A Gallery of Michigan Movie Theaters: 1900-1922

Do you recall your first time going to the movies? I sure don't. But I'll bet my first was an animated Disney movie when I was too young to remember. I'm guessing it might have been “Peter Pan” or “Lady and the Tramp”...I do kinda recall seeing “Lady and the Tramp”...

All through the single-digit years, any time I wanted to see a movie it would always be with the parents. The first film I saw without my parents was when my cousins and I were dropped off to see “Beach Blanket Bingo” starring Frankie & Annette.

Once I was of driving age I headed to the nearest drive-in theater, or my buddies and I would take turns driving into the city to see movies. The movie experience was basically the same now as it was then, except today's theaters have so many perks to spoil you, the admission prices are at least 1,000% more than they were then.

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Today's movies really don't excite me much, but occasionally one will be released that I really want to view inside a theater. The last one I went out to see was the latest 'Indiana Jones' flick.

The images in the gallery below go way beyond my childhood, past my parents' childhood, and back to the days of my grandparents and great-grandparents. These are photos featuring many of Michigan's old movie houses from 1900-1920. So enjoy the view and imagine what they were like on the inside...with no air conditioning.

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