2030 Sutter St. | map |
Opened: It opened as a vaudeville house called the Victory Theatre on November 25, 1907. It was on the north side of the street between Fillmore and Steiner. From 1906 until 1911 the Empire Theatre was farther west on the same block at 2080 Sutter. The Alcazar/Uptown was in the next block west on the other side of the street.
The December 1907 photo is on Calisphere from the Museum of Performance and Design Performing Arts Library (where they give it a date of 1909). Al Jolson, "Frisco's Favorite Comedian," is on the program. The November 24 Chronicle carried a story about the new theatre:
An ad in the December 23, 1907 Chronicle located by Jack Tillmany. It's on Newsbank. You could get the best seat in the house for 30 cents.
Seating: 1,200 according to one source. Henry's Theatrical Guide says only 1,000.
Stage information:
The information comes from Henry's 1907-08 Official Western Theatrical Guide, on Google Books
The Victory was initially managed by Isadore Coleman Levey who also had the Columbia in Oakland. He and his son Bert Levey went on to also manage the nearby Princess and Garrick theatres as well as the Alcazar.
Opened: It opened as a vaudeville house called the Victory Theatre on November 25, 1907. It was on the north side of the street between Fillmore and Steiner. From 1906 until 1911 the Empire Theatre was farther west on the same block at 2080 Sutter. The Alcazar/Uptown was in the next block west on the other side of the street.
The December 1907 photo is on Calisphere from the Museum of Performance and Design Performing Arts Library (where they give it a date of 1909). Al Jolson, "Frisco's Favorite Comedian," is on the program. The November 24 Chronicle carried a story about the new theatre:
"NEW VAUDEVILLE HOUSE OPENS ITS DOORS - The Victory Theater will open its doors to the public to-morrow night. The building has been in course of construction for the last eight months and is located on Sutter just west of Fillmore streets. The cost of construction is $55,000. The opening of this place of amusement marks an innovation in theatrical circles in California. It is to be conducted as a continuous performance vaudeville.
"All of the acts will be entirely new. The Alpha Vaudeville Circuit, which controls the bookings, conducts fourteen houses on the Pacific Coast from Washington to Arizona....The house is to be under the general management of I. Coleman Levey, a well-known vaudeville manager. Matinees will begin at 2:30 o'clock and evening performances will begin at 7:45 and 9:30 o'clock."
An ad in the December 23, 1907 Chronicle located by Jack Tillmany. It's on Newsbank. You could get the best seat in the house for 30 cents.
Seating: 1,200 according to one source. Henry's Theatrical Guide says only 1,000.
Stage information:
Proscenium: 30' wide x 22' high
Stage depth: 27'
Height to grid: 36' - evidently a typo
Wall to wall: 47'
Power: both gas and electric
Stage depth: 27'
Height to grid: 36' - evidently a typo
Wall to wall: 47'
Power: both gas and electric
The information comes from Henry's 1907-08 Official Western Theatrical Guide, on Google Books
The Victory was initially managed by Isadore Coleman Levey who also had the Columbia in Oakland. He and his son Bert Levey went on to also manage the nearby Princess and Garrick theatres as well as the Alcazar.
B. Sommers was managing at the time of this May 1, 1909 ad in the San Francisco Bulletin. The Victory was one of 30 theatres advertising in the paper's three-page salute to
"San
Francisco's High-Class Moving-Picture Theatres," part of their Pacific
Progress Issue. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating the ad.
Beginning May 3, 1909 it was called Fischer's Theatre. There had been a Fischer's Theatre near the Orpheum on O'Farrell St. that had been lost in the 1906 earthquake. Before that one he had operated the Oberon Music Hall, also on O'Farrell. Fischer also had theatres in Pasadena and downtown Los Angeles.
A May 4, 1909 Fischer's ad in the Chronicle for "Poppyland" a "sparkling musical comedy success." Thanks to Jack Tillmany for locating it. See a photo taken during this engagement lower on the page.
Beginning May 3, 1909 it was called Fischer's Theatre. There had been a Fischer's Theatre near the Orpheum on O'Farrell St. that had been lost in the 1906 earthquake. Before that one he had operated the Oberon Music Hall, also on O'Farrell. Fischer also had theatres in Pasadena and downtown Los Angeles.
A 1909 photo of E.A. Fischer that appeared in the Dramatic Review. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for spotting it.
A November 1909 program. Thanks to Jeff Greenwood for
sharing this from his collection of memorabilia related to his
great-grand-aunt Anna Robinson. She was a singer and vaudeville performer sometimes billed in her early years as "The Little Girl with the Big
Voice" and "The
Great Coon Shouter."
A 1906 photo of Ms. Robinson from the Jeff Greenwood collection. With her magician husband Frederick Palmer they appeared in vaudeville theatres for years with acts such as "Palmer and Robinson, The Sorcerer and the Soubrette" and "The Maid and the Mountebank." Sometime around 1904 they had played the Lyceum on Market. In 1914 they played the Uptown, then called the Republic. Thanks, Jeff!
A May 4, 1909 Fischer's ad in the Chronicle for "Poppyland" a "sparkling musical comedy success." Thanks to Jack Tillmany for locating it. See a photo taken during this engagement lower on the page.
In mid-1913 this venue was renamed the Sutter Theatre. It's listed that way in the July 1913 city directory.
It's identified as the "Sutter Theatre (Moving Pictures)" in this detail from Image 42 of Volume 3 of the 1913 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from the Library of Congress collection. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating it. Steiner St. is on the left, Fillmore on the right end of the block. That's Bush St. across the top. The L-shaped lot in the lower left, noted as having construction of a new building suspended, had been the site of the Empire Theatre.
