WEBVTT 00:00.000 --> 00:01.998 (female announer) This is a production of WKNO-Memphis. 00:01.998 --> 00:05.898 Production funding for this program is made possible in part 00:05.898 --> 00:14.464 by.. 00:14.464 --> 00:21.531 ♪♪♪ 00:21.531 --> 00:25.598 Vincent Astor has been a friend of W-K-N-O for many years. 00:25.598 --> 00:29.231 He's well-known around Memphis not only for his generosity but 00:29.231 --> 00:30.831 also his knowledge of history. 00:30.831 --> 00:34.164 Recently he wrote a book about some of that history entitled 00:34.164 --> 00:39.364 Memphis Movie Theatres, part of the Images of America series. 00:39.364 --> 00:41.031 Vincent Astor, welcome to the program. 00:41.031 --> 00:42.431 Thank you, thank you. 00:42.431 --> 00:45.798 I have to tell you this was really a lot of fun. 00:45.798 --> 00:46.931 I mean I picked up. 00:46.931 --> 00:48.564 Listen, I thought to myself.. 00:48.564 --> 00:52.098 We had had a meeting a few weeks ago. 00:52.098 --> 00:54.698 And I thought to myself well, you know I'll read a little bit 00:54.698 --> 00:55.098 at a time. 00:55.098 --> 00:59.898 I picked up this and I could not put it down. 00:59.898 --> 01:02.231 I mean I read it all in one sitting. 01:02.231 --> 01:05.131 And it was just, just fascinating. 01:05.131 --> 01:08.264 When did the movies come to Memphis? 01:08.264 --> 01:09.664 When was that? 01:09.664 --> 01:13.664 Now actually the very first demonstration of one of the many 01:13.664 --> 01:18.931 kinds of projection that was invented in the 19th century was 01:18.931 --> 01:21.198 the cinematograph. 01:21.198 --> 01:24.998 And it was shown as a novelty in a theatre that's long gone 01:24.998 --> 01:29.098 called first the Auditorum and then the Bijou. 01:29.098 --> 01:33.331 It stood on the same plot where the Chisca Hotel stands now. 01:33.331 --> 01:34.964 It burned in 1911. 01:34.964 --> 01:35.964 I see. 01:35.964 --> 01:39.498 It started out life as a street car barn. 01:39.498 --> 01:42.231 And when street cars changed, they made it in to a theater. 01:42.231 --> 01:47.064 And these were just anything that moved. 01:47.064 --> 01:50.731 One of the oldest moving pictures that was shown 01:50.731 --> 01:53.164 commercially is just waves breaking on a shore. 01:53.164 --> 01:54.498 Oh, I see. 01:54.498 --> 01:58.531 So this would have been the place back when.. 01:58.531 --> 02:03.798 Back when Thomas Edison was shooting the initial films at 02:03.798 --> 02:06.498 the Black Mariah somewhere in New Jersey. 02:06.498 --> 02:07.498 Right. 02:07.498 --> 02:11.398 I think the very first film was Fred Ott's Sneeze, 02:11.398 --> 02:12.398 it was called. 02:12.398 --> 02:15.498 So what they would do is they would show it and the guy would 02:15.498 --> 02:16.498 sneeze. 02:16.498 --> 02:18.498 And that was the big deal, you know, 02:18.498 --> 02:19.498 at that point. 02:19.498 --> 02:21.998 Or two guys fighting and things like that. 02:21.998 --> 02:25.998 It was like one of the films that they showed in the movie 02:25.998 --> 02:28.064 about Georges Melies. 02:28.064 --> 02:31.731 A locomotive would approach the audience. 02:31.731 --> 02:35.064 And they'd all jump up thinking it was real when it was not. 02:35.064 --> 02:37.064 And it was such a novelty. 02:37.064 --> 02:40.798 It was so magical that people would get scared and people in 02:40.798 --> 02:44.531 the audience would yell at the villain as if it were a stage 02:44.531 --> 02:45.531 play. 02:45.531 --> 02:46.531 Uh-huh. 02:46.531 --> 02:47.531 What was.. 02:47.531 --> 02:51.798 Now you gave us a preview of the reaction, 02:51.798 --> 02:54.164 you know, to it. 02:54.164 --> 02:57.864 Did it catch on pretty quick here in Memphis? 02:57.864 --> 03:00.498 I mean was there any kind of people who were saying no, 03:00.498 --> 03:02.531 we shouldn't have this in this town. 03:02.531 --> 03:07.464 It's an instrument of the devil like some people used to say 03:07.464 --> 03:09.064 about the telephone. 