The sport of boxing has had a tumultuous time throughout its long history in the United States. Fighting through times of extensive  regulation from both State and Federal legislatures, the sport has always managed to survive as a popular spectacle. In the early 1900s, boxing was mostly relegated to fights between local sports clubs with minor crowds and promotion. These matches were purely exhibition as officially judged bouts or bouts with payouts were federally illegal, acting as a ban on prizefighting in general.

The Ice Hippodrome, or Ice Palace, opened in Portland in 1914. It was a huge building, the largest ice skating rink in the world when it was built. It was regularly advertised next to theaters in the Morning Oregonian as a form of entertainment (Figure 1). Like the movies, the ice rink often advertised live band performances to go along with their skating sessions. When it opened, it even offered free instruction to beginners, making skating more accessible to the general public.

The Gem Theater

During the first World War, the United States film industry established itself as a powerhouse both domestically and abroad. The outbreak of war in Europe interrupted the global film market, and Hollywood thrived by filling the holes left by European markets unable to produce or export films during the conflict. However, despite the commercial success and establishment of the industry as something akin to what we know of it today, there were other aspects of moviegoing during this era of note.

I love the catchy phrases and slogans featured on many theater ads from this time period, as if clever wording will be enough to make someone buy a ticket at that theater over another one with more pedestrian advertisements. Here's a sample of some of my favorites:

IF LAUGHING HURTS YOU STAY AWAY (Bell Theatre, Springfield, Oregon, 1916)

The St. Helens Mist was one of the primary newspaper companies in St. Helens in the early 20th century.  After scouring articles that were available through the UO library website, I was able to find many instances of documented male managers and owners of theaters in the city of St.

On Tuesday, October 12, 1909, the Dreamland Theater was under the new management of J.A. Cooper and his brother Ross. In order to establish the theater, make it well known amongst the people again, and also have it live up to its name. The brothers decided to host a large event that would draw people back into the theater and showcase its new found extravagance, while also bringing a piece of Southern California to Salem, Oregon.

Nearing the border between the northern half of Oregon and the southern half of Washington state, lies Pendleton, a small city containing an equivalently small number of  inhabitants at just over 17,000 citizens.  The city center was built on the south bank of the Umatilla River, which travels east and west through the town. Pendleton takes pride in its rich agricultural and ranching history,  famously using the motto “The Real West.” 

While there are many results while researching “Liberty Theater” in Bend, OR, there have been some difficulties in determining which Liberty Theater the newspapers were referring to as there have been two in Bend. One, the one I am researching, opened on July 29, 1917 and the other on April 20, 1924. The Liberty I am researching was used for films as the other Liberty was used as a performing arts theater and still is to this day.

To the left is an article which details the sale of The Pastime Theater in La Grande, Oregon.