Malek Theater
Malek Theater of Independence, Iowa opened in 1946 with the latest innovative elements of the streamline morderne style (including extensive use of neon light). After the conflagration & destruction of an earlier theater, owner Bob Malek opted to name this new venue in honor of his father. The latest owner, Ian Fitz noted, "One thing that will always stick with me is when [Bob] started to cry. He had told me he had named the Malek after his father who was ill during construction, and had passed on before it was complete, and never was able to witness its beauty in bloom."
The theater was rare, in that it contained two rooms for private viewings, each with doors and thick paned glass to eliminate sound in or out. It also featured both a crying room and a party room.
From its start (despite being built at the apogee of feature films), the Malek was considered a performance theater, not a movie house. But in 1985, it was split into a 300-seat twinned theater instead of the original large 1,200-seat auditorium. As a result, the Malek Theater suffered.
The original owner, Bob Malek, has since passed. The most recent effort in 2019 was a GoFundMe for repairing the roof, which raised only $450 of its $150,000 goal.
Malek Theater
Malek Theater of Independence, Iowa opened in 1946 with the latest innovative elements of the streamline morderne style (including extensive use of neon light). After the conflagration & destruction of an earlier theater, owner Bob Malek opted to name this new venue in honor of his father. The latest owner, Ian Fitz noted, "One thing that will always stick with me is when [Bob] started to cry. He had told me he had named the Malek after his father who was ill during construction, and had passed on before it was complete, and never was able to witness its beauty in bloom."
The theater was rare, in that it contained two rooms for private viewings, each with doors and thick paned glass to eliminate sound in or out. It also featured both a crying room and a party room.
From its start (despite being built at the apogee of feature films), the Malek was considered a performance theater, not a movie house. But in 1985, it was split into a 300-seat twinned theater instead of the original large 1,200-seat auditorium. As a result, the Malek Theater suffered.
The original owner, Bob Malek, has since passed. The most recent effort in 2019 was a GoFundMe for repairing the roof, which raised only $450 of its $150,000 goal.