AustinRemembers… - Austin History Center Association

AustinRemembers…
“Collective Memory of
Austin & Travis County”
SPRING, 2012
Austin History
Center Association
The First Picture Shows:
Historic Austin
Movie Houses
By Mike Miller
For more than 100 years, motion pictures have
enlightened and entertained us. As important as the movies
are, the places and spaces where we watch these movies
are just as important to the experience. These spaces have
changed and grown as cinema technology has changed,
from the single person kinetoscopes to the 20+ screen
megaplexes. The connection between cinema history
and movie exhibition space is the topic of a new exhibit at
the AHC, “The First Picture Shows: Historic Austin Movie
Houses.”
The first motion picture exhibition in Austin occurred on
October 10, 1896, at the Hancock Opera House, just a few
months after the premiere of Edison’s Vitascope at Koster
and Bial’s Music Hall in New York. These early pictures
were grainy and jumpy, and once the novelty wore off, few
people showed interest. Early films were sometimes called
“chasers” because few people stayed for the movie, and
theater managers used the films as a signal that the live
show was over to “chase” the audience from the theater.
The business of showing movies became legitimate with
the rise of the Nickelodeons (from the word “nickel” plus
“odeon,” the Greek word for theater). They were multipurpose theaters, usually in converted storefront buildings,
and consisted of a few rented or borrowed chairs, a white
sheet hung along one wall, and a hand-cranked projector on
a table. Small theater ventures took over storefronts along
Congress and 6th streets offering Austinites chances to see
Crescent Theater, ca. 1918. Austin History Center, Austin Public Library Image #
PICA 06735. Most recently the Belvederes Day Spa at 920 Congress Avenue.
Majestic Theater, ca. 1922. Austin History Center, Austin Public Library Image #
C01138. Now the Paramount Theatre at 713 Congress Avenue.
films. Austin was home to around 20 nickelodeons along 6th
and Congress streets, notably the Yale, Casino, and Texas
Theaters.
In the early 1910s, motion pictures evolved into more
complex stories. As these longer narrative films were being
made, the movie going public needed more comfortable
spaces. The first theater in Austin built to exclusively show
movies was the Crescent Theater, built in 1913 at 920
Congress. Austin’s first “movie palace” was the Majestic
Theater, built in 1915 and now known as the Paramount.
The Paramount Theater was built by Edgar Nalle and had its
grand opening on October 11, 1915. It opened with vaudeville
and movie offerings, though the original emphasis was on
live performances. In 1921, the Majestic was joined by the
equally lavish Queen Theater across the street. The Queen
opened in 1921 by J. J. Hegman and was the first theater to
have an electric light sign as well as the first to be wired for
sound. It was designed by Walsh & Geisecke and cost over
$200,000. Hegman was involved in an infamous battle over
Texas’ blue laws, which at the time forbade most commerce
from occurring on Sundays. Angry that the law seemed to be
turning a blind eye to other businesses, specifically drugstores
and cigar shops operating illegally on Sundays, Hegman
began to openly defy the Blue Laws by advertising Sunday
shows. Eventually, all of Austin had to close on Sundays to
ensure equal enforcement of the law.
The Golden Age of Cinema occurred in the 1930s,
with Hollywood studios exacting strict control over film
distribution, resulting in a corporatization of movie theaters.
This manifested in Austin through the Dallas-based Interstate
Theater Circuit (ITC), which in 1933 took over operations of the
Continued on Page 3
Austin History
Center
Association, Inc.
810 Guadalupe
Austin, Texas 78701
512.974.7499
www.austinhistory.net
Mailing address
P. O. Box 2287
Austin, Texas 78768
The mission of the Austin History Center
Association is to help the community
value our past and build a better future by supporting the Austin History Center to
achieve excellence in its efforts to serve
as the collective memory of Austin and
Travis County.
