Lee, THANK YOU for writing. Please write in with ANY memory of what the Princess looked like. Same for the Suzore. Thus far, no photos or descriptions have turned up for either hall. Sometimes childhood memories can be vivid.
If you were downtown during the early ‘50’s surely you went to the Strand, the two Loew’s theatres and the Malco. Hope you’ll reminisce about all of them.
WHW, thank you. I had completely forgotten about the collage behind the concession stand. It realy was the only decorative element in any MALCO hall that I ever visited and it was WELL done.
The organ was Wurlitzer’s opus 372 which had been built for the Capitol Theatre in Macon Georgia (q.v.) in 1920. It was relocated to the York in December 1925. It was a model 135a, which is 4 ranks of pipes (Trumpet, Salicional, Flute, Vox Humana), tuned percussions, traps, sound effects and piano.
Seems Chattanooga had 4 Wurlitzers: the York/Cameo, the State, the Tivoli and St Elmo’s Methodist, an original Wurlitzer church installation.
Interesting! I have been talking to the owner of a disassembled ‘F’ and his story is that it was removed from a Coconut Grove theatre in the early 1960’s. It has been in storage ever since. I’ve been reading David Junchen’s/Jeff Weiler’s “Wurlitzer, A Pictoral History” and infer that when some theatres defaulted on their payments, the organs were never actually removed as the cost of removal and storage would be higher than the resale cost.
Thanks for the tip on the possible original location.
The Wurlitzer factory records show that a Style ‘F’ organ, opus 1322 (2 manuals, 8 ranks, divided between 2 chambers)was shipped to the “New Theatre” in Coconut Grove FL in April 1926. Was that THIS theatre? Was “new theatre” just a generic name used at the factory or was this (or another hall in Coconut Grove) actually called the “New Theatre?”
Chuck, thanks for the exceptional photo. I had to laugh, because it makes the building seem very big. I remember standing on the sidewalk and resting both hands on the edge of the marquee: it must not be much over 7'-6" above the pavement. When I last saw the Ritz, it was being used as a vending machine storage warehouse. All the doors were unlocked and no one was around, so I made myself at home. Everything from the theatre days was still in place, including the seats, but there were various coin-op machines in the aisles, on the stage, in the lobby, in the balcony etc.
Jack, excellent photos! What’s even more amazing is that not only the theatre was torn down, but the 11 story ArtDeco office building was taken down too. Just before it was demolished (1987), I talked with the developer (long story) who was planning to take down the theatre and the Warner Building. I then walked the theatre with the maintenance man who had worked at the theatre for almost its entire existance. Both of them were absolutely convenced that neither could be economically renovated. The main reason they gave for demolishing the Warner Building was that it couldn’t be air conditioned because the floor to floor height was too close: not enough room for ductwork. I now know for certain that THAT was drivel. The Tennessee Theatre, of course hadn’t been used for about 8 years at that point. It was looking pretty dusty and time worn, but was still completely intact. When I saw it last, the seats and light fixtures were still in place.
Two big strikes against the Tennessee were its stage and its stage. The proscenium was only about 40 feet wide, narrow for concerts or touring shows. Not TOO narrow, but pushing it. Likewise, the stage depth was shallow, if it was 25 feet from the foot lights to the back wall I’d be surprized. Again, workable, but not good for trying to use the hall in a modern setting. Also, due to the fall of the land, the stage’s loading doors were about two stories above the sidewalk. (Interestingly exactly the same as the Tennessee Theatre in Knoxville). It can be made to work, but it takes dedication and committment, neither of which anyone in Nashville was willing to apply to this handsome hall.
The auditorium was indeed interesting. The arches that crossed the auditorium from side to side had 3 different colored lighting circuits- blue, red and white. The murals on the auditorium’s side walls had black lights on the to make them glow in the dark. The main curtain and valance were reddish orange and “warmed” by the stage’s foot lights.
