![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/majestic_musical.jpg)
Saturday, February 25, 2006
Early View of the Majestic
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/majestic_musical.jpg)
A Dainty Program at the Garden
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/garden_3men_ad_031519.jpg)
Marguerite Clark, then a big star who made 40 films in 7 years but largely unremembered today, is described twice in the copy as "dainty"--a favorite term of the period. (Ads for downtown restaurants at that time even described the dishes as "dainty"!)
Monday, February 20, 2006
Aw Shucks, It's The Pioneer Drive-In
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/pioneerDI_angle.jpg)
The Pioneer opened in August of '59 (rather late in the season to open), and continued through 1985. (Check earlier posts to see tickets and a tel-op slide!)
Sunday, February 19, 2006
Cappy at the Capitol DI
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/400/capDI_cappy_clip.jpg)
And one more thing, kids--check in with this blog later on, and I will have additional clips from this intermission film for you!
Saturday, February 18, 2006
Palace Ad, 1919
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/400/palace_humanity_ad_031519.jpg)
This ad, from the defunct newspaper The Des Moines Capital ("Every Inch A Newspaper"), is a wonderful time capsule in itself--has anybody ever heard of "The Heart of Humanity", the movie that "will live forever"? Somehow, the raves quoted here aren't especially encouraging--the Secretary of War weighs in his two cents, and the Chicago American dubs it "the peer of 'Birth of a Nation'". Uh oh. And tickets prices are upped to a whopping 50 cents for this run--when typical admissions at this time were 5 to 10 cents--which still beats the big city fares of two dollars.
Friday, February 17, 2006
The Capri, in Neon
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/capri_sign_1.jpg)
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/400/capri_tix.jpg)
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/capri_SOM_ad_950.jpg)
Thursday, February 16, 2006
Eastgate Slide
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/cinema1%262.jpg)
I don't have the dates on when this duplex opened and closed, as it was still operating when I left Des Moines in 1988. Can anybody help on this? Thanks in advance!
Monday, February 13, 2006
Iowa Theatre - A Woman of Paris
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/iowa_chaplin.jpg)
Click on the picture and take a look at the extent the exhibitors took to warn the public of the film's 'adult' nature, in this pre-ratings, pre-code era.
Sunday, February 12, 2006
Plantation Drive-In Slide and Sign
Riviera 1978
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/riviera_TRHS_1977.jpg)
The River Hills and Riviera weren't anything baroque to look at from the outside, but they were good, solid screening rooms--generally the best picture and sound in town. Most people credit their biggest blockbuster memories to these houses--this photo circa 1978 is but one example.
The building, at 222 Crocker near Vets Auditorium, was razed in 2003.
(This photo is from the TRHS 1978 Yearbook, which carries no copyright. If there is any objection to running this photo, please email me and I will take it down. )
The building, at 222 Crocker near Vets Auditorium, was razed in 2003.
(This photo is from the TRHS 1978 Yearbook, which carries no copyright. If there is any objection to running this photo, please email me and I will take it down. )
Saturday, February 11, 2006
Ingersoll Tel-Op Slide
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/ingersoll_slide.jpg)
The slide shown above is from its movie exhibition days, and has been restored, evening out the colors and eliminating dust and scratches.
Garden Marquee Sign
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/garden_marquee.0.jpg)
What you see here is my restoration of the sign (which also served as the Garden's logo in newspaper ads) complete with chase lights. I haven't worked it into my film just yet, but it will find a place!
If the animated GIF doesn't loop for you here, here's a link to a looping Quicktime version:
Garden Marquee Loop
Wednesday, February 08, 2006
Capitol Drive-In Tickets
Tuesday, February 07, 2006
Capitol DI Sign - Restored!
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/capDI_sign_restoration.jpg)
Click on the picture above for a better look!
Monday, February 06, 2006
Sunday, February 05, 2006
Pioneer Tickets!
