Kinema Theatre
1211 Fulton Street,
Fresno,
CA
93721
1211 Fulton Street,
Fresno,
CA
93721
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Additional Info
Previously operated by: Fox West Coast Theatres
Architects: G. Albert Lansburgh
Styles: Moorish
Previous Names: Fox Kinema, Rivoli Theatre
Nearby Theaters
The Kinema Theater was in operation from 1913 until it was destroyed by fire in 1919. It was designed by architect G.H. King.
A new Kinema Theatre was built on the site, designed by architect G. Albert Lansburgh which opened in 1920. On April 9, 1952 it was renamed Rivoli Theatre and closed in 1954. It was torn down in December 1957.
Contributed by
William Gabel
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Recent comments (view all 20 comments)
Click here for a photograph of the Kinema Theatre taken in 1930 by George Mann of the comedy dance team, Barto & Mann.
Very nice photo and slideshow Brad.
Two cards in the L.A. Library’s California Index cite articles that raise questions about the reported history of this theater. The 1913 Kinema might have been expanded, or replaced by a new building, in 1920.
A May 24, 1913, item in Southwest Contractor and Manufacturer says that San Francisco architect G.F. King had prepared plans for the $35,000 Kinema Theatre, to be built on J Street (since renamed Fulton Street) in Fresno.
A January 30, 1920 item in the successor publication, Southwest Builder & Contractor, said that Albert G. Lansburgh would prepeare plans for the $200,000 Kinema Theatre which was to be built at 1317-1321 J Street in Fresno.
I don’t know what the conflicting address is about (perhaps it was an error by the magazine), but a 1920 report of a Kinema being designed by Lansburgh, coupled with the low cost of the 1913 Kinema, suggests that either there were two theaters of this name in Fresno, or that Lansburgh’s design of 1920 was for a major expansion of the original 1913 theater. I’ve been unable to find any clarification of this mystery on the Internet. Fresno newspapers from 1920 might provide the answer, if somebody has access to them.
I should add that the theater in the 1930 photo linked in Brad Smith’s comment above does not look like anything that would have been built in 1913. The Spanish Colonial Revival style of the exterior was launched in California by the Panama-California Exposition, held in San Diego in 1915. By 1920, the date of the Lansburgh design for the Kinema, it was all the rage.
I wasn’t sure this was a photograph of the Kinema Theatre. If not the Kinema, is it possible it’s the White Theatre?
Photo of outside from Pop Laval on facebook
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David
aztecatheater.com
I’ve finally discovered what happened to the original Kinema Theatre designed by G. H. King and opened in 1913, and why it was rebuilt in 1920. Here is an item from the July 21, 1920, issue of Building & Engineering News:
Kinema theater proposal
Kinema Theater proposal Sun, May 11, 1913 – 9 · The Fresno Morning Republican (Fresno, California) · Newspapers.com
The Kinema theatre opened on November 20th, 1913.
Reopened as Rivoli on April 9th, 1952. Grand opening ad posted.
Motion Picture Herald, Jan. 19, 1952: “At the close of business January 12, Fox West Coast swapped theatres with Gamble and O'Keefe. The Tower, Fresno, is now operated by them and G&O have the Kinema there.”