The Tennessee’s 2-story tall lobby walls were veneered in an almost-orange marble. All this orange obviously chosen by a University of Tennessee sports fan.
The auditorium was exceptionally long and narrow though. If I remember correctly, the last orchestra row was HH, making 32 rows (figuring omitting rows I and O as usual). Likewise, the balcony was very deep. While that was acceptible for movies, it is far from ideal for use in a modern stage-oriented theatre.
NOT that I’m defending the Tennessee’s destruction, only pointing out that had it been saved, we’d still have a hall that faced serious challenges for contemporary use. The greater loss by far was Nashville’s Paramount.
The building that stands on the Tennessee’s site now is fairly forgetable. It is taller than the Warner was, has air conditioning and is mostly residential (I believe). At least it isn’t a parking lot as is the case with the Paramount site.
The Commons 6 was a nice hall as suburban halls went, which it did as soon as Carmike opened the 17 screen Windsong 17 the street. The building was torn down and a completely new retail store was built on the site. When in Knoxville do visit the former site of the Commons 6 as one of the best Asian restaurants is right next door. “Taste of Tai” is worth the trip to Knoxville.
Lou, looking forward to the book. Sounds like a jewel. My mom (age 80) grew up in Nashville and so maybe those “of a certain age” never called it the Vendome, but when she talks about the Loew’s in downtown Nashville, she always means the Loew’s Cresent. And you know, mother is NEVER wrong. Just ask her.
Actually Gail, the old “colored” box office still exists too. It is hidden behind new solid metal doors that were installed in the 1982 renovation. Several remodelings have changed the path of the stairs that once led from the Beale Street box office up to the segregated balcony. The result is that, opening those doors reveals the old box office window and the steps rising into the darkness. A floor has been inserted over the stairs at the 2nd floor level to create a storage closet in the former stair-well.
The old Beale Street box office is now used by the concessions manager. There once was a small marquee on Beale Street too: that has been removed.
In the Knoxville News-Sentinal Wednesday November 8, 2006, section “C” is a short article about this theatre closing due to competition from the big chains, cost of upgrading to digital and declining income. It does mention the address 3800 Neal Road as the site and that the 1 acre parcel would probably be converted into other commercial uses.
The article mentions that the “theatre opened in 1983, was renovated twice and had three screens added in the 1990’s…”
The theatre reportedly closed on October 23, 2006.
When and why? 1978 and it wasn’t making enough money for the ower.
In the 1960’s these old theatres were considered a dime-a-dozen – every town had a beat-up Loew’s that had been butchered for Cinerama, a Paramount that hadn’t been painted in 40 years, a Warner with seats that were harder than oak church pews, the balcony at your local Orpheum hadn’t seen anyone but a couple of ushers sneeking cigarettes since Fred & Ginger had danced across the screen, the stage curtains at your Majestic were rotting, the lights were half burned out at your United Artists, the marquee at your Bijou didn’t have all its neon burning anymore.
The land all those glorius, abused, magnificient, drafty old theatres was sitting on was prime realestate for a concrete and steel office building or a parking lot for the neighboring department store to try and lure customers back from the suburbs.
Jack Coursey had some sad, but compelling photos of the Paramount as it was being torn down at
Actually, I mis-spoke: there were four on Church – Paramount, Tennessee, Cresent (later Loew’s Cresent) and Vendome (later Loew’s Vendome). And just off Church were the 5th Avenue and the Knickerbocker. Of the list, the Paramount was the grandest, the Vendome the oldest.
There must have been others but I haven’t done the research to unearth them. I do have an old Nashville post card that show’s a sign in the distance that clearly reads “Orpheum” but it could be that one of the other halls was booking Orpheum vaudeville and it wasn’t a theatre named Orpheum – you know the Audacious Theatre presents Orpheum Vaudeville and Lubish Film favorites at popular prices – that sort of thing.
