 movie theatres movie theatres ray wed 6092010 1615 biloxi theatres time line   1907 the  nickelodeon  an electric theater was located on lameuse street across from suter suter the nickelodeon occupied the space of a recently closed movie house operated by robert montamat the building was being remodeled and opened shortly under the management of  wh fudge  mr fudge had formerly been assistant manager of forest park the amusement venue in west biloxi  forest park  had balloon ascensions a high dive and other exciting attractions for its summer patrons  the biloxi herald september 27 1907 p 2    1908 the  palace of pleasure  opened in dukate s theatre on february 17 1908  moving picture show of biloxi as up to date as up to date as any in the country      1909 the  airdome  an open air movie and vaudeville venue opened april 19 1909 on the lazaro lopez property west of the tp dulion mercantile company it was owned by the vaudette amusement company a partnership of julius m lopez and frederick p abbley 18811941 mr abbley was an experienced theatre owner as he was operating the vaudette theatre at biloxi and scranton pascagoula he had recently sold his vaudette theatre in ocean springs to r anderson dancer 18781915 mr danser vended his vaudette movie house on washington avenue to ew illing 18701947 in september 1909 and went to lumberton mississippi with william willie engbarth 18821957 to open a movie house apparently things did not work as  the ocean springs news  reported that ra dancer sold his movie house and returned to ocean springs in december 1909 with charles engbarth 18851962 mr dancer married carrie engbarth 18891967 in november 1911  the daily herald april 3 1909 p 1 april 20 1909 p 2    december 1 1911 p 4 and the ocean springs news september 11 1909 november 13 1909 november 20 1909 and december 25 1909  the airdome lot was bounded by fayard street on the west howard avenue on the south and reynoir street on the east it was fenced and had one hundred twentyfive benches capable of seating eight people and two hundredfifty chairs giving it a seating capacity of 1250 people there was a stage and picture machine box probably the projector harry haise 18541954 did the carpentry work to erect the airdome the newly formed daily herald band under the direction of professor joseph dowling performed on opening day fred p abbley was the manager  the daily herald april 13 1909 and april 20 1909 p 2  the sky dome opened in july 1909 the daily herald july 1909 p  1910 the  bijou theatre  opened for business on west howard avenue on november 5 1910 the movie house was one hundred twentyfour feet long and twenty feet wide  st stephens  was the general manager  the daily herald november 5 1910 p    1911 the vaudette theatre now occupied by uncle fred s is being demolished to erect a twostory brick structure for joseph lawrence and charles redding on the corner of howard avenue and delauney tj rosell drew the architectural plans  the daily herald july 18 1911 p 8    1912 jd tam of lima ohio opened an air dome theatre on the corner of lameuse street and jackson in early may 1912  in october mr tam held a benefit for biloxi s charity hospital at the theatre the facility had an elevated floor stage and seating capacity estimated at 800 people the daily herald april 22 1912 p 8 and october 13 1912 p 8  1913 in january 1913  jh king  and  cb king  of mobile proprietors of the  crown theatre  there acquired the theatrical business interest of  st stephens  at biloxi at this time mr stephens operated the  bijou theatre  and the  air dome   the daily herald january 11 1913 p 1   in early march january 1913  charles king and joseph king of the bijou theatre began remodeling the airdome for the summer season the popular venue will be doubled in size with extensive improvents a new viewing screen will be ready for opening night  the daily herald march 4 1913 p 8    1914 the  crown theatre  formerly the  bijou theatre  opened in january 1914  the daily herald january 16 1914 p 2    1919 in october 1919  victor howard  a prominent motion picture proprietor of new orleans acquired the  crown theatre  and  big airdome  movie houses at biloxi from the  king brothers  of mobile cb king was the manager of the biloxi theaters for king brothers  the daily herald october 24 1919 p 1    1920 ao bourdon   18681959 manager of the  gulf coast amusement company  kept the crown and gaiety open during the recent strike  the daily herald february 20 1920 p 6    1924 the  strand theatre  was built in the lopez building on west howard avenue in the winter of 1923 it opened in early january 1924 with a feature picture comedy and high class vaudeville act and orchestra it was a modern theater with seating capacity of six hundred fifty its interior featured a modern finish with lighting appropriate for projection and illumination of the building the strand also was equipped with a modern projector  the daily herald january 4 1924 p 1   antitrust litigation filed in new orleans against the  saenger amusement company  and others was dismissed in early january since the saenger amusement company did not sell commodities it was not in violation of the louisiana state antitrust statue  the daily herald january 10 1924 p 1    1926   1927 the remodeling and redecorating at  saenger s gaeity theatre  is almost finished the improvements consisted of the following the facade of the theatre was remodeled and winging doors added a terrace was built across the front of the theater decorated with artificial roses the interior of the gaiety theatre was painted buff and green with paneled trimmings six hundred latest veneered theatre chairs replaced older seating new organ put in with new music rolls capable of playing seventeen pieces continuously four double and two single exists created for additional safety and ten new wall fans and two ceiling fans added to the interior the new gaiety opened for business in midapril with its same policies and no new admission charge for additional safety a security guard was put on night duty in the movie house  the daily herald april 12 1927 p 2    tom bautovich   19081990 native of new orleans and  new organist at the strand theatre  is becoming popular with his audiences tom is a graduate of the new orleans conservatory of music and played in the top theaters in nola before coming to biloxi he was a also daily broadcaster over wsmb in the crescent city   the daily herald october 11 1927 p 2    1928 martin j salvant 18691946 native of nola and manager of the  biloxi gaiety theatre  has been transferred to the anderson theatre at gulfport from where he come to biloxi over a year ago  the daily herald january 10 1928 p 2    1929 work was commenced to remodel the strand theatre into a modern store building in the spring of 1929 a ziegenfelder gulfport contractor was hired to conert the former movie house into a buildign with three store grant s drug store was to occupy one of the spaces the work was expected to take 60 days the daily herald march 20 1929 p 2  1936 saenger  officials said that the  buck theatre  formerly the  gaiety theatre  corner of lameuse street and jackson street will open soon the new theater has undergone extensive refurbishment and now has the capacity for over four hundred patrons the balcony for colored