Bijou Cinema

dallasmovietheaters on January 30, 2021 at 5:26 am

Kiddie Cinema launched Thanksgiving Day, November 27, 1969 showing 16mm kids films. The venue reopened as Shellmel Circuit’s New Kiddie Kinema on April 26, 1970 with “Doctor Doolittle.” The Kiddie concept ended June 27, 1971 with “King Kong v. Godzilla.”

On July 28, 1972, the venue became National Cinema’s Cedar Cinema with repertory double feature films starting with the Marx Brothers in “A Night at the Opera” and “Day at the Races.” On November 29, 1972, National switched to 16mm adult films. Under new inedpendent operation, the Cedar Cinema switched back to repertory films on April 6, 1973. It closed September 6, 1973.

On September 28, 1973 and under independent operator Doug Wright, the fifth operator of the venue, it was renamed the Bijou Cinema staying with repertory films. The opening film was “Zorro’s Fighting Legion” and a Little Rascals festival. The Bijou failed going out of business less than a year later on June 16, 1974.

In August of 1974, the venue went adult as the Bijou Adult Cinema which likely ceased operations at the end of lease on 1979.