Somerville Theatre

55 Davis Square,
Somerville, MA 02144

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Showing 101 - 125 of 163 comments

MacLeod2
MacLeod2 on September 29, 2006 at 7:48 pm

Jim,
Thanks for your comments. That could have been me up in the window at the other end of the rope waiting for the “CANS” to arrive. That was where the projection booth was located. Yes, those were fun days and good times are back with all the updates going on at the theatre. I can’t wait to see pictures of the completed project. Remember the one-hour of cartoons at the Sat. Matinee? That’s the only time the kids were quiet. They sang very good during the “follow the bouncing ball” cartoon. ha ha
Are you, by any chance, related to the Callahan Family that lived on Paulina St?

logowatches
logowatches on September 28, 2006 at 5:02 am

Hi Ken I remember the fill cans being pulled up on a rope to the third floor as we waited for the theatre to open for the Sat. Mat.in the late 50s early 60s.What a great time we had every week.

davidstinson
davidstinson on September 26, 2006 at 3:09 am

Ken,
Thanks for the history on the third floor. That’s pretty cool to know how it was used previous to being converted to apts. The area you describe was the exact footprint of our apt – the arched window and then the next 3 windows to the left. Good idea about getting the film cans up to the 3rd floor. We would have liked that idea when we used to schlep groceries up to the 3rd floor after walking back from Porter Sq. Star Market in the snow! A friend of mine, Bob, was one of the projectionists at the time – he later worked at the Capitol in the mid-80s. At the time I lived there, the guy who occupied the apt next to ours, would keep an eye on our cars parked on Dover Street. I believe he had former janitor’s apt you described, and since he had the apt on the corner of Dover street and at least one of his windows looked in that direction, he could sort of keep an eye out for anything amiss.
Thanks again for all the info!

MacLeod2
MacLeod2 on September 22, 2006 at 3:51 pm

David,
Regarding your old bedroom on the third floor. Before it became an apartment it was a dance studio. “Helen Nichlos Dance Studio” (At least Helen was there in the 50’s and early 60’s.) The studio started at the arched windows and went left at least 3 windows.
On Saturdays her dance classes, aprox 15 kids for each class, would go on all day. TAP DANCING at that! I felt sorry for the office space below the studio on the second floor. I was one of the projectionists at the theatre at that time. The only apartment of the 3rd floor was in the left corner of the building next to the dance studio. It was ocupied by the building maintenance man (at that time he was called a “janitor”) and his family. The window you looked out to watch the T being constructed was used to get the film cans up to the projection booth. We would put a pully out the window, throw the rope to the ground and a theatre employee would attach the rope to the film can and pull it up. That was a lot easier than carrying them up 3 floors to the booth.

logowatches
logowatches on September 14, 2006 at 11:16 am

Sound like a great line up.

jmorong
jmorong on September 13, 2006 at 8:44 pm

just a reminder…

CHUCK NORRIS FILM FESTIVAL
September 15th and 16th
Somerville Theatre, Davis SQ.

Friday, September 15, 2006:
8pm – Invasion USA
10pm – Breaker! Breaker!
Midnite – Lone Wolf McQuade

Saturday, September 16, 2006 :
2pm – Silent Rage
4pm – Invasion USA
6pm – Missing in Action 2
8pm – Lone Wolf McQuade
10pm – Code of Silence
Midnite – Breaker! Breaker!

Ron Newman
Ron Newman on August 29, 2006 at 11:44 am

Was it candlepin or tenpin? In either case, with only three lanes, it probably had trouble competing with the much larger Sacco’s Bowl-Haven once that opened in 1939.

(Is there another urban neighborhood in the USA where both a 90+ year old movie theatre and a 65+ year old bowling alley are still open and thriving? If so, I’d love to hear about it.)

Say, about that basement space reverting to the theatre … any chance of turning that into a tiny video-only Theatre 6, like the two at the Coolidge?

IanJudge
IanJudge on August 29, 2006 at 11:23 am

Yes, the basement bowling alley space was what the MBTA leased. There were three lanes; they closed in the 60’s as much as I can tell. The lanes were on the Dover street side, running back to front. Under the storefront on the corner (where the Someday was until this month) was a billiards hall, and under the theater lobby was a cafe that also served as a speakeasy during prohibition. The basement also contained bathrooms for visitors and of course dressing rooms for the theater space.

