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Temple Theater (Meridian, Mississippi)
Encyclopedia
The Hamasa Shrine Temple Theater, added to the National Register of Historic Places
in 1979, is a historic theater located at 2320 8th Street in Meridian, Mississippi
. The Temple Theater was constructed in the Moorish Revival
style and began screening silent films in 1928. The theater features a Byzantine
motif, a swirl of marble
fountain
s, and large bronze
chandelier
s. At the time of its construction, the theater contained one of the largest stages in the United States
, second only to the Roxy Theater in New York City
. The theater houses one of only two Robert Morton
pipe organs still installed in their original locations in the State of Mississippi
– the other being installed at the Saenger Theater in Hattiesburg, Mississippi
. Both organs are under the care and restoration efforts of the Magnolia Chapter of the American Theater Organ Society.
The Temple, originally used for vaudeville
and movies, is now used year-round for area events, live stage shows, plays, and concerts.
The Hamasa Shrine
organization in Meridian had outgrown their building across town by the early 1920s and sought to relocate. The Shriners hired architect Emile Weil to design the building and construction began in 1923. After the Grand Ballroom was completed in 1924, the Shriners moved in and began holding meetings while the rest of the building was being built around them. The theater part of the building was completed a few months later, but for the first few months of operation only occasional travelling shows performed at the Temple. It wasn't until 1927 when the Shriners leased the Temple Theater to the Saenger corporation in New Orleans that the Temple was modified into a movie house that the venue became very popular.
After several modifications – including the addition of a 3 manual 8 rank Robert Morton
pipe organ
– the Temple Theater was finally completed in 1928. At the time of its construction, the theater contained one of the largest stages in the United States
, second only to the Roxy Theater in New York City
. Saenger's lease was renewed in 1952 for an additional 20 years, ending in 1972. With seating for 1800 persons, the silent movie
era was a prosperous time for the Temple. Even after the silent movie era ended, the Temple provided entertainment to guests. Some of the artists that have performed at the Temple include George Strait
, Alabama
, Ronnie Milsap
, Bill Monroe
, Willie Nelson
, The Oak Ridge Boys
, Randy Travis
, Roy Clark
, Waylon Jennings
, Elvis Presley
, and many other big names.
In 1973, after the Saenger's lease had expired, the Hamasa Shrine began restoration efforts ranging from repairing plaster damage and repainting walls to reupholstering seats and replacing carpets. The Temple remained true to its original design with one exception: the lobby's terrazzo
floor, inlaid with small brass stars, swastika
s, and crescents, was edited during World War II
. The swastika
s, simply design elements when the theater was constructed, were removed.
In February 2009, a businessman from Dallas, Texas
, named Roger Smith bought the Temple and promised to restore the Temple and continue year-round programming. Though many movie houses across the nation have been demolished, the Temple has remained in constant use. Today the Temple is used year-round for area events, live stage show
s, play
s, concert
s, Hamasa Shrine functions, and public screenings of classic movies. It is a part of the Imperial Shrine Council, which consists of 191 Temples throughout North America
.
embodies curved and unbroken surfaces to insure quality acoustics, and a resonance chamber
was built as a floor to the orchestra pit
, increasing and enriching the tone of the instruments. In spite of the size of the room and relatively large number of the audience, some shows, such as both of Tony Bennett
's appearances at the theatre, are able to be performed entirely without microphones.
The theater contains a Robert Morton
pipe organ
– one of only two of the same type still installed in its original location in the state. A white and gold console provides three 61 note manuals and 32 pedals to play 608 pipes arranged in eight ranks. The pipes are contained in two chambers – one located either side of the stage. Each chamber contains four ranks of pipes and various percussion instruments ranging from bass and snare drums to xylophone, orchestral bells, and 12 special effects, known collectively as the "toy counter". These are special sound effects such as train whistle, car horn, and duck calls, which were meant to accompany silent movies. This Robert Morton Console provides 120 stops to select the various voices and blends available, with 48 "pistons" allowing a pre-defined selection of stops to be instantly recalled. The organ sustained damage during rain leakage, but is now fully restored due to the efforts of the Magnolia Chapter of the American Theater Organ Society.
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1979, is a historic theater located at 2320 8th Street in Meridian, Mississippi
Meridian, Mississippi
Meridian is the county seat of Lauderdale County, Mississippi. It is the sixth largest city in the state and the principal city of the Meridian, Mississippi Micropolitan Statistical Area...
