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Local Cinema History

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 28, 2008

Here is what has happened to some of the city's theaters:

•The Capitol Theatre, which opened at Reynolds and Evers streets in the 1920s and closed in the 1960s, was remodeled into offices.

•The State Theatre on J. Arden Mays Boulevard opened in 1939 and closed in 1957. Its lobby was used as a jewelry store from 1967 to 1986 before becoming vacant. A new owner restored much of the look of an old theater, including a clock tower and marquee, for an antiques and collectibles store called the State Theatre Emporium, which opened in 2006.

•The Plant City Drive-In Theatre, later renamed the Dover Drive In Theatre, operated on the north side of State Road 574 from the early 1950s through the 1970s. A highlight of the theater's history was a 1959 promotional appearance by singer Conway Twitty, who later became a legend in country music.

•The Mall Theatre, later known as the Mall Twin Theatres, opened in Plant City Plaza on Collins Street in 1966 and closed in 1988 or '89. The space was used as a warehouse until it was remodeled into a health club in 2003.

•The Starlite Drive-In Theater on James L. Redman Parkway closed Aug. 23, 1992 after 41 years of business, less than six months after the Lake Walden Cinema 8 opened a short distance away. The last movies to play there were "Universal Soldier" and "Gladiator." The old drive-in languished for years, its screen becoming a rusting hulk until it was torn down to make way for Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse about four years ago.

•The eight-screen Lake Walden Cinema 8 was opened March 20, 1992, at a cost of $1 million by Floyd Theatres. Opening night movies included "The Hand That Rocks the Cradle," "Beauty and the Beast," "Basic Instinct," "Father of the Bride," "Medicine Man," "Wayne's World," "Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot" and "Fried Green Tomatoes." Carmike Cinemas bought the theater in 1995 and closed it in 2007. The new owner, Premiere Cinemas, remodeled the theater and reopened it this week.

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