people had nearly one hundred seats modern western electric sound equipment and temlock wallboard for better insulation and acoustic properties has also been added to the structure  the daily herald december 17 1936 p 1    1940 odeus meyers  18841968 and  calus c meyers  19091999 his son operators of meyers grocery at 447 east division street announced that they were going to build a 600seat movie theater on the southeast corner of lameuse and division streets jack fayard biloxi architect was hired to draw building plans for the 11000 meyers woodframed movie house it was to be 40 feet by 110 feet and fireproof approximately 400seats were for white patrons and 200seats for colored viewers the colored entrance and lobby was on division street and their seating area was the balcony the white clientele entered from lameuse street and were seated in the main auditorium the meyers family had arrived in biloxi from erath louisiana about 1929  the daily herald february 10 1940 p 1    1941 the  harlem theatre  a  movie house for blacks  located on main street near division street  opened on july 5th   henry meyers  19142004  owner and manager  of the 40 feet by 105 feet steelframed building with a 525 person seating capacity and costing 15000 the daily herald july 4 1941 p 7  harlem theatre  negro main at division street children 10 cent adults 15 cent at all times open at 5 pm  1942   1946 the bay view theatre opened on november 30 1946 with caesar and cleopatra an english produced film starring vivian leigh 19131967 and claude rains 18891967 at the time this production was touted as the most expensive ever made costing over 6 million the building was designed by collins collins and its erection was supervised by sam starks and cost over 60000 the theatre area was 50 feet by 100 feet with a seating capacity of almost seven hundred persons the viewing screen was plastic and the sound system built by rca a brinkert movie projector was utilized the bayview theatre was cooled and heated with a 40ton air conditioning unit and a riznor heating system respectively  the daily herald november 28 1946 p 1    1947 the star theatre operated by henry meyers  19142004 of biloxi opened in north biloxi opened in january mr meyers also ran the meyers theatre on lameuse street and the harlem on main street the star theate had 400 seats in the 3000 sq ft building owned by madeline quave she had previously had a dance hall here and a silent motion picture house the biloxi area now had seven theatres saenger roxy bay view buck harlem and meyers the daily herald january 18 1947 p 4  1948 the  new 60000 gulf coast drivein theatre located 12 mike west of the biloxi veterans administration center opened on may 18th   chester a knight proprietor  who is from bogalusa louisiana was pleased with the opening night attendance the daily herald may 19 1948 p 1  ernest e summerlin   19211998 recent us coast guard serviceman is clearing lot in the 1600 block of east howard avenue  to erect a new movie theatre  the 28foot by 80foot wood frame building with celotex interior will cost 18000 and seat 300 people his brother robert summerlin will assist in the construction the daily herald may 24 1948 p 6  1949 the beach drivein corporation was incorporated in mississippi in late september 1949 by ernest v landaiche 18951966 and joy n houck 19011999 of new orleans and douglas i smith 19011979 of biloxi harrison co mississippi chattel deed bk 458 p 471  1950 the new 125000 beach drivein theatre located on west beach boulevard near pat harriosn now veterans boulevard will open in april the daily herald march 22 1950 p 10  ernest e summerlin   19211998 recent us coast guard serviceman is clearing lot in the 1600 block of east howard avenue  to erect a new movie theatre  the 28foot by 80foot wood frame building with celotex interior will cost 18000 and seat 300 people his brother robert summerlin will assist in the construction the toy theatre opened at 1634 east howard avenue on 14 september 1950 with lawrence melvin a partner in the business the daily herald may 11 1948 may 24 1948 june 2 1948 september 14 1950 and seeptember 16 1950  references  journals the biloxi daily herald   city news   september 27 1907 the biloxi daily herald   new moving picture show   february 13 1908 the biloxi daily herald   another picture show   february 17 1908 the biloxi daily herald   moving pictures in biloxi   september 25 1908  the daily herald the daily herald   bijou theatre will open tonight   november 5 1910 the daily herald   new building for redding and lawrence   july 18 1911 the daily herald    dancerengbarth   december 1 1911 p 4 the daily herald    biloxi   march 4 1913 p 8 the daily herald      jd tam  will open picture show   april 22 1912 p 8 the daily herald   the new gaiety theatre   may 7 1912 the daily herald   popular young biloxian weds   september 14 1912 the daily herald   the new dixie theater   september 26 1912  the daily herald   tam has leased firemen s hall   october 1 1912 the daily herald      jd tam  benefit show for hospital  october 13 1912 p 8 the daily herald   new curtain at the bijou theatre   december 2 1912 p 8 the daily herald   mobilians buy biloxi theaters from stephens   january 11 1913 the daily herald   gaiety open air theatre open thursday   may 13 1913 the daily herald   jh king buys out two picture shows   july 24 1913 the daily herald   contest closes at the big airdome   august 7 1913 the daily herald   kings will open new theater in biloxi tomorrow   january 14 1914 the daily herald   crown theater opening triumph   january 16 1914 the daily herald   biloxi team is again victorius   july 20 1914 the daily herald   biloxi theatres changes hands   october 24 1919 19201929 the daily herald   both theatres  crown and gaiety  in biloxi operataed during strike   february 20 1920 the daily herald   open theater tomorrow   january 4 1924 the daily herald   court rules saenger company is not a trust   january 10 1924 the daily herald   fire loss is 75000 in early blaze   may 23 1926 the daily herald   biloxi business houses burned   may 29 1926 the daily herald   new gaiety to open monday   april 12 1927 the daily herald   tom bautovich   organist     october 11 1927 the daily herald   salvant transferred   january 10 1928 the daily herald   break ground for new saenger house   july 14 1928 the daily herald   saenger has new manager   martin j salvent     december 31 1929  19301939 the daily herald   buck theatre to open saturday   december 17 1936  19401949 the daily herald   new theatre   meyers  announced for biloxi   february 10 1940 the daily herald   starting work on new theatre   ee summerlin     may 24 1948  19501950 the daily herald   new drivein  beach drivein  to open at biloxi    march 22 1950  19801999 the daily herald centennial edition   films at saenger kept coastians in the darkness   october 7 1984 the daily herald centennial edition   gem of the coast polished   october 7 1984  the ocean springs news the ocean springs news    local news   september 11 1909 the ocean springs news    local news   november 13 1909 the ocean springs news    local news   november 20 1909 the ocean springs news   local news   december 25 1909  biloxi theatres   airdome the  airdome  an open air movie and vaudeville venue opened april 19 