ARTSCULTURE · HISTORICAL MARKER
Roman Theatre
Red Lodge, Montana
· Red Lodge Commercial Historic District
Arts & Culture
9
Austrian immigrant Steve Roman built this early movie theater in 1917 after coming to Red Lodge in 1897 at age nineteen to work in the mines and then entering the theater business through several local theaters. His wife, Librera, ran the upstairs Hotel Isabella, and at various times their six children took tickets, performed on the stage, accompanied silent movies on the organ, operated the projector, and ran the box office. In 1935, Roman extensively remodeled the theater, adding air conditioning, new seats, draperies, lighting, and an eight-foot Art Deco style neon marquee; the work by architect Bjarne Moe and contractor C. W. Hamrick of Seattle drew considerable local excitement, and the opening gala included special appearances by the nationally renowned Crockett Family. Daughter Mary managed the theater until 1977, and it retains much of its 1935 façade as Montana’s oldest continuously running moving picture theater.
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