Palace Theater
1416 I Street,
Bedford,
IN
47421
1416 I Street,
Bedford,
IN
47421
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Additional Info
Previously operated by: Vonderschmitt Theatres
Previous Names: Von Ritz Theater, Indiana Theater
Nearby Theaters
Built on the site of a garage (or converted from a garage?) which had opened by 1922. Opened as the Bedford Theatre on July 22, 1926 with Edmund Burns in “Sunny Side Up” and vaudeville on the stage. On June 8, 1927 it was renamed Von Ritz Theatre with Marie Prevost in “Up in Mable’s Room” & Mable Normand in “One Hour Married”. It had been equipped with a Barton orchestral 3 manual 18 ranks organ which was opened by organist Eddie Dowell. It suffered damage from a fire on November 11, 1932. It reopened on February 18, 1933.
The former Von Ritz Theatre was renamed Indiana Theatre on November 1, 1963 following a remodel and the closure of the nearby original Indiana Theater. It was renamed Palace Theater on June 25, 1982, and later in the year two more screens were added. It was closed on February 7, 1983 and destroyed by fire on February 8, 1983.
Contributed by
Ken McIntyre
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Recent comments (view all 6 comments)
Boxoffice of July 4, 1960, said that the Von Ritz Theatre had been built on the site of an earlier theater, which had opened in 1927, and which had been destroyed by fire about 1930.
The original owner of the Von Ritz was a Bloomington, Indiana, real estate man who had the colorful name November E. Vonderschmidtt. In 1960, Mrs. Vonderschmidtt sold the house to H.E. McCarrell’s Enterprises, long-time operators of the Indiana Theatre in Bedford.
Boxoffice of December 2, 1963, said that the Von Ritz had become the Indiana Theatre. The former Indiana Theatre on 15th Street had been closed (it was demolished the next year.)
Boxoffice of May, 1983, has a brief item about the fire that destroyed the Palace Theatre, saying that it was opened in the 1920s as the Von Ritz and was later called the Indiana. It also says that the house had been converted to a triplex not long before the fire.
In news of other Bedford theaters, a June 5, 1978, Boxoffice article about 68-year-old Louie Fiddler mentions that Mr. Fiddler’s father had worked as a projectionist at two early-day theaters in Bedford, the Crystal and the Colonial. No further information about them was given.
I’ve also found an October 9, 1937, Boxoffice item saying that the Lawrence Theatre in Bedford, Indiana, had been reopened.
The Bedford Theatre opened its doors on December 22, 1926 with Edmund Burns in “Sunny Side-Up” along with five vaudeville acts (Edith Sherry doing “Southland” alongside his Sunny Southern Singers, The Mole Brothers in “A Loose Nut On Wheels”, a performance doing “Blue Bonnet Revue” featuring dozens of women, Gifford & Holmes doing “A Dancing Fool and an Xylophonist”, and Rich & Banta doing “Her Wedding Night”), an unnamed Our Gang comedy, an unnamed Aesop’s Fables, and Pathé News.
Unfortunately the Bedford Theatre name did not last pretty long at all.
The Bedford Theatre reopened its doors as the Von Ritz Theatre on June 8, 1927 with Marie Prevost in “Up In Mabel’s Room” and Mable Normand in “One Hour Married” along with the screen novelty “The Isle Of June”, a musical overture performing “Atilla”, the Aesop’s Fables cartoon “Anti-Fat”, and a musical performance by Eddie Dowell in the $25,000 Barton orchestral pipe organ (the same exact modeled organ that also came directly from the Indiana Theatre in Indianapolis).
After closing for a few weeks in October 1963, the Von Ritz Theatre reopened as the Indiana Theatre on November 1, 1963 with Kirk Douglas in “For Love Or Money” and Kent Taylor in “Harbor Lights”.
The Indiana Theatre was renamed the Palace Theatre on June 25, 1982 under the management of Palace Entertainment Incorporated led by manager Marsha Kirkman, and was later twinned that same year. Unfortunately, the Palace Theatre was destroyed by a fire on February 8, 1983.
Also to note is that the February 1983 fire at the Palace Theater was actually the last out of two fires the theater faced in its history.
On the early morning hours of November 11, 1932 at approximately 2:30 AM CT, a fire destroyed the entirety of the Von Ritz Theatre causing an estimate $100,000 in damage from insurance. The fire was called by a hot water radiator became disconnected and plunged downward landing on the sidewalk.
The Von Ritz Theatre was then rebuilt featuring Nu-wood treatment alongside RCA sound, and reopened on February 18, 1933 with Constance Bennett in “Rock-A-Bye” along with an unnamed Mickey Mouse cartoon and the Clark & McCullough short “Jitters The Butler”.
Scherer, Scherer & Powell opened the Palace Theatre on December 22, 1926 with “Sunnyside Up” supported by 5 acts of vaudeville, a Pathé newsreel and an Aesop’s Fable cartoon. The silent films were accompanied by a Starr Baby Grand Piano. The atmospheric design was welcomed but the cramped seating and organ-less presentation did not live up to the wait for the movie palace. Vonderschmitt Amusements took on the venue redesigning the theatre and giving it a $25,000 Barton Orchestral pipe organ. Locals were thrilled by the improvements. It relaunched June 8, 1927 as the renamed Von Ritz Theatre with “Up in Mable’s Room” & “One Hour Married”.
In January of 1929, the venue received an RCA Photophone “C” System to present sound films. On March 27, 1954, the Von Ritz switched to widescreen equipment to play CinemaScope films beginning with “The Command.” The 50-year old Indiana Theatre moved from its home on 15th Street to the Ritz location on November 1, 1963 opening with “For Love or Money” and “Harbor Lights.”
Palace Enterprises bought the venue in 1982 On June 25, 1982, the venue reopening after a major refresh with “Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid” under its new name of the Palace Theatre getting down to 639 seats. It got two additional screens later in the year becoming the Palace I-II-II Theatre. Its final screenings were held on February 7, 1983 with “Grease,” “48 Hours,” and “They Call Me Bruce?” It was destroyed by fire that destroyed the theater and an adjoining business on Feb. 8th, 1983.
Oh, so it closed as a triplex? I didn’t know until now! Thanks Dallas! Yes this closed as a triplex.
The 1922 Sanborn map of Bedford shows a garage with a 25 car capacity at 1416 I Street.