Carolina Theatre
310 S. Greene Street,
Greensboro,
NC
27401
310 S. Greene Street,
Greensboro,
NC
27401
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Always interesting to read about this Carolina Theatre. Does anyone have updated information on the Carolina Theatre/Charlotte?
The Victory Theatre on Tate Street was also known as the CINEMA. More information on theatre is listed on the Cinema Treasures site.
David Lean’s DOCTOR ZHIVAGO played here first-run in October of 1966.
The Victory Theatre is listed on this site.
There is one theater which was running at least 30 years in Greensboro which isn’t listed. This was on Tate Street and was at one time called the Victory. In the fifties – sixties it was called the Cinema and showed art house movies catering to students from Woman’s College, later UNC Greensboro and their dates. The owner manager for a while was Eugene Street.
Chuck: Thanks. I was at the Carolina years back, but wasn’t able to see that interior.
This opened on October 31st, 1927. I posted the grand opening ad in the photo section for this theatre.
Here is an ATOS link to the organ page…you can follow the links to hear the organ and see the plans and interior pics of the Carolina.
http://theatreorgans.com/piedmont/robert_morton.htm
A former longtime CT member posted here in 2005 about the Robert-Morton organ and it raised my curiosity…until now. I hope to visit the Carolina Theatre and see a performance with organ music. A recent visit to Greensboro this past Sunday allowed me to take some exterior photos prior to the US Figure Skating Championships finale.
Brian: Thank you so much for your reply to me via CT. Now everyone knows about your organ. We, at Cinema Treasures are so very pleased to know that you have your theatre pipe organ as so many theatre have lost their pipe organs for various reasons. And a special thank you to the Piedmont Theatre Organ Society for maintaining a musical treasure.
Does this theatre still have its organ? I hope so!
I have called this theatre’s box office manager and hope to receive a tour this winter. This theatre is just around the corner from the famous Woolworth sit-in of the 60’s which is another stop while in Greensboro.
View link
View link
Photos and a history of the organ are all shown here.
I remember the segregated Carolina theatre and also the National, and also the Center theatres.
In the Carolina theatre, the segregated balcony had a seperate entrance and I am sure the other theatres also had seperate entrance, because I never saw Africian Americans anywhere around the theatres. Thank God things have changed.
My mother moved from California to a still very segregated Greensboro in the 1950s and has told me about the shocking bus and drinking fountain policies. I agree wholeheartedly with euphrades:
It is essential to mention the segregated balcony that now houses technical equipment. I also find it extremely relevant that the decline of the cinema coincides with the beginning of the new shopping centres springing up at the edges of the (still) very white suburbs that had their own movie theatres. This development runs curiously parallel with the end of segregation that coincidentally started right around the corner of the Carolina Theatre with a sit-in at the Woolworth’s in Elm Street in 1960.
I recently attended a movie at the Carolina and it was a fairly good experience. The sound was good and the screen is big but unfortunatley it wasn’t pulled tight on its strecher and it made for a distractingly wavy picture. A common problem in this and many historic theaters today is the house lights are way too bright. It takes away some of the mystery and allure of the decor. The theater looked its most exotic when the lights were dimmed for the movie.
thank you so much. It is wonderful to see this theatre. I will visit it when I am in Greensboro.
Modern photo:
View link
My mother grew up in Greensboro and she told me about this theatre. Because she was African American she could only sit in the balcony on days designated for colored people. If this is not part of the history it should be.