.gif)
Uptown Theatre (Chicago)
Encyclopedia
The Uptown Theatre, also known as the Balaban and Katz Uptown Theatre, is a massive, ornate movie palace
in the Uptown
neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois
. Designed by Rapp and Rapp
and constructed in 1925, it the last of the "big three" movie palaces built by the Balaban & Katz theatre chain run by A. J. Balaban
, his brother Barney Balaban
and their partner Sam Katz.
The largest in Chicago, it boasts 4,381 seats and its interior volume is said to be larger than any other movie palace in the United States, including Radio City Music Hall
in New York. It occupies over 46000 square feet (4,273.5 m²) of land at the corner of Lawrence Avenue and Broadway in Chicago's Uptown Entertainment District. The mammoth theater has an ornate five story entrance lobby with an eight story façade.
Rehabilitation efforts are needed to restore and reopen this historic Chicago landmark, which has been closed to regular audiences since 1981.
Grand opening
The Uptown Theatre opened its doors August 18, 1925, billed as "An Acre of Seats in a Magic City." Literature encouraged patrons to "come for the most awe-inspiring sight of your life." The Grand Opening of the Uptown Theatre was accompanied by a "Central Uptown Parade" of over 200 floats and a grand ball at Harmon's Arcadia in Uptown. Over 12,000 people stood in line to be ticketholders in the very first audience. Several women collapsed because of exhaustion. Jazz Age Chicago
Uptown Theatre staff and stage shows
The theater opened with a staff of over 130 people, including a full time 34 piece orchestra, a nurse, firemen and others. Elaborate stage show productions would accompany each movie, unique in that the elaborate stage shows would follow the theme of the movie. Other chains had basic Vaudeville acts to keep patrons entertained before the movie. The Uptown Theatre is on several landmark and historic registers. Compass Rose Cultural Crossroads
A half century of movies
Movies at the Uptown Theatre continued, even after stage shows ended as a way to reduce costs. In 1949, the stage shows were revived for a short time. Movies continued during the 1950s and 1960s. Notably, during that time, the television show Queen for a Day
was filmed in the Uptown, with a live audience.
Movie crowds eventually dwindled, at the same time that the Uptown area was experiencing a decline of retail in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Jazz Age Chicago
New life as a music venue
In the 1970s, the theater was revived as a major concert venue.
The Uptown Theatre has been closed to regular events since the winter of 1981 when, due to the owner having turned off the heat, a frozen water pipe burst and caused extensive damage to the interior. In subsequent years, deferred maintenance and vandalism have led to further debilitation of the structure and ornament, both inside and out.
Since 1981, the theater has been used as a location for scenes in movies such as the Academy Award-nominated Ron Howard
movie, Backdraft
, the Julia Roberts
and Nick Nolte
movie, I Love Trouble, and the John Hughes-Chris Columbus
sequel Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
. In the 1990s, the theatre lobby was host to the "Hearts Party" (a gay "circuit" party), which raised money for an AIDS charity.
Current restoration efforts
In 2006, the exterior was extensively secured and terra cotta pieces were cataloged and stored for future restoration efforts. A May 21, 2007 article in Crain's Chicago Business described the Uptown Theatre as "suddenly a hot property," as three national entertainment companies were in competition to purchase, restore and reopen the Uptown Theatre.
It was purchased through a judicial sale July 29, 2008 by JAM Productions for $3.2 million and finalized in court on August 18, 2008. It is estimated it will take about $40 million to get it ready for use again. JAM currently also owns the Riviera Theatre
also on Broadway, approximately one block away.
, founding member of the Theatre Historical Society and author of Theatres of Chicago, to highlight the plight of historic architecture across the country.1 In recent years, local and national campaigns have been launched to raise public awareness of the Uptown Theatre's plight, and petitions have gained worldwide attention.
The film premiered at the Portage Theatre in Chicago in June 2006 and has been featured on WTTW
, Chicago's public television station. Uptown: Portrait of a Palace won in the "Best Documentary" category at the 11th Annual Flicker Fest. It also won for "Best Short Documentary" at the Northwestern
Film Festival, introduced by former "Ghostbuster" Harold Ramis
.
Movie palace
A movie palace is a term used to refer to 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 opened every year between 1925 and 1930.There are three building types in particular which can be subsumed...
in the Uptown
Uptown, Chicago
Uptown is one of Chicago’s 77 community areas. Uptown has well defined boundaries. They are: Foster on the north; Lake Michigan on the east; Montrose , and Irving Park on the south; Ravenswood , and Clark on the west. Uptown borders three community areas and Lake Michigan...
neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. Designed by Rapp and Rapp
Rapp and Rapp
The architectural firm Rapp and Rapp was active in Chicago, Illinois during the early 20th century. The brothers Cornelius W. Rapp and George Leslie Rapp of Carbondale, Illinois were the named partners and 1899 alumnus of the University of Illinois School of Architecture...
and constructed in 1925, it the last of the "big three" movie palaces built by the Balaban & Katz theatre chain run by A. J. Balaban
A. J. Balaban
Abraham Joseph "A. J." Balaban was a Chicago-based showman whose particular influence on popular entertainment in the early 20th century led to enormous innovations in the American movie-going experience.Following the leasing and operation of a modest nickelodeon house in 1909, Balaban oversaw...
