Opening: Around 1907 as the Bijou. It's in the 1908 city directory with that name but doesn't appear in the 1907 edition. The building is on the east side of the street just south of Market.
Seating: 260
"... clean amusement and healthy recreation... at the lowest price on earth." This advertorial piece appeared in a May 1, 1909 S.F.
Bulletin three-page salute to
"San
Francisco's High-Class Moving-Picture Theatres," part of their Pacific
Progress Issue. Thanks to Art Siegel for
locating it.
The Bijou was one of 30 theatres advertising in the section, which also included the long-winded articles "Education on Wheels - The Nickelodeon a Factor in Modern Civilization," "The Nickelodeon a Permanent Factor in Public Amusement" and "The 5-Cent Theater Opens Wide the Door of Pleasure to the Scanty Purse." See the full pages of the section, which you can download and enlarge: page 36 | page 37 | page 38 |
The Electric was listed as being among theatres that were participating in a May 11, 1911 benefit for Children's Hospital in this article from the May 27 issue of The Film Index. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for locating this list via Internet Archive.
Art Siegel notes that it was later used by a succession of print shops. The PDF from the State of California Department of Parks and Recreation's "Primary Record" about the location notes:
"In 1953, the foundation was reinforced, and in 1958, the floor in the original portion of the building was lowered two feet to be level with the concrete floor of the rear addition. In 1962, the entire concrete floor was repaired, as was dry-rot with new moisture-proofed wood. The primary façade appears to have been re-clad, and the storefront windows also appear to have been replaced.
"In the 1950s, the building was used as a printing shop. San Francisco City Directories and building permits list a number of different printing companies at the address, including Sierra Press in 1954, Argonaut Printing Co. in 1958, Poor Richard’s Press Printers in 1960, and Waller Press in 1962. Subsequent tenants included a restaurant supply company and a drapery store...
"The building appears to be in good condition. 227 Church Street retains integrity of location and setting, remaining part of the commercial corridor of Church Street in the Castro neighborhood. The property also retains a fair degree of integrity of design, materials, and workmanship, as the alterations to the façade are superficial and could be removed to reveal the near-original condition of the building.
"The interior features a high degree of integrity as one of the finer surviving examples of an early nickelodeon in San Francisco. As is typical of nickelodeons, the interior features a large space that was used as an auditorium. The ceiling is coved and clad in pressed tin, and the front of the building includes a large barrel-vaulted space over the entry that may have originally functioned as a portion of the projection room. Portions of the original façade are also visible from the interior, including the arch of electric light sockets that gave the Electric Theatre its name.
"While alterations have compromised the building’s integrity of feeling, restoration of the façade would reverse that loss to some extent and improve the building’s overall integrity as an example of an early twentieth century nickelodeon. However, because the building has undergone changes in use, it no longer retains integrity of association with the movie theatre context..."
A 2010 view of the remodeled facade. Image: Google Maps
A 2016 facade detail. Thanks to Andra Young for this shot and her other photos appearing on this page. They were included in a post for the San Francisco Remembered Facebook group.
- 2134 Sutter St. - running in 1908
- 1930 Union St. - running from 1908 to 1916
- 3261 Mission St. - running from 1911 to 1916, maybe later - see Electric Theatre
Jack's Arcadia Publishing book "Theatres of San Francisco" can be previewed on Google Books. It's available from Amazon or your local bookseller.
The Electric gets a page on Cinema Treasures with a nice photo, but it's of the Electric on Fillmore St.
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