Chatham Theaters reopens

 

[VIDEO] I'm sorry to have shared this with you all much later as this is old news. How many of you are glad that our local movie house on 87th is back open. That facility has gone from being ICE Theaters, Chatham 14 Theaters, Studio Movie Grill and now Cinema Chatham powered by Emagine. It has gone through many ownership changes since 2012.

It re-opened this past weekend as Cinema Chatham and this story by Jim Williams shows their first day back in action having been closed over the past year due to the pandemic. We learned this past spring that Studio Movie Grill who owned this venue since 2014 will not be returning to this location.

With the excitement of the Chatham Theaters reopening, it's in the news that they're also looking to bring a restaurant to the theater in the future. This is according to Wendell Hutson at Chicago Business Journal which unfortunately is behind a paywall.

Also they're hiring up there if anyone is looking. There are about 70 employees there and they are looking hire people aged 16 & up.

Also shoutout to Harlan Falcon Bryan who we see is the General Manager for the Cinema Chatham.

CBS Chicago: Regal Cinemas Temporarily Closing Theaters Thursday, Including 8 In Chicago Area

 

[VIDEO] Probably not exactly germane news to the south side, however, one of things I have been keeping on eye on during this pandemic is the movie theater business. From what I can tell the Studio Movie Grill at 210 W. 87th Street remains closed.

Chains such as Regal Cinemas, AMC Theatres, and even the Showplace Icon on Roosevelt have since reopened back in August. Some of you may have seen the latest anticipated release Tenet starring John David Washington - he's the son of the legendary Denzel Washington - and directed by Christopher Nolan who you may know from the The Dark Knight trilogy and Inception to name a few big ticket releases he's made.

Well what's happening to Regal Cinemas who does have two locations within the city limits aren't much different from what other chains are doing. The Logan Theater announced that they were closing after reopening. Another chain with a few locations within the area Classic Cinemas earlier this summer announced that they were closing temporarily. And as of Thursday, yesterday, Regal Cinemas will again shut down operations temporarily.

The concern is that there aren't movies available to get people out of the house as much as it might be the continuing restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic. I'm sure there is a reason why the 87th theaters remain close and it's exactly those two factors.

As a matter of fact if you're a James Bond fan you were probably anticipating that release in the near future. Unfortunately it has been pushed back due to this pandemic. Originally it was supposed to have been released in the spring when these stay-at-home orders were in effect, then it was supposed to have been released during this summer, then the fall, and now it has been pushed back into next year.

As I've stated over the past summer and it's true now, people want to get out of the house. Now is the time for entertainment. Thankfully we've finally gotten out of this tumultuous summer and at least so far this week in fall the weather has been nice.

Also stated at some point on this blog, this pandemic is temporary. We should continue to take our precautions with this tricky virus. I shared a video from the state about wearing face masks, my expectation is that we won't be doing that forever. I wish we could flick a switch and this pandemic is over.

As far as the 87th theaters, I'm looking to see what's going on with them. If you have any updates feel free to share. 

SMG Chatham 14 closed #COVID19

SMG Chatham Lobby/Concessions - 2018

This is probably no surprise to you if you paid a visit to the Studio Movie Grill theaters at 210 E. 87th Street as recently as Friday that the theaters are temporarily closed as a result of the coronavirus.

This is probably industry wide as I see that AMC Theatres and Kerasotes (Showplace Icon) have for the moment closed their locations in light of this coronavirus pandemic. At least AMC was speaking of limiting admissions to their screens at 50% capacity to encourage social distancing (which is to help to stem the spread of this virus). Of course authorities around the nation were issuing guidelines limiting how many people can gather in one place right now the government is limiting groups larger than 50 people.

So either way if you enjoy movies too bad about going to the show especially up to 87th Street, however, hopefully many of you are ready to take advantage of any streaming options. Which is especially key if you have to stay-at-home through April 7, 2020.

What is terrible is that many of the people who staff these venues wherever they're employed will be temporarily out of work until Studio Movie Grill, AMC Theatres, Kerasotes, etc will eventually re-open for business. I do hope that this will happen in the near future.

If you're wondering about the Harper Theater in Hyde Park at 5238 S. Harper Ave they're also closed for the time being. You will go to their website and a message regarding COVID-19 will come up explaining their closure.

Proposed entertainment complex coming to South Shore

This isn't the first time we've heard about a new theater coming to 71st/Jeffrey. I first got wind of it in 2016 and the plan was the preserve the former HQ of ShoreBank and the former Jeffrey Theater. Then later it was reported that those buildings would have to be demolished to build the new theater.