, his brother Barney Balaban
Barney Balaban
Barney Balaban was president of Paramount Pictures from 1936 to 1964, and innovator in the cinema industry. The eldest of the seven sons of grocery store owner Israel Balaban, Barney worked as a messenger boy and a cold storage company employee until 1908, when he was persuaded, at age 21, to go...
and their partner Sam Katz.
The largest in Chicago, it boasts 4,381 seats and its interior volume is said to be larger than any other movie palace in the United States, including Radio City Music Hall
Radio City Music Hall
Radio City Music Hall is an entertainment venue located in New York City's Rockefeller Center. Its nickname is the Showplace of the Nation, and it was for a time the leading tourist destination in the city...
in New York. It occupies over 46000 square feet (4,273.5 m²) of land at the corner of Lawrence Avenue and Broadway in Chicago's Uptown Entertainment District. The mammoth theater has an ornate five story entrance lobby with an eight story façade.
Rehabilitation efforts are needed to restore and reopen this historic Chicago landmark, which has been closed to regular audiences since 1981.
History
The Uptown Theatre opened its doors August 18, 1925, billed as "An Acre of Seats in a Magic City." Literature encouraged patrons to "come for the most awe-inspiring sight of your life." The Grand Opening of the Uptown Theatre was accompanied by a "Central Uptown Parade" of over 200 floats and a grand ball at Harmon's Arcadia in Uptown. Over 12,000 people stood in line to be ticketholders in the very first audience. Several women collapsed because of exhaustion. Jazz Age Chicago
Uptown Theatre staff and stage shows
The theater opened with a staff of over 130 people, including a full time 34 piece orchestra, a nurse, firemen and others. Elaborate stage show productions would accompany each movie, unique in that the elaborate stage shows would follow the theme of the movie. Other chains had basic Vaudeville acts to keep patrons entertained before the movie. The Uptown Theatre is on several landmark and historic registers. Compass Rose Cultural Crossroads
A half century of movies
Movies at the Uptown Theatre continued, even after stage shows ended as a way to reduce costs. In 1949, the stage shows were revived for a short time. Movies continued during the 1950s and 1960s. Notably, during that time, the television show Queen for a Day
Queen for a Day
Queen for a Day is an American radio and television game show that helped to usher in American listeners' and viewers' fascination with big-prize giveaway shows. Queen for a Day originated on the Mutual Radio Network on April 30, 1945 in New York City before moving to Los Angeles a few months...
was filmed in the Uptown, with a live audience.
Movie crowds eventually dwindled, at the same time that the Uptown area was experiencing a decline of retail in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Jazz Age Chicago
New life as a music venue
In the 1970s, the theater was revived as a major concert venue.
The Uptown Theatre has been closed to regular events since the winter of 1981 when, due to the owner having turned off the heat, a frozen water pipe burst and caused extensive damage to the interior. In subsequent years, deferred maintenance and vandalism have led to further debilitation of the structure and ornament, both inside and out.
Since 1981, the theater has been used as a location for scenes in movies such as the Academy Award-nominated Ron Howard
Ron Howard
Ronald William "Ron" Howard is an American actor, director, and producer. He came to prominence as a child actor, playing Opie Taylor in the sitcom The Andy Griffith Show for eight years, and later the teenaged Richie Cunningham in the sitcom Happy Days for six years...
movie, Backdraft
Backdraft (film)
Backdraft is a 1991 action thriller film directed by Ron Howard and written by Gregory Widen. The film stars Kurt Russell, William Baldwin, Scott Glenn, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Rebecca De Mornay, Donald Sutherland, and Robert De Niro. Jason Gedrick and J. T. Walsh co-star in the film...
, the Julia Roberts
Julia Roberts
Julia Fiona Roberts is an American actress. She became a Hollywood star after headlining the romantic comedy Pretty Woman , which grossed $464 million worldwide...
and Nick Nolte
Nick Nolte
Nicholas King "Nick" Nolte is an American actor whose career has spanned over five decades, peaking in the 1990s when his commercial success made him one of the most popular celebrities of that decade.-Early life:...
movie, I Love Trouble, and the John Hughes-Chris Columbus
Chris Columbus (filmmaker)
Christopher Joseph "Chris" Columbus is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Columbus had his largest success with the first two films in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, along with Home Alone, the last...
sequel Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York is a 1992 American Christmas comedy film written and produced by John Hughes and directed by Chris Columbus. It is the second film in the Home Alone series and the direct sequel to Home Alone. The film stars Macaulay Culkin in the lead role as Kevin McCallister, while...