03:09.064 --> 03:12.031 What was it you found in your research? 03:12.031 --> 03:16.431 Well actually when films were first being made, 03:16.431 --> 03:19.064 film makers would film anything. 03:19.064 --> 03:23.664 And in order to attract people in to see them, 03:23.664 --> 03:25.531 they got sometimes quite blue. 03:25.531 --> 03:30.298 And there were a lot of those early, 03:30.298 --> 03:32.964 very early pieces that were blue. 03:32.964 --> 03:35.931 [laughter] And even if it was artistic, 03:35.931 --> 03:39.564 there was female nudity and so forth. 03:39.564 --> 03:44.231 So later on, there became kind of a divide. 03:44.231 --> 03:49.431 But I have found online a slide which I've used in some of my 03:49.431 --> 03:54.331 visual presentations that is ladies and children, 03:54.331 --> 03:58.998 welcome at this theater So people would put ads on the 03:58.998 --> 04:01.264 screen to say this was family entertainment. 04:01.264 --> 04:02.298 Bring everybody. 04:02.298 --> 04:03.131 So it wasn't seedy. 04:03.131 --> 04:04.931 I see. 04:04.931 --> 04:07.098 But and so it was a novelty here, 04:07.098 --> 04:08.098 there and yonder. 04:08.098 --> 04:14.564 But the very first full-time movie theater opened in 1905. 04:14.564 --> 04:16.031 I see, I see. 04:16.031 --> 04:19.331 And that's when it was becoming the first person who was going 04:19.331 --> 04:23.398 to take a chance on it as a commercial venture. 04:23.398 --> 04:24.398 Huh! 04:24.398 --> 04:28.898 Well you know I shouldn't be so shocked that they would have 04:28.898 --> 04:33.964 what you call blue films and some nudity because at the time, 04:33.964 --> 04:37.498 there was no censor board as per say. 04:37.498 --> 04:39.498 There was no central studio system. 04:39.498 --> 04:41.564 The studio heads couldn't get together and say, 04:41.564 --> 04:43.664 you know, they should stop this, you know, 04:43.664 --> 04:44.931 or anything else. 04:44.931 --> 04:49.431 But there was some very neferaious gings on in Memphis 04:49.431 --> 04:50.431 itself. 04:50.431 --> 04:51.498 It was illegal liquor. 04:51.498 --> 04:55.998 In doing research at the time, there were opium dens behind, 04:55.998 --> 04:57.631 what was it? 04:57.631 --> 04:58.831 -- Cleaners cleaning stores. 04:58.831 --> 05:02.531 And the police was trying to go after that. 05:02.531 --> 05:07.431 So I guess in a sense, we shouldn't be surprised by that. 05:07.431 --> 05:11.498 What was one of the biggest theater to open up? 05:11.498 --> 05:15.598 What was the first big movie theater that opened up? 05:15.598 --> 05:20.064 Well let me digress and I'll answer something that you just 05:20.064 --> 05:21.064 said. 05:21.064 --> 05:26.598 I forget what the first name of the man is but his last name was 05:26.598 --> 05:27.598 Persica. 05:27.598 --> 05:29.464 And he was a gangster. 05:29.464 --> 05:34.798 In fact, he has turf and Memphis was divided up among several 05:34.798 --> 05:37.031 people, particularly downtown. 05:37.031 --> 05:42.498 And his bar, Persica's Garden, actually was listed as a movie 05:42.498 --> 05:43.498 theater. 05:43.498 --> 05:46.231 And that's part of what they showed as entertainment. 05:46.231 --> 05:48.231 And of course in the back room there was gambling. 05:48.231 --> 05:49.398 Huh! 05:49.398 --> 05:52.664 So they did actually go hand-in-hand for a while in 05:52.664 --> 05:53.664 Memphis. 05:53.664 --> 05:54.664 Oh my gosh! 05:54.664 --> 06:00.464 But really the biggest theater built ever which had movies as 06:00.464 --> 06:04.664 one of it's primary forms of entertainment was the Orpheum, 06:04.664 --> 06:06.398 which is still standing. 