organ occurred at the end of September 2004, after the theatre was
vandalized, and the organ damaged.”
I heard that it interfered with the large screen projection. You would think that during the “restoration” it could have been reworked so as to be able to be withdrawn automatically up into the attic just as the movie began (and then lowered automatically at the end of the projection), rather the way the chandeliers are raised and lowered in the Kennedy Center, but that would have probably added a thousand dollars to the cost.
I have to applaud Mr. Faulkner who is working from London, England to advocate an American theatre that too few of us prize. Yes, we have a great many lavish movie palaces remaining, and when the day come that CT will once again accept photos, we will no doubt see the reason that so many more deserve preservation, but for now it seems that the truly BIG projects such as the KINGS or the UPTOWN in Chicago are going to fade away until the point come that taxpayers must pay the millions it will take to clear the eventually dangerous crumbling buildings from any access to vagrants and children who find such hulks irresistible. There is another fabulous Rapp & Rapp theatre sitting in Milwaukee, dark and moldering and it too deserves restoration and reuse. But where will all the money come from? These are financially tight times with wars to pay for and tragic social causes of higher priority. Some ‘angels’ have come along for some theatres, such as the STANFORD in Palo Alto, Calif., and the PABST in Milwaukee, but such ‘sugar daddies’ are rare and getting rarer. Local publicity groups can sometimes help, but one should not break his own heart by deluding himself that an outside group with no real funds can do more than talk. After all, Proposition L to save the theatres of San Francisco, was just defeated at the polls amid speculation rife with doubt as to accountability —and that initiative did not involve any increase in taxes! (http://www.noonl.com/) What hope is there for the KINGS if one would suggest it become a public facility to be restored by, adapted by, and operated by public taxes? As the old saying goes: ‘Wishing isn’t getting.’ Mr. Faulkner is to be admired, but will any locals with dollars step forward to make it a privately-funded reality? We can only hope.
Technically, that “ornamental barricade wall” is just that and is called a COLONNADE, but here it does not support anything aside from its conjoined columns which are in a non-classical styling according to the Orders of Architecture. Most theatres had some provision like this to divide the exiting audience from the incoming audience who stood in rows between the STANDEE RAILS shown in the view on this page: http://www.cinematour.com/tour.php?db=us&id=9940 . In most movie palaces, the space above such a colonnade was a promenade or gallery off of the balcony or mezzanine lobby, as at the MICHIGAN theatre in Detroit where the columns were actually marble-clad piers and between them on the lobby floor level were HOLD OUT GATES of ornate metal that were closed to make the EXIT PASSAGE separate from the incomers on the lobby side of the gates. Here in the VALENCIA, there were probably ropes between the columns put up by the ushers just before a show would let out, and opened when a show was in progress. Thus, traffic pattern or crowd control was just the idea in a time when there were thousands of people that could be milling about a lobby at any one time which would have created tremendous traffic jams without such devices. Because the VALENCIA’S lobby is rather narrow, the architect no doubt thought it best to create such a unique barrier as opposed to a much more closed wall both for aesthetic and ventilation needs. Thus the exiting audience would be directed to the set of doors that led to this EXIT PASSAGE between the colonnade and the outer wall with various exits.
A nice new book with many glossy, colorful pages titled: “THE CORONADO: ROCKFORD’S CROWN JEWEL” is reviewed at this location with ordering address listed there: http://www.cinematour.com/bookshelf.php?id=73
While CT deals primarily with theatres, these sites deal more with the business and technology of film exhibition: www.BigScreenBiz.com and www.Film-tech.com Both are large sites with archives, so you will have to do a good deal of reading to find all the nugets of information burried therein.
Vito, go to this page: View link
It says there are about 1,800 images of 42nd St. Pack a lunch and enjoy the trip!
The site lists them correctly: they are both of the NY PARAMOUNT in Manhattan, not the BROOKLYN PARAMOUNT.
