Paramount Theatre — New Westminster, BC
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Dunbar Loop
N 49° 12.144 W 122° 54.540
10U E 506628 N 5449960
Operating as the Edison Vaudeville Theatre from 1910, it was later screening movies and was still named Edison Theatre in 1943. Later renamed Paramount Theatre, it closed as a movie theater in the mid-1980’s.
Waymark Code: WMTGVW
Location: British Columbia, Canada
Date Posted: 11/23/2016
Views: 2
Built in 1899 the Edison Theatre come the Paramount was not located in this building until renovations were done in 1910.
From the City of New Westminster heritage files:
The Paramount Theatre is historically important as one of the oldest surviving motion picture theatre buildings in B.C. Established in 1903 by Frank Kerr, the Edison Theatre moved into the western half of the 1899 Dupont Block in 1910. It was common at this time to convert existing spaces into theatres rather than construct new buildings specifically for that use, as there was concern that the movies would prove to be a passing fad. In 1948 the theatre was leased to Paramount-Famous Players, who completed interior and exterior renovations, including a new neon sign with the name Paramount Theatre. The front facade recalls a period when New Westminster’s downtown was still a regional commercial, retail and entertainment centre, prior to the arrival of the automobile-oriented suburban shopping malls. Downtown areas such as Columbia Street contained all essential services for the expanding population, with movie houses being an essential cultural element. The Paramount Theatre was highly significant to the community, as television was not yet widely available and movies were the main form of public entertainment. Despite its closure as a movie theatre, the Paramount continues to be used for entertainment purposes.
Today the Paramount is a "premiere gentleman’s club and the cities [sic] ultimate experience in adult entertainment."
Year Theater Opened: 1910
Number of Screen(s): 1
Web site: [Web Link]
Ticket Price (local currency): Not Listed
Matinee Price (local currency): Not Listed
Concessions Available: Not Listed
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Visit Instructions:
Must take a photo of the theater.
Please try to include yourself or gps in the picture.
Tell of your experience at the theater, if it is still a theater. If it is no longer a theater tell of an experience from the past at the theater, if this can be done.