As noted in the article to which Lost Memory linked above, the UA Cinema 150 in Oak Brook, like its counterparts in Dallas and in Santa Clara, California, was designed by San Francisco architect George Raad, George Raad & Associates. However, the Boxoffice article also lists the firm of Keys & Hestrupp alongside Raad for the Oakbrook project only. This was probably a local firm that supervised the construction for Raad’s distant office.
Also, I have a suspicion that Boxoffice might have misspelled one of the names (Hestrupp might actually have been Hestrup) but I’m not positive. What I can find is a .pdf about architectural resources in the village of Glen Ellyn, Illinois, which mentions a firm called Keys & Hestrup, and an error in Boxoffice seems more likely than an error in a local architectural survey.
Contradicting claims above (and at CinemaTour and other web sites) that the U.A. Stonestown opened in 1971, Boxoffice Magazine’s issue of November 23, 1970, announced that United Artists had recently opened its Stonestown Cinema with the inaugural attraction “The Owl and the Pussycat.”
Also, in the earliest references it’s always called the UA Stonestown Cinema, not UA Stonestown Theater. Starting in 1974 it is called the UA Stonestown Twin, as it was until recently. For some reason, the Regal Cinemas web site now lists it merely as the Stonestown Twin, and the Fandango page to which Regal links for show times lists it with the oddly redundant name UA Stonestown Twin 2.
Balaban & Katz retained the services of the firm of Loebl, Schlossman & Bennett, the architects of the Oakbrook shopping center, to design the original Oakbrook Cinema, according to an item in Boxoffice Magazine, December 23, 1963. Plans called for 1200 seats in the single-screen theater.
The December 7, 1964, issue of Boxoffice announced that B&K would hold an open house for the new theater on December 19 and 20, with the formal opening slated for Christmas Day. The final paragraph of the article was interesting:
“First event on the Oakbrook opening program will be dedication of a 50-year time capsule, which will be embedded in the front sidewalk December 16 with appropriate press ceremonies. …the capsule, to be opened in 2014, will serve to dramatize the rapid developments which are expected to occur in Chicago’s western suburbs during the next half-century.”
I wonder if anybody connected with the shopping center will remember that the time capsule is there?
The first theater at the Woodfield Mall was opened to the public by ABC-Great States on July 30, 1971, but had its formal grand opening on September 9 that year. It was a twin screen operation called the Woodfield 1 and 2, and was designed by the architectural firm of Loebl, Schlossman, Bennett & Dart, the same firm that designed the original River Oaks Theatre in Calumet City.
The October 11, 1971, issue of Boxoffice Magazine ran an item about the opening, but failed to mention the seating capacity of the new theater. An earlier Boxoffice item published on February 1, 1971, announcing the groundbreaking for the project, had said that one of the auditoriums would seat 1200, but that the capacity of the other had not yet been announced.
The June 4, 1979, issue of Boxoffice said: “The Woodfield 2 and 3 opened May 25, giving Woodfield 1 and 2 the much-needed room in one of the country’s largest shopping centers.” The use of Woodfield 2 and 3 as the name of the new theaters must have been carelessness on the part of Boxoffice. Later issues refer to the new houses more sensibly as Woodfield 3 and 4.
I’ve been unable to find anything in Boxoffice about the Woodfield 5.
The December 10, 1938, issue of Boxoffice said that the Ritz Theatre had been designed by the Little Rock architectural firm of Brueggeman, Swaim & Allen. Another item in the same issue said that the opening feature scheduled at the new theater was “The Mad Miss Manton,” in which a local actress, Catherine O'Quinn, played a roll. The exact opening date was not given, but one item said it was scheduled for Thursday, which might have meant the Thursday before publication (December 8) or the Thursday after (December 15.)
The March 6, 1948, issue of Boxoffice said that the Ritz was expected to be reopened within a week after undergoing repairs for smoke and water damage due to a fire in a building next door. I’ve been unable to find the date of the larger conflagration which occurred later that year, but the November 6 issue of Boxoffice, which said that the Ritz would soon be reopened, said that the theater had been “…destroyed by fire months ago.”