Board of Directors
Executive Committee
Lynn Cooksey, President
Ann Dolce, First Vice President
Ken Tiemann, Second Vice President
Dale Flatt, Treasurer/Past President
Robert Sullivan, Secretary
Evan Taniguchi, Member-at-Large
Directors at Large
Charles Betts
Cindy Brandimarte / Linda Bush
Kathleen Davis Niendorff
Beth Fowler / Maria Ines Garcia
Brooks Goldsmith / Kay Hart
Lauren Lovell / Dr. Fred McGhee
Mike Miller, AHC Archivist
Jena Stubbs / Candace Volz
Anne Wheat / Will Wilson
Austin History Center
Association, Exec. Director
Jeff Cohen
512.484.4119
AustinRemembers…
Beth Fowler, Editor/Creative Director
Rebecca Jarosh, Layout
Lauren Lovell, Public Relations
Jena Stubbs, Photo Coordinator
Meet the Austin History Center
Newest Staff Members
By Jeff Cohen
Ashley Adair, Reference Archivist
Ashley Adair is a lifelong resident of Austin. She earned her
Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology (2007) and Master of Science
in Information Studies (2011) from the University of Texas at
Austin. While completing her masters degree, Ashley worked
in reference services at the Dolph Briscoe Center for American
History.
Jeff Carrillo, Administrative Assistant
Raised in Joplin, MO, Jeff Carrillo attended University of Missouri,
where he studied Drama and Art History & Architecture.
Upon graduating, Jeff moved to Chicago where he played music on tour and worked at the Art Institute of Chicago. Jeff then
worked in at Vanderbilt University. Jeff says he is learning about
his new home town and its history as fast as he can!
Cynthia Evans, African American Community Liaison
As the Community Liaison, Cynthia works with the public to
locate, collect and preserve the history of the African American
community in Travis County. She also performs outreach by
presenting programs about the Austin History Center collections
and the history of the community. She has a BA in Business, an
MA in Museum Science, and her previous work and volunteerism
has combined museum, library, exhibit and archive work.
Molly Hults, Processing Archivist
Molly Hults is a Certified Archivist who received a Bachelors
degree in Anthropology from Hofstra University, a Master of
Library and Information Science from the University of Texas and
a Graduate Certificate in Archives and Records Management
from Western Washington University. She Has worked as a
Young Adult Librarian, and then at the Microsoft Studios Media
Archives as the Senior Access Services Manager. While at
Microsoft, Molly obtained archives training in a History graduate Program. After eight
years of working with video, Molly decided to work in a local history archive. As the
Processing Archivist at the Austin History Center Molly is responsible for registering
incoming donations, arranging and describing archival collections and assisting with
reference work. As Molly suspected, working to preserve and make accessible the
history of Austin is more interesting than working with Microsoft corporate videos.
Nancy Toombs, Head of Public Services
Nancy is almost a lifelong Austinite. She was born in her
parents’ hometown, while her father was a UT-Austin student.
Nancy earned a Bachelors Degree in History, with a minor in
Government, and a Masters Degree in Library Science, both from
UT Austin. She has worked for the Austin Public Library system,
on and off for 25 years. She began her current position, as Head
of Public Services for the Austin History Center, in July 2011.
Her commitment to the history of Austin and her love of public service helped her
integrate into her new home at the Austin History Center.
PAGE 2
MOVIE HOUSES from Page 1
Varsity Theater, 1936. Austin History
Center, Austin Public Library Image
# PICA 06734. Formerly at 2402
Guadalupe Street (at 24th).
Paramount, Queen, Hancock
(later renamed Capitol), and
Texas Theaters. Undaunted
by the Great Depression, the
ITC began a theater building
boom, and over a few short
years, added the State (1935),
Varsity (1936), and Austin
(1939) Theaters to the movie
house landscape. Alongside
the ITC were a number of
independents, such as the
Ritz on 6th Street, opened by
Hegman in 1930, the Cactus
(1939) on 6th Street, opened
by Richard “Skinny” Pryor,
and the Harlem (1935) on
12th Street, a theater serving
Austin’s African American
community.
After World War II, the rise
of the automobile culture created a new phenomenon,
the Drive-In theater. The first
drive-in theater was built in
Camden, NJ and opened on
June 6, 1933. The first in Austin (and Texas) was the North
Austin, opening on Novem-
ber 18, 1940 at 6600 Dallas Highway (now Lamar).
Eddie Joseph owned and
operated the theater, and he
also opened the Montopolis,
South Austin, and Delwood
drive-ins. Drive-in theaters
were a short-lived phenomenon. Their demise was
caused by a combination of
factors—the rise of VCRs,
Daylight Savings Time, and
the amount of real estate
needed to run a drive-in versus running a multiplex.
