The Michigan Cinema History (MCH) caches are dedicated to the local creation, viewing,
or enjoyment of movie and cinema-related items in the local area.
This series is a companion to the Detroit Cinema History (DCH) series.
This can include, and is not limited to, people, places, and things of Cinema or both past-and-present.
The Woods Theatre
Open: 1948 | Closed: 1997 | Capacity: 2400+ (originally)
Woods Theatre, 1948 with "Night Song" on the Marquee
For a neighborhood house, in the suburb of Grosse Pointe Woods, the Woods was originally quite large, and sat well over 2500. It was built for the United Detroit Theaters chain which had not built a theatre in almost 7 years. That one was the Royal, at west 7 Mile Road and Meyers, in Detroit. The Woods was designed by the same architect as the Royal, Charles N. Agree, who was also responsible for several other noted buildings and theatres in Metro Detroit. This late Art Moderne style movie theater opened with the film Crossfire, starring Robert Young, Robert Mitchum and Robert Ryan.
Movie poster from "Crossfire" (1947)
The Woods contained unusual features such as Telesonic seats for the hearing-impaired, and a good-sized exhibition gallery, which was leased to area schools and business owners.
In 1969, the year the Woods began to be jointly operated by Plitt Theatres and Nicholas George, it briefly closed as it underwent a nearly-million dollar reconstruction, converting the spacious balcony into a second auditorium.
The original Main Auditorium
It was reopened in late 1970 as the Woods I & II, with 1200 seats in the main auditorium and 750 in the new second auditorium. Theater architect Louis Wiltse was hired in 1981 to transform the upper level auditorium into a twin, seating 335 and 320 each. Two years later, Wiltse triplexed the main auditorium, seating 590, 312 and 305. In the mid-80s, the former exhibition hall was even converted into another auditorium, one of the tiniest in the Detroit area, seating a mere 62. Some folks even referred to it as "a garage".
1998 view of the front of the Woods Theatre.
In 1986, AMC took over the Woods, afterwards converted it into the "AMC Woods 6". In 1997, the theater was shuttered, and the property sold to the nearby hospital. It was later demolished and the space has now been turned into another retail space and a small park space for local residents.