206 W. Bonita Ave. Claremont, CA 91711 |
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Opening: January 17, 1940 with the British film "To the Victor" (original title "Owd Bob") starring Will Fyffe and John Loder. This Frasher Foto Postcard from 1946 is in the collection of the
Pomona Public Library. At the time of the photo they were playing "The Green Years" with Charles Coburn, Tom Drake and Beverly Tyler. The co-feature was Joan Davis and Jack Oakie in "She Wrote the Book."
The Village was listed in the 1940 Claremont city
directory as at 3rd & Harvard Ave. In the 1945, 1948 and 1951 directories the address was "3rd SW corner Harvard." 3rd St. was later renamed Bonita Ave.
Seating: 540 was the number from a Film Daily Yearbook. It was a stadium-style layout.
Architect: Sumner Spaulding remodeled a 1920s vintage building and added a modern retail wing to its east side. Spauding, along with Walter Webber, had designed the
Avalon Theatre and Casino Building on Catalina and possibly also the earlier
Riviera Theatre there. The Claremont Courier has this to say about him on a "
Building Claremont: the early years" page:
"Sumner
Spaulding was born in 1892 in Michigan. He attended the University of
Michigan, Ann Arbor and graduated from MIT in Massachusetts in 1916. He
also studied in Mexico and Europe. He designed the Frary Dining Hall at
Pomona College in 1929, along with Mudd and Clark Halls. He also
designed one of the most significant historic structures in the Village,
the former Village Theatre, better known now as Harvard Square.
"The
Village Theatre was built in 1939 and opened with much fanfare in
January 1940. The Courier carried a full-page pictorial of the
festivities on January 19, under the heading, 'Gala Opening Night at
Village Theater in Pictures.' The theatre operated continuously until
1979, when it was renovated and reused to accommodate specialty shops
and restaurants. The character defining features were kept intact, and
to allow access to the second story, noted architect Everett Tozier
designed the free-standing stair structure on the north side of the
building.
"Mr. Spaulding became renowned for projects such as the
Los Angeles Civic Center, silent-film legend Harold Lloyd’s estate,
Green Acres, and the Avalon Theatre on Santa Catalina Island, in addition
to much of the north campus of Pomona College. In 1945, Mr. Spaulding
designed, and together with John Rex redesigned, the mid-century modern
style Case Study House No. 2, that was completed in 1947, in the Chapman
Woods neighborhood of Pasadena. Mr. Spaulding taught architecture at
USC and at Scripps College."
Joe Vogel notes that the project was reported in Boxoffice in February 1939. His report:
"Construction was to start within a few weeks on the 500-seat
Village Theatre in Claremont, and the house was to open on April 15,
according to Boxoffice of February 18, 1939. The Village would be
operated by Richard L. Bare, operator of the Filmarte Theatre in Carmel,
California, and, like the Filmarte, it was to be a single-bill house
booking both American and European movies.
"The Claremont Colleges were
associated with Bare in the project, and would have supervision over the
programs, which would change twice weekly. Given the short time between
the start of construction and the projected opening date, I suspect
that the Village was installed in an existing building that was
remodeled into a theatre. The Boxoffice item confirms Sumner Spaulding
as the architect for the project..."
The lobby had a mural by Millard Sheets. The contractor was Stover Construction. Willard P. Stover was a resident of Ontario and Clarence T. Stover lived in Claremont. In "
The Village Theatre - Part 1," a 2021 Claremont Courier story by John Neiuber, he discusses the building's history. Some of his report:
"... The Village Theatre was constructed of brick and stucco and had a cutting-edge modern design for the time that saw the lobby and shops jut out from the main structure with a sleek and uninterrupted roof line. The undersized brick pillars and bench wall around the patio were also part of the character defining features of the building... The owner, A.L. Reeves, was a well-known Pomona Valley resident of 25 years who had recently moved to Claremont. He selected Spaulding who had shared with Reeves a prospective development plan for a modern civic and business center in the Village. Spaulding proposed wider streets with adequate parking which appealed to Reeves.