Now this new Cinegrill being developed by ICE Theaters owner Alisa Starks expects to open in June 2020. This is according to the Chicago Citizen:

Located inside the former Urban Partnership Bank Building, 7054 S. Jeffrey Blvd., will be Cinegrill, a 50,000-square foot development that will house a seven-screen theatre with chef-designed cuisine, a bar, reclining seats, and seating capacity between 38 and 75; Odessa’s

Kitchen, a Creole-inspired restaurant seating up to 105 people; AJ’s, a four-lane bowling alley, equipped with multiple big screen TVs, a lounge that serves alcohol and appetizers, and offers table games like checkers, chess and backgammon. The last component for the development will be Penthouse 71, an events venue that can accommodate up to 225 people, and will include an outdoor patio for up to 85 people. A parking lot for the multi-entertainment center will be built at the corner of 71st Street and Bennett Avenue.

Construction is expected to begin later this year with a goal of opening June 2020, according to Starks.

“ICE is launching a new development, blending a variety of entertainment and dining targeted to sophisticated, urbane adults and leveraging a fast, growing trend of successful ‘eatertainment’ brands from Dave & Busters to Punch Bowl Social,” explained Starks.

We'll see if Starks will make good on the open date for next year. The new cineplex was proposed to have opened last year as well. 

My birthday last month at Studio Movie Grill Chatham...

SMG Chatham concession stand, bar, lobby

For the first time in years I went to the SMG Chatham theaters. I met up with fellow Sixth Ward blogger JP Paulus (whose birthday also fell on December 14th) to check out the newly renovated theaters. If you know the history the Chatham 14 was opened in 1997 under the ownership of ICE Theaters and managed in the beginning day to day by a company known as Cineplex Odeon. Of course as of 2014 the local cineplex is owned by Studio Movie Grill (SMG) and renovations were completed in 2017.

Usually I'm a matinee guy and always have been. But in meeting with JP Paulus on our respective birthday for the release of Spider-man: Into the Spiderverse I was going to the show later than normal. I had no idea according to JP that the concession stand would be closed by 6:30 PM. If you want food even if it was typical theater treats such as candy, popcorn or soft drinks you'd have to order them through a server in your respective auditorium.

I realized once I got to my auditorium that I needed to change my seat. I'm probably like a lot of theater goers don't like people sitting in front of you or don't want to sit near anyone. It was a seamless process by cashier in the box office area. Of course if you buy your tickets only you can just walk to a kiosk and use a bar code on your phone to get physical tickets.

What's I've also learned is that there will always be people who like to come to the theater at the last minute to buy tickets. Not complaining I'm often the same way and I'd prefer to pay for cash to buy movie tickets of course can't do that online. I was surprised that as I waited to change my seats in box office how gradually the line got longer and longer for those last minute moviegoers.

At least on this Friday evening the business wasn't great, it was a lightly attended night at least for the Spider-man film. I got some sliders to eat and they were great. The film was also great and to be sure it's a great movie to watch with your family or with children. It's a computer animated comic book film that often feels as if it was lifted from the pages of Marvel Comics.

Let's not forget that in the lobby is a full service bar where you could hang out before or after your movie. Perhaps you just want to drop in and not see a movie. It's there and probably a perfect place to watch the Oscars during that particular season of the year. There are big screen TVs at the bar.

If I have to rate this place, I'd give it 4 stars out of 5. I've been a customer of the Chatham 14 for years even through all the changes in the 21 years it has been in operation. I could say something about the seats in front of us in my auditorium that were covered in tarp because the roof leaked. I will also say I like how they stretched out the auditorium so that the servers could do their jobs. It seems as if they took out a row of seats to accommodate the vision of a full service dine-in movie theater.

Also I had no idea that you could pick up a menu where the greeter used to be. Usually a person that rips your tickets would be located in the hallway just before going to your respective auditorium. It was very easy to find your reserved seating as seats are lettered and numbered.

As stated in another post last year and again in our year end round-up. You need not go downtown to either Showplace Icon or AMC Block 37 Dine-In theaters to get the same amenities you get get at 210 W. 87th Street. Unlike at those two downtown theaters with similar amenities you don't have to pay to park on 87th Street.

BTW, shout out to Harlan Falcon Brian who was one of the managers on duty on that evening.

The remodeled SMG Chatham gets a thumbs up...

SMG Chatham 14

The launch of Chatham Center Chicago last Wednesday gave me the opportunity to check out the new SMG Chatham 14 on Wednesday. Didn't get a chance to catch a show there on this day, however, I was there for that program and saw a lot of changes to the lobby since before the many changes that were finally complete last spring.

