Tom Kat / Pink Kat Theatre

181 Ellis St. | map |

Opening: The theatrical career of this space began February 12, 1969 with its opening as the Tom Kat Theatre. Or was it the Tom Cat? That's the signage we see in the Tom Gray photo. It's from the Jack Tillmany collection. The location was on the south side of the street just east of Mason St.

 

Art Siegel noted: "The Dumpster adds a touch of class." Robert Cambra commented: "So nice they named it twice."

 

The February 12, 1969 ad in the Examiner touting "The Boldest Expression Of The Lavender Cinema." Thanks to Jack Tillmany for locating it.  

 

The theatre dropped the gay porn policy and reopened as the Pink Kat. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for locating this opening ad in the December 26, 1975 issue of the Examiner.  

This location and the former Chez Paree at 150 Mason St. appear to have switched policies in December 1975. It had been the Pink Kat and then became the Spartan. The opposite happened on Ellis: this house went from being the Tom Kat to going straight as the Pink Kat.

Closing: Sometime around April 1976.

Status: The building the theatre was in has been demolished. The Parc 55 hotel takes up the whole block on Ellis between Cyril Magnin and Mason St. 

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.   

Thanks to Peter M. Field for his research. For a fine history of the neighborhood see his 2018 Arcadia Publishing book "The Tenderloin District of San Francisco Through Time." It's available through Amazon. 

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