When I wrote it, I was just trying to separate the Bijou from the Grand, Gem, Cozy, Strand. But if pressed, yes, this location appears to be that of the Grand, Gem, Cozy, and Strand and not the Bijou.
The way it’s reported in the newspaper, the Bijou was open from 1911 to 1914 and moved to the East Side R.B. Lichty Building which appears to be the still-standing structure. There, it closed on its fourth name and fifth owner unable to convert to sound.
F.G. Haworth opened here with 160 seats in 1911 but extended to 220 due to demand in 1912. The Bijou closed in 1914 after being purchased by Morgan & Erickson. They moved the operation to the East Side of the Courthouse into the R.B. Lichty Building ending the Bijou’s brief run.
The new theater replaced Giger & Whitley’s Feed Store complete with 240 seats, gold fibre screen, and a $160 curtain. It reopened as the Grand Theatre on September 4, 1914. It remained the Grand to 1920 closing.
Alvern Robertson and family took on the venue late in 1920 renaming it as the Gem Theatre. H.M. Kirkman was next through the door opening on Jan. 27, 1928 as the Strand Theatre with Tom Mix in “Outlaws of Red River.” It failed to wire for sound and the Robertsons came back in October of 1929. Their closing date appears to be in early 1930.
The theatre was (re)built by Wesley W. Mansfield purportedly in 1932 yet opening as the New Theater on October 7, 1931 in a strange time/space continuum. Opening film was Buster Keaton in “The Sidewalks of New York” and accompanied by a naming contest. (The ?????? Theater replaced the Idle Hour whose projection booth exploded in flames July 7, 1931 but leaving part of the building intact.)
Contest entrants were only allowed to enter names of six characters or fewer. For the rebooted version, 55 contest entrants went with “Iuka” - which was the original name of the town when it was platted in 1862. Like its predecessor, the Iuka Theatre similarly exploded on December 21, 1944 making “Hail the Conquering Hero” its last film in the booth. Because of war material shortages and the likelihood that no insurance company on the planet would have provided affordable coverage, Mansfield and the town got by with the 19th-Century built Mills Theatre.
Druggist and livery barn operator Henry Soleman opened Soleman’s Opera House in what was Tama City, Iowa on December 6, 1883 with the Mattie Vickers Combination performing, “Jacquine - or Paste and Diamonds.” The opera house sitelines weren’t ideal with its flat floor and temporary chairs. But it allowed for dances and other events to take place there. On January 1, 1920, Frank W. Mills took it on as the Mills Opera House.
Like most small towns, opera houses struggled during World War I converting to movie theatre hybrids or closing. Ben Potter took over the Mills Opera House in 1921 and showed movies, primarily. In 1922, that became permanent when the temporary seating of some 39 years was removed and a slanted floor installed with permanent seating under the Mills Theatre moniker in 1923. The venue installed sound to remain commercially viable.
Projectionist / operator of the silent-era Idle Hour in town that burned down in 1931, Lester Pospichal, took over the venue when it had periods of closure during the 1930s / Depression. It was part of Tama Theatres Circuit that included the Bella Plaine King and Rivoli theatres and the Toledo Wieting Theatre. Pospichal closed the Mills in 1958. The City Council met and discussed the possibility of razing the venue.
Tama reopened in March of 1959 and, reportedly, stayed open on the back of unadvertised midnight films that raised concerns in 1960. And in 1960, there were more talks of perhaps closing and razing the theatre. By 1969, the Mills was operated by W. W. Mansfield just three days a week closing on March 1, 1969. It was razed not long after for a proposed Philips 66 gas station. The opera house’s spot at 402 W. State Street is a vacant lot.
First ad as the Idle Hour on April 1, 1909 (formerly the Electric) and last ad at left as fire ends things with the Mills continuing (though robbed the night prior to the July 7, 1931 blaze)
Henry Soleman built his pharmacy building in 1896 and 1897. He had also built Tama’s Opera House in 1882. The retail spot occupied by The Hub clothing store was vacated becoming the Electric Theatre on March 26, 1908 with Edison’s Kinetoscope providing one reel films. The venue was renamed the Idle Hour Theatre a year later on April 7, 1909.
