Palace Theatre
111 Broad Street NE,
Aliceville,
AL
35442
111 Broad Street NE,
Aliceville,
AL
35442
1 person
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The Palace Theatre was opened on April 16, 1936 with Fred MacMurray in “The Bride Comes Home”. It was closed on November 21, 1978 due to a fire. The last film to play there was Chevy Chase in “Foul Play”.
Contributed by
Bryan Krefft
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Recent comments (view all 9 comments)
The Palace was part of Hook Theaters in the early sixties. President was R.E. Hook, headquartered in Aliceville. Mr. Hook also ran the Hook Theater in Eutaw, AL and the Dreamland in Macon, MS.
I was one of the projectionist at the Palace in the 70’s for several years. I don’t know the architecture or style, but if someone is willing to help, I can describe almost every inch of that place – lighting, seats, speakers, curtains, floor layout, etc. That place is special to me with many, many found memories.
The Palace burned to the ground in the late 70’s/early 80’s, we’re sure at the hands of an arsonist (pissed-off teen)
I knew Mr Roth Hook quiet well – a classic southern talking, jolly, cigar smoking man…that liked money. Mr. Hook also owned another closed theater in Reform – can’t remember the name.
I found an old newspaper (Gadsden) that puts the night of the fire on November 21st, 1978. I couldn’t recall the exact date, but I certainly recall that night – I was a member of the volunteer fire dept there in Aliceville. The map attached to this has the location slightly off – it was about ½ block south of 3rd ave NE on Broad St.
33.128763, -88.151652 Are we sure this place is gone? This article from 1989 mentions that the Aliceville Entertainment Complex was being built on the site of the old Palace Theater. If you look at the GPS cords, there’s something there that strongly resembles a theater.
Yep, Bill, that’s where the Palace was. It looks like some/most of the walls have been used in the existing structure. The front windows over the “Complex” was where Mr. Hooks offices were, and they were mostly saved during the fire. The front entrance has been heavily modified – the door on the right was the entrance to the balcony seats and the projection room. I can’t imagine they would reuse the side walls of the burned theater as the roof collapsed in the fire and the walls experienced intense heat which weakened them, but it appears they are still there. Geez, Broadstreet on Google Street views tells me that town is dying – Broad was a bustling place back in the ‘70s.
The Palace Theatre Opened Its Doors On April 16th, 1936 With Fred MacMurray In “The Bride Comes Home”. It Is Closed In The Late 1970’s, And Yes Due To The Fire That Damaged The Theater.
The last film to play at the Palace was Foul Play with Chevy Chase and Goldie Hawn. Scheduled to play a few weeks later was Cheech and Chong’s Up in Smoke. I find that fact very ironic.
My parents told me that the Palace was not always at 111 Broad Street, but had, likely in the silent era, been located on Third Avenue. The site later became a Laundromat, but you could still see where the box office had been. The Aliceville Entertainment Complex was later built on the site of the Palace on Broad. It originally housed a small twin theater known as the Tenn-Tom Twin, and a small 2 lane bowling alley.
Do you have any information on both the Tenn-Tom Twin and the Bowling alley?
NOTE: The Palace Theatre Replaced The Former Bigbee Theatre (Once Named The New Theatre) Which Was Destroyed By A Fire During The Second Week Of February 1936.