Opened: September 6, 1916. This rare early view is from the collection of Jack Tillmany. He notes that
it's the only early exterior photo he's seen. It was in the opening program for the Alhambra Theatre in 1926. It's a c.July 1926 photo with the theatre running "Tramp, Tramp, Tramp" with Harry Langdon and Joan Crawford.
Architects: Reid Bros. did the original design. Timothy Pflueger gave it a 1928 remodel. Vincent G. Raney designed the entrance renovations done in 1948.
Seating: 1,515
The opening of the Royal, initially an independent operation, got covered in the September 30, 1916 issue of Moving Picture World. It's on Internet Archive. The theatre also had several photos and a writeup in the August 10, 1918 issue of Moving Picture World. The location was on the west side of Polk between California & Sacramento Streets. The Royal had joined an earlier theatre on the block, the Queen, which had opened in 1910 on a lot just north of the Royal's. The two ran side by side until 1920 when the Queen closed.
The 1918 article noted that they had an American Photo Player Co. organ to accompany the films. They deemed the house exceptionally well ventilated with a 5 hp supply fan and a 5 foot diameter Ventura fan as the exhaust. The projection throw was 130 feet onto a 16' x 21' screen. They used Simplex projectors and had a 72 amp Westinghouse motor-generator set to power the arcs.
An article in the May 15, 1923 issue of the Chronicle noted that the Royal and Polk Theatre had been sold to a "syndicate of San Francisco theatrical men for $250,000." The syndicate consisted of Robert A. McNeil (who built the New Lyceum and at the time operated the Excelsior on Mission, later renamed the Granada), Eugene H. Emmick, and Michael Naify (of T&D Junior Enterprises) and the Nasser Brothers (who built and operated the Castro). Thanks to Jack Tillmany for finding the article.
A drawing for the Timothy Pflueger remodel of 1928. It's from the Glenn Koch collection and appeared as a post on the BAHT Facebook page. Thanks, Glenn!
Timothy Pflueger's 1928 remodel of the theatre for Nasser Brothers, then the operators, got mentioned in the January 21, 1928 article from Exhibitors Herald and Moving Picture World. Thanks to Bob Ristelhueber for posting the article on the BAHT Facebook page.
A June 1930 schedule for the Alhambra and the Royal. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for sharing the item from his collection.
The
Nassers labor troubles began in February 1929 when they installed sound
equipment at the Castro. This article appeared in the July 14, 1930
issue of
Exhibitors Daily Review and Motion Pictures Today. Thanks to Russell
Merritt for locating it.
Vincent
G. Raney's design for the terrazzo as part of an entrance renovation
for Nasser Bros. in 1948. Nine images from the plans for the project
that are in the Gary Parks collection are down at the bottom of the
page. Gary comments: "I'm in terrazzo heaven with this one. I believe
the terrazzo was
essentially executed as drawn, but without the 'R.' I do remember that
it did go all the way out to the curb. Sadly, I never got around to
photographing it."
The Blumenfeld circuit got the house in the mid 80s.
Status: The theatre closed in
the late 90s. It was demolished for a new housing complex in June 2003.
There's a new faux facade on the building.
The lobby:
A look in from the entrance doors at Timothy Pfleuger's 1928 deco lobby for the Royal. It's an October 8, 1943 photo by Ted Newman that's in the Jack Tillmany collection. Thanks to Bill Gabel for posting the photo on the Cinema Treasures page about the theatre.
Jack notes that the building was L-shaped and the doors we see led to the house left end of an inner lobby across the back of the main floor.
A look toward the exits that William David French, Jr. found online. He comments: "Before the building was demolished a few traces of Pflueger's interior redesign were still visible, including columns in the lobby. The rest of the interior had been stripped of most of its details." Gary Parks adds that the arch we see above the doors was the indented outline of an original archway.