Also, briefly in the 30’s the bowling alleys were used to set up an indoor mini-golf course (open till 1:30am each night!).

Today, theaters 2 and 3 occupy the bowling alley space (as well as the first floor along Dover St.) and the old billiards hall is storage space for the storefront on the corner. The old speakeasy/cafe space was divided into a storeroom for the theater and offices for the Someday cafe (though with the change of tenants, that space reverts to the theater).

davidstinson
davidstinson on August 29, 2006 at 11:17 am

Thanks Ian! I definitely will. I’d love to see the old place.

Ron Newman
Ron Newman on August 29, 2006 at 11:14 am

The basement originally contained a bowling alley. I don’t know when this closed, but it was a long time ago.

IanJudge
IanJudge on August 29, 2006 at 11:10 am

Ron:

The jeweller was where the original Someday was. It became the Yarn Shop, then the hair place, then a little realtor’s office, then the Someday, and finally was absorbed into the lobby.` The gun club was in the upper stories, I’m not sure where.

I can’t remember what was on the corner in the early 80’s, but the Discount Pharmacy went in around 1985.

The greek club used the former Crystal Ballroom that was on the second floor (where theaters 4 and 5 are today). There was also a dentists office and a small dance studio there.

The basement was leased to the MBTA for the duration of the T project. They used it to store supplies.

The third floor was built as office space and with a giant ‘council chamber’, a room with only ceiling lights and no side windows that was used for a masonic/K of C kind of organization. This was all turned into office space in the late 1920’s and then into 10 studio apartments in the 60’s.

Ron – I’ll gladly chat about the private club sometime.
David – if you ever want to see your old place, stop in the theater and ask for me. If I am there, I’ll show you around.

-Ian

Ron Newman
Ron Newman on August 29, 2006 at 10:57 am

Hmm, could that social club have been in the old ballroom?

davidstinson
davidstinson on August 29, 2006 at 10:54 am

Thanks for the info on what now occupies my old bedroom. It would be really cool to see it again sometime! I also remember a very busy social club on the 2nd floor back then. Greek, I believe it was. On our way up to our 3rd floor apt., when you got to the 2nd floor, the door to the Greek club was usually open and there was always so much smoke in the room you could cut it with a knife! My how times have changed.

Ron Newman
Ron Newman on August 29, 2006 at 10:39 am

Where were the jeweler and the gun club? In the storefronts, or on the upper floors? (I’d also love to hear more about the ‘notorious private club’, but maybe we should save that for a face-to-face conversation.)

In the mid-1980s, I remember the entire Dover Street side being taken up by American Discount Pharmacy. The storefront between there and the (then much smaller) theatre lobby contained The Mane Attraction, a hair salon. Later, Buck-a-Book replaced the pharmacy, and the first version of Someday Cafe replaced the hair salon.

davidstinson
davidstinson on August 29, 2006 at 10:33 am

Thanks again! Thant’s fantastic! I’ll definitely be there. It was at Off the Wall where I originally saw such cinematic wonders as Plan 9 from Outer Space, Robot Monster, Pink Flamingos and Female Trouble.

IanJudge
IanJudge on August 29, 2006 at 10:32 am

David/Ron,

The apartments on the third floor were gradually de-tenanted (as each tenant left, no new tenant was sought) when the Fraimans bought the building in 1984, with the intention of turning the space back into offices – it just took them 10 years to get around to doing it.

The space where your bedroom used to be is now a meeting area and lounge for an advertising agency. It also serves as the ‘filmmakers lounge’ during the annual Independent Film Festival.

Some of the other tenants of the building in the early 80’s were a jeweller, a gun-and-rod club, and a rather notorious private club at the corner of Dover and Meacham.

Ron Newman
Ron Newman on August 29, 2006 at 10:26 am

Meanwhile, the Somerville Theatre will show a Chuck Norris Film Festival on Friday and Saturday, September 15-16.

