Also see: Imperial / United Artists / Market St. Cinema - demolition and salvage
Opened: December 22, 1912 as Grauman's Imperial by the father and son team David and Sid Grauman. It was on the south side of the street, opposite Jones St. The Graumans had earlier operated (among other ventures) the theatre later called the Crest -- they were calling it Grauman's. In this lovely 1913 shot the theatre is running "The Power of Silence" with the bonus of "The Great Pla Trio with a
Tettrazini Equal." Thanks
to John Bosko for sharing the photo from his collection on the BAHT Facebook page.
Note the "Grauman's Imperial" in the art glass above
the entrance. By 1918 or so it was covered on the outside after the
Grauman clan moved south and the theatre was under different management. The art glass was hidden by paint and stucco for 80+ years. It's been restored and now resides in the lobby of the condo building that replaced the theatre. Head to the bottom of the demolition and salvage page for photos.
A 1931 remodel for United Artists was by the firm of Walker & Eisen associated with Clifford A. Balch. Gary Parks has plans for that remodel in his collection. See 15 additional images from the blueprints down at the bottom of the page.
Seating: Perhaps 1,600 originally. 1,200 is a later number. Down to 1,100 after reseating in 1959.
The San Francisco Call issue of December 19, 1912 gave the new theatre a writeup noting:
"Something new in the way of theatrical ventures will be launched next Sunday with the opening of Grauman's Imperial theater, Seventh and Market streets. San Francisco has had vaudeville theaters and vaudeville theaters but the Imperial will give local theatregoers their first opportunity to witness entertainment of the English music hall type..."
The page from the Call can be viewed on the Library of Congress website.
The ad that appeared the San Francisco Call issue of December 22, 1912, the theatre's opening night. The page can be viewed on the Library of Congress website. In the paper's "Faces and Scenes in This Week's Attractions at the Playhouses" column on the same page it was noted:
"...A NEW PLAYHOUSE WILL OPEN -- Three new events will tend to make this week -- reputed to be in theatrical circles the dullest of the year -- a memorable holiday season. One is the Christmas present of a new playhouse to amusement loving San Francisco, Grauman's Imperial theater...."
"What should set a new standard for popular priced vaudeville in San Francisco seems assured in the opening of the new Imperial. Manager D.J. Grauman is already reaching out for the best talent that money can get and this winter promises the engagement of the biggest operatic stars in the country. The color scheme of the theater is blue and gold, but must be seen to be appreciated. A large promenade balcony is one of the features. The auditorium will seat 1,600 people. The prices will be 15 cents and 25 cents. Three performances will be given daily."
An article from the December 23, 1912 issue of the San Francisco Call. It's a rare view of the original look of the proscenium. Thanks to Michael Thomas Angelo for finding the item for a post on the BAHT Facebook page.
A March 30, 1913 ad located by Jack Tillmany. He comments: "Movies were in their infancy and live vaudeville was the major attraction, soon to be tossed aside in favor of feature films, musically enhanced by Gino Severi and the Imperial Orchestra."
A lantern slide advertising the films of Gilbert M. Anderson, better known as Broncho Billy Anderson. Thanks to David Kiehn, archivist at the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum, for sharing the item from their collection. In 1914 Anderson decided to get into the theatre business and built the Gaiety Theatre on O'Farrell St. across from the Orpheum (a house later known as the Union Square) to house musical revues. It wasn't a successful investment for him. Gary Parks comments:
A card advertising the 1916 release "Unprotected." Thanks to Glenn Koch for sharing the item from his collection for a post on the BAHT Facebook page.
After the Graumans left for southern California their name was covered over on the signage and it was just called the Imperial from 1916 to 1929. The Graumans had sold their interest to Wobber Brothers, who also operated the California Theatre. Soon both houses were being operated by Herbert Rothchild, who then built the Granada, a house that opened in 1921.
"In 1912 Partington became associated with D. J. and Sid Grauman at the Imperial theatre, San Francisco. Later the management of the theatre was turned over to him. After the Graumans sold the Imperial to Wobber Brothers and it was merged with the California theatre, Partington was placed in charge of both houses. When the Rothschild [sic] interests took over the two houses and built the Granada, Partington was given charge of the three theatres. This position he held until his transfer to Los Angeles."
