The old Park Theatre on Church St. was replaced by a Bowling alley and Billiard Hall. Enclosed are pictures I took this afternoon. I saw many movies there in the 40s and 50s.
Guy
THANKS for stopping by, I do my best to acknowledge when someone leaves a comment,you do not have to be a member here & everyone is welcome. Ps: This site is monitored but not actively posting on a regular basis. Mostly these are stories & some photos saved from a defunct site known as Verdun Connections which was on MSN Groups initially then on a social network called Multiply.
45 comments:
guy was there not a major fire in the old park theatre... which eventually resulted in no smoking in theatres after...
Rainy Day Man, I think you are thinking of the theatre in Montreal wich had a fire in the 20s killing dozens of children wich resulted in a law prohibiting children below 16 in theatres. I am not sure of the details but Les knows about this incident as he already posted information on this tragic event. Guy
RDM ~ here's a site explaining the fire and resulting law. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laurier_Palace_Theatre_Fire
thanks guy, linda...
Guy those are great pictures ,..I Remember that Bowling Alley as they had leagues for the kids from StWillibrords,.........and we used to go & watch the leagues play ( I was never interested in bowling much),...but they had a few pool tables inther e too,........ also the frontage of that place hasn't really changed in 40 years,...........still white brick,..(at least I think I Rememeber it that way)....... Leon Houle's Plumbing was in that building (ground floor) or they were right next door........................Very neat pictures Guy,.Thank You ,.if you had of turned around ,.you could also have taken a picture of the old Trevi Pizza, right across the street (diagonally sort of) Nevertheless ,..I appreciate seeing this picture............................................................
i have been to the PARK theather many times..forgot about that place..thanks for the memory. wasn't it only 25 cents to get in ??? john
how about midnight bowling.. anyone do that there... at the time it was a novelty..
Every Saturday a bunch of us rode the 58 Wellington bus to the Vogue theater on Charlevoix in the Point. For 35 cents we got 3 movies and a weekly serial. I remember Jack Lemon in the Apartment and Boris Karloff in the Pit and the Pendulum.
Laurie I remember seeing those movies too but I saw them at the Century Theatre in Ville Emard on Briand Street. We would go every Saturday and for 50 cents we'd see 3 movies, cartoon, news reel and up comong attractions!!! Not a bad deal. Dianne
yes i remmeber taking the 58 wellington bus
it was a nice bus ride to the vogue.
looking at all the people stores along wellington st.
the bus ride 7 cents?
i think going home from the vogue show
the 58 bus stop was across the street
on the corner, in front of a shoe maker store
good memory- i went to the vogue with stanley royston
many times as little kids.
the royston famly, his dad was a trainer for boxing
ian clyde became world champion
his tainer was mr royston back then,
stanley was a boxer also, but he decided
not to continue.
i talked to ian a few months ago
mrs royston lives in the point
ian tells me, she lost your two sons, husband
it just hurts writing this
yes i had only one best freind and i lost him
stanley royston.
Hey Metalman,
I remember the Roystons. Did they live on Brown? There were a whole bunch of brothers, weren't there? I remember that one Sunday morning, I was coming home from Church (I used to make some cash as an altar boy) and was walking through the lane between Brown and Manning. I had on a suit and tie, when I saw a few of the Royston boys sitting against a garage there. One of them make a wise crack about my suit or something. I think it was the oldest brother of the group, and as I write this, I think it may have been Stanely. So, I said "let me go home and change out of the suit, then I'll come back and we can talk" or something like that. He said something like "I'll be here". Well, when I got back, he was there. We went at 'er, and I ended up with a mouse under the eye. However, when it was over, we shook hands and were always friendly with one another after that. I remember telling the other kids that I got hit in the head with a swing, when anyone asked how I got the black eye. The incident would have been sometime 1969-70. Metalman, I wish that you would have told me in 1968 that their old man was a boxing coach!!!
Another time, I was walking along the Woodland bridge in the early evening (probably within a year of my back lane boxing match), and there by the akky were a bunch of cop cars along LaVerendrye. In the middle of it was one of the younger Royston boys who had been fishing there. I asked what was going on, and he yells out all excited, that he just hooked another stiff! It was almost with pride that he added "Geez, its my second one!" There was the cadaver partly pulled up out of the water, as the cops had just gotten there and didn't have a chance to cover it up.
So, Metalman, those are two stories that I remember about the Royston boys..
BrownBlvd
brownblvd . I know it's not funny
about you and the Roystons, I never knew them, however I had to laugh, what were
you thinking ?" Let me go home and change out of my suit" And then to go
back!!!
I said it before and I'll say it again There was
some kinda code of ethics us kid's in Verdun had. You were a man of your word!