The last time I came to watch a movie here was in 2014 for the Seth Rogen & Zac Efron comedy Neighbors. At that point there was still no bar in what used to be the lobby and things really look the some from since the theaters ownership under ICE Theatres.

Bar in lobby SMG Chatham

Then I see the changes to the concession stand, a kitchen where the video games used to be, of course the bar and seating in the lobby, a stage where the fabled & often closed Chatham Grill used to be, and also there were more games in the hallway towards the auditoriums those are gone now. Now the theater is truly a great place to come watch a movie.

Hallway to auditoriums

Think about it, for those amenities you can expect to get in downtown Chicago such as AMC Dine-in Block 37 or Kerasotes Theatres Showplace Icon one needs not go that far. Just come to 210 W. 87th Street and you can have those same downtown amenities. Not just the bar, food service in the auditorium during the movie, reserved seating, even purchasing advance tickets online.

Purchasing tickets online is especially key for when the next hot release from the Marvel Cinematic Universe Black Panther hits theaters around the country February 16, 2018.

BTW, I know that with this new Chatham Center moving forward SMG Chatham is poised to be one of the main businesses. And I promise to come here every once in a while to watch a movie. Or perhaps come in and try some of the menu offerings also.

2017: Year in review

Happy new years everyone a few things happened and one big story we'll talk about at length here. Of course that will make this year end post unusual this year. 2017 has certainly been an interesting year - especially since this blog has been publishing for 10 years. Here's looking towards 2018 and the promise the new year offers.

20 years ago ICE Chatham 14 Theaters opened...

ICE on FB

Reading the archived ICE Theaters website their three theaters were open for business on November 24, 1997.  Meanwhile 20 years later we discuss some history and ultimately the future.

In October, Worlee Glover at Concerned Citizens of Chatham marked the occasion in the 1990s when Donzell & Alisa Starks - the couple who owns ICE Theaters - approached the community about opening their facility in Chatham. It's noted that while there have been many changes to the theater since opening in 1997 one aspect of their vision remains - we still need not have to go too far from our neighborhood to catch the latest Hollywood releases.

Wanting to see Tomorrow Never Dies - a James Bond film starring Pierce Brosnan - it was nice to not have to drive to the then General Cinemas and current AMC Theatres at Ford City to catch a movie. Just drive up the Dan Ryan to 87th Street to catch a show. It was something my mother and I had done faithfully for years. The Chatham community has a history of successful Black-owned businesses which included Seaway Bank and it was also cool that this theater was Black owned even if day-to-day management were actually performed by Cineplex-Odeon at the time.

It seems a former owner of ICE Theaters is back with a proposed theater development

I had been a bit hard of Ms. Alisa Starks during this past summer. Back in 2015 Starks - who with her late husband Donzell Starks owned ICE Theaters - proposed a theater, restaurant, and retail to be located at the former main branch of Urban Partnership Bank. Incidentally that branch also contained the facade of the former Jeffrey Theater.

In any case there was nothing but questions with regards to her plan such as whether or not ICE Theaters was involved - since sometime that year that company had filed for bankruptcy. Then recently more news on bringing a development to 71st & Jeffrey:

Alisa Starks, who developed movie theaters in Chatham and Lawndale, said at Tuesday night’s 5th Ward meeting that she plans to demolish the former Urban Partnership Bank at 7054 S. Jeffery Blvd. and build an entertainment center

Starks, who lives in the Jackson Park Highlands area of South Shore, bought the building in 2015 for an estimated $307,500, according to county property records, and she originally planned to maintain the building and build a movie theater and bowling alley.

“When the architects got in they said we couldn’t use the building as is, so we’re going to demolish it,” Starks said.

While I'm disappointed that they won't use the building as is, the proposed new building looks great.

Going further:

The three-story building will be topped with an events venue designed by 555 International, the Chicago firm that designed Girl and the Goat and GT Fish and Oyster. The first two stories of the building will be focused on the theater, which will serve food and beer and wine, and the restaurant, which Starks said already is developing a Creole menu.

If it seems early to be thinking about the menu before any work has begun, it’s a sign of the aggressive pace Starks said she wants to hit after two years of planning the project.

Starks said she wants to open next summer. The next step will be to get zoning approval from the city. If there is a mild winter, demolition will begin sooner, Starks said.

Here's hoping that this concept does get off the ground!

