The Palace / New Theatre / Verdi / World Theatre

644 Broadway | map |  There have been three theatre buildings on the site. And one designed for the site in 1912 but never built.

The Palace Theatre: 1909 - 1912  

Opening: The first theatre at this location opened as the Palace in 1909. This July 20 opening day ad in the Italian language newspaper L'Italia was a find by Jack Tillmany. He calls our attention to the "P" on the columns at the top of either end of the facade. The site is on the north side of the street between Columbus and Stockton.

Architect: Unknown. But there is one surviving sheet of plans for the project in the Gary Parks collection. See five images from it down at the bottom of the page. 

 A July 21 ad for the theatre in L'Italia.  

An eye-popping ad that appeared in the August 4, 1909 issue L'Italia, here calling it the Royal Palace. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for locating it.  

Closing: On October 19, 1912 L'Italia and other papers reported that the Palace's frame building was a total loss due to a fire the night before.

An October 19, 1912 story located by Jack Tillmany in the S.F. Examiner. Crossed wires in the attic were the problem. Evidently the monkey and puppy escaped.  

 

 A replacement Palace Theatre: 1912, unbuilt

This facade drawing is from plans in the Gary Parks collection for a replacement theatre for the site that was designed in November 1912 but never built. See ten images from the plans down near the bottom of the page. The theatre would have had a capacity of about 800.

Architect: It was designed by Ralph Warner Hart for a Miss N. Harris, presumably the owner of the property at the time. 

The New / Verdi / World Theatre: 1914 - 1982

Opening: The replacement theatre, initially known as Il Nuovo Teatro or the New Theatre, opened in April 1914. This construction view appeared in the February 1, 1914 issue of  I'Italia. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for locating it.

Architects: Rousseau and Rousseau. 

 

A detail from the 1913 facade drawing in the set of plans for the project in the Gary Parks collection. See fourteen images from the blueprints at the bottom of the page.

Seating: 1,000  

 

The new Verdi Theatre is seen in this detail from image 45 from Volume 1 of the 1913 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map that's in the Library of Congress collection. It's Broadway across the bottom of the image, Stockton St. on the left and Grant Ave. on the right. The angled street is Columbus Ave.

An article about the inauguration of the New Theatre that appeared in the newspaper L'Italia On April 19, 1914. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for locating it.  He comments: 

"Brush up on your Italian, and you can read the article. Apparently, they didn't bother to run an ad. Probably just gave out flyers at the stores in the neighborhood. April 19 is about as close as we're going to get as far as an opening date."

A May 14, 1914 ad in L'Italia, evidently the first one. Jack notes that ads referring to it as the New Theatre appeared weekly until June 27, 1915. 

A July 1, 1915 L'Italia ad, the first for the for the theatre as the Verdi. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for locating it. He comments:  

 

"Although this was the first ad as the Teatro Verdi, they began referring to it as the 'New Verdi' as early as 23 May 1915. It may have been popularly called the Verdi for a while until the name finally stuck, and the owners got around to changing it legally, and changed the ad."

An item in the October 18, 1919 issue of the Chronicle that was located by Jack Tillmany noted that Crescent Theatres, Inc. had bought the operation. The seller wasn't noted but J.R. Saul and Frederick Frisk of the United Theatre Exchange had brokered the deal. See the photo that appeared in the Chronicle down lower on the page.  

The last day of operation as the Verdi was April 25, 1954. It reopened as the World Theatre on May 7, grabbing both the name and the sign from the World Theatre across the street, the former Liberty Theatre at 649 Broadway, which was being demolished. 

Jack Tillmany comments about their opening show: 

"It was the West Coast Premiere of the very controversial 'Salt of the Earth,' an independent production which no other theatre would touch because of its alleged pro-communistic leanings. The Examiner accepted a modest ad on opening night, but no other mention of the World's re-opening or the film can be found in either the Chronicle or Examiner except for a blub in Herb Caen's column 2 weeks later. Coverage in the Call Bulletin and News, the two afternoon papers, is unknown."  

 

  

Herb Caen's comment about the show. 

The theatre was being operated by Fong Ying and Lawrence Low. Their pro-Soviet film bookings had attracted the attention of the government. Low had been called before the HUAC in 1956, where he invoked the 5th Amendment. Fong was investigated for passport fraud.

 

Thanks to Art Siegel for locating this article that appeared in the January 25, 1957 issue of the Chronicle. 

