Opened: The People's Theatre opened around February 1908 as a vaudeville house but later went to movies. The initial operators were Harris, Pincus and Bauer.
Presumably the Bauer of the partnership was Joe Bauer, also involved in the Wigwam. When the 1913 version of the Wigwam was sold in 1925, Ralph Pincus was listed as secretary-treasurer of the corporation.
Jack Tillmany reports that the first telephone directory listing was in May 1908. The first city directory listing in September 1909 gave an address of 2515. It was on the east side of the street between 21st and 22nd.
In the undated photo we're looking south toward the theatre, on the 3rd lot from the corner. Something resembling that bank building on the corner still exists. It would later get expanded into the lot just to its south and both facades substantially reworked.
Thanks to Woody LaBounty for the photo, one appearing on the Open SF History Project website. He notes that the men in the foreground are firemen gathering for some sort of celebration and that there was a fire station nearby, further cementing the location as 21st and Mission. The date of the bank expansion is not known but Woody notes that it shows up in a 1938 aerial view.
A detail from the Open SF History project photo. The marquee doesn't say People's. It appears that at the time of the photo the theatre had a name starting with "Re..," perhaps Republic Theatre. If that indeed was the name, Jack Tillmany suggests it wasn't between 1912 and 1925 as the former Alcazar Theatre at 2101 Sutter St. (later known as the Uptown) was using the name then.
In June 1910 the theatre had a telephone directory listing as the Davis Theatre. The 1910 and 1911 directories list it as the Peoples (no apostrophe) with an address of 2507.
The theatre got a mention in "Many 5 Cent Firetraps," a page 37 story in the September 3, 1911 issue of the San Francisco Call. The paper had been doing an investigation into theatres with blocked or poorly lit exits, inadequate aisle lighting, and non-fireproof construction in violation of city codes. People's and the Grand (aka the Mission) were two of the Mission district theatres found in compliance with regulations. They had many complaints about the Wigwam and the Globe.
It gets a mention as the Peoples in an article in the July 16, 1916 Moving Picture World. It's on Google Books. The magazine notes that in 1915 it had been taken over by by Bradley and Ekstrom and was a building of brick construction. A 1914 Sanborn map notes that the roof was concrete.
The 1916 city directory again gives a 2507 address. The last city directory listing as People's was in July 1919. It's listed as the Isis Theatre in city directories from 1920 through 1924. A 1922 Paramount ad in the Call listed the address as 22nd and Mission.
Seating: Originally it was 450, later down to 362.
Stage specifications:
Proscenium: 18' wide x 14' high
Stage depth: 20'
Grid height: 20'
Stage wall to wall: 25'
The data comes from page 52 of the 1907-08 edition of Henry's Official Western Theatrical Guide. It's on Google Books.
Closing: Presumably it didn't make it past 1924.
Status: The building currently using the addresses of 2515 and 2517 may be a remodeled version of the theatre building. The expanded bank building on the corner of 21st and Mission now uses the 2507 address.
A 1908 view north from the Jack Tillmany collection. The Peoples vertical on the far left is down the block near 21st St. Closer is the first Wigwam Theatre on the block at 2547 Mission, running until 1913. On the right is the Mission/Grand Theatre, on the SE corner of 22nd and Mission.
A detail from a 1914 Sanborn insurance map establishing the location of the theatre. It's using an address of 2507. Note one end of the building labeled "stage and scenery." It's labeled "built 1912" but we know it's earlier. Thanks to Woody LaBounty for providing the map.
A 1938 aerial view showing the expanded bank building on the corner. Note the light well cut into the theatre building next door -- something that shows up on the Sanborn map below. Thanks to Woody LaBounty for the photo.
A 1950 Sanborn map showing the bank's expansion into the second lot from the corner and the building on the theatre lot used for other purposes. Here it's shown with an addresses of 2515 and 2517. Again thanks to Woody LaBounty for the map.
A 2018 view of the revamped bank building on the corner and the gray building next door, which may be a remodeled version of the building once housing the People's Theatre. The current tenants are a dentist (at 2515), a Peruvian Arts & Crafts shop, and an entrance for 2nd floor apartments at 2517. Photo: Google Maps.
More information: 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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