Missouri Theatre
717 Edmond Street,
St. Joseph,
MO
64501
717 Edmond Street,
St. Joseph,
MO
64501
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Wow what a theatre!!
The Missouri Theater used to be owned by Durwood Theaters Durwood also owned the Electric Theater, Skylark and Belt Drive-in theaters. It is located on Edmond Street, between 7th & 8th. It was and is still St Joseph’s most elegant theater. In 1927, 2 Seaman & Schuske workmen spent 2 months building the box office. The box office was constructed of ornamental steel and grille work, the upper and lower parts were covered with mosaic tiles of many colors This box office has since been replaced with a more modern one. There’s quite a bit of facial difference between what it looked like in the 1930’s and today. The Missouri usually only played a cartoon and one A Class movie. In 2011, the theater suffered some smoke damage from a fire in an adjacent building. The Missouri Theater is now primarily an Arts Theater; dancing, singing, & misc acts. The last date movies were shown: Tuesday September 8, 1970. The last movie shown was Elliott Gould and Candice Bergen “In Getting Straight”.
A few photos of the restored Missouri Theatre are displayed in the portfolio of Henderson Engineers, one of the companies that has worked on the theater. Click on the Missouri Theatre thumbnail (#3, top row of featured projects) on this page.
Thanks RobbKCity.
Thats good news RobbKCity.Thanks for the link.
Missouri Theater complex experiences fire damage; theater saved by fast-acting firefighters.
A fire broke out in the Missouri Theater complex on Feb. 18, 2011. Fast-acting firefighters took drastic action to save the theater itself from fire damage. The theater only sustained smoke damage. Dressing and rehearsal rooms, and theater office space, in adjacent buildings were the only areas significantly damaged by fire.
View link
http://www.kmbc.com/news/26925078/detail.html
City looks into fire cause
View link
The Missouri theatre was operated by DURWOOD and DUBINSKY and later it was an AMC THEATRE.{Dunwood Corp.}
June 25th, 1927 grand opening ad is at
View link
The link I posted on 9/19/07 no longer works; use this one instead:
Missouri Theater, probably early 1950s
Anyone ever consider flying a screen and show a classic film now and then?
The Missouri Theater can be seen in the background of this photo, probably taken in the early 1950s.
The link to my website of the St. Joseph Mo Theatre from the Columbia site is in error. I have added a clarification on the St Joseph page listed above.
Wally Bloss
I may be wrong but having been to both theatres & the MU connection along with the look of the outside, I would say that the creator of the link you attached has used an incorrect photo for the St. Joe theatre.
The exterior of the Missouri Theatre in St. Joseph is very ornate:
http://www.wallybloss.com/MissouriTheatre.htm
The Missouri Theatre of Columbia was owned by Commonwealth Theatres (the center of the Marquee in your link refers to Comonwealth Theatres. The current exterior, which appears almost exactly as the link above can be seen at: http://www.cinematour.com/tour.php?db=us&id=9925
I think that the picture referenced above is actually of the Missouri Theatre in Columbia, MO where MU (Mizzou Tigers) listed on the marquee are. /theaters/4966/
I’ll comment directly to Jim by e-mail.
On May 28 I ceded my claim to the websites and gave them to the Allied Arts Council in St Joseph, as I had left there and moved to Logan Utah to the Ellen Eccles Theatre (formerly the Capitol). The new person in charge may take up the process, but has “parked” the domain names for now.
Call 816-233-0231 and ask for Theresa
Wally Bloss
I don’t know if anyone from St. Joseph involved with the preservation or current management of the Missouri Theatre reads this page regularly, (the link to stjoears.org doesn’t work), but I’m an indie filmmaker currently making a documentary about historic movie theatres and the people who fight to save them from demolition. I would like to come down to St. Jo and film the theatre and interview those involved with its preservation and knowledgable about the theatre’s history. If interested, please email me at: I hope to film this theatre before the end of June (2005). Thanks! Jim Fields, Director/Producer, “Preserve Me a Seat”
I own and operate http://www.MissouriTheater.org I am the Executive Director of the Allied Arts Council. The City of St Joseph owns the theater and leases it to the various arts groups in town including the St Joseph Symphony, The Performing Arts Association, the Robidoux Resident Theatre and the American BarberBoys to name a few.
For a real insight into the mnind of Waylange Gregory – who did al the orhamental work – go to the MissouriTheater.org and read his letter prior to beginning work.
The Allied Arts COuncil and our member agencies consulted with the City in the $1.9MM renovation project completed March 2002. There are many photos of the work in progress linked theu the site to the Allied Arts Council site www.StJoeArs.org
Feel free to contact for more.
Wally Bloss
Executive Direcor
Allied Arts Council
This is a beautiful & unique theatre, what a wonderful restoration. I really enjoyed this theatre on my recent visit with the Theatre Historical Society on their Heart of America Conclave. Such an unusual atmospheric theatre with the ceiling looking like a tent with the sky peeking through. The artist intended it to include styles “Hittite, Assyrian, Persian, and Arabian”
Check out this link for some great pictures and info:
http://www.missouritheater.org
This one has history on the artist Waylande Gregory who helped design the theatre and some more great pictures including some of the restoration:
http://www.angelfire.com/pa3/wy/
Love the site. It’s so efficient and professional looking. I maintain the Missouri Theatre’s (St. Joseph, MO) website, and I think I gave you the wrong address. You have www.paastjo.org; the correct address is www.geocities.com/broadway/stage/8697.
Thanks,
Josh