THEATERS
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Nile Theatre 3736 23rd Avenue South 1926-1931 and 1932-1982, Closed, Demolished |
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The first Pearson's Town Talk Cafe is to the left of the Nile Theater.
July, 1938
Click here to Watch the Trailer for "Fury"!
Nile 1939
The Nile Theatre originally opened in 1926 at 3736 23rd Ave. S. After a change of ownership and a fire, it was rebuilt in 1936.
Blondie Meets the Boss, starring Penny Singleton as Blondie, was released in 1939.
I wonder what, "Free Tonite $99.50 Living Room Suite" means on the marquee?
You can enlarge this thumbnail photo twice.
"Our first Town Talk is to the left of the Nile Theater, the large picture window. Mother and Dad started out selling nickel candy, ice cream and donuts.
In those days the theaters didn't sell candy or popcorn. My dad had the idea of selling popcorn and contracted with some guy to buy the very best popcorn in big 50# sacks.
The owner of the Nile theater had to sweep up all the empty boxes. He started
counting how many boxes dad was selling and soon put in his own popcorn.
That didn't stop dad, the people would line up all down the block to buy ice
cream so the theater owner who was also the landlord tried to raise the rent and
dad moved out.
By that time mom and dad were selling sandwiches and hamburgers, a full diner
menu. He knew he had to own the business to have complete control.
He started a twin
Town Talk Diner downtown on 7th and Hennepin. It was actually two diners, one from 7th and one from Hennepin and they met in the middle of the building. I can
still remember it well as I used to help dad with the change counting in that
basement as well (See Drive-Ins2 page for more on Pearson's Town Talk Diners.)
but I was only about 6 years old or so. Dad sold it to his younger brother
Carl and he changed the name to the Tick Tock. Dad was opening the Drive-In and it was so very busy he had
to spend all his time there."
~ Marston Pearson, February 23, 2011 ~
Cooking school at the Nile Theater March 29, 1945
"The Nile Theatre originally opened in 1926 and could seat just under 300 viewers. It was purchased by local
businessmen, Sidney and William Volk in 1932. Two years later, it
was destroyed in a blaze. The Volks rebuilt the Nile in 1936. The theater now seated over
1000 viewers and cost nearly $100,000 to construct.
It was designed by architect, Perry E. Crosier, who went on to
design other theaters in the Minneapolis and suburban areas. The decor was an Art Deco-Egyptian hybrid, complete with
Egyptian lobby furniture, and several large panels copied from
ancient Egyptian temples covering the auditorium's walls. The
hieroglyphics spelled out greetings and blessings for theater
patrons." Towards the rear of the auditorium, the Nile contained a sound-proof glass-enclosed crying room where mothers and their young children could view a movie without disturbing other patrons.
"The Nile had cutting edge projection equipment and a
parking lot with a capacity for more than 500 cars (No wonder it was used for Drivers' Training!).
In the early 60s, the theater was somewhat modernized, though
none of its 30s decoration lost. The Nile was included in a 1963
article in Life magazine on movie houses.
Falling into decline beginning in the 70s, the theater was
closed in 1982 and torn down soon afterwards." The final film shown was the 1936 black and white version of "Showboat".
I went to see this final movie to re-visit my childhood theater for the very last
time. At the time, I wondered why they had chosen "Showboat" to close the
theater.
As I give this more thought, "Showboat" may have been the Nile Theater's
premiere movie after it was rebuilt in 1936.
What is your take on this?
~ Online source: Bryan Krefft; edited by webmaster ~
~ ~ ~ (MAP)
Another online source states, "There is an error in the Krefft text. The Egyptian wall
decoration was covered over in the 1960s with painted
acoustical ceiling tiles and the entire 1930s decor was
removed and replaced with the mid-century modern designs and
light fixtures." The basement was turned into a lounge with a
snack bar with black vinyl bar stools. It also had about 100 black mid-century chairs with chrome bases that swiveled, complete with
bright red, yellow, orange, and avocado seat cushions. There
was a large 23-inch black and white TV built into the wall.
A small
addition was built to the north side of the main level, that contained the manager's
office and a stairway to the basement lounge and the exit
doors.
