Category: Toronto Cinemas

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Farina in Toronto

Eric Veillette

Jamie Bradburn, that bon vivant over at Torontoist, uncovers a swell gem in today’s Historicist column. In 1932, four years after a gaggle of Toronto kids got to dress up like their favourite Our Gang characters on the stage of the Loew’s Yonge St. theatre,  the real Farina (and his sister Mango, says the ad) paid a visit to our fair city. Also, be sure to check out Jamie’s great blog, the Silent Toronto-approved  JB’s Warehouse and Curio Emporium. Continue reading Farina in Toronto

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The Rio in 1985

Eric Veillette

The above image is the cover for a 12″ record I dug out of the archives to share with you all. A benefit recording for the Evergreen Mission, behind these tough-looking chaps is the former Rio Cinema on Yonge St., which in 1985, when this photo was taken, was showing Chuck Norris in Missing In Action II, Cat People, and a selection of other films which ran continuously until 5am. The Rio was a 500-seat cinema located at 375 Yonge St. which now houses an adult video and toy store. One of the oldest flicker-houses in the city, it first opened … Continue reading The Rio in 1985

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The Carlton

Eric Veillette

Whether old, new, palatial, grimy, spacious or downright claustrophobic, the closure of any Toronto cinema means one less place to see a film, and today’s closing of the Carlton Cinema is no exception. It’s not the first time a theatre has closed in that location, either. In 1974, the Odeon Carlton, a lavish post-war movie house, ended a 26-year run after screening Burt Reynolds in White Lighting. While discussing the Carlton’s demise with Colin Geddes a few weeks back, he noted that it also widens the gap of available cinemas on or around Yonge St. Excluding the Cumberland and Varsity … Continue reading The Carlton

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Lee’s Palace Shows its True Colours

Eric Veillette

by Eric Veillette Yesterday, Torontoist reported that the colourful amoeba and monster-laden mural which has adorned the facade of Lee’s Palace for over twenty years was taken down, to be replaced with a new creation by original artist Runt. Annex residents may feel it looks temporarily naked without it, but it gives us a better view of the building, which once housed a movie theatre. Designed by architect C. Howard Crane in 1919, it opened as The Bloor Theatre, which was part of the Allen’s national chain of cinemas. This photo, taken in 1921, shows  the westward view of the … Continue reading Lee’s Palace Shows its True Colours

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The Danforth Music Hall Turns 90!

Eric Veillette

by Eric Veillette In today’s Saturday Star, I write about the Danforth Music Hall’s upcoming 90th anniversary. On Tuesday, August 18, Heritage Toronto and the Riverdale Historical Society will be celebrating this milestone by unveiling a plaque in its honour. By recreating the events from nearly a century ago, the evening will also feature a silent film, Dollars and Sense, with live accompaniment. The Music Hall, originally known as Allen’s Danforth, remains one of the best examples of this former theatre empire. Other Toronto Allen survivors are the Bloor and Parkdale. The former – a popular midtown cinema until the … Continue reading The Danforth Music Hall Turns 90!

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Lecture on Toronto Theatres at the Revue Cinema

Eric Veillette

Above image from January 1929 shows Yonge St. facing north from Queen St. On the bill at the Loews Yonge St. is a Buster Keaton film, probably Steamboat Bill. Source: Toronto Transit Commission. Ten-cent admission, newsreels, adventure serials and slapstick. That’s what you would find if you could return to the early days of movie-going. As this site, dedicated to preserving the stories of our varied theatres, nears its first anniversary, I am partnering with Toronto’s Revue Cinema on a new lecture series chronicling the history of local movie theatres. On August 22, the first lecture, “Toronto Movie Theatres: Palaces … Continue reading Lecture on Toronto Theatres at the Revue Cinema

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Talkies the Talk of Toronto!

Eric Veillette

by Eric Veillette Eighty years ago, on Dec. 28, 1928, the talkies came to Toronto. Despite the freezing weather that winter evening, over a thousand movie-goers ventured out to the Tivoli, located at the intersection of Richmond  and Victoria Sts. to see a midnight preview of The Terror, a haunted-house whodunit. This was more than a year after a New York City audience watched and listened as Al Jolson got down on one knee and sang “My Mammy” during The Jazz Singer premiere on Oct. 6, 1927 at the Warner Bros. Theatre.  Contrary to popular belief, that wildly successful “photo-dramatic … Continue reading Talkies the Talk of Toronto!