The Idle Hour converted to sound to remain viable. Not long after - on July 7, 1931 - during the late show of “Men Call Love” the film caught fire and projectionist Lester Pospichal lost the battle with flames engulfing the booth.
The Electric Theatre opened November 9, 1911. Fred Parcel of Parcel Bros. sold the theatre to Herry Cottrell as Fred moved to Tracer to operate there. It appears to have moved to new digs effective July 18, 1913.
The original Traer Opera House was built in 1875 and replaced by a second in 1883. It burned down in July of 1901. It was replaced by the third and final Teraer Opera House on Feb. 17, 1905 opening with the play, “Sweet Clover.” It was located at 649 2nd Street and razed in 1961 to build the Traer Memorial Building. None of the houses appear to have been home to the Electric Theatre.
I think you’ve conflated two different buildings. The new opera house building was built in 1911. Upon opening it was known as the Hawkeye Theatre on January 30, 1912 with “A Messenger Boy” with dance after. A number of locals bought stock in the theatre to help ensure its completion. It was the town’s second opera house. The theatre was transitioned to sound to remain commercially viable.
When the Watson Theatre was built in 1946, it was to replace the 24-year old Hawkeye. It closed on March 27, 1946 with “Wadnerer of the Wasteland” and “Senorita from the East.” Franz Fletter took on the Hawkeye / old Opera House for a conversion to apartments.
Sam Watson built the Watson Theatre. It was a $15,000, new-build facility that replaced a cabinet maker’s shop. It opened on a 25-year leasing agreement on March 29, 1946, two days after the Hawkeye had closed. The 406-seat theatre closed in January of 1955 to install widescreen projection for CinemaScope titles.
In December of 1956, the theatre’s was taken over by a consortium of business owners. It became the Graettinger Theatre under their watch. The Graettinger Theatre closed at the end its lecense on March 21, 1971 with “On a Clear Day You Can See Forever.”
The Princess, the Cozy Theatre and the Opera House - doing live event programming- co-existed in late 1913. The Cozy and the Princess merged in 1914. Then the Opera House was fitted with projection from the Cozy for a period. But it was the Princess that stood the test of time operating from some 52 years.
The Princess Theatre scuffled between 1929 and 1930 as three operators and a consortium of local merchants tried to get the theatre through the onset of the Depression and the conversion to sound. Mr. Wolf bought a low-cost sound system that didn’t work out and sold the venue to J.E. Feldhaus who then sold it to C.E. Hartsell. Hartsell moved the venue to sound on film improving things in 1930.
Soon, Mr. E.C. Arehart was next through the door as operator in the early 1930s. Contracts for films at the Princess ranged from $15 to $30 which likely was limiting profit margins, as well. Of “Dancing Pirate,” Arehart wrote, “Technicolor without real stars and good story don’t mean a thing. This was a terrible Sunday bust.” Ouch.
The Princess was taken over by Mr. and Mrs. W.G. Hosrstman likely on a 25-year lease in 1942 as its final operators. In December of 1953, they converted the Princess to widescreen and improved sound. They had assistance from local retailers with merchant screenings as television had eaten into the audience by 1957.
Mr. Horstman was diagnosed with cancer in 1962 and, despite being quite ill, continued running the theatre as projectionist. On December 9, 1962, during a screening of “Jack, The Giant Killer,” he died on the job. (We salute his dedication.) Mrs. Horstman carried on to May 22, 1966 closing with Martin & Lewis in “Living it Up.” She sold the building with contents for $2,200 after plans to reopen by others fell apart in both 1966 and 1967. The theatre and Princess marquee were removed from the building in December of 1967.
Two omissions to insert please:
1) Forgot to mention in the first sentence that the venue opened as the Columbia Opera House (oops).