An interesting proposal for the former UPB branch/Jeffrey Theater

UPDATE 11:25 AM - I apologize, failed to give this post a title!

7054 S. Jeffrey Blvd

Through NextDoor I found a DNA Info article regarding Alisa Starks making a pitch to the South Shore community regarding the former Urban Partnership Bank branch located at 7054 S. Jeffrey Blvd. It sounds like a good plan:

Alisa Starks, who developed movie theaters in Lawndale and Chatham, has been brought in by Monroe Investments to revive the bank at 7054 S. Jeffery Blvd. that closed in 2014.

At a 5th Ward meeting Tuesday at the South Shore Cultural Center, Starks presented a rough idea for the 46,000-square-foot bank that included a four-screen movie theater on the main floor, a six-lane bowling alley in the basement and a kid-friendly restaurant and play area on the second floor.

“It’s designed to be a boutique theater, think Hyde Park’s Harper Theater,” said Starks, who said she was alerted to the bank’s potential by one of her South Shore neighbors.

She said the first floor would also include a Cajun restaurant called Odessa with live jazz and blues run by the chef from the now-closed Epiphany Bistro in Lincoln Park. 

The former UPB branch - and longtime hq for the defunct Shorebank - had been closed since 2014. The space also includes the facade of the former Jeffrey Theater. It would be very cool to redevelop that site and it could be a movie theater again and revive this corner now that a important business anchor had left. There's just one problem.

This article is almost two years old. Published in August 2015 and during that month Starks' ICE Theaters had filed for bankruptcy. Of course this is not to say this wouldn't be a successful venture and that this project genuinely caught the entrepreneurial eye of Ms. Starks.

Not mentioned in this article was ICE Theaters other than the fact that the Chatham 14 was sold by the Starks and ultimately that venue is under the ownership and banner of Studio Movie Grill. So no indication of this development on Jeffrey becoming an outpost for ICE Theaters.

Now, it's about to be summer 2017, which is the expected opening date for this venue. One wonders if there are any further updates about this development or even a grand opening. In the meanwhile it's safe to say this space remains shuttered and there is also a shuttered grocery store just across the street still looking for a tenant.

Finally here's a recent picture of 71st/Jeffrey taken from the J14 bus on the way to downtown Chicago. I could be wrong but there's no evidence of any development here. Perhaps Ms. Starks wasn't able to make this development happen during the course of the last two years.

71st/Jeffrey

Studio Movie Grill launches remodeled Chatham theater

Early concept of SMG Chatham

The concept you see above have come slowly, but has finally become reality according to this press release from Studio Movie Grill regarding our local movie house. And also this ig post we shared around Oscar time.

Has anyone been to the Chatham 14 Theaters

Having been under the ownership of Studio Movie Grill for three years we've been anticipating a refurbishment that will drastically change the theater with a bar, restaurant, new seats in the auditoriums, and even restaurant service in the auditoriums.

I haven't patronized the theater in a number of years, but it's time to check out some of the changes that we knew were coming for years under new ownership.

As you see in this IG post below, this is how the lobby looked during the Sunday night Oscar telecast.

New look at Studio Movie Grill Chatham. #smgchatham

A post shared by bwcTV-chicago (@bwctvchicago) on Feb 26, 2017 at 8:32pm PST

Looking back at the year 2016

 A few stories that come to mind to wrap up the year 2016.

The Red Line extension to 130th street is moving forward. A draft environmental impact statement was submitted and there was a recent hearing regarding this future project. We also learned the extension may not open until 2026 at the earliest. But at least some progress is being made and the major step that need to be taken is funding.

We've learned on Monday of the passing of Mr. Donzell Starks who owned #icetheaters with his wife Alisa Starks. In 1997 they built and opened movie theaters in the Chatham, Englewood, and Lawndale neighborhoods. Condolences to the Starks family. #Chatham #englewood #lawndale #business #entrepreneurs #blackownedbusiness #movietheater #chatham14 #chicagogram #southside #cinematreasures

A photo posted by The Sixth Ward (@thesixthward) on Oct 4, 2016 at 9:38pm PDT

We learned of the passing of Mr. Donzell Starks in October. Starks and his wife Alisa - or it appears the Starks' have at some point divorced - owned ICE Theaters which had owned and operated theaters in Chatham, Englewood and Lawndale. Chatham is now under Studio Movie Grill and no longer owned by ICE Theaters as of 2014. Both Englewood and Lawndale are closed. Around the time of Stark's death, I found through a Google search an article that reported that ICE Theaters had filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2015.

