The Grand Theatre

Opening its doors on January 7, 1913, the Grand Theatre on West Pine Street was the third movie theatre in downtown Orlando. The theatre remained in business until 1953 under the name of the Grand Theatre, though its ownership switched hands many times. In September 1953, it was sold by Florida State Theatres to the Moss Corporation and it was renamed the Astor Theatre and discontinued operations in 1962.

The Grand Theatre

Some of the first reports about the idea behind the construction of the Grand Theatre appear to have been almost a year before it opened: The Daily-Reporter published an article on February 9, 1912, in which it was reported that Col. Thomas Jefferson Watkins was interested in making a motion picture house.

Col. Thomas Jefferson Watkins, originally of Alabama, had settled in Orlando around 1908 and was a businessman. He is quoted both in this article, and one published the following day in the same newspaper, that he intended to build the theatre near the location of the Pastime Theatre, which was located on West Pine Street. According to these articles, Col. T. J. Watkins believed that there was room in downtown Orlando for both the Pastime Theatre and his new theatre. However, the theatre, which Col. Watkins originally intended to name the Dixie, ended up replacing the Pastime Theatre.

Clipping from the 1913 Orlando Sanborn map showing the location of The Grand on W. Pine St.
From the Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps.

The Pastime Theatre remained open to the public and showing films at least until August 25, 1912. By August 27, 1912, the theatre appears to have been closed and work on demolishing the theatre had begun. The architect behind the construction of the Grand Theatre was none other than Murray S. King, who later was the architect behind the Phillips Theatre and the Albertson Public Library.

An article in the Daily Reporter-Star on November 16, 1912, estimated that the Grand Theatre was to open by December 15 of that year. A hotel on top of the theatre, known as the New Grand Hotel, was open by November 16, 1912. The theatre did not open until January 7, 1913.

Postcard of the Grand Theatre and Hotel.
From the RICHES collection.

The Grand’s Grand Opening

As described in the Daily Reporter-Star on opening night, The Grand Theatre’s interior was “soft green” and “old ivory” with repoussé work of lyres and harps. Its ceiling was of fretted metal which was also in soft greens and ivory. The lights of the ceiling were “globe[s] of pierced metal” which lent an artistic look. Of special note as well was the fact that the theatre had its own four-piece orchestra, that were selected to play music that was best suited to the actions on the screen. The grand opening of the Grand Theatre appears to have gone off without a hitch and present onstage were Dr. Stagg, Mr. Joseph L. Guernsey, Col. T. J. Watkins, and Councilmen Jackson, Gwynne, Simms, Smith, Walker and Seegar. Mr. J. L. Guernsey remarked that the Grand Theatre was “the finest south of the Mason-Dixon line.” Dr. Stagg, who spoke at the opening, stated

The physical house is the product of the combined energies of Col. Watkins, who conceived the idea and furnished the money for its carrying out. Mr. M. S. King, the architect, who worked out the plan, and Mr. O. L. Badger, the consulting engineer, who is working in the South to overcome the criminality of poor ventilation in houses where the public assembles. In this sense the house is like, and unlike a lady’s hat. It is a thing of beauty, as may be seen by you all, and a thing of comfort, as may be felt by you all. What kind of a house will it be morally? The depends upon you. Those inaugurating this movement want the entertainments given in this place to be of an order that shall instruct, elevate, and entertain. A vicious society can defeat this aim. If you insist on your community being vulgar it will be vulgar. If the best people say no vulgar show shall be given in Orlando, none will be given, and this playhouse will be an institution making for the social uplift of the people.

Also present was T. P. Robinson, who took photos of the Grand Theatre’s interiors.

The first film that played was the Selig Polyscope film The Count of Monte Cristo, which was released in 1912. The film was ordered destroyed after a complaint was filed by Adolph Zukor, of Paramount Pictures, and it does not survive.

