Opening: Sunday November 8, 1908 as the Washington Square Theatre, a venue for Italian drama, music, opera and variety shows. Jack Tillmany reports that its opening and initial attractions were only reported in L'Iitalia. English language papers made no mention of it until the following April. It was on the west side of Powell where it meets Columbus.
This 1916 view of the theatre taken by Turrill & Miller appears, courtesy of a private collector, on the Open SF History Project website. The photo also made an appearance in "A 100 year look at San Francisco marquees and theatres," a 2016 SF Gate article.
Architects: The original architect is unknown. After a fire in 1937 it got a moderne redo both inside and out by Alexander A. Cantin.
Seating: 1,421 in its later years.
A stock offering for the new theatre by the North Beach Italian Theatre
Co. in a 1907 issue of "L'Italia," a North Beach newspaper. Thanks to
Elaine Molinari for posting the image on the Facebook page San Francisco Remembered. And also thanks to Kevin Walsh for spotting it.
An ad for the theatre's initial vaudeville and film presentation. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for locating this ad in the November 8, 1908 issue of L'Italia.
An ad in the October 17, 1919 issue of L'Italia. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating this via the
website of the California Digital Newspaper Collection.
In 1929, after the usual remodeling and installation of sound equipment, it was renamed the Milano Theatre. This October 19 ad for the reopening was a find by Jack Tillmany. It had been taken over by Golden State Theatres. Well into the 30s the theatre used to occasionally run Italian films.
Jack comments that the venture must have been successful for Golden State as eight years later the theatre got a moderne remodel and reopened on November 5, 1937 as the Palace Theatre. He comments:
"Despite the impossibility of parking in the 1950's, it was one of my favorite destinations, thanks to their terrific super-wide CinemaScope screen and 4-Track Magnetic Stereophonic Sound."
Sometime in the mid-1960s the theatre became a venue for Chinese language films. Starting around 1969 the theatre became a home for cult midnight shows attracting both the strange and famous.
An item listing the Nocturnal Dream midnight shows that appeared in the May 11, 1969 issue of the Chronicle. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating it. While he notes that his search was not exhaustive, this was the earliest ad he located.
A 1970 midnight show photo by David Wise. Pictured are Kreemah Ritz as Chang, James Bartlett (aka Rumi Missabu) as Madame Gin-Sling and Pam Tent as Handmaiden in "Pearls Over Shanghai." The photo appears in Bartlett's Pagoda Palace album of 71 photos on Facebook. See his collections for many programs, posters and photos of performers at the Pagoda's midnight shows.
An
early concert in the career of Sylvester, a singer associated with the
drag troupe the Cockettes. And you got a double feature as well: "St.
Louis Blues" and "Paradise in Harlem." It's an item that was located by
Art Siegel in the July 8, 1971 issue of the Chronicle.
"Divine Saves the World" was the midnight show March 17 and 18, 1972. Some of the Cockettes appeared in the production. John Waters' film "Multiple Maniacs" was also on the program. Up next was "Hot Greeks." Thanks to Art for spotting this story in the Chronicle's March 17 issue.
The Cockettes and the Nocturnal Dream shows at the Palace were "defunct" by the time this article appeared in a Chronicle column in April 27, 1973. Yet Sebastian, who had produced those earlier events, was back presenting Mink Stole as Nancy Drew in "The Amazing Nancy Drew." Thanks to Art for locating this.
A page about the Pagoda on the site Roll Over Alice: Rock, Funk, Punk & Glam - Life and Theater in 1970s San Francisco comments about the theatre:
"... after midnight it transformed back into a beautiful live theater, raucous and glorious. Were the 70’s midnight shows worthy of vaudeville? Did the old vaudevillian ghosts come out of the rafters and from backstage and watch? or better yet, join in? Roll Over Alice played the Pagoda Palace at midnight on Halloween night 1974 to a large and feisty audience of rock and roll fans, live theater aficionados, dressed-to-the-hilt queens, and dazed tourists who happened to wander in.
"Standing on the stage of the graceful old theater, looking out at the raucous crowd, we could feel the wacky and wonderful presence of vaudevillians who had most likely played this San Francisco stage; the Marx Brothers, Buster Keaton, Mae West and scores of eccentric unknowns. And more recently, Divine, the Cockettes, the Angels of Light. The theater connected us all in a larger than life brotherhood of performers stretching back for over a hundred years..."