A closer look at the Sutter as shown on the 1913 map. It was noted that they had a "Scenery Loft" but no scenery -- and a backstage sprinkler system not in working order.
It became the All Star Theatre in 1914. It's listed with that name in the June 1914 and June 1916 telephone directories. The June 1915 city directory evidently regressed and lists it as the Sutter again.
An article profiling the circuit in the July 10, 1915 Moving Picture World, available on Internet Archive. Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for locating it for a posting on the BAHT Facebook page. Kahn and Greenfield also had the Progress Theatre at 1525 Fillmore St., the New Fillmore at 1529 Fillmore St., and the Idle Hour, a space that would become the lobby of the New Mission in 1916.
The theatre kept the All Star name until 1926. It was called the Class A Theatre in 1926 and 1927. In 1927 or 1928 it again became the Sutter again.
It operated as the Players Guild Theatre from October 7, 1929 into 1930. See the page about the earlier Players' Theatre on Bush St. The Players Guild moved to the Community Playhouse at Sutter and Mason in February 1931.
"Moving Pictures. (Not in operation June 1930)." It's a detail from the 1929 Sanborn Map located by Art Siegel. These maps kept getting amendments beyond their initial publication dates.
It became the Gaiety in August 1931. Didn't last long. It was back (again) to the Sutter name for a listing in the 1932 city directory. Jack comments: "I always
suspected they got their vertical from the former Alcazar when it became
the Uptown in 1930." The Alcazar had been called the Sutter in the late 20s
With a reopening October 10, 1941 and a change to Spanish language programming it became known as the Teatro Sutter. Perhaps the first such house in San Francisco.
The story in the October 10, 1941 Chronicle about the reopening.
A detail from the 1950 Sanborn map. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating it.
Closing: The Sutter closed in mid 1955. Later it was used as a church, Little Chapel of God in Christ. They moved out in 1973. An item in the September 22, 1973 Chronicle notes that they were moving to a new home at 616 Divisadero St. Jack Tillmany, who found the article, comments: "Does that address look familiar? Yup! Out of one theatre into another: The Harding!"
Status: It has been demolished.
More exterior views:
The entrance of Fischer's in May 1909. The play they were running was "Poppyland." It looks like the guys are posing for their grand opening photo. Too bad we didn't get the chorus line as well. Under E.A. Fischer the theatre wasn't a vaudeville house but tended more toward revues, musical comedies and plays performed by stock companies. The photo from the Museum of Performance and Design Performing Arts Library collection is on Calisphere. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for dating it.
The theatre in June 1909 as Fischer's. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for the photo from his collection. And for dating it. We're looking west on the north side of Sutter between Fillmore and Steiner. Down the block at 2080 Sutter is the Empire Theatre, home of Pantages vaudeville until they opened on Market St. A smaller version of the photo is on the San Francisco Public Library website.
Here in 1915 it's a film house called the All-Star, part of the Kahn & Greenfield Circuit. The photo is from an article profiling the circuit in the July 10, 1915 Moving Picture World, available on Internet Archive.
A detail from the December 1907 photo that's at the top of the page giving us a closer look at the entrance.
The entrance of Fischer's in May 1909. The play they were running was "Poppyland." It looks like the guys are posing for their grand opening photo. Too bad we didn't get the chorus line as well. Under E.A. Fischer the theatre wasn't a vaudeville house but tended more toward revues, musical comedies and plays performed by stock companies. The photo from the Museum of Performance and Design Performing Arts Library collection is on Calisphere. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for dating it.
The theatre in June 1909 as Fischer's. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for the photo from his collection. And for dating it. We're looking west on the north side of Sutter between Fillmore and Steiner. Down the block at 2080 Sutter is the Empire Theatre, home of Pantages vaudeville until they opened on Market St. A smaller version of the photo is on the San Francisco Public Library website.
Here in 1915 it's a film house called the All-Star, part of the Kahn & Greenfield Circuit. The photo is from an article profiling the circuit in the July 10, 1915 Moving Picture World, available on Internet Archive.
Looking west toward the Teatro Sutter in 1948. It's a photo from the Jack
Tillmany collection.
A detail from the 1948 photo above.
Looking east from Steiner St. toward the theatre on July 2, 1949. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for sharing this detail from a photo in his collection.
This photo of the Uptown Theatre is the source of the detail above. The Sutter is on the extreme left edge. The photo appears on p.103 of Jack's Arcadia Publishing book "Theatres of San Francisco." It's also on the Open SF History Project website. Jack notes that the occasion for the July 2, 1949 photo was that it was the last day of streetcar service on Sutter St.
The theatre in 1963 after it had been churched. The image is from a slide taken by Jack Tillmany. Thanks to Matt Spero for working on the color.
An entrance view taken by Fred Beall after the church moved out. The photo is on Calisphere from the Museum of Performance and Design Performing Arts Library collection. The color correction is by Matt Spero.
A look at the east side of the theatre taken by Fred Beall. It's on Calisphere from the Museum of Performance and Design Performing Arts Library. Thanks to Matt Spero for the color correction.
A demolition photo taken by Fred Beall that's in the Jack Tillmany collection. Thanks again to Matt Spero for working on the color.
More Information: See the Cinema Treasures page on the Teatro Sutter.
Jack Tillmany's Arcadia Publishing book "Theatres of San Francisco" can be previewed on Google Books. It's available from Amazon or your local bookseller.
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