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On December 1, 1927 the Colonial was acquired by National Theater Enterprises, Inc, and was renamed the New Colonial on April 9, 1928. In May 1930 National Theater Enterprises closed the New Colonial, demolished the building from the basement level up, then began construction on a new Spanish-style movie palace. Work progressed at a very rapid pace and most of the contractors were hired locally. Designed by Michael
D. DeAngelis (who also designed the Oriental Theater in Rochester, Pa), the new building was 60 feet wide, 145 feet
deep
and 54 feet high, with a facade of terra cotta. The
first floor seated approximately 1,000
and the balcony accommodated about 600 more. The brightly-colored
atmospheric auditorium
resembled a Spanish garden, complete with seasonal foilage, moving clouds and twinkling stars. On the mezzanine
level there was a grand civic room, with card tables and a fireplace,
which could be rented out for meetings and social events. The
basement contained a lounge and the building's large
heating and air
conditioning system. The Granada Theater opened to the public on December 23, 1930. The name "Granada Theater" was chosen by a local person, who won $100 by submitting the name in a contest to name the new moviehouse. The highlight of opening night was an appearance by legendary Notre Dame head football coach Knute Rockne, who explained some of the plays that took his team to victory year after year. Tragically, a few months later on March 31, 1931, Rockne died when his plane en route from Kansas City to Los Angeles crashed shortly after takeoff.
The Granada
Theater operated for nearly 30 years, showing top
shelf movies of the day. But alas on November 30, 1960 the
Granada
Theater closed for good. The building remained empty until the early
1970s,
when it was converted into a "mini-mall" shopping center. The
auditorium was leveled with concrete and divided into tiny shops
and offices. Above the suspended ceiling, the auditorium was
left largely intact.
Interior
photos courtesy of R.C. Wolfe of the Roxy
Theater
in
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