2) Isaac F. McMinds of Cedar Rapids was the architect of the 1917 refresh moving the opera house to the main floor as the Cascade Theatre.
The theatre was housed in the 1881-built Central Block Building at 213 East 1st Street. Not long after closing, the former Monte Theatre was retrofitted as a Montgomery Ward retail and catalog store. The original owners of the Central Block were William Schodde and Fred Grassmeyer with two retail spots on the lower floor and the Odd Fellows Lodge in the upper floor.
The last concert is announced as April 17, 2027… although there is a Mat 25, 2027 concert scheduled with Blondshell. Either way, it was a great 81 year run.
That’s The Alcazar turned Loretta Theatre. It was a photo studio and then transformed to the Alcazar Theater beginning on October 30, 1909. It became the Loretta Theatre until early 1914. In April of 1914, the theater was removed and it became a drug store.
The Opera House stayed named as the Opera House from 1900 to May 16, 1927. The venue opened on November 27, 1900 with the comedic play, “A Bunch of Keys.” The Opera House transitioned to movies, as was the case in many smaller towns. The Opera House suffered a $7,000 fire on November 10, 1926. In the interim, Bowker opened the Uptown Theatre as a makeshift location on November 18, 1926 operating into 1927. (The Opera House was not in use between November 19, 1926 to February 4, 1927.)
The Opera House was fixed up and returned to life still as the Opera House on February 4, 1927 with Tom Mix in “Tony Runs Wild.” The Opera House was sold by operator William A.“Bill” Bowker along with the Uptown Theatre on May 16, 1927 to two female operators, Mrs. Muriel Frandsen and Mrs. Weeks. They renamed the Opera House as the Onawa Theatre and closed the Uptown Theatre. Frandsen equipped the Owana Theatre with sound in June of 1929 to remain commercially viable.
The venue closed on February 8, 1953 with “Cattle Town.” It was later replaced by Nevin’s Cafe.
Great shot in photos from January 1938 of the Regent Theatre and the neighboring College Inn Grill with WSYR radio doing a live remote with NBC radio stars and America’s Ace Hillbillies Pie Plant Pete and Bashful Harmonica Joe on stage and “The Perfect Specimen” on the big screen.
Wolff & Rodgers took over the I.A. Blotcky Clothing Store converting it to the Majestic Theatre opening on February 4, 1909. Blotcky moved creating The Big Store. The Majestic had a Powers projector, 250 seats, and a hand-painted wildlife curtain in front of the screen. Moorhead & Fairchild took on the venue followed by L.E. Paine with Fairchild.
Paine & Fairchild opened the 301-seat Royal Theatre on May 6, 1913. They operated both the Royal and the Majestic briefly. Two months later, the Majestic closed July 10, 1915 with three one-reel films. (Among the limitations of the Majestic was lack of fire exits, single projector, and lack of a concession stand.) Wise Drug Store took over the location converting it back to retail beginning September 1, 1915.
The Happy Hour’s first ad was September 19, 1913 with “Two Souls with but a Single Thought,” “Buck Richard’s Bride,” and “John Manley’s Awakening.” J.W. Andersen purchased the venue effective May 1, 1925 changing its name to the Lyric Theatre on May 8, 1925 with “The Cyclone Rider” supported by “Scenario School.”
At the end of the silent period, Royal Duke and Roy Pruitt took on the venue installing sound, a new front, a newly decorated interior. They reopened it as the Ritz Theatre on March 1, 1930 with “Peacock Alley.” It appears to have closed on April 4, 1931.
It reopened November 13, 1931 as the Walnut Theatre with"Freighters of Destiny. “ Under new operator Ray Gould, it reopened as the New Dreamland Theatre on July 7, 1935 with "Going to Town” and “Main Street Follies” supported by a Paramount Newsreel. On July 5, 1938, Gould fatally shot himself and the theater looked for new operator.