The Ritz was originally opened by Ray Morrow in partnership with R&R-United Theatres. Morrow had been an exhibitor in Malvern at least as early as 1927, and operated the Liberty Theatre in Malvern as late as 1940. In 1941 he reopened the Liberty as the Joy Theatre, which was being operated by Robb & Rowley as late as 1954. Morrow died in 1944.
Malvern also had a theater called the Rio, for black patrons only, opened by W. F. Caffey in 1947. One Boxoffice item about the 1948 rebuilding of the Ritz said that its formerly segregated balcony with separate entrance had been converted into a white balcony with access from the main part of the theater as part of the reconstruction. Perhaps this was the result of the opening of the Rio.
Pacific’s Hastings 8 was on Rosemead Boulevard about four miles east of downtown Pasadena.Pacific’s Hastings 8 was on Rosemead Boulevard about four miles east of downtown Pasadena.
This multiplex was designed by the architectural firm of Perkowitz+Ruth, and pictures of it can be seen at their web site (click on their “entertainment” link.)
January 25, 1965, issue of Boxoffice: “Work on remodeling the old Broadway Theatre in Council Bluffs into a King’s restaurant is nearly completed.”
The Broadway had been closed earlier, though. The September 16, 1963, issue of Boxoffice said that the Cooper Foundation was installing equipment taken from its Broadway Theatre in Council Bluffs, including the projectors, in the Dundee Theatre in West Omaha, which would then be leased to an independent operator.
In 1958, the Cooper Foundation had taken over the Broadway and eight other theaters formerly operated by Ralph Goldberg, according to the March 31 issue of Boxoffice that year. Goldberg had died in 1956.
The Foundation closed the Broadway in 1959, after remodeling the old Town Theatre into the Cooper Theatre, according to Boxoffice of February 2 that year. By 1962, the Broadway was open again, apparently under the operation of an independent lessee named Earl Nansel.
The November 25, 1944, issue of Boxoffice said that the Ralph D. Goldberg company was presenting stage shows at their recently-acquired Broadway Theatre in Council Bluffs.
An earlier incident in the Broadway’s history was a fire reported in the December 21, 1940, issue of Boxoffice. The conflagration, causing $30,000 damage, was largely confined to the stage area, but the auditorium and booth suffered smoke and water damage.
I’ve found the Broadway mentioned in issues of Movie Age as early as 1929. The earliest was in the January 19 issue, which said that Vitaphone sound had been installed at the theater, and then the April 13 issue said that the Broadway at Council Bluffs was now under the operation of the Paramount-Publix chain.
Publix apparently operated the house for only a few years. By 1937, it was being operated by Earl Kerr, who would sell the house to Goldberg in 1944.
A photo of Edwards Atlantic Palace Cinemas was featured on the cover of the August, 1991, issue of Boxoffice Magazine, and there was a multi-page article about the new multiplex. Groundbreaking for the ten-screen multiplex and adjacent multi-level parking facility had taken place on September 7, 1990, the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Edwards circuit. The new complex was built at a cost $15,000,000.
Currently, the complex is being advertised for sale on LoopNet for $11,000,000. From the seller’s description it looks like they’re trying to appeal to a buyer who would redevelop the land for some other use. There’s no mention of any existing lease on the property, though the theater is still in operation as of this date. Given the abundance of screens in the area, and the fact that a 14-screen AMC multiplex is under construction a couple of miles away in Monterey Park, I wouldn’t be surprised to see this place close within a year.
Maybe the misinformation on this page (wrong name, wrong number of screens, etc.) can be corrected before the theater is gone forever?
The November 23, 1946, issue of Boxoffice said that the Arion Theatre had recently reopened after a major remodeling. The auditorium had been expanded to accommodate 500 seats. The previous seating capacity was not mentioned.
The November 15, 1947, issue of Boxoffice said that 5000 people turned out for the well-publicized grand opening of the Circle Theatre. A live outdoor show was presented as well as an indoor stage show, featuring such regional celebrities as Ernest Tubb and his Grand Ole Opry show. Interstate Theatres even presented a fireworks display to give their new house a proper launch.