06:06.398 --> 06:07.398 Oh yeah, yeah. 06:07.398 --> 06:08.898 Well you know that reminds me. 06:08.898 --> 06:12.298 One of the things and one of the great things about this 06:12.298 --> 06:17.031 particular book is the fact that there are so many great pictures 06:17.031 --> 06:18.031 in here. 06:18.031 --> 06:20.264 And I think what we're gonna do is we're gonna take a look at 06:20.264 --> 06:21.264 some. 06:21.264 --> 06:23.964 Now tell us what we're looking at. 06:23.964 --> 06:28.198 Well that actually is the Grand Opera House that was built in 06:28.198 --> 06:29.631 1890. 06:29.631 --> 06:33.231 It was built on the corner of Main and Beale. 06:33.231 --> 06:38.064 And in 1907, it became the First Orpheum Theater. 06:38.064 --> 06:42.098 And it stood until 1923. 06:42.098 --> 06:45.064 There are some people who may still remember it. 06:45.064 --> 06:49.764 But a lot of people remember or would remember the fire that 06:49.764 --> 06:52.264 destroyed it in October of that year. 06:52.264 --> 06:55.398 The biggest audience in the theater's history gathered to 06:55.398 --> 06:57.098 watch it burn. 06:57.098 --> 07:00.998 And the headliners was Blossom Seeley who was a singer with an 07:00.998 --> 07:01.998 act of her own. 07:01.998 --> 07:06.364 But not many people realized that one of the people on the 07:06.364 --> 07:07.598 Vaudeville Bill was Bert Lahr. 07:07.598 --> 07:08.598 Oh my gosh! 07:08.598 --> 07:13.998 The cowardly lion from The Wizard of Oz. 07:13.998 --> 07:17.764 Yes, playing Vaudeville in the early '20s. 07:17.764 --> 07:20.764 What's this next picture that we're looking at? 07:20.764 --> 07:22.764 Now that's the theater I just mentioned. 07:22.764 --> 07:24.331 That's the Bijou. 07:24.331 --> 07:25.331 Uh-huh. 07:25.331 --> 07:27.331 Which no one would remember at all. 07:27.331 --> 07:30.898 But that is where the cinematograph was first shown as 07:30.898 --> 07:34.031 a novelty in 1896. 07:34.031 --> 07:37.331 People think of movies as a 20th century invention. 07:37.331 --> 07:39.231 But it really wasn't. 07:39.231 --> 07:42.264 Movies were invented in the late 19th century. 07:42.264 --> 07:46.298 They were just perfected in the early 20th century and then 07:46.298 --> 07:47.298 became popular. 07:47.298 --> 07:49.298 I see. 07:49.298 --> 07:50.631 And this would be? 07:50.631 --> 07:53.498 That is the Lyceum Theater. 07:53.498 --> 08:01.431 It was built in 1894 on the corner of Second and Jefferson. 08:01.431 --> 08:05.998 And you can see it bragged about how it was all electrically lit. 08:05.998 --> 08:07.864 No gas lights at all. 08:07.864 --> 08:10.731 And you can see around the edge it was lit with those exposed 08:10.731 --> 08:12.431 light bulbs. 08:12.431 --> 08:15.564 And what's on the left is really one of the best things about 08:15.564 --> 08:16.864 this picture. 08:16.864 --> 08:19.398 It's a ceiling fan upside-down on a pole. 08:19.398 --> 08:21.264 Oh, okay! 08:21.264 --> 08:24.264 You can see it's over one of those side boxs. 08:24.264 --> 08:27.798 The place was filled with ceiling fans and even had 08:27.798 --> 08:31.664 windows on either side of one of the balconies because it was 08:31.664 --> 08:35.298 Memphis and the weather in Memphis hasn't changed that 08:35.298 --> 08:36.031 much. 08:36.031 --> 08:37.898 Oh my gosh! 08:37.898 --> 08:41.131 Now this one, which theater was this? 08:41.131 --> 08:44.298 This is probably one of the least remembered of the 08:44.298 --> 08:45.898 theaters. 08:45.898 --> 08:51.498 It was called first the Jefferson and then the Lyric. 08:51.498 --> 08:53.698 It was on Madison avenue. 08:53.698 --> 08:58.598 The palce where it stood is right over the Danny Thomas 08:58.598 --> 08:59.598 street overpass. 08:59.598 --> 09:03.498 In fact, it's a little gap between two buildings where 09:03.498 --> 09:05.531 there's a parking lot now. 09:05.531 --> 09:08.364 And that's about where the Lyric stood. 09:08.364 --> 09:09.598 But it was.. 09:09.598 --> 09:11.631 We'll talk about this again. 09:11.631 --> 09:16.531 It was the three most important things about where to put a 09:16.531 --> 09:17.531 theater. 09:17.531 --> 09:19.531 Location, location and location. 