The Granada Theatre was a 3,400–seat
movie palace
A movie palace (or picture palace in the United Kingdom) is any of the large, elaborately decorated movie theaters built between the 1910s and the 1940s. The late 1920s saw the peak of the movie palace, with hundreds opening every year between 192 ...
located at 6427-41
North Sheridan Road in the
Rogers Park
Rogers Park is the first of Chicago's 77 community areas. Located from the Loop, it is on the city's far north side on the shore of Lake Michigan. The neighborhood is commonly known for its cultural diversity, lush green public spaces, early ...
neighborhood of
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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. It was constructed in 1926 for the
Marks Brothers, who were major theatre operators in the U.S. Edward E. Eichenbaum was the principal designer for the architectural firm of
Levy & Klein. Eichenbaum also designed the
Marbro,
Regal, and
Century
A century is a period of 100 years. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages. The word ''century'' comes from the Latin ''centum'', meaning ''one hundred''. ''Century'' is sometimes abbreviated as c.
A centennial or ...
theatres.
The Marks Brothers operated the theatre until 1934, when
Balaban and Katz
Balaban and Katz Theater Corporation, or B&K, was a theatre corporation which owned a chain of motion picture theaters in Chicago and surrounding areas. It was founded by Barney Balaban (later long-time President of Paramount Pictures), his six ...
purchased the property. That firm and its successors—United Paramount Theatres, ABC Great States Theatres and
Plitt Theatres
Plitt Theatres was a major movie theater chain in the United States and went under a number of names, Publix Theaters Corporation, Paramount Publix Corporation, United Paramount Theatres, American Broadcasting-Paramount Theatres and ABC Theatres a ...
—operated the facility until approximately 1978. From then until the mid-eighties, it was used sporadically for rock concerts and presented midnight showings of ''
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' is a 1975 musical comedy horror film by 20th Century Fox, produced by Lou Adler and Michael White and directed by Jim Sharman. The screenplay was written by Sharman and actor Richard O'Brien, who is also ...
'' for several years.
Despite all attempts to save the theatre, Senior Life Styles Corporation purchased the property and demolished it in 1989-90 for a planned apartment/commercial structure.
[
The new 16–story apartment tower and shopping arcade constructed in 1991 was named "Granada Center". Loyola University eventually purchased the structure and transformed it into 12 floors of student apartments over a base containing parking, retail and university offices.
The ]Ryerson & Burnham Libraries
The Ryerson & Burnham Libraries are the art and architecture research collection of the Art Institute of Chicago. The libraries cover all periods with extensive holdings in the areas of 18th-, 19th- and 20th-century architecture and 19th-century ...
at the Art Institute of Chicago
The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mill ...
holds archival materials, including photographs taken by the "Save Granada Theatre Committee".
References
Further reading
*
External links
Balaban and Katz Official Site
CinemaTour
Cinema Treasures
Cinemas and movie theaters in Chicago
Demolished theatres in Illinois
Demolished buildings and structures in Chicago
Former cinemas in the United States
Buildings and structures demolished in 1989
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