We had a bit of a translation issue in this 1919 ad for "The Miracle Man" that appeared in the October 17, 1919 issue of L'Italia, an Italian language newspaper. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating this via the website of the California Digital Newspaper Collection.
This
cover for the program at the Imperial, California and Granada was for the week of October 28, 1922. At the
time, the three theatres were under the management of Herbert Rothchild with Paramount also in there with an ownership stake. Later Paramount Publix took over the operation of the three theatres. The program is on Calisphere from the Museum of Performance and Design Performing Arts
Library.
A May 28, 1931 newspaper story about the reopening. Thanks to TJ Fisher for locating the ad and article for a post on the BAHT Facebook page. He notes that Examiner writer Lloyd S. Thompson commented: "The old Imperial, always one of the most comfortable and satisfying of the town's picture houses, has come into its own in worthy style."
In the 40s and 50s it was a Blumenfeld circuit house. In April 1959 with the run of "Some Like It Hot" Metropolitan Theatres took over and gave the place a remodel including 70mm equipment, new seating, and a 50' screen. Later they replaced the vertical sign. Jack Tillmany comments:
Loew's took over, calling it Loew's, on October 15, 1969. This drawing was done by Heath & Co. for a potential new look. It didn't get executed in this elaborate a fashion. Michael Thomas Angelo found this on eBay for a post on the Facebook page San Francisco Remembered.
While it was a porno venue the theatre occasionally had concerts promoted by Ken Friedman, a gentleman who later went into the restaurant business. This 1979 poster is from the collection of Alissa A Welsch. As a comment to a 1970 photo of the theatre on the BAHT Facebook page she says:
Status: It closed in 2013 and was demolished in 2016.
Interior views:
A shot by Morton & Co. taken on May 26, 1917 that's in the Glenn Koch collection. Thanks to Glenn for sharing it on the BAHT Facebook page where he noted: "I love the Fleur-de-Lys theater curtain." Robert Lannon speculated about the band:
"Wild guess here...May 26....Decoration Day 1917 was the 28th, a Monday....WW I was ongoing, yet 'Decoration Day' had strong significance then...possibly sailors and a US Marine band from a Navy ship home ported in SF. Treasure Island wouldn't have a band until the late 1930's, it was an all black band, sometimes called Shipmates of Rhythm...they were specially recruited to be the base band."
Gary Parks commented:
"Great photo! Interesting to see the detailing of the woodwork on the edge of the orchestra pit. There are rows of little leaf-like elements tightly packed together on the carved cornices. Right away, I realized that a very similar molding existed among the plaster decoration on the Imperial's original lobby ceiling--which was long hidden by later remodels. When the theatre was torn down and our salvage crew rescued the facade stained glass window, we also saved a number of fragments of plaster. The one below is very similar to the details of the wood carving in the photo. These leaf-like (cobra-like, as one of our salvage crew commented) were in a row, all around the lobby ceiling, along with several other ornamental patterns."
A July 1922 look toward the stage from the rear of the main floor. The photo is from the collection of Ed Stout. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for making it available. A smaller version is on the San Francisco Public Library website and also appeared on a 2013 Curbed SF story about the Imperial's history.
A March 1958 look to the screen showing the effects of the United Artists remodel of 1931. The photo is one in the Jack Tillmany collection that he obtained from Tom B'hend.
The rear of the house in March 1958. The Metropolitan Theatres remodel was to come in 1959. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for the photo. It's another that he obtained from Tom B'hend.
A view down from the balcony c.2010 showing most of the theatre intact with much of the 1931 Walker & Eisen/Clifford Balch look still evident. We're looking down on the top of the warren of rooms built for "adult entertainment." Thanks to Michael Blythe, who posted the photo on Cinema Treasures. The image comes from Season 7, Episode 15 of Ghost Adventures.
A look to the rear of the balcony c.2014. Thanks to William David French, Jr. for the screenshot from the show Travel.
