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History of the theater

THE UA BERKELEY’S GLORIOUS PAST AND POTENTIAL FOR RENEWAL

When the United Artists theater opened on Shattuck Avenue on September 16, 1932, the event was so dazzling a newspaper ran a headline reminding locals this was “Not Hollywood, but Berkeley.”

“Talking picture” luminaries including Mary Pickford and Bing Crosby signed autographs under the giant marquee and soaring neon-lit tower while beaming klieg lights swept the night sky. The country was in the throes of the Great Depression, making the debut of this magnificent Art Deco theater even more spectacular to “stargazing” locals.

“Every one of the 1,800 luxurious seats in the theater was filled within five minutes after the doors opened,” the Berkeley Daily Gazette reported. “Twice as many filled the foyers, waiting for an opportunity to obtain seats for the second show.”

In fact, this was “the greatest theatrical event in the history of Berkeley,” the Gazette declared.

Among the throng of Berkeleyans were numerous local officials including city council members and Berkeley Mayor Thomas E. Caldecott. “Down to Earth” starring Will Rogers was the featured cinematic attraction. Uniformed ushers guided patrons to their “air cushioned” velvet seats.

The UA was part of a grouping of opulent, modern theaters built by the United Artists Corporation in the ‘20s and ‘30s, all of them in Southern California except for the one in Berkeley. The theater line was an offshoot of the film production and distribution company founded by movie icons Pickford, Charlie Chaplin, and Douglas Fairbanks, who sought more financial and creative control of their work.

Managed by Fox West Coast Theatres, the UA Berkeley was designed by architect Clifford Balch and the firm Walker & Eisen, with interior decor by the Heinsbergen Decorating Company of Los Angeles.

Ticket prices ranged from 30 to 69 cents for adults, and 10 cents for children. The theater cost roughly $300,000 to build, which today sounds like a bargain but make no mistake, this was a grand theater crafted by some 200 laborers and fitted with the best in Art Deco furnishings. The decorative splendor included chandeliers, murals, railings “like glistening silver,” large men’s and women’s lounges with luxe furniture, and Roman drinking fountains with sparkling ice water that were lauded as works of art.

“Hundreds stopped to congratulate Manager Clarence L. Laws on the beauty of the theater and the wonderful service rendered by house staff,” the Gazette wrote.

The theater was arguably even more breathtaking once entering the auditorium. Because the UA was originally designed as a live vaudeville venue, it was built with a stage 25-feet deep, numerous dressing rooms, a green room, “one of the greatest electric concert organs” in the state, and a spacious orchestra pit.

The Gazette raved about “the great stage with its artistic drapes,” the proscenium arch etched with angels, the “golden console” of the organ, the glowing sunburst design on the gilded ceiling, and the clusters of blue, green, yellow, and white lightbulbs illuminating from below the balcony rail.

WEATHERING CHANGES OVER ITS 91-YEAR HISTORY

Considering the UA Berkeley opened at a time when thousands of banks were failing and millions of American were out of work, it’s impressive that the theater remained open for 91 years. Over the decades the theater would endure multiple changes in ownership, modifications to its exterior, and multiplex conversions starting in the ‘70s.

In the late 1940s, the UA chain was acquired by San Francisco-based movie theater operators Robert and Marshall Naify. Under their ownership the chain swelled to more than 2,000 theaters, making it the largest chain in the U.S. In 1988, however, the Naifys sold the UA chain to a telecommunications company in Colorado. Some years later United Artists went bankrupt and was merged with other insolvent cinema companies under the Regal Entertainment Group, which is still operating today.

Due to changing aesthetic tastes in the mid-century, the original boxy lighted marquee that jutted far over Shattuck Avenue was nixed for something less imposing. Likewise, the towering neon sign was taken down for being too garish. What has remained is the painted cast concrete facade with the WPA-style motif of Unity and Artistry.

In 1973, with the movie business taking a downturn, the UA Berkeley was bisected into two screens, then partitioned into four screens two years later. By 1987 the UA was split into seven auditoriums, the configuration that lasted until its closure in 2023.