1909 on the lazaro lopez property west of the tp dulion mercantile company it was owned by the vaudette amusement company a partnership of julius m lopez and frederick p abbley 18811941 mr abbley was an experienced theatre owner as he was operating the vaudette theatre at biloxi and scranton pascagoula he had recently sold his vaudette theatre in ocean springs to r anderson dancer 18781915 mr danser vended his vaudette movie house on washington avenue to ew illing 18701947 in september 1909 and went to lumberton mississippi with william willie engbarth 18821957 to open a movie house apparently things did not work as  the ocean springs news reported that ra dancer sold his movie house and returned to ocean springs in december 1909 with charles engbarth 18851962 mr dancer married carrie engbarth 18891967 in november 1911  the daily herald april 3 1909 p 1 april 20 1909 p 2    december 1 1911 p 4 and the ocean springs news september 11 1909 november 13 1909 november 20 1909 and december 25 1909    abbley dancer abbley dancer was partnership composed of frederick p abbley 18821941 and r anderson dancer 18781915 frederick p fred abbley 18821941 was born in north biloxi the son of captain fritz abbley 18461905 a swiss immigrant and margaret harvey 18471886 the youngest daughter of french immigrant sailor pierre harvey 18101883 and zeline moran 18111883 in march 1905 fred abbley married viola caillavet 18841968 the daughter of francis arbeau caillavet 18561909 and marie dodart 18581942 they were the parents of three children francis abbley 19051905 eunice a brocato 19081996 and bernice a emile b 1909 in 1909 fred abbley was the manager of an  en plein air  movie theater the airdome the airdome was situated at 413 renoir street and occupied a large lot which extended to fayard street with a frontage on west howard avenue in late august 1909 mr abbley was brought to the court of judge elmer and adjudicated innocent of violating a city ordinance for showing a movie on sunday another trial was held in september in the court of judge zt champlin abbley pleaded guilty and was fined 10 and court costs which judge champlin suspended the people of biloxi were generally apathetic to the socalled blue laws  the biloxi daily herald august 30 1909 p 4 and september 10 1909 pp 12  mr abbley s associate r anderson dancer 18781915 was born at buenavista chickasaw county mississippi the son of john w dancer and carolina e bean he arrived at biloxi circa 1900 and was the brother of jessie dancer cousins 18741957 the spouse of joseph h cousins 18741917 mr dancer worked for lopez dukate at the rigolets in 1904 in november 1911 r anderson dancer married carrie engbarth 18891967 a native of rodney jefferson county mississippi and the daughter of emile engbarth 1855ca 1905 and magalene jeanette arndt 18561938 at the time the engbarth family resided on porter street in ocean springs dr chipman of the pascagoula episcopal church officiated  the daily herald   december 1 1911 p 4 and the ocean springs news    april 15 1915 p 1  circa 1909 mr dancer had come to ocean springs and opened a movie theater on washington avenue called the vaudette he sold it to ew illing 18701947 in september 1909 in november 1909 mr dancer went to lumberton mississippi with willie engbarth 18821957 his future brotherinlaw to open a movie house apparently things did not work as  the ocean springs news  reported that ra dancer sold his movie house and returned to ocean springs in december 1909 with charles engbarth 18931967 after their marriage carrie and anderson dancer ran a store at ocean springs probably on the southeast corner of porter and washington mr dancer expired on april 9 1915 he was buried in the evergreen cemetery ocean springs carrie e dancer remarried fred meyers and was residing at pass christian mississippi in 1962 she was at ocean springs in 1967 no further information abbley and dancer paid 3000 rent each month to charles redding the airdome lot was bounded by fayard street on the west howard avenue on the south and reynoir street on the east it was fenced and had one hundred twentyfive benches capable of seating eight people and two hundredfifty chairs giving it a seating capacity of 1250 people there was a stage and picture machine box probably the projector harry haise 18541954 did the carpentry work to erect the airdome the newly formed daily herald band under the direction of professor joseph dowling performed on opening day fred p abbley was the manager  the daily herald april 13 1909 and april 20 1909 p 2    charles king and joseph king in early march january 1913  charles king and joseph king of the bijou theatre began remodeling the airdome  for the summer season the popular venue will be doubled in size with extensive improvents a new viewing screen will be ready for opening night  the daily herald march 4 1913 p 8    references  the biloxi herald   city news   september 27 1907 the biloxi herald   new moving picture show   february 13 1908 the biloxi herald   another picture show   february 17 1908 the daily herald   biloxi   march 4 1913  avenue theatre the avenue theatre was situated on the south side of west howard avenue on a small lot 53 feet by 125 feet owned by uriah s joachim in may 1948 mr joachim leased his building at 322 west howard avenue to odeus meyers 18841968 who had launched the meyers theatre on the se c of lameuse and division streets in may 1940 harrison co mississippi land deed bk 310 p 550  b d theatres b d theatres was chartered in october 1960 by claude s bourgeois 19291985 of biloxi and edgar g doerr 19111983 mr doerr was domiciled at new orleans harrison co mississippi chattel deed bk 263 p 132 in november 1964 b d theatres transferred their sublease and assignment from henry meyers to biloxi theatres inc this conveyance was approved by us joachim in december 1964 harrison co mississippi land deed bk 310 p 550 bk 556 p 68 and p 70  biloxi theatres inc references     bay view theatre 101 west bay view the tract of land that the bay view theatre was erected was acquired by terrance smith 18551924 an irish immigrant stevedore and resident of nola from ec joullian and charles redding in february 1921 for 8000 the smith parcel consisted of about 45 acres and was described as two hundredeighty feet on back bay and running south eight hundred fifty feet on the west side of lameuse street harrison co mississippi land deed bk 130 p 348 in october 1881 terrance smith had married sallie o harris 18621885 they had at least one son william smith 18831900 at nola mr smith remarried to katherine douglas 18691937 in february 1895 from this marriage at least two children were born in the crescent city probably on soniat street joseph smith 18971968 and douglas i smith 19011979 when terrance smith conveyed this late to his spouse in june 1924 it was described as having 280 feet on back bay and running south on the west side of lameuse street for 730 feet harrison co mississippi land deed bk 141 p 614 and 1900 orleans parish federal census t623575 p 23b ed 128 shortly after the demise of terrance smith katherine douglas smith sold the land to douglas i smith her son in january 1925 harrison co mississippi land deed bk 152 p 350 and bk 160 p 231  douglas i smith there is a high degree of certitudethatdouglas ignatius smith 19011979 