A search of the Fall River newspaper archives revealed that the Savoy opened on January 1, 1906. It was closed for renovations in 1919 and reopened as the Rialto on January 19, 1920. At that time it was part of the Fall River Consolidated Enterprises which controlled by lease or ownership the Rialto, Bijou, and Empire Theatres as well as the Academy of Music. Louis M. Boas of Fall River was the Vice President and General Manager.
Originally, the Premier began as a church located on the northwest corner of Bedford and Rock Street. When that property was purchased by the Metacomet Bank, the church building was moved to the Rock Street location and converted to a theatre. Oddly enough, both the bank and the theatre suffered the same fate when they were destroyed in the conflagration of February 2, 1928. I will further research the name of the church and when the Premier originally opened.
I believe the Durfee Theatre as well as the Embassy, Empire, Center, Capitol, Park and Strand Theatres were at the end all owned by Nathan Yamins. I collect Fall River postcards and have one in my collection signed by him. Unfortunately, the card is not of a theatre.
The Somerset Theatre is located at 296 Buffinton Street. Built, I believe in the 1950’s, it opened as a movie house. As soon as movie houses began losing customers to television, this theatre was converted to the Somerset Playhouse. Live plays and musicals were performed there during the 1960’s. When this form of entertainment was also no longer profitable, the theatre was sold and became “Furniture Village”. The furniture store recently went out of business and the building sits empty. The building and its site are now a source of dispute between the current owners, who want to sell the site to Walgreen’s, and town residents who don’t want another store in the center of town. If Walgreen’s wins, the theatre will be demolished.
The Strand Theatre was located at 1363 Pleasant Street in the eastern section of Fall River known as the “Flint”. It had a sister theatre, “The Park”, located in the southern part of the city known as the “Globe”. Both theaters would show first-run movies that had previously been shown at Fall River’s premier Durfee Theatre. It is now houses a furniture store.
The Park Theatre was located in the southern section of Fall River known as the “Globe”. It had a sister theatre, “The Strand”, located in the eastern part of the city known as the “Flint”. Both theaters would show first-run movies that had previously been shown at Fall River’s premier Durfee Theatre. A ubiquitous Dunkin Donuts now occupies the site.
The Embassy Theatre was located at 80 Franklin Street in Fall River, Massachusetts. It was a fairly new building of red brick construction and had one screen. It ran mostly second tier movies and had children shows on weekends. It was torn down to create a parking lot.
A search of the Fall River newspaper archives revealed that the Savoy opened on January 1, 1906. It was closed for renovations in 1919 and reopened as the Rialto on January 19, 1920. At that time it was part of the Fall River Consolidated Enterprises which controlled by lease or ownership the Rialto, Bijou, and Empire Theatres as well as the Academy of Music. Louis M. Boas of Fall River was the Vice President and General Manager.
Originally, the Premier began as a church located on the northwest corner of Bedford and Rock Street. When that property was purchased by the Metacomet Bank, the church building was moved to the Rock Street location and converted to a theatre. Oddly enough, both the bank and the theatre suffered the same fate when they were destroyed in the conflagration of February 2, 1928. I will further research the name of the church and when the Premier originally opened.
I believe the Durfee Theatre as well as the Embassy, Empire, Center, Capitol, Park and Strand Theatres were at the end all owned by Nathan Yamins. I collect Fall River postcards and have one in my collection signed by him. Unfortunately, the card is not of a theatre.
The Somerset Theatre is located at 296 Buffinton Street. Built, I believe in the 1950’s, it opened as a movie house. As soon as movie houses began losing customers to television, this theatre was converted to the Somerset Playhouse. Live plays and musicals were performed there during the 1960’s. When this form of entertainment was also no longer profitable, the theatre was sold and became “Furniture Village”. The furniture store recently went out of business and the building sits empty. The building and its site are now a source of dispute between the current owners, who want to sell the site to Walgreen’s, and town residents who don’t want another store in the center of town. If Walgreen’s wins, the theatre will be demolished.
This was an art deco style theatre that featured first-run movies. It was torn down and a brick office building built in its place.
The Strand Theatre was located at 1363 Pleasant Street in the eastern section of Fall River known as the “Flint”. It had a sister theatre, “The Park”, located in the southern part of the city known as the “Globe”. Both theaters would show first-run movies that had previously been shown at Fall River’s premier Durfee Theatre. It is now houses a furniture store.
The Park Theatre was located in the southern section of Fall River known as the “Globe”. It had a sister theatre, “The Strand”, located in the eastern part of the city known as the “Flint”. Both theaters would show first-run movies that had previously been shown at Fall River’s premier Durfee Theatre. A ubiquitous Dunkin Donuts now occupies the site.
The Embassy Theatre was located at 80 Franklin Street in Fall River, Massachusetts. It was a fairly new building of red brick construction and had one screen. It ran mostly second tier movies and had children shows on weekends. It was torn down to create a parking lot.
This theatre is located at 390 South Main Street. It is now a home furnishing store. The basic structure, facade and balcony are all still there.