Patsy, I think you confuse our Fox with a much older, finer hall. This was just a plain-jane, 1960’s box on the highway: it’s nothing worth resurrecting. Only the name “Fox” connects it to the extraordinary buildings in Atlanta, Detroit and St. Louis.
This is something of a tangent, but the man, W. C. Handy, lived and worked in Memphis during the early 1900’s. There is an interesting article at Wikipedia
that gives a good outline of his life. A statue of Handy stands on Beale Street near Fourth, placed there long after the old Handy theatre had been abandonded. A performance space named after him seems a much more fitting tribute than a statue, though I doubt the Orpheum, which stands at Main and Beale, will be renamed any time soon. It seems doubtful the theatre in Orange Mound will be saved.
And to finish off the digression, Beale Street seems to have become Beale “Street” because of W.C. Handy’s tune Beale Street Blues. Typically, Memphis' East/West thoroughfares are “Avenues” and supposedly, the name Beale Avenue was changed due to the popularity of the song.
I attended Western Kentucky University from 1980 to 1982 and this was the closest theatre to the campus: an easy 10 minute walk from the top of “the hill.” The last film I remember seeing at the State was “The Postman Always Rings Twice” (the Jack Nicholson, Jessica Lange version). My memory of the building is not sharp, but I recall it being in good condition, a long, sloped floor lobby, streamlined, curving walls and a dark, cool interior.
The only thing that really stands out is a ridiculous detail: the marquee was an asymetrical triangle, one long face and one short face. College street is/was one-way and the long side faced the wrong way. On-coming traffic only saw the short side and the somewhat abbreviated text.
The State does stand on Fountain Square which is one of the loveliest public squares around. The other theatre on Fountain Square, the art deco style Capitol, (q.v.) has been beautifully restored.
A friend of mine grew up in Gatlinburg. She sent the following reminiscence:
The Gatlinburg Cinema was first the Jerry Lewis Cinema, and I remember well when it opened. Living above it in Rattlesnake Hollow, my sister and I thought it was pretty cool not only to have a movie theater in town (we always had to go to knoxville before then to see movies) but to be able to walk to it —wow.
Our dad walked us down the hill to the very first movie, “The Cowboys” with John Wayne. I remember feeling very adult because they
said the word “shit” in it.
I also remember when the mysterious “The Exorcist” showed there because we would monitor the crowds, like it was a big event.
The same movie would play for a couple of weeks, I guess.
I do remember going to some sort of monster show in 7th grade, I think. It was more of a live, theater thing, supposed to be very scary. It didn’t scare me and I was disappointed.
I attended Western Kentucky University during the period when the theatre was being renovated. Through some friends of friends I got a tour of the building right before it reopened in 1981. As the building is – and seems to have always been – quite plain inside, one oddity in the auditorium stands out in my mind.
High on the side wall, house left, is something that looks for all the world like a metal rain gutter. It runs almost the entire length of the auditorium. Nobody knew for sure what it was for: a cove light trough? a chase for ropes to pull the main curtain from the projection booth? a piece of deocoration? a make-do fix for a leaky roof?
Since no one could say for sure what it was, and in an effort to maintain any and all decorative details that still existed, it was painted a lovely old-gold and left right where it was.
It’s been 25 years since I’ve been in the theatre: wonder if it’s still there.
LuisV, the link in the opening post under “Related Websites” has an option called “virtual tour” and it did work for me just now. You’ll find some professional photos there of the interior and another view of the predecessor building. Cheers!
Jack and Lost Memory, I’ve found an old image of the Vendome and have it in JPEG format. If you’d like a copy for your files I’d be happy to e-mail it to you. Feel free to contact me through my personal link below.
Lee, THANK YOU for writing. Please write in with ANY memory of what the Princess looked like. Same for the Suzore. Thus far, no photos or descriptions have turned up for either hall. Sometimes childhood memories can be vivid.
If you were downtown during the early ‘50’s surely you went to the Strand, the two Loew’s theatres and the Malco. Hope you’ll reminisce about all of them.