"According to the opening night program, 'The deciding factor which caused him [Reeves] to erect a distinctive theatre building was that it would be run as an independent show house catering to a cultured public under an unusual policy and with individual management.' He called his theater a 'modern monument to entertainment' with the slogan 'Glorifying the World’s Cinema.'... Reeves also recruited a manager who shared his vision for the theatre. Brought to Claremont in January of 1939, Richard L. Bare worked with the architect and builder and helped guide the concept through construction...."
The opening: It's unknown what's in Part 2 of John Neiuber's story for the Courier. In
The Village Theatre - Part 3 he comments about preparations for the opening:
"On Friday, January 12, 1940, the Claremont Courier published an
article about the work surrounding the opening of the theatre. The
paper reported that 'feverish activity was in progress at the new
$35,000 Village Theatre at Third and Harvard this week.' Workmen were
completing painting and the installation of theater chairs and putting
on the finishing touches. The article stated that 'Once seated in the
highly comfortable red leather seats, spectators will find themselves in
the first stadium type moving picture theater in the Southland, chiefly
characterized by perfect visibility from any part of the auditorium.' The lobby featured a mural by Millard Sheets.
"The theatre also ran an ad in the Courier announcing the
grand opening... The seats for the
premiere were 40 cents. Thereafter, prices would be 30 cents, loges 40
cents, children 10 cents and students 25 cents. Future performances
would be a single feature, twice nightly at 7 and 9, with matinees
Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays at 2:30. The ad also listed two short
quotes about the feature film, 'To The Victor'...
"On Wednesday evening, January 17, over 500 people filled the theatre
to capacity. Theatre goers were met at the front door by Stanley Larson,
master of ceremonies. Larson had a microphone and recorded remarks by
various attendees which were later played back to the audience. Lela
Ackerman, secretary of the chamber of commerce, distributed copies of
the souvenir program. Attendees were impressed with Richard Bare's 'booking ballot' concept."
A page from the opening night program shared by John Neiuber with his stories about the theatre. The Claremont Courier Press had printed the program. In lieu of an live overture they played selections from some records titled, for this event, "Classics in Wax." The sponsor was local record store K.B. May Co. The show opened with the one-reel short "Conquering the Colorado," about an 1,100 mile trip undertaken by Buzz Holstrom. This was followed by a Pathé newsreel, the Disney cartoon "The Autograph Hound" and a "March of Time" featurette.
John notes that the "inaugural ceremonies" included MC Richard Larson
introducing Mayor Homer E. Robbins, Chamber of Commerce president Lloyd Brehaut, Claremont Colleges representative Robert Bernard, Pomona College student body president Jim
Jefferson and Scripps College student body president Virginia Waldo. Congratulations all around. Then came the feature film "To the
Victor."
This "Gala Opening Night" photo spread with photos by Donald Ryrie appeared in the January 19, 1940 issue of the Courier. Thanks to John Neiuber for sharing it. He comments:
"The Courier reported that work on the theater had only concluded just
minutes prior to the opening. Craftsmen were laying carpet and
upholstering a bench beneath the Millard Sheets mural. When the 'first
performance audience streamed from the auditorium, they were greeted in
the lobby and outside by another crowd eagerly waiting to be admitted
for the second performance.'"
The policy was program changes three times a week. John notes that the next few bookings were "Wuthering Heights" with Laurence Olivier and Merle
Oberson, Spencer Tracy in "Stanley and Livingston" and "Storm in a Teacup" with Vivien Leigh.
More about Richard L. Bare: Joe Vogel comments that original manager Richard L. Bare has a page on
IMdb and went on to a career as a director, writer, and actor for movies and television. He was born in 1913 and died in 2015. John Neiuber has more:
"Born in Turlock, California, he attended the USC School of Cinematic
Arts where he directed a notable student film, 'The Oval Portrait,' an
adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s story which earned him the Paul Muni
Award of 1934. Bare arrived in Claremont with almost ten years of
experience, having owned or managed five film theatres. In his early
twenties he managed the Community Playhouse in Carmel and oversaw the
conversion of the theatre into a motion picture house for the exhibition
of independent film called The Filmarte. The theatre earned him
country-wide attention for the theatre’s individuality.
