Historical Context: July, 1948
The Calmar Theatre boasted “Mighty Outdoor Drama” in its advertisement for The Treasure of the Sierra Madres July 23-24. Movie fans in Calmar, Iowa were treated to a genuine classic with Humphrey Bogart leading the bill. According to the website Cinema Treasures, the Calmar was the third incarnation for the structure, which first opened as the Frana Opera House on March 23, 1916. Later that year it was renamed the Olympic Theatre and “became a 350-seat movie theatre.
“It was equipped with a Wurlitzer organ. It converted to sound to remain viable and closed briefly in 1933 for a refresh. In 1944 the seating capacity had been reduced to 280 and it had been renamed Calmar Theatre. It was closed on June 1, 1957 with Esther Williams in The Unguarded Moment. The building still stands in 2017, use unknown.” The website profiles over 61,000 movie theaters from the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and other countries.