Plaza Theatre
175 N. Vermont Avenue,
Glendora,
CA
91740
175 N. Vermont Avenue,
Glendora,
CA
91740
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A great small town theatrer which opened on February 11, 1971 in a conversion of a former post office. The opening double bill was Mel Brooks in “The Twelve Chairs” & Tony Musante in “The Bird with the Crystal Plumage”
A former Bell and Howell projector engineer had a wacky idea to build a 35mm projector which could run daily without a projectionist. The engineer succeeded with his idea, but nobody wanted to try out the concept—so, he built his own theatre–the Plaza Theatre in Glendora, and used it as a show room for his invention with mix results.
The theatre could be run by one person with no problem. The box-office, snack-bar, and the projector-started button was all in the same location. A great cost cutting idea. The projector system worked with little silver cues at the head and tail of the feature. These cues would know where to stop the print, turn on or off the lamp house, changeovers (if needed) and what direction the film should travel in. If a film took 100 minutes to screen, it would take 100 minutes to rewind. The projector system didn’t take off as the engineer was hopping for, but the theater did very well for the first few years.
By the early-1980’s, video started to kill the second run single screen houses, and on April 15, 1984 the Plaza Theatre closed its doors, screening Vince Edwards in “Space Raiders” & Gary Coleman in “Jimmy the Kid”. Until 1992, the owners always planned to re-open the complex, but never did. In 1995 the Plaza Theatre was gutted for an office building. By 2018 it operates as a thrift store.
Contributed by
Jayson Wall
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Here is an article from the LA Times dated 8/2/70:
Glendora OKs Parking Plan for Theater
For the past three years, local residents have had to drive out of town to see a movie, but a new theater seems assured by City Council action. The Council has approved a parking variance for a 374-seat theater in the former post office building at 175 N. Vermont Avenue.
The theater, being developed by George Reid of Glendora and William Spencer of Montebello, both projection equipment engineers, will be completely renovated as a contemporary theater.
“The last theater in town was built in 1923 and closed in 1967”, according to Robert Dadaian, planning director. The old 800-seat theater was demolished two years ago to make way for a supermarket. The former post office building, built in 1956, was vacated in 1968 when a new facility was put into use at Glendora and Ada Avenues.
The Plaza Theatre’s building now houses a thrift shop. It shows no indications of having ever been a theater or, for that matter, a post office. It’s an odd location for a movie house, the back street on which it is situated being mostly residential.
The first ad for this theatre appeared on February 15th, 1971.
I lived in Glendora from the age of 3 through 13. I’m fairly certain I went to this theater twice. Once to see one of those Sun Classics documentaries on Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster, and the other time to see Logan’s Run, if I’m not mistaken. Even at that young age, though, I thought its location was a bit strange.
Grew up there. Great place to cool off during the hot dirty smoggy days of summer. Owner ran special matinee prices for 25 cents for a few summers. Watched a ton of flicks there.
They couldn’t afford to bring in the big blockbusters, Star Wars, etc. Many many fond memories…
The theater began its operations on Thursday, February 11, 1971, with a double feature of “12 Chairs” and “The Bird with the Crystal Plumage,” and it ceased operations on April 15, 1984, concluding with “Space Raiders” and “Jimmy The Kid.” Throughout its 13 years, the Plaza screened over 875 films, not counting summer children’s features and special late shows, with “Smokey And The Bandit” and “Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan” each holding the record for the longest runs at 7 weeks during various return engagements.
While the Plaza never showed “E.T.,” “Star Wars,” or “Return Of The Jedi,” it did play “The Empire Strikes Back” for two weeks in late summer 1981, which was the last 20th Century Fox film screened there for reasons that remain uncertain. In January 1984, the theater attempted to pivot to a “children’s theater,” showcasing classics like the 1939 “Gulliver’s Travels” and 1946’s “The Yearling,” but this effort was short-lived, lasting only two and a half months.
In a drastic change, the owners decided to screen 1983’s “Scarface” for two weeks, but it performed poorly, leading to staff layoffs and the theater’s impending closure. Despite this, a final double feature was scheduled as a last-ditch effort, run solely by the owners, but it fared even worse than “Scarface.” Following the final screening on Sunday, April 15, 1984, the theater officially closed its doors.
Until the early 90’s, much of the equipment and seats were still in place, but by the mid to late 90s, the building was sold and gutted.