More exterior views:
A late 1912 or early 1913 look at the theatre that appeared in the February 1913 issue of Architect and Engineer, in an ad for Medusa brand Portland Cement, The ad noted that the exterior of the Imperial was finished with their product -- "Absolutely Permanent Results." Well, it held up for over 100 years. It's on Internet Archive.
An early view that appeared as part of a newspaper story. Note the "All Seats 10 cents" sign above the marquee. Thanks to Kurt Wahlner for spotting it on eBay. Visit Kurt's exhaustively researched site GraumansChinese.org.
An article about the theatre that appeared in the December 5, 1914 issue of Moving Picture World. Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for finding it for a post on the BAHT Facebook page.
A 1919 photo from the Jack Tillmany collection. He comments: "Sunday 7 September 1919, crowds line up for the 'The Miracle Man,' the film that brought Lon Chaney to the attention of the public, soon to become one of the legendary Hollywood stars of the 1920s in such films as 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame' and 'Phantom of the Opera.' Jaywalking, as you can see here, was already established as a Market Street tradition."
"The Miracle Man" was an August 1919 release based on a play by George M. Cohan and a novel by Robert Hobart Davis. Note the upper part of the sign just said "The" after the Graumans had left. Gary Parks adds: "And note: just peeking above the marquee, the stained glass words, Grauman's Imperial have been painted over."
It's October 23, 1919 and we're looking east on Market from 7th. On the marquee: "Cecil B. DeMille Presents his Latest Achievement 'Male and Female.'" Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for finding the photo in the SFMTA Photography Department & Archives for a post on the BAHT Facebook page.
The marquee during the 1922 run of "Foolish Wives." It's a photo from the Jack Tillmany collection.
A billboard for "Foolish Wives" along with 24 sheet displays for the Portola and the Granada in March 1922. This unique trade magazine shot comes from the Jack Tillmany collection.
A July 1922 view of the Imperial running a re-release of "The Delicious Little Devil" with Mae Murray and Rudolph Valentino. The photo from the Ed Stout collection appears on the San Francisco Public Library website as a donation from Jack Tillmany. They have it dated 1919, the year of the film's initial release. Jack notes: "This mid-1922 re-release was because of the popularity of Rudolph Valentino, following 'Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse' -- and then he was the star of 1921's big hit "The Sheik."
An August 1922 ad for the Imperial during the run of "Blood and Sand" with Rudolph Valentino. Thanks to Roxy Miraválle for the find.
An August 1925 parade celebrating "Greater Movie Season" passes the Egyptian and Imperial. The Imperial is running "Don Q Son of Zorro" with Douglas Fairbanks. It's a shot from three minutes and forty seconds of Fox Movietone News outtakes in the collection of the University of South Carolina. Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for locating it for a post on the BAHT Facebook page.
Sound comes to the theatre during its eighteen month tenure as the Premier. This rare photo of the theatre during that 1929-1931 period appears on the Open SF History Project website courtesy of a private collector. Note the art glass in the arch above the marquee has been covered over. Buster Keaton in "Doughboys," an MGM sound film, was an August 1930 release. "The Dawn Trail" with Buck Jones was a November 1930 western from Columbia.
Jack Tillmany comments: "'Doughboys' opened at the Fox in September 1930 and there's no mention of it anywhere else in the Chronicle until it showed up at El Capitan in November 1930. Looks like the Premier just picked it up to fill in while waiting for something better to come along, but didn't even advertise its wares in the Chronicle. At least that answers the question as to what an MGM film was doing on the South Side of Market Street!"
"The formal reopening as the United Artists established the identity by which it’s best remembered, and enjoyed its finest days, months, and years. The former Premier, nee Imperial, reopened with a new rectangular marquee that only lasted about 6 years. Here's their opening attraction: 'City Lights.' Yes, that's a sliver of the Egyptian marquee on the extreme left, playing a Jean Hersholt film."
A detail from the 1937 photo. Jack comments: "Just a few months later, after less than 7 years in use, this marquee was replaced by the one below which remained through all its name and policy changes until it got zapped in the name of Market Street Beautification in its sad last days as Market Street Cinema."
