Acme Theatre

Next door to the Acme was the Grand Theater, at 1117 7th Street, in operation under that name from at least 1910 until 1917. It operated as a movie and vaudeville house under other names until 1926, after which it served other uses.

This historic photograph, c1910, shows part of what is likely only a sign pointing toward the Grand down the block along 7th Street, for the edification of passersby on busy K Street.

The Acme Theatre was opened in 1903 by Charles William Godard, a former blacksmith. He enjoyed considerable success in his new enterprise, and by 1913 he was also operating the Liberty and Majestic (later Mission) theaters in Sacramento. In 1915, he opened his Godard Theatre, last known as the Rio Theatre.

Here is an extract from a biographical sketch of Mr. Godard published in 1913:

“The business with which Mr. Godard became identified in October of 1903 and which has engaged his attention from that time to the present, forms one of the well-known amusement ventures for which the city has gained a wide reputation. As proprietor and owner of three theaters, known as the Liberty, Majestic and Acme Theaters, he has developed the use of moving pictures for entertainment, amusement and education. Some of the films exhibited in his theaters are exceptionally fine and have attracted admiring comment from critics, while all have been selected with experienced judgment and artistic appreciation.”