Cine Latino

This opened on October 17th, 1947 as Crown. Ad in photo section.

An earlier post talked about a 1930s renovation of this theatre according to a design by F. Frederic Amades, and then listed other theatres he worked on. I would like to add that he also designed the Parkside Theatre (Fox Parkside) at 19th and Taraval.

The project to convert this theatre to something else (a gym perhaps, according to a previous post?) seems to have stalled, but not before the complete obliteration of not only the marquee and vertical sign, but the entire facade, down to only the most essential structural steel members. The stage fly tower has likewise been stripped, and large holes have been cut in the sidewalls. Only the ornamental quoins which wrapped around the corners of the facade’s edge remain. It is hard to imagine that any semblance of marquee or sign will reappear on what seems to be a remodel designed to eliminate any decorative trace of the building’s theatrical past. I hope I am wrong.

Was this once a Loew’s house? One sunny afternoon in 1980 I was waiting for a bus on Mission Street. On the side wallsign of the Cino Latino I could make out the word “Loew’s” showing beneath faded paint…

Motion Picture Herald of June 8, 1935, reported that Fox West Coast Theatres had reopened the New Rialto Theatre in San Francisco following extensive remodeling. Earlier that year, the March issue of Architect & Engineer had reported that the plans for the $40,000 remodeling project had been drawn by architect F. Frederic Amandes.

Amandes was the architect for at least four other theater projects. Those I’ve been able to attribute, all from 1936, were the Enean Theatre at Pittsubrg, California, and remodeling jobs for the Strand Theatre in Alameda, the Egyptian Theatre on San Francisco’s Market Street (listed at CT as the Guild Theatre), and the former T&D Theatre in Richmond, which became the Fox Theatre and then the United Artists Theatre.

Here is another photo:
http://tinyurl.com/ybjjs6n

Wigwam

Joe Bauer was my great uncle. My grandmother was Katinka Loew(Bauer). And yes, as a child I played on the turntable at Hillside Manor while visiting Joseph and Minnie.

I remember this theatre right across the street from the New Mission. I remember going to see movies in Spanish there with my family in the late 70’s & early 80’s. I remember it being blue & white on the outside.

With all the earthquake memories coming out this year; here’s another one: How the Wigwam Theater (later Rialto, Cine Latino, Crown) came to be…

My maternal Grandfather, Joe Bauer, tacked up the sign for the Hotel Burbank (sunk all his dough into it) on April 17th, 1906. On April 18th the earthquake didn’t get him but the fire did. He had four $5 gold pieces left.

With one $5 gold piece he bought, along with two partners, a teepee-shaped tent that they set up in GG Park and charged 5c a show for any entertainment they could bring in. They called it The Wigwam. GG Park had 10,000+ refugees from the quake/fire camped out there and they had nothing to divert them from their misery until the Wigwam came along.

This venture was successful and Joe Bauer bought out his partners and put up a bigger tent, another Wigwam “Theater”. This was even more successful and he then found land in the Mission and put up the first Wigwam Theater, built entirely of wood. Later, in about 1913, he put up the building that stands there now. He was a successful vaudeville theater operator and I have letters from the likes of Sid Grauman (Grauman’s Chinese in L.A.)and other west coast theater magnates asking JB to join their chain. He never did.

One of the vaudevillians he gave a break to was a young kid by the name of Asa Yolson who made something of a name for himself later by the name of Al Jolson. Jolson always played the Wigwam when he was in town. I have old registers with Jolson’s signature when he signed for his pay as all who played the Wigwam were required to do.

Joe Bauer sold the theater in 1925 and later built apartment houses on Nob Hill (wish we still had those!!) including Hillgate Manor on Taylor and Jackson that has the only private cable car turntable which is still used to turn cars in the parking garage.

I lived in the Mission all during the 90s and called the Crown theater owner several times to ask for a walkthrough. He always declined due to “insurance issues.” Would love to see the old Wigwam one day. You can still read the original sign from the back, looking from Capp St.

—Wigwam

1936, as the Rialto:
View link

1944:
View link

That’s interesting! The Cine Latino and the Fruitvale (listed here as NEW FRUITVALE) were built just over a dozen years apart; apparently they had the same architect (whoever he/she/they were), or the architect of one was affiliated in some way woth that of the other.

The Cine Latino opened as the Wigwam on 24 July 1913 with vaudeville and films. On 1 February 1930 it reopened as the New Rialto with talking pictures. On 17 October 1947 it was renamed the Crown, boasting a new front, an enormous new vertical, and second run films. On 3 July 1974 it became Cine Latino featuring Mexican films. It closed late 1987, and is now vacant.