Mark Twain Theatre

115 Main Street,
Perry, MO 63462

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SethG
SethG on April 18, 2019 at 4:03 pm

Address is wrong, as is the map marker. 115 is correct. 106 was almost certainly never a theater, since it is a tiny (but very deep) structure with an elaborate tin shopfront which is in original condition. Although Perry was certainly ‘big’ enough to have Sanborn coverage, I can’t find a map online.

Chris1982
Chris1982 on September 18, 2014 at 12:32 am

The Strand Theatre for this page opened on August 10, 1927.

Joe Vogel
Joe Vogel on September 17, 2014 at 3:43 pm

Oops. We have an address discrepancy. The Strand building in the photos I linked to, occupied by T&J’s Appliance shop, is at 115 Main Street. I wonder if the Strand could have operated at two different locations?

Joe Vogel
Joe Vogel on September 17, 2014 at 3:38 pm

An article in the July 27, 1916, issue of the Perry Enterprise said that the Strand Theatre had opened on the previous Thursday, which would have been the 20th. The house had 350 seats on the main floor and a small balcony with 30 seats, and there was a small stage 14 x 25 feet.

The Strand was sold to Fred M. Rich in early 1923, and a few months later suffered a fire that was reported in the September 1 issue of Exhibitors Herald:

“Fred M. Rich, owner of the Strand theatre, Perry, Mo., reports that his show house caught fire on July 21 and although a near panic insued [sic] no one was seriously injured. The theatre was seriously damaged.”
Here is a photoof the Strand building, and this closeup shows the tile with the theater’s name on the floor at the entrance.