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Michigan Cinema History:
The Nordic Theatre - Marquette
136 West Washington, Marquette, MI
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OPENED: 1936 | SEATS: 452 
| CLOSED: 1994 
This cache is created/maintained by RayQix and
South Lyon Trekkers, who have family in the area
1936 night view of the Nordic
1979 view of the Nordic with "Escape from Alcatraz" playing.
The Nordic Theater was a streamline moderne, single-screen cinema based in downtown Marquette, MI. and was enjoyed by many folks during the time it was open from 1936 to 1994. The Nordic Theatre is known for it’s ground-breaking architecture and experimental acoustics and served as the city’s second movie house, providing patrons with sophisticated and award-winning cinema.
The building itself had been built by Peter White, back in the late-19th century (1800's), but the need for the theatre made this a perfect location for this "new use".
1970's view looking east
The Beginning
In the 1930's, it was an era of great uncertainty as the country was dealing with the Great Depression and the remnants from World War I. It was a time when the Golden Age of Hollywood was gaining popularity with folks seeking the created, moving stories that they could spend an afternoon enjoying, instead of some of the harsh realities of personal and economic hardship that was ongoing then.
The Delft Theatre chain, based in Wisconsin, had many theatres in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and as the demand for films increased, the chain would respond by creating movie houses in Iron River, Marquette, Crystal Falls, Munising, and Escanaba.
Original view of the Peter White Building (early 1900's)
Marquette would benefit from this as the growth of the Downtown District would allow for a second theatre to accompanythe original, historic Delft Theatre, allowing for more motion pictures to be shown and enjoyed by the public.