Road Trip Day 6
View of the Variety Theatre from the balcony.
I took the Greyhound bus from Chicago to Cleveland to photograph the last place on the road trip: The Variety Theatre. The theater opened on November 27, 1927, and closed in the 1980s. It was last in use as a wrestling venue called Wrestle Plex.
Full blog posts for all the theaters I visited on this trip are coming soon.
Road Trip Day 5
A close up of the mural painted above the proscenium arch.
Another day, another state. The Majestic (Uptown) Theatre in Racine, WI opened in 1928. It was designed in a gothic style, which was unusual for theaters. The theater closed in late 1959.
Road Trip Day 4
View of the auditorium from the side of the balcony.
After driving a bit more we made our way to our next theater. Look for a full post on this location soon.
Road Trip Day 3
View of the Majestic Theatre from the balcony.
We travelled 300 miles south to the Majestic Theatre in East St. Louis for the 3rd day of the road trip. The Majestic Theatre opened in February 1928 and was originally part of the Samuel Komm Theatre chain of St. Louis. It closed in 1960, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.
Road Trip Day 2
View from the balcony of the New Regal Theatre.
I spent most of my second day in Chicago photographing the New Regal Theatre. This John Eberson designed theater opened in 1927 as the Avalon Theatre. It is said to be inspired by a Persian lamp Eberson found at an antiques market. The Regal closed in 2010 .
The ceiling decoration is called the largest flying carpet in the world.
Road Trip Day 1
The lobby of the Ramova Theatre.
I’m currently on a road trip to photograph some more abandoned theaters. Day 1 was spent revisiting the Ramova Theatre in Chicago.
The Ramova Theatre opened on August 21, 1929, and closed in the mid 1980s.
Loew’s 46th Street Theatre
The main floor of the auditorium is now used as storage for a furniture store.
The Loew’s 46th Street Theatre opened on October 9, 1927 as the Universal Theatre. It was designed by John Eberson, a famous theater architect known for his atmospheric style auditoriums. According to an account in the Brooklyn Eagle, 25,000 people were present for the opening of the theater. The 2,675 seat theater was acquired by the Loew’s Corporation in August 1928, and closed so renovations could be made to the sound equipment. It reopened on September 10, 1928 as the Loew’s 46th Street Theatre.
This fountain actually worked. It helped to add to the illusion that patrons were sitting in a garden at night.
The 46th Street Theatre was the first atmospheric theater in New York City. It was designed to look like a night sky in an Italian garden. The illusion was completed with a projection of clouds across the ceiling. However, by the 1940’s the atmospheric effects had fallen into disrepair and were no longer used.
View of the balcony level.
The Loew’s Corporation transferred ownership to the 46th Theatre Company on September 14, 1966, and the theater was run as an independent movie theater until it closed in 1970. It was reopened later that year as the 46th Street Rock Palace, and was later renamed Bananafish Garden. The name was taken from J.D. Salinger’s short story “A Perfect Day for Banana Fish”. Many famous bands played shows at the theater during the years it was a concert venue including; The Byrds, The Grateful Dead, Jerry Lee Louis, The Bee Gees, Steely Dan, Gladys Knight and the Pips and Randy Newman.
A close up of some of the plaster work that adorns the walls of the auditorium.
In 1973, the theater was closed due to pressure from the local community, who felt that the concerts were causing too much noise. The building was then sold in 1974 to a furniture company. The stage was removed from the auditorium and it was converted into a storeroom for surplus furniture. The lobby was converted into a show room. It was sold again to the current owners Regal Furniture in 1996.
Birds have gotten trapped in the projector room over the years, leaving the floor covered in bird droppings.
The sides of the seats were also ornately decorated.
A close up of plaster work on the wall of the auditorium.
Another view of the fountain.
One of the projectors was leaking oil, and a coke can was used as a makeshift oil pan.
View of the stage from the balcony.
A close up of the plaster work around the fire escape doors.