An April 1938 photo from the Jack Tillmany collection. Note the interesting "set-back" layout on the marquee with the lower lines each indented a bit from the position of the one above. Thanks, Jack!
A November 1938 view with the UA running "The Cowboy and the Lady." The photo, courtesy of a private collector, appears on the Open SF History Project website.
A 1939 photo from the Jack Tillmany collection showing a billboard for "Four Feathers" at the United Artists. The trolley is headed south on Mission St. Jack comments:
"Once upon a time all the major first run venues and even some of the nabes, such as New Mission and New Fillmore, promoted their films with colorful 24-sheet billboards, maintained by Foster & Kleiser, at high visibility locations all over the City, in the days when there was an abundance of such vacant lots, which, before they were 'developed,' provided no other source of revenue for their owners. Here's one such, on the east side of Mission at Ney, just south of the Alemany Blvd. viaduct, in August 1939 announcing the premiere of 'Four Feathers' at the United Artists. Rail service on Line #14 out Mission from the Ferry to Daly City ended in January 1949."
"6040 Unreserved Seats Every Day....Everyone Knows - Just the BIG PICTURES play SINGLE FEATURE." Chaplin's "The Great Dictator" premiered at the UA on November 12, 1940. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for finding this ad and a review in the November 13, 1940 Chronicle. It's on Newsbank.The film was back for a return engagement in 1941.
"Lydia" with Merle Oberon at the United Artists in November 1941. It's a photo from the Jack Tillmany collection.
A look east on Market in October 1943 with the theatre running "Johnny Come Lately" with James Cagney along with "Yanks Ahoy." Over on the left is the Granada/Paramount. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for dating the photo. He notes that the Paramount's vertical was probably not lit due to WWII blackout regulations. The photo was featured in a September 18, 2015 S.F. Weekly article outlining the efforts of the organization Old SF to get the Library's historic photographs collection on a searchable map.
"The Outlaw" arrives at the United Artists in 1946 with a line wrapping around the corner onto 7th St. It's a Jack Tillmany collection photo. He comments:
"My favorite UA photo! The history of this infamous film has been told and retold. The more theatres were threatened not to show it, and audiences warned not to see it, at the risk of eternal damnation by the Catholic Church and other self righteous protectors of public morals, the greater arose the interest in it, the inevitable curiosity about it, and quite naturally, the demand to see it.
"More than once theatres that tried to show it were immediately shut down by local authorities in the name of public decency. It was probably the most effective sales campaign in the history of movies. Here you see the result at the United Artists. After a couple of false starts, cut short the previous April which only added fuel to the fire when it was successfully lit, it finally opened 29 May 1946, simultaneously at the United Artists, Esquire, and Tivoli, and this photo was taken 3 weeks later, 16 June 1946.
"The UA and Esquire opened their doors at 8AM, the Tivoli at 10AM. The last show of the evening began after 11PM. It ran until August at the UA, then continued at the Tivoli for 3 more weeks. Watch it today on Turner Classic Movies, or pick up the DVD and you'll no doubt wonder what all the excitement was about."
A July 1946 "Outlaw" shot taken by Waldemar Sievers that appears on the Open SF History Project site. The street was decorated for a July 21 Shriners parade.
A 1946 trade magazine ad from the Jack Tillmany collection. He comments: "'The Jolson Story' was one of 1946's most popular films. Al Jolson was still alive, and dubbed his own singing voice, while Larry Parks acted his role onscreen. In San Francisco and Oakland, Blumenfeld Theatres had the first run franchise on the output from Columbia Pictures, and played the game for all it was worth. This ad appeared in the trade journals and says it all.
"As you can see, it opened in SF simultaneously at Blumenfeld's United Artists/Esquire/Tivoli, and in Oakland at his Roxie. Note the neon marquee letters still in use at the Roxie, who took over the Paramount's inventory when they abandoned them a few years earlier, thus guaranteeing them an ample supply despite the inevitable breakage that was their waterloo elsewhere by the end of the 1930s."
