Keller Plaza 8
4572 Lemay Ferry Road,
St. Louis,
MO
63129
4572 Lemay Ferry Road,
St. Louis,
MO
63129
5 people
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Closed. Last day of operation Dec. 19, 2018.
Noticed a for sale/lease sign at the roof line of the building a few weeks ago. Employee mentioned a raise (large, of course) in the rent a possibility. Phone message now touts $3 admission for all, all day long. Are the days of operation numbered?
The Wehrenberg carpet was ripped out over one year ago in the lobby and corridors. It remains as the runner in the auditoria. Perhaps they didn’t realize what a replacement would cost.
A couple of cost-saving moves are of note as well. Tickets are often sold at the concession stand rather than have someone in the boxoffice. Also, a couple of weeks ago they discontinued their ads in the local newspaper.
I went to see the newest TMNT movie here last night. Being that Wehrenberg closed this place in 2000, it still looks the same, i.e. the Wehrenberg logo on the carpet, same paint job, etc.
I worked here when it started its slow down from 1998-1999. When Arnold 14 opened in early 1999, all Jefferson County residents didn’t need to travel north to see a current movie and that marked the beginning of the end of this place. To attempt to keep this theater going, any/all main or major popular movies were also playing here, whereas before it split what was showing with Ronnie’s (meaning those two theaters never played the same movies from early 1990s until 2000). It wasn’t enough and the plug was pulled.
When I went in last night, I noticed some changes. The two large auditoriums have a stage and these little rooms off to the side when you open the doors which was different. All of the main carpeting was ripped out and concrete floors were what you walked on in the lobby. Perhaps this place is finally getting new carpet? I guess they realized they didn’t need to keep showing the Wehrenberg logo on it! The 8 Cine sign on the building still looked burned out as it was in the early 2000s. This was the nicest SoCo theater back in the day!
March 23rd, 1988 grand opening ad in photo section.
Kyle, Wehrenberg turned the St. Clair into a second-run house (with digital projection, no less) which makes them taking over the Keller very unlikely.
Would Wehrenberg consider taking this place back? My gut feeling is they wouldn’t, but they could still operate it as a discount house, I guess…I know, just wishful thinking on my part, but hey, it’s fun to speculate!!!
Give Chuck a break!
Correct website is earlann.net
Something tells me Wehrenberg does the booking for this chain. I saw their ad in the movies section of the STL Post Dishrag and Keller was listed in at the bottom of Wehrenberg’s listings.
I could be wrong. but WTH.
Keller was NOT closed in May 2000, it closed in November 2000! Someone please erase every thing that Chuck Van Bibber writes. Update!
In addition to the correction needed for the opening year, another is needed for the fact that Wehrenberg pulled out of the operation of the theatre before it filed for bankruptcy. Wehrenberg’s last date of operation was 11/5/2000; they filed for bankruptcy 1/26/2001.
Keller 8 Cine opened on Wednesday March 23, 1988. Please update the above post to reflect the correct date. It opened with free shows. This theater’s life began with heavy competition nearby. The South City Cinema across the street, the South County Cinema, the Lindbergh 8, and Wehrenberg’s own Ronnie’s 8 not far away. Upon checking the STL PD, South County and South City weren’t showing nearly as many current movies at the time and were showing flicks that had been out for weeks.
I worked at Keller from 1989 to 1992 and I am trying to reunite with my friends from there. Here is a link to Craigslist with more information: http://stlouis.craigslist.org/com/778460084.html
Keller really was the best theater in South County for a long time. We always got screwed over on big movies, but when we did get the good ones, we really packed them in. We always took pride in the way the place looked and our managers kept us busy all the time to make sure our theater was in top form.
The new website for Keller 8 is www.earlann.net NOT .com
Charles Van Bibbler’s info is incorrect — AGAIN. I used to work at Keller 8 from 1998 to 1999. This was always the crown jewel of South County cinemas. It was very quiet, large, and the 14-15 year old white trash that Ronnie’s always attracted stayed away and didn’t gawk at this theater.
When I started working here, I remember The Horse Whisperer had just came out. I worked when movies like Mulan, Tarzan, Austin Powers 2, and Something About Mary came to this theater.
It did die a painful death. Wehrenberg rarely gave this theater a blockbuster, instead preferring to give all the good movies to Ronnie’s 8. Keller and Ronnie’s always played opposite movies. And Wehrenberg wonders why this theater was unprofitable?!!
I can remember when I was little, my mom took me to this theater to see The Land Before Time in 1988. I remember being in the huge auditorium and being amazed.
Up above, it says that this theater opened in 1986. That is incorrect. This theater opened in March 1988. Wehrenberg FINALLY started giving this theater the #1 movies when Ronnie’s converted to a 20 screen theater like it is now. It’s a shame, I miss this theater’s glory days.
It is still open as a discount house, although not by Wehrenberg. The “8 Cine” sign on the side is STILL burnt out since 1999. The new owners still have not fixed that yet. I have no idea why not. The carpeting was neat — it has the symbol of the Wehrenberg crown. This hasn’t been replaced even though a new theater chain operates it. I’m glad to see that this theater is getting great business as a discount one. I’d love to see it return to get first run movies again!
FYI – The two following statements come up when trying to access the web site:
“Notice: This domain name expired on 02/25/07 and is pending renewal or deletion.”
“www.earlann.com This page is parked free, courtesy of GoDaddy.com.”
The Keller 8 has changed ownership again. It is now a part of EarlAnn Inc. The Keller is one of 3 theaters/drive-in owned by EarlAnn. Our website is EarlAnn.com