while visiting biloxi with his parents met vera moran 19011979 the daughter of francis moran 18531935 and elizabeth vanderpool 18691940 they married at biloxi in october 1920 by 1930 douglas i smith was managing a restaurant and had his growing family domiciled on lameuse street the smith children were douglas i smith jr b 1921 patrick smith b 1923 gerard smith b 1924 m dolores kneale theresa e smith b 1925 m leon l tootle 19191988 and terrence smith 192720011930 harrison county mississippi federal census r 1146 p 22a ed 6  opened in 1946 the bay view theatre opened on november 30 1946 with caesar and cleopatra an english produced film starring vivian leigh 19131967 and claude rains 18891967 at the time this production was touted as the most expensive ever made costing over 6 million the building was designed by collins collins and its erection was supervised by sam starks and cost over 60000 the theatre area was 50 feet by 100 feet with a seating capacity of almost seven hundred persons the viewing screen was plastic and the sound system built by rca a brinkert movie projector was utilized the bayview theatre was cooled and heated with a 40ton air conditioning unit and a riznor heating system respectively  the daily herald november 28 1946 p 1  in addition the structure housed kay s flower shop bay apparel and bay drugs operated by alfred j claiborne 18951946 mr claiborne had been with katz besthoff drug stores in the crescent city gerard smith son of douglas i smith was the manager of the movie house  the daily herald november 28 1946 p 1    early management jack cameron was an early manager of the bay view theatre jack lived in biloxi as a child and later was stationed at keesler field during wwii he returned to biloxi after the war from bartow in central florida to manage the biloxi movie house jack left the bay view in november 1950 to open a grill and soda shop on porter avenue north of the biloxi lighthouse the restaurant had been carron s and he took a lease from the home milk products company to initiate this enterprise  the daily herald november 18 1950 p 3    whiz quiz probably to generate additional attendance in the theatre the bay view in late august 1948 commenced its whiz quiz program jack clark wlox crooner was the emcee and he was assited by lewis and sally nesman of portraits of sound a recording studio with a roving microphone they asked the audience questions which if answered correctly could lead to a jackpot of prizes  the daily herald august 18 1948 p 3    beach drivein corporation the beach drivein corporation was incorporated in mississippi in september 1949 by ernest v landaiche 18951966 and joy n houck 19011999 of new orleans and douglas i smith 19011979 of biloxi harrison co mississippi chattel deed bk 458 p 471  ernest v landaiche  ernest valence landaiche 18951966 was born in st john the baptist parish louisiana on september 20 1895 his father passed when he was young and in 1910 he was domiciled at memphis tennessee with charles b buddecke 18721910 his stepfather and head conductor of the local street railway and lena l buddecke 18721910 his mother when he registered for the wwi draft in 1917 ernest v landaiche was employed as a booking clerk with southern delta pictures in new orleans during the great war he trained at pensacola florida with the us army aviation corps circa 1924 he married stella paletou 19012004 of nola and fathered three daughters gloria landaiche 19272000 m leon dawkins bultman janet landaiche b 1928 m leon f cambon 19282000 and joyce landaiche b 1930 m walter f gagnet jr in 1930 ev landaiche was the assistant manager of a movie theater in the crescent city and residing with his family and inlaws gaston lanata and marie lanata on north galvez street 1910 shelby co tennessee federal census t6241520 p 1b ed 209 and 1930 orleans parish louisiana federal census r803 p 11a ed 74 and the times picayune august 23 1917 p 3    joy theatres by 1942 mr landaiche was transferred from nola to dallas texas as the branch manager for the exchange of 20 th century fox he had been the manager of 20 th century fox at new orleans by the late 1940s mr landaiche had returned to the crescent city and had become associated with joy newton houck 19011999 a native of southwestern arkansas mr houck was raised on a farm in the buena vista township of columbia county arkansas he entered the movie business after 1920 and was very successful especially in new orleans arena by 1940 his joy theatres inc had forty movie houses operating in louisiana mississippi arkansas and georgia in the late 1940s and early 1950s mr houck began distributing and producing motion pictures with howco production company a partnership with j francis white owner of consolidated theaters operator of thirtyone movie houses in virginia north carolina and south carolina howco produced many blevel westerns starring lash larue 19211996 a native of gretna louisiana some of howcos other early releases were  kentucky rifle  1954  jail bait  1954  mesa of lost women  1956  the times picayune august 12 1942 sec i p 6  1920 columbia co arkansas federal censust62559 p 11b ed 74 heffernan 2004 p 73 joy n houck jr 19422003 son of john n houck a native of new orleans became an actor screen writer and bmovie director his best known works are  night of bloody horror 1969 women and bloody terror 1969 and creature from black lake 1976  the junior houck also acted in tight rope and the big easy among others in 1965 landaiche and houck built the 500000 westgate drivein theater on veterans and david drive in metairie louisiana  bay view bowling alley operated by the beach drivein theatre corporation this entity had been incorporated in mississippi in september 1949 by ernest v landaiche joy n houck of new orleans and douglas i smith of biloxi in december 1959 mr landaiche and sullivan installed eight brunswick bowling lanes harrison co mississippi land deed bk 458 p 471  opening the bayview lanes an eightlane facility opened on january 19 1960 with terry marlow as manager robert marlow her spouse was employed as a brunswick automatic pinsetter technician at keesler afb the lanes were dedicated on january 30 and january 31 1960 the jax beer bowling team from nola made an appearance during this commencement celebration mr landaiche already had plans to add eight additional lanes to bayview lanes he was also planning a 24lane bowling center on west beach boulevard in front of his beach drivein theater  the daily herald january 19 1960 p6 and january 28 1960 p 27    conflagration and destruction december 1962after the fire  courtesy of betty bellandetoland november 2011  bayview lanes  formerly the  bayview theatre building  was destroyed in a great conflagration on november 29th loss to structure and equipment was estimated at 450000  douglas i smith  19011979 opened a theatre flower shop and drug store here in 1946 in 1959 the  building was remodeled into a 20lane bowling alley  when owned by ernest v landaiche 18951966 the daily herald november 30 1962 p 1  leckich fayard in december 1968 the beach drivein theatres corporation stella p landaiche 19012004 president conveyed the bayview theatre lot 142 feet on the nw c of bayview and lameuse and south 197 feet on the west side of lameuse to smith street and west to pinsley 142 feet and