Rare Photo: The Beaver Theatre
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/400/beaver_cu.jpg)
The Beaver started its career as the Gem in 1936, then took its neighborhood namesake in 1936, running as such until its closure in 1957.
Pioneer Drive-In Tel-Op Slide
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/400/pdi_SLIDE.jpg)
A Slide of the Galaxy
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/400/galaxy_slide.jpg)
The Galaxy came a long way from its origins--beginning as the Empress in 1908, becoming the Pantages in 1921, the Sherman in 1922, the RKO Orpheum in 1933 (not to be confused with the other Orpheum further down the street at 210-8th), and finally as the Galaxy in 1966.
I caught a rerun of "Jaws" there sometime in 1976, and marveled at the decaying opulence of its interior. Good thing I took note of it then, because the following year, it closed and was razed for parking.
The Strand (was Unique)
The Strand, at 614 Locust, began life as the nickelodeon called Nickeldom (created by Elbert and Getchell in 1905). Here's the logo that adorned most of the newspaper ads at the time.
Its first name change dubbed it the Unique from 1908-1920 (as pictured here), and finally took the monicker Strand under the A.H. Blank empire--it retained this name the longest, until its closure in 1953. (I have pictures of the Nickeldom and Unique incarnations, but nothing from the Strand era--do any of you out there have anything? Drop me a line at lostcines@earthlink.net)
Also shown here is a matchbook from the Palms Restaurant, located "below" the Strand at 616 Locust.
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/UNIQUE_NITE.jpg)
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/palms_matchbook_strand.jpg)
Ideal Program and Building
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/ideal_1986_2003.jpg)
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/ideal_inside_pgm.0.jpg)
The Ideal was a nabe that, despite its small size, put out a very thick (40 pages!) souvenir program--the black and white images here are from a 1939-1940 winter program.
The color photo on the left, from 1986, shows the Ideal in quite altered form--the only hints of its former self appear in the red and black deco tiling around the door. There didn't appear to be an active business there at the time I shot this, and it appears to have been up for rent in the 2003 Assessor's photograph on the right (which shows the deco material built over). Wonder if there's anything interesting left in the former projection booth...?
Take a drive on over to 2447 East Walnut and see what you can see.
Orpheum Souvenir Program
Capitol DI Letterhead
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/CapDI_ltrhd.jpg)
Here's the official letterhead that was used by the Capitol Drive-In--check out the emphasis on the electric in-car heaters! "No Dangerous Fumes". "Completely weather-proofed and grounded". "Heater may be placed on dashboard, floor, or seat of car."
The big irony: "Anytime is Outdoor Movie Time". Yet, this didn't save drive-ins in the chilly midwest, and--harder to believe--even in sunny southern CA. As I write this, there are no drive-ins left in L.A. County at all. And of course, with the demise of the SE14th Street DI, Des Moines is entirely without drive-ins as well.
Saturday, February 04, 2006
Welcome to Lost Cinemas of Greater Des Moines!
![](http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4561/2229/320/lostcine_lobbycard.jpg)
Welcome to Lost Cinemas!
I'm Mark, a former Des Moines resident, and I've been collecting materials about all the neighborhood and downtown movie theatres of old Des Moines, and am now putting together a short 22-minute documentary about them.
As I assemble the movie, I'll be posting bits and pieces of the work in progress, as well as various items from my collection that I think you will find as fascinating as I do. Please let me know if you have any materials, stories, memories, anything regarding the vanished theatres--if it's something I don't have that fits the program, I'll be happy to discuss inclusion of the material into the film itself.
The picture above is a giveaway "lobby card" I've been including in the promo packs I mail out--the picture in the middle is a frame from the main title I have animated, which can be better seen in the preproduction trailer I've assembled to promote the project--check out a small Quicktime of it at:
Lost_Cinemas_Teaser
You'll be hearing a lot more about the project as time rolls along, so please join the blog and check back often! Thanks.
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