The California Index has several cards about the National. It was built by the National Theatres Syndicate in 1931, located on Main Street at Stanislaus Street, and designed by the San Francisco firm Bliss & Fairweather. It was closed for a while in 1935, but Motion Picture Herald of May 18 that year said that it was being reopened by Joe Merrick of San Francisco. It was mentioned again in the February 2, 1936, issue, but the Index provides no details on that one.
The problem is I can’t find the National mentioned in Boxoffice at all, which makes me wonder if perhaps its name was changed.
I did come across a very interesting item in the April 24, 1967, issue of Boxoffice which said that the old Star Theatre on lower Market Street was being torn down after 50 years. It was the oldest surviving movie house in Stockton, and the last of four old movie theaters which had once thrived in the south end of downtown, the others being the Lincoln, the Imperial, and the Liberty.
I recall seeing this neighborhood in the late 1960s, just as they were beginning to demolish it for an urban renewal project. It was a splendid section of several square blocks of substantial masonry commercial and residential buildings. Glimpses of the area can still be seen in the original version of “All the King’s Men” in which Stockton sat in for Baton Rouge. The area appeared in a number of other movies as well, the last of them probably being John Huston’s noirish boxing movie “Fat City” which was filmed during the latter part of the demolition period.
The June 28, 1947, issue of Boxoffice says: “July 1 is opening of the new Pismo Beach Theatre, operated by Westland Theatres. Al Chamberlin will manage the first-run house.”
The Ward (or Ward’s) Theatre is mentioned as early as 1929 in Movie Age, and is mentioned quite a few times in Boxoffice in the 1930s and early 1940s. The most recent mention of it in Boxoffice is in the February 9, 1946, issue, in an item not about the theater itself but about the owner’s daughter who had been hospitalized after driving her car into the front door of a local bank.
That the Ward vanishes from the magazine before the Pismo opened is another indication that the Pismo was probably the Ward rebuilt. Another indication is a card in the California Index citing a 1948/1949 theater catalog which attributes the design for the remodeling of the Pismo Theatre to architect Vincent G. Raney.
The June 5, 1954, issue of Boxoffice had information about the State Theatre, as well as other theaters in Stockton:
“The Fox State in Stockton closed last week. The oldest public showhouse in Stockton, the Fox State was originally known as the Yosemite. Negotiations are reported underway for leasing of the property by Joseph Blumenfeld of Blumenfeld Theatres. Blumenfeld has reported that if the deal goes through he will move the Esquire Theatre to the State site. Blumenfeld’s Sierra was recently closed to make way for two new stores, and the Esquire is scheduled to be closed to make room for the new J.C. Penney store.”
I don’t find the Sierra or the Esquire listed at Cinema Treasures yet. I’ve found the Yosemite Theatre cited in the California Index as early as 1913.
The Index also contains references to a number of other Stockton theaters not yet listed at CT, including a National Theatre, a Rialto Theatre, a Lyric Theatre, a Roxy Theatre, a Garrick Theatre, a Hippodrome Theatre, and an Avon Theatre. Some might not have been movie houses, and others might be only missing aka’s for listed theaters, but I think most are just missing.
An illustrated article about the Fairview Theatre appeared in the January 31, 1948, issue of Boxoffice. The house had opened the previous Thanksgiving Day. It was built for the Fairview Theatre Company, headed by Morris Fine, vice-president of the Associated Theatres Circuit. The first manager of the new house, Ed Wise, had been with Associated for twenty years. The Fairview was operated by the Associated circuit at least as late as 1960.
Photos of the Fairview’s auditorium (which was indeed without a balcony) were published with the article. The design by Fox & Fox was decidedly Art Moderne, not Art Deco. Also, an October 11, 1947, Boxoffice item said that the American Seating Company had installed 1,789 seats in the Fairview. That’s probably an accurate seat count.
The Fargo Theatre was damaged by a fire on March 19, 1937. The April 3 issue of Boxoffice said that repairs were proceeding rapidly and the theater would reopen soon. The theater was owned by Charles Fargo and was then being operated by the Fred Anderson circuit.