north 197 feet to bayview avenue to robert a fayard joseph h leckich and james wayne leckich harrison co mississippi 2 nd jd land deed bk 1 p 339  ra seafood co inc in may 1994 ra fayard seafood co inc made a ten year lease with an option agreement commencing on june 15 1994 with mississippii gaming lp and the bayview yacht club inc their sole general partner for three parcels of land on the nw c of bayview avenue and lameuse street harrison co mississippi 2 nd jd land deed bk 273 p 21  boomtown casino parking lot   references  books kevin heffernan  ghouls gimmicks and gold horror films and the american movie business 19531968  duke university press durham north carolina2004  chancery court harrison co mississippi 2 nd jd chancery court cause no p1064b   estate of robert a fayard ii  april 1988 harrison co mississippi 2 nd jd chancery court cause no p1064b  estate of joan e fayard  december 1988  journals the daily herald   bayview theatre at biloxi will open saturday   november 28 1946 the daily herald   whiz quiz program   august 18 1948 the daily herald   cameron opens new grill   november 18 1950 the daily herald   mrs marlow is bowling manager  january 19 1960 the daily herald   bayview bowling lanes in biloxi have opening saturday and sunday   january 28 1960   the daily herald   flames destroy bayview bowling lanes at biloxi   november 30 1962 the times picayune   news of photoplay  august 23 1917 the times picayune   joy s theatres inc  advertisement     december 15 1940 the times picayune   change made along film row   august 12 1942 the times picayune     august 12 1942 the times picayune   society   august 23 1947 the times picayune   society   august 25 1954 the times picayune   amusements   april 28 1955 the times picayune   movie premiere set   december 18 1956 the times picayune   several stables arrive for fair grounds season   october 22 1957 the times picayune   500000 movie drivein ready  january 19 1965 the times picayune   deaths   january 3 1966 the times picayune   opening movies for joy s panorama ii   august 17 1967 the times picayune     19 the times picayune     19 the times picayune     19  beach drivein theatre beach drivein corporation the beach drivein corporation was incorporated in mississippi in late september 1949 by ernest v landaiche 18951966 and joy n houck 19011999 of new orleans and douglas i smith 19011979 of biloxi harrison co mississippi chattel deed bk 458 p 471   bijou the bijou theatre opened for business on west howard avenue on november 5 1910 the movie house was one hundred twentyfour feet long and twenty feet wide  st stephens was the general manager and emma bolton the cashier and a antoine the doorman the deciding vote of the imp independent moving pictures company film company was the initial reel shown at the bijou theatre imp was founded by carl laemmle 18671939 a german immigrant and movie industry pioneer imp became universal studios and relocated from nyc in 1910 to los angeles and had its studio in hollywood on sunset boulevard  the daily herald november 5 1910  the castleden curtain company installed a pictorial advertising curtain in the bijou theatre in late november 1912 the center portion of the curtain had an ocean view with advertisements of biloxi s leading merchants in variegated colors and scrolled spaces framing the curtain the effect was that of a finely framed picture that might hang in an art gallery mr stephens was lauded for his appropriate addition of the curtain to his little theatre  the daily herald december 2 1912 p 8    refrences  the daily herald   bijou theatre will open tonight   november 5 1910  the daily herald      the daily herald   new curtain at the bijou theatre   december 2 1912 the daily herald      the daily herald      don drivein west beachbiloxi the don drivein was located in lot 52 of the la frederick survey on west beach at biloxi mississippi in 1964 wg solomon proprietor of the sunny south theatres inc of mccomb mississippi may have been the original operator of this outdoor venue in 1969 don b stafford president of dixie theatres corporation of nola became involved no further information  references   dukate s theatre   references    the daily herald      the daily herald      the daily herald      the daily herald       fad    buck theatre 1942   past time open air theatregaiety theatrebuck theatre 301 lameuse street located on a lot with a fortyeight foot front on the northwest corner of lameuse street and ninetyone feet on the north side of jackson street owned by the louis holley family from 1914 to 1961 in january 1879 louis holley 18411892 married louisa hahn 18471927 the daughter of john hahn 18061847 and elizabeth hahn 18121904 german immigrants who owned the magnolia hotel on front street at biloxi louis and louisa h holley were the parents of geneva holley 18791960 anson holley 18821967 m mary liliana caillavet 18831967 louis c holley 18841973 m mary agregaard 18931981 john benjamin holley 18861925 sarah louisa holley 18891931 and florence may holley 18921953 in midmay 1914 louis holley manager announced that he would soon commence an open air theatre on the site formerly called the gaiety theatre on may 27 1914 louis holley opened the past time open air theatre on lameuse and jackson streets his first movies were pierre of the north the golden path from the selig company and quarantined of the edison company pathe s weekly news was also shown  the daily herald  may 16 1914 p 2 and may 27 1914 p 2   the remodeling and redecorating at saenger s gaeity theatre is almost finished the improvements consisted of the following the facade of the theatre was remodeled and winging doors added a terrace was built across the front of the theater decorated with artificial roses the interior of the gaiety theatre was painted buff and green with paneled trimmings six hundred latest veneered theatre chairs replaced older seating new organ put in with new music rolls capable of playing seventeen pieces continuously four double and two single exists created for additional safety and ten new wall fans and two ceiling fans added to the interior the new gaiety opened for business in midapril with its same policies and no new admission charge for additional safety a security guard was put on night duty in the movie house  the daily herald april 12 1927 p 2   martin j salvant 18691946 native of nola and manager of the biloxi gaiety theatre  has been transferred to the anderson theatre at gulfport from where he come to biloxi over a year ago  the daily herald january 10 1928 p 2    buck theatre and 1936 lease in october 1936 louis holley anson holley geneva holley and florence holley leased to nl carter of the vicksburg amusement enterprise corporation of nola in december 1936  saenger theatre officials said that the buck theatre  formerly the gaiety theatre  corner of lameuse street and jackson street will open soon the new theater has undergone extensive refurbishment and now has the capacity for over four hundred patrons the balcony for colored people had nearly one hundred seats modern western electric sound equipment and temlock wallboard for better insulation and acoustic properties has also been added to the structure ao bourdon was the manager of the buck theatre harrison co mississippi land deed bk 212 p 272 and