Henry Thiessen took it on as the Dreamland in late August of 1936. He held a naming contest calling the venue the ????? Theatre from September 20 to October 21, 1936. Entries had to be five letters or fewer. Mayor Fred Fell announced that L.D. Wayne won the prize with “Pep” which it assumed November 1, 1936 with “Walking on Air.”
The Pep was sold to E.E. Griffin on June 2, 1927. He reopened it on June 6, 1937 as the Pep but changing a week later back to the Walnut Theatre. There are too many operators going forward with lots of opening and closings including G.V. Fleming - the second operator in 1953 to open and close - closing with “The Jazz Singer” on July 22, 1953. That appears to be it. however, Fleming tried to reopen it in 1954 with the local retailers in a new operation that didn’t get off the ground.
Shot of the venue as the Lyric Theatres in photos. A. Torongue operated a movie theatre in the Opera House. In April of 1909, L.D. Wayne and Edwin Chambliss decided to rename the Opera House as The Lyric Motion Picture Show (in Opera House). That name stuck for a full year. It was renamed as The Lyric and then the Lyric Theatre in 1912. Its last advertised show is September 12, 1916.
Sorry, I guess I didn’t make it clear that the name of the theater was changed to the Harris-Avoca Theatre when Carl Ernst took it over. (Ernst bought it on November 28, 1938 from A.H. “Ole” Lehman. Ernst sold it to Art Meredith in April 1940 who continued it as the Harris-Avoca Theatre.)
It became the Avoca Theatre dropping the Harris on October 30, 1947
The New Theatre opened on November 20, 1909. On December 15, 1909, it was renamed as the Novelty Theatre. The first exhibitrix in town was Mrs. Zimmerman and she operated until September 11, 1921. Two days later, carpenters removed the raised floor and theatre seats ending the Novelty’s run.
The New Harris Theatre opened August 6, 1929 with sound films and “Fox Movietone Follies” as its opening film. Field’s 11-piece stage band was there and then moved to Avoca Hall for a post-theatrical dance. Party time! The venue replaced the Majestic Theatre. Carl Ernst took on the venue calling it the Harris-Avoca Theatre in 1938 through 1947.
On October 30, 1947, it changed names to the Avoca Theatre with “Sport of Kings” and GE Germicidal Lamps for patrons' personal protection. Howard Brookings operated it under that name for its late 1940s and 1950s run except for a few months in 1952. He changed the equipment to show widescreen VistaVision, CinemaScope, and SuperScope films beginning June 12, 1955 with “Captain Lightfoot.” But the theatre immediately scuffled thereafter. This was due to the impact of television and the Avoca closed for regular features late in 1955 though hosting live events, kids screenings, and John Deere trade screenings.
The Avoca twice reopened in the 1960s. It reopened on June 25, 1964 only to close again on January 9, 1965. It reopened one last time beginning on April 8, 1965. It closed for the holidays on December 18, 1965 with “Palm Springs Weekend.” It delivered a lump of coal not reopening… although it was used for John Deere trade shows and sporadic live events. In March of 1968, it was purchased by the American Legion for $6,500. They tore out the interior within a week.
Pioneer Theatre Co. of Minneapolis operated here as the Corral Drive-In Theatre, a name it retained - sometimes as the Corral Outdoor Theatre (alternate name) - from 1949 to 1969. At the end of its 20-year leasing period, it found new operators who changed names to the Atlantic Drive-In on its season opening day April 3, 1969 with “Bullit.”
The Atlantic Drive-In screen was blown over just prior to the 1980 season delaying the season opener - though was replaced. It opened for the season with a new screen tower and “The Jerk” with “Animal House” on June 6, 1980. As showtimes were about to begin for the June 14, 1980 showings of “Meatballs,” “Meatballs 2,” and “Up In Smoke,” a severe storm took the screen down once again. The operators threw in the towel making June 13, 1980 the final night with “Meatballs” 1 & 2 and “Up in Smoke” the final showtimes. The final season was just four playdates at the weekend-only operation.
