Colonial Theatre

dallasmovietheaters on October 7, 2022 at 7:10 pm

The Colonial Theatre closed as, by many accounts, a scary 24-hour grindhouse on February 27, 1975 at the end of a leasing period with a continuous quadruple-feature of Karl Malden in “The Summertime Killer,” Strother Martin in “Sssssss (Snake),” John Wayne in “Rio Lobo,” and a fourth film.

fred1 on October 21, 2012 at 6:06 pm

In the film “ Searching for Sugerman” ,there is a passing shot of the Colonial theater

Mike Rogers on March 27, 2011 at 4:56 pm

thanks Joe.

Joe Vogel on March 26, 2011 at 8:22 pm

tlsloews: The Colonial Theatre is to the right of the big Romanesque style post office building that dominates the photo, but since the photo is dated 1915, it can’t be the Colonial Theatre on Woodward Avenue, which wasn’t built until 1917. Also, Woodward Avenue has always been a much wider thoroughfare than the narrow back street that the Colonial in the photo faces.

It’s an odd little building. The top section is pure Greek Revival, but the lower two floors are Italianate, of a style that was some thirty or forty years out of date by 1917. It looks like it might have been a church that was altered and converted into a theater, with the lower two floors being an addition to a free-standing temple-style building.

I don’t know what theater it is. Cinema Treasures doesn’t list Colonial as an aka for any other Detroit theater, and of course it would have lost the name Colonial by the time this Woodward Avenue house opened in 1917. Either this theater is unlisted, or it’s listed under a later name and missing the aka.

I found a May, 1912, reference to a Colonial Theatre on the northwest corner of Lafayette Avenue (now Lafayette Blvd.) and Shelby Street, which must have been the theater in the photo. The Post Office was on W. Fort Street between Shelby and Washington, and Lafayette was the street behind it. The theater would have been in the 200 block of West Lafayette. I’ve clicked through the the first 100 of the 184 theaters listed for Detroit to see if one of them is in that block, but with no luck, and I think I’m getting carpel tunnel syndrome. Does anybody want to click through the remaining 84? If it isn’t there, it’s unlisted. Of course, it’s possible the house never even operated as a movie theater.

lesle on March 26, 2011 at 12:51 pm

Photo that includes the front of the Colonial Theatre is here:
http://www.shorpy.com/node/10182?size=_original

Broan on November 11, 2008 at 1:18 am

Detroit Plans being prepared by G Howard architect 2328 Dime Bank Bldg for theater for Colonial Theater Co Estimated cost Bids will be received about May 1 The Bridgemen’s Magazine By International Association of Bridge, Structural, and Ornamental Iron Workers