Erie, PA Theaters in 1918: Columbia, Strand, Majestic and More

Erie, PA Theaters in 1918: Columbia, Strand, Majestic and more

Erie County Department of Health rating of movie theaters in 1918.

There were 17 theaters in Erie, Pennsylvania in 1918. Five of them were on Parade Street: the Isis, the Keystone, the New Wilkay, the Plaza and the White Eagle. Three theaters were on State Street, including the Nixon, the Princess and the Strand (the Warner Theatre didn't open until 1931).

Only four of the theaters had excellent sanitary conditions: the Strand, the Columbia, the Colonial and the Majestic. 

Joanne Marchant Heim added, "I never knew the Hillcrest was originally called the Hippodrome!!! The Strand and the Columbia were owned by Warner Bros. They could well afford to keep up their theaters and even build more, like the Warner during the Depression, thanks to Sam Warner. In 1926, he convinced his brothers to work with a sound engineering company called Western Electric and together they formed Vitaphone. The rest is history."

You might recognize some of the theaters in this list because they also appeared in an article on Old Time Erie called Erie Theaters in 1948: Warner, Columbia, Strand, Regent and more.

Enjoy more fun historical facts about Erie, PA at: Old Time Erie

Erie, PA Theaters in 1948, Warner, Columbia, Strand and more

Erie, PA Theaters in 1948: Warner, Columbia, Strand, Regent and more

Ad in the Erie Daily Times from April 2, 1948

Let's see how many Erie, Pennsylvania movie theaters that you remember. We'll start with the biggest, the Warner Theatre on State Street. If you went to the Warner on Saturday, April 3, 1948, you could see 17 big cartoons beginning at 10 a.m. for only a quarter plus tax. That included two hours of cartoons for kiddies of all ages, such as Bugs Bunny, Little Lulu, Daffy Duck and Tom and Jerry. What kid would say no to that?

You could see three big westerns at the State Theater on Friday April 2, 1948; a matinee was 25¢, the evening show was 33¢, and children cost 17¢ each, plus tax. The Columbia and the Strand offered the typical night fare with first or second run features.

There were plenty of neighborhood theaters, such as Hillcrest at 2505 Peach Street, the Folly at 26th and Poplar, the American, the Lyric at 548 West 18th Street, the Gem at 4th and Cherry, the Regent at 1019 Parade Street, the 18th Street Theater and the Aris Theater. (The Lake Theatre at 921 East 26th Street shows up in the 1957 Erie city directory.)

Warner Brothers controlled three theaters: the Warner, the Strand and the Columbia.

Here's a picture of the Warner Theatre on State Street about 1965.

Joanne Marchant Heim said, "In 1971, Congress used the anti trust law to force the movie studios to sell their theaters and Warner was forced to seel it's Warner, Strand and Stanley Theaters. The Columbia in Erie was gone by then. Warner sold the Strand and Warner in Erie to Cinemette, Inc."

Cinema 18 opened in 1968 on West 18th Street.

Here is a list of Erie movie theaters from 1918 which includes the Columbia, Folly, American, the Gem and more. In this list, the Strand was located at 922 State Street and the Majestic was at 20-22 West 10th Street. Did the Strand later move to 13 West 10th Street (the current home of the Erie Playhouse)?

Which theater was your favorite?

Enjoy more fun and fascinating reflections on the history of Erie, PA at: Old Time Erie