Baronet Theatre

I was a K-B Theatres relief manager in the early 1970’s. One of the houses that I regularly worked at was the K-B Baronet when A. Paul Kershner was the manager. At that time, 1970-71, the only concessions were dispensed from machines in the back of the house and, if we were doing good business, they had to be filled during the show as they had to be ready for the next performance. Woe unto the usher that dropped the metal lid of the popcorn hopper during the showing of a feature.
The theatre organ (not the original) was stored back stage and had not yet been installed.
The projection booth was hung on the back of the auditorium like a tree-house and was accessed by a fire exit out of the back of the auditorium next to the concession machines and then up a set of metal stairs that went up to the door to the booth. It was tricky during snow or icy conditions when carrying a couple of film cans.
The K-B front office was adamant that the highest standards be maintained in their theatres but sometimes the bookings were a little strange. During the spring school holiday in 1971 we were scheduled to be open for “Kiddie Matinees” all week showing a different truly lame cartoon feature each day. We had a total of 26 kids on Monday and then the word got out and we didn’t get 25 more kids during the remaining four days. The weekend matinees were “The Wizard of Oz” which I was assured had not been exhibited in the area for several years. We didn’t expect a lot of business. WRONG! When I arrived at 11:00 am Saturday, the line for the still unopened box office went down to the corner of East-West Highway and around the corner for over a hundred feet! It was a amazing! There were children with and without parents, parents with and without kids, teenagers, elderly people, people from the local area and people who had come from the Virginia suburbs and from the district. The exhibition contract limited us to showing only the matinees but it was exciting.

The Hiser-Bethesda formally changed its name to the Baronet on 10/28/60. It’s first attraction under the new name was the first-run engagement of THE CAPTAIN’S BOAT.

I was a projectionist at the Baronet in the early 1970s while the regular operator, Fred Kelley, was recovering from health issues. I ran the matinees of Wizard of Oz mentioned above and remember the overflow crowds. The booth had Simplex XL projectors with Peerless Magnarc lamps running 7mm positive and 6mm negative trim. It also had Motiograph magnetic penthouses that were no longer functional. The house lights were controlled by a bank of radial dimmers mounted near the ceiling. I have some pictures somewhere that I’ll try and post. Overall I really enjoyed my time there. That staff was really friendly and occasionally we’d all party together. A regular occurrence was pizza at the Zebra Room down at Wisconsin & Macomb Streets in DC.

Grand opening ad as Hiser from September 25th, 1939 in photo section

I was surprised to see rlvjr’s comment from 2005 saying “the Blacks targeted Mr. Hiser’s theater for their annoying ‘sit-in’ shakedowns.” That characterization is inappropriate. Hiser shamefully refused to admit African-Americans long after other area theaters had integrated. It was entirely justified and appropriate for people to picket the theater for this.

In later years, after the theater became the Baronet, I remember seeing newsreels and cartoons before the feature. Also old serials as part of weekend matinees. I saw The Sound of Music there during its very long run. The machines in the back were not as appealing as the concession stands at other theaters.