A movie palace is a large, elaborately decorated movie theater built from the 1910s to the 1940s. The late 1920s saw the peak of the movie palace, with hundreds opening every year between 1925 and 1930. With the rise of television in the 1950s, movie attendance dropped, while the rising popularity of large multiplex chains in the 1980s and 1990s signaled the obsolescence of single-screen theaters. Many movie palaces were razed or converted into multiple-screen venues or performing arts centers, though some have undergone restoration and reopened to the public as historic buildings.
The Michigan Theater is a movie palace in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States, near the Central Campus of the University of Michigan. It shows independent films and stage productions, and hosts musical concerts.
The Stanley Theater at Kennedy Boulevard and Pavonia Avenue is a historic theater in Journal Square in Jersey City, New Jersey.
Holland Theatre opened as a vaudeville and movie palace on February 12, 1931 in Bellefontaine, Ohio, United States. Like many historic theaters, the Holland ultimately went out of business after a newer, more technologically advanced, multi-screen cinema was introduced to the town. However, after several renovations to the Holland Theater, it is now fully operational as a performing arts venue for stage performances, and feature films as of 2019.
The Olympia Theater is a theater located in Miami, Florida. Designed by John Eberson in his famed atmospheric style, the theater opened in 1926. Throughout its history, the venue has served as a movie theater, concert venue and performing arts center. In 1984, it received historical designation by the NRHP. The Olympia Theatre, the Florida Theatre, and the Tampa Theatre are the only remaining atmospheric theatres in Florida.
John Adolph Emil Eberson was an Austrian-American architect best known for the development and promotion of movie palace designs in the atmospheric theatre style. He designed over 500 theatres in his lifetime, earning the nickname "Opera House John". His most notable surviving theatres in the United States include the Tampa Theatre (1926), Palace Theatre Marion (1928), Palace Theatre Louisville (1928), Majestic Theatre (1929), Akron Civic Theatre (1929), the Paramount Theatre (1929), the State Theater 1927, and the Lewis J. Warner Memorial Theater (1932) at Worcester Academy in Worcester, Massachusetts. Remaining international examples in the atmospheric style include both the Capitol Theatre (1928) and State Theatre (1929) in Sydney, Australia, The Forum and Le Grand Rex.
An atmospheric theatre is a type of movie palace design which was popular in the late 1920s. Atmospheric theatres were designed and decorated to evoke the feeling of a particular time and place for patrons, through the use of projectors, architectural elements and ornamentation that evoked a sense of being outdoors. This was intended to make the patron a more active participant in the setting.
The Palace Theatre is an entertainment venue in downtown Albany, New York, located on the corner of Clinton Avenue and North Pearl Street. The theatre is operated by the Palace Performing Arts Center, Inc., a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Established in 1984 and incorporated as a not-for-profit corporation in 1989, the Palace Performing Arts Center, Inc. was created to operate the theatre and utilize its full potential as a cultural and entertainment center in Albany.
The Paramount Theatre is located at 125 4th Avenue NE, Austin in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The theater was built by Wagner Construction as an atmospheric theatre in 1929 to great fanfare, being the by first movie palace in Austin accommodating 914 seats with a small stage and orchestra pit.
The Uptown Theater is a historic theater located in Kansas City, Missouri. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979 as the Uptown Building and Theater.
The Orpheum Theatre is a historic theater in downtown Wichita, Kansas, United States. It was designed by renowned theatre architect John Eberson with funding from a group of local investors and opened on September 4, 1922.
The Paradise Theater is a theater at 2403 Grand Concourse in the Fordham neighborhood of the Bronx in New York City, New York. Designed by John Eberson as a movie palace, it opened on September 7, 1929, as one of five Loew's Wonder Theatres in the New York City area. Although the building is no longer in use as a movie theater, its facade and interior are preserved as New York City designated landmarks.
The Majestic Theatre is a performing arts theater in the City Center District of Downtown Dallas. It is the last remnant of Theater Row, the city's historic entertainment center on Elm Street, and is a contributing property in the Harwood Street Historic District. The structure is a Dallas Landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Hippodrome Theatre or Wabash Theatre is a historic theater in Terre Haute, Indiana, USA.
The Cascade Theatre is a prominent example of the Art Deco style in Redding, California. The cinema was designed by J. Lloyd Conrich of San Francisco in 1934 for the Naify family, who operated the Golden State Theaters chain of movie theaters in northern California, which later became the United Artists Theaters. The new cinema was built in 1935 by Salih Brothers and opened on August 9 with 1348 seats. It was the first air conditioned public building in Redding. In 1979 the large house was subdivided into four smaller theaters, and in 1997 it closed. The Cascade Theatre reopened in 2004 after it was purchased by Southern Oregon University and the JPR Foundation. The house was restored to its original configuration and it is used as a community auditorium and arts center.
The Palace Theater is a historic movie palace in downtown Canton, Ohio, United States. Constructed during the heyday of the movie palace in the 1920s, it has been named a historic site. The 21' x 46' screen is the largest in Canton as of 2019. It contains a Kilgen theater organ which is still playing to this day, thanks to an eight month restoration effort in 1992. Only a few dozen such organs are still operational at their original sites.
The Akron Civic Theatre is a theater in Akron, Ohio. It is one of only five remaining atmospheric theatres designed by John Eberson in the United States and is an excellent example of the great movie palaces of the 1920s. The Akron Civic Theatre is the last remaining theater of 11 opened by Marcus Loew, founder of the Loew's theater chain. The Civic is located on South Main Street in Akron and can seat 3,000 people. The theater has been exhibiting shows and special events for 96 years.
The Marion Palace Theatre is a movie palace constructed in 1928 in Marion, Ohio, United States for the Young Amusement Company. The original cost of the project was $500,000. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places because of its significance to the atmospheric theatre architectural style popular in the United States during the 1920s.
The Valencia Theatre is a church building at 165-11 Jamaica Avenue in the Jamaica neighborhood of Queens in New York City, New York. Designed by John Eberson as a movie palace, it opened on January 11, 1929, as one of five Loew's Wonder Theatres in the New York City area. The theater has been occupied by the Tabernacle of Prayer for All People since 1977. It is a New York City designated landmark.
The State Theatre is a Spanish-styled atmospheric theatre in Kalamazoo, Michigan, designed by renowned architect John Eberson. The State was built for W.S. Butterfield Theatres in 1927, and remains in operation today, presenting live shows. The theatre was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2021.