"Standing on the stage of the graceful old theater, looking out at the raucous crowd, we could feel the wacky and wonderful presence of vaudevillians who had most likely played this San Francisco stage; the Marx Brothers, Buster Keaton, Mae West and scores of eccentric unknowns. And more recently, Divine, the Cockettes, the Angels of Light. The theater connected us all in a larger than life brotherhood of performers stretching back for over a hundred years..."
On August 5, 1974 it was renamed the Pagoda Theatre, still running Chinese films. In February 1985 it became a rep house called the Pagoda Palace operated by Renaissance Rialto's Allen Michaan.
A March-April-May 1986 calendar from the theatre's days as a repertory house. Thanks to John Rice for adding it to the Cinema Treasures page about the theatre. He comments:
"Allen Michaan ran the Pagoda Palace in the mid 1980’s with a calendar rep policy and daily change of programs, very similar to his York Theatre programming. The Pagoda Palace was a great place to enjoy classic and art house films but apparently was not successful as the policy did not last very long. By then the increasingly popularity of video and changing audience tastes were having quite a negative impact on all rep houses and for many of them their days were numbered."
An October 22, 1986 Chronicle article located by Art Siegel about the theatre's closing as a rep house. They discussed the competitive nature of that market:
"It was generally seen by movie exhibitors as an uphill battle for the Pagoda Palace to enter the field, since San Francisco, with six other repertory theaters, has the most rep houses, per capita, of any city in the nation."
Michaan kept the lease and made the theatre available for rentals and special events. He later went to full week runs which, depending on the film were sometimes successful, sometimes not. Michaan's other San Francisco theatres at the time included the Opera Plaza, the York, the Bridge and the 4 Star.
Closing: The theatre closed for good around November 1994.
The Pagoda Palace in the Movies:
There's a brief shot of Robert Mitchum and Jane Greer coming out of the theatre in "Out of the Past" (RKO, 1947). Thanks to Kathryn Ayres for spotting it.
There's a chase through the theatre while a Chinese opera is being performed onstage in "Jade" (Paramount, 1995).
Status: It was demolished in 2013. SF Gate had an August 20, 2013 story "Curtain finally falls on Pagoda Palace Theater." The building was subject of numerous redevelopment battles. Much of the
interior had been stripped out long before demolition when retail use was contemplated.
The lot was being used temporarily as an exit port for the new central subway line boring machine. A new building was erected on the site that (somewhat)
resembles the look of the theatre, including a new vertical sign.
Interior views:
The inner lobby showing the effects of the 1937 moderne redo. It's a 1943 Ted Newman photo from the Jack Tillmany collection on the San Francisco Public Library website.
The inner lobby during a 70s midnight show. Thanks to James Bartlett for the photo. It's one appearing in his Pagoda Palace album of 71 photos on Facebook.
A 1943 Ted Newman auditorium view from Jack Tillmany collection on the San Francisco Public Library website.
The rear of the auditorium in 1943. The Ted Newman photo from Jack Tillmany appears on the San Francisco Public Library website.
A wide angle view of the stripped-out interior of the theatre taken when rehab of the space was still being considered. Retail use was being contemplated at one point. Thanks to James Bartlett for including the photo in his Pagoda Palace album on Facebook.
A balcony view of the stripped theatre that appeared a SF Gate article. Thanks to William David French Jr for posting the photo on the BAHT Facebook page.
More exterior views:
This early look at the theatre by J.B. Monaco appears on "Telegraph and North Beach Photo Gallery," a page on JBMonaco.com, a site devoted to the photographer. The site has a huge collection of his photos of downtown, Telegraph Hill, Russian Hill and North Beach. Thanks to Mark Gorney for finding the photo for a post on the Vintage San Francisco Facebook page.
A mid-1925 view of the Washington Square Theatre after it acquired a marquee. We're looking up Powell from Columbus. Jack Tillmany notes: "They're running 'Dancers.' It starred George O'Brien, a San Francisco born movie star, the son of the police chief, so got lots of coverage. He was quite popular in the 20s and 30s." Thanks to Chromejob for posting the photo on Cinema Treasures.
