History and Restoration of the Landis Theater

This is the original press release from March 12, 1937, announcing the formal opening of the Landis Theater as a movie and vaudeville house.

Public Officals To Formally Open Landis Theater

First Performance At New Theater At East and Landis, Tonight

DOORS OPEN 6:30 P.M!

The Landis Theater, East and Landis avenues, will be formally opened tonight, at 7 o'clock.

A brief, inaugural program will be held prior to the first performance, in which public officals will participate. The ceremonies will also be attended by the heads of Vineland's many civic business and labor organizations.
The program as announced today will be as follows:

Singing of "The Star Spangled Banner," by the audience, led by C. Emerson Nash, superintendent of the Training School.

"Welcome" - brief address by Herbert Lubin, manager of the Landis Theater.

"Remarks" - by Mayor Samuel L. Gassel, speaking for the Borough of Vineland; John H. Weed, Chairman of the Landis Township Committee, representing Landis Township; and Representative Elmer H. Wene.

The speakers will be introduced by Sylvan D. Einstein, director of the Cumberland Holding Company, of Vineland, which built the theater and will operate it.

The doors of the theater will open at 6:30 P.M., when the sale of tickets for the first performance will begin.
All was in readiness this afternoon for the formal opening.

Constructed from the plans drawn by Williams H. Lees, reowned architect, of New York and Philadelphia, the Landis Theater represents the most advanced design in motion picture theater buildings. Provision has been made for future innovations in film projection and sound, including television, according to Lee.

The theater has a seating capacity of 1200. The chairs with red....covered backs and leather covered air cushion seats, are 121 inches wide and are set in semi-circle formation, with aisles of 32 inches: A silver stripe of stainless steel borders each chair. A cross-center aisle is six feet wide, permitting easy access to exits.

As one enters the theater, it is seen that the lobby or outer foyer is a combination of blue and white, arranged in circular design. Blue mirrors are framed in stainless steel, and the doors are of brown stained gumwood, highly granied.
The main foyer is fifteen feet in depth and extends the width of the theater building. At either end of the foyer are two large louvres, which serve doubly for illumination and as ducts in the air conditioning system. Flower boxes are to be placed at the bottom of the louvres. The walls are paneled in grained gumwood, and the ceilings are painted in deep aquamarine. Lounges, modernly equipped are at either end of the main foyer.

Two "Powder Rooms"

At either end of the main foyer are rest rooms for men and women. The womens rooms include "powder rooms," completely equipped with modern fixtures and furnishings. The walls and complements of the "powder rooms" are finished in bird's eye maple. A telephone booth is also to be found in the main foyer.

The standing space directly in the rear of the auditorium proper is ten feet in depth and extends the width of the theater. The carpeting of both the interior foyer is of red and gray, in a modern whirligig design. A windbreak glass will be installed at the rear of the seats. The three foyers will "stand" nearly as many persons as can be seated in the auditorium.
The design of the auditorium is new to this section of South Jersey. The ceiling has six levels, which serve to break the velocity of sound and to permit the elimination of echoes without padding the side or rear walls. The sounds travels along about sixty feet until it is absorbed in a special acoustic material, set in white blocks in the ceiling immediately in front of the mezzanine level. Each of the "breaks" in the ceiling are designed in wide, graceful curves, and are finished in bronze. The ceiling is light peach.

The air conditioning vents are placed along the ceiling levels, and appear as portholes in a ship. In the ceiling proper, the air conditioning vents are screened by a silver finish grillwork.

Aid For Deaf

Western Electric "Mirrophonic" sound equipment has been installed in the big projection booth. An innovation here is a block of seats equipped with Western Electric earphones, attached to the chairs, for those who are hard of hearing. The attachments must be secured by applying at the box office, and are limited in number.
The side walls are a combination of raspberry striped with wide bands of aquamarine and bronze, and finished in "Duali," an importation of veneer from Hawaii. Rainbow illumination is obtained from a battery of glass shielded lights lined in the mezzanine level on either side of the projection booth. Four exquisitely beautiful soft glow lights, mode of glass bars manufactured at the Kimball Glass Company, are to be seen at the rear of the auditorium. Colored lights flood the two striped pillars that form each side of the proscenium arch, and footlights and suspended stage lights complete the illumination system all controlled from the projection booth to give any effect desired by the operator.
The proscenium arch is 24 feet above the stage floor. The curtain is of rust colored plush, matching the finish of the "Sounding board."

The theater building is 165 feet deep and 75 feet wide. The marquee is 37 feet wide and extends 20 feet over the sidewalk. The vertical sign is 26 feet high. There are about 800 bulbs used in the outdoor illumination and nearly a mile of neon tubing. The color motive of the sign and marquee is red and blue.

Construction of the theater was begun last November, and an average of 75 men daily were employed. The opening attraction is "Hats Off," starring Mae Clarke.

In 2005 the City of Vineland acquired possession of the Landis Theatre / Mori Brothers building complex on the corner of Landis and East Avenues.

In 2006 the City of Vineland requested proposals for a major redevelopment of the eastern gate to its downtown business district. The redevelopment proposal encompassed all four corners of Landis and East Avenues including the Landis Theatre / Mori Brothers building complex.

In February 2007 the project was awarded. The approved proposal called for the theatre to be rehabilitated into a community multi-purpose performing arts center. The approved use for main floor of the Mori building is an upscale restaurant while the second floor is to be dedicated to office rental space. Additionally, the proposal included a two-story addition to the rear of the Mori building to provide a main entrance and vertical circulation to the second floor office component.

The proposed rehabilitation of the complex involves altering secondary spaces within the theatre with primary focus on providing code compliant restrooms. The lobby and foyer spaces are to remain mostly intact. Code compliant access to the second floor is to be constructed between the inner foyer and the main auditorium in the form of an open stairwell to the west and an elevator to the east side. A new concession area will be constructed at the center of this dividing wall, absorbing space from the main auditorium.

The existing stage is inadequate for the theatre to serve as a performing arts center. Renovations to this area include relocating the proscenium and extending the stage into the main auditorium. Additionally the exterior alcove to the west of the existing stage will be infilled to provide a loading dock. Additional backstage requirements will be provided in the main floor of the proposed addition to the rear of the Mori building.

With the proposed alterations described above, the auditorium seating will be reduced from 800 existing seats to approximately 650 seats. The existing floor slope is to be altered to accommodate the renovations and maintain proper sight lines.

The second floor the theatre is to be redesigned to provide two private seating balconies flanking a central projection / sound booth. Two toilet rooms and a private office are also included in the redesign. A secondary means of egress from the space will be provided through a new stairwell located in the adjacent Mori building.

The Mori building’s main floor’s primary use was a car dealership with the majority of the space dedicated to the service garages. The second floor consisted of offices in the front portion of the space with open office areas making up the rest of the floor. Access to the second floor is limited as the floor systems are structurally unsound. The interior of the Mori building is to be gutted on both floors due to the dilapidated state of the interiors and the need to replace the structural components of both the second floor and the roof. The primary use of the main floor is proposed to be an up scale restaurant with banquet room. The second floor is to be dedicated for office space. A two-story addition at the rear of the Mori building is to be constructed to compliment the existing Art Moderne architecture. This addition will provide a main entrance for the second floor including an open stairwell and elevator. As stated above, the remainder of the main floor of the addition is to be dedicated to additional back stage spaces for the adjacent theatre.

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Friday, March 12, 1937 - Public Officals To Formally Open Landis Theater: Vineland.org/history/landistheater