WILMINGTON, N. C. (WWAY) — As the weather continues to warm as summer approaches, more and more people will seek indoor activities to escape the high temperatures outside. A popular way to spend time indoors is to spend time watching a movie. While there are several trendy features in the area, there was a time when the flashy theaters of downtown Wilmington dominated the scene.
One of the first theaters to open in Wilmington was the Bijou Theatre on North Front Street. The site began as a show in a tent, with a permanent theater construction inaugurated on May 30, 1912 at a cost of $40,000. The theater introduced citizens to Wild West movies and prominent actors on stage. Admission is five cents, with sawdust floors and folding chairs for a capacity of six hundred people.
The second-floor balcony seats two hundred African Americans (the first theater in Wilmington to allow African Americans in). Although the theater was a success for years, it closed in 1956 and was demolished in 1963. Everything that remained for decades as part of the floor tiles from the entrance. But a municipal park opened in February 2023 and continues to attract others to the historic site.
The Victoria Theatre opened a few years after Jewel began serving its patrons, on Market Street on January 12, 1914. Ten years later it remembered the Carolina Theatre and eventually replaced its name of Colony Theatre. It lasted six decades before closing its doors on Halloween. 1974 and demolished in 1975. The former site is still a vacant lot next to the Slice of Life Pizza center.
Another century-old theatre is the Théâtre Royal, which opened in 1915 with films, musicals and the city’s first animated electric sign. It was built by the owners of the Bijou Theatre, who sold it to George Bailey in 1924. It thrived for decades until a giant chimney devastated the building and the nearby Orton Hotel on January 21, 1949. The façade and front component of the theatre have survived and are still used as a bar and lounge.
The next theatre to appear downtown was the Bailey Theatre, which began receiving buyers two days before Christmas 1940. A five-story hotel dating back to the 19th century was demolished to make way for the new structure, which opened just a few months later. His namesake, George Bailey, has died. The theater was one of the largest in the city and could hold up to 1,250 people at a popular movie screening. It thrived for decades until it closed in 1980 and was demolished in 1983 to make way for a parking lot.
Its façade and mosaics remain, but the cantilever was completely demolished in 2002 after a typhoon caused a portion of it to fall onto the sidewalk below. Although it is at risk of being demolished over the years, the original façade of the building still remains. It catches the attention of passers-by every day.
The Manor Twarmthre on Market Street came into life almost a year after the Bailey Twarmthre, with its first exhibition on December 4, 1941. The Twarmthre had a screen and could accommodate up to six hundred people. It had air conditioning as an advertising element, being a popular place to cool off from the outside summer heat. The twarmther closed in 1985 and the last film dedicated to the twarmther in the city center. They have grown into a number of concert halls and dance clubs, but closed permanently in 2017. It was completely demolished in January of this year.
Although theaters on each and every corner are a thing of the past, the land they once stood on will remain the story of a time when other people would pile up to enjoy the latest shows.
For more stories with “Hud” segments, click HERE.
Video Center | Live Streaming