A detail from the 1925 photo. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for finding it in the Jesse Brown Cook collection at the UC Bancroft Library. Gary Parks comments: "The stained glass W on the corner is a nice touch. Interesting to see the low-budget way in which the original facade arch was removed (presumably to remove the nickelodeon-ish look in favor of a more Twenties movie theatre one). No effort was made to replicate the adjacent cornice work. Instead, a little tile awning—typical of the period--spans the space."
Another angle, again in 1925 from the Jesse Brown Cook collection at the UC Bancroft Library. Thanks again to Jack Tillmany for the find.
A mid-1925 view of the Washington Square Theatre after it acquired a marquee. We're looking up Powell from Columbus. Jack Tillmany notes: "They're running 'Dancers.' It starred George O'Brien, a San Francisco born movie star, the son of the police chief, so got lots of coverage. He was quite popular in the 20s and 30s." Thanks to Chromejob for posting the photo on Cinema Treasures.
A detail from the 1925 photo. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for finding it in the Jesse Brown Cook collection at the UC Bancroft Library. Gary Parks comments: "The stained glass W on the corner is a nice touch. Interesting to see the low-budget way in which the original facade arch was removed (presumably to remove the nickelodeon-ish look in favor of a more Twenties movie theatre one). No effort was made to replicate the adjacent cornice work. Instead, a little tile awning—typical of the period--spans the space."
Another angle, again in 1925 from the Jesse Brown Cook collection at the UC Bancroft Library. Thanks again to Jack Tillmany for the find.
A photo of the theatre taken by Ted Newman in the first week of February 1943, about six years after its remodel following a fire. The program is "Desperate Journey" with Errol Flynn and Ronald Reagan along with "Sin Town" starring Constance Bennett and Broderick Crawford. The photo from the Jack Tillmany collection appears on the San Francisco Public Library website.
An August 15, 1964 look at the theatre running "The Carpetbaggers." The Alan J. Canterbury photo appears on the San Francisco Public Library website. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for sharing this version of the photo.
A 1968 Tom Gray photo from the Jack Tillmany collection taken after the theatre had gone to a Chinese film policy. Thanks to Bill Gabel for adding it to the Cinema Treasures page about the Pagoda Palace. A version of the photo also appears in the AMPAS Tom B'hend - Preston Kaufmann Collection.
A 1970 Blair Paltridge photo from the James Bartlett collection. It appears in his Pagoda Palace album of 71 photos on Facebook.
Another 1970 Blair Paltridge photo appearing in James Bartlett's Pagoda Palace album on Facebook. 
A c.1965 photo from the Jack Tillmany collection.
A 1967 look north toward the theatre from a KRON news report. Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for spotting it for a post on the BAHT Facebook page.
A 1968 Tom Gray photo from the Jack Tillmany collection taken after the theatre had gone to a Chinese film policy. Thanks to Bill Gabel for adding it to the Cinema Treasures page about the Pagoda Palace. A version of the photo also appears in the AMPAS Tom B'hend - Preston Kaufmann Collection.
A December 1969 view from the now-vanished American Classic Images website.
A 1970 Blair Paltridge photo from the James Bartlett collection. It appears in his Pagoda Palace album of 71 photos on Facebook.
Another 1970 Blair Paltridge photo appearing in James Bartlett's Pagoda Palace album on Facebook.
A 1970 photo by Clay Geerdes. Thanks to David Miller for sharing it on the San Francisco Remembered Facebook page. And thanks to Kevin Walsh for spotting the post.
A 1972 photo by Clay Geerdes that appears in James Bartlett's Pagoda Palace album on Facebook. Here it hadn't yet been Pagoda-ized and was still just the Palace.
A c.1972 photo with the marquee advertising a Cockettes midnight show. Thanks to James Bartlett for including the photo in his Pagoda Palace album on Facebook.
A February 1971 photo appearing on the Open SF History Project website.
A 1972 photo by Clay Geerdes that appears in James Bartlett's Pagoda Palace album on Facebook. Here it hadn't yet been Pagoda-ized and was still just the Palace.
A c.1972 photo with the marquee advertising a Cockettes midnight show. Thanks to James Bartlett for including the photo in his Pagoda Palace album on Facebook.
A March 1973 photo by Greg
Gaar looking southwest from Telegraph Hill toward Russian Hill and
Washington Square. The theatre's in the center of the image with the Saints Peter & Paul Catholic Church on the right. Thanks to Art Siegel for locating the photo on the Open SF History Project website.