Looking in from the street. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
The main stairs. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
Another stair view. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2003
The ceiling above the stairs. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2003
Looking back toward the entrance. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2003
The mural above the entrance doors. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
The house right end of the inner lobby with the auditorium to the left, restrooms straight ahead and the back stairs to the balcony out of the frame to the right. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2003
A closer look at one of the inner lobby ceiling grilles. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
An inner lobby mural detail. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
Another view of the house right end of the lobby. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2003
Some exciting restroom tile work. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2003
The auditorium:
A shot from the balcony showing off the theatre's proscenium and their American Photoplay Organ. Thanks to Jack Tilllmany for this version of the photo. It originally appeared with an article on the Royal in the August 10, 1918 issue of Moving Picture World. It's on Internet Archive. Bob Ristelhueber originally found the article for a post on the BAHT Facebook page.
An October 8, 1943 proscenium view by Ted Newman from the Jack Tillmany collection. It's on the San Francisco Public Library website. Most of the decor we see is from the Timothy Pfleuger remodel for Nasser Bros. in 1928.
An October 8, 1943 Ted Newman photo of the rear of the house from the Jack Tillmany collection. It's on the San Francisco Public Library website.
A December 1961 balcony shot showing off the Royal's new screen installation. It's a photo from the Jack Tillmany collection.
He comments: "The Royal had a relatively small stage which wasn't wide enough for proper CinemaScope presentation, so in 1954 Nasser Bros. simply installed a 1.85:1 screen, which was about as wide as they could go with it, and ran everything in the same ratio, cropping the sides off their CinemaScope films and the top and bottom of the full frame films, not an acceptable situation in my book, especially since their Alhambra CinemaScope was extended outside the narrow original proscenium and was one of the best such installations in the City.
"Apparently, Nassers received enough complaints that they eventually did what they should have done in the first place, and gave the Royal the same treatment. My photo shows the results. I often went to the Royal; as Blumenfeld's flagship site after the disastrous twinning of the Alhambra it was a very pleasant experience."
Gary Parks comments: "One major auditorium detail from the original Reid Bros. design of the theatre survived until the end: The plaster molding and cove running around the edge of the ceiling."
Looking in from the rear of the house. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
Across the balcony soffit at the rear. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
The house right rear corner of the auditorium. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2003
The house right wall. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2003
A soffit fixture. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
The house left rear corner. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2003
The house left wall. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2003
A closer look at the fire hose cabinet. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
Several layers of wall finishes house left, just in front of the balcony. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
Another wall detail. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
Painted ceiling detail. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
At the front of the auditorium house left. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
The screen in 2001. Photo: Kevin Silva
Looking offstage left. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
Another view off left. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001. Thanks, Kevin!
More exterior views:
Checking out new cars on California St. Thanks to Art Siegel for spotting this c.1920 view on Shorpy. He comments: "In 1920, the Franklin dealership was 1635 California, just west of Polk. The Royal was on Polk, near California, but it was an L-shaped building, where the back of the stagehouse was on California, across from 1635. Looks like it had a small sign on its California St. frontage, reflected in the dealership window."
A flipped detail from the Shorpy image. Thanks, Art!
Thanks to Glenn Koch for this 1928 view of the Royal's marquee from his collection. It appeared as a post on the BAHT Facebook page. Jack Tillmany notes that Frank Galvin was a popular local pop bandleader. He also appeared at the Irving Theatre.
An October 8, 1943 photo by Ted Newman that's in the Jack Tillmany collection. There's a also a smaller version of the photo on the San Francisco Public Library website. The ticket stubs are also from Jack's collection. He comments: "Note the increase in admission price & taxes, from 46 + 9 = 55 cents to 50 + 10 = 60 cents rubber stamped on the bottom ticket. Shameful example of inflation. Glad we don't have that sort of thing now."
A 1943 entrance detail from the Jack Tillmany collection on the San Francisco Public Library website. Jack comments that the generic message on the marquee wasn't just due to staff laziness. During World War II most signage in the city wasn't lit so any titles put on the marquee wouldn't have been visible at night. Note the cone on the top of the streetlight at the left, a mid-WWII blackout measure.