The latest mention of the Fargo I’ve found is from 1939, and the earliest mention of the Geneva is from 1943.
The Valos circuit had the Geneva Theatre extensively remodeled in 1947, and an illustrated article about the theater by the decorator on the project, Hanns Teichert, was published in Boxoffice Magazine’s issue of June 19, 1948.
So far the only mention of the Palace I’ve found in Boxoffice is from the May 7, 1949, issue, which said that the house had been sold to Margaret Hedgecock by R.J. Barrett.
The November 9, 1957, issue of Boxoffice carried a list of theaters in Arkansas that had recently been closed by the United Theatres circuit, and the Rialto was among them. The Hope Drive-In was closed at the same time.
That means that the New Theatre probably wasn’t operating before 1935 either. The earliest mention I’ve found of it is in 1937. Hope apparently had two movie houses opened in the mid 1930s.
The April 17, 1937, issue of Boxoffice announced that the Rialto Theatre at Hope had opened the previous Thursday. It was located in the rebuilt New Grand Theatre building. I’ve found the New Grand mentioned in issues of The Reel Journal going back as far as 1925, but don’t know how long it was closed before being rebuilt as the Rialto.
The Rialto opened with 450 seats, including those in its segregated balcony. It was originally operated by Malco Theatres.
Incidentally, not only has the Concatenated Order of Hoo-Hoo, from which this theater’s name was derived, outlasted the theater, it even has a web site.
It now occurs to me that, long ago, I saw a vintage postcard of a building called the Hoo-Hoo that was at one of the world’s fairs- probably San Francisco’s in 1915. I remember wondering then what it was, as the card had no explanatory details. Now I realize it was probably operated by this organization.
A special event took place at the Hoo-Hoo Theatre in 1940. The September 7 issue of Boxoffice announced it:
“A men’s burlesque bathing beauty review will be held at the Hoo-Hoo, Gurdon, September 10.”
An item datelined Gurdon, Ark., in the January 13, 1940, issue of Boxoffice was headed “The Hoo-Hoo Bows” and gave the opening date as January 4. The house had recently been purchased by K. Lee Williams, and had previously been called the Wright Theatre.
I’ve found the New Theatre in Hope mentioned in Boxoffice as early as April 17, 1937. The operator was R.V. McGinnis, who later also operated a house called the New Theatre in Nashville, Tennessee.
As noted in the article to which Lost Memory linked above, the UA Cinema 150 in Oak Brook, like its counterparts in Dallas and in Santa Clara, California, was designed by San Francisco architect George Raad, George Raad & Associates. However, the Boxoffice article also lists the firm of Keys & Hestrupp alongside Raad for the Oakbrook project only. This was probably a local firm that supervised the construction for Raad’s distant office.
Also, I have a suspicion that Boxoffice might have misspelled one of the names (Hestrupp might actually have been Hestrup) but I’m not positive. What I can find is a .pdf about architectural resources in the village of Glen Ellyn, Illinois, which mentions a firm called Keys & Hestrup, and an error in Boxoffice seems more likely than an error in a local architectural survey.
Contradicting claims above (and at CinemaTour and other web sites) that the U.A. Stonestown opened in 1971, Boxoffice Magazine’s issue of November 23, 1970, announced that United Artists had recently opened its Stonestown Cinema with the inaugural attraction “The Owl and the Pussycat.”
Also, in the earliest references it’s always called the UA Stonestown Cinema, not UA Stonestown Theater. Starting in 1974 it is called the UA Stonestown Twin, as it was until recently. For some reason, the Regal Cinemas web site now lists it merely as the Stonestown Twin, and the Fandango page to which Regal links for show times lists it with the oddly redundant name UA Stonestown Twin 2.
Balaban & Katz retained the services of the firm of Loebl, Schlossman & Bennett, the architects of the Oakbrook shopping center, to design the original Oakbrook Cinema, according to an item in Boxoffice Magazine, December 23, 1963. Plans called for 1200 seats in the single-screen theater.