All of us had to take our punches in some kind of way. That's what makes us
unique!
Let's hear it for the kid's in Verdun
!!!!
Hi Guy That picture of the old bowling alley on Church. Right across the street was a Mummy's fish and chips rest. If anyone has ever been to the one in Lachine or this one in Verdun which is now gone..then you know how good the fish was. Also opposite corner was a Normans steamies rest.Small place with the entrance facing the corner not the side... Lad
Mommy's fish and chips were the best...I loved the black pudding dinners you used to be able to get. There were a few other things you used to be able to get that were from Scotland...I was dissappointed when it changed ownership!!! Donna
Lad, I saw Mom's Fish & Chips restaurant but I could not make out if it was still open. The sign was still there but I could not make out any activity inside. I bought some fish & chips there a couple of years ago and it cost me close to $10.00 for six pcs of fish wich I found a bit expensive. My wife found a good recipe and if anybody is interested in having it, I will share it. Guy
Here is another page from our SHGV magazine, theatre adds from the 40s on movies showing at the 4 Verdun theatres, the Park, Palace, Savoy and Fifth ave. Look at those names, Walter Pigeon, Jose Iturbi (what a concert pianist), Roddy McDowall, Jane Powell, Xavier Cougat, Charles Boyer, Jennifer Jones, Bud Abbott and Lou Cotello, Rosalind Russell, the Marx Brothers, I bet not many members are not familiar with these names. Guy
hey-brown
like the story big time
yes they lived on brown front of the park
knowing you and the story, if stan was 3 times your size you still would have went at it.
you had respect for your clothes and you did come
back alone lots of courage.
i talked to a few of our classmates a few years ago
i asked the question, who was the most successful
classmate, there answer was you brown.
lots of your old classmates look up to you
another verduner to be proud of
Hi Levisjeans7,
Don't worry about laughing. You are right to ask what was I thinking by changing out of the suit and going back to have a chat with one of the Royston boys?
But, now that I analyze it a little better, I must of been thinking something like "no sense getting worked over by Royston, which was probably guaranteed, then then going home in a ruined Sunday suit and getting worked over by my mother!" At least I avoided one of those options. I can remember getting chased around the house, and sometimes out of the house into the back yard, by my morther swinging my old man's belt, for other times when I screwed up and did something dumb. I guess all that discipline at least saved a suit, eh?
BrownBlvd
Hey Metalman,
Yep, usually the truth is far more interesting than fiction. Trouble is that with nonfiction, you can actually feel the pain sometimes! Ouch!
Anyways, nice of you to say those things, but I think most people try their best to do the right thing. Hey, just look in the mirror, Metalman. Pretty big of you to take care of your family and friends, and help out various charities the way you do. Must be the Lithuanian in you from your mother's side, eh? HaHa.
Keep up the great work!
BrownBlvd.
Guy i think you have it wrong with what you posted there it wasn't replaced the old park theater had gone through 2 different fires which by that time the owners refused to do anything to repair the building and it was sold as land torn down and has a condo there on the spot where the park used to stand as far back as i can remember (which i know isn't saying much seeing as i'm only 38 but) the bowling alley that you have pictured there was also there in the late 70's as well as the park which at that time had closed down but had a pool hall which was attached to the side of the park theater which was still open i'll dig into it a little more and see if i can pull up the date when they finally tore the whole thing down as well as when the last fire that took out the pool hall as well as what was left of the theater. Robert
Bob, I always thought that the Park theatre was closer to Claude street. I will also do some checking to locate the location of the old theatre. I would also like to get a pciture of the old Park Theatre. Guy
Guy perhaps ,if you have a chance you can also check into the address of Trevi Pizza,.........I did post an ad from themn a while back,...but I see that they post their address as 800 Church Av ( De L'Eglise) ,........and if that's the case ,.then I have a wrong memory of it (Trevi) being diagonally ,roughly ,across the street from the Bowling Alley,.......but I am almost certain that the Trevi I recall was where I thought it was,......... any pictures around of that era.....????
Hi Guy,...........I just got off the phone with my older brother,....and I apperently was totally wrong in the idea of Trevi Pizxza having been diagonally across from the old Leon Houle Plumbing,(which also housed the Bowling Alley) that you posted pics of,.........but for some reason I Remembered it as being across the street,.....on what would have been Joseph & de l' Eglise (Church Av),....................................
Well this is what i was able to get out of this,Guy there's a daycare now where it used to stand at 720 church and in the second picture you'll see they are in the process of putting up a buliding (a condo i'll assume) where the billard hall along with where uap(united auto parts)used to be robert
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While i was at it les i took these 2 shots as well rob
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Thanks ROB ,..............................I really got to get back for a visit,..........I Remember a lot less brick & more window,..but again I'm thinking back to the mid60's........................Thanks for those pics ,................... Did you at least have lunch,whilke you were at it?
