Liberty Theatre
420 Saint Charles Avenue,
New Orleans,
LA
70130
420 Saint Charles Avenue,
New Orleans,
LA
70130
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Additional Info
Previously operated by: RKO, Saenger Amusement Company
Architects: Albert Drennan, Joseph Fromherz
Firms: Fromherz & Drennan
Styles: Neo-Classical
Nearby Theaters
The Liberty Theatre opened in 1918, next to the St. Charles Theatre (aka Orpheum Theatre), on St. Charles Avenue. It, like the St. Charles Theatre, was part of the Saenger Amusement chain.
The Liberty Theatre closed in 1955, and was demolished a few years later (followed not long afterward by the St. Charles Theatre, which ended its days as a nightclub). The Pan-American Life Insurance Building was later constructed on the site of the two theaters.
Contributed by
Bryan
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Recent comments (view all 5 comments)
Library of Congress website has a photo and lists the location as Saint Charles Street.
Here is a 1935 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/2omoue
The Mike Rivest website lists only one Liberty Theater in New Orleans, locating it at 420 St. Charles and further indicates that the operator was RKO from 1950-55. “Tarzan and the Leopard Woman” was re-released by RKO in 1950 (originally released in 1946).
CinemaTour, though, puts this theater on Canal Street (no number indicated). The picture matches, but I doubt that it was on Canal.
Actually, there’s another picture of the Liberty on the same site that you cited earlier;
View link
where, if one looks to the right, a set of framed exhibition photos for the film showing at the theater next door and what appears to be a neon letter ’S' on top of what is undoubtedly a marquee can be seen. Considering also the streetcar tracks in front of the theaters, I don’t think there’s any doubt about the location being St. Charles Street circa 1950.
The New Orleans-based trade journal Building Review published an item in its issue of September 30, 1916 saying that the Victoria Hotel next to the Orpheum Theatre on St. Charles Avenue would be demolished beginning October 1 to make way for a moving picture theater to be built for Ernest Boehringer. The theater was being designed and built by the Fromherz & Drennan company (Joseph Fromherz and Albert Drennan.)
This page at New Orleans Historical says the Liberty opened in 1918, operated by Boehringer Amusement Company on behalf of the owners, Saenger Amusement. The page also says the Liberty was last operated by RKO, and closed in 1955.