Main Street Theatre
329-331 S. Main Street,
Picher,
OK
74360
329-331 S. Main Street,
Picher,
OK
74360
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Picher, Oklahoma was a mining boom town as the lead mines were important in the creation of bullets during and through World Wars I & II. The city was incorporated in 1918 with around 10,000 and population trends called for a 50% growth over the next ten years. Theatre operators felt the time was right to build in Picher.
Early theatres in town such as the Electric Theatre and Bluebird Theatre were deemed too small for such a rapidly growing Main Street. The Main Street Theatre opened on March 10, 1918 filling all 1,400 seats for the Dubinsky Brothers vaudeville show booked there and turning away 300 more. The theatre combined live vaudeville with motion pictures.
Just four months later, an outside interest, Pittsburg Amusement Circuit owned by A. Besse and W.H. Daly, took over the theatre. They installed a Mills Violano Virtuoso for live music accompaniment. Business was brisk and Pittsburg Amusement announced a new-build 2,000 seat house to be built in downtown near the Main Street Theatre. That’s when fate deal a blow to the circuit.
On April 2, 1919, the one-year old Main Street Theatre burned down along with destroying or damaging twelve other neighboring businesses. The 2,000-seat house was put on hold so that a new, brick structure could replace the Main Street Thetare. A new Main Street Theatre and a new neighboring Airdome would take its place.
Albert C. Callin drew the plans for the two-story brick building with limestone stucco finish and Queen Anne marquee. A radium gold screen and new projectors showed attention to presentation at the Main Street Theatre #2 which launched on October 26, 1919. On February 6, 1920, the theatre was the victim of an arson fire that took both it and the airdrome down for the count.
Callin drew up the plans for Main Street Theatre #3 but the theatre was not built.
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dallasmovietheaters
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Recent comments (view all 1 comments)
The Main Street was located at 329-331 S Main, between 3rd and 4th Streets.