 

 

Fong Ying was headed to China in 1957.  Thanks to Art Siegel for locating the article from the July 3 issue of the Chronicle. 

At some point the theatre shifted their bookings to Chinese product: 

 

A c.1960 flyer for "Ten Brothers" at the World. It appears courtesy of Arthur Dong, author of "Hollywood Chinese: the Chinese in American Feature Films," which includes more Chinatown theatre flyers from his collection. Arthur's also done a "Hollywood Chinese" documentary, a two-disc set available on Amazon.  

 

A December 21, 1961 flyer for "Father Is Back." It's another from the Arthur Dong Collection. Thanks, Arthur. He's also the author of the book "Forbidden City U.S.A: Chinatown Nightclubs 1936-1970." It's available on Amazon. Also available is his 1989 documentary "Forbidden City USA."

Closing: 1981 or 1982.

Status: This second theatre on the site was demolished in 1982.


Interior views: 

The lobby of the theatre in February 1943 when it was still called the Verdi. It's a Ted Newman photo in the collection of Jack Tillmany. He comments: 

"Note the absence of a snack bar in the lobby, pretty much a Post-WWII phenomenon in sites such as these."

Gary Parks adds: 

 

"The carpet pattern visible on the lobby stairs is one popular in the 30s. A notable use of it was in the 1937 redecoration of the Fox California in San Jose."

A proscenium view showing the effects of a deco remodel. It's a February 1943 photo by Ted Newman from the Jack Tillmany collection. A smaller version of the photo is on the San Francisco Public Library website. Gary Parks comments: 

"It's interesting to see the juxtaposition of Hollywood Regency/Skouras style murals over the former organ chambers and on on the proscenium sounding board, and original ceiling beams and (unusually) chandeliers from the Teens!"

The rear of the house in February 1943. The photo by Ted Newman is from the Jack Tillmany collection. It can also be seen on the San Francisco Public Library website. Gary Parks comments: 

"I so wish I had photographed—in the 90s-- the pair of VERY Italian murals (buxom Bernini babes basking in bucolic bowers) on canvas which were apparently salvaged from their hiding place behind later walls when the Verdi/World came down. I got to look at them in the antique store Swallowtail, run by a couple of gals Mark Santa Maria knew, on Polk not far from the Alhambra. But—didn’t have the camera along. The ceiling was pretty high in the store, and as I recall, they went nearly from floor to ceiling."

More exterior views:  

A 1914 view of the New Theatre from the Jack Tillmany collection. They're running a nine reel Italian production of "Othello." They have posters up for two June 1914 releases: "Mabel's Married Life" with Charlie Chaplin, Mabel Normand and Mack Swain as well as "The Severed Thong" starring George Siegmann and Mary Alden. A smaller version of the photo can be seen on the San Francisco Public Library website where they just have it labeled as "The New Theatre." 

A photo of the Verdi that appeared in the October 18, 1919 issue of the Chronicle. Thanks to Jack Tillmany for getting the item off the Chronicle microfilm and working on the image. The caption: "Verdi Theatre, 644 Broadway, sold to Crescent Theatres, Inc. by J.R. Saul and Frederick Frisk of the United Theatre Exchange." 

The theatre in February 1943. It's a Ted Newman photo from the Jack Tillmany collection. A small version can be seen on the San Francisco Public Library website. Jack comments: 

"Note the generic WWII marquee, just as in the case of the Parkside and Royal, which were taken about the same time. Note also the 25 cents admission price and the 3 nights of Bingo. The Palace (later Pagoda Palace) was the primary North Beach neighborhood house at that time and the Verdi and Acme (later Times) were the counterparts of the Balboa and Star in the Richmond District. The pecking order was pretty well established. The films in the photo, 'San Quentin' and 'Golden Boy,' were 1937 and 1939 retreads with popular stars which provided backup cannon fodder for the Verdi's frequent four changes a week."

 

The Verdi is in the distance in this 1943 photo from the Jack Tillmany collection. Thanks to Art Siegel for spotting its appearance on the Open SF History Project website.

The view west on Broadway. It's a photo from the Jack Tillmany collection. On the left side of the street that vertical with the flag at the top is the Liberty Theatre, 649 Broadway. Jack comments: 

"The year is 1946 and an aged Market Street Railway veteran is making one of its last trips to the Union Iron Works on Third Street on Muni's wartime #16 line. If you look very closely, on the same side of the street as the Verdi, you will see Bocce Ball Court. That's the old Broadway Theatre, (618 Broadway) which goes back to 1909."