. The Temple Theater was constructed in the Moorish Revival
Moorish Revival
Moorish Revival or Neo-Moorish is one of the exotic revival architectural styles that were adopted by architects of Europe and the Americas in the wake of the Romanticist fascination with all things oriental...
style and began screening silent films in 1928. The theater features a Byzantine
Byzantine
Byzantine usually refers to the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.Byzantine may also refer to:* A citizen of the Byzantine Empire, or native Greek during the Middle Ages...
motif, a swirl of marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
fountain
Fountain
A fountain is a piece of architecture which pours water into a basin or jets it into the air either to supply drinking water or for decorative or dramatic effect....
s, and large bronze
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
chandelier
Chandelier
A chandelier is a branched decorative ceiling-mounted light fixture with two or more arms bearing lights. Chandeliers are often ornate, containing dozens of lamps and complex arrays of glass or crystal prisms to illuminate a room with refracted light...
s. At the time of its construction, the theater contained one of the largest stages in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, second only to the Roxy Theater in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. The theater houses one of only two Robert Morton
Robert Morton Organ Company
The Robert Morton Organ Company was a producer of theater pipe organs and church organs, located in Van Nuys, California. Robert Morton was the number two volume producer of theatre organs, building approximately half as many organs as the industry leader Wurlitzer...
pipe organs still installed in their original locations in the State of Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
– the other being installed at the Saenger Theater in Hattiesburg, Mississippi
Hattiesburg, Mississippi
Hattiesburg is a city in Forrest County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 44,779 at the 2000 census . It is the county seat of Forrest County...
. Both organs are under the care and restoration efforts of the Magnolia Chapter of the American Theater Organ Society.
The Temple, originally used for vaudeville
Vaudeville
Vaudeville was a theatrical genre of variety entertainment in the United States and Canada from the early 1880s until the early 1930s. Each performance was made up of a series of separate, unrelated acts grouped together on a common bill...
and movies, is now used year-round for area events, live stage shows, plays, and concerts.
History
Shriners
The Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, also commonly known as Shriners and abbreviated A.A.O.N.M.S., established in 1870, is an appendant body to Freemasonry, based in the United States...
organization in Meridian had outgrown their building across town by the early 1920s and sought to relocate. The Shriners hired architect Emile Weil to design the building and construction began in 1923. After the Grand Ballroom was completed in 1924, the Shriners moved in and began holding meetings while the rest of the building was being built around them. The theater part of the building was completed a few months later, but for the first few months of operation only occasional travelling shows performed at the Temple. It wasn't until 1927 when the Shriners leased the Temple Theater to the Saenger corporation in New Orleans that the Temple was modified into a movie house that the venue became very popular.
After several modifications – including the addition of a 3 manual 8 rank Robert Morton
Robert Morton
Robert Morton was an English composer of the early Renaissance, mostly active at the Burgundian court. He was highly regarded at the time. Only secular vocal music, all Rondeaux for three voices, survive.-Life:...
pipe organ
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
– the Temple Theater was finally completed in 1928. At the time of its construction, the theater contained one of the largest stages in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, second only to the Roxy Theater in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Saenger's lease was renewed in 1952 for an additional 20 years, ending in 1972. With seating for 1800 persons, the silent movie
Silent Movie
Silent Movie is a 1976 satirical comedy film co-written, directed by, and starring Mel Brooks, and released by 20th Century Fox on June 17, 1976...
era was a prosperous time for the Temple. Even after the silent movie era ended, the Temple provided entertainment to guests. Some of the artists that have performed at the Temple include George Strait
George Strait
George Harvey Strait is an American country music singer, actor, and music producer. Strait is referred to as the "King of Country," and critics call Strait a living legend. He is known for his unique style of western swing music, bar-room ballads, honky-tonk style, and fresh yet traditional...
, Alabama
Alabama (band)
Alabama is a country music and southern rock band from Fort Payne, Alabama, United States. The band was founded in 1969 by Randy Owen and his cousin Teddy Gentry , soon joined by Jeff Cook...
, Ronnie Milsap
Ronnie Milsap
Ronnie Lee Milsap is an American country music singer and pianist. He was one of country’s most popular and influential performers of the 1970s and 1980s...
, Bill Monroe
Bill Monroe
William Smith Monroe was an American musician who created the style of music known as bluegrass, which takes its name from his band, the "Blue Grass Boys," named for Monroe's home state of Kentucky. Monroe's performing career spanned 60 years as a singer, instrumentalist, composer and bandleader...
, Willie Nelson
Willie Nelson
Willie Hugh Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie , combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger and Stardust , made Nelson one of the most recognized...
, The Oak Ridge Boys
The Oak Ridge Boys
The Oak Ridge Boys are an American country and gospel vocal quartet.The group was founded in the 1940s as the Oak Ridge Quartet. They became popular in southern gospel during the 1950s...
