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Pickwick Theatre

A towering Art Deco movie palace made to look like a Mayan temple.

Park Ridge, Illinois

Added By
Kerry Wolfe
Pickwick   Puttyhead / CC BY-SA 4.0
The main part of the theater is meant to resemble a temple.   Alan Gornik/Used with Permission
A close look at the exterior details.   Alan Gornik/Used with Permission
Mayan-inspired details on the inside of the theater.   Alan Gornik/Used with Permission
A close look at the stained glass.   Alan Gornik/Used with Permission
Colorful details.   Alan Gornik/Used with Permission
Artwork inside the theater.   Alan Gornik/Used with Permission
The Pickwick Theatre.   Teemu008
Pickwick Theater 04/15/2023  
Ticket office detail   mocchiatto / Atlas Obscura User
  mocchiatto / Atlas Obscura User
Door handle details   mocchiatto / Atlas Obscura User
Under marquee detail   mocchiatto / Atlas Obscura User
Pickwick interior   BWChicago / CC BY 2.0
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About

This grand Art Deco theater rises high above the streets of a Chicago suburb. Its stately 100-foot tower makes the building look more like a temple than a cinema. In fact, that’s exactly the point.

The main auditorium of the spectacular Pickwick Theatre was designed to resemble a Mayan temple. The interior ceiling is adorned with bright geometric patterns and additional Mayan-inspired designs climb the walls.

The movie palace is one of the many exotically inspired theaters to pop up within the United States in the 1920s and ‘30s. Unlike many of the other extravagant Art Deco theaters, this one managed to survive to this day.

It could originally pack 1,400 people into the beautifully decorated walls of its main auditorium, though recent renovations have reduced its capacity. Despite the slight downsize, the theater is still going strong: It continues to show films and also hosts live shows.

The impressive building has gone beyond just showing films and has even gotten a bit of screen time itself. Its front tower made a cameo in the opening credits of the show Siskel & Ebert & the Movies.

Related Tags

Theaters Movie Palace Art Deco Architecture

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Added By

Kerry Wolfe

Published

March 28, 2018

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