Clipping from the April 18, 1914 Evening Reporter-Star
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Managers, Management and Scandals

The Grand Theatre appears to have been managed for its first eleven months by F. G. Rush, who also owned the first Ford dealership in Orlando. It is during his management that the first mention of The Grand Amusement Company appears. A blurb appeared in the Orlando Sentinel on March 1, 1913, announcing that the showing of Helen Gardner’s Cleopatra was canceled due to the fact that the picture itself was unlicensed, and in keeping with the speech by Dr. Stagg on opening night, the Grand Theatre only showed “licensed and censored films.”

Clipping from the November 28, 1913 Daily Reporter-Star
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A five year lease of the Grand Theatre was purchased by the Montgomery Motion Picture Company of Jacksonville in November 1913, though they did not take over the theatre until December 1913. It appears that for a brief period of time, Harry Delaney, Jr. of Jacksonville, managed the theatre for G. N. Montgomery.

In January 1914, The Grand Theatre showed the first motion picture filmed in Orlando: A Romance at Orlando. Orlando Sentinel reported that there were more than three thousand paid admissions. At the time, The Grand Theatre only seated 400 people, indicating either that many must have viewed the show standing, or the statement was simply an exaggeration by local papers.

Likely in or around February 1914, Ben G. Benson took up management of The Grand Theatre. B. G. Benson was a civil engineer whose home at the time was in West Tocoi. His stint as manager of the Grand Theatre was very brief.

Clipping from the April 26, 1914 Orlando Sentinel
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On April 25, 1914, the Daily Reporter-Star reported that B. G. Benson was arrested for assault on Harry Delaney Jr. in Jacksonville at the Seminole Hotel. Benson accused Delaney of having embezzled money to the tune of $600. According to an article published in the April 26, 1914 Orlando Sentinel, Delaney had left the management of the Grand Theatre in February “in a muddled condition” and returned to Jacksonville. Harry Delaney Jr. was also arrested for embezzlement.

Due to the business issues between Delaney and Benson, on May 7, 1914, F. G. Rush was appointed receiver of the Grand Theatre by Judge James Perkins. This decision was later reversed on May 17, 1914 and Benson returned as manager albeit only for another 10 days. B. G. Benson sold his interest in the Grand Theatre to Mrs. Braxton Beacham Sr. in late May 1914, according to a report in the May 27, 1914 Orlando Sentinel.

Advertisement from the January 31, 1915 Orlando Sentinel
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Mac Tallman and the return of the Grand Amusement Company

Mac Tallman, a musician originally from Lebanon, Pennsylvania, served as the manager of The Grand for sixteen months. Though unclear, it appears that the lease to the Montgomery Motion Picture Company was terminated. The Grand Amusement Company once again was used in reference to the theatre and its management, it having not been mentioned since March 1913.

Under Tallman’s management, the Grand Amusement Company expanded to also purchase the Lucerne Theatre, which had been operational and showing motion pictures since at least 1911. The Grand Theatre also hosted the first showing of the first American comedy feature film, Tillie’s Punctured Romance, in 1915.

In October 1915, Mac Tallman left the Grand Amusement Company and Braxton “Bonnie” Beacham Jr. was appointed as manager. The Grand Amusement Company expanded significantly under his leadership, gaining control of The Phillips Theatre as well as The Baby Grand in Winter Park, and two other theatres outside of Orlando. When Bonnie Beacham registered for the USNRF in July 1918, Carl Dann managed the company, though he relinquished this role when Beacham returned. Bonnie Beacham held the role of manager of the Grand Amusement Company likely until September 1920.

Orlando Enterprises

In September 1920, the Grand Amusement Company and its holdings–the Grand, the Lucerne, and the Phillips Theatres–were sold to E. J. Sparks of Orlando Enterprises, a subsidiary of Southern Enterprises. W. J. Melvin was named as manager, and Harry Vincent was named as the assistant manager. At that time, the New Grand Hotel, which had been operating since before the theatre opened, was closed. The theatre’s seating, which had been expanded to include 625 seats in January 1917, was once again expanded to include a total of 1200 seats.