, Randy Travis
Randy Travis
Randy Travis is an American country music singer and actor. Since 1985, he has recorded 20 studio albums and charted more than 30 singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, 22 of which were number one hits...
, Roy Clark
Roy Clark
Roy Linwood Clark is an American country music musician and performer. He is best known for hosting Hee Haw, a nationally televised country variety show, from 1969–1992. Clark has been an important and influential figure in country music, both as a performer and helping to popularize the genre...
, Waylon Jennings
Waylon Jennings
Waylon Arnold Jennings was an American country music singer, songwriter, and musician. Jennings began playing at eight. He began performing at twelve, on KVOW radio. Jennings formed a band The Texas Longhorns. Jennings worked as a D.J on KVOW, KDAV and KLLL...
, Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
, and many other big names.
In 1973, after the Saenger's lease had expired, the Hamasa Shrine began restoration efforts ranging from repairing plaster damage and repainting walls to reupholstering seats and replacing carpets. The Temple remained true to its original design with one exception: the lobby's terrazzo
Terrazzo
Terrazzo is a composite material poured in place or precast, which is used for floor and wall treatments. It consists of marble, quartz, granite, glass or other suitable chips, sprinkled or unsprinkled, and poured with a binder that is cementitious, chemical or a combination of both...
floor, inlaid with small brass stars, swastika
Swastika
The swastika is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles, in either right-facing form in counter clock motion or its mirrored left-facing form in clock motion. Earliest archaeological evidence of swastika-shaped ornaments dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization of Ancient...
s, and crescents, was edited during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The swastika
Swastika
The swastika is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles, in either right-facing form in counter clock motion or its mirrored left-facing form in clock motion. Earliest archaeological evidence of swastika-shaped ornaments dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization of Ancient...
s, simply design elements when the theater was constructed, were removed.
In February 2009, a businessman from Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
, named Roger Smith bought the Temple and promised to restore the Temple and continue year-round programming. Though many movie houses across the nation have been demolished, the Temple has remained in constant use. Today the Temple is used year-round for area events, live stage show
Stage Show
Stage Show was a popular music variety series on American television originally hosted on alternate weeks by big band leaders and brothers Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey. Produced by Jackie Gleason, the CBS-TV show included the first national television appearances by Elvis Presley.The series began as a...
s, play
Play (theatre)
A play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of scripted dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed...
s, concert
Concert
A concert is a live performance before an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, a choir, or a musical band...
s, Hamasa Shrine functions, and public screenings of classic movies. It is a part of the Imperial Shrine Council, which consists of 191 Temples throughout North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
Acoustics
The design of the auditoriumAuditorium
An auditorium is a room built to enable an audience to hear and watch performances at venues such as theatres. For movie theaters, the number of auditoriums is expressed as the number of screens.- Etymology :...
embodies curved and unbroken surfaces to insure quality acoustics, and a resonance chamber
Resonance chamber
A resonance chamber uses resonance to amplify sound. The chamber has interior surfaces which reflect an acoustic wave. When a wave enters the chamber, it bounces back and forth within the chamber with low loss...
was built as a floor to the orchestra pit
Orchestra pit
An orchestra pit is the area in a theater in which musicians perform. Orchestral pits are utilized in forms of theatre that require music or in cases when incidental music is required...
, increasing and enriching the tone of the instruments. In spite of the size of the room and relatively large number of the audience, some shows, such as both of Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett is an American singer of popular music, standards, show tunes, and jazz....
's appearances at the theatre, are able to be performed entirely without microphones.
The theater contains a Robert Morton
Robert Morton Organ Company
The Robert Morton Organ Company was a producer of theater pipe organs and church organs, located in Van Nuys, California. Robert Morton was the number two volume producer of theatre organs, building approximately half as many organs as the industry leader Wurlitzer...
pipe organ
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
– one of only two of the same type still installed in its original location in the state. A white and gold console provides three 61 note manuals and 32 pedals to play 608 pipes arranged in eight ranks. The pipes are contained in two chambers – one located either side of the stage. Each chamber contains four ranks of pipes and various percussion instruments ranging from bass and snare drums to xylophone, orchestral bells, and 12 special effects, known collectively as the "toy counter". These are special sound effects such as train whistle, car horn, and duck calls, which were meant to accompany silent movies. This Robert Morton Console provides 120 stops to select the various voices and blends available, with 48 "pistons" allowing a pre-defined selection of stops to be instantly recalled. The organ sustained damage during rain leakage, but is now fully restored due to the efforts of the Magnolia Chapter of the American Theater Organ Society.