Coliseum Theatre
1233 Coliseum Street,
New Orleans,
LA
70130
1233 Coliseum Street,
New Orleans,
LA
70130
2 people
favorited this theater
The Coliseum Theatre opened in 1915, located on Coliseum Street at Thalia Street. The theatre seated 600 as of 1945 according to the Film Daily Yearbook from that year, though it originally seated over 1,000. The Coliseum Theatre was remodeled in around 1946, to the plans of architect Jack Corgan.
It was closed in 1976, and later was used for a movie production company.
A scene from the 1994 film version of Anne Rice’s “Interview With the Vampire” where Louis watches the movie “Tequila Sunrise” was shot at the Coliseum Theatre.
Contributed by
Bryan
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Recent comments (view all 16 comments)
Here is a photo of the Coliseum Theatre from 1975, showing a classic double feature. Photo by Joe Grillot.
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Here is a photo of Al Viola in front of the Coliseum box-office in the 70’s pointing to his low admission prices.
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Here’s some more Coliseum photos:
The projection booth, taken in 1975 while I was working there:
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and the neon celling light fixtures that had deep blue & green neon:
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Here’s an ad for a movie playing at the Coliseum and other theatres in 1963:
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Drive-in-mike and I spent many a fun night in this old movie house. I remember when we did some work for our school principle, he took us to the Coliseum to see a double feature of The Hellfighters and Anne of a Thousand Days.(Wasn’t that an odd pairing?)
Announcing a book about New Orleans Movie Theaters
THEREâ€\S ONE IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD
The History of the Neighborhood Theaters in New Orleans
is being written by 89-year-old Rene Brunet, the dean of the motion picture industry in Louisiana, and New Orleans historian and preservationist Jack Stewart. The 160-page,coffee table book will be released in November and is being published by Arthur Hardy Enterprises, Inc. Attention will be focused on 50 major neighborhood and downtown theaters, culled from a list of nearly 250 that have dotted the cityâ€\s landscape since the first “nickelodeon†opened in 1896 at 626 Canal Street. The book will be divided by neighborhoods and will open with a map and a narrative about each area. Each major theater will feature “then and now†photographs, historic information, and a short series of quotes from famous New Orleanians and from regular citizens who will share their recollections.
YOUR HELP IS NEEDED
We are trying to acquire memorabilia and additional photos of this theater for this publication. (deadline July 1.) You will be credited in the book and receive a free autographed copy if we publish the picture that you supply. Please contact Arthur Hardy at or call 504-913-1563 if you can help.
Great Story,Drive-in Mike about a great theatre manager and owner.
A picture of the Coliseum taken in what looks like light snow (rare for the Big Easy); it was also obviously taken much later than 1915: View link
Drive-in Mike and Others – I’m a creative writing student at the University of New Orleans and am putting together a story about the Coliseum Theatre. I was born in New Orleans but was too young to ever have experienced the theatre itself. I did a walking project in high school and came across Coliseum Square and the Theatre and was struck by the architecture and the whole neighborhood really – I grew up mostly Uptown.
I’d love to talk with anyone who knows more than me or with anyone who is willing to share photos for my project. I have several good photos I took in 2002 when I did a second walking project in college, but I have no photos of the inside of the building.
Any help would be much appreciated. Please contact me (Daniel Morales) at rupansansei at gmail dot com.
Thanks for all the great stories…it really makes the Theatre seem like a real gem.
“fire destroys coliseum theatre” on YouTube
by Peter Petitfils
https://youtu.be/woFceQlM3Zk