Ritz Theatre
423 N. E Street,
San Bernardino,
CA
92401
423 N. E Street,
San Bernardino,
CA
92401
2 people
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When The Theater Became The Ritz In 1930, It Became A Warner Bros Operated Theater.
Taken Over By Stanley-Warner On June 19, 1963.
E.H. Dowell opened here as the Auditorium Theater on May 16, 1910 with motion pictures. Dowell was also manager of the La Petite and Star theatre in the Nickelodeon, show-store era. This theatre was an advance with an orchestra and multiple projectors. Carl Ray took on the venue and it was converted after a $10,000 refresh to the Strand Theatre on March 8, 1917. It converted to sound and changed names to the Ritz theatre on March 6, 1930. It became an adult theater just after Christmas of 1968. It closed in 1991 under the operation as a Pussycat Adult Theatre and was demolished.
March 6th, 1930 grand opening ad as Ritz in photo section
The exterior remodel of the facade took place in the early 1940s as was announced in December 1940 in this San Bernardino newspaper (includes a drawing of the new facade) http://cbsrdb3.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc?a=d&d=SBS19401224.1.11&srpos=2&e=———-en—20—1—txt-txIN-%22ritz+theater%22+marque——–# There was also an interior remodel to the building in 1935 which gave it a more “modernistic” lobby and auditorium. Here is a 1935 photo of the pre-remodel facade with its Vitaphone marquee http://cbsrdb3.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc?a=d&d=SBS19350104.1.23&srpos=180&e=———-en—20—161—txt-txIN-%22ritz+theater%22——–#
This would be the same block that now hold the Empire 20, which is currently closed.
Great movie,Great ad,Kenmc.
I used to go to the Bugs Bunney club at the Ritz on Satursday.
Whatever happened to the building, there’s a cinema (chain?) at this address now.
Here is a September 1973 ad from the LA Times:
http://tinyurl.com/y9esnrh
By process of elimination, I put this as the Ritz in 1983:
http://tinyurl.com/lrzhlk
http://tinyurl.com/l9sywy
As a kid, I saw “Damn Yankees” and “Auntie Mame” here. Had the steepest incline to seats you ever saw, plus these weird purple flourescent lights in the ceiling. Was a sad day when it went porno.
Projecting XXX movies was strange here, considering its noble past. The other projectionist now works for Disney. Go Figure…
Warner Bros. acquired the Ritz Theatre circa 1931 and operated it until the theatre operations were separated from the film studio in 1953. Stanley Warner continued to operate the Ritz until about 1969 when Stanley Warner discontinued its theatre operation in California.
This was a part of the Amber Theaters chain of XXX houses in the 1970s.