This writer continues, "I attended several shows in the late 1970s and was
told the show was cancelled because there weren't enough
people in the audience. After making a 30-minute bus ride
to the Nile Theatre on the #23 bus, I stopped attending evening shows there
because of the hourly bus service at night and the wait in the
subzero temperatures. The corner of 38th Street and 23rd Avenue also housed a
popular Italian restaurant (Jock's Cafe in the 1950s), beauty shop, bar, corner
superette (Oas'), 1960s era supermarket, hardware store, and a
large pharmacy/gift store. All of those businesses are now gone
and most of the stores are for rent. There is a very large
nursing home built on the Nile site. It was called, the
Nile Health Care Center."
Today, it is named, Providence Place.
~ Online source: tjo; edited by webmaster ~
~ ~ ~
Excerpts of memories from still another Nile Theater enthusiast, and interestingly, a 1968 Roosevelt graduate: The author begins by stating, "There is no other movie theater on the planet that meant more to me than the Nile, especially on Saturday afternoons!"
He describes the Nile Theater audience as, "an always kid-crowded mass of wide eyes and excited noises, who paid their 35-cent admission (and doubled that for candy and popcorn) for the trip to a world of their own, few adults anywhere in sight, eager for a few hours entertainment geared strictly toward them."
The writer continues, "How much more important 'going to the movies' was during a time when almost no one owned a color TV (CBS & ABC didn't join NBC with prime time color broadcasts until 1965), and there was so much more to the experience than just seeing the feature attraction!
Multiple cartoons, of course, but short-subjects from 'The Three Stooges' or the short 'B' films of 'The Bowery Boys', were inevitably a part of the several hours that culminated in the feature itself. And what features they were!
People have told me that their worst fears of impermanence are realized when one of their childhood schools is torn down. Bancroft Elementary, Folwell Jr. High, and Roosevelt Sr. High were the schools I attended during the 50s and 60s. They all still stand.
But The Nile theater stands only in memory. In many ways it was the most important school of them all."
~ Online source: Mark Riley
RHS '68, May 9, 2008 ~
~ ~ ~
Roosevelt graduate, Jerry Sacre, writes, "When I was in ninth grade at Sanford Junior High
School, I took my girlfriend, Jinx Carlson to the Nile for movies; but
since I wasn't old enough to drive, my dad, a Minneapolis police officer, would
drive us in his squad car to and from the Nile. We got a lot of weird looks!
I lost track of Marylyn (Jinx) Carlson after we graduated. She went to South High School. I don't know her married name. It is fun thinking about those days going to movies at the Nile and how we got around before I could drive.
Also, Jinx Carlson and I were King and Queen of the Sanford Junior High German Club in 1951-52---guess that stuck as we went together in high school, me at Roosevelt and she at South!"
Jerry adds that his brother, Ron, graduated from Roosevelt in '59. "I could go on and on . . . This web site is a keeper!" ~ Jerry Sacre RHS '55, August 29, 2009 ~
~ ~ ~
"I think those of us who attended
Nokomis Jr. High spent more time on the 34th Avenue places...but
I think what I remember the most are two favorite locations:
1. swinging on a rope swing over Minnehaha Creek (someplace
between 28th and 34th Avenues, but closer to 28th.
2. walking from Roosevelt to a
restaurant hang out on 38th Street on the left of the block
between 24th and 23rd Avenues, where we drank Coke and snacked
and talked for hours (I usually had a grilled cheese and onion
rings!).
Side note: the Nile Theatre was easily viewed from this
small cozy restaurant with glass windowed front. I cannot
remember the name of it. If anyone else remembers hanging
out there, please let me know what it was named!
Webmaster's reply: "The restaurant on the corner of 38th
and 23rd Avenue South, on the northwest side of the street was
named, Jock's in the '50s. I was renamed after that.
I am thinking that you may be referring to the Nile Pharmacy
soda fountain. They had windows overlooking the Nile
Theater. We used to go to my birthday parties there for
food and to see the Saturday matinee!. Bill's was a cozy
restaurant, but it was located on 38th and 25th Avenue South (on
the south side of the street)."
I'll never forget attending 'The 10
Commandments' at the Nile Theatre with my mom. The now
out-dated special effects were awesome then, and so
appropriately set in the Egyptian decor of the theatre!"
~ Val Waters RHS '62, October 8, 2011 ~
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