Description
Matted & ready to pop into a standard frame: This interesting 8 in. x 10 in. photo. This is the street facade view from a 1998 renovation/rehab of the theater. This is a contemporary reprint made directly from a high resolution digital scan of the vintage photograph. The piece is crisply printed on matte finish photo paper & placed in a white acid-free matte, ready to be popped into a standard 11 in. x 14 in.; frame, which can be bought anywhere locally. From the web: Third Avenue N, the Alabama Theatre in Birmingham, Alabama, is a movie palace built by the Paramount-Publix Corporation in 1927. The grand opening was held on December 26, 1927. Construction of the concrete & steel building took only eight & a half months & cost approximately $1.5 million... With seats for about 2,500 people, the Alabama was one of the larger movie theatres built in Birmingham & is the only one of its size remaining from that era & the first public building in Alabama to have air conditioning. One of the things the Alabama was known for in its early days was its Mickey Mouse Club which was formed in 1933. Meetings were held every Saturday. Children would perform for each other, watch Mickey Mouse cartoons, & participate in other activities. The Club also sponsored food & toy drives for the underprivileged. By 1935, the Club had over 7000 members, making it the biggest Mickey Mouse Club in the world. Membership eventually peaked at over 18,000 before the Club closed almost ten years after it was formed. Another regular event at the Alabama was the Miss Alabama Pageant. The Alabama became host to the Miss Alabama Pageant from 1938 through 1966. in 1993, the Alabama Theater was designated the official state historic theatre of Alabama in recognition of its place in Alabama history, culture & society. Originally constructed to show silent films, the Alabama features an ornate Mighty Wurlitzer organ. Strangely enough, the Crawford Special - Publix One -Mighty Wurlitzer organ was the reason the building was salvaged. The Alabama Chapter of the American Theatre Organ Society approached the property owners who were planning a parking lot where the Alabama stood & asked them if they could buy this iconic instrument, one of only 25 organs of its type ever built. The realtor was smart enough to recognize the Wurlitzer's value & refused to sell it separately. Undeterred, the group continued to find support & ultimately raised enough funds to purchase not just the organ but the entire facility. in 1987, the non-profit organization, Birmingham Landmarks, Inc, was formed to purchase the building, saving the Mighty Wurlitzer. in 1998, the Alabama underwent a complete restoration. Gold leaf & other paint was cleaned or replaced, seats were replaced or recovered, & some carpet & drapes were replaced. A handful of very dedicated volunteers led by Cecil Whitmire & his wife, Linda, resurrected the Alabama & began operating it to pay the $680,000 mortgage the Birmingham Landmarks had