Ed, another reason many theatres didn’t open their balconies was that their insurnace carriers forced them to pay a higher premium for the time the balcony was open, and often also added terms such as a specified minimum of ushers up there, guaranteed working aisle lights, repaired seats, etc. Also, many fire codes specified a certain minimum number of working lights —usually set by the building inspector during an inspection —and many theatres did NOT maintain any more lights than they were forced to! Yes, they were cheap about it, but then the owner was only interested in profits, not beauty of theatre!
I don’t live in the Bay area, but I think that this is one of the most progressive and yet rightly historical initiatives in the nation’s history, and I applaud all Californians who support it. BUT, as the saying goes, ‘the devil is in the details.’
Imagine the number of theatres that could have been preserved for posterity had such a law been nationwide!
Hello, Adam, I am not sure that you will find any source of an exact cinema/theatre business plan, but I am told that there are commercial computer programs designed to help you formulate one. This was the result of several inquiries to the site: www.BigScreenBiz.com where there are several FORUMS that discuss the operational aspects of the business. You might go there and first read through the topics of the posts in the LOBBY forum, and if the string of comments there does not help, try the BACK OFFICE forum as well as the FAQs forum. The discussion by the experienced operators there, answering several people wanting to know how to make up a business plan, basically boiled down to the conclusion that one must have apprenticed or worked in a theatre to know the odd nature of the business which they felt was not really well represented in traditional business plans. Such computer programs as might exist may well be oriented to the situation and regulations in the USA, and so you would have to be aware of the differences to you in New Zealand. I would imagine that going to such as www.Google.com and typing in the search term ‘business plan’ would bring a number of vendors, and the various computer magazines might have reviews of the quality and critical compatibility of such. Best Wishes. Jim
It was the scanner or photographic table tripod methods that I was thinking of. When I mentioned their copying policy, I was referring to your legal right to copy via any method their materials, and that you would have to work out with them. Possibly, if you had a written agreement to give them a set of your resulting DVDs or CDs, they might consider them sufficient payment for the risk to their materials. If you view the video “Slow Fires” about the disintegration of paper there, they may agree to sacrifice catalogs for your more permanent digital form. Same goes for THSA. Best Wishes.
Also, have you contacted any large libraries? Many libraries have collections of ‘Trade catalogs’ and the Theatre Catalog may be among them. It may also be filed as a magazine or book, in which case it is cataloged and most all libraries' catalogs can be searched via the OCLC on-line index through a librarian at your local library. Also, the Library Of Congress in Washington,D.C. has a huge collection of such catalogs, but most of them are not cataloged due to lack of personnel and funds, but it may be possible that they will grant you a Researcher’s Pass to go the locked storage of these to see what is there. You will have to ask about their copying policy.
It is possible that the Archive of the Theatre Historical Soc. of America in Elmhurst Illinois outside of Chicago has a number of these, and you might be able to make arrangements to copy theirs via a camera set up at their headquarters by prior arrangement. Go to their web site: www.HistoricTheatres.org and send their Ex. Director an E-mail about your wishes. They may be willing to assist you in advertising the availability of the DVDs in their Newsletter or MARQUEE magazine. Best Wishes in your quest.
According to a Tour Brochure I was given, Tour times are: Weekdays: 8:30AM to 5:PM (the last tour begins at 4:PM); Saturdays and Sundays: same, but tours are given only if no assembly is in session on those days. Tours last approx. one hour and include a 15-min. slide presentation of the history of the facility and the great effort undertaken in restoring and adapting it. No religious information is presented. Parking is available at reasonable cost across the street at the Kinney Parking Garage. It is best to confirm this schedule by phoning the Hall at: (201) 659-1892
Note that one can enter during any Assembly session when there are no tours, but no darkening of the ‘sky’ and appearance of the ‘stars and clouds’ will be made, and no film/slide show will be offered. Admission is always free of charge. Tour brochures with full color photos as well as color post card scenes are available by calling, or writing to the Hall at: 2932 Kennedy Blvd., Jersey City, NJ 07306.
A previous comment mentioned the present day photos of the KINGS as taken and posted by this French member of the Theatre Historical Soc.’s tour last year: http://www.silverscreens.com/thsa.php and part of the site is also in English, though the photos speak the international language.
