Empire Theatre
394 Bank Street,
New London,
CT
06320
394 Bank Street,
New London,
CT
06320
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Additional Info
Previous Names: Music Hall, New London Opera House, Nickel Theatre
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Originally the Music Hall, it was renamed New London Opera House on December 3, 1885. It began screening movies in 1905. On December 18, 1906 it was renamed Nickel Theatre. It became the Empire Theatre on October 11, 1909 with two acts of vaudeville & movies. It was closed on August 30, 1950 with Ann Corio in “Sarong Girl” & Zorita in “I Married a Savage”.
The building was then used for storage by the Wholesale Grocery Co. On February 14, 1957 it was badly damaged in a fire. It was soon demolished.
Contributed by
Ken Roe
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Recent comments (view all 3 comments)
The July 3, 1910, issue of The Film Index said that the Empire Theatre of New London, Connecticut, would close for two weeks for repairs. It didn’t reveal the nature of the repairs.
Opened October 11th, 1909. Grand opening ad posted.
The Music Hall became the New London Opera House on December 3, 1885. The New London Opera House began mixing in motion pictures in 1905.
It made a wise decision to lean toward film programming becoming the Nickel Theatre for Bullock & Davis on December 18, 1906. Bullock & Davis were so successful with the concept that they built the larger Orpheum Theatre nearby. They left and a dispute over the resumption of the Nickel Theatre took place by a new operator, Moran Bros. They settled the lawsuit leading to a name change there on October 11, 1909 resuming after the reboot with films and live vaudeville as the Empire Theatre.
The Empire added sound to remain commercially viable. It would last until 1950 when it bit hard. The Empire Theatre was cited for 13 safety violations in August 31, 1950 that had to be addressed or it would be shut down. Now operated Schwartz & O'Connell, Inc., they chose the later walking away. The Empire ended with “Sarong Girl” and “I Married a Savage Girl.” The Opera House turned Empire Theatre was devastated by a February 14, 1957 fire and the Empire was toppled by demolitionists. The building had been converted for the Wholesale Grocery Co.