09:19.531 --> 09:24.098 The Lyric was just far enough out Madison off the beaten path 09:24.098 --> 09:27.931 that it had a very troubled life and it took all sorts of 09:27.931 --> 09:31.998 machinations to get people to come all the way down Madison to 09:31.998 --> 09:35.031 a theater when all the rest of them were down on Third street, 09:35.031 --> 09:38.431 Second street, Main street, here, there and yonder. 09:38.431 --> 09:42.964 In fact, the sign for the Lyric stretched across Madison from 09:42.964 --> 09:46.898 one side to the other so you could look down Madison and see 09:46.898 --> 09:48.498 the big word Lyric. 09:48.498 --> 09:49.831 Ah, okay. 09:49.831 --> 09:53.431 And it burned in the '40s, 1945 I believe. 09:53.431 --> 09:55.398 I see. 09:55.398 --> 10:01.064 Now we see on the lefthand side of the screen a famous Memphis 10:01.064 --> 10:02.598 name. 10:02.598 --> 10:05.831 And it's a very famous for two reasons. 10:05.831 --> 10:10.464 Charles Dinstuhls senior had his candy store on the corner of 10:10.464 --> 10:15.064 Washington and Main, which is the view you see here. 10:15.064 --> 10:19.231 You see on the left there's a little row of light bulbs which 10:19.231 --> 10:20.464 would be in the windows. 10:20.464 --> 10:22.931 See just past the sign is another building with the 10:22.931 --> 10:26.664 windows surrounded by light bulbs which is sort of come back 10:26.664 --> 10:28.764 in to vogue these days. 10:28.764 --> 10:34.831 Those lights are the Theatorium, the very first full-time movie 10:34.831 --> 10:36.498 theater in Memphis. 10:36.498 --> 10:41.164 On the right of the image is a little sign that says Palace - 10:41.164 --> 10:43.164 five cents. 10:43.164 --> 10:47.764 On behind that is a little sign that says Ruby. 10:47.764 --> 10:52.064 And where you are looking at the Dinstuhl's sign was a sign that 10:52.064 --> 10:55.531 says Amuse - five cents. 10:55.531 --> 10:56.531 Hm. 10:56.531 --> 10:58.764 Those are all nickelodeon theaters. 10:58.764 --> 10:59.731 I see. 10:59.731 --> 11:02.664 And the word nickelodeon is nickel in front of the Greek 11:02.664 --> 11:04.164 word for theater. 11:04.164 --> 11:08.898 They were theaters and they were actually also live entertainment 11:08.898 --> 11:10.564 theaters. 11:10.564 --> 11:14.198 Because in the early days, sometimes it was always only one 11:14.198 --> 11:15.198 projector. 11:15.198 --> 11:16.098 Right. 11:16.098 --> 11:18.998 And so the film had to be rewound. 11:18.998 --> 11:22.198 And in the very early days, there was no take up reel where 11:22.198 --> 11:24.998 the film came off of one reel and on to another. 11:24.998 --> 11:27.998 It may have been running through the projector and go in to a 11:27.998 --> 11:29.131 bucket. 11:29.131 --> 11:31.264 So it all had to be rewound to start over again. 11:31.264 --> 11:36.298 So there was always a singer or a musician or sometimes a small 11:36.298 --> 11:40.431 time Vaudeville act during these presentations, 11:40.431 --> 11:42.764 you know, between pictures. 11:42.764 --> 11:46.698 This looks to be roughly about the same time. 11:46.698 --> 11:49.964 Yes, this is 1907. 11:49.964 --> 11:51.398 And there's the Optic. 11:51.398 --> 11:54.831 I think you can barely read moving pictures or motion 11:54.831 --> 11:55.831 pictures. 11:55.831 --> 11:59.331 And it's got the five cents on it on either side. 11:59.331 --> 12:03.098 And across the street from it, there are several buildings that 12:03.098 --> 12:04.098 are still there. 12:04.098 --> 12:08.464 There's Goldsmiths and the Main street entrance to the Gayoso 12:08.464 --> 12:09.464 Hotel. 12:09.464 --> 12:13.864 The interesting thing about this picture is Leslo State than the 12:13.864 --> 12:16.831 little theater on it's left, which is the Bijou. 12:16.831 --> 12:22.898 That is roughly the same address as the Optic. 12:22.898 --> 12:23.931 Go ahead and do that. 12:23.931 --> 12:28.031 See the Optic is there on the right of that picture. 