On July 20, 1909, Clarence “Doc” Crews opens the Dime Theatre in Walla Walla at West Alder and 2nd Avenue, a venue Moving Picture World called “[s]omething strictly modern in the line of a moving picture theater…” (“Dime Theatre at Walla Walla, Wash.,” Moving Picture World, 20 November 1909, Page 717.) The venue sat 400 and employed an orchestra of four to provide music for each show.
Of particular note was the venue’s method for cooling its interior. Theatres during this period had no air conditioning and were, frequently, unbearably hot in the summertime – many eastern Washington exhibitors simply shut down operations for weeks or months when it got too warm. Roof openings were common, but not always a sufficient method for keeping things cool. The Dime, however, was constructed with decorative lattice work immediately behind the ticket booth. Normally this was covered on the inside by large piece of canvas, but on warmer days it was taken down to allow for a breeze to blow directly into the theatre, into the backs of the audience. It also let sunlight into parts of the auditorium, but at least this feature offered patrons a slightly better cooling experience than rooftop openings.
The Dime had other key features as well. The theatre’s name was illuminated by 200+ lightbulbs, so the venue really stood out at nighttime. The front doors were also made of plate glass – Moving Picture World described them as “French” but stopped short of saying they actually came from France. In addition, the projection room was deemed to be “absolutely fireproof” based on the fact it was lined entirely with steel, with automatic shutters allowing the booth to be sealed off from public areas. (If you thought the auditorium got a little warm during the spring and summer months, just imagine what the projectionist had to sit through during every shift.)
The Dime was an immediate hit in Walla Walla and by 1912 Doc Crews was operating a second picture venue, the Arcade, to serve local moviegoers. Then, in 1915, he opened a brand-new entertainment house, the Liberty. This theatre, which opened on June 17th of that year, sat close to 1,200 patrons and cost some $45,000 to construct. Designed as both a film and stage venue, the Liberty was a full-time movie house that also showcased Pantages vaudeville two times a week.
Once the new Liberty Theatre was up and running, the original Dime Theatre became Doc Crews’ smallest holding, until it fell out of his orbit. In the fall of 1916 he sold the original Dime to H.C. Tilley and W.H. McDonald.
Photo Credit: Walla Walla’s Dime Theatre, ca. 1909. (Moving Picture World, 20 November 1909, Page 717).
Walla Walla had a second Dime Theatre at one point, on Main Street, though it doesn’t appear that Doc Crews had any involvement in that venue, which seems to have been an updated version of the original Dime.