In 1948, the Supreme Court
Decision United States
v Paramount drastically
changed how films were exhibited. This decision forced
a division between movie
studios and the distribution
of films, and studios could
no longer own theaters to
control film distribution. This
opened the door to other
corporate entities to run and
build theaters. In 1952, the
ITC sold the Queen and Texas theaters to the Trans Texas Theater Company. The
Trans Texas Theater Company was formed by Louis
Novy, his daughter Lena
Podolnick, and son-in-law,
Earl Podolnick. Trans Texas
bought the Capitol Theater
and ran the Capitol, Queen,
and Texas Theaters as well
as the Chief and Burnet
Drive Ins. Trans Texas also
built the first new theater in
Austin in almost thirty years,
ANGELINA EBERLY LUNCHEON, FEB. 1, 2012
Seven Mayors, Five City Council Members
and Almost 200 History Buffs in Attendance
Mayors Roundtable including Former Mayors Ron Mullen, Lee Cooke, and Sen.
Kirk Watson with Emcee Charles Betts. See EBERLY next Pages 4-5.
the Americana in 1965.
The rise of the multiplex in
the 1970s marked a shift of
movie venues from the inner cities to the suburbs and
shopping malls. As moviegoers flocked to the malls and
multiplexes, the one screen
movie houses faced a sharp
decline. Some became arthouse or adult theaters, such
as the Texas Theater and
the Austin (which became
Cinema West). Some made
alterations to try to compete,
such as the Varsity. It added
a second screen on the balcony, becoming a “twin” theater. In 1993, there were 20
different theaters in Austin,
with most of them being multiplexes or the newly created
“megaplex” (16+ screen theaters). Only the Paramount,
State, and Ritz theaters remain as movie houses in
Austin from this bygone era.
To learn more about the story of Austin’s movie houses,
you will have to come check
out the exhibit, which will be
up through August 19. So how
are we able to share this story
with you? In addition to mining
the rich collections at the AHC,
such as the Paramount Theater Records (AR.2001.018)
to find information and incredible visuals for our exhibits, we
use the exhibits as a tool to
add to our collections. Through
the exhibit process, we added
some significant collections to
the AHC. Jay Podolnick, son of
Lena and Earl, provided much
from what he has saved from
the Trans Texas theaters, now
in the AHC as the Trans Texas
Theater, Inc. Papers. Over the
last few months, the AHC added donations from the grandson of J. J. Hegman, the son of
Eddie Joseph, and projectionists Jim Malloy and John Stewart. These donations are hopefully only the beginning as we
strive to document the history
of Austin’s movie houses.
Waterloo Press...Giving the Gift of History... By Jena Stubbs
Writing Austin’s Lives: A Community Portrait by the People of Austin was given to all
attendees at the February 1 Angelina Eberly Luncheon. This 412-page anthology of stories,
written by 127 Austinites of all ages from various neighborhoods and races and backgrounds, is
a great book to keep on your night table….a collection of bedtime stories that don’t have to be
read one after the other. All are about life in Austin in the recent past. This publication, a joint
project between the UT Humanities Institute and Waterloo Press, is available for purchase for
those who were not fortunate enough to receive a copy at the luncheon. The price of Writing Austin’s Lives is $18.00 plus
tax. A Collection of art exhibited in the Austin History Center O. Henry Room by watercolor painter Mary Curtis
was presented at the Eberly luncheon. Six original pieces she had donated to the Austin History Center Association were
auctioned. The art was Historic State of Texas Sesquicentennial Art that she had created from photographs held in the
Austin History Center. In a letter after the luncheon Mary stated that the “Austin History Center is my very favorite place.
I learned so much there.” The Association is fortunate to have a friend like Mary. Nine paintings ranging from 1930s era
Austin to a Congress Avenue scene and the Walter Tips Building c.1880 remain in the AHCA collection and are for sale.
PAGE 3
“In 3 short years...Eberly
AHCA President Lynn Cooksey
and Rosalind Brinkley.
Sponsorship Signs at Registration.
Coffee Mixer in Maximilian Room.
Former Mayor
Bruce Todd
and Suzy
Lindemann
Synder.
Adrienne Carter and
former Mayor Frank Cooksey.
Ann Dolce, Brooks Goldsmith, and Bill Luedecke.