When I wrote it, I was just trying to separate the Bijou from the Grand, Gem, Cozy, Strand. But if pressed, yes, this location appears to be that of the Grand, Gem, Cozy, and Strand and not the Bijou.
The way it’s reported in the newspaper, the Bijou was open from 1911 to 1914 and moved to the East Side R.B. Lichty Building which appears to be the still-standing structure. There, it closed on its fourth name and fifth owner unable to convert to sound.
F.G. Haworth opened here with 160 seats in 1911 but extended to 220 due to demand in 1912. The Bijou closed in 1914 after being purchased by Morgan & Erickson. They moved the operation to the East Side of the Courthouse into the R.B. Lichty Building ending the Bijou’s brief run.
The new theater replaced Giger & Whitley’s Feed Store complete with 240 seats, gold fibre screen, and a $160 curtain. It reopened as the Grand Theatre on September 4, 1914. It remained the Grand to 1920 closing.
Alvern Robertson and family took on the venue late in 1920 renaming it as the Gem Theatre. H.M. Kirkman was next through the door opening on Jan. 27, 1928 as the Strand Theatre with Tom Mix in “Outlaws of Red River.” It failed to wire for sound and the Robertsons came back in October of 1929. Their closing date appears to be in early 1930.
The theatre was (re)built by Wesley W. Mansfield purportedly in 1932 yet opening as the New Theater on October 7, 1931 in a strange time/space continuum. Opening film was Buster Keaton in “The Sidewalks of New York” and accompanied by a naming contest. (The ?????? Theater replaced the Idle Hour whose projection booth exploded in flames July 7, 1931 but leaving part of the building intact.)
Contest entrants were only allowed to enter names of six characters or fewer. For the rebooted version, 55 contest entrants went with “Iuka” - which was the original name of the town when it was platted in 1862. Like its predecessor, the Iuka Theatre similarly exploded on December 21, 1944 making “Hail the Conquering Hero” its last film in the booth. Because of war material shortages and the likelihood that no insurance company on the planet would have provided affordable coverage, Mansfield and the town got by with the 19th-Century built Mills Theatre.
Druggist and livery barn operator Henry Soleman opened Soleman’s Opera House in what was Tama City, Iowa on December 6, 1883 with the Mattie Vickers Combination performing, “Jacquine - or Paste and Diamonds.” The opera house sitelines weren’t ideal with its flat floor and temporary chairs. But it allowed for dances and other events to take place there. On January 1, 1920, Frank W. Mills took it on as the Mills Opera House.
Like most small towns, opera houses struggled during World War I converting to movie theatre hybrids or closing. Ben Potter took over the Mills Opera House in 1921 and showed movies, primarily. In 1922, that became permanent when the temporary seating of some 39 years was removed and a slanted floor installed with permanent seating under the Mills Theatre moniker in 1923. The venue installed sound to remain commercially viable.
Projectionist / operator of the silent-era Idle Hour in town that burned down in 1931, Lester Pospichal, took over the venue when it had periods of closure during the 1930s / Depression. It was part of Tama Theatres Circuit that included the Bella Plaine King and Rivoli theatres and the Toledo Wieting Theatre. Pospichal closed the Mills in 1958. The City Council met and discussed the possibility of razing the venue.
Tama reopened in March of 1959 and, reportedly, stayed open on the back of unadvertised midnight films that raised concerns in 1960. And in 1960, there were more talks of perhaps closing and razing the theatre. By 1969, the Mills was operated by W. W. Mansfield just three days a week closing on March 1, 1969. It was razed not long after for a proposed Philips 66 gas station. The opera house’s spot at 402 W. State Street is a vacant lot.
First ad as the Idle Hour on April 1, 1909 (formerly the Electric) and last ad at left as fire ends things with the Mills continuing (though robbed the night prior to the July 7, 1931 blaze)
Henry Soleman built his pharmacy building in 1896 and 1897. He had also built Tama’s Opera House in 1882. The retail spot occupied by The Hub clothing store was vacated becoming the Electric Theatre on March 26, 1908 with Edison’s Kinetoscope providing one reel films. The venue was renamed the Idle Hour Theatre a year later on April 7, 1909.