The December 7, 1964, issue of Boxoffice announced that B&K would hold an open house for the new theater on December 19 and 20, with the formal opening slated for Christmas Day. The final paragraph of the article was interesting:
I wonder if anybody connected with the shopping center will remember that the time capsule is there?The first theater at the Woodfield Mall was opened to the public by ABC-Great States on July 30, 1971, but had its formal grand opening on September 9 that year. It was a twin screen operation called the Woodfield 1 and 2, and was designed by the architectural firm of Loebl, Schlossman, Bennett & Dart, the same firm that designed the original River Oaks Theatre in Calumet City.
The October 11, 1971, issue of Boxoffice Magazine ran an item about the opening, but failed to mention the seating capacity of the new theater. An earlier Boxoffice item published on February 1, 1971, announcing the groundbreaking for the project, had said that one of the auditoriums would seat 1200, but that the capacity of the other had not yet been announced.
The June 4, 1979, issue of Boxoffice said: “The Woodfield 2 and 3 opened May 25, giving Woodfield 1 and 2 the much-needed room in one of the country’s largest shopping centers.” The use of Woodfield 2 and 3 as the name of the new theaters must have been carelessness on the part of Boxoffice. Later issues refer to the new houses more sensibly as Woodfield 3 and 4.
I’ve been unable to find anything in Boxoffice about the Woodfield 5.
The December 10, 1938, issue of Boxoffice said that the Ritz Theatre had been designed by the Little Rock architectural firm of Brueggeman, Swaim & Allen. Another item in the same issue said that the opening feature scheduled at the new theater was “The Mad Miss Manton,” in which a local actress, Catherine O'Quinn, played a roll. The exact opening date was not given, but one item said it was scheduled for Thursday, which might have meant the Thursday before publication (December 8) or the Thursday after (December 15.)
The March 6, 1948, issue of Boxoffice said that the Ritz was expected to be reopened within a week after undergoing repairs for smoke and water damage due to a fire in a building next door. I’ve been unable to find the date of the larger conflagration which occurred later that year, but the November 6 issue of Boxoffice, which said that the Ritz would soon be reopened, said that the theater had been “…destroyed by fire months ago.”
The Ritz was originally opened by Ray Morrow in partnership with R&R-United Theatres. Morrow had been an exhibitor in Malvern at least as early as 1927, and operated the Liberty Theatre in Malvern as late as 1940. In 1941 he reopened the Liberty as the Joy Theatre, which was being operated by Robb & Rowley as late as 1954. Morrow died in 1944.
Malvern also had a theater called the Rio, for black patrons only, opened by W. F. Caffey in 1947. One Boxoffice item about the 1948 rebuilding of the Ritz said that its formerly segregated balcony with separate entrance had been converted into a white balcony with access from the main part of the theater as part of the reconstruction. Perhaps this was the result of the opening of the Rio.
Pacific’s Hastings 8 was on Rosemead Boulevard about four miles east of downtown Pasadena.Pacific’s Hastings 8 was on Rosemead Boulevard about four miles east of downtown Pasadena.
This multiplex was designed by the architectural firm of Perkowitz+Ruth, and pictures of it can be seen at their web site (click on their “entertainment” link.)
This page is for the former Beverly Theatre in Los Angeles. The Beverly Theatre in Beverly Hills is on this page.
January 25, 1965, issue of Boxoffice: “Work on remodeling the old Broadway Theatre in Council Bluffs into a King’s restaurant is nearly completed.”
The Broadway had been closed earlier, though. The September 16, 1963, issue of Boxoffice said that the Cooper Foundation was installing equipment taken from its Broadway Theatre in Council Bluffs, including the projectors, in the Dundee Theatre in West Omaha, which would then be leased to an independent operator.
In 1958, the Cooper Foundation had taken over the Broadway and eight other theaters formerly operated by Ralph Goldberg, according to the March 31 issue of Boxoffice that year. Goldberg had died in 1956.
The Foundation closed the Broadway in 1959, after remodeling the old Town Theatre into the Cooper Theatre, according to Boxoffice of February 2 that year. By 1962, the Broadway was open again, apparently under the operation of an independent lessee named Earl Nansel.
