History : Capitol Theatre Project
The Grand opening of the Capitol Theatre on December 9, 1949 brought
the citizens of Lebanon to the movies. That night at the
Capitol Theater, it was Technicolor! Not only was it
Technicolor—it was Betty Grable in Technicolor. So
says the very first projectionist at the theater, Ernest
Weatherly. It was his job to set up and operate the motion
picture projection and sound-reproducing equipment to produce
coordinated effects on the big screen.
Mr. Weatherly remembers that very first day
so well, “The lobby was adorned with brightly colored
arrangements of fresh flowers sent by every single business in
town. Everyone was so happy when we opened. They
all wished us well and wanted us to succeed.” The
flowers were a sign that Lebanon had a citizenry who shared the same
excitement and wanted this business to do well---it was also a sign
that they were eager to become fans of the movies. And fans
they became.
The Capitol Theater located on the corner at 110 West Main was opened
by Crescent Amusement, who’s President at the time was Tony
Sudekum. John Hatcher Sr. became the manager of the brand new
theater. After Mr. Sudekum’s death during World War
II, Crescent Amusement was taken over by his son-in-law Mr. Baulch, and
later followed by another son-in-law Mr. Stingle.
Crescent Amusement Company owned the Capitol Theater until it was sold
to Martin Theaters in 1961, following a Federal lawsuit involving the
Crescent Amusement Company. The government originally charged
Crescent with discouraging potential competition by obtaining court
approval to construct new theaters in places where it had no immediate
intention of building. Crescent was also charged with keeping
from the court evidence of the true competitive facts on which the
court was entitled to act in passing on new theater construction. More
important, it was alleged that defendants had failed to divest
themselves of stock interest in other exhibition corporations, as
required by the judgment. In 1961, Martin Theatres bought out
Crescent Amusement. It was later spared in a fire that
engulfed the old Lebanon Hotel.
Mr. Weatherly remembers the old days, when the Capitol was open seven
days a week. He remembers those times with a great deal of
fondness. Little known, but very interesting was the fact,
that although there was no air-conditioning in those days, the theater
was kept cool because of a well drilled into the center of Town Creek
which provided a cooling breeze of air; because of the fast running
stream below; and when encased, it produced this stream of fresh air,
which was channeled into the theater. You can actually see it
on Gay Street. The well provided a cooling system of sorts
for the theater; because of what he described as a washed air
system. Mr. Weatherly doesn’t believe there are
many people who know that fact.
Mr. Weatherly explained the “commissary” as it was
called, sold popcorn, cookies, and candy. In those days a
ticket to the movies was 35¢; while a bag of popcorn cost a
whopping 10¢--which even though times had been tough, movie
goers paid gladly for the opportunity to get a chance to see their
heroes and heroines on the big screen.
The theater seated around 1,000 people in comfortable
spring-covered chairs. Mr. Weatherly remembers the building
was built with the kind of care that you don’t see today; and
it was possibly one of the best constructed buildings of the
time. He remembers Marvin Head was contracted to do the
construction and masonry work. Mr. Head was known for his
craftsmanship, and according to Mr. Weatherly, the Capitol Theater was
one of the best built buildings in Lebanon.
The Princess Theatre and the Capitol Theatre later became part of the
Martin Theatre Group, but closed when the Martin Triple Theatre opened
up at 1447 West Main in the old K-Mart shopping center. Since
that time, the building has remained mostly vacant.
There has always been talk that someone would do something with it;
however, no one ever did. That is until now----Bob and Pam
Black have bought the building. They have big
plans!!! The City of Lebanon may once again share the same
excitement they did all those years ago, when the building was adorned
with wall-to-wall flowers from a town that wished each other
well. The Black’s plan to use it as an event center
and that includes showing matinees of the classics on a monthly
basis. There’s nothing like seeing the classics on
the big screen---and the music, and the dancing, and remembering those
times back in the day--nothing. See you at the movies!!!!