I'll also add that posting an image of Donzell Starks such as the one you saw above to Instagram resulted in 33 likes. Some of those may not have been from people who knew who he was, but many of them probably admired him as an entrepreneur that brought back a needed business to our communities.

A photo posted by The Sixth Ward (@thesixthward) on Sep 28, 2016 at 11:52am PDT

Also the long awaited Whole Foods Market at 63rd & Halsted opened in late September to huge fanfare. It opened in the new Englewood Square shopping center which also opened a Starbuck's that opened the same day as the Whole Foods. In addition after the Whole Foods and Starbuck's open within about a month Englewood saw a Chipotle's open at Englewood Square.

Speaking of Whole Foods Market it was announced in spring 2016 that they're bringing a distribution center to 111th Street near the Wal-Mart Supercenter. It will count the new Methods plant and Gotham Greens as neighbors. In November an event to hire was advertised to help people who currently have a trade to work on this project.

Back in Chatham, the building that houses Pride Cleaners is for sale. It's considered an example of mid modern architecture and considered something of a landmark located near 79th & Rhodes. It was inspiration as the Chatham brand for The Chicago Neighborhoods.

#Repost @seawaybankandtrust: #SeawayHistory: In 1965 Seaway opened for business on January 2nd in a rented storefront at 8555 S. Cottage Grove Avenue in Chicago. Permanent headquarters (Chatham Branch) at 645 E. 87th Street was opened on November 18th and the second floor was added in 1969. (Member FDIC) #personalfinance #millennial #debt #seawaybank #bankblack #retire #retirement #traveltips #moneytips #investing #strategy #banking #banklocally #chicagogram #southside

A photo posted by The Sixth Ward (@thesixthward) on Oct 6, 2016 at 2:32pm PDT

Also after celebrating 50 years in 2015, it came out in the news that local lender Seaway Bank is in trouble in 2016. Here's hoping for a different result in 2017 for this significant Black-owned bank. The post above from Seaway's early days 50 years ago got 54 likes when it was reposted from Seaway's own ig profile.

Finally we had a presidential election and with Donald Trump as the President-elect there are many who are unhappy. The former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton solidly won this state and its electoral votes. In the rest of the country she won the popular vote, however, failed to secure the 270 electoral votes needed to win the Presidency. There have been protests in downtown Chicago since the election.

A photo posted by The Sixth Ward (@thesixthward) on Mar 15, 2016 at 9:25pm PDT

Of course as far as politics, there will be a new State's Attorney in Cook County in Kim Foxx. She defeated two-term incumbent Anita Alvarez in the March 2016 Democratic Primary. Alvarez's defeat was attributed in part to the controversial police shooting in 2014 of one Laquan McDonald and her role in the suppression of the dashcam video of this incident.

Any other stories worth noting from 2016, feel free to let us know about them in our comments.

What's new with ICE Theaters?

ICE Theaters Lawndale 10 by Costar Group

To be transparent, I edited the post regarding the death of ICE Theaters owner Donzell Starks that had been published earlier this month. The reason why is because there was no need to be stuck in some negativity as I realize there are a few people who might still mention the "hostile takeover" of the Chatham 14 from over four years ago.

Originally when the blog post was published - and before any editing - was the inclusion of a link to a Crain's article from August 2015. It showed that ICE Theaters - or referred to as a Donzell Starks venture - had filed for bankruptcy. Starks' untimely demise was clearly a shock, but finding this article looking for any published reports in the mainstream media of Donzell's death was also a shock.

From 1997 to 2012, the Chatham theaters had been owned and operated by ICE Theaters. Then after a business dispute ICE moved to the ICE Theaters Lawndale 10 as their company headquarters. I called the showtimes phone number sometime in 2014 as I saw that the official company FB page had stopped updating- save for one random post regarding Serena Williams. Learned at that time that the Lawndale facility had been closed in December 2013 open only for private events.

At this point it's a sad end for a company with a significant legacy. As noted in Crain's, ICE Theaters beat a bid by Magic Johnson to open three movie theaters in minority neighborhoods. Also the Starks owned Meridian which operated theaters in and around downtown Chicago which unfortunately didn't survive. Many of them were originally Cineplex-Odeon theaters.

Even during all the controversy over the Chatham after the events of October 2012 it's often noted the legacy of the Starks bringing movie theaters back to under served neighborhoods in our city.

Donzell Starks RIP

On Monday, we've learned that Donzell Starks - one of the owners of ICE Theaters with his wife Alisa Starks - has passed away. According to a fb status shared on Concerned Citizens of Chatham he died due to pancreatic cancer.