The November 25, 1944, issue of Boxoffice said that the Ralph D. Goldberg company was presenting stage shows at their recently-acquired Broadway Theatre in Council Bluffs.
An earlier incident in the Broadway’s history was a fire reported in the December 21, 1940, issue of Boxoffice. The conflagration, causing $30,000 damage, was largely confined to the stage area, but the auditorium and booth suffered smoke and water damage.
I’ve found the Broadway mentioned in issues of Movie Age as early as 1929. The earliest was in the January 19 issue, which said that Vitaphone sound had been installed at the theater, and then the April 13 issue said that the Broadway at Council Bluffs was now under the operation of the Paramount-Publix chain.
Publix apparently operated the house for only a few years. By 1937, it was being operated by Earl Kerr, who would sell the house to Goldberg in 1944.
A photo of Edwards Atlantic Palace Cinemas was featured on the cover of the August, 1991, issue of Boxoffice Magazine, and there was a multi-page article about the new multiplex. Groundbreaking for the ten-screen multiplex and adjacent multi-level parking facility had taken place on September 7, 1990, the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Edwards circuit. The new complex was built at a cost $15,000,000.
Currently, the complex is being advertised for sale on LoopNet for $11,000,000. From the seller’s description it looks like they’re trying to appeal to a buyer who would redevelop the land for some other use. There’s no mention of any existing lease on the property, though the theater is still in operation as of this date. Given the abundance of screens in the area, and the fact that a 14-screen AMC multiplex is under construction a couple of miles away in Monterey Park, I wouldn’t be surprised to see this place close within a year.
Maybe the misinformation on this page (wrong name, wrong number of screens, etc.) can be corrected before the theater is gone forever?
The November 23, 1946, issue of Boxoffice said that the Arion Theatre had recently reopened after a major remodeling. The auditorium had been expanded to accommodate 500 seats. The previous seating capacity was not mentioned.
I give it a B-. It would have been a B+ but for the claim that Otto Deichmann was “…the foremost theater designer in the west at the time.”
The November 15, 1947, issue of Boxoffice said that 5000 people turned out for the well-publicized grand opening of the Circle Theatre. A live outdoor show was presented as well as an indoor stage show, featuring such regional celebrities as Ernest Tubb and his Grand Ole Opry show. Interstate Theatres even presented a fireworks display to give their new house a proper launch.
The California Index has several cards about the National. It was built by the National Theatres Syndicate in 1931, located on Main Street at Stanislaus Street, and designed by the San Francisco firm Bliss & Fairweather. It was closed for a while in 1935, but Motion Picture Herald of May 18 that year said that it was being reopened by Joe Merrick of San Francisco. It was mentioned again in the February 2, 1936, issue, but the Index provides no details on that one.
The problem is I can’t find the National mentioned in Boxoffice at all, which makes me wonder if perhaps its name was changed.
I did come across a very interesting item in the April 24, 1967, issue of Boxoffice which said that the old Star Theatre on lower Market Street was being torn down after 50 years. It was the oldest surviving movie house in Stockton, and the last of four old movie theaters which had once thrived in the south end of downtown, the others being the Lincoln, the Imperial, and the Liberty.
I recall seeing this neighborhood in the late 1960s, just as they were beginning to demolish it for an urban renewal project. It was a splendid section of several square blocks of substantial masonry commercial and residential buildings. Glimpses of the area can still be seen in the original version of “All the King’s Men” in which Stockton sat in for Baton Rouge. The area appeared in a number of other movies as well, the last of them probably being John Huston’s noirish boxing movie “Fat City” which was filmed during the latter part of the demolition period.
The June 28, 1947, issue of Boxoffice says: “July 1 is opening of the new Pismo Beach Theatre, operated by Westland Theatres. Al Chamberlin will manage the first-run house.”
The Ward (or Ward’s) Theatre is mentioned as early as 1929 in Movie Age, and is mentioned quite a few times in Boxoffice in the 1930s and early 1940s. The most recent mention of it in Boxoffice is in the February 9, 1946, issue, in an item not about the theater itself but about the owner’s daughter who had been hospitalized after driving her car into the front door of a local bank.