A Charles Cushman photo from April 1957. It's in the Charles W. Cushman Photograph Collection at Indiana University.

 

 

A c.1963 photo taken by Jack Tillmany. Arthur Dong, author of  the 2019 book "Hollywood Chinese: the Chinese in American Feature Films," reports that the characters on the vertical sign do say "World Theatre." The characters painted on the facade say "world" on the right and "theatre" on the left. They’re the same characters as on the vertical. Gary Parks comments: 

 

"I found some little archaeological traces: Look at the facade, and go to the far right Chinese character. Now look at the third story stuccoed-over window immediately beneath it. Notice the top edge of it. For some reason—part of the profile of the arched window brow that once topped that pair of windows is visible. Looks like a little slab of stucco fell away, revealing the curved shape. Also, if you look VERY carefully, you can barely make out some discoloration in the paint in the central bay, above the three little painted-over windows up by the vertical sign—a very faint outline of the arched window brow that was in that central bay can be seen." 

 

The theatre in 1964 running "Sensational Chinese Pictures." It's a photo by Alan J. Canterbury in the San Francisco Public Library collection. 

Thanks to Don Hargreaves for this 1965 view east towards Columbus. He had it on San Francisco Remembered. 

 

We're looking east toward Columbus in this fine c.1968-71 shot from the Facebook page Lost San Francisco.  

 

An August 1969 view taken by an unknown photographer that appears on the website of the Open SF History Project.  

A photo taken by Fred Beall that's in the Jack Tillmany collection. Jack notes that the theatre wasn't ever painted mustard yellow, somehow that's how his scanner wanted to render the photo. 

A perhaps 70s view by an unknown photographer. The photo is in the Jack Tillmany collection. 

We get a look at the cheaper looking revamped marquee in this April 1978 view taken by Tom Gray. The photo is from the Jack Tillmany collection. He notes that the red building down the block is the Broadway Theatre/Montgomery Playhouse, here running "Hold Me."

 

Thanks to Bill Gabel for this fine view looking east on Broadway with the theatre over on the left.  It's a c.1979 shot by Edmund Swinglehurst. It was on Cinema Treasures but seems to have vanished from that site. Another version of the photo was posted by Bob Ristelhueber on the Bay Area Historic Theatres Facebook page. 

The World Theatre: 1985 - 2001   

Opening: In this new four story building there was a smaller World Theatre in the basement that opened July 1, 1985. It's a c.1985 photo by Tom Gray that's in the Jack Tillmany collection. Note that they reused the vertical from the earlier building. For several decades the building was owned by Dr. Rolland Lowe.  
 
Seating: 437

Closing: 2000 or 2001.

Status: The space occupied by the World has been gutted and is now part of a restaurant complex called China Live!, a project of George Chen. Chen had evidently purchased the building from Lowe around 2015.

An interior view: 

In the basement looking at what's left of the stripped-out theatre. The booth is gone. The equipment had been Simplexes with Christie lamps. About all that's left are restrooms, a sloped floor and the stage. Photo: Bill Counter - May 2015

More exterior views:   

Thanks to Ken Roe on Cinema Treasures for this October 2000 photo.

A 2005 look at the building with the theatre signage gone. It's a photo by Adam Martin on Cinema Tour.

The view east on Broadway in 2013. Photo: Google Maps

Work is underway on the building. Photo: Bill Counter - April 2015

A look after exterior work was done. Photo: Bill Counter - 2015

 

 

 

Images from a sheet of the 1909 plans for the Palace in the Gary Parks collection:  

What's in Gary's collection is a single sheet that he acquired from Gary Goss, who rescued many rolls of plans from a City of San Francisco dumpster in 1975. This one sheet is all that remains from what was once a complete set of plans for this first building on the site. 

A facade elevation and, at the bottom, a  floorplan for the ticket lobby. This is an image of the one sheet in Gary's collection. The four images that follow are details taken from it. Gary comments:

"Like so many of the nickelodeons, the Palace perhaps hadn’t been named at the time the drawings were done. Note the absence of the twin letter P’s on the little domed towers. Looking at the photo, those round ornaments over the smaller, side arches were added in the final construction, along with wall light fixtures on the side towers, just high enough so as to not injure the heads of tall people, and stud lights outlined the upper vertical edges of the towers, and ran along the top of the tiled facade roof awning."

A closer look at the entrance arch, doors and boxoffice. 