AS to why there is no description. That is probably because CT staffer William Gabel, who originally entered the theatre into their data base, did not submit a description/history at that time. Perhaps it was not a house that he was personally familiar with; perhaps he had no adequate resources available from which to bring together a description of merit; or perhaps he did not have sufficiently recent information to round out an article that would reflect the venue today as opposed to only yesterday. In any case, writing a complete and accurate description is not as easy as it appears in that the writer must strike a balance between a tract and a monograph. While CT does allow “unlimited” text in that area, one must still have a balance of information available, a sufficient knowledge of the genre to put the location in perspective, and current information to make the article timely and valuable to those wanting to know status and the possibility of a tour. While I love the works of Rapp & Rapp and especially the KINGS (one of my ‘Favorites’), I do not live in NYC and have never been in the KINGS, and while photos of it do make me want to know more and to appreciate what was, they are not enough with which to write a decent article, since this grandiose palace deserves much, much more than a mere verbal sketch.
Will CT accept a submitted Description/History at this point? You will have to get their reaction as their time permits. (You cannot use the Add-A-Theatre form, due to the fact that the theatre already exists here.)
It is ironic indeed, considering how they were dismissed years ago as old, musty, and outmoded, yet today the movie palaces that remain are often the most imaginative and artistic structures remaining in our cities. The irony is that we seek to preserve on film what we so seldom seek to preserve in life as living art works as well as memorials to our past. Of course, it is, as always, a matter of money and keeping something alive today that was intended to have thousands pay to enter it each day, is a Herculean task with few having the deep pockets needed to do the job. In the new book “Cinema Treasures” the authors make the observation that using such palaces as the LOS ANGELES has become a cottage industry for many such, and is often all that stands between them and the wrecking ball. A few multiplexes, such as the COLUSUS in Toronto are so large and elaborate as to almost be movie settings themselves, but such multiplexes are in the minority, and we are more and more left to notice the painful contrast between the opulent palaces of yesteryear and the spare and uninspired screening rooms of today.
While it is a shame to have to have a concession stand in the first place, there is a bright side to it: it is not causing the removal of ornament or fixtures from a wall, which is where they would otherwise have had to put it. Being in the middle, it will dominate the room, but then one can still walk around it with his back to it, and take in the restored ornate walls without having to keep the new stand in his mental picture. We must also be realistic about the traffic patterns encountered in the room, since the merchant who eventually uses it will want maximum traffic at all sides of the stand for fastest service as well as to maximize profits. Recall that it is food/refreshments that now really pay for a venue, not what is on a screen, sad to say. Also, there may be practical problems regarding utility feeds (water, sewer, electrical, beverage piping, etc.) that may require the location mid-floor for best access with least significant damage though the floor from basement storage area. There might even be a goods/cartons elevator hidden in the middle of the stand through a new opening in the floor so as to restock in a convenient way, and this too may be better than damaging the ornate plaster walls.
A very good seven-page article about the STANFORD appeared in “Americana” magazine of April 1990, and is replete with photos, both modern ones in color, and vintage in black and white. Most areas of the theatre are shown as well as a portrait of David Packard. The article well describes his loving attention to the details of accurate and complete restoration. Likely the magazine is at some libraries (ask your local librarian to check the Union List of Serials to determine who has it) or it may be available as a back issue for sale from the publisher through their web site; search for it on www.Google.com
There are numerous photos of the SOONER on the www.CinemaTour.com site that show the theatre in original and present day status. They reveal not only how barren the place can appear with all of its draperies removed, but the photos also reveal this to be perhaps the only theatre with its roof trusses (not just beams) in full view, though decorated. Many people wonder how much space is above a traditional theatre’s ceiling, and this photo gives an idea, though on a smaller scale. This is certainly one unusual movie palace.
The absence of adequate parking is one major reason that many movie palaces never reopen. A major expense in planning to reopen such is for an adjacent or nearby parking structure, since it is usually figured that there should be one parking space for every third seat, which would mean a LARGE parking area in the case of the PARADISE. Still, we hope it reopens!