That the Ward vanishes from the magazine before the Pismo opened is another indication that the Pismo was probably the Ward rebuilt. Another indication is a card in the California Index citing a 1948/1949 theater catalog which attributes the design for the remodeling of the Pismo Theatre to architect Vincent G. Raney.
The June 5, 1954, issue of Boxoffice had information about the State Theatre, as well as other theaters in Stockton:
I don’t find the Sierra or the Esquire listed at Cinema Treasures yet. I’ve found the Yosemite Theatre cited in the California Index as early as 1913.The Index also contains references to a number of other Stockton theaters not yet listed at CT, including a National Theatre, a Rialto Theatre, a Lyric Theatre, a Roxy Theatre, a Garrick Theatre, a Hippodrome Theatre, and an Avon Theatre. Some might not have been movie houses, and others might be only missing aka’s for listed theaters, but I think most are just missing.
An illustrated article about the Fairview Theatre appeared in the January 31, 1948, issue of Boxoffice. The house had opened the previous Thanksgiving Day. It was built for the Fairview Theatre Company, headed by Morris Fine, vice-president of the Associated Theatres Circuit. The first manager of the new house, Ed Wise, had been with Associated for twenty years. The Fairview was operated by the Associated circuit at least as late as 1960.
Photos of the Fairview’s auditorium (which was indeed without a balcony) were published with the article. The design by Fox & Fox was decidedly Art Moderne, not Art Deco. Also, an October 11, 1947, Boxoffice item said that the American Seating Company had installed 1,789 seats in the Fairview. That’s probably an accurate seat count.
The Fargo Theatre was damaged by a fire on March 19, 1937. The April 3 issue of Boxoffice said that repairs were proceeding rapidly and the theater would reopen soon. The theater was owned by Charles Fargo and was then being operated by the Fred Anderson circuit.
The latest mention of the Fargo I’ve found is from 1939, and the earliest mention of the Geneva is from 1943.
The Valos circuit had the Geneva Theatre extensively remodeled in 1947, and an illustrated article about the theater by the decorator on the project, Hanns Teichert, was published in Boxoffice Magazine’s issue of June 19, 1948.
So far the only mention of the Palace I’ve found in Boxoffice is from the May 7, 1949, issue, which said that the house had been sold to Margaret Hedgecock by R.J. Barrett.
The November 9, 1957, issue of Boxoffice carried a list of theaters in Arkansas that had recently been closed by the United Theatres circuit, and the Rialto was among them. The Hope Drive-In was closed at the same time.
That means that the New Theatre probably wasn’t operating before 1935 either. The earliest mention I’ve found of it is in 1937. Hope apparently had two movie houses opened in the mid 1930s.
The April 17, 1937, issue of Boxoffice announced that the Rialto Theatre at Hope had opened the previous Thursday. It was located in the rebuilt New Grand Theatre building. I’ve found the New Grand mentioned in issues of The Reel Journal going back as far as 1925, but don’t know how long it was closed before being rebuilt as the Rialto.
The Rialto opened with 450 seats, including those in its segregated balcony. It was originally operated by Malco Theatres.
Incidentally, not only has the Concatenated Order of Hoo-Hoo, from which this theater’s name was derived, outlasted the theater, it even has a web site.
It now occurs to me that, long ago, I saw a vintage postcard of a building called the Hoo-Hoo that was at one of the world’s fairs- probably San Francisco’s in 1915. I remember wondering then what it was, as the card had no explanatory details. Now I realize it was probably operated by this organization.
A special event took place at the Hoo-Hoo Theatre in 1940. The September 7 issue of Boxoffice announced it:
An item datelined Gurdon, Ark., in the January 13, 1940, issue of Boxoffice was headed “The Hoo-Hoo Bows” and gave the opening date as January 4. The house had recently been purchased by K. Lee Williams, and had previously been called the Wright Theatre.
I’ve found the New Theatre in Hope mentioned in Boxoffice as early as April 17, 1937. The operator was R.V. McGinnis, who later also operated a house called the New Theatre in Nashville, Tennessee.