WHW, thank you. I had completely forgotten about the collage behind the concession stand. It realy was the only decorative element in any MALCO hall that I ever visited and it was WELL done.
The organ was Wurlitzer’s opus 372 which had been built for the Capitol Theatre in Macon Georgia (q.v.) in 1920. It was relocated to the York in December 1925. It was a model 135a, which is 4 ranks of pipes (Trumpet, Salicional, Flute, Vox Humana), tuned percussions, traps, sound effects and piano.
Seems Chattanooga had 4 Wurlitzers: the York/Cameo, the State, the Tivoli and St Elmo’s Methodist, an original Wurlitzer church installation.
LM, I don’t find a listing for Brue’s New Theater on CT. Is there another, later name?
Interesting! I have been talking to the owner of a disassembled ‘F’ and his story is that it was removed from a Coconut Grove theatre in the early 1960’s. It has been in storage ever since. I’ve been reading David Junchen’s/Jeff Weiler’s “Wurlitzer, A Pictoral History” and infer that when some theatres defaulted on their payments, the organs were never actually removed as the cost of removal and storage would be higher than the resale cost.
Thanks for the tip on the possible original location.
The Wurlitzer factory records show that a Style ‘F’ organ, opus 1322 (2 manuals, 8 ranks, divided between 2 chambers)was shipped to the “New Theatre” in Coconut Grove FL in April 1926. Was that THIS theatre? Was “new theatre” just a generic name used at the factory or was this (or another hall in Coconut Grove) actually called the “New Theatre?”
Chuck, thanks for the exceptional photo. I had to laugh, because it makes the building seem very big. I remember standing on the sidewalk and resting both hands on the edge of the marquee: it must not be much over 7'-6" above the pavement. When I last saw the Ritz, it was being used as a vending machine storage warehouse. All the doors were unlocked and no one was around, so I made myself at home. Everything from the theatre days was still in place, including the seats, but there were various coin-op machines in the aisles, on the stage, in the lobby, in the balcony etc.
Jack, excellent photos! What’s even more amazing is that not only the theatre was torn down, but the 11 story ArtDeco office building was taken down too. Just before it was demolished (1987), I talked with the developer (long story) who was planning to take down the theatre and the Warner Building. I then walked the theatre with the maintenance man who had worked at the theatre for almost its entire existance. Both of them were absolutely convenced that neither could be economically renovated. The main reason they gave for demolishing the Warner Building was that it couldn’t be air conditioned because the floor to floor height was too close: not enough room for ductwork. I now know for certain that THAT was drivel. The Tennessee Theatre, of course hadn’t been used for about 8 years at that point. It was looking pretty dusty and time worn, but was still completely intact. When I saw it last, the seats and light fixtures were still in place.
Two big strikes against the Tennessee were its stage and its stage. The proscenium was only about 40 feet wide, narrow for concerts or touring shows. Not TOO narrow, but pushing it. Likewise, the stage depth was shallow, if it was 25 feet from the foot lights to the back wall I’d be surprized. Again, workable, but not good for trying to use the hall in a modern setting. Also, due to the fall of the land, the stage’s loading doors were about two stories above the sidewalk. (Interestingly exactly the same as the Tennessee Theatre in Knoxville). It can be made to work, but it takes dedication and committment, neither of which anyone in Nashville was willing to apply to this handsome hall.
The auditorium was indeed interesting. The arches that crossed the auditorium from side to side had 3 different colored lighting circuits- blue, red and white. The murals on the auditorium’s side walls had black lights on the to make them glow in the dark. The main curtain and valance were reddish orange and “warmed” by the stage’s foot lights.
The Tennessee’s 2-story tall lobby walls were veneered in an almost-orange marble. All this orange obviously chosen by a University of Tennessee sports fan.
The auditorium was exceptionally long and narrow though. If I remember correctly, the last orchestra row was HH, making 32 rows (figuring omitting rows I and O as usual). Likewise, the balcony was very deep. While that was acceptible for movies, it is far from ideal for use in a modern stage-oriented theatre.
