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The
Grand was built to be an opera house. Of course, Texas never took
that designation seriously. All around the state, opera houses
served a variety of functions. On rare occasions an opera may
have actually been performed, but it was dances, political functions
and vaudeville that paid off the mortgage.
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Electra's
Grand Theater
Photo Courtesy Bob Holman
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Electra's
first theater was the Air Dome. This was one of an unusual type
of theater that was widely known, especially in warmer climates.
Walls were built, but there was no roof. Matinees of course were
not shown. There was a "half roof" extending over a small rear portion
of the seats in case of rain.
Other theaters in Electra
over the years have included the Crown, Dixie, Liberty, Garden and
Roxy. The Roxy is singled out for the reputation it had for the
poor condition of their prints. Breaks in the film were so frequent
that the audience started chanting Roxy! Roxy! until the broken
film could be spliced back together. Its reputation was set in stone
when film breaks in other theaters would receive the same chant
of Roxy! Roxy!
The Grand had 6 loges, just in case they did host an operatic performance.
Like most theaters of its day, there was a pipe organ to accompany
the silent films. Jack Teagarden, trombonist of the 30s, 40s and
50s, played in theaters like the Grand early in his career, accompanying
his piano-playing mother. Since the family was from nearby Vernon,
it's entirely possible that they occasionally played at the Grand.
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Electra's
Grand Theater detail
Photo
Courtesy Bob
Holman
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Tax records
for 1923 show that Martha McSpadden, who had formally worked
for the Liberty Theater, was the manager for the Grand. She assumed
ownership of the theater in 1946, but not before she influenced
the outcome of WWII. Mrs. McSpadden insured that theater employees
contributed their share toward buying war bonds.
In a letter
sent to Electran men and women in the military, Mrs. McSpadden
informed them of the impressive quotas that were met. The Fifth
War Loan Campaign had a quota of 295,000 dollars. In total,
all loans from Electra equaled over one million dollars! The Fifth
War Loan received $165.00 for every man, woman and child in Electra.
Not a small amount in the 40s. The letter also says: "…and somewhere
in the world a Flying Fortress named "The City of Electra" is
carrying bombs to the enemy because we oversubscribed the Third
War Loan Drive."
The Lost Art of the Small Town Courtesy
On at least one occasion during the war, the theater was closed
"until all employees return from donating blood in Wichita Falls
for our men and women serving."
Another "small
town courtesy" came about when Mrs. McSpadden heard of the low
budget of the junior class of the Electra High School.
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Electra's
Grand Theater tower
Photo Courtesy Bob
Holman
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The tradition
(imagine this today) was that the junior class give a graduation
gift to the outgoing seniors. The gift was a special party consisting
of a dinner and a movie. But one year, the money would only cover
the dinner. When the problem was explained to Mrs. McSpadden,
she invited both juniors and seniors to the movie as her gift.
There's
nothing new under the sun. Applause signs may have been introduced
in New York, but Mrs. McSpadden, who owned the theater in the
40s, came up with a cheap substitute. Since the Grand's patrons
had a reputation for being hard-to-please, "applause starters"
were strategically placed in the audience to "prime the pump"
and help convince Electrans that they were having a good time.
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Electra's
Grand Theater upper front
Photo Courtesy Bob
Holman
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The
Grand was sold after Mrs. McSpadden's death and has changed hands
many times before being deeded to the City of Electra in 1990.
The formation of the Save the Grand Foundation has insured
that the theater will remain a part of Electra's (and Texas')
history.
The detail-rich
history of the Grand Theater that we wrote this article from was
written by Jan Greer Ekrut, a former Electran now living
in Austin.
Main
Street Program Manager Jannis Hayers promptly furnished this
text so that we might present it for our October Drive-By Architecture.
We were fortunate to have native Electran,
Bob Holman, furnish us with the exceptional photographs
he has taken of the Grand Theater.
Electra
is in good hands. - TE
October
2000
© John
Troesser
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