Firebird65 Posted July 14, 2006 Share Posted July 14, 2006 Does anyone know what was Houston's first movie theatre? Was it the Majestic in 1923? Seems kind of late for a town's first movie theatre. Was there one earlier than that?Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trophy Property Posted July 14, 2006 Share Posted July 14, 2006 Does anyone know what was Houston's first movie theatre? Was it the Majestic in 1923? Seems kind of late for a town's first movie theatre. Was there one earlier than that?Thanks!This site might help you find an answer !!Cinema Treasures Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firebird65 Posted July 14, 2006 Author Share Posted July 14, 2006 Thanks. I had found that site and that's where I had gotten 1923 as the date. However, I didn't know there was also a forum, so thanks for pointing that out. I see one poster said that the 1923 Majestic was actually the second version and that an earlier theatre was built in 1908 on Rusk. So I'm guessing that now the Majestic on Rusk was the first Houston movie theatre and that it opened in 1908. Would that be right?Thanks again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gonzo1976 Posted July 14, 2006 Share Posted July 14, 2006 So I'm guessing that now the Majestic on Rusk was the first Houston movie theatre and that it opened in 1908. Would that be right?Possibly. Page 107 of "Houston: A History and Guide" says that "on May 13, 1907, a 'new moving picture show,' the Orpheum Theater, opened at 418 Travis Street, and soon an ordinance was enacted forbidding Sunday shows."It's entirely possible that theaters that normally staged plays or vaudeville shows might have showed a film every now and then. The book says that by 1911, the city had four theaters. It doesn't say whether they were motion picture theaters, but my guess is that many of the theaters back then showed a blend of stage productions and motion pictures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firebird65 Posted July 14, 2006 Author Share Posted July 14, 2006 I would say that a "moving picture show" qualifies as a movie, so, according to that book, the Orpheum would therefore be the first, opening in 1907.Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashikaga Posted July 14, 2006 Share Posted July 14, 2006 I would say that a "moving picture show" qualifies as a movie, so, according to that book, the Orpheum would therefore be the first, opening in 1907.Thanks!I read one time that before screens were made that big cities had "theatres" that were called "Nickelodeons" that had little machines that you would insert a coin into, look into a viewer, and watch a movie. Maybe Houston had one of those before the Orpheum. Or perhaps the Orpheum first had those machines and then a screen was later installed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heights2Bastrop Posted July 14, 2006 Share Posted July 14, 2006 This is purely conjecture on my part, but I would say that movie theaters were more of an evolution than a creation. Many early Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firebird65 Posted July 14, 2006 Author Share Posted July 14, 2006 I would tend to agree with you, Heights2Bastrop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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