. In the 1990s, the theatre lobby was host to the "Hearts Party" (a gay "circuit" party), which raised money for an AIDS charity.
Current restoration efforts
In 2006, the exterior was extensively secured and terra cotta pieces were cataloged and stored for future restoration efforts. A May 21, 2007 article in Crain's Chicago Business described the Uptown Theatre as "suddenly a hot property," as three national entertainment companies were in competition to purchase, restore and reopen the Uptown Theatre.
It was purchased through a judicial sale July 29, 2008 by JAM Productions for $3.2 million and finalized in court on August 18, 2008. It is estimated it will take about $40 million to get it ready for use again. JAM currently also owns the Riviera Theatre
Riviera Theatre
The Riviera Theatre is a concert venue in the north side of Chicago, Illinois. The Riviera Theatre is capable of holding some 2,500 spectators. Built in 1917, it was designed by Rapp and Rapp for the Balaban & Katz theatre chain run by A. J. Balaban, his brother Barney Balaban and their partner Sam...
also on Broadway, approximately one block away.
Preservation advocacy
A diverse advocacy group of friends, neighbors, historians, and theatre enthusiasts, Friends of the Uptown, supports restoring the venue to its position as an entertainment and economic asset for the Uptown neighborhood. A 2006 documentary by filmmakers John Pappas and Michael Bisberg, Uptown: Portrait of a Palace, published by Compass Rose, chronicles the history of the theatre and the current preservation efforts surrounding it.Film
Uptown: Portrait of a Palace is a documentary about the Uptown Theatre, produced by John Pappas and Michael Bisberg. It explores the history of the Uptown Theatre and why the largest and one of the most elaborate theatres in the nation has been left vacant since 1981. Historic photos are juxtaposed with recent film footage to show how the building has survived the last eighty years. The documentary uses interviews with eight sources close to the theatre, including Alderman Mary Ann Smith; local business owner Ric Addy; Rene Rabiella, whose father once owned the theatre; Andy Pierce, founding member of Friends of the Uptown; Bob Boin, a volunteer engineer; Dave Syfczak, caretaker; Joanne Asala and Robert Calhoun, theatre activists and co-founders of a history Web site; and Joseph DuciBellaJoseph DuciBella
Joseph R. DuciBella, A.S.I.D., was an interior designer, founding member of the Theatre Historical Society of America , author, and noted architectural historian....
, founding member of the Theatre Historical Society and author of Theatres of Chicago, to highlight the plight of historic architecture across the country.1 In recent years, local and national campaigns have been launched to raise public awareness of the Uptown Theatre's plight, and petitions have gained worldwide attention.
The film premiered at the Portage Theatre in Chicago in June 2006 and has been featured on WTTW
WTTW
WTTW channel 11 is one of three Public Broadcasting Service member public television stations serving the Chicago, Illinois market; the others are WYCC and WYIN. WTTW began broadcasting on September 6, 1955 and it is owned and operated by Window to the World Communications, Inc., a not-for-profit...
, Chicago's public television station. Uptown: Portrait of a Palace won in the "Best Documentary" category at the 11th Annual Flicker Fest. It also won for "Best Short Documentary" at the Northwestern
Northwestern
Northwestern may refer to:* Northwestern University, a private American research university, with campuses in Chicago and Evanston, Illinois* The Northwestern Wildcats, this school's intercollegiate athletic program-Other colleges and universities:...
Film Festival, introduced by former "Ghostbuster" Harold Ramis
Harold Ramis
Harold Allen Ramis is an American actor, director, and writer, specializing in comedy. His best-known film acting roles are as Egon Spengler in Ghostbusters and Russell Ziskey in Stripes , both of which he also co-wrote...
.
Literature
The Uptown Theatre is featured on the cover of a book entitled The Chicago Movie Palaces of Balaban and Katz by David Balaban, published by Arcadia Publishing.External links
- Friends of the Uptown – Group dedicated to re-opening the Uptown Theatre
- Compass Rose Cultural Crossroads – Has an extensive history of the Uptown Theatre.
- Balaban and Katz Foundation – Owns the original B & K articles of incorporation and other B & K documents and trademarks. Provides Information on B&K Theatres
- Theatre Historical Society of America – Located in Elmhurst, Illinois; has a collection of Uptown Theatre photos and B&K documents
- Uptown Chicago...cradle of...Entertainment – A virtual museum tour of the Uptown Chicago Entertainment district. One half hour long segment chronicles the movie palace history of Uptown, including extensive detail about the Uptown Theatre.
- Uptown: Portrait of a Palace (2006), a film by John Pappas