Oriental Theater

**buckster1986** · August-22-11, 01:47 PM

I apologize in advance if I am starting a thread that is buried somewhere. I remember one from the previous site but couldn't get it to come up in search. I wanted to see if the entire Oriental Theater was demolished or if any of it still exists today? Is the Park apartments a building that was part of the theater or is the entire parking lot next door all that remains?

http://woodwardspine.com

**Gistok** · August-22-11, 01:55 PM

See "Preservation Wayne Downtown Movie Palace Tours" [[next Saturday) thread for details...

**buckster1986** · August-22-11, 02:00 PM

I've been meaning to do that one....if I wan't going to Minnesota to watch the Tigers I'd be all over that. Thanks for the heads up, Gistok! Do you know the name of the building to the east of the Apartments [[Sits across the street from Cliff Bells)?

**gumby** · August-23-11, 07:58 PM

Originally Posted by buckster1986

I've been meaning to do that one....if I wan't going to Minnesota to watch the Tigers I'd be all over that. Thanks for the heads up, Gistok! Do you know the name of the building to the east of the Apartments [[Sits across the street from Cliff Bells)?

Park Avenue Building and behind that is the Hotel Charlevoix. And the lobby for the oriental theater is still mostly intact in the Park Apartments building.

**buckster1986** · August-24-11, 08:32 AM

Thanks, Grumpy. SO I assume that the theater portion of the building was demolished but the part of the building the lobby was in was offices before apartments or were they always apartments? I'd be interested to know because I wonder if you could do residential in the United Artists Theater while still maintaining the Theater? Too loud?

http://woodwardspine.com

**Gistok** · August-24-11, 02:05 PM

It's odd that they show the UA Buiilding for the Theatre Tours announcement...

Although the public won't be able to get inside the UA, the tours will walk in front of it, with a history of the place mentioned.

Although I suppose the sounds of a heavy metal concert might be heard... the use of a plaster shell within the old movie palaces means that sound usually stays within the venue.

I see no conflict between a restored UA Building as residential, and a restored theatre.

As to the Oriental Theatre... I cannot find any info on the original purpose of the surviving tower portion of the theatre.... only that it is indeed residential today... and managed/owned by the Milner folks.

I have a few pics of the Oriental building with the tall marquee, as well as an image of the later Downtown RKO [[renamed) theatre entrance "zig-zag marquee on psychodelics".... just having trouble finding them to post

The Oriental Theatre only spent 3 years under that name... and then anoher 20 years as the Downtown RKO Theatre.