1433 Commerce Avenue
Longview Theater on September 5, 2005.
The Art Deco Longview Theater opened in 1942 with 550 seats. In 1945 it was sold to the Sterling Cinema group, which remodeled it in 1954 with a new sound system and a larger screen.
Longview Theater on July 28, 2007.
After the summer of 1955, the theater closed and remained closed until Thanksgiving Day 1970 after being refurbished again. In 1986, the theater was sold to Act III Theatres. Act III put in new seats, a new screen, a new projection system and digital surround sound in 1996. Under Act III, this was a great theater. Among the movies I saw at this theater were Titanic and the special editions of the Star Wars Trilogy. Alas, Regal Cinemas bought out Act III and closed the Longview Theater in July 2001. Regal removed all the seats and theater equipment before selling the building with the requirement that it not be used as a theater for 20 years.
Longview Theater on July 28, 2007.
The interior of the auditorium was gutted and turned into a skateboard park of all things, with a skate shop in the lobby. The skate shop remained for some time after the indoor skateboard park closed. A community theatre group called Rising Star Productions initially worked to restore the auditorium and turn the Longview Theater into a performing arts center. In 2012, the theater was purchased by Stageworks Northwest.
Longview Theater on July 28, 2007.
Historical Photos:
Longview Theater, April 1980 (American Classic Images)
Longview Theater, June 1982 (American Classic Images)
Longview Theater, August 1983 (American Classic Images)
Longview Theater, August 1983 (American Classic Images)
Longview Theater, October 1986 (American Classic Images)
Related Links:
Longview Theater at CinemaTour
Longview Theater at Cinema Treasures
Longview Theater at the Cowlitz County Parcel Search
Continue to 19: Totem Pole…
No comments:
Post a Comment