The Auditorium Theatre is not the same venue as the original Robey Theatre. The Auditorium Theatre was built by Haymond Robey and opened in 1911, replacing his two other venues in Spencer, including the earlier Robey Theatre. The theater was redesigned by the architectural firm Carmichael and Millfaugh of Columbus, Ohio, changing the theater’s exterior to a brick façade (presumably also with interior remodelling), and was rechristened the Robey Theatre, which reopened on 8 September 1926 featuring the Norma Talmadge film Kiki (1926).
The theater was purchased from the Robey family by Mike Burch in 1978. The Robey Theatre was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. Burch, who still owns the theater, leased its operations to Aaron Richardson at sometime in or before 2005.
References: FilmYearBook-1926 p. 593 : Robey Theatre website; Cinema Treasures website; The State Journal website : with additional information supplied by Rebecca Burch, Tommie Hicks Jr. and Savanna Violet. |