12:28.031 --> 12:30.864 That's roughly the same street address as the Bijou. 12:30.864 --> 12:33.998 Three different theaters under three different names occupied 12:33.998 --> 12:36.031 that address. 12:36.031 --> 12:39.098 Location, location and location. 12:39.098 --> 12:40.198 Yeah. 12:40.198 --> 12:42.064 And right next to this wonderful location, 12:42.064 --> 12:44.264 Leow's State was opened in 1920. 12:44.264 --> 12:49.298 I see. 12:49.298 --> 12:50.298 And this one. 12:50.298 --> 12:51.331 This was the Princess, right? 12:51.331 --> 12:52.331 Yes. 12:52.331 --> 12:57.598 The Princess was in the block which is between Peabody Place 12:57.598 --> 12:58.998 and Beale Street. 12:58.998 --> 13:03.098 There was an alley that ran through the center of the block. 13:03.098 --> 13:08.198 And this was the first and most elaborate stand alone theater 13:08.198 --> 13:10.698 that was built in Memphis. 13:10.698 --> 13:14.764 It's also the only one that has in the terracotta, 13:14.764 --> 13:18.898 you see it's theater. 13:18.898 --> 13:24.331 All of the rest of them from great to small were theatres 13:24.331 --> 13:26.564 with the r-e reversed. 13:26.564 --> 13:27.564 I see. 13:27.564 --> 13:32.298 And this beautiful terracotta fasade was hidden from most of 13:32.298 --> 13:33.531 the theaters life. 13:33.531 --> 13:35.398 This was 1913. 13:35.398 --> 13:39.631 And you can see between those pilasters on either side is a 13:39.631 --> 13:41.198 row of light bulbs. 13:41.198 --> 13:45.664 And the archway was studded with light bulbs. 13:45.664 --> 13:46.664 I see. 13:46.664 --> 13:49.531 And it's a very deep archway with a big fan light. 13:49.531 --> 13:52.164 At night, it was beautiful. 13:52.164 --> 13:53.564 I love these night shots. 13:53.564 --> 13:55.664 With the Majestic on the side. 13:55.664 --> 13:59.698 Which is the same address as the Optic and the Bijou. 13:59.698 --> 14:01.098 I see. 14:01.098 --> 14:03.431 I love these old-fashioned signs. 14:03.431 --> 14:07.331 You can see in this night picture how the star at the top 14:07.331 --> 14:09.064 revolved. 14:09.064 --> 14:11.098 You see it's a five pointed star. 14:11.098 --> 14:12.764 But it turned. 14:12.764 --> 14:13.764 I see. 14:13.764 --> 14:15.631 And this was what year? 14:15.631 --> 14:17.031 This was 1911. 14:17.031 --> 14:18.031 1911. 14:18.031 --> 14:19.031 Or 1910. 14:19.031 --> 14:25.264 This comes from a book of night pictures from 1911 called Night 14:25.264 --> 14:26.631 in Memphis. 14:26.631 --> 14:31.631 And it was many pictures of Main street and a couple of the side 14:31.631 --> 14:35.698 streets that were lit and then augmented. 14:35.698 --> 14:37.698 So all the windows would be lit. 14:37.698 --> 14:40.431 I mean you very seldom see a building with that many windows 14:40.431 --> 14:41.431 lit. 14:41.431 --> 14:43.698 And it's got another interesting point. 14:43.698 --> 14:45.731 You pull back just a.. 14:45.731 --> 14:46.731 Pull back some. 14:46.731 --> 14:55.098 See right above the caption are the two huge globe lights that 14:55.098 --> 14:58.298 showed that the majestic theater was open at night. 14:58.298 --> 15:02.164 You see across the street the same two kinds of lights under 15:02.164 --> 15:03.798 the canopy of the Gayoso. 15:03.798 --> 15:07.198 You see practically no street lights. 15:07.198 --> 15:11.164 So those were in front of all the nickelodeons and many of the 15:11.164 --> 15:14.298 other theaters to show that they were open at night. 15:14.298 --> 15:17.898 And they were some of the very earliest street lights. 15:17.898 --> 15:18.898 I see. 15:18.898 --> 15:20.898 And see this is from the same book. 15:20.898 --> 15:23.998 It's the corner of Main and Beale. 15:23.998 --> 15:25.598 You see two theaters here. 15:25.598 --> 15:29.164 One is the old Orpheum in 1911. 