the daily herald december 17 1936 p 1    1942 in early august the paramountrichardstheatres corporation feted a retirement party at the triangle fishing and eating club for ao bourdon  manager of the buck theatre the daily herald august 3 1942 p 5  people s bank in january 1961 anson holley sr conveyed the lot to f walker tucei for 21000 mr tucei an employee of the people s bank sold it to his bank also in january 1961 harrison co mississippi land deed bk 474 p 284 and p 287  1966 the buck theatre laughran building and collins building burned on mardi gras eve february 22 1966 while the mardi gras parade was in progress firemen from four other cities and kafb fought the conflagration and two biloxi firemen guy green and george emile suffered smoke inhalation while battling the burning buildings damages were estimated to be as much as 50000 the daily herald february 23 1961 p 2  refrences  harrison county mississippi chancery court cause no 42125   the estate of geneva holley  december 1960 the biloxi herald      the biloxi daily herald   mrs elizabeth hahn   october 5 1904 the daily herald      the daily herald   new moving picture theatre to open   may 16 1914 the daily herald   past time open air theatre opens tonight   may 27 1914 the daily herald   bourdon in new orleans   august 1 1919 the daily herald   biloxi thestres farewell party for ao bourdon   august 3 1942 the daily herald      the daily herald      the daily herald       jewel theatorium    meyers theatre 740 lameuse street in february 1940 odeus meyers 18841968 and calus canute cc meyers 19091999 his son operators of meyers grocery at 447 east division street announced that they were going to build a 600seat movie theater on the southeast corner of lameuse and division streets jack fayard biloxi architect was hired to draw building plans for the 11000 meyers woodframed movie house it was to be 40 feet by 110 feet and fireproof approximately 400seats were for white patrons and 200seats for colored viewers the colored entrance and lobby was on division street and their seating area was the balcony the white clientele entered from lameuse street and were seated in the main auditorium the meyers family had arrived in biloxi from erath louisiana about 1929  the daily herald february 10 1940 p 1  land for the new meyers was acquired in june 1938 theatre by odeus c meyers for 1000 from ruth elder collins 18991931 and hazel elder van court the heirs of lee elder 18641931 this 602 foot by 300 foot site had been in the elder family since 1914 harrison co mississippi land deed bk 220 p 598 and bk 108 p 108 the meyers family had arrived in biloxi from erath louisiana about 1926 odeus meyers had married elvena viator at delcambre louisiana in october 1905 their children were calus c meyers 19091999 albert j meyers 19111958 henry meyers 19142004 m eula marie meyers ena meyers krause 19201983 and ella meyers fayard  the building the meyers theatre was erected in the spring of 1940  opening night the meyers theatre opened on the evening of may 17 1940 with alias the deacon starring bob burns calus c meyers and ht fayard of picayune were the managers of the new movie house  management in october 1942 frank adorno collector for the o keefe burial association was named manager of the meyers theatre the daily herald october 6 1942 p 7 in may 1943 ben richards a former employee of the bradford funeral parlors was named manager of the meyers theatre the daily herald may 31 1943 p 8  sale  in january 1961 odeus meyers and calus c meyers conveyed the meyers theatre to b d theatres inc for 60000 b d theatres was chartered in october 1960 by claude s bourgeois 19291985 of biloxi and edgar g doerr 19111983 mr doerr was domiciled at new orleans harrison co mississippi land deed bk 220 p 598 and harrison co mississippi chattel deed bk 263 p 132 in june 1976 henry meyers 19142004 ena meyers krause 19201983 and ella meyers fayard 18981988 to calus c meyers calus c meyers to lloyd t moon and barbara caillavet moon in june 1984 lot 602 feet by 170 feet harrison co mississippi 2 nd jd district land deed bk 66 p 316 and bk 146 p 39  references  the daily herald   new theatre  meyers  announced for biloxi   february 10 1940 the daily herald   may 15 set for opening of new theatre at biloxi   april 26 1940 the daily herald   theatre opening set for tonight   may 17 1940 the daily herald   advertisements   may 17 1940 the daily herald     frank  manager meyer theatre   october 6 1942 the daily herald     ben  richards meyer theater manager   may 31 1943 the daily herald   odeus meyers   june 6 1968 the sun herald   mr henry meyers   april 1 2004 the sun herald      the sun herald      the sun herald       palace of pleasure1908 pictorium      roxy theatre 1430 east howard avenue   1942roxy theatre  east howard avenue eastern section of city children 10 cent adults 20 cent at all times open at 130 pm judy broussard comfirmed that the roxy was owned by joe and katina smolicich it was later taken over by their son vincent nicknamed viccy edmond said the 1949 city directory shows citanovich as the owner i only remember the smolocichs judy thinks that katina was a citanovich before marriage the roxy was first owned by frances cvitanich 1949 city directory when i was at st michaels school in the 1950s sharon smolicich was in my class and her parents owned it then  joseph smolcich  joseph smolcich 18931967 married frances cvitanovich 19011979 both born on the dalmatian coast of croatia children matilda smolcich b 1920 joseph a smolcich 19222010 m anna kopszywa 19272010 vincent smolcich 19251981 anthony smolcich matilda smolcich barry melrita smolcich raesner steve smolcich sam smolcich 19342006 the smolcich family started the biloxi seafood company the roxy theatre at 1430 east howard avenue the roxy restaurant and owned much rental property on point cadet in east biloxi the sun herald october 12 2010 p a4  1960s fire the roxy theatre on east howard avenue which had been closed for nearly eight years burned on january 3 1965 a residence and trailer in the rear of the movie house were also destroyed resulting in total losses of about 26000 mrs francis smolich was the owner the daily herald january 4 1965 p 1  references  the daily herald   sunday fire destroys theatre   january 4 1965 p 1 the sun herald   anna kopszywa smolcich   february 13 2010 p a4 the sun herald   joseph smokey joe smolcich   october 11 2010 p a6 the sun herald   smolcich lived as mr biloxi   october 12 2010 p a4  saenger theatre norita lopez yerger inherited the large lopez lot on the northeast corner of howard avenue and reynoir street in march 1928 she and rucks yerger jr her spouse granted a thirty years lease to harrison co mississippi land deed bk 20 p 459  julian h saenger julian henri saenger 18731932 was born in norfolk virginia to rabbi israel saenger 18411900 an 1866 immigrant from germany and mrs saenger d pre1900 also a german immigrant julian graduated from johns hopkins university at baltimore maryland after completing their pharmacy school before 1900 the saenger family relocated from macon georgia to shreveport louisiana where he was a retail pharmacist and proprietor of the saenger drug company with abe d saenger 18761932 his brother 1900 caddo parish louisiana federal census t623560 p 4b ed 40 in 1911 