Also in that same status Alisa was referred to as his ex-wife, unsure if that could be verified independently of social media.

One of the main stories we covered during the past four years revolves around the change in ownership of the Chatham 14 Theaters. With a business dispute causing ICE Theaters to be evicted from the Chatham and operations taken over by new ownership. Currently, the Chatham is owned by the Texas based company Studio Movie Grill.

In 1997 ICE Theaters built and opened theaters in Chatham, Englewood, and Lawndale bringing movie theaters back into inner city neighborhoods. He without a doubt leaves behind a significant legacy that hopefully other entrepreneurs in our communities will also do something as groundbreaking.

Condolences to the Starks family.

EDITED 10/4/2016 8:45 PM- Another post via Concerned Citizens of Chatham shows information on memorial services.

Changes are coming soon to the Chatham 14

Concept of the new SMG Chatham theater

Since the spring of this year I sat on this post regarding Studio Movie Grill Chatham and now it's time to share this today because of a recent DNA Info article about the expected renovations to the former ICE Theaters Chatham 14 are behind schedule.

I had been up there to watch a movie back in May and see the complex has largely been emptied especially of it's game room but not sign that any work has commenced. And so far nothing new had been put onto the building. So what's going on?

The owner of the former Chatham 14 Theaters, 210 W. 87th St., said it is waiting for city approvals before beginning renovations, which were expected to begin in February and end by June.

"We got pushed back a bit trying to get licenses and approvals from the city," said Lynne McQuaker, a spokeswoman for Studio Movie Grill in Plano, Texas.

But according to data from the city's Buildings Department, the theater received a permit on April 21 and as of Tuesday no other permits had been issued.

So what's the hold-up? Some customers have their opinions:

"I have been coming here since it opened in 1997 when it was called ICE Chatham 14, then Chatham 14 Theaters last year and now Studio Movie Grill," said Walter Childs, a 67-year-old Grand Crossing resident. "My wife and I come to Chatham to see a movie every weekend and we're looking forward to coming more often once alcohol is available."

Rosemary Burns, 75, said she goes to the theater three times a week with other seniors from her West Chatham neighborhood.

"The community room is what I was looking forward to the most. There's not a lot of places in Chatham that provide meeting rooms for seniors," Burns said.

Here's hopeing these new exciting changes will commence soon.

Now here's the information I sat on from this past spring. So time to dust this post off for more information. To start, a press release from SMG. Also another DNA Info article about the name change as the Chatham Theater went from ICE Theaters to Chatham 14 Theaters and now SMG Chatham.

Feel free to let us know what you think of these changes and whether or not you'd support the theater with its coming changes.

PHOTO: Southtown Theater - Englewood

Southtown Theater @ 610 W. 63rd St.

The photo above is the late Southtown Theater located at 610 W. 63rd Street in Englewood. It was one of a few theaters that was once located near 63rd & Halsted.  The Southtown was a movie palace that was in operation from 1931 to 1958 and later was converted for use as a department store until it was finally torn down in 1991. I wanted to do a post like this since the picture above - taken in the 1930s - of the Southtown was posted to the FB group Forgotten Chicago.

When the Whole Foods Market store was announced back in September I did a post about what YOU would like to see at 63rd & Halsted. Noted that it was home to many theaters and of course many of us know it's history as a very well patronized commercial area. The area while known for retail, this area could also be described as an area for entertainment with the Englewood and Statford Theaters among others nearby (refer to this map). BTW, the Stratford is often said to be where Bob Hope - who was a comedian on radio, film, and TV - got his first start.

Recently having found a posting over at RAGE's FB page with founder Aysha Butler wanting another movie theater, I was reminded that there is already a cinema in the Englewood area. ICE Theaters continues to own the property located behind the Sears building at 62nd & Western. After what happened with their former Chatham 14 property ICE's owners were making plans to reopen the 62nd/Western theaters this year although that doesn't appear likely to happen at this point.

In bringing a theater to Englewood that would be a good start to bring Hollywood back to the community. It was always my first thought to say that 62nd/Western was an odd location for a theater tucked away from Western Avenue and 63rd Street. My favored location as it was in that previous what would you like to see follow-up post from September is to bring a cinema back to 63rd/Halsted and bring some activity to that area.

If a theater does one day return hopefully it would evoke the legacy of entertainment in Englewood. In the meanwhile all we can do at the moment is continue to dream.