The Idle Hour converted to sound to remain viable. Not long after - on July 7, 1931 - during the late show of “Men Call Love” the film caught fire and projectionist Lester Pospichal lost the battle with flames engulfing the booth.
August 12, 1936 opening ad with “Suzy” in photos.
The Electric Theatre opened November 9, 1911. Fred Parcel of Parcel Bros. sold the theatre to Herry Cottrell as Fred moved to Tracer to operate there. It appears to have moved to new digs effective July 18, 1913.
The original Traer Opera House was built in 1875 and replaced by a second in 1883. It burned down in July of 1901. It was replaced by the third and final Teraer Opera House on Feb. 17, 1905 opening with the play, “Sweet Clover.” It was located at 649 2nd Street and razed in 1961 to build the Traer Memorial Building. None of the houses appear to have been home to the Electric Theatre.
I think you’ve conflated two different buildings. The new opera house building was built in 1911. Upon opening it was known as the Hawkeye Theatre on January 30, 1912 with “A Messenger Boy” with dance after. A number of locals bought stock in the theatre to help ensure its completion. It was the town’s second opera house. The theatre was transitioned to sound to remain commercially viable.
When the Watson Theatre was built in 1946, it was to replace the 24-year old Hawkeye. It closed on March 27, 1946 with “Wadnerer of the Wasteland” and “Senorita from the East.” Franz Fletter took on the Hawkeye / old Opera House for a conversion to apartments.
Sam Watson built the Watson Theatre. It was a $15,000, new-build facility that replaced a cabinet maker’s shop. It opened on a 25-year leasing agreement on March 29, 1946, two days after the Hawkeye had closed. The 406-seat theatre closed in January of 1955 to install widescreen projection for CinemaScope titles.
In December of 1956, the theatre’s was taken over by a consortium of business owners. It became the Graettinger Theatre under their watch. The Graettinger Theatre closed at the end its lecense on March 21, 1971 with “On a Clear Day You Can See Forever.”
The Princess, the Cozy Theatre and the Opera House - doing live event programming- co-existed in late 1913. The Cozy and the Princess merged in 1914. Then the Opera House was fitted with projection from the Cozy for a period. But it was the Princess that stood the test of time operating from some 52 years.
The Princess Theatre scuffled between 1929 and 1930 as three operators and a consortium of local merchants tried to get the theatre through the onset of the Depression and the conversion to sound. Mr. Wolf bought a low-cost sound system that didn’t work out and sold the venue to J.E. Feldhaus who then sold it to C.E. Hartsell. Hartsell moved the venue to sound on film improving things in 1930.
Soon, Mr. E.C. Arehart was next through the door as operator in the early 1930s. Contracts for films at the Princess ranged from $15 to $30 which likely was limiting profit margins, as well. Of “Dancing Pirate,” Arehart wrote, “Technicolor without real stars and good story don’t mean a thing. This was a terrible Sunday bust.” Ouch.
The Princess was taken over by Mr. and Mrs. W.G. Hosrstman likely on a 25-year lease in 1942 as its final operators. In December of 1953, they converted the Princess to widescreen and improved sound. They had assistance from local retailers with merchant screenings as television had eaten into the audience by 1957.
Mr. Horstman was diagnosed with cancer in 1962 and, despite being quite ill, continued running the theatre as projectionist. On December 9, 1962, during a screening of “Jack, The Giant Killer,” he died on the job. (We salute his dedication.) Mrs. Horstman carried on to May 22, 1966 closing with Martin & Lewis in “Living it Up.” She sold the building with contents for $2,200 after plans to reopen by others fell apart in both 1966 and 1967. The theatre and Princess marquee were removed from the building in December of 1967.
(Right of center)
Two omissions to insert please: 1) Forgot to mention in the first sentence that the venue opened as the Columbia Opera House (oops). 2) Isaac F. McMinds of Cedar Rapids was the architect of the 1917 refresh moving the opera house to the main floor as the Cascade Theatre.
