Stanford Theatre

The Stanford Theatre is a classical independent movie theater in Palo Alto, California. It was designed and built in the 1920s as a movie palace styled in neoclassical Persian and Moorish architecture. Today it specializes in films produced between 1910 and 1970 and seasonal programs typically include film festivals for various genres, directors, and actors, such as Alfred Hitchcock, Bette Davis, and Cary Grant. The Stanford Theatre frequently accounts for as much as twenty-five percent of all classic film attendance in the United States.[1]

Stanford Theatre
Stanford Theatre's marquee at night
Address221 University Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94022
Coordinates37°26′43″N 122°09′46″W
OwnerDavid and Lucile Packard Foundation
TypeIndoor theatre
Construction
OpenedJune 9, 1925 (1925-06-09)
Renovated1987-1989
ArchitectWeeks and Day
Website
stanfordtheatre.org

The Theatre has a "The Mighty Wurlitzer Organ" theatre organ made by Rudolph Wurlitzer Company. The organ is played live during intermissions, as well as to accompany silent films.[2]

History

Designed by architects Weeks and Day, the theater was built at a cost of US$300,000 (equivalent to about $5,120,000 in 2022) with construction starting in 1924.[3][4] It had a Leatherbury-Smith orchestral organ installed with pipes ranging in size from a toothpick to a 32-foot pipe providing sounds for stringed instruments, trumpes, flutes, saxophone, clarinet, and various percussion instruments.[5] The Theatre opened on June 9, 1925 with a showing of I'll Show You the Town after a dedication speech and had a capacity of approximately 1500.[6] By the 1960s the Theatre was on hard times, the organ had been removed and the interior was not cleaned to a degree that, "many moviegoers flatly refused to enter the place, no matter what was showing."[7] In 1987 after the death of Fred Astaire, David Woodley Packard had a film festival of Astaire's works at the theatre. The two week festival was so successful that his father, Hewlett-Packard co-founder David Packard, agreed with his idea to purchase the aging theatre.[8][4]

It was purchased in 1987 for $7.7 million and restored by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation at an additional cost of $6 million for a 1989 grand opening of The Wizard of Oz.[9] Part of the restoration included installing an organ to replace the original which had been sold as parts. The process took 2 years to obtain and restore parts which included the 1926 console from Grauman's Chinese Theatre and the organ's 1928 pipes from Loew's Theatre.[10] The Theatre was renovated in late 2017 with repainting, new carpets, and the seats being restored with new padding and mohair coverings. It reopened that December with a showing of The Wizard of Oz[11]

It was renovated once again in 2023 with improvements such as repainting and reopened on July 1 for the start of a Cary Grant and Alfred Hitchcock film festival

The Stanford Theatre is currently managed by Cyndi Mortensen and operated by the Stanford Theatre Foundation, led by David Woodley Packard.[7][12]

  • Interior view with curtain down
    Interior view with curtain down
  • Projection room
    Projection room
  • Organ elevated
    Organ elevated
  • Interior lobby view
    Interior lobby view
  • Exterior with marquee
    Exterior with marquee

See also

References
  1. Bowling, Matt. "The Stanford Theatre: As Time Goes By". www.paloaltohistory.org. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  2. Israel, Robyn (July 26, 2000). "The Wizard of the Wurlitzer". Palo Alto Weekly. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  3. "New Theatre To Be Built". The Daily Palo Alto. Vol. 66, no. 12. October 17, 1924. p. 1. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  4. Israel, Robyn (July 26, 2000). "An oldie but a goodie". Palo Alto Weekly. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  5. "New Theatre Will Have Elaborately Constructed Organ". The Daily Palo Alto. Vol. 67, no. 68. June 3, 1925. p. 3. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  6. "New Stanford Will Open With Reginald Denny Presentation". The Daily Palo Alto. Vol. 67, no. 71. June 8, 1925. p. 1. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  7. Valladares, Carlos (November 5, 2016). "The Stanford Theatre: Blast from the Past, and Key to the Future". The Stanford Daily. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  8. LaSalle, Mick (13 August 2000). "A Rich History Worth Saving (With Millions) / Philanthropist David Packard is on a personal crusade to restore film classics". SFGate. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  9. Gauvin, Peter (July 8, 1994). "Big crowd delays Varsity decision". Palo Alto Weekly. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  10. Knight, Heather (April 16, 1999). "A Note Of Nostalgia / Stanford Theatre organists add classy touch to classic films". SFGate. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  11. Pizarro, Sal (December 14, 2017). "Stanford Theatre reopening with holiday favorites". The Mercury News. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
  12. Pool, Bob (June 8, 1999). "Buyer Donates Silent Movies to UCLA Archive". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 31, 2019.
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