15:29.164 --> 15:32.931 See it's deep entry way is brilliantly lit. 15:32.931 --> 15:35.464 And there are the two globe lights again. 15:35.464 --> 15:36.464 Right. 15:36.464 --> 15:40.198 And a little further down is a crescent shaped sign right over 15:40.198 --> 15:43.664 that trolley car that says theater. 15:43.664 --> 15:46.964 That is the Columbia. 15:46.964 --> 15:51.998 And you see the top of it's front is also edged with lights. 15:51.998 --> 15:54.231 I see. 15:54.231 --> 15:57.364 Man, this was a hoppin' town back in those days. 15:57.364 --> 16:03.498 At any one time, there were probably during the hay days in 16:03.498 --> 16:07.264 the early '20s and even in the '40s, 16:07.264 --> 16:12.298 there were about 50 movie theaters in operation at once. 16:12.298 --> 16:13.298 Wow! 16:13.298 --> 16:14.298 In Shelby County. 16:14.298 --> 16:15.298 That's amazing. 16:15.298 --> 16:17.331 Now this is, if I remember correctly, 16:17.331 --> 16:19.098 this is over on Beale. 16:19.098 --> 16:20.098 It is. 16:20.098 --> 16:23.898 This is the original entrance complete with the globe lights 16:23.898 --> 16:25.464 of the Beale Street Palace. 16:25.464 --> 16:26.464 That.. 16:26.464 --> 16:34.064 The Beale Street Palace would have been right next to the New 16:34.064 --> 16:37.731 Daisy and the yellow brick building that's next to it. 16:37.731 --> 16:40.798 Right next to that was a three-story building which 16:40.798 --> 16:45.831 hosued first the Pastime, which was a nickelodeon and later a 16:45.831 --> 16:51.431 big auditorium was added to the back which became the Beale 16:51.431 --> 16:52.598 Street Palace. 16:52.598 --> 16:57.131 Much more famous for its live entertainment than it was its 16:57.131 --> 16:58.298 movies. 16:58.298 --> 17:02.164 In fact, there were sometimes after the show was over, 17:02.164 --> 17:06.031 everybody went home and the projections would put on the 17:06.031 --> 17:09.231 last film starting with the first reel and ending with the 17:09.231 --> 17:11.864 last reel with nothing in between because there was no 17:11.864 --> 17:13.131 body there to watch it. 17:13.131 --> 17:17.664 And this is 1939. 17:17.664 --> 17:18.764 1939! 17:18.764 --> 17:22.198 Well we jumped ahead just a little bit because we were 17:22.198 --> 17:23.864 before in the silent era. 17:23.864 --> 17:25.598 That's right. 17:25.598 --> 17:28.964 And the theater looked like this in the silent era. 17:28.964 --> 17:30.764 So it didn't change very much. 17:30.764 --> 17:37.564 But then we come in to this theater which was the old Ellis 17:37.564 --> 17:38.564 auditorium. 17:38.564 --> 17:41.564 And you told me something that was really interesting about the 17:41.564 --> 17:42.564 first talking. 17:42.564 --> 17:44.298 Yes. 17:44.298 --> 17:46.164 This.. 17:46.164 --> 17:52.331 The auditorium was wired for sound actually. 17:52.331 --> 17:55.631 The south hall, the smaller hall, 17:55.631 --> 17:58.131 had provisions for movies. 17:58.131 --> 18:05.931 Because in the end of the '20s when sound pictures were first 18:05.931 --> 18:10.531 becoming popular, it was very elaborate and expensive to 18:10.531 --> 18:14.031 convert a theater to sound, particularly temporarily. 18:14.031 --> 18:17.798 Well since the auditorium was accustomed to shows coming in 18:17.798 --> 18:21.898 and out all the time, they would truck sound equipment on to the 18:21.898 --> 18:26.264 stage of the auditorium and show a movie in the south hall. 18:26.264 --> 18:30.731 The Jazz Singer was one of those that we didn't get until '29. 18:30.731 --> 18:34.531 But it has a long run and there were several sound pictures that 18:34.531 --> 18:37.964 came to the auditorium first before the rest of the theaters 18:37.964 --> 18:38.964 were converted. 18:38.964 --> 18:41.831 The auditorium was originally built as an arena. 18:41.831 --> 18:42.831 Hm! 18:42.831 --> 18:44.831 Some people remember the north hall being an ampitheater and 18:44.831 --> 18:49.231 the ice show in the circus being in there. 