A detail from the trade magazine ad for "The Jolson Story." It was a post from Cinema Treasures contributor Dallas Movie Theaters on the site's page about the theatre, which they list as the Market Street Cinema.
Jack Tillmany comments: "The United Artists was operated in the 1940s and into the 1950s by the Blumenfeld family, who also controlled the Orpheum, the Esquire and the Tivoli in downtown San Francisco, as well as the T&D and Roxie in downtown Oakland, and sites in Berkeley, and other nearby communities. The United Artists, along with the Orpheum, became their 'flagship' as they were once called, relegating less important films to the Esquire and Tivoli. But if the potential audience for a popular attraction, such as 'The Jolson Story,' in 1946, was considered to be more than than one theatre could handle, it was shown simultaneously at the United Artists, Esquire and Tivoli, and did not disappoint, as shown here."
The United Artists running "Hollow Triumph" with Paul Henreid and Joan Bennett in September 1948. We get a bit of the vertical for the Centre Theatre and the readerboard for the Guild (the former Egyptian Theatre) right behind the UA signage. The photo appears on a Bold Italic page of Market St. views from 1920-1956 in the San Francisco Public Library collection.
June 4, 1949, the first day of Muni's first electric bus service on Market St. The Bob Campbell photo for the Chronicle has us looking west for views of the Centre, United Artists and Embassy verticals. Thanks to Ernie Manzo Jr. for spotting the photo.
A February 1954 photo from the Jack Tillmany collection. The UA was running "Paratrooper" with Alan Ladd and Leo Genn. The black crepe on the cable car signifies its final run. In a post on the Market Street Railway Facebook page Jack commented: "California Cable Railroad Company Jones Street shuttle, operating under Muni banner as Line 63 since 13 January 1952, makes its farewell run 6 February 1954."
He adds: "The Dennis O'Keefe co-feature
was Sam Katzman's trashy 'Drums of
Tahiti,' which had been filmed in 3D, but turned out so poorly, Columbia
only released it in the conventional 2D version." The photo can also be seen on the Open SF History Project site and on the "Today's Cable Car System - Andrew Smith Hallidie's Legacy" page from the Cable Car Museum.
An October 7, 1954 look east toward 7th St. by an unknown photographer. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for spotting this one on the Open SF History Project website. He notes that the Embassy is running "On the Waterfront" with Marlon Brando.
An October 3, 1955 shot by Nat Farbman for Life. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for dating it. The United Artists is running David Lean's "Summertime." At the Paramount the night of the photo it was Kirk Douglas in "Ulysses" plus a sneak preview. The photo appears with Peter Hartlaub's April 14, 2019 Chronicle story "The birth of a Market Street cinema district: Celebrities, crack dens and a coda." Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for spotting the article. The photo popped up again in "Happy birthday, S.F.!," an April 15, 2021 Chronicle piece.
A 1957 look east toward the United Artists (formerly the Imperial) with the Centre Theatre just beyond. The photo is part of the terrific selection of Market St. photos on the French blog San Francisco Pictures. The photo has also been seen on the Facebook page San Francisco Remembered.
A July 1957 view with the United Artists running "The Pride and the Passion." The photo by the Morton-Waters Co. from the SCRAP Negatives Collection appears on the Open SF History Project website. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for spotting it.
A 50s parade view looking east on Market toward 7th St. with the UA beyond. Thanks to Chris Ellinger for posting the photo on the Facebook page Vintage San Francisco.
A 1959 postcard view from the Jack Tillmany collection looking east on Market toward the UA. The card appears on the Cinema Tour page for the Market St. Cinema.
"Jungle Cat" at the United Artists. They got all the big films. It was a summer 1960 release. It's a photo by street photographer Joseph Selle. For more about the strange career of this photographer and his business Fox Movie Flash, see the page on the website of Andrew Eskind about the collection of his photos. There's also a May 2017 Chronicle article on Selle by Carl Nolte: "Photographer shot slices of life on SF streets." Thanks to Jack Tillmany for the photo.
A shot by street photographer Joseph Selle. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for providing the photo. "Inherit the Wind" was a November 1960 release.