Rob's pictures of Trevi's are clear. There used to be more window as a matter of fact they used to have the guy in the window making the Pizzas. The sign saying depuis (Since) 1961 is interesting. I wonder if they realize they could turn it upside down and it would still say 1961. Ed
Bob, I have checked the address of the Park theatre in the Lovells directory for 1945 and it was at 726 Church ave. I will be in Verdun on Saturday and I will take a picture of the building at that address. Guy
Guy, If you check the above posts. Rob just did that. Ed
Ed, Bob mentions 720 Church while Lovells mentions 726 and the new bowling alley is 730 so it is in between. Bob, can you staighten us out on this. Guy
No les was just a snap and run but will get to it at some point i'm sure rob
This message has been deleted by the author.
The addresses have been adjusted to allow two buildings where one used to be. You can't go by the address. Rob knows which one is where the old theater was as he used to live around there. Ed
guy if you go by you'll see as i did that it ends before 726 and that the numbers have been changed to reflect that robert
Guy just to set the record straight
Club Quilles Verdun Inc 514-767-9914
642, rue de l'Église, Verdun, QC H4G 2M8
as you can see the bowling alley isn't 730 so it's not inbetween as you thought hope this helps
Info care of www.canada411.ca
robert
have fun and remember verdun
Robert, You are saying that the old Park theatre was torn down after having 2 fires and was replaced by a day care for children per your photo and has no. 720. We had the information all wrong at the SHGV and we will make the necessary corrections. I appreciate your bringing this to my attention. Guy
Guy i'm not saying that the info you had as to the location of the park theather is wrong just that when they put the daycare up they changed all the numbers so i still think that you may be right with the old address but because they changed the numbers around to reflect as to the location of the new bulidings would be, when they tore it down at the time there was a cafe opened to the left of the main entrance of the park after the main entrance there was a path which led to the billard hall so i wouldn't change over what you have unless you just want to update as to what stands on the site as of now but i leave it up to you only too glad to help at any rate.
have fun and remember verdun
rob
Robert, I'm on duty saturday at the SHGV so I will go see on Church with my camera to get the exact picture of the situation as it is imperative that we have the right information. Guy (Roxboro)
The theater and the pool hall was a long building. The address shifted as they put the doors in different positions. Ed
Robert, You were right about the location of the old Park theatre. It was situated where the day care center is now located at 720 Church. The Park theatre was situated at 726 Church street so it must have been on the same lot. The building on the right wich is under construction has no civic number and the building on it's right is number 744. My interest in the Park theatre is because I lived on Galt near Bannantyne in the 40s and early 50s and went to that theartre regularly.. Here are some pictures I took yesterday: Guy (Roxboro) Children day care center no. 720 Church: Building on left of Children Day Care Center no. 694 and 712: Bowling Alley 642 Church: Mammy's Fish and Chips across the street: Church Street looking towards Wellington: Church Street looking towards Aqueduct and Côte St Paul: LES: DO YOU THINK YOU COULD COME UP WITH A PICTURE OF THE OLD PARK THEATRE. I WOULD LIKE TO HAVE IT FOR OUR ARCHIVES. I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO HAVE PICTURES OF THE OTHER 3 THEATRES, THE PALACE, SAVOY AND FIFTH AVE. THEATRES. GUY
I used to walk from my home in Cote St. Paul along Church Ave. to the library or to visit relatives in Verdun. I remember the passing by the Park Theatre and also a lumber yard which might have been Daigle. I have some crystal which my mother told me she got from going to the movies at the Park This most likely would have been in the 20's and 30's. Guy, do you have anything in the archives regarding how old the theatre is? Maureen
Maureen, This is part of my responsibilities at the SHGV, gathering and documenting information on old buildings in Verdun, including the 4 theatres we had. I am only starting on this subject so I welcome any photos, comments and anecdotes. Guy (Roxboro)
Maureen, The lumber yard was Dupuis Frères on Church and was between the Aqueduct and Bannantyne. I was very familiar with that lumber yard as I used to go and gather left over pieces of wood in their saw dust bins to heat our stove and I also used to make all kinds of objects with it such as play guns, toy planes, etc This would have been in the early 40s. Guy
guy
sorry for not knowing on your scope
of work.
on my travels to verdun. i'll keep my
ears and eyes on any information
that i can post to you.
Hi
It was funny to hear about the Royston boys because my uncle was Stanley Royston and I loved spending every summer with Auntie Edna and Uncle Stanley up at their cottage on Lac Hughes in Lakefield Quebec.
Thanks
Linda Richards
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