Podcast: Season 3, Episode 7

"The Regal Theater in Durham" By the 1920s and 30s, the majority of American (U.S.) moviegoers were going to movie palaces to enjoy the latest productions from Hollywood (and other parts of the country). As was the case for most venues and amenities, people of color either had restricted access to the grand theaters, or none. Soon, vaudeville houses that had been built in African-American communities during the early 20th century, were being converted to movie houses (as were storefront shops).

The Regal Theater in Durham, North Carolina was one of many. Possibly originally built as a vaudeville house in 1927, the Afro-American reported in 1930 that $50,000 went into the addition of a sound system. According to the U.S. Inflation Calculator, that equates to almost $800,000 in 2020.

Source: OpenDurham - The Regal Theater in the 1940s

Learn more about The Regal Theater in the latest episode of the Kindaris Pictures Podcast! Kindaris Pictures Podcast (AnchorFM) (Also on Apple Podcasts, Breaker, Google Podcasts, Overcast, Radio Public, Spotify, and Sticher) Additional References Cinema Treasures And Justice for All OpenDurham Personal Graduate Research (2018)