Before Cinema: Plenty of Amusements to Be Had
Peterborough truly always had its mix of “amusements” — even in the days of Canada West.
The Arrival of Cinema, January 1897—and After
The travelling cinematographe comes to town — and other motion pictures follow. Electrical exhibits are the order of the day.
The 1900s — and the Advent of Nickel Theatres
Upstart motion picture theatoriums: Colloseum, Wonderland, Crystal, Royal, and Princess. The Grand Opera House shows moving pictures from the start.
1910s: War, Empire, and the Motion Picture Habit
Amidst the Great War and its devastation, the Empire Theatre opens. The city is alive with Pickford and Chaplin — and five theatres (some of them changing names) showing motion pictures.
The 1920s: Entering the Corporate Age
The glory days of silent film in the roaring twenties. The Regent and Capitol open; the Royal closes; the Grand Opera House shows its last motion picture.
The 1930s: Talkies and the Great Depression
Sound arrives on the cusp of the Great Depression; but then so too do the Marx Brothers (on screen) and Marie Dressler and countless others — as the promo maintains, “movies . . . are your best entertainment.”
The 1940s: War, Prosperity, and a “Miniature Broadway”
The Centre Theatre arrives, along with the war — and an Examiner editor named Robertson Davies. The audience grows.
1950s–60s: Theatres, They Come and They Go
The Regent, Centre, and Capitol go . . . the Odeon and Paramount arrive (along with television).
From the 1970s to 2000s: The Paramount and Odeon Meet Cineplex and Galaxy
The shift to multiple screens and multiplexes in an age of corporate complications and the advent of video.