Sharp, Dennis
THE PICTURE PALACE and other Buildings for the Movies
NY: Frederick A. Praeger, 1969

First edition. Quarto. 224 pp; 5 color & profuse b/w illustrations; selected list of cinemas in Great Britain and the United States; bibliography; index. Cloth with gilt-lettered spine in dustjacket. VG, a clean, unmarked copy; unclipped jacket has 1 3/4" closed tear at top of spine, spine & back panel lightly soiled. This is an entertaining and well-researched history of the movie house - from nickelodeons and Kinetoscope parlors to drive-ins, from the picture palace to the art theater - in America, England, and continental Europe. It features the colorful 1920's, the depression years of the 1930's, and the post-World War II era, with the trend toward small, intimate, simply decorated theaters. The author treats problems of sight lines, ventilation, acoustics, projection, and decoration; discusses the styles and innovations of important theater architects such as Thomas W. Lamb, John Eberson, and Ben Schlanger.
Inventory number #010437