The theatre was housed in the 1881-built Central Block Building at 213 East 1st Street. Not long after closing, the former Monte Theatre was retrofitted as a Montgomery Ward retail and catalog store. The original owners of the Central Block were William Schodde and Fred Grassmeyer with two retail spots on the lower floor and the Odd Fellows Lodge in the upper floor.
June 21, 1934 grand opening ad with “Hollywood Party” at the Monte Theatre.
The last concert is announced as April 17, 2027… although there is a Mat 25, 2027 concert scheduled with Blondshell. Either way, it was a great 81 year run.
That’s The Alcazar turned Loretta Theatre. It was a photo studio and then transformed to the Alcazar Theater beginning on October 30, 1909. It became the Loretta Theatre until early 1914. In April of 1914, the theater was removed and it became a drug store.
The Opera House stayed named as the Opera House from 1900 to May 16, 1927. The venue opened on November 27, 1900 with the comedic play, “A Bunch of Keys.” The Opera House transitioned to movies, as was the case in many smaller towns. The Opera House suffered a $7,000 fire on November 10, 1926. In the interim, Bowker opened the Uptown Theatre as a makeshift location on November 18, 1926 operating into 1927. (The Opera House was not in use between November 19, 1926 to February 4, 1927.)
The Opera House was fixed up and returned to life still as the Opera House on February 4, 1927 with Tom Mix in “Tony Runs Wild.” The Opera House was sold by operator William A.“Bill” Bowker along with the Uptown Theatre on May 16, 1927 to two female operators, Mrs. Muriel Frandsen and Mrs. Weeks. They renamed the Opera House as the Onawa Theatre and closed the Uptown Theatre. Frandsen equipped the Owana Theatre with sound in June of 1929 to remain commercially viable.
The venue closed on February 8, 1953 with “Cattle Town.” It was later replaced by Nevin’s Cafe.
Great shot in photos from January 1938 of the Regent Theatre and the neighboring College Inn Grill with WSYR radio doing a live remote with NBC radio stars and America’s Ace Hillbillies Pie Plant Pete and Bashful Harmonica Joe on stage and “The Perfect Specimen” on the big screen.
Wolff & Rodgers took over the I.A. Blotcky Clothing Store converting it to the Majestic Theatre opening on February 4, 1909. Blotcky moved creating The Big Store. The Majestic had a Powers projector, 250 seats, and a hand-painted wildlife curtain in front of the screen. Moorhead & Fairchild took on the venue followed by L.E. Paine with Fairchild.
Paine & Fairchild opened the 301-seat Royal Theatre on May 6, 1913. They operated both the Royal and the Majestic briefly. Two months later, the Majestic closed July 10, 1915 with three one-reel films. (Among the limitations of the Majestic was lack of fire exits, single projector, and lack of a concession stand.) Wise Drug Store took over the location converting it back to retail beginning September 1, 1915.
The Happy Hour’s first ad was September 19, 1913 with “Two Souls with but a Single Thought,” “Buck Richard’s Bride,” and “John Manley’s Awakening.” J.W. Andersen purchased the venue effective May 1, 1925 changing its name to the Lyric Theatre on May 8, 1925 with “The Cyclone Rider” supported by “Scenario School.”
At the end of the silent period, Royal Duke and Roy Pruitt took on the venue installing sound, a new front, a newly decorated interior. They reopened it as the Ritz Theatre on March 1, 1930 with “Peacock Alley.” It appears to have closed on April 4, 1931.
It reopened November 13, 1931 as the Walnut Theatre with"Freighters of Destiny. “ Under new operator Ray Gould, it reopened as the New Dreamland Theatre on July 7, 1935 with "Going to Town” and “Main Street Follies” supported by a Paramount Newsreel. On July 5, 1938, Gould fatally shot himself and the theater looked for new operator.
