Reed Theatre - Reed City MI

Address: 107 E. Upton Ave
City: Reed City
State: MI
Zip: 49677
County: Osceola
Open:
Capacity:
Owner History:
Theater Type: Small Town Movie Palace
Number of visits to this page: 21126
Disclaimer:

Please note that location entries may feature older photos or post card views that may not represent the current appearance, features, addresses, phone numbers, or contact names of the attraction. This site is intended to be a historical as well as current record of various attractions but it is not always possible to have up-to-date information due to the vast number of locations featured here. We ask you consult the propietor for current information.

General Information:

Source: Cinema Tour

Original opening was in the 1920s when it was known as the Strand. The name changed to Reed in the 1940s and the theater closed in October 1973. It was then used as a reception and bingo hall by the local Moose Lodge before being demolished in 2000 or 2001.

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Info Updates:
4/6/2021 - Andy Gray

Our family's Johnson Construction Company records list the Reed Theatre job but do not include what year it was undertaken. It probably was an extensive 1942 renovation described in an article below. There are no slides of this theater in my grandfather Al Johnson's collection, so we'll once again need to rely on images from online sources. The Reed Theatre stood at 107 E. Upton Street in Reed City, Michigan.

The Reed City, Michigan - Then & Now Facebook page has the best quality images of the old theater, as well as several anecdotes and artifacts. I've included an entrance photo from that page, circa 1950, submitted by Sue Brearley Dalziel.

Another artifact from that page is a September 1949 article marking Norris Stafford's ten years as manager of the Reed Theatre. This article fills in some gaps in my grandfather's construction company history.

It notes that Mr. Stafford and Mr. C.H Schuckert of Caro formed the "Schuckert & Stafford" theater chain. In addition to the Reed, the chain owned theaters in Cass City (Cass), Croswell (Maxine), Millington (Capitol), Vassar (Vassar), Fowlerville (Orr) and Saginaw (Daniel). With the exception of the Vassar Theatre, our family has documented all of these as Johnson projects. With this new documentation and its "Johnson doors," it's almost a certainty that Al Johnson built the Vassar Theatre for Schuckert & Stafford.

2/27/2004 - John McDowell
The last 3 owners were: Norris Stafford (1950s until 11/64), Danny Bryan (10/65 to 9/71), and Dan Creighton (10/71 to 10/73). Dan Creighton also operated several other theatres for varying lengths of time. The Lona in Mancelona, the Budd in Harrison, and theatres in Lakeview and Lake Odessa, these last 3 in the early 70s. Dan also worked at several radio stations in northern Michigan.
9/18/2003 - Unknown
Photos courtesy of John McDowell.
 Photos:8
Reed Theatre - Old Photo From Reed City
Old Photo From Reed City
Reed Theatre - Old Photo
Old Photo
Reed Theatre - Entrance
Entrance
Reed Theatre - Lobby
Lobby
Reed Theatre - Projection Booth
Projection Booth
Reed Theatre - Old Poster From Timothy Crisenbery
Old Poster From Timothy Crisenbery
Reed Theatre - Old Poster From Timothy Crisenbery
Old Poster From Timothy Crisenbery
Reed Theatre - Then And Now - Old Theater Replaced By General Mills Plant
Then And Now - Old Theater Replaced By General Mills Plant
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