Ron Newman
Ron Newman on August 29, 2006 at 10:24 am

The Brattle Theatre acquired Off The Wall’s film collection this summer. On Sunday, October 8, from noon to 2:30 pm, they will show a selection of Off the Wall films for free, as part of Harvard Square’s Oktoberfest. Be there!

davidstinson
davidstinson on August 29, 2006 at 10:19 am

Thanks Ron! So that would explain why the apartments back in the 70s/early 80s had a sort of “office” feel. You could definitely tell they were not originally built as apartments. The partitions within the space were simple frames of 2"x4" lumber with sheet paneling nailed over them, old linoleum flooring, and not nearly enough electrical outlets! What a fun place is was though for two “kids” (we were 19 and 21 at the time) to live. At that time, our monthly rent was $125.00 per month!!! Try finding anything like that in Somerville today. Back then, we also used to spend much time at the Orson Welles Theater and Off the Wall cinema in Cambridge. The Orson Welles used to have a great annual Fright Night Festival where you could come and spend the entire night in the theater watching horror flicks and the Off the Wall showed just that – really great off-the-wall stuff.

Ron Newman
Ron Newman on August 29, 2006 at 9:55 am

That third floor is now once again office space, as it was when the building was constructed.

davidstinson
davidstinson on August 29, 2006 at 9:51 am

Oh, what great memories I have of this building and the surrounding area. Years ago, the 3rd floor of the building was all apartments and back in 1981/82, my roommate and I had a great apartment overlooking the square. At that time, we were able to look straight down into the construction of the Davis Sq. T station. I had a great triangular-shaped bedroom at the end of the building and the huge arched window over the inscription in the building was my bedroom. At night, through the back wall of my bedroom, I was able to hear the muffled sounds of the movie projector and the guy who ran it, having a good time with friends. It was such a great time. It’s good to see the building being put to such good use. Much has changed in the building and surrounding square since we lived there, much of it for the better. David Sq. has since become a “hip” place – something it wasn’t back then. Still, we loved living there even then. Can’t wait to attend the Science Fiction Festival in February!
All the best, David.

LaConnection
LaConnection on August 25, 2006 at 8:22 pm

It hasn’t been mentioned on this site yet, but the Boston Science Fiction Festival and Marathon will be returning to the Somerville Theater for the February 2007 event. It will be the 4th time in the events 31 + year history that the Fest will be held at the Somerville.

For more info:

www.Bostonsci-fi.com

And, check into it’s active Messageboard:

http://sf.theboard.net/

Ron Newman
Ron Newman on June 10, 2006 at 12:17 am

That is all great news, Ian! I’m looking forward to seeing the result next fall.

logowatches
logowatches on June 9, 2006 at 9:56 pm

Ian You are running a class act At the Somerville Theatre. So glad to hear you are restoring the main theatre to it’s glory days you and the owners are doing a great service to the public. The Somerville Theatre is the Heart of Somerville. Thank you.

Good Luck and Best regards, Jim

IanJudge
IanJudge on June 9, 2006 at 8:27 pm

Jim, thanks for the kind words! I really appreciate your patronage. We have
tried so hard to improve our presentation & cleanliness, though sometimes our
prints arrived already scratched due to the second-run status we hold (if they
are really damaged, we do order new prints, but this can take a few days,
especially over a weekend.)

Ron,

Yes, the main hall will be closed for apx. 8 weeks. We will be repainting the
entire room, something not done since 1932. We are following paint and color
guidelines from a 1989 historical analysis of the building that thankfully
lists the proper colors to be used.

The stagehouse will be renovated, including new fire suppresion systems, new
rigging, new drapes and a new screen. Upgrades to the sound system for movies
are also planned.

The theater that emerges in the fall will look better than it has in decades,
and will be better suited to host live shows. We anticipate more dance shows
and perhaps more legitimate theater, as the new stage will be deeper and wider.

This is a huge commitment on the part of the theater owners, and one more step
towards my goal of having the theater completely overhauled by the 100th
anniversary in 2014.

Also, on a side note, Warner Brothers has agreed to let us play “The Lake House"
on June 16th, a rare first-run presentation day-and-date with the Harvard Square
Theatre (except our admission price will remain its usual $6.50, far less than
the Harvard Square). Hopefully, this will be something Warner’s let’s us do in
the future.