18:49.231 --> 18:52.264 But originally, you see there's no proscenium. 18:52.264 --> 18:53.364 There's no stage. 18:53.364 --> 18:56.998 That floor in the middle that all the chairs on it was the 18:56.998 --> 18:58.064 stage floor. 18:58.064 --> 19:00.164 And it was on a lift. 19:00.164 --> 19:04.698 So the whole huge building could be one great arena. 19:04.698 --> 19:06.898 And then they wanted to divide it. 19:06.898 --> 19:11.164 The proscenium on either side was heavy canvas. 19:11.164 --> 19:13.798 And it flew in and out just like a back drop. 19:13.798 --> 19:19.531 Now we're looking at an artist's concept from -- when was this? 19:19.531 --> 19:23.798 This would have been 1927 because the new Orpheum theatre 19:23.798 --> 19:31.631 was opened on November 19, 1928 -- 85 years ago last November. 19:31.631 --> 19:36.798 This is the rendering of the brand new Orpheum, 19:36.798 --> 19:40.864 which was to replace in the late '20s, 19:40.864 --> 19:45.931 the old Orpheum that had burned in the early '20s. 19:45.931 --> 19:47.464 And the Warner. 19:47.464 --> 19:53.064 And this actually was part of an earlier chain named for 19:53.064 --> 19:54.064 Alexander Pantages. 19:54.064 --> 20:00.164 The real oldsters like my mother remember is was opened as the 20:00.164 --> 20:01.698 Pantages in 1921. 20:01.698 --> 20:04.998 Warner Brothers bought it in 1929. 20:04.998 --> 20:09.031 People wondered why the Warner had such a gigantic marquee. 20:09.031 --> 20:12.464 Well it orginally had a plain canopy, 20:12.464 --> 20:15.764 one of those like we've seen in previous pictures with the glass 20:15.764 --> 20:18.098 plates around the edge. 20:18.098 --> 20:19.898 And so the canopy was big. 20:19.898 --> 20:23.531 And when they put the marquee on top of it, 20:23.531 --> 20:28.198 it became one of the most significant signs Downtown. 20:28.198 --> 20:33.864 It's in hundreds and hundreds of parade videos and photographs. 20:33.864 --> 20:36.298 And this is when it was it's most beautiful. 20:36.298 --> 20:39.698 That's the kind of movie theater that would just get you excited 20:39.698 --> 20:40.698 from a distance. 20:40.698 --> 20:44.598 One of the things that I think is fascinating about this 20:44.598 --> 20:48.964 history is not only how beautiful these theaters were 20:48.964 --> 20:51.498 from the outside but also the interiors. 20:51.498 --> 20:54.898 I'm going to show another one here. 20:54.898 --> 21:00.298 Tell me about the Loew's Palace. 21:00.298 --> 21:04.498 There were three theaters being built at the same time. 21:04.498 --> 21:08.598 The Pantages, and two theaters to be opened by Loew's 21:08.598 --> 21:09.731 Incorporated. 21:09.731 --> 21:11.831 Loew's State, which we saw earlier, 21:11.831 --> 21:16.531 was on Main street and has a story all of its own because it 21:16.531 --> 21:17.531 was. 21:17.531 --> 21:20.264 The auditorium of the theater was an existing building on 21:20.264 --> 21:21.264 second street. 21:21.264 --> 21:22.264 Mhm. 21:22.264 --> 21:24.264 The entrance needed to be on main street. 21:24.264 --> 21:26.664 So it was also in an existing building. 21:26.664 --> 21:29.698 So it was -- had a very long lobby. 21:29.698 --> 21:34.164 The Palace had -- was only a half a block deep and had an 21:34.164 --> 21:38.298 alley in the back which could not be blocked at all. 21:38.298 --> 21:41.531 So it had a wide shallow lobby. 21:41.531 --> 21:45.464 This view is the mezzanine foyer of the theater where the main 21:45.464 --> 21:47.198 lounges were. 21:47.198 --> 21:48.198 Mhm. 21:48.198 --> 21:50.964 And you see how on the left there was a glass wall between 21:50.964 --> 21:55.998 this foyer and the outer lobby. 21:55.998 --> 22:00.431 So you could look through the window and see the chandelier 22:00.431 --> 22:04.264 and it would give the illusion of being in a bigger room. 22:04.264 --> 22:08.498 And if you look down under this chandelier, 22:08.498 --> 22:12.898 you can just see a couple of rows of seats where this was an 22:12.898 --> 22:13.931 open well. 22:13.931 --> 22:14.931 You see them there? 