Whitman Theater

35 Temple Street,
Whitman, MA 02382

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Additional Info

Previous Names: Empire Theatre, Warren Theatre

Nearby Theaters

No theaters found within 30 miles

Hidden Treasure

Know very little about this theater. It was owned in the 1950’s by a man named Lloyd Patrican.

Contributed by Richard Doane

Recent comments (view all 15 comments)

rsalters (Ron Salters)
rsalters (Ron Salters) on October 30, 2011 at 10:24 am

Janice- what is the date on your article? And in what publication did it appear?

JaniceJardim
JaniceJardim on November 6, 2011 at 3:42 am

Ron…Page 16 of the Brockton Enterprise-Saturday, June 22, 1968, Correspondent, Mrs. Eleanor Smith.

rsalters (Ron Salters)
rsalters (Ron Salters) on November 6, 2011 at 10:04 am

Janice- OK, thanks. Does the article mention what street it was on? Or anything about being named “Warren Theatre”? The Film Daily Yearbooks say that it was at 35 Temple St., and that Empire and Warren were the same theater. I have also seen a reference to the Empire being located at “750 Main St.” but I don’t know how accurate that is. There is not much about this theater here in Cinema Treasures and the person who set the page up never came back with any additional info.

JaniceJardim
JaniceJardim on November 22, 2011 at 10:45 am

Hi Ron: It could of been 35 Temple Street prior to the Dentist Office that was built on the property where the Theatre originally stood. The address of the Dentist Office is 29 Temple Street. This explains the pictures that I have of the Theatre being torn down and our family Dentist standing on the lot once it was cleared. Interesting enough there is no Main Street in Whitman Massachusetts.

rsalters (Ron Salters)
rsalters (Ron Salters) on November 23, 2011 at 10:19 am

Janice- Thanks; more pieces of the puzzle. It’s tough finding info on some theaters, like this one.

rsalters (Ron Salters)
rsalters (Ron Salters) on December 18, 2011 at 8:06 am

Janice- I see that you have added a photo of the “Comedy” wall hanging. What is its approximate size? (impossible to gauge from the photo). Do you know what museum the other hanging is displayed, and what they have to say about it?

JaniceJardim
JaniceJardim on January 30, 2012 at 7:31 am

Hi Ron, It is 98% zinc, three dimensional, 21 inches in diameter and the circumference 65.94 inches. No, I do not know anything about the other hanging or what museum. It was rumored to be Tragedy.

rsalters (Ron Salters)
rsalters (Ron Salters) on March 10, 2012 at 10:55 am

The obituaries section of today’s Quincy Patriot Ledger contains an obit for Harold E. Hunt Jr of Whitman, age 97. He was a retired electrical engineer, and an Army officer in Europe in WWII. He was also a “movie projectionist and former owner of the Whitman Theatre.” He played tennis until 4 years ago. He, obviously, was someone who could have told us a lot about movie theaters in Whitman and surrounding towns.

JaniceJardim
JaniceJardim on March 30, 2012 at 12:31 pm

Hi Ron, I reached out to the Old Colony Historical Society and they referred me to the Dyer Memorial Library and the Whitman Public Library. I received responses from both. A women from the Whitman Library was excited about my inquiry and will be getting back to me at some point because she did say it would take sometime to research. Then I heard from a woman from Dyer Memorial Library and she referred me to the President of the Whitman Historical Society. I will be meeting with him on April 4th. A follow up email cam from the same woman from the Dyer Memorial Library who replied, “A researcher came in today who grew up in Whitman and knew the Empire Theater and told me that he does remember both of the wall hangings,Comedy and Tragedy. They hung on either side of the stage and screen area. Good luck, hope Mr. Campbell can help you out !”. Interesting enough he informed me of Mr. Hunt and I will be meeting one of his relatives. I want to say it is his son. Anyway, I will fill you in on the details soon.

rsalters (Ron Salters)
rsalters (Ron Salters) on March 31, 2012 at 11:22 am

Janice- that’s good news. There’s nothing like getting info “from the horse’s mouth” (local people). Where is the Dyer Memorial Library? (I know it’s not the same as the Whitman Public Library). Please see if you can untangle the various names— Whitman Theater, Empire Theater, Warren Theater. Were these all names for the same building??? In other words, are we talking about one theater with 3 different names, or 3 different theaters in Whitman? What was the street address, if not 35 Temple St.? And what happened to the “Tragedy” wall hanging? Hope you can get some answers!

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