Uptown Theatre (Chicago)

Infobox_nrhp | name = Balaban and Katz Uptown Theatre


caption = Uptown Theatre, 2005
location = 4814-4816 N. Broadway, Chicago, Illinois
lat_degrees = 41
lat_minutes = 58
lat_seconds = 10.7
lat_direction = N
long_degrees = 87
long_minutes = 39
long_seconds = 35.7
long_direction = W
area =
built = 1925
added = November 20, 1986
visitation_num =
visitation_year =
governing_body = 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, it was constructed in 1925 for the Balaban and Katz theater chain.

The largest in Chicago, it boasts 4,381 seats and its interior size (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 convert|46000|sqft|m2|-2 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 [http://www.ci.chi.il.us/Landmarks/U/UptownTheater.html historic landmark] , which has been closed to regular audiences since 1981.

History

Grand opening

The Uptown Theatre opened its doors August 18, 1925, billed as "An Acre of Seats in a Magic City." [http://www.compassrose.org/static/UptownHeraldAd.jpgLiterature] encouraged patrons to "come for the most awe-inspiring sight of your life." The [http://www.compassrose.org/uptowntheatre/history.html 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. [http://chicago.urban-history.org/ven/ths/th_ar28.shtml 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. [http://www.compassrose.org/uptowntheatre/history2.html 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.fact|date= July 2008

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. [http://chicago.urban-history.org/ven/ths/uptown_t.shtml Jazz Age Chicago]

New life as a music venue

In the 1970s, the theater was revived as a major concert venue, hosting Genesis, Bob Marley, the Grateful Dead, Bruce Springsteen, ELO, Prince, The Allman Brothers Band, and many others.

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 as Duncan's Toy Store in "". 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. [cite web | url = http://www.chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=25055 | title = Uptown Theatre draws crowd of suitors | last = Baeb | first = Eddie | publisher = Crain's Chicago Business | date = 2008-05-21 | accessdate = 2008-07-29]

It was purchased through a judicial sale July 29 2008 by JAM Productions for $3.2 million [cite web | url = http://www.chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=30370 | title = Jam buys Uptown for $3.2M | publisher = Crain's Chicago Business | last = Baeb | first = Eddie | date = 2008-07-29 | accessdate = 2008-07-29] and finalized in court on August 18 2008. [cite web | url = http://chicagojournal.com/Main.asp?SectionID=49&SubSectionID=142&ArticleID=5678 | title = Uptown Theatre a done deal | publisher = Chicago Journal | last = Swanson | first = Lorraine | date = 2008-08-20 | accessdate = 2008-08-20] 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.

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, "", published by Compass Rose, chronicles the history of the theatre and the current preservation efforts surrounding it.

Literature

* The Uptown Theatre is featured on the cover of a new book entitled "The Chicago Movie Palaces of Balaban and Katz" by David Balaban, published by Arcadia Publishing.

External links

* [http://www.uptowntheatre.com Friends of the Uptown] - Group dedicated to re-opening the Uptown Theatre
* [http://www.compassrose.org/uptowntheatre/history.html Compass Rose Cultural Crossroads] — Has an extensive history of the Uptown Theatre.
* [http://www.balabanandkatzfoundation.com 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
* [http://www.historictheatres.org Theatre Historical Society of America] - Located in Elmhurst, Illinois; has a collection of Uptown Theatre photos and B&K documents
* [http://magnoliamaldenneighbors.com/entertainment.html 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.

References