NOT that I’m defending the Tennessee’s destruction, only pointing out that had it been saved, we’d still have a hall that faced serious challenges for contemporary use. The greater loss by far was Nashville’s Paramount.
The building that stands on the Tennessee’s site now is fairly forgetable. It is taller than the Warner was, has air conditioning and is mostly residential (I believe). At least it isn’t a parking lot as is the case with the Paramount site.
This is the same theatre as the Commons 6 (q.v.).
No, that theatre was a free standing facility that was torn down. It was gone by the time I moved to Knoxville in 1993.
The Commons 6 was a nice hall as suburban halls went, which it did as soon as Carmike opened the 17 screen Windsong 17 the street. The building was torn down and a completely new retail store was built on the site. When in Knoxville do visit the former site of the Commons 6 as one of the best Asian restaurants is right next door. “Taste of Tai” is worth the trip to Knoxville.
This space has been converted to retail use – a Dollar General I believe. Ironic, since when I was kid, the old Princess was the Dollar General store.
Lou, looking forward to the book. Sounds like a jewel. My mom (age 80) grew up in Nashville and so maybe those “of a certain age” never called it the Vendome, but when she talks about the Loew’s in downtown Nashville, she always means the Loew’s Cresent. And you know, mother is NEVER wrong. Just ask her.
Got a projected publishing date for the book?
Actually Gail, the old “colored” box office still exists too. It is hidden behind new solid metal doors that were installed in the 1982 renovation. Several remodelings have changed the path of the stairs that once led from the Beale Street box office up to the segregated balcony. The result is that, opening those doors reveals the old box office window and the steps rising into the darkness. A floor has been inserted over the stairs at the 2nd floor level to create a storage closet in the former stair-well.
The old Beale Street box office is now used by the concessions manager. There once was a small marquee on Beale Street too: that has been removed.
In the Knoxville News-Sentinal Wednesday November 8, 2006, section “C” is a short article about this theatre closing due to competition from the big chains, cost of upgrading to digital and declining income. It does mention the address 3800 Neal Road as the site and that the 1 acre parcel would probably be converted into other commercial uses.
The article mentions that the “theatre opened in 1983, was renovated twice and had three screens added in the 1990’s…”
The theatre reportedly closed on October 23, 2006.
When and why? 1978 and it wasn’t making enough money for the ower.
In the 1960’s these old theatres were considered a dime-a-dozen – every town had a beat-up Loew’s that had been butchered for Cinerama, a Paramount that hadn’t been painted in 40 years, a Warner with seats that were harder than oak church pews, the balcony at your local Orpheum hadn’t seen anyone but a couple of ushers sneeking cigarettes since Fred & Ginger had danced across the screen, the stage curtains at your Majestic were rotting, the lights were half burned out at your United Artists, the marquee at your Bijou didn’t have all its neon burning anymore.
The land all those glorius, abused, magnificient, drafty old theatres was sitting on was prime realestate for a concrete and steel office building or a parking lot for the neighboring department store to try and lure customers back from the suburbs.
Jack Coursey had some sad, but compelling photos of the Paramount as it was being torn down at
View link
Patsy, please refer to my post of October 3, 2005 at 5:57 a.m. above(thankfully, Pacific time). It begins “Jack, tisk tisk tisk…”
Actually, I mis-spoke: there were four on Church – Paramount, Tennessee, Cresent (later Loew’s Cresent) and Vendome (later Loew’s Vendome). And just off Church were the 5th Avenue and the Knickerbocker. Of the list, the Paramount was the grandest, the Vendome the oldest.
There must have been others but I haven’t done the research to unearth them. I do have an old Nashville post card that show’s a sign in the distance that clearly reads “Orpheum” but it could be that one of the other halls was booking Orpheum vaudeville and it wasn’t a theatre named Orpheum – you know the Audacious Theatre presents Orpheum Vaudeville and Lubish Film favorites at popular prices – that sort of thing.
