Lyric Theatre

The Lyric Theatre was one of two live venues at the beginning of the 20th Century that provided live entertainment to the Ennis community. The Lyric Theatre experimented with some film but stayed live into the 1910’s. In 1912, the Grand Theatre opened and dedicated to film exhibition. That’s where the profits seemed to be. In 1914, E.H. Fabian bought the Lyric Theatre to change to a policy of motion picture presentations. Fabian secured a Wurlitzer organ - Style “B” 2 Manuals - 4 Ranks to present films.

The first Lyric Theatre have suffered a fire in 1922 that, though it was repaired, led to plans for a new and larger Lyric Theatre. (The 1922 Lyric Theatre may have also been a second Lyric Theatre location.) A larger 600-seat New Lyric Theatre was announced and opened in 1924 by Joe Baldridge, Jr. and Joe F. Houdek to the plans of Corsicana architect Harry O. Blanding. The theatre would open on 1925 only to suffer a damaging fire and close again. It was reopened in 1926, later converted to sound to remain viable, and would fall into common ownership with the competing Jewel Theatre and Grand Theatre when Hughes-Franklin (H-F) Theatres purchased the town’s theatre’s in 1930. The Jewel Theatre was not converted to sound and discontinued.

H-F divested itself of most properties just two years later. Mr. and Mrs. John Sayeg of the Grand Theatre and former Jewel Theatre took on the Lyric Theatre to control both of the town’s remaining theatres in 1932. Finding it insufficient to present sound films effectively, the Sayegs built the new Plaza Theatre opening in 1933. The Plaza Theatre’s opening led to the permanent closure of the Lyric Theatre. It was converted for other purposes.

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