Desert Theater

The Desert Theater was open as early as 1941. In August 1943 ("NOTICE - BABBITT THEATER PATRONS" Mineral Country Independent News (MCIN) August 4, 1943, p.1, where it is mentioned in an article about the then-ready-to-open Babbitt Theatre in the adjacent civil service housing). It was open as late as 1957, at which time it was operated by Mrs. Elizabeth Bearden ("Theater Sale is Announced in Hawthorne", Reno Evening Gazette 8/30/57), who also at one time owned the Mineralite Drive-In Theater and the lease on the Babbitt Theater.

HAWTHORNE � Mrs. Elizabeth Bearden, owner of the Cactus and Desert theaters in Hawthorne, recently purchased the Mineralite Drive-In Theater and the lease on the Babbitt Theater and will assume active management of these two theaters on Sept 1.

The sale was made by Charles Leonard who has operated the Babbitt theater since 1949 and who constructed the Mineralite Drive-In, Hawthorne’s only drive-in theater, in 1953. Mrs. Bearden has announced that her Desert theater will be closed on Sept 1 and that the Babbitt theater, which has been closed during the summer months, will re-open on Sunday, Sept 1.

The building is still standing, but has been closed and unused as a business since at least 1970.

The theater is directly across the 6th street from the Cactus Theater/Cinedome. Its main entrance faces D street, and is situated under the projection room, which juts out overhead.

Recent comments (view all 2 comments)

Ret. AKC (NAC) CCC Bob Jensen, Manteno, Illinois on August 17, 2010 at 7:40 am

PLEASE CHANGE ADDRESS TO:

D STREET & 6TH STREET

600 block of D street brings up the Southern United States and Central America on the Google Map, not very helpful.

The theater is on the Southwest Corner. If you bring up the street photo you can see the “projection room, which juts out overhead”.

Open 1935-1950?

Anyone have more info or photos?

Roger Katz on January 22, 2013 at 6:25 am

Actually, it appears to be on the Southeast corner.