Jeff Cohen and Sen. Kirk Watson.
Silent Auction
Coordinating Chair
Jena Stubbs.
Dr. Fred McGhee.
Former Mayor
Lee Cooke
and
Silent Auction Winner
Rosalind Brinkley.
Clift Price, Clift Bowman,
and Sally Bowman,
in memory of 2009-10
AHCA Past President
Nancy Price Bowman.
Mary Arnold.
Author Liz Carmack and AHC Archivist Mike MIller.
Mayors Roundtable
Emcee Charles
Betts.
Carol Fredericks, Carolyn Goldston,
and Carol Fowler.
Linda Bush and Delphine Larrouih.
Dudley Fowler and George Shelley.
PAGE 4
Margie Kidd, Barbara Houston,
and Maria Ines Garcia.
Mandy Dealey.
Luncheon... a Tradition.”
- Michael Barnes, Austin American Statesman
Kathleen Davis Niendorff,
Waterloo Press publisher,
and below, display of
Waterloo Press sample books.
Silent Auction art featuring Austin
sites by Texas Sesquicentennial
Artist Mary Curtis.
Mayor Lee Leffingwell, John Wheat
and former Mayor Gus Garcia.
Texas Sesquicentennial
Artist Mary Curtis.
Anne Wheat and
Becky Heiser.
Carmen Luevanos and Robert Sullivan.
Bob and Linda Thompson
with City Council Member
Kathie Tovo.
Former Mayor
Gus Garcia and
Marina Garcia.
Dale Lovell and daughter Lauren Lovell.
George Shelley, Mary Curtis, and Brooks Goldsmith.
Mike Buls, Katherine Burdine, Beth Fowler and Evan Taniguchi.
Maria Ines
Garcia and
Former Mayor
Ron Mullen.
Mayors Roundtable including Former Mayors Ron Mullen, Lee Cooke,
Sen. Kirk Watson with Emcee Charles Betts.
City Council Member
Chris Riley and
Former Mayor Ron
Mullen.
PAGE 5
The Driskill Lobby with cannon
loaned by Randy Billingsley.
When you join, your membership in the Austin History Center Association
helps promote community awareness and use of the Austin History Center.
“One of the premier local archives in the country.”
- LibraryJournal
In 2010, our donors helped make possible the acquisition
of Governor Elisha Marshall Pease’s papers. “A complete
and accurate account of Pease’s entire life and his true
significance to the history of Texas and the South.”
Dr. Michael Parrish - Baylor University Linden G.
Bower Professor of American History
BECOME A MEMBER
Please fill in the membership application below and mail with your payment.
Date (please check one) New Member Renewing Member
Address
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P. O. Box 2287 • Austin, TX 78767-2287 • 512-974-7499 • [email protected]
We actively seek new individual and business members. You can help by sharing this newsletter with a friend
interested in Austin’s past and present. For more information, email [email protected]. Or visit us in the
O. Henry Room of the Austin History Center at Guadalupe & 9th.
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If you join or renew at $250 or above, you will receive a free copy of The Republic of Austin.
PAGE 6
You’re Invited
AUSTIN HISTORY CENTER ASSOCIATION
2012 ANNUAL MEETING and ELECTIONS
FRIDAY, MAY 25 ~ 6:30PM ~ 810 GUADALUPE
with
PRESENTATION BY AUTHOR LIZ CARMACK
AHCA invites everyone – current and prospective
members and the public – to attend our Annual Meeting on
Friday, May 25th, at the Austin History Center, 810 Guadalupe.
Liz Carmack, author of Rodeo Austin: Blue Ribbons, Buckin’
Broncs, and Big Dreams will headline AHCA’s 2012 Annual
Meeting with a presentation on her new book and a book
signing.
Rodeo Austin: Blue Ribbons, Buckin’ Broncs, and Big
Dreams is recently published (Feb. 2012) by Texas A & M
University Press and has a foreword by Bucky Lamb. The
publisher’s website states that the book “…tells the story of
Rodeo Austin, a nonprofit enterprise whose face reflects its
agricultural heritage but whose scholarship program is at the
heart of its mission. Since 1981, when organizers became
fully committed to providing college scholarships, millions
of dollars have been raised through a year-long fundraising
effort including a sporting clay tournament, golf tournament,
wine tasting and gala. The year culminates in March with
the organization’s signature event known as Rodeo Austin sixteen days of non-stop events, including a livestock show,
fair, rodeo, and concerts.”