The Portland ORIENTAL was certainly among the most imaginative movie palaces in the nation, and it is indeed a shame that it is gone, but we can relive much of it via the 28-page article about it in the “Marquee” magazine of First Qtr. 1987 where there are 31 black and white photos of it supported by the text of the Historic American Buildings Survey’s 32-page report: “The Oriental Theatre, Portland, Oregon” of 1969.
PHOTOS AVAILABLE:
To obtain any available Back Issue of either “Marquee” or of its ANNUALS, simply go to the web site of the THEATRE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA at:
www.HistoricTheatres.org and notice on their first page the link “PUBLICATIONS: Back Issues List” and click on that and you will be taken to their listing where they also give ordering details. The “Marquee” magazine is 8-1/2x11 inches tall (‘portrait’) format, and the ANNUALS are also soft cover in the same size, but in the long (‘landscape’) format, and are anywhere from 26 to 40 pages. Should they indicate that a publication is Out Of Print, then it may still be possible to view it via Inter-Library Loan where you go to the librarian at any public or school library and ask them to locate which library has the item by using the Union List of Serials, and your library can then ask the other library to lend it to them for you to read or photocopy. [Photocopies of most THSA publications are available from University Microforms International (UMI), but their prices are exorbitant.]
Note: Most any photo in any of their publications may be had in large size by purchase; see their ARCHIVE link. You should realize that there was no color still photography in the 1920s, so few theatres were seen in color at that time except by means of hand tinted renderings or post cards, thus all the antique photos from the Society will be in black and white, but it is quite possible that the Society has later color images available; it is best to inquire of them.
Should you not be able to contact them via their web site, you may also contact their Executive Director via E-mail at:
Or you may reach them via phone or snail mail at:
Theatre Historical Soc. of America
152 N. York, 2nd Floor York Theatre Bldg.
Elmhurst, ILL. 60126-2806 (they are about 15 miles west of Chicago)
Phone: 630-782-1800 or via FAX at: 630-782-1802 (Monday through Friday, 9AM—4PM, CT)
Here are the details of the sad fate of the AVALON’s organ which I received from the President of the Dairyland Theatre Organ Soc., the owner of the pipe organ:
Hi Jim
Unfortunately, it’s true. The organ has been removed from the theatre and put into storage. The theatre is not being maintained by the owner and he’s trying to rent it out as office space. There are many roof leaks with the organ chambers suffering much falling plaster from water damage. When some of the large wooden pipes were removed, they were found to be covered with mold and mildew from almost steady dampness. Worse yet, the facility has not been heated for several years and this doesn’t help preserve it. Recently vandals broke in and pried the doors to the organ chambers open. Either they weren’t interested with what they found or were planning to return to take metal pipes for salvage? That’s happened to pipe organs before. And they emptied every fire extinguisher they could find in the theatre over everything. It looked like it snowed! They also took the back of the console off but didn’t do any damage. DTOS then decided to remove the organ to protect it from both vandalism and the elements and it now resides in pieces in a heated warehouse in Racine until it can be returned to the Avalon, should that place be restored, or put into another facility where it can be enjoyed.
If you send me your address, I’ll send you a copy of our last newsletter, the Bartola, where you can read about it first hand and see some pictures. Thanks for your interest.
Fred Wolfgram
Please let me know if you learn anything more about this theatre.
Jim Rankin
The link to the previous comment is at:
http://theatreorgans.com/DTOS/our_organs.htm
This just appeared on the Dairyland Theatre Organ Society web site:
“The Avalon Theatre and organ have been separated. Removal of the
organ occurred at the end of September 2004, after the theatre was
vandalized, and the organ damaged.”
I heard that it interfered with the large screen projection. You would think that during the “restoration” it could have been reworked so as to be able to be withdrawn automatically up into the attic just as the movie began (and then lowered automatically at the end of the projection), rather the way the chandeliers are raised and lowered in the Kennedy Center, but that would have probably added a thousand dollars to the cost.