Patsy, I think you confuse our Fox with a much older, finer hall. This was just a plain-jane, 1960’s box on the highway: it’s nothing worth resurrecting. Only the name “Fox” connects it to the extraordinary buildings in Atlanta, Detroit and St. Louis.
Cheers
Will
This is something of a tangent, but the man, W. C. Handy, lived and worked in Memphis during the early 1900’s. There is an interesting article at Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W_C_Handy
that gives a good outline of his life. A statue of Handy stands on Beale Street near Fourth, placed there long after the old Handy theatre had been abandonded. A performance space named after him seems a much more fitting tribute than a statue, though I doubt the Orpheum, which stands at Main and Beale, will be renamed any time soon. It seems doubtful the theatre in Orange Mound will be saved.
And to finish off the digression, Beale Street seems to have become Beale “Street” because of W.C. Handy’s tune Beale Street Blues. Typically, Memphis' East/West thoroughfares are “Avenues” and supposedly, the name Beale Avenue was changed due to the popularity of the song.
I attended Western Kentucky University from 1980 to 1982 and this was the closest theatre to the campus: an easy 10 minute walk from the top of “the hill.” The last film I remember seeing at the State was “The Postman Always Rings Twice” (the Jack Nicholson, Jessica Lange version). My memory of the building is not sharp, but I recall it being in good condition, a long, sloped floor lobby, streamlined, curving walls and a dark, cool interior.
The only thing that really stands out is a ridiculous detail: the marquee was an asymetrical triangle, one long face and one short face. College street is/was one-way and the long side faced the wrong way. On-coming traffic only saw the short side and the somewhat abbreviated text.
The State does stand on Fountain Square which is one of the loveliest public squares around. The other theatre on Fountain Square, the art deco style Capitol, (q.v.) has been beautifully restored.
A friend of mine grew up in Gatlinburg. She sent the following reminiscence:
The Gatlinburg Cinema was first the Jerry Lewis Cinema, and I remember well when it opened. Living above it in Rattlesnake Hollow, my sister and I thought it was pretty cool not only to have a movie theater in town (we always had to go to knoxville before then to see movies) but to be able to walk to it —wow.
Our dad walked us down the hill to the very first movie, “The Cowboys” with John Wayne. I remember feeling very adult because they
said the word “shit” in it.
I also remember when the mysterious “The Exorcist” showed there because we would monitor the crowds, like it was a big event.
The same movie would play for a couple of weeks, I guess.
I do remember going to some sort of monster show in 7th grade, I think. It was more of a live, theater thing, supposed to be very scary. It didn’t scare me and I was disappointed.
The floors were indeed sticky.
Everything was red I think.
Popcorn to the left. Two entrances.
I attended Western Kentucky University during the period when the theatre was being renovated. Through some friends of friends I got a tour of the building right before it reopened in 1981. As the building is – and seems to have always been – quite plain inside, one oddity in the auditorium stands out in my mind.
High on the side wall, house left, is something that looks for all the world like a metal rain gutter. It runs almost the entire length of the auditorium. Nobody knew for sure what it was for: a cove light trough? a chase for ropes to pull the main curtain from the projection booth? a piece of deocoration? a make-do fix for a leaky roof?
Since no one could say for sure what it was, and in an effort to maintain any and all decorative details that still existed, it was painted a lovely old-gold and left right where it was.
It’s been 25 years since I’ve been in the theatre: wonder if it’s still there.
LuisV, the link in the opening post under “Related Websites” has an option called “virtual tour” and it did work for me just now. You’ll find some professional photos there of the interior and another view of the predecessor building. Cheers!
Jack and Lost Memory, I’ve found an old image of the Vendome and have it in JPEG format. If you’d like a copy for your files I’d be happy to e-mail it to you. Feel free to contact me through my personal link below.