As with most AHCA events, there is no charge, though
optional donations are accepted. We ask those who are not
members to consider purchasing a membership. The Association’s Waterloo Press
books will be for sale at the event. There
will be a brief business meeting, election of
the 2012-13 AHCA Board of Officers and
Directors, an author presentation, and a
reception.
For more information, call Jeff Cohen
Author Liz Carmack.
(512) 974-7499.
In Memory of Nancy Price Bowman
1930 -2012
Longtime member of AHCA Board of Directors and 2009-10 Past President Nancy Bowman, passed away recently. She cherishing every moment she
spent at the Austin History Center. She inspired everyone with her heartfelt love of
Austin’s history and her infinite vision for helping our community discover a connection
to the city’s collective memory. May her memory be a blessing.
“From the Archivist” - Pease Papers Acquisitions
By Mike Miller
A little over a year has passed since the AHC, with much fund through the AHCA for future purchases. These are
enthusiasm and support from the AHCA, completed the exciting additions to the AHC’s flagship archival collection.
The Pease Papers are important, more than just be$200,000 acquisitions project to add over 1300 items to
the AHC’s collection of papers related to Governor E. M. cause they reflect the work of one of Texas’s early goverPease and the Pease family. Researchers from across the nors. As we continue to build our Pease holdings, which
state (El Paso to Houston) have made visits to use these covers four generations of one family in Austin, we are able
to offer a very detailed, intimate, and comprehensive look
additions.
Since that last purchase, the AHC learned of more at 19th and early 20th century life in Austin. The Pease’s
Pease material available for sale, providing opportunities seemed to save every receipt, letter, and note, painting a
to add to this important collection. The seller from the vivid picture of everyday life in Central Texas.
The AHC has applied for a grant from the National
recent project found an additional box in an unsearched
family storage unit, and just this March the AHC brought in Historic Publications and Records Commission to hire
an additional 80 letters and documents. Also, we learned a project archivist to process and catalog all the Pease
of a collection compiled by Robert Davis, former owner holdings at the AHC. If funded, this project will include a
of Waco’s Texian Press. We are currently negotiating for website dedicated to the collection. We should hear news
the purchase of this collection, numbering 82 letters and sometime this summer.Meanwhile, the collection is open
documents. We are not asking for money for this project as and available for use, so come make yourself comfortable
the AHC has funds available to complete the purchase, but in our Reading Room when you have a chance and spend
we will always gladly accept donations to our acquisitions some time visiting with the Pease family.
PAGE 7
Friday, May 25
Join us for the AHCA
Annual Meeting,
6:30PM at AHC. Reception & Author Liz Carmack.
(ANNUAL MEETING p.7)
April - Aug. 19
AHC Exhibit - “The
First Picture Shows:
Historic Austin Movie
Houses.” In the Grand
Hallway and Lobby.
Calling all film buffs.
May 8 - Oct. 21
June - July (Dates TBD)
AHC Exhibit - “O. Henry
in Austin” Photo Exhibit
in the Holt Photo Gallery.
AHC holds one of the
largest O. Henryana
collections in the nation.
Historic Movie Houses
Lecture, Film, Reception,
& Tours. Stateside at the
Paramount Theatre. For
more information go to:
www.austinhistory.net
Save these Dates
Saturday, Sept. 15
“O. Henry’s 150th
Birthday Party.”
Activities at AHC
celebrate the master
short story writer’s
sesquicentennial day.
Sept. 18 - Mar. 3
Sunday, Sept. 23
Oct. 30 - May 12
AHC Exhibit - Showing
the lives of African
Americans in Austin
from 1839-1939.
In the Grand Hallway
and Lobby.
“Austin Museum Day.”
AHC partnership
with other Austin
organizations provides
activities highlighting
museums and archives.
AHC Exhibit - “Early
Mexican American
History in Downtown
Austin” Photo Exhibit
in the Holt Photo
Gallery.
Austin History Center (AHC) Hours: Tuesday – Saturday 10AM – 6PM & Sunday Noon – 6PM
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P. O. Box 2287
Austin, Texas 78768
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