julian h saenger joined with levi maurice ash 18801971 who had married florence saenger ash 18861932 his sister and abe d saenger his brother to organized the saenger amusement company they opened their first movie house in shreveport also in 1911 in 1917 the company had built the strand theatre at new orleans and in november 1926 with their two hundred movies houses in fifty southern cities in eleven southern states and central america and cuba saenger theatres inc was integrated into publix theaters corporation the premier american movie house proprietor whose crown jewel was the seven million dollar paramont theater on broadway the two and onehalf million dollar saenger theatre opened in the crescent city on february 4 1927 it was designed by emile weil julian h saenger married marjorie kent weston at gretna louisiana in december 1930 they were domiciled at 831 bourbon street julian was stricken by a heart attack on february 6 1932 he expired in an ambulance rushing him to a new orleans hospital  the times picayune december 20 1930 p 20 and february 6 1932 p 1    references  the biloxi daily herald   of religious interest   september 12 1900 the biloxi daily herald   jewish new year   december 21 1903 the biloxi daily herald   shebuoth   may 19 1904 the biloxi daily herald   personal   may 23 1907 the biloxi daily herald the biloxi daily herald the daily herald   jewish passover   april 16 1910 the daily herald   jewish new year will be ushered in this evening   october 1 1913 the daily herald   stone county   october 13 1916 the daily herald   jewish services at the elks club by rabbi moses   july 20 1918 the daily herald   25 jewish sailors dr moses guests   september 7 1918 the daily herald   collecting for jewish relief   september 25 1918 the daily herald   dr and mrs moses return to biloxi   september 25 1918 the daily herald   jewish welfare board may send man home   january 6 1919 the daily herald   moses elected rabbi   february 10 1919 the daily herald the daily herald   bay st louis postmaster visits biloxi   march 29 1920 the daily herald          the daily herald      the daily herald      the daily herald      the daily herald      the timespicayune   new saenger theater is vast beyond belief and incredibly beautiful   february 5 1927 the timespicayune   theater is seen as realization of years of work   february 5 1927 the timespicayune   society   december 20 1930 the timespicayune   julian h saenger stricken dies on way to hospital   february 7 1932   strand theatre norita lopez yerger had inherited the large lopez lot on the northeast corner of howard avenue and reynoir street in january 1925 she made a five year lease with julian h saenger 18731932 of the gulf coast amusement company to rent the building formerly housing the l lopez company store at 418 howard avenue as the strand theatre  the rent was 250 per month on may 22 1926 a fire on the adjacent property did some damage to the strand theatre and the movie house was shut down for repairs by the lessor the lease was renegotiated after the fire and compromised and the lessee agreed to a monthly rental rate of 325 each month until january 31 1930 then it would be increased to 425 per month harrison co mississippi land deed bk 162 p 232 the strand theatre was built in lopez building on west howard avenue in the winter of 1923 opened in early january 1924 with a feature picture comedy and high class vaudeville act and orchestra modern theater with seating capacity of six hundred fifty interior modern finish with lighting appropriate for projection and illumination of the building modern projector  the daily herald january 4 1924 p 1   antitrust litigation filed in new orleans against the saenger amusement company and others was dismissed in early january since the saenger amusement company did not sell commodities it was not in violation of the louisiana state antitrust statue  the daily herald january 10 1924 p 1    tom bautovich   19081990 native of new orleans and new organist at the strand theatre  is becoming popular with his audiences tom is a graduate of the new orleans conservatory of music and played in the top theaters in nola before coming to biloxi he was a also daily broadcaster over wsmb in the crescent city   the daily herald october 11 1927 p 2   work was commenced to remodel the strand theatre into a modern store building in the spring of 1929 a ziegenfelder gulfport contractor was hired to conert the former movie house into a buildign with three store grant s drug store was to occupy one of the spaces the work was expected to take 60 days the daily herald march 20 1929 p 2   1907  the  nickelodeon  an electric theater was located on lameuse street across from suter suter the nickelodeon occupied the space of a recently closed movie house operated by robert montamat the building was being remodeled and opened shortly under the management of wh fudge  mr fudge had formerly been assistant manager of forest park the amusement venue in west biloxi  forest park had balloon ascensions a high dive and other exciting attractions for its summer patrons  the biloxi herald september 27 1907 p 2  1908  the  palace of pleasure opened in dukate s theatre on february 17 1908   moving picture show of biloxi as up to date as up to date as any in the country      1909 the airdome  an open air movie and vaudeville venue opened april 19 1909 on the lazaro lopez property west of the tp dulion mercantile company it was owned by the vaudette amusement company a partnership of julius m lopez and frederick p abbley 18811941 mr abbley was an experienced theatre owner as he was operating the vaudette theatre at biloxi and scranton pascagoula he had recently sold his vaudette theatre in ocean springs to r anderson dancer 18781915 mr danser vended his vaudette movie house on washington avenue to ew illing 18701947 in september 1909 and went to lumberton mississippi with william willie engbarth 18821957 to open a movie house apparently things did not work as the ocean springs news reported that ra dancer sold his movie house and returned to ocean springs in december 1909 with charles engbarth 18851962 mr dancer married carrie engbarth 18891967 in november 1911  the daily herald april 3 1909 p 1 april 20 1909 p 2  december 1 1911 p 4 and the ocean springs news september 11 1909 november 13 1909 november 20 1909 and december 25 1909  the airdome lot was bounded by fayard street on the west howard avenue on the south and reynoir street on the east it was fenced and had one hundred twentyfive benches capable of seating eight people and two hundredfifty chairs giving it a seating capacity of 1250 people there was a stage and picture machine box probably the projector harry haise 18541954 did the carpentry work to erect the airdome the newly formed daily herald band under the direction of professor joseph dowling performed on opening day fred p abbley was the manager  the daily herald april 13 1909 and april 20 1909 p 2  1910 the bijou theatre opened for business on west howard avenue on november 5 1910 the movie house was one hundred twentyfour feet long and twenty feet wide  st stephens was the general manager  the daily herald november 5 1910 p  1911 the vaudette theatre now occupied by uncle fred s is being demolished to erect a twostory brick structure