Advertisement for the last showing at the Grand Theatre in the July 20, 1929 Orlando Sentinel
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The Grand Theatre appears to have remained exclusively a silent film theatre throughout the end of the 1920s. A 1928 article in the Orlando Sentinel stated while the Beacham Theatre was outfitted for sound films, the Grand Theatre would continue to show the only the best silent films. However, the Grand Theatre closed on July 20, 1929 for what was then an indefinite period. The theatre did not re-open until November 28, 1934.

Though it was mentioned as having been closed because of equipment being installed in Phillips Theatre, there are likely a myriad of reasons why it remained closed for so long: the cost of operating all of the Sparks theatres, the cost of sound technology that quickly became obsolete, the Great Depression, etc.¹

Advertisement congratulating Sparks Theatres on the grand (re-)opening of the Grand Theatre
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While the theatre was closed, it appears to have been used as a rehearsal space for the State Legion Band, which was formed in 1934. The Grand Theatre was remodeled before its re-opening in 1934 by then manager of the Orlando Sparks Theatres, Jesse L. Clark.

Shortly after its re-opening, the Grand Theatre took part in what was known as “Bank Nite.” Occurring on Friday nights, the bank nights seemed to have taken place at each of the Sparks Theatres until August 1937 in Orlando. The following year, a Florida Supreme Court case ruled bank nights were an illegal lottery. Theatre management, however, insisted that the nights were not a lottery because no purchase was necessary to win.

¹The Sparks Theatre chain, run by E. J. Sparks, appears to have developed after an antitrust lawsuit was filed against S. A. Lynch (head of Southern Enterprises) and Paramount Pictures in 1921 who were accused of having used coercion when acquiring theatres.

E. J. Sparks was formerly in charge of the theatres in Orlando under the name of Orlando Enterprises. As far as the author of this post can tell, “Sparks Theatres” was first used to refer to the chain in June 1924. The 1921 antitrust lawsuit was not completed, but the 1948 ruling United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc., has its roots in this lawsuit.

Clipping from the September 25, 1953 Orlando Sentinel
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Astor Theatre

On September 17, 1953, an article in the Orlando Evening Star noted that the Grand Theatre had been sold by Florida State Theatres to the B. S. Moss Theatre Corporation of New York.² The article indicated that the theater would be a first-run theater. Eight days later, on September 25, 1953, the theatre was reopened again under the name of the Astor Theatre.

The Astor Theatre appeared to have run about five showings daily, with most advertisements noting that the theatre opened its doors at 12:45 P.M. Through the early 1960s, the Astor was the only theatre in Orlando that would show foreign films, including L’avventura, Purple Noon, and Through a Glass Darkly. However, by late July this appears to have been discontinued, with two Orlando residents writing in to the Orlando Sentinel lamenting that they would no longer be able to see foreign films in the city on July 26, and August 4, 1962. However, only a few weeks later, the Vogue theatre began showing foreign films.

Letters to the Orlando Sentinel editor, July 26, 1962
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For the remaining months that it was open, the theatre transitioned to showing primarily b-movies. The Astor Theatre would remain open until December 1, 1962 before quietly closing its doors for the final time.

Clipping from July 30, 1965 Orlando Evening Star
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On May 25, 1965, Orlando Evening Star reported that the Astor Theatre would be torn down, stating that the theater had “outlived its usefulness.” Demolition began the week of July 30, 1965 and was completed by August 23, 1965 according to an article in the Orlando Evening Star.

On January 19, 1966, the Orlando Evening Star reported that the lot where the Astor Theatre once stood was sold by Bill Davis to Ches. Magruder. The purchase of this lot gave Magruder a full block of property from Central to Pine.

On the former site of the Grand Theatre, a parking lot now sits.

²At some point the Grand Theatre came under Florida State Theatres’ management, although the author is not clear as to when this happened.