Main Street Theatre
319 Main Street South,
Sauk Centre,
MN
56378
319 Main Street South,
Sauk Centre,
MN
56378
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In 1979, Bob and Mary Douvier decided the original 38-inches in between rows of seats was not very comfortable and installed new seats with 42-inches between rows, bringing the capacity of the auditorium to 288. In 1988 a second screen was added when a space opened up next door. This 90-seat auditorium allowed the theater to play more variety and hold over blockbusters for extra nights.
Additional theaters and screens were added, one in 1993 and another in 1997. Two upstairs auditoriums were added in 2004, bringing the total number of screens to six.
The Main Street Theatre opened its doors as a 553-seat single-screener on March 7, 1939 with Douglas Fairbanks Jr. in “The Young In Heart” and Frank McGlynn, Sr. in “Lincoln In The White House” along with the Merrie Melodies cartoon “Robin Hood Makes Good”. The Main Street Theatre is also a replacement of the Oxford Theatre nearby which closed following the Main Street Theatre’s grand opening. It was first operated by Mr. and Mrs. F.L. Parsons.
Information about the Main Street Theatre as of 1939 goes as follows: The lobby inside has two 40x60in sign boards and featured rounded ceilings. There is also indirect lighting of neon tubing in the ceiling, as well as a drinking fountain in the center along the east wall of the foyer. There are two sets for doors leading in and out of the theater, one for the exit and the other for the entrance. 320 yards of heavy fireproof carpeting was used around the theater. The lounge was decorated in green and three shades of tan, which featured an ornamental fireplace and a large peach colored mirror measuring 2x5ft. To the right of the lounge is the puff room for the ladies where a 24in round peach-colored mirror was installed for the bathrooms. At the left of the lounge is the smoking room and the men’s bathroom. There is also a cry room at the second floor of the lounge with a large glass making the room sound proof, one can hear the show plainly through the installation of a specially constructed loudspeaker. The access to both the lounge and the cry room are made by te stairway to the right of the foyer.
The original auditorium measures 100x35ft and has an original capacity of 553 coral and tan-colored upholstered seats as well as a floor slant arranged for perfect viewing. The seats are 20in wide and they are spaced 32in back-to-back. The original screen measures 13x18ft and have rear exit doors on each side of the screen in case of an emergency. The original curtains and drapes are dipped in green and gold and decorations featured three shades of tan, three shades of green, and three shades of cream, all harmoniously blended. There is also lighting effects throughout which extend across the auditorium with 500 globes in three different colors: red, green, and amber, and can change through six different combinations. Eight X-ray lights in the ceiling were used for lighting during intermissions and five of these same lights above the stage were installed in vaudeville performances. Two spotlights, one on each side of the auditorium, also throw color combinations into the curtain and change automatically. The original projection room measures 10x15ft and features two Simplex E7 projectors, Peerless Magnac high intensity lamps, Western Electric Mirrophonic sound, and a Griswold film splicer inside a special room.
Now 3 screens. Website: http://www.mainstreettheatremn.com/
Here is an August 1978 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/yg4xsmm
Here is a 1941 photo from Life Magazine:
http://tinyurl.com/5bhxoe
Here is a more recent photo:
http://tinyurl.com/lwo3r
This is a 1957 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/jkczu
Here is a photo from 1958:
http://tinyurl.com/f2rqt