Paramount Theater
The Paramount was a French-Renaissance-style property opened in 1931 at 180 Essex Street with seating for 2,200. The furniture was Louis XV, the color scheme a blend of ivory, blue, coral green and gold. The seats were upholstered in green figured mohair. The walls of the theater were adorned with eight enormous mural "in the style of Fragonard, Watteau and Boucher." A big attraction was the 16 ton pipe organ (with 1,400 pipes) just one of nine made for theaters by the Wurlitzer Company and was used for sing-alongs between double features. Some of the live performers by Ted Lewis, Louis Armstrong and Chico Marx. 1940 saw the world premier of the 20th Century Fox film, The House of Seven Gables. The Paramount's popularity began to decline in the 1950's and was torn down in 1971, at the height of the urban renewal phase to make way for the new indoor mall. The pipe organ was sold to a restaurant in Seattle Washington called Pizza and Pipes.
See Also
- "Paramount Theatre" Salem Evening News, Apr. 17, 1930.
- "Of Paramount Importance" Salem Evening News, Sept. 29, 1999. p. A3
- "Million dollar Paramount Theatre built exclusively for talkies" Salem Evening News, June 3, 1971. p.28
- Vertical File in Salem Collection - Paramount Theatre
