Respectable citizens agreed – ‘Moving Pictures’ would corrupt the youngs and ‘tire their eyes’. Nevertheless, Needham got a cinema, and for nearly 75 years the opulent theater was a beloved location for community events and entertainment.
Suffice it to say, this is not the place to engage in a long history of the early development of the cinema. I will only note that the technology to film and show “moving pictures” became really feasible around 1895 with films around one minute in length. The technology moved on quickly after that, and The Movies, in the sense that we know them – extended stories produced for general entertainment – became a viable commercial property about ten years later.
The effort to bring these moving pictures to Needham dates to 1913. Eugene Lawlor of Needham applied to the Selectmen to operate a motion picture theater in the Car Barn on Highland Avenue. The car barn, located approximately between what is now Sudbury Farms and Dunkin’, had been the overnight shed for the trolley cars. Lawlor was proposing to run thirteen shows a week, and had plans to add vaudeville shows.
The Board of Selectman initially granted Lawlor a license, setting off a fire-storm of objections from Needham’s respectable leading citizens. The movies, they said, would corrupt the morals of impressionable youth. The theater would be too close to Needham High School and two churches. Since it was in a hollow behind trees, the police would have to patrol the site to make sure nothing untoward was going on in the shadows! Furthermore, motion picture shows took unwarranted sums of money from the pockets of parents, and would distract youngsters from their schoolwork, while injuring their young eyes by prolonged viewing and late hours (10 o’clock!)
Mr. Lawlor countered that the remodeling of the car barn would do away with an eyesore and improve the value and appeal of the property – reminding the naysayers of their own words: “[Needham] residents are entitled to quiet and wholesome surroundings.” Plus, he argued, motion pictures in Needham would mean a saving of considerable money and time for residents who had to pay carfare to see amusements in other towns. Nevertheless, it appears that the opposition prevailed. Although the Selectmen insisted on issuing the license, Town Meeting resolved that the town was opposed to the car barn being used for any form of entertainment.
Two years later, however, in January 1915, Selectman David Murdoch was granted a license to operate a moving picture theater in the upstairs hall of the Bourne Building, on the SW corner of Chestnut St. and Great Plain Avenue. He promised to show only “pictures of the highest moral character – educational, instructive and interesting.” The license was granted with the caveat that the Board of Selectman have the right of censorship. Murdoch resigned from the Board for a while to avoid a conflict of interest. He also stated that the new theater would be at the service of the community, available to various organizations in town for entertainment, and for use in a municipal emergency if needed.
The new movie theater opened on January 29, 1915 with the film, The Christian (1914), a modern-day morality play/romance replete with long-suffering lovers, wicked schemers, fallen women, persecuted innocence, and Love (briefly) Triumphing Over All (look it up on imdb.com, seriously).** In addition, the public was pleased to discover that the pictures “did not tire the eyes,” and “the absence of breaks and flickering was much approved.”
The main drawback with the Bourne Building was that the theater was not large enough to accommodate music to supplement the silent movies. In 1925, David Murdoch began construction of a new theater building on Great Plain Avenue between Dedham Avenue and Pickering Street, that would fulfill his motto of the “best” for Needham. It was dubbed “the most beautiful and most comfortable theatre in New England” when it opened on February 11, 1926. It occupied 23,000 square feet in the center of Needham, with 738 seats in the orchestra and 348 in the balcony. The price of admission was 25-50 cents. No expense was spared on the furnishings, the most up-to-date projecting equipment, and the Robert Morton Unit organ, regarded as the finest of theater organs.
Opening night featured The Grand Duchess and the Waiter (1926), a romantic comedy starring Adolphe Menjou and Florence Vidor; and Norma Shearer and Lew Cody in His Secretary (1925), a duckling-to-swan rom-com that bore the tagline, “The True Story of a girl who sought romance in business – ”. By all accounts, it was a huge success.
In his foreword in the program book, Murdoch wrote, “There is nothing so potent in the influence of public opinion, as the motion pictures. They serve not only as a means of entertainment, but contribute in no small measure to the education of the world. We cannot help but observe how swiftly the world moves. We learn from all sides that people no longer have time for careful perusal of the printed word or close study of intricate art works. This desire must be satisfied quickly… in this new theatre – “Your Home Theatre” – we shall endeavor to give you the finest entertainment obtainable. This shall be our sincere and lasting aim.”
With his son David Jr. as manager, Murdoch ran the theater until 1929, and then leased it to Paramount Publix while retaining ownership of the building. Asked why he was leaving the business, he replied that “the conditions are now such that there is no room for the private individual in the theatre field – it is all big business… enormous strides are constantly being made through development of revolutionizing improvements.” – the expensive sound and picture projection equipment, especially, always needed to be replaced by the “latest type.” “Big business,” he said, “can better meet the constantly changing conditions with the large expenditures those improvements mean.”
The theater changed hands several times over the next 60 years. However, despite changes of ownership and name, Needham’s movie theater was a beloved local institution that not only showed movies, but held events and benefits, and other activities.
By the 1980s, however, the theater was losing ground to the blockbuster multi-plex economics of the modern cinema industry. The film distribution companies favored the large, multi-screen theaters to maximize audience volume. Also, an unfortunate ownership dispute interfered with ongoing maintenance, and it fell into disrepair. One of its last attempts to remain open was an unsuccessful bid in 1987 to show the X-rated Italian film Devil in the Flesh (1969). USA Cinemas, which operated the theater at that time, cancelled the scheduled showing when strong community opposition convinced them that it “would not do well” in Needham.
The theater closed for good in 1989. Its ownership still in dispute, it remained derelict for the next decade. Finally, the town declared the deteriorating structure to be a hazard, and took it over in 2001 for demolition. The site was redeveloped and subdivided into the row of retail properties between what is now Abbott’s and Needham House of Pizza.
There are still plenty of Needhamites who remember going to the theater for a movie, or who got their first job there selling popcorn. And many who are still wistful about the days when a kid could run downtown and spend their allowance on a long Saturday afternoon with friends at the movies.
For an image gallery of the Needham Theatre in its heyday, see our online exhibit, The Needham Theater in its Prime.
** “…John’s mind becomes unbalanced. That night, fearful for Glory, John goes to her home, tries to kill her to save her from a fate [worse than death]. Glory rises supreme, makes a magnificent defense, recalls John to his senses, helps establish his innocence, proves Lord Robert’s guilt, accepts John’s love, joins him for life… in spite of all, Glory and John find happiness in each other’s love.” Except John also dies. And this is just the ending! Oh, yeah – and the heroine’s name is Glory. Incredibly, this film was remade in 1923.
Gloria Polizzotti Greis, Executive Director, Needham History Center & Museum