Jack adds: "Apparently the Royal lost one of the 12 - T's in their font, so the marquee changer had to truncate his generic wartime message, since 2 of them were already in use on the side panels in 'Montgomery.' See's Candies was a fixture next door for many years and can be seen in lots of the later views as well."
A July 1963 photo from the Jack Tillmany collection. He comments: "By 1963, with their bigger, wider screen firmly in place, the Royal had entered SF's First Run Race, and, together with the Geneva Drive-In, offered 'The Great Escape,' one of the year's biggest blockbusters, and today a recognized classic of its era."
Jack adds: "Apparently the Royal lost one of the 12 - T's in their font, so the marquee changer had to truncate his generic wartime message, since 2 of them were already in use on the side panels in 'Montgomery.' See's Candies was a fixture next door for many years and can be seen in lots of the later views as well."
A July 1963 photo from the Jack Tillmany collection. He comments: "By 1963, with their bigger, wider screen firmly in place, the Royal had entered SF's First Run Race, and, together with the Geneva Drive-In, offered 'The Great Escape,' one of the year's biggest blockbusters, and today a recognized classic of its era."
A 1966 look south on Polk from Sacramento St. toward the Royal. It's a photo by Joe Rosenthal for the Chronicle, part of a 25 photo set of "Historic Photos of Christmas in San Francisco" posted on SF Gate in December 2014. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for spotting the sharper version seen here as a post on the Historic San Francisco Facebook page. The Royal was running "The Professionals" with Burt Lancaster, Lee Marvin and Claudia Cardinale.
A photo from the Jack Tillmany collection taken either December 1966 or January 1967 when the Royal was
running the first run city wide release of Peter Sellers in "After the
Fox."
The Royal is seen in the background in this 1967 shot of Sonny and Cher from KRON. Thanks to Lily Castello for posting the screenshot on Facebook. The clip the shot is taken from can be seen on the site of the Bay Area Television Archive.
A June 2, 1972 shot looking north on Polk across California St. It's from the SFMTA Archives on Flickr.
Thanks to SanFranFan for digging this 1974 view north from California St. out of the SFMTA Archives. The photo appears on the site San Francisco Pictures. Across the street it's Maple Hall, already a Walgreen's in the 70s.
A 1975 photo that's in the Jack Tillmany collection. He comments: "In May 1975 WB revived a double feature combination of 'Deliverance' and 'Scarecrow' for a city-wide re-release, and the Royal joined the Golden Gate, Coliseum, El Rey, and El Rancho Drive-In, along with a dozen and a half out of town venues to drain a few more bucks out of these two popular titles. As usual, Tom Gray captured the moment."
A photo by Tom Gray from the Jack Tillmany collection. Jack comments: "'Monty Python and the Holy Grail' opened in mid-1975 at the Stage Door, then enjoyed an extended run at the Ghirardelli. Eventually, it found its way to the Royal, circa late 1975-early 1976."
A 1989 look north on Polk St. toward the Royal in better days. It's a Don Lewis photo on Flickr.
It's part of Don's immense (and wonderful) Vanishing Movie Theaters album.
A 1994 view with "I Love Trouble" on the marquee. Thanks to William David French, Jr. for spotting the post of the photo on the San Francisco Remembered Facebook page. Steve Moore posted it and commented that it was his job changing the marquee at the time.
A 1994 view of Timothy Pfleuger's facade from an Art and Architecture page devoted to the Royal, "another lost gem."
A look at Timothy Pfleuger's deco facade in March 1996. It's a KP Dennis photo on Flickr.
"Blues Brothers 2000" playing in early 1998. Thanks to Dave Long for sharing this photo he took. It's on the Facebook group San Francisco Remembered along with a shot the same year of the Alhambra.
The decaying theatre in 1999. Thanks to Robert Estes for his photo, a post on the BAHT Facebook page.
