In downtown Casper you have a lot of entertainment options. There are several pubs, restaurants, a coffee house, and five movie theaters. Yes, I said FIVE movie theaters. All within a few blocks of each other. But there is some history to these theaters. Wiki gave me this info:
The Rialto Theater in Casper, Wyoming was built as the New Lyric Theater[2] in 1921. It was constructed with 800 seats by Henry Brennan who had a successful Vaudeville house, on which he based the new cinema.[3] He almost immediately sold the building in 1922 to new owners who invested $50,000 in a remodeling project designed by Casper architects William Dubois and Leon Goodrich. The reopening in 1922 featured the William C. deMille movie Nice People, a silent film that was accompanied by the Chicago Netto Ladies Orchestra. In 1928 the Rialto began to show talkies.[2]
The Riato measures 50 feet (15 m) by 100 feet (30 m) on a prominent corner site. The brick facade is plain in form but the brickwork is extensively detailed. A tall neon sign marks the corner, replacing the original metal sign and a marquee was added, covering the original leaded glass transoms over the storefronts. A tall parapet adds to the apparent mass of the theater. Storefronts on both frontages house retail shops. On the interior a balcony is reached by two curving stairs on either side of the lobby, replacing a single grand stair from the first design.[2]
The Rialto continues to operate as a cinema. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.[1]
Pretty dern cool, huh? Rumor has it that one of the theaters downtown is a dinner theater, but I didn't find any information on it doing a quick search. I think more research is in order. In the mean time, I think we will go watch a movie.
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