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| Centre Theater when it was photographed in 1981 by Chester H. Liebs as research for his book Main Street to Miracle Mile. Image from UNM. |
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| : When water flowed down State St during the 1983 flooding of SLC (photo credit Dave Olson from cinematreasures.org). |
History text by Grant Smith from cinematreasures.org:
The Centre Theater was opened on December 24, 1937, with Carole Lombard & Fred MacMurray in “True Confession”. It was considered one of Salt Lake’s finest examples of Art Deco style architecture. One of its most unique features was the 90-foot tower located above the theater. It was built by Paramount Pictures Inc. and Intermountain Theatres. By 1941 it was operated by Paramount Pictures Inc. through their subsidiary Tracy Barham.
When the Centre Theater opened it had 1,623 seats, but the installation of a 56-foot wide screen in 1959 reduced seating to 1,174.
In 1989, Cineplex Odeon let its lease run out so the owners could demolish the building. A new office tower was built on the site, along with a bland six-screen multiplex.
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| Centre Theater in 1937. Image from UHDS. |
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| Centre Theater in 1937. Image from UDSH. |
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| As the site appears today, the Broadway Centre from Google Street View, Oct 2022 |
I'm so glad I found this short history of the Centre Theatre. You can find the actual original to-build blueprints of the 1937 theater and stores at the Marriott Library Special Collections (University of Utah). You need to make an appointment requesting "Marriott Tubes #25 and 352" from "the Ashton & Evans unprocessed collection.
ReplyDeleteawesome, thanks!
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