A view south on Polk in 1999. The theatre was awaiting demolition for a new housing project that would incorporate a facade resembling this one. Thanks to Robert Estes for his photo.
A terrazzo detail. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
Looking in from the street. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
The south display cases. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
The entrance. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
The north display cases. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
Looking out along the south display cases. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
Another view toward Walgreen's. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2001
The door's open! Photo: Kevin Silva - 2003.
The marquee coming down. Most of the building was demolished in 2003. Thanks to William David French, Jr. for finding the photo.
One of the metal pieces off the top of the facade. Photo: Kevin Silva - 2003. Thanks, Kevin!
A post-condo reconstruction of the Royal's facade. Thanks to Martin Paul for his 2015 photo on the BAHT Facebook page. William David French Jr commented: "Not even the original facade. This is a 'recreation' that lacks the feel of the original. And the 'marquee' never looked like that mess."
A detail of the new facade from the site Art and Architecture.
More from William David French, Jr. about the facade: "The remodeled facade was made up of thin sheets of metal. I have never seen another facade like it. The 'reconstructed' facade of today does not do it justice. The 'original' facade was far more delicate. I absolutely can't stand what's there today.... I was only in the theatre once, in 1997. Most of the important architectural details had already been destroyed. It was quite sad. I didn't understand why the changes had been made. Within a few years the theatre was demolished and the horrible replica of the facade we see today was built. It's not nearly as delicate at the original. I absolutely hate what's there today."
Gary Parks comments: "To clear up some things about the Pflueger facade: In 1989, at the auction preview at Butterfields of the John Pflueger Collection, I saw the original color pastel rendering of the Royal facade remodel. It showed a facade just like what is there now, except I don't know if those geometric patterns where readerboards would normally go were there. What I DO know is that the big central stained glass window was shown glowing, and those two lanterns were there.
"I do not know if the lanterns were actually executed by Pflueger--I have never seen photos of the facade at that point, but I do know that the vertical sign we all remember and the wedge shaped marquee were later additions, and not by Pflueger. There was a rectangular marquee with the Pflueger remodel. I believe the marquee at least (which was installed later than the vertical) was by Alexander Cantin. As to WHY the current marquee had to be supported by POSTS? I don't know...and I'll refrain from ranting about that feature. Also, I believe the two metal sculpture 'towers' atop the facade are the originals. I know the originals were very carefully taken down and saved at demolition time. I saw this being done."
Images for the plans for the 1948 entry remodel from the Gary Parks collection:
A title block from the first sheet. Gary comments: "Wonderful to see this Deco style hand lettering! Raney was clearly a class act, even in his early years!"
Raney's ceiling design. Gary comments: "Imagine that curvy shape as a neon-lit cove in the
marquee soffit/ticket lobby ceiling. It would have made the ceiling
appear to float. Those who are familiar with the late 40s cove-lit
ceiling in the entry of the Fox Oakland know the look."
An elevation of the south wall of the ticket lobby. Gary notes: "Real marble facing the walls—after all, this IS the ROYAL! The marble remained until the end."
An entrance door elevation. Gary comments: :Although circular windows in the front doors of theatres were
popular in the 40s, these are not windows. They are door
handles—stacked, round plates of metal."
A detail of how to fabricate the large, round door handles.
A detail of the lighting cove construction. Gary comments: "Note
the little circle, showing the neon tube. One wonders what color they
selected: Pink? Light blue? Gold? Green? Such are the most common
cove colors I’ve seen, anyway."
The terrazzo from the entrance doors (at the top) to the curb (at the bottom). Gary comments: "This seems to essentially be what I recall as the terrazzo
sidewalk design as executed, though I know the 'R' was not executed.
Unfortunately I never photographed this terrazzo. My comprehensive
theatre terrazzo photography project of Bay Area theatres came a couple
of years too late."
A detail of the proposed design near the boxoffice.
A detail of the area behind the boxoffice. Thanks, Gary!
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.
Also see the Cinema Treasures page on the Royal.
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