In 1915, Vincent Liggio built the first movie theater in Dickinson on the northwest corner of Main Street and Video Street. It showed only silent movies in black and white.
They operated two projection machines. They did not have electricity, so they built a generator, which ran on gasoline behind the theater to generate electricity.
The Emmittes opened a talkie across the street from the Liggio silent movie house in 1928. The silent theater closed in 1931.
Emmitte moved his movie operation to Highway 3 into the new Hollywood Theater. When it opened in 1941, it was the entertainment center for Dickinson’s youth. “Me and my friends lived at that picture show,” remembers Clint Wolston. “I bet we saw every movie they showed.”
Times turned hard for the Hollywood in the 1960s. The last movie was shown on the Hollywood screen in 1966.
Going to the movies
I remember the movie Gone With The Wind. It was such a big movie, everyone had to see it. We had to go to Houston to see it.
At that time you dressed to go to the movies. You wore your hat to go to the movie.
I really remember high heeled shoes, and hats and gloves, fancy things. No matter where we went we always had hats and gloves. All of us had a fur coat. And red fingernail polish, it only cost ten cents, and face powder.
Recollections of Dora Salvato Magliolo
Recollection from the balcony
Because Dickinson is so small we, you know, the whites and blacks would cross…like at the movie, there was only one movie in town. Of course when we went we had to go upstairs, and we would go upstairs. If you wanted to go to the man’s movie you went upstairs.
Shamarion Barber
We would go movie with a quarter. We would pay a nickel to get into movie, a nickel for soda, a nickel for pop corn, a nickel for a candy bar and keep a nickel for another time. Of course we black kids had to sit up stairs at the picture show; white kids could sit at the bottom.
Mrs. Lois Height