Henry Thiessen took it on as the Dreamland in late August of 1936. He held a naming contest calling the venue the ????? Theatre from September 20 to October 21, 1936. Entries had to be five letters or fewer. Mayor Fred Fell announced that L.D. Wayne won the prize with “Pep” which it assumed November 1, 1936 with “Walking on Air.”
The Pep was sold to E.E. Griffin on June 2, 1927. He reopened it on June 6, 1937 as the Pep but changing a week later back to the Walnut Theatre. There are too many operators going forward with lots of opening and closings including G.V. Fleming - the second operator in 1953 to open and close - closing with “The Jazz Singer” on July 22, 1953. That appears to be it. however, Fleming tried to reopen it in 1954 with the local retailers in a new operation that didn’t get off the ground.
Shot of the venue as the Lyric Theatres in photos. A. Torongue operated a movie theatre in the Opera House. In April of 1909, L.D. Wayne and Edwin Chambliss decided to rename the Opera House as The Lyric Motion Picture Show (in Opera House). That name stuck for a full year. It was renamed as The Lyric and then the Lyric Theatre in 1912. Its last advertised show is September 12, 1916.
Sorry, I guess I didn’t make it clear that the name of the theater was changed to the Harris-Avoca Theatre when Carl Ernst took it over. (Ernst bought it on November 28, 1938 from A.H. “Ole” Lehman. Ernst sold it to Art Meredith in April 1940 who continued it as the Harris-Avoca Theatre.)
It became the Avoca Theatre dropping the Harris on October 30, 1947
The New Theatre opened on November 20, 1909. On December 15, 1909, it was renamed as the Novelty Theatre. The first exhibitrix in town was Mrs. Zimmerman and she operated until September 11, 1921. Two days later, carpenters removed the raised floor and theatre seats ending the Novelty’s run.
The New Harris Theatre opened August 6, 1929 with sound films and “Fox Movietone Follies” as its opening film. Field’s 11-piece stage band was there and then moved to Avoca Hall for a post-theatrical dance. Party time! The venue replaced the Majestic Theatre. Carl Ernst took on the venue calling it the Harris-Avoca Theatre in 1938 through 1947.
On October 30, 1947, it changed names to the Avoca Theatre with “Sport of Kings” and GE Germicidal Lamps for patrons' personal protection. Howard Brookings operated it under that name for its late 1940s and 1950s run except for a few months in 1952. He changed the equipment to show widescreen VistaVision, CinemaScope, and SuperScope films beginning June 12, 1955 with “Captain Lightfoot.” But the theatre immediately scuffled thereafter. This was due to the impact of television and the Avoca closed for regular features late in 1955 though hosting live events, kids screenings, and John Deere trade screenings.
The Avoca twice reopened in the 1960s. It reopened on June 25, 1964 only to close again on January 9, 1965. It reopened one last time beginning on April 8, 1965. It closed for the holidays on December 18, 1965 with “Palm Springs Weekend.” It delivered a lump of coal not reopening… although it was used for John Deere trade shows and sporadic live events. In March of 1968, it was purchased by the American Legion for $6,500. They tore out the interior within a week.
Pioneer Theatre Co. of Minneapolis operated here as the Corral Drive-In Theatre, a name it retained - sometimes as the Corral Outdoor Theatre (alternate name) - from 1949 to 1969. At the end of its 20-year leasing period, it found new operators who changed names to the Atlantic Drive-In on its season opening day April 3, 1969 with “Bullit.”
The Atlantic Drive-In screen was blown over just prior to the 1980 season delaying the season opener - though was replaced. It opened for the season with a new screen tower and “The Jerk” with “Animal House” on June 6, 1980. As showtimes were about to begin for the June 14, 1980 showings of “Meatballs,” “Meatballs 2,” and “Up In Smoke,” a severe storm took the screen down once again. The operators threw in the towel making June 13, 1980 the final night with “Meatballs” 1 & 2 and “Up in Smoke” the final showtimes. The final season was just four playdates at the weekend-only operation.