Globe Theatre

The first movies that Adams residents saw were sporadic showings at the Adams Opera House which were shown when no live events were booked. Hurst & Morris took on the Opera House converting it to the Gem Theatre. They launched the Gem Theatre as a full time movie house on October 26, 1916 with five reels of film and orchestral music. And they advertised that the venue was “in the best condition possible”. Not a ringing endorsement. Other than the ceiling being too low, the venue was off to a good start.

The pair decided to move to the Shaw Building across the street on the north side of Main Street and continued there. New operators came in and on September 27, 1919. Advertisements implored support with, “Get the habit. Put Adams on the movie map”. As other towns' theatres converted to sound in the late-1920’s and early'1930s, the Globe Theatre stayed silent. As the Depression began, the Globe Theatre audiences dwindled. Less than eight miles away, the Gem Theatre had converted to sound so the Globe Theatre lost patrons.

In January of 1930, mid-week shows were discontinued. A final operator tried to make it with silent films but discontinued after Thanksgiving 1930 showings. In February of 1931, live vaudeville was tried to no avail. In June of 1931, the motion picture equipment and stage were removed in favor of the Hoon Café ending the theatre’s run. Five years later, the town would get a talking motion picture theatre.

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