"He promoted the
policy slogan 'Productions of merit regardless of age or origin,' which
he used to guide the management of the Village Theatre. After
leaving the Village Theatre, Bare became a director, producer and
screenwriter for television shows and short films. He wrote and directed
the Joe McDoakes series of short films for Warner Brothers. He directed
seven classic 'The Twilight Zone' episodes and directed every episode of
the CBS television series 'Green Acres.' He also directed feature films,
including 'Shoot-Out at Medicine Bend' and 'Wicked, Wicked.' He wrote two
books on directing, including 'Confessions of a Hollywood Director.'"
It's unknown how long Bare continued as manager.
The
theatre was still running as an independent operation as late as 1966. This program from summer that year that appeared on eBay featured a message from manager Gene Harvey. The programming was a mix of foreign films, "films of controversy" and Hollywood product.
page 2 |
page 2A |
page 3 |
page 4 |
Some of their more interesting bookings for that summer included "To Die in Madrid," "Let's Talk About Women," Polanski's "Repulsion," Godard's "The Married Woman," "The Moment of Truth," "The Leather Boys" with Rita Tushingham, "Marriage Italian Style," "Kwaidan," "Woman in the Dunes," "Red Desert" and "Bambole!"
Later the Village was
part of the Fox West Coast circuit, owned at the time by National
General. Ted Mann bought the circuit in 1973 and his company continued
the operation.
Closing: 1979.
Status: It's now known as the Harvard Square Building. From 1991 to 2012 the former retail area was a restaurant called the Harvard Square Cafe. It's now called Bardot.
The former retail space as Bardot. Photo: Bill Counter - 2026
A mezzanine level was built in the auditorium and it's now a two-level warren of offices, a coffee bar and stores including Cat in the Window, Vintage Odyssey and a dozen others.
The former auditorium. Photo: Bill Counter - 2026
A side wall view. Photo: Bill Counter - 2026
A self-guided walking tour is on the Claremont Heritage website. One of their stops is the former theatre:
"This brick building filled with eclectic group of shops, a salon and restaurant is one of the most successful adaptive reuses in the Village. The tall two-story brick structure once housed Claremont’s only movie theatre. At that time, shops were on the southwest corner: Imaginative use of the large theatre space finds shops and a salon on the then newly-created mezzanine and a restaurant with indoor and outdoor dining on the first-floor patio area."
More exterior views:
Looking west across Harvard Ave. The low rise retail wing was added by Sumner Spaulding to the existing brick building in 1939. Photo: Bill Counter - 2026
The 3rd St. facade with what is now Bardot restaurant on the left. Photo: Bill Counter - 2026
The area that had been the Village Theatre entrance. The signage reads "Claremont Village - Harvard Square - Village Theatre." Photo: Bill Counter - 2026
On the right it's what had been the screen end of the building. Photo: Bill Counter - 2026
A look along the south side. Out of the frame to the left it's the Claremont City Hall. Photo: Bill Counter - 2026
More information: See the Cinema Treasures page about the Village Theatre. The Cinema Tour page has three 2002 exterior views from Ron Pierce.
Don't miss Kelli Shapiro's fine 2024
Arcadia Publishing book "Inland Empire and San Gabriel Valley Movie Theatres." The City of Claremont History Collection includes over 600 items that are on Calisphere. Also visit the website of Claremont Heritage.
An earlier movie house in Claremont: The College Arms Theatre was at 249 W. 1st St. It was open by 1914 and evidently ran until 1926. See the page on the Cinema Treasures site. Joe Vogel has the report:
"The College Arms Theatre might be the
house mentioned in the November 15, 1913 issue of Southwest Contractor
and Manufacturer, which said that bids were being taken for construction
of a theater at Claremont that had been designed by Pomona architect
Paul F. Higgs. The firm of Davis & Higgs also designed a theater at
Pomona in 1911, but I’ve been unable to discover which one it was."
Looking across 1st at the site of the College Arms. Photo: Bill Counter - 2026
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