for joseph lawrence and charles redding on the corner of howard avenue and delauney tj rosell drew the architectural plans  the daily herald july 18 1911 p 8  1913 in january 1913  jh king and cb king of mobile proprietors of the crown theatre there acquired the theatrical business interest of st stephens at biloxi at this time mr stephens operated the bijou theatre and the air dome   the daily herald january 11 1913 p 1    1914 the crown theatre  formerly the bijou theatre  opened in january 1914  the daily herald january 16 1914 p 2  1919  in october 1919  victor howard  a prominent motion picture proprietor of new orleans acquired the crown theatre and big airdome movie houses at biloxi from the king brothers of mobile cb king was the manager of the biloxi theaters for king brothers  the daily herald october 24 1919 p 1    1920 ao bourdon  manager of the gulf coast amusement company  kept the crown and gaiety open during the recent strike  the daily herald february 20 1920 p 6  1924 the strand theatre was built in the lopez building on west howard avenue in the winter of 1923 it opened in early january 1924 with a feature picture comedy and high class vaudeville act and orchestra it was a modern theater with seating capacity of six hundred fifty its interior featured a modern finish with lighting appropriate for projection and illumination of the building the strand also was equipped with a modern projector  the daily herald january 4 1924 p 1  antitrust litigation filed in new orleans against the saenger amusement company and others was dismissed in early january since the saenger amusement company did not sell commodities it was not in violation of the louisiana state antitrust statue  the daily herald january 10 1924 p 1  1926   1927 the remodeling and redecorating at saenger s gaeity theatre is almost finished the improvements consisted of the following the facade of the theatre was remodeled and winging doors added a terrace was built across the front of the theater decorated with artificial roses the interior of the gaiety theatre was painted buff and green with paneled trimmings six hundred latest veneered theatre chairs replaced older seating new organ put in with new music rolls capable of playing seventeen pieces continuously four double and two single exists created for additional safety and ten new wall fans and two ceiling fans added to the interior the new gaiety opened for business in midapril with its same policies and no new admission charge for additional safety a security guard was put on night duty in the movie house  the daily herald april 12 1927 p 2  tom bautovich  19081990 native of new orleans and new organist at the strand theatre  is becoming popular with his audiences tom is a graduate of the new orleans conservatory of music and played in the top theaters in nola before coming to biloxi he was a also daily broadcaster over wsmb in the crescent city   the daily herald october 11 1927 p 2    1928  martin j salvant 18691946 native of nola and manager of the biloxi gaiety theatre  has been transferred to the anderson theatre at gulfport from where he come to biloxi over a year ago  the daily herald january 10 1928 p 2  will probably let contract for new saenger theatre in june  the daily herald may 16 1928 p 2    1936 saenger officials said that the buck theatre  formerly the gaiety theatre  corner of lameuse street and jackson street will open soon the new theater has undergone extensive refurbishment and now has the capacity for over four hundred patrons the balcony for colored people had nearly one hundred seats modern western electric sound equipment and temlock wallboard for better insulation and acoustic properties has also been added to the structure  the daily herald december 17 1936 p 1    1940  odeus meyers  18841968 and calus c meyers  19091999 his son operators of meyers grocery at 447 east division street announced that they were going to build a 600seat movie theater on the southeast corner of lameuse and division streets jack fayard biloxi architect was hired to draw building plans for the 11000 meyers woodframed movie house it was to be 40 feet by 110 feet and fireproof approximately 400seats were for white patrons and 200seats for colored viewers the colored entrance and lobby was on division street and their seating area was the balcony the white clientele entered from lameuse street and were seated in the main auditorium the meyers family had arrived in biloxi from erath louisiana about 1929  the daily herald february 10 1940 p 1    1942   references    journals the biloxi herald   city news   september 27 1907 the biloxi herald   new moving picture show   february 13 1908 the biloxi herald   another picture show   february 17 1908 the biloxi herald   moving pictures in biloxi   september 25 1908  the daily herald the daily herald   bijou theatre will open tonight   november 5 1910 the daily herald   new building for redding and lawrence   july 18 1911 the daily herald    dancerengbarth   december 1 1911 p 4 the daily herald   the new gaiety theatre   may 7 1912 the daily herald   popular young biloxian weds   september 14 1912 the daily herald   the new dixie theater   september 26 1912  the daily herald   tam has leased firemen s hall   october 1 1912 the daily herald   new curtain at the bijou theatre   december 2 1912 p 8 the daily herald   mobilians buy biloxi theaters from stephens   january 11 1913 the daily herald   gaiety open air theatre open thursday   may 13 1913 the daily herald   jh king buys out two picture shows   july 24 1913 the daily herald   contest closes at the big airdome   august 7 1913 the daily herald   kings will open new theater in biloxi tomorrow   january 14 1914 the daily herald   crown theater opening triumph   january 16 1914 the daily herald   biloxi team is again victorius   july 20 1914 the daily herald   biloxi theatres changes hands   october 24 1919  19201929 the daily herald   both theatres  crown and gaiety  in biloxi operataed during strike   february 20 1920 the daily herald   open theater tomorrow   january 4 1924 the daily herald   court rules saenger company is not a trust   january 10 1924 the daily herald   fire loss is 75000 in early blaze   may 23 1926 the daily herald   biloxi business houses burned   may 29 1926 the daily herald   new gaiety to open monday   april 12 1927 the daily herald   tom bautovich  organist     october 11 1927 the daily herald   salvant transferred   january 10 1928 the daily herald   break ground for new saenger house   july 14 1928 the daily herald   saenger has new manager  martin j salvent     december 31 1929  19301939 the daily herald      the daily herald      the daily herald      the daily herald   buck theatre to open saturday   december 17 1936  19401949 the daily herald   new theatre  meyers  announced for biloxi   february 10 1940  19801999 the daily herald centennial edition   films at saenger kept coastians in the darkness   october 7 1984 the daily herald centennial edition   gem of the coast polished   october 7 1984  the ocean springs news the ocean springs news    local news   september 11 1909 the ocean springs news    local news   november 13 1909 the ocean springs news    local news  november 20 1909 the ocean springs news   local news   december 25 1909   1744 views  