Chatham 14 Theaters has a new majority owner

Lone Movie Theater on the South Side Changes Ownership - DNAinfo.com Chicago

Me and a friend of mine continue to talk about this situation. The story continues and this proves to be an interesting development. For those who have followed it, I wonder if there's a big surprise here.

Besides its name, little has changed since new ownership took over the South Side's only movie theater.

Formerly ICE Chatham 14 Theaters and now the Chatham 14 Theaters, located at 210 W. 87th St., the cinema was once the only black-owned movie theater in Chicago, featuring films geared toward an African-American audience and employing local youth.

Now Michael Silver, who had been part owner for the past five years, is the majority owner after the theater's founders, Donzell and Alisa Starks, sold it to him, Silver said.

The Starks, founders of Inner City Entertainment, still own the ICE Lawndale 10 Theaters on the West Side, according to Alisa Starks.

“We are thrilled that we have come to this agreement,” said Silver, who is white. “We are looking forward to taking the Chatham 14 Theaters into the next stage of development. We’re making plans for upgrading the theaters with digital projectors, new carpeting and other amenities to make this a world-class entertainment venue on the South Side.”

Silver declined disclosed financial terms of the deal.

The business relationship between the Starks, who declined to comment, and Silver soured in October when Silver had an eviction order he filed in Cook County Circuit Court enforced. The theater was forced to close for a week after Cook County sheriff's deputies shut the building down. It later reopened with a new name and new management, F & F Management Inc., which took over daily operations from the Starks.

Even though the cinema is no longer black-owned, Silver said that the Chatham 14 Theaters would continue in its role as the film hub of the neighborhood by hiring local vendors and employees, as well as presenting a platform for independent filmmakers.

A sad development, but time to move forward. Many still continue to support this business and hopefully many on the south side still support the business in spite of what happened this past October. We do wish the Starks' well in their future endeavors.

Not mentioned is the real estate arrangement although that probably hasn't changed yet. I wish there was more to the F & F Management website.

Citizen: Lawsuit Probable in Battle Over Chatham Theater

Click image to visit their website

The Citizen is writing more about our local movie house. We already know the genesis of this story, Alisa and Donzell Starks had been forced out of day-to-day operations by their silent partner Michael Silver. Silver brought in a management firm to operate the theater and the Starks' continue to operate Lawndale. While the Starks' no longer operate the Chatham 14, they still own the property with Silver.

I'm trying not to excerpt a lot from this article but there is a lot of information here. This is the most complete story I have found yet! There was another indication here, trouble had been brewing for years. If you know the court system in Cook County it takes time to evict people whether we're talking about residential or business renters.

All the same, it starts off with the Starks' planning to go to court and then the beginning of their relationship with Michael Silver which started in 2007. Then how Silver thought breaking with Marcus Theaters and F & F Management had been a mistake in hindsight. The most important thing to note in our posting was the process of the eviction and forcing the Starks' out of day to day operations at the Chatham.

Earlier this year, Silver began the eviction process in court. As the managing partner he took the Starks to court for outstanding “rent” as the theater operators. Both sides said they didn’t want it to come down to such action.

The Starks said they began to expedite their plan to buy Silver out and were close to a deal as the sides went back and forth to court. The couple had until late September to make a move but Silver said they ran out of time which was evidenced by the big neon green eviction sign on the movie house’s door on Oct. 19. At the time, the theater was preparing for a busy Tyler Perry’s “Alex Cross” film opening.

“He is using his role as managing partner to control some things in a certain way that we’re objecting to,” Alisa Starks said about Silver.

Silver said the couple had at least six months to ante up and buy him out, or altogether step aside. When they didn’t, he put them out.

“They agreed in writing that if they were unsuccessful in buying that interest, they would voluntarily step down and allow a new operator to take their place,” he said. “I was very, very upset because I did not want to disrupt that theater or the Chatham community. But I had no choice but to evict them.”

According to documents available on the Cook County Clerk of the Circuit Court’s website, the owner of the Chatham theater property is 210 W. 87th Chicago TH, LLC (Silver and the Starks) and eviction proceedings began in March against I.C.E. Development (the Starks) which operated the theater. According to the electronic docket, the Starks owe at least $725,000. Alisa Starks said the couple needed just shy of $10 million to buyout Silver.

So also noted here are future plans!

F&F Management is now operating Chatham and Silver said he is expecting to make at least $1 million in capital improvements.

John Scaletta, vice president of F&F Management, said that the Chatham -14 theater workers who wanted to stay on had been retained and that all of the African American vendors and contractors — except for the security company — are still intact. He added that all of the managers are still at the theater, as well.

