Days of Deco Delights
It was the end of the roaring twenties, and the country was not engaged in any wars, and people were enjoying a period of apparent prosperity. But, that all ended in the fall of 1929. On October 29, 1929, called Black Tuesday, when investors traded some 16 million shares on the New York Stock Exchange in a single day. The crash, which followed the London Stock Exchange's crash of September, signaled the beginning of the Great Depression.
But, prior to that devastating event life for many was good, and the young movie industry was flourishing around the country. "Movie Theater Palaces" were being constructed throughout the big cities and smaller cities alike. Warner Brothers Studio had hired Thomas W Lamb, a Scottish immigrant and renown architect who specialized in designing elaborate theaters. Lamb's beautiful work dotted the countryside with prior examples found in San Francisco, Boston, and New York City.
The Warner Theatre was built in Torrington, CT as a first-run movie palace by Warner Bros. Studios. This elaborate art-deco building's opening in August, 1931, was a statewide event attended by then-Governor Wilbur Cross and many other dignitaries. Seating 1,772 patrons, the Warner was a stunning example of state-of-the-art technology and lush, elegant surroundings.
Days of Deco Delights
It was the end of the roaring twenties, and the country was not engaged in any wars, and people were enjoying a period of apparent prosperity. But, that all ended in the fall of 1929. On October 29, 1929, called Black Tuesday, when investors traded some 16 million shares on the New York Stock Exchange in a single day. The crash, which followed the London Stock Exchange's crash of September, signaled the beginning of the Great Depression.
But, prior to that devastating event life for many was good, and the young movie industry was flourishing around the country. "Movie Theater Palaces" were being constructed throughout the big cities and smaller cities alike. Warner Brothers Studio had hired Thomas W Lamb, a Scottish immigrant and renown architect who specialized in designing elaborate theaters. Lamb's beautiful work dotted the countryside with prior examples found in San Francisco, Boston, and New York City.
The Warner Theatre was built in Torrington, CT as a first-run movie palace by Warner Bros. Studios. This elaborate art-deco building's opening in August, 1931, was a statewide event attended by then-Governor Wilbur Cross and many other dignitaries. Seating 1,772 patrons, the Warner was a stunning example of state-of-the-art technology and lush, elegant surroundings.