A detail of the left side of the entrance arch. Gary comments: "Apologies for the wrinkles. This one had been flattened in the big box that the blueprints were kept in by Gary. If I put a piece of glass over it, the camera will focus on the myriad reflections, and not the lines, so it is what it is."

 A closer look at the boxoffice.  

A detail of one of the two towers. A "P" was added near the top when they determined they were going to call it the Palace. 

 

Images from 1912 plans in the Gary Parks collection for a replacement theatre designed by Ralph Warner Hart that was not built: 

A title block on one of the sheets. Note the date: November 30, 1912. The original Palace Theatre on the site had burned in October.  

 

A main floor plan. Gary notes that the the architect shows a capacity of 764 at this level but doesn't indicate the capacity of the rather small balcony. Note "PALACE THEATRE" in the ticket lobby flooring.

 

 

Another version of the main floor plan.

  

 

A plan at balcony level.

 

It's a booth and roof plan on the left. At the right it's a plan of the apartment that was to be located above the lobby. With a balcony. 

 

A facade drawing. 

 

 

A closer look at the facade. 

 

 

In the upper left we get a section drawing looking through the lobby, showing stairs to the balcony. In the upper right it's a proscenium view. The lower drawing is a section through the building showing the "bustle" of a stagehouse, an arch at the organ grille/box area and the house right wall of the auditorium. Above the lobby note the apartment with the booth up on the next level. 

 

 

 Exterior elevations with the west side of the building at the top and the east on the bottom. 

 

There was going to be more to look at but evidently Jasper, one of Mr. Parks executive assistants, has decided that's enough for one day.

 

Images from the 1913 Rousseau and Rousseau plans in the Gary Parks collection:  

 The data about the architects from one of the sheets.  

 

A section through the building. Gary comments: "Here is Rousseau and Rousseau’s opus. They really went all out with drawings of extensive footings and profiles of the piers in the walls, etc. The interior drawings aren't all that eye catching—it was a pretty plain house—but I shot those things that did have a bit of finesse. Unforgettable exterior, though, when new."

 

A closer look at the lobby end of the section. 

 

 The stage end of the section drawing. Note the boxes.  

 

A plan view of the stage. 

 

 A plan view of the lobby. 

 

 

 

 

Sorry to interrupt the process. Jade, the other executive assistant to Mr. Parks, insisted on getting out the Scotch tape for a few repairs before the rest of the sheets can be photographed.

 

An elevation of the facade. Gary comments: "There don’t seem to be any detail drawings of those metal openwork spikes on top of the facade towers. Those must have looked quite impressive from afar."

 

A facade detail. Gary comments: "Over the mask on the upper facade, it says 'Submit model of mask for architect’s approval.' Also, that circular collar-like device around the mask’s neck was tile."

 

A closer look at the area near the mask. 

 

The boxoffice and several of the entrance doors.  

 

A section view looking toward the proscenium. 

 

A detail from the section drawing. Gary comments: "Note one of two tripod altars, which flanked the stage. The note says 'Brass by owner.'  I wonder if they emitted fog or smoke, for atmosphere, like such ornaments in theatres later would in the twenties?"

 

A closer look at some of the proscenium box details. 

 

The upper left corner of the proscenium.

Thanks, Gary! 

More Information: Cinema Treasures has a page for the original Verdi/World Theatre as well as the replacement World Theatre.  There's also a page on Cinema Tour about the theatre.

There had been another earlier house called the Verdi on Montgomery Ave. (now called Columbus Ave.) between Broadway and Vallejo. It was a short-lived m=nickelodeon that had opened as the Beach Theatre .

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. Jack mentions the World on page 59.

The Registry had a 2013 story "Cypress properties Group Backs the Acquistion,,," that dealt with the sale of the building. They also had a 2014 story "China Live and SFFS Take Most of Available Space..." dealing with leasing.

Chinese films and moviegoing in Chinatown are elegantly discussed in Arthur Dong's 2019 book "Hollywood Chinese: the Chinese in American Feature Films." He's also the author of the book "Forbidden City U.S.A: Chinatown Nightclubs 1936-1970." It's available on Amazon. Also available is his 1989 documentary "Forbidden City USA."

Also see Kim Fahlstedt's "Chinatown Film Culture: The Appearance of Cinema in San Francisco's Chinese Neighborhood," a 2020 book from Rutgers University Press. It's available on Amazon and there's a preview on Google Books.  

Ruby Yang's 2010 documentary "A Moment in Time" tells the story of Chinese residents of San Francisco by discussing the movies they watched in Chinatown's theatres. 

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