Mission Theatre

SethG on June 1, 2026 at 11:46 am

Some more information from a duplicate listing I have just deleted: The Lyric Theatre opened April 16, 1913 and according to the Albuquerque Morning Journal was renamed the Ideal Theatre in 1918. Sanborn Maps show a very narrow auditorium sharing a ground floor common wall with a hotel and rooms extending over the theatre. The Ideal Theatre can be found in Film Daily Year Book 1929 with 300 seats.

Blanche Hatton became manager of the Ideal Theatre in 1924 under owner Paul Williamson. In 1929 the Ideal Theatre was taken over by Paramount’s Publix chain, which had a policy against women managers. After a high level policy meeting in New York it was decided Blanche could stay and she went on to manage the Chief Theatre, Hiland Theatre, Sunshine Theatre, and Lobo Theatre.

By 1932 editions of the Albuquerque Tribune list a Mission Theatre at this address (which in FDY had a seating capacity of 378). The 1943 edition of FDY gives a seating capacity of 450 and was operated by Paramount pictures Inc. through their subsidiary Hoblitzelle & O'Donnell. It had closed by 1950. In 1955, the theatre, which had been closed for many years, was demolished and the Albuquerque First National Bank was constructed on the site.

rjbuffalo on February 10, 2023 at 11:39 am

The address is incorrect. The Mission Theatre was at 121 Central Avenue NW. In 1924, the Sunshine Building would be built directly across the street from it.

The cinema at 121 Central Avenue NW was opened on Wednesday, April 16, 1913, as the Lyric Theatre.

On Sunday, September 1, 1918, there was a change. The Lyric owners opened their new Lyric at 312 Central Avenue SW, and the old Lyric, under new ownership, was renamed the Ideal Theatre. The final advertisement for the Ideal Theatre was on Monday, June 11, 1928, and I presume it went dark afterwards.

On Saturday, February 22, 1930, the Ideal reopened as the Mission Theatre and remained in business through Monday, June 13, 1949.

Now, let’s think again about the Lyric. The owners of the Lyric opened their new Lyric on Sunday, September 1, 1918, and that was at 312 Central Avenue SW.

Where did the 315 address come from? It was a typographical error. Kistler Collister was at 315 Central Avenue NW, and later Montgomery Ward took over. There was never a theatre or cinema at 315.

What fascinates me about the Mission Theatre was its status as Albuquerque’s first “art house.” Beginning on Tuesday, April 14, 1936, and then two or three nights almost every week for the next several years, the Mission Theatre collaborated with UNM’s Foreign Language Group in presenting foreign films that would normally fly under the radar. In the summer of 1939, alas, there was a change, and the foreign films were all Mexican. The series came to an end in March 1941, shortly after UNM itself began presenting 16mm films from the Museum of Modern Art collection.