 Is there anything sweeter than a beautiful movie palace? 
You probably recognize Grauman's Chinese Theatre, in Los Angeles. These days it's called TCL Chinese Theatre, because it's owned and operated by TCL Corporation—based in China, ironically. Since we write so often about movies we thought it appropriate to discuss the beautiful buildings in which the films were exhibited. Back in the day these were usually purpose-built structures, though some did split duty for stage productions and concerts. While many of these old palaces survive, nearly all surviving vintage cinemas in the U.S. were under threat at some point. Generally, if they hadn't been given historic protection they wouldn't be upright today.
Other times, if a city was poor, real estate costs didn't rise and old buildings stood unthreatened, usually idle. This happened often in the American midwest, where movie houses were neglected for decades before some were resurrected amid downtown revitalizations. It sometimes happens in Latin America too, although occasionally the formula fails. For example, Cartagena's majestic and oft photographed landmark Teatro Colón, located in the historic section of Colombia's most popular coastal tourist city, was torn down fewer than six months ago to make way for a Four Seasons Hotel.
Some of the cinemas below are well known treasures, while others are more unassuming places. But even those lesser known cinemas show how much thought and work was put into making moviegoing a special experience. The last photo, which shows the Butterfly Theatre in Milwaukee, exemplifies that idea. The façade is distinguished by a terra cotta butterfly sculpture adorned with light bulbs. As you might guess, many of the most beautiful large cinemas were in Los Angeles, which means that city is well represented in the collection. Enjoy.
 Paramount Theatre, Oakland (operational).
 Cine Maya, Mérida (demolished).
 The Albee Cinema, Cincinnati (demolished)
 Cooper Theatre, Denver (demolished).
 Paras Cinema, Jaipur (operational).
 Cathay Cinema, Shanghai (operational).
 Academy Theatre, Los Angeles (operational).
 Charlottenburg Filmwerbung, Berlin (demolished).
 Pacific's Cinerama Theatre, Los Angeles (operational).
 York Theatre, Elmhurst (operational).
 La Gaumont-Palace, Paris (demolished).
 Essoldo Cinema, Newcastle (demolished).
 Théâtre Scala, Strasbourg (operational).
 Teatro Colón, Cartagena (demolished in 2018).
 Teatro Coliseo Argentino, Buenos Aires (demolished).
 Pavilion Theater, Adelaide (demolished).
 El Molino Teatro, Barcelona (operational).
 Fox Carthay Theatre, Los Angeles (demolished).
 Kino Rossiya Teatr, Moscow (operational).
 Nippon Gekijo, aka Nichigeki, Tokyo (demolished).
 Cine Impala, Namibe (operational).
 Cine Arenal, Havana (operational).
 Teatro Mérida, Mérida (operational, renamed Teatro Armando Manzanero).
 Ideal Theater, Manila (demolished).
 Odeon Cinema, London (semi-demolished, converted to apartments).
 Mayan Theatre, Los Angeles (operational).
 Rex Cinema, Port au Prince (being restored).
 Urania Kino, Vienna (operational).
 Tampa Theatre, Tampa (operational).
 The Butterfly Theater, Milwaukee (demolished).
 What would you do to get your hands on $3.5 million?  
Gil Brewer wrote a lot of books. Wild rates in the bottom tier, according to most critics. When private detective Lee Baron takes over his father's investigative agency his first case is an old flame asking him to intercede on her behalf with her angry, cuckolded husband. Baron finds not an angry spouse but a mutilated corpse. Arms removed, face chopped apart with a hatchet, it's clear somebody was very angry at him. Or they were trying to obscure his identity—which means the corpse might not be the husband at all. When Baron uncovers a connection to a $400,000 bank robbery ($3.5 million in today's money) he begins to think he's landed a case that can put his agency on the map—if the police don't shut him down before he gets started. We agree this isn't Brewer's best, but it's still a mildly entertaining jaunt into Tampa, Florida's underbelly circa 1958. Above are two editions from Fawcett Crest and Gold Medal (aka Fawcett Crest).
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The headlines that mattered yesteryear.
1959—Holly, Valens, and Bopper Die in Plane Crash
A plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa kills American musicians Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper, along with pilot Roger Peterson. The fault for the crash was determined to be poor weather combined with pilot inexperience. All four occupants died on impact. The event is later immortalized by Don McLean as the Day the Music Died in his 1971 hit song "American Pie." 1969—Boris Karloff Dies
After a long battle with arthritis and emphysema, English born actor Boris Karloff, who was best known for his film portrayals of Frankenstein's monster and the Mummy, contracts pneumonia and dies at King Edward VII Hospital, Midhurst, Sussex, England. 1920—Royal Canadian Mounted Police Forms
In Canada, The Royal Canadian Mounted Police, aka Gendarmerie royale du Canada, begins operations when the Royal Northwest Mounted Police, founded 1873, and the Dominion Police, founded 1868, merge. The force, colloquially known as Mounties, is one of the most recognized law enforcement groups of its kind in the world. 1968—Image of Vietnam Execution Shown in U.S.
The execution of Viet Cong officer Nguyen Van Lem by South Vietnamese National Police Chief Nguyen Ngoc Loan is videotaped and photographed by Eddie Adams. This image showed Van Lem being shot in the head, and helped build American public opposition to the Vietnam War. |
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