Biograph Theater
2433 N. Lincoln Avenue,
Chicago,
IL
60657
2433 N. Lincoln Avenue,
Chicago,
IL
60657
32 people
favorited this theater
Showing 51 - 75 of 136 comments
Supposedly filming for “Public Enemies” will happen on the 20th. So far, scenes have been shot at the Pittsfield Building, Clark and Newport, Union Station, a church at 2259 S Damen, 18th & Throop, 106th & Torrence, 35th & King (Probably the Bronzeville Cultural Center)
More historic Dillinger sites: View link
That should read a false front facade. The other two nearby buildings are getting them too, and they are temporary, unfortunately.
Currently, the recently built building two doors down (home to a Qdoba) from the Biograph is receiving a false floor facade, presumably for the John Dillinger biopic starring Johnny Depp. It looks quite faithful to the actual grocery store that used to be there, and I hope they keep it up as it looks a lot better with it. Ironically, this may mean the insignificant grocery two doors away from the Biograph will have a more historically accurate appearance than the Biograph itself. It’s a shame the interior wasn’t restored for other scenes…
In other news, the debt Victory Gardens incurred in the extravagant Biograph work has forced it to sell its longtime home down the street. In another irony, the sale includes a covenant that it remain a theater for 25 years; the Victory Gardens, then, will be preserved in the way the Biograph wasn’t.
The cornice has recently been repainted to match the terra cotta and the old lighting sockets in it were covered over, so it’s unlikely we’ll ever see that lighting function again. I’m not sure if the color is historically accurate or not.
The building looks great. Very uplifting. Every time I drive through that intersection it catches my eye.
This link will take you directly to the Biograph http://www.mekong.net/random/cinema14.htm however, I recommend using the link in the above post to check out many good pictures of Chicago Cinemas. Just keep clicking on “next set” after you view each set of photos.
The Biograph was extensively modernized by Cineplex-Odeon (refer to my above post. For additional views of the auditoriums in the post C-O era, click on here http://www.mekong.net/random/cinema4a.htm and then find the set that has the Biograph.
All of the Cineplex-Odeon details are present. Look at the carpet, the zig-zag patterns on the wall (Cinemark Fan would enjoy that, he’s asked me if several former C-Os had that pattern). It was true that a lot of historic details were lost. But it was an attempt by C-O to modernize its theatres and it didn’t look too bad (or more accurately it didn’t look as bad as some “modernizations”) Cineplex-Odeon entered the Chicago Market with good intentions, however the company really over-extended itself.
Some video of the restored marquee
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eS3ZHnVokHM
Ad for the Biograph, Chicago Tribune, Friday, July 22, 1960 (theatre section):
BIOGRAPH, 26th anniversary of Dillinger’s killing in front of the Biograph! See it now at this theatre where it happened! James Stewart “The FBI Story” plus Myron Healy as John Dillinger in “Guns Don’t Argue” Open 1:30 Cool!
The Dillinger police shoot-out was not the only one that took place in, or near, a Chicago movie theatre, as the following news item explains:
Chicago Daily News, Thursday, August 18, 1955, p. 5, c. 9:
DILLINGER, DURKIN, AMEDEO
RECALL OTHER HUNTS FOR COP-KILLERS
The biggest—and bloodiest—manhunts in Chicago history have always been staged in the tracking down of cop killers. The search for Richard Carpenter recalls other names: John Dillinger, Martin J. Durkin, Gus Amedeo. The search for Durkin ended in his capture. The hunts for Dillinger and Amedeo ended with their deaths.
The bloodiest of manhunts was staged for the notorious Dillinger. Sixteen men lost their lives in the months he was being sought. Several of the dead were policemen, jail guards and an Ohio sheriff. Others were hoodlums and Dillinger himself. Dillinger was shot down by FBI men July 22, 1934, as he left the Biograph theater, 2433 Lincoln. This is three miles from the Biltmore theater, where policeman Clarence Kerr staged a gunfight Wednesday night with Carpenter.
Gus Amedeo was shot 13 times last Oct. 29 by police who had searched the city for the cop killer. He died in a gun duel at Clark and Berwyn, where police intercepted him, a few minutes after he left a movie at the Calo theater, 5401 Clark. Amedeo was wanted for the slaying of Detective Charles Annerino, who tried to arrest the killer in a saloon.
The hunt in 1925 for Durkin, slayer of federal agent Edwin C. Shanahan and once indicted for the slaying of Police Sgt. Harry Gray, was staged by hundreds of police and FBI men. It led from Chicago to Hollywood and back to St. Louis, where Durkin was captured and sent to prison.
Please see under Calo and Biltmore theatres for information concerning the Carpenter and Amedeo shoot-outs.
Meridian, yes, from 1998-2000.
Didn’t a short-lived chain called Meridien (or something like that) operate the Biograph for awhile?
My close up black and white photo of the BIOGRAPH.
www.flickr.com/photos/lastpictureshow/349822888
Brian is correct about the Marquee orginally having ribbons with two colors. If you look at View link you can see a picture that claims to be right after Dilliger was shot. Also Brian is right about the lettering on the old sign being different. In the photo it is a black background with white letters. This being said I do like the new marquee. It is a very good job, glad to see the used actual light bulbs! Only compaint is that I think they could have made the Victory Gardens a little bit bigger on the sign.
Here are my photos of the Biograph.
This theater certainly has interesting history with its connection to the infamous Dillinger name!
That article is here
Good article in the WA POST on the grand re-opening and festivities.
Well yeah! I agree it looks cool. I’m just saying is all.
You know what? Entertain all the historical accuracy arguments you want. It looks pretty damn cool! Well done!!!
Agreed.
Per the free newspaper SKYLINE (which is a neighborhood newspaper run by Pioneer Press), the marquee was lit on September 28, 2006.
No matter what some of the above posters have said, I’m GLAD that Victory Gardens took over the Biograph. It is wonderful that it will be used for performing arts instead of being converted to condos or retail or demolished. Let’s be real, the Biograph had been losing money for years as a cinema and that’s what would have happened to it had Victory Gardens not stepped in. I can’t wait to attend a play here.
Brian – so sorry I missed you! I will be around the theater today at about noon – perhaps you can come by? I will also be around next week most days as well- I know you still want to get in the electrical room and see the plaster lady. I still have some facade work that will occur over the next few weeks, and would love to see the photos you have before I finalize. Thanks! Tracy
Thanks again for the reply, Tracy, I really do appreciate it. I’ll be there tonight, and i’ll bring photos, so we could perhaps discuss it? I wear a green jacket.
Thanks for your feedback, Brian. There are a couple of points I would like to clarify. I am not sure what “ribbon” you mean, but it is my understanding have researched this that we have detailed it to the 30s look. The underside of the canopy is again a recreation of the 30s look. From all photos I saw the Essaness lettering did not look neonized, so we did not include neon in the Victory Gardens lettering. The lettering boards are an exact replica of the original lettering boards and use black channel letters that hook onto the sign. White letters would not show against the white background. No letters have been put up yet, as they arrived at the site approximately an hour ago. The areas that you refer to as gray texturized cement are not yet complete, so the current look does not relfect the finished look. The final look will be a black cement plaster with a high gloss finish, and yes, the poster cases are going back up. I don’t know where you saw the green pulsichrome terra cotta, there certainly was no evidence of it existing when we removed the metal panels that had been added in the eighties, and as we only have black and white photos available from that time, we can’t really speculate whether it may have been green at some point. Hope this helps!