Owen Theatre
227 Central Avenue,
Owen,
WI
54460
227 Central Avenue,
Owen,
WI
54460
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Additional Info
Previous Names: Idle Hour Theatre
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Opened as the Idle Hour Theatre in the early, 1910’s It was damaged by a fire in an adjacent building and was rebuilt in 1919. In 1937 it was renamed Owen Theatre. It was closed in late-December 1986.
It was converted into a warehouse. It still stands in 2025, use unknown,
Contributed by
Bryan Krefft
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Recent comments (view all 1 comments)
The Owen Theatre began as the Idle Hour Theatre operated by the Collins family in the silent era, with films accompanied by young female pianists. Fire later destroyed the adjacent Griebenow-Weirich Hardware Store, damaging the theatre. Both were rebuilt in the summer of 1919, with a shared party wall and an agreement that continued almost 70 years.
In 1926, then-owner the H.E. Spaulding family sold the theatre to J. J. Schultz, who operated it for three years before selling it to Ben Krom who in 1931 redecorated the interior.
In April 1937 the exploitation studio Educational Road Show Pictures four-walled “Shame” for a midnight screening with a 35 cent admission to those over 16 years, telling of “the disappearance of 75,000 young girls yearly”. That year the name changed to Owen Theatre with a new marquee and a lighted vertical sign spelling out “Owen”.
In 1938, the Owen Theatre was purchased by George Krom, who sold it eight years later to Paul Stasek and Leonard Hamm. In 1949, the Owen Theatre was purchased by Virgil and Clarence Callahan, and the next year was taken over by Robert and Pauline Habighorst, whose family had spent thirty years with the Owen Theatre.
In 1981, family friend Judy Vollrath and her husband Phil took over the Owen through a land contract with daughter Katie Habighorst and her siblings. They painted the entire auditorium by themselves and installed a Dolby stereo sound system.
By 1986 the Vollraths were feeling the effects of cable TV and home video, and closed the doors just before that Christmas after a free Santa Claus show, the final feature, “ a terribly sad day,” said Judy Vollrath. “We took time cleaning that day and we were so sad. The time finally came to leave and we stood at the door after we locked it. I, of course, was in tears, and Phil was unbelievably sad.”
The Owen Theatre was converted to use as a shipping warehouse. The popcorn machine was donated to the school; some seats went to the Abbotsford Theatre, and some to a church.