State Theatre
117 N. 3rd Avenue,
Durant,
OK
74701
117 N. 3rd Avenue,
Durant,
OK
74701
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Additional Info
Previously operated by: Hughes Franklin Theatres, Robb & Rowley-United Inc.
Previous Names: Liberty Theatre
Nearby Theaters
The 700-seat Liberty Theatre was opened on August 14, 1917, operated by Robb & Rowley-United Inc. and the Davidge family. In February 1931 it was sold to the Hughes-Franklin circuit. In 1932 it briefly closed and following renovations was reopened as the State Theatre on March 4, 1932 with Eddie Quillan in “The Big Shot”(aka The Optimist). It was operated by John Terry, but only open for a few days a week, it was closed by the end of 1932. The vacant building was damaged by a fire on October 31, 1934. The remains were demolished and the Plaza Theatre was built on the site (it has its own page on Cinema Treasures).
Contributed by
Ken Roe
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Recent comments (view all 1 comments)
The new-build Liberty Theatre, a $25,000 structure, opened as another World War I Liberty location on August 14, 1917 with movies and live vaudeville in downtown Durant. Robb & Rowley sold the venue to the Howard Hughes' led Hughes-Franklin Circuit in February of 1931. They would soon close the Liberty for a major refresh.
The venue relaunched on March 4, 1932 as the State Theatre with the film, “The Big Shot.” Miller Davidge took on the venue operating the Ritz and State. But on September 13, 1933, Davidge bought the competing Metro and consolidate the State and Metro operations into a single movie theater in the Metro location. The State booked boxing events in 1934 and was erased by a fire on October 31, 1934 - a fire in which the insurance likely paid for a new theater, the Plaza, on the same site.