About this property
The Pickwick Theatre is an art deco movie palace located in Park Ridge, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. Designed by Roscoe Harold Zook, William F. McCaughey, and Alfonso Iannelli, the Pickwick opened in 1928 as a vaudeville stage and movie theatre. It is widely recognized for its marquee and 100-foot tower, which appeared in the opening credits of At the Movies. The main auditorium, built to resemble an Aztec or Mayan temple, originally seated up to 1,400 people. Seating capacity in the main auditorium was reduced by 200 seats in 1968 and an additional 400 seats in 2012 as the result of renovations. The 2012 renovation project, valued at $1.2 million, also included a new roof, mechanical improvements and exterior renovations including those to the original marquee. The theater was named in 1928 by the mayor of Park Ridge, William H. Malone I, for the title character Samuel Pickwick in Charles Dickens' novel The Pickwick Papers. The building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975 and continues to host films as well as live stage shows. In 1990, theatre management expanded the Pickwick by adding three new screens behind the original auditorium. In 2017, owner Dino Vlahakis added a 39-seat theatre located on the second floor of the rear building, in place of the theatre's offices. In celebration of the 2018 Illinois Bicentennial, the Pickwick Theater was selected as one of the Illinois 200 Great Places by the American Institute of Architects Illinois component (AIA Illinois). In 2022, the Pickwick Theatre was featured in an episode of NBC's Chicago Fire.
Location
Categories
Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Everything a full report reveals about Pickwick Theater Building
This page lists Pickwick Theater Building. A full Aubrey report for an address near it pulls together this listing alongside battlefield records, land patents, and every other historical record within a chosen radius:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Questions about this property
When was Pickwick Theater Building listed on the National Register?
Pickwick Theater Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on February 24, 1975.
What type of historic resource is Pickwick Theater Building?
Pickwick Theater Building is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Pickwick Theater Building?
The period of significance for Pickwick Theater Building is recorded as the industrial era, specifically around 1928.
Can I research the history near Pickwick Theater Building?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Pickwick Theater Building will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
More in Cook County
Historic places, battles, and census history across Cook County.
Explore CookCounty ›More historic places in Illinois
Browse all historic places in Illinois.
View Illinoishistoric sites ›Research the history near this site
An Aubrey US report for an address near Pickwick Theater Building will include this listing alongside battlefield records and other historical sources within your chosen radius.