Town Theatre
310 First Avenue,
Cedar Rapids,
IA
52401
310 First Avenue,
Cedar Rapids,
IA
52401
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A couple of early mentions in The Billboard in October, 1908, call this house Delphi’s Electric Theatre, and report that it was “…doing good business with moving pictures and illustrated songs.” The manager was named I. P. Williams.
Here is a photo of the house from somewhat later, when it was called the Crystal Theatre.
Launched as the Rialto Theatre on August 18, 1923 with “The Midnight Cabaret” and “The Man Next Door”
The 1927 FDY lists the Rialto Theatre as one of four houses in Cedar Rapids that were operated by Paramount-Publix affiliate A. H. Blank. The others were the Isis, the Palace, and the Strand.
The lobby for the US Cellular Center arena stands about where the theater stood. It was across the street from the Iowa theater and the Columbia theater and next door to the Grand (Lyric) theater located in the Grand hotel building. Both the Grand and Columbia were short lived converted store front theaters. Interestingly enough, larger entertainment venues replaced all three theaters.
The Town and Grand were replaced by the arena and the Columbia by the Iowa theater building.