A 1961 or 1962 view east from footage appearing 8 minutes into Rick Prelinger's compilation "Lost Landscapes 2021 - Earth, Fire, Air Water: California Infrastructures." The program is on YouTube from The Long Now Foundation. Thanks to John Hough for cleaning up the image. "West Side Story" was at the United Artists. It opened in December 1961 for a 46 week reserved seat engagement.
A very religious July 1967 photo from the Jack Tillmany collection. He comments: "The UA is six months into the much heralded film version of 'The Bible,' which replaced the two year run of 'Sound of Music' the previous December, and had kept the wickets turning, many suspect, due in no small way to that nude mural of Michael Parks as Adam, with the usual knee raised just enough to attract attention but not trouble; and the Guild is once again running the re-release of 'The Ten Commandments' which also enjoyed renewed popularity the previous year. Wedged between these 2 Cathedrals of Holy Writ, the Centre politely offers an alternate view, 'Flesh and Lace' and 'Nudes-a-Rama.' Decisions! Decisions!"
It's 1968 and we're looking east -- that's the Centre Theatre just beyond the UA. The photo is part of the terrific selection of Market St. photos on the blog San Francisco Pictures.
"But the times, they were a-changin’, and the UA’s days as a film emporium were numbered. On 15 October 1969, it was sold to the Loew’s conglomerate, who immediately renamed it Loew's, abandoned the reserved seat format, and converted it to a more contemporary pop culture, where it became a haven for the new breed of immensely popular Kung Fu films and their legions of enthusiasts."
A closer look at the new Loew's signage during the run of "Halls of Anger." It's an April 1970 photo by Tom Gray from the Jack Tillmany collection.
"Dirty Harry" premieres at Loew's on December 21, 1971. Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber posting this screenshot on the BAHT Facebook page. It was from the KPIX news coverage of the event.
Jack Tillmany comments: "Less than four years later, Loew’s walked away from it and took their name with them. As of 13 July 1972, it became known as the Market Street Cinema, and for the next forty years operated as such, rolling with the times, which is what survival on Market Street is all about."
A March 1982 look at the theatre as the Market St. Cinema. General Cinema had taken over Loew's California operations in 1972. The photo comes from Jay Allen Sanford's 2010 "Pussycat Theaters: The Inside Story History," an article on Blogspot that was originally done for the San Diego Reader. The photo can also be seen in the American Classic Images collection.
A March 1986 view of the Pussycat (former Egyptian/Guild), the Centre Theatre (originally the Roundup) and the Market St. Cinema. The photo comes from Jay Allen Sanford's 2010 article on the Pussycat chain.
A c.1996 photo by Carol Highsmith in the Library of Congress collection. Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for finding the shot for a post on the BAHT Facebook page.
Thanks to Randy Fosbergh for this c.1996 view of the theatre long after Loew's and General Cinema had left town.
A 2009 look at the theatre by Maltphoto that was once on Flickr but seems to have vanished from that site.
Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for this 2012 look across a busy Market St. toward the theatre. The photo, taken during the October 31 World Series parade, is one of three shots he added as comments to his post of a 1914 article about the theatre on the BAHT Facebook page.
Curbed SF had a June 2013 story "Let's Break Down the History of the Market St. Cinema." The January 2014 story "Mid-Market Porn Palace..." in San Francisco Business Times discussed the condo project that was destined for the theatre's site.
SocketSite also ran a January 2014 story about the condo project, calling the theatre a "prominent mid-Market porn complex." Hoodline had an October 2015 story about the owner getting permission to demolish the theatre. Also see the Cinema Treasures page on the Market St. Cinema.
More Sid and David Grauman adventures:
-- Unique Theatre, 1132 Market St. (1898-1906)
-- Maio Baio / Grauman's / Crest, 980 Market St. (c.1910)
-- Lyceum Theatre, 7th & Market (1904-1906)
-- National Theatre, Post and Steiner (1906 - ?)
-- Globe Theatre, 2753 Mission St. (1907 - ?)
-- Empress / Strand / St. Francis, 965 Market St. (1916- ?)
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