By Daniel Ladue, Photos Provided by The Strand and Clinton County Historical Association
On December 30, 1924 the Plattsburgh Sentinel reported that the Strand Theater had
opened the night before. “People from all over Clinton County drove to town to be present at the opening and all expressed their amazement at the completeness of the new house,” it said.
Much was written about the beauty of the theater and the crowds that showed up that night. And crowds there were. It was the Jazz Age. The economy was thriving and people had a bit of cash in their pockets.
The movie shown that night was Hot Water, a 60-minute comedy which starred Harold Lloyd. Preceding the movie was a two-reel short entitled Every Man for Himself, featuring the Little Rascals. Both productions had only been released two months earlier. Both Lloyd and the Rascals crew were already well-known in the world of cinema. Their names alone would have drawn people to the Strand.
The “orchestra” that accompanied the film was live and featured five musicians. There were two sold-out performances. In all, 2,656 theater goers packed the Strand Theater that first evening.
It would not have made any difference what film was shown. The fact that it was projected on a large screen in an elegant theater was reason enough for people to have come from all over Clinton County.
In 1924, silent movies were wildly popular and the decade was fruitful and full of artistic innovation. Many of the technical glitches that made earlier films grainy and jittery had been improved to the point where films had a level of visual integrity. It is likely no one in the audience that night had ever seen a movie that equaled that experience.
The Strand Theater was the brain child of William E. Benton and James A. Leary, two successful Saratoga theater men. Benton “conducted a chain of high-class legitimate vaudeville and picture houses in” Saratoga, Ballston Spa and Whitehall. Leary was a lawyer and likely helped back the $150,000 plan for the Strand. The pair bought the lot immediately east of the Masonic Temple which was located on the corner of Oak and Brinkerhoff Streets in downtown Plattsburgh.
Construction of the building began in May of 1924. No one was allowed entrance to the theater before its grand opening, seven months later.
While no one would have called going to the movies an “event” in the 1920s, it certainly was by today’s standards. Movies weren’t the only thing projected on the big screen. There were also news reels, cartoons and comedies —likely short films such as The Little Rascals or short Laurel and Hardy sketches.
The Plattsburgh Sentinel announced that beginning on New Year’s Day 1925, the Strand would present the “big Metro-Goldwyn super-picture Married Flirts and, for the first time in Plattsburgh, a three act Keith Vaudeville show.”
A seat in the balcony cost 20 cents. A seat in the orchestra was a dime extra. The Strand Theater was off to a good start and would soon live up to its trademark moniker—“The Pride of Plattsburgh.”
The Strand wasn’t only a venue to watch a movie. In June of 1925, the 50th graduating class of Plattsburgh High School used the new venue for its graduation ceremony. Diplomas were presented to 34 graduates and more than 1,000 people were there to cheer the young people on. That fall, services were held at the Strand to observe Armistice Day on November 11th.
Throughout the 1930s, “talkies” gained ascendancy and vaudeville became a thing of the past. For millions, movies were a way to escape the hard years of the Great Depression. Movies like Gold Diggers of 1933 and Top Hat featured upbeat scripts, dynamic dancing and still-fabulous Busby Berkley production numbers. Crowds thronged to the Strand to be entertained by the fantasy of a Hollywood production.
In 1942, nine months into World War II, For Victory Auctions took place at the Strand. The first was a huge success. Donated items from local stores were auctioned off and anyone with extra merchandise was encouraged to bring it to the theater. Many farmers from across the region donated surplus commodities. In all, $1,500 in War Stamps and Bonds were sold to raise money for the war effort.
Peace time followed and Baby Boomers began flocking to the Strand. For 25 cents, a child in the late 1940s or 1950s could spend an afternoon at the movies. There were long waiting lines that snaked past the Masonic Hall then down Oak Street towards St. John’s Church. Saturday afternoon’s show usually offered a newsreel, a cartoon or two, a serial such as Zombies of the Stratosphere or Desperadoes of the West, and then a double-feature.
The Strand evokes happy memories for many people old enough to remember. When queried on Facebook, area residents recalled watching Queen Elizabeth’s coronation in 1953, first dates, kissing in the back row of the balcony, holding hands through a double-feature, birthdays, and school Christmas parties. Remembered, too, were class trips to see Ten Commandments, a blockbuster 1956 film, and Romeo and Juliet a decade later.
In the 1960s, the Strand underwent a major overall. The balcony was sealed off to create two separate movie venues. In the process, much of the original stunning architecture and interior design were obscured. A short-lived effort to save the theater came in the 1980s when a group campaigned to “Save the Strand.”
By the late 1990s, the theater was in terrible condition. Much had been compromised when the theater underwent its renovation to Cinema 1 and Cinema 2. Little work had been done to the interior for over 30-years as fewer and fewer people went to the Strand. Newer cineplexes had opened in Plattsburgh and the public patronized them instead.
In 2005 a local group — The North Country Cultural Center for the Arts (NCCCA) — purchased the Theatre with the aim of restoring it to its historic grandeur. Board member, Leigh Mundy, became the driving force behind the effort. She described her role as “a
volunteer Clerk of the Works” but she was much more. She regularly logged more than 50 hours a week fund-raising, coordinating grant applications, balancing the books, and working with the project architect and local contractors.
The Strand redo took ten years and $4 million to complete and when it was done in 2015, the result was a beautifully restored theater. Today, diverse programs draw large crowds. In this year’s run up to St. Patrick’s Day, the Strand will host Lunasa, a world-renowned Celtic music group. Also in March, Queen and Beatles tribute bands will take the stage.
And while we are celebrating the Strand’s resurgence, we cannot forget the economic impact it has had on downtown Plattsburgh. Just try to make a reservation at one of more than ten nearby restaurants on the night of a show.
Today, the new Strand — renamed the Strand Center for the Arts — is 100 years old and counting thanks to the vision and hard work of people like Leigh Mundy, the NCCCA and the generosity of local contributors.
Strand Center for the Arts
23 Brinkerhoff Street
Plattsburgh, NY 12901
518 563-1604
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