In the Paramount's 100-year history, it has played host to a wide variety of acts ranging from vaudeville, musicals, legitimate theater, and movies,[3] including premieres of such films as 1966's Batman.[4]
The four-story theater was built by Ernest Nalle, who commissioned architect John Eberson to design the building in January 1915.[5] The theater opened under the name "The Majestic" on October 11, 1915, and hosted various vaudeville performers including the Marx Brothers. In 1930, the theater was purchased by Karl Hoblitzelle, who renamed it to the "Paramount Theatre" and added carpeting, upholstered seating, and the addition of a giant lighted blade sign reading "Paramount".[5] In 1941, the theater was purchased by the Margaret Reed Estate.[6] In November 1963, the building's facade received a renovation. The renovation included the removal and reprogramming of the signature blade sign. However, the sign was never re-installed and its fate was never revealed.[7]
By the 1970s, the popularity of television and suburban movie theaters led to a decline in theater attendance. In 1975, proprietors John M. Bernardoni, Charles Eckerman, and Stephen L. Scott formed a nonprofit group to restore the building, which was in deteriorating condition.[5] Local philanthropist Roberta Crenshaw, who owned a 50% stake in the building through her late husband's estate, donated her half of the trust to the nonprofit, meanwhile, the other half of the trust offered a 99-year lease.[6] In 1976, the theater's listing on the National Register of Historic Places qualified the venue for federal restoration funds. Renovations began in September 1977 following a $1.85 million grant from the federal government, which was also used to spur economic development in Downtown Austin.[5]
In 2015, the theater embarked on an effort to recreate the signature blade sign that was lost in 1963. Since there were no known architectural or engineering plans for the original sign, the designers analyzed old footage of the theatre that included the sign. On September 23, 2015, the blade sign was lit for the first time in over 50 years.[7]
Galleryedit
Paramount Theatre in 2015
Marquee sign detail
Architectural elements
President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the theatre in 2014
Referencesedit
^1634–1699: McCusker, J. J. (1997). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States: Addenda et Corrigenda(PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1700–1799: McCusker, J. J. (1992). How Much Is That in Real Money? A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States(PDF). American Antiquarian Society. 1800–present: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Retrieved May 28, 2023.
paramount, theatre, austin, texas, paramount, theatre, live, theatre, venue, movie, theatre, located, downtown, austin, texas, classical, revival, style, structure, built, 1915, building, listed, national, register, historic, places, june, 1976, paramount, the. The Paramount Theatre is a live theatre venue movie theatre located in downtown Austin Texas The classical revival style structure was built in 1915 The building was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on June 23 1976 2 Paramount TheatreEntrance to venue c 2006 Former namesGaiety Theatre planning construction Majestic Theatre 1915 30 Paramount Theatre 1930 76 2000 present Paramount Theatre for the Performing Arts 1976 2000 Address713 Congress AvenueAustin Texas 78701 3216LocationDowntown AustinCoordinates30 16 10 N 97 44 39 W 30 2694668 N 97 7442607 W 30 2694668 97 7442607OwnerParamount Inc OperatorAustin Theatre AllianceCapacity1 270ConstructionBroke groundFebruary 1915 1915 02 OpenedOctober 11 1915 1915 10 11 Renovated1930 1957 58 1978 80 2000 2015Construction cost 150 000 4 34 million in 2022 dollars 1 ArchitectJohn EbersonWebsiteVenue WebsiteParamount TheatreU S National Register of Historic PlacesU S National Historic LandmarkRecorded Texas Historic LandmarkBuilt1915NRHP reference No 76002072 2 RTHL No 14684Significant datesAdded to NRHPJune 23 1976Designated RTHL1976In the Paramount s 100 year history it has played host to a wide variety of acts ranging from vaudeville musicals legitimate theater and movies 3 including premieres of such films as 1966 s Batman 4 Contents 1 History 2 Gallery 3 References 4 External linksHistory editThe four story theater was built by Ernest Nalle who commissioned architect John Eberson to design the building in January 1915 5 The theater opened under the name The Majestic on October 11 1915 and hosted various vaudeville performers including the Marx Brothers In 1930 the theater was purchased by Karl Hoblitzelle who renamed it to the Paramount Theatre and added carpeting upholstered seating and the addition of a giant lighted blade sign reading Paramount 5 In 1941 the theater was purchased by the Margaret Reed Estate 6 In November 1963 the building s facade received a renovation The renovation included the removal and reprogramming of the signature blade sign However the sign was never re installed and its fate was never revealed 7 By the 1970s the popularity of television and suburban movie theaters led to a decline in theater attendance In 1975 proprietors John M Bernardoni Charles Eckerman and Stephen L Scott formed a nonprofit group to restore the building which was in deteriorating condition 5 Local philanthropist Roberta Crenshaw who owned a 50 stake in the building through her late husband s estate donated her half of the trust to the nonprofit meanwhile the other half of the trust offered a 99 year lease 6 In 1976 the theater s listing on the National Register of Historic Places qualified the venue for federal restoration funds Renovations began in September 1977 following a 1 85 million grant from the federal government which was also used to spur economic development in Downtown Austin 5 In 2015 the theater embarked on an effort to recreate the signature blade sign that was lost in 1963 Since there were no known architectural or engineering plans for the original sign the designers analyzed old footage of the theatre that included the sign On September 23 2015 the blade sign was lit for the first time in over 50 years 7 Gallery edit nbsp Paramount Theatre in 2015 nbsp Marquee sign detail nbsp Architectural elements nbsp President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the theatre in 2014References edit 1634 1699 McCusker J J 1997 How Much Is That in Real Money A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States Addenda et Corrigenda PDF American Antiquarian Society 1700 1799 McCusker J J 1992 How Much Is That in Real Money A Historical Price Index for Use as a Deflator of Money Values in the Economy of the United States PDF American Antiquarian Society 1800 present Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis Consumer Price Index estimate 1800 Retrieved May 28 2023 a b National Register Information System National Register of Historic Places National Park Service July 9 2010 Paramount Theatre Texas Historical Commission Retrieved 2015 05 26 Paramount Theater Centennial Celebration The Paramount Theatre Retrieved 26 June 2015 a b c d Orbock Joseph A Paramount Theatre Texas State Historical Association Retrieved January 14 2020 a b Barnes Michael September 23 2016 How Roberta Reed Crenshaw became the Paramount s patron saint Austin 360 Retrieved January 14 2020 a b The Paramount Blade The Paramount Theatre Retrieved January 14 2020 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Paramount Theater Austin Texas Paramount Theatre History nbsp This article about a theater building in the United States is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Paramount Theatre Austin Texas amp oldid 1168959328, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