A detail that Art Siegel extracted from the 1973 Greg Gaar photo above. Art notes: "It is from around March 9 as the marquee advertises the midnight shows on March 9 and 10 featuring David Blossom and the Blossom Family, the Gospel Pearls and Spike Best and the Rest."
"Roll Over Alice." It's an October 1974 look at the theatre that appeared on a page devoted to the Pagoda on the now-vanished site "Roll Over Alice: Rock, Funk, Punk & Glam - Life and Theater in 1970s San Francisco."
A 1990s photo from the Jack Tillmany collection.
More information: See the 71 photo Pagoda Palace album of James Bartlett on Facebook. See the Cinema Treasures page on the Pagoda Theatre for many comments.
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. The Pagoda Palace makes an appearance on page 90.
"Roll Over Alice." It's an October 1974 look at the theatre that appeared on a page devoted to the Pagoda on the now-vanished site "Roll Over Alice: Rock, Funk, Punk & Glam - Life and Theater in 1970s San Francisco."
A 1980s photo from the Jack Tillmany collection.
Thanks to the vanished American Classic Images website for this April 1986 photo.
A closer look at the entrance in April 1986. It's a photo once on the American Classic Images site.
Thanks to the vanished American Classic Images website for this April 1986 photo.
A closer look at the entrance in April 1986. It's a photo once on the American Classic Images site.
Thanks to Ray Morse for sharing this fine 1990s photo he took. He posted it on the San Francisco Remembered Facebook page.
A 1990s photo from the Jack Tillmany collection.
A c.2000 view of the theatre from Don Lewis in his Flickr album Vanishing Movie Theaters.
The site in 2015 as a hole for the Central Subway project. Photo: Bill Counter
A 2012 Catherine Yang photo that appeared with "San Francisco Central Subway Plans Move Forward," an Epoch Times story. The photo popped up again with "SF Supervisors Proceed With Pagoda Option," a 2013 story.
A 2013 photo appearing with "North Beach's Pagoda Theater Makes Way...." Michael Conrad's August 2013 Curbed San Francisco article about the demolition. There are (or were) 11 more photos with the article. It also appeared with a November 2013 story "Central Subway Price Watch." The occasion for the article was the discovery of a pre-1906 church foundation under the theatre. Also see two more Pagoda Theatre stories on Curbed.
A side view of the building. Thanks to Terry Wade for his c.2013 photo.
A 2013 photo appearing with "North Beach's Pagoda Theater Makes Way...." Michael Conrad's August 2013 Curbed San Francisco article about the demolition. There are (or were) 11 more photos with the article. It also appeared with a November 2013 story "Central Subway Price Watch." The occasion for the article was the discovery of a pre-1906 church foundation under the theatre. Also see two more Pagoda Theatre stories on Curbed.
The backwall during demolition. Thanks to Terry Wade for his 2013 photo.
The site in 2015 as a hole for the Central Subway project. Photo: Bill Counter
The new building on the site. Well, it's called the Palace. We're on Columbus Ave. with Powell St. taking off to the left of the building. Photo: Google Maps - 2022
More information: See the 71 photo Pagoda Palace album of James Bartlett on Facebook. See the Cinema Treasures page on the Pagoda Theatre for many comments.
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. The Pagoda Palace makes an appearance on page 90.
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Bonjour,
ReplyDeleteSome pictures of the Pagoda I took back in June 1990 :
https://cinemasperdus.blogspot.com/2020/03/san-francisco-usa-pagoda.html
Some more pics of SF movie theatres :
https://cinemasperdus.blogspot.com/search/label/San%20Francisco
Of course you can use them on your website if you wish. Please just mention my name and my own blog.
All the best,
KB
Thanks!
DeleteThe Pagoda Palace was also briefly featured in the film, "Out of the Past." Robert Mitchum and Jane Greer can be seen coming out of the theatre.
ReplyDeleteHi! Great article on the Pagoda Palace in which you've extensively quoted Iumi Ross Richards, the creative director of our 1970s SF avant garde theater group "Roll Over Alice," describing our 1974 Halloween midnight show and the feeling of sharing that stage with so many past greats. Thank you!!
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, in his photo book about the theater's performances, James Bartlett include a photo of the marquee featuring "Roll Over Alice" which photo was taken by Tom Scharf, a member of our theater family. We would live to hear from anyone who attended that performance and any others. Thanks again! Contact Patrice Manger on Facebook.