Times Theatre
4847 N. Milwaukee Avenue,
Chicago,
IL
60630
4847 N. Milwaukee Avenue,
Chicago,
IL
60630
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Duke Ellington’s orchestra played here several times: Sunday November 10 1957 Sunday, August 20 1961. (contract signed with Mr. Dan Belloc, and the contract shows the venue as Holiday Club Ballroom in the contract.) Sunday September 30, 1962 Sunday May 31, 1964
Listings stopped in 1954.
This opened on December 25th, 1936. Its grand opening ad is in the photo section.
it was in the ‘80s—not the '70s as stated in the theatre overview—the razing of the times theatre & adjacent bldgs. for the strip mall. The neat THSA photo showing Leonard Seed store right next door reminded me that I shopped there myself in the early '80s, when it was a handyman fix-it shop. Also there was a Foot-So-Port shoe store there too I liked (they re-located to by the portage theatre in subsequent years)
Here is a THSA photo of the art deco front of the Times.
I know the Holiday Ballroom hung on until the mid 1980s. I have a photo of the back of it on my Flickr photostream http://www.flickr.com/photos/52209513@N03/6307805652/in/set-72157628174409751
The CTA “3400 Series” Flxibles spent their last few years on routes serving the Jefferson Park Transit Center. Note the mural proudly advertising shopping in Jefferson Park.
The Rock dances continued into the late 70’s.
The Building was owned and operated by Dan Belloc, former band leader and music & record promoter. His name appears on many hit songs including ‘ PRETEND ’ by Nat King Cole.
The last ‘ BIG NAME ’ Big Band to appear here was The Woody Herman Orchestra circa 1976 – 77.
It was NOT a nostalgia concert although they did play a few of their 1940’s hits. The orchestra mainly performed their current style which consisted of Jazz & Jazz Rock – with some 1970’s pop hits of the day ( Jazzman, Alone Again Naturally, Superstar, Where is the Love ) etc. While a few probably tried to dance, it was more of a concert and most everyone just stood on the dance floor listening.
When the Embassy Ballroom sold and ran their official last on Sept 27, 1981, their regular Big Band Dancers were informed the dances would continue at The Holiday Balloom.
Those dances continued until the late 80’s when the ballroom was raised for the New – Jefferson Park terminal expansion.
The Jeff has its own page here on CT: /theaters/18099/.
Another theatre in the Jefferson Park area was Jeff. It was located on Milwaukee Ave. about two blocks south of Lawrence. As I recall it was a run down dump.
Here is a 1982 photo. Not sure about the art deco, but I suppose that was before the remodel into the dance place.
http://tinyurl.com/c7an78
P.S. left off my e-mail
I am writing an article on old movie houses in or near Jefferson Park, Chicago; if anyone has any photos available inside or out of the building, either as the Times or the Holiday Ballroom please contact me. Also looking for photos of the Jefferson Nickelodeon, Gateway, Portage and Patio. Were there any others nearby that I didn’t mention? I will try the Library and Historical Society files too. Roughly looking between Cicero & Austin, Irving and Bryn Mawr Ave’s.
I was at that Ramones show. So its gone now, huh? Too bad – it was a nice place.
The Times was open at least through October 1956. From the Chicago Tribune Wed. Oct. 10, 1956: TIMES 4847 MILWAUKEE Open 5:30 “THE TENDER TRAP” “JOHNNY GUITAR”.
I saw The Ramones there for the 1st time during the fall of 1980,labeled as The Holiday Ballroom on my ticket stub.
I went to the nightclub in the 60’s, which was known as the Holiday Ballroom North. It was still very much like a movie theater inside, except that the floor was leveled for dancing. The entire block and theater was leveled in the 70’s to make room for a strip mall and the Jefferson Park Elevated station bus terminal.