The Bell Theater was originally located at Bell and Dorgenois Streets, where it operated between 1914 and 1921. In the early years, the theater served not only as an entertainment venue, but was frequently the location of community organizing…

The Imperial Theater opened in 1922 at Hagan Avenue and Dumaine. Owned by Rene Brunet Senior, a member of a prominent New Orleans theater family, Imperial Theater was Brunet's third theatrical endeavor. The exterior of the Imperial was in the…

Built in 1918 to replace the older Orpheum, the new Orpheum Theatre opened with great pomp and circumstance on February 5, 1921, with a matinee performance in the afternoon. [1] However, according to the coverage of the New Orleans Item, “The real…

In the early years of the film industry, few aspects of the industry were more important than distribution. Film exchanges handled the repair, rental, and advertisement of motion pictures both locally and across geographic regions. Exchanges worked…

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a 2008 Oscar winning film by director David Fincher, filmed primarily in uptown New Orleans. The film was adapted from a 1922 short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald by the same name, from the collection “Tales of…

The Liberty Theatre owned by the Saenger Amusement Company and managed under the auspices of Boehringer Amusement Company opened in 1918. The theater was lavishly designed with the intention of being “the most complete motion picture theater in the…

The Prytania Theatre is the oldest operating theater in New Orleans, dating back to 1915. It is the only single-screen, suburban theater in the state of Louisiana. It caters to film buffs and families alike with its eclectic selection of film…

A Streetcar Named Desire is the title of a 1947 Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Tennessee Williams, adapted in 1951 for the big screen by director Elia Kazan. It is undoubtedly one of the most famous film depictions of the City of New Orleans,…

The projectionist strike of 1914 is one of the earliest examples of film workers organizing in New Orleans. Few details are known about its origins or outcomes, but accounts of its unfolding offer insight into the shifting cultural landscape of the…

The Old Jockey Club of New Orleans was a primary filming location of the 1912 silent film "The Belle of New Orleans." The film was created and produced entirely in New Orleans by the Kalem Film Company. The Jockey Club provided a beautiful…

Diamond Film Company operated entirely in New Orleans from 1918 to 1920. Located on Bayou Saint John, the complex was equipped for a range of production activities, including carpentry shops for set design and scenery, makeup and costume rooms,…

The New Orleans Association of Commerce was established in 1913 by local businessmen and originally headquartered at 315 Camp Street before relocating to 635 Common Street sometime prior to 1922. The association outlined plans in 1918 to increase…

Constructed in 1822 under the direction of architect Simon Bernard, Fort Wood was thought to be impregnable to enemy troops attacking in the narrow straits of lakes Borgne and St. Catherine. In 1851, the fort was renamed Fort Macomb to honor…