“The Starks did something really, really important. They brought entertainment to the South Side of Chicago when no one else would,” said Scaletta.

The battle over Chatham will move to the courts, the Starks said. Still, Lawndale remains open under them and they look forward to reopening Western in the future.

 I was up there not long after they reopened and one weekend in the same period. They still can draw a crowd and on the day I had been up there which was a Wednesday, there were a steady stream of senior citizens coming up to watch a show. So there are still people who will come to watch a show during the course of a given week.

How many of these people would be willing to go to the West Side to support the Starks'? There were those who were calling for that in the wake of the eviction and the Chatham's reopening.

Chatham 14 Theaters: Is the Best Yet To Come

Last night at the ICE Lawndale 10 theaters, they celebrated President Barack Obama victory over Mitt Romney. I'm quite sure it was a welcomed distraction for owners Mr and Mrs. Donzell and Alisa Starks. Unfortunately, the Starks could not celebrate with patrons who frequent Chatham 14 theaters located at 210 W. 87th. as the new management company chose not to host a viewing party. For some the absence of events like this and the Starks I.C.E company managing the theater marks the end of an era. Several weeks ago my friends at The Sixth Ward Blog ran a post on the theater after noticing signs in the window stating the tenants had been evicted and other signs stating the theater will reopen under new management. Subsequently, the mainstream media got involved in the story as well as other online media outlets and the story went in every direction. At the Sixth Ward Blog we sent out emails to the owners as well as elected officials to get more information. Mrs. Starks responded and simply stated that it was a disagreement between the owners. The owners being the Starks and Mr. Michael Silver. It came as a surprise to most that the Starks had a silent partner in the business and one who was not African American. A war of words took place as representatives from both sides decided to issue press releases and speak to certain media sources. Also, some "community activist" started their own war of words and even went to the extent of asking neighborhood moviegoers to bypass the Chatham 14 and go the Lawndale 10 instead. This angered me because when the Starks came to the Chatham Avalon Park Community Council meeting in 1996 and announced the opening of what what then Cineplex Odeon ICE theaters Chatham 14 the community was elated as it brought a theater back to the community. The community had not had a movie theater since the early 1980's when the Rhodes theater closed its doors for good and was subsequently demolished. The community was very proud as the Starks grew up in the community and still have family living in the Chatham community. Mr. Starks simply stated that African Americans want to see movies like Forest Gump just like everyone else and the community should not have to travel across the city to see a movie. Also, he stated that he wanted to provide jobs to the community especially the youth. In November 1997,the Starks dreams came to fruition and the Chatham 14 along with the Lawndale 10 and the 62nd Western facility opened the public.

 For several years, the Chatham 14 was the highest grossing movie theater outside of downtown Chicago. The Starks expanded their empire to include the Meridian movie chain that included the Hyde Park and Bricktown theaters. Unfortunately, they were not received as well as they had been in Chatham and subsequently sold the Meridian theaters and after major stores such as Dominicks and Starbucks closed in the strip mall where the Lawndale 10 was located, it was closed as well. Per published reports the Starks entered into a partnership with Mr. Silver in 2007 and in January 2011, the Starks received $10 million in financing under a State of Illinois loan guarantee program to reopen the Lawndale 10 and make improvements to the Chatham 14. While many had initial concerns that the new management team would ax independent film programs such as Black World Cinema and Shortcutz, this has not been the case. The theater reopened to host the Englewood Film Festival as it had previously promised. Also, the new management team has retained all the employees of the Chatham 14 including several key employees. It has been reported that they employ almost 100 people at the location. While a security firm was relieved of their duties during the dispute, a new firm owned by African Americans has been retained. 

So it baffles me that these "community activist" who bum rushed the Shell Oil project with Ed Gardner, a block away demanding to see more African Americans want to put other African Americans in the unemployment line. Secondly, the Starks are well educated individuals, one a former investment banker and the the other a national account advertising executive. To take it back further Mr. Starks didn't become a Tuley/Cole Park basketball legend or go on to play basketball for Hales Franciscan or Western Illinois by being soft. 

So to believe they can't handle their business shows that these individuals are little faith and are not the "insiders" they claim to be. No one likes the situation and no one but the owners and their attorney's and bankers know what is really going on. This is business not tiddlywinks, so we must let the parties work it out and accept the outcome whichever way it goes. But, to prematurely cause friction in an already ugly negotiation doesn't help either party, especially the Starks, so for me until I receive official word from the Starks or their representatives I'm going to continue to go to the Chatham 14 and help keep some of my neighbors employed just as the Starks envisioned.