22:14.931 --> 22:15.931 Yes. 22:15.931 --> 22:19.164 An open well over the back rows of seats. 22:19.164 --> 22:22.431 It had one big balcony which had two levels. 22:22.431 --> 22:24.931 You see on the sides where there's a little cut out. 22:24.931 --> 22:28.898 That's the tunnel that goes to the lower part of the big 22:28.898 --> 22:29.898 balcony. 22:29.898 --> 22:32.264 And a step box is on either side. 22:32.264 --> 22:35.664 And then there was other entrances for the top part of 22:35.664 --> 22:36.664 the balcony. 22:36.664 --> 22:39.531 I know this is one of your great loves right here. 22:39.531 --> 22:40.531 Yeah. 22:40.531 --> 22:41.531 The organ. 22:41.531 --> 22:42.931 And which organ is this? 22:42.931 --> 22:45.131 Which theater is it from? 22:45.131 --> 22:47.864 This is the south hall of the auditorium. 22:47.864 --> 22:54.464 And this is a very lucky instrument. 22:54.464 --> 22:56.464 It is a for manual Kimball concert organ that was used for 22:56.464 --> 22:58.764 many, many things throughout its lifetime. 22:58.764 --> 23:01.864 And when the auditorium was taken down, 23:01.864 --> 23:06.298 it was carefully crated and put away in the basement. 23:06.298 --> 23:10.031 It was purchased by Bartlett Methodist Church, 23:10.031 --> 23:14.264 rebuilt and sounds even better at Bartlett Methodist than it 23:14.264 --> 23:15.864 did at the Ellis Auditorium. 23:15.864 --> 23:18.898 [laughter] I'm gonna jump here a little bit. 23:18.898 --> 23:22.498 We're gonna take a look at this picture here. 23:22.498 --> 23:26.264 What we're looking at is a younger Vincent Astor. 23:26.264 --> 23:28.664 This was taken around the '70s, right? 23:28.664 --> 23:30.931 It was '77 or '78. 23:30.931 --> 23:34.331 It was after the theater had become the Orpheum again. 23:34.331 --> 23:39.598 And I'm wearing a 1940s Malco usher coat, 23:39.598 --> 23:42.064 which is now belongs to the Pink Palace. 23:42.064 --> 23:44.198 And that was taken by the Commercial Appeal. 23:44.198 --> 23:48.098 It's averaged sized guy next to gigantic light fixture. 23:48.098 --> 23:52.498 But every once in a while, they take down the chandelier. 23:52.498 --> 23:55.298 And here you are giving it a nice polish. 23:55.298 --> 23:59.198 Was that something you did on a regular basis back then? 23:59.198 --> 24:03.864 As seldom as I can get away with it. 24:03.864 --> 24:08.198 [laughter] That light fixture is about 12 feet high. 24:08.198 --> 24:12.598 You can get down inside of the bowl and it's big enough to hide 24:12.598 --> 24:13.431 a body. 24:13.431 --> 24:14.098 Oh my gosh! 24:14.098 --> 24:17.064 It wenches down from the ceiling in the same type of wench that's 24:17.064 --> 24:20.431 used to lift other heavy things like car motors. 24:20.431 --> 24:21.664 Right, right. 24:21.664 --> 24:25.031 And it takes 45 minutes to get it down and two and a half hours 24:25.031 --> 24:28.631 of cranking by hand to get it back up again. 24:28.631 --> 24:31.764 You're pulling this long chain and pulling it and pulling it 24:31.764 --> 24:34.831 and pulling it until it finally gets back up there. 24:34.831 --> 24:38.998 It was said in 1928 that it weighed 2000 pounds. 24:38.998 --> 24:40.031 Oh my goodness! 24:40.031 --> 24:43.498 Well Vincent, the time has just flown by. 24:43.498 --> 24:46.564 And you have to promise me that you'll come back and we'll do 24:46.564 --> 24:47.931 this again. 24:47.931 --> 24:48.664 Certainly! 24:48.664 --> 24:49.398 Alright. 24:49.398 --> 24:51.531 And the book is called Memphis Movie Theaters. 24:51.531 --> 24:55.931 And it is written by my friend, Vincent Astor. 24:55.931 --> 24:58.398 Thank you for being on the show. 24:58.398 --> 25:12.731 ♪♪♪ 25:12.731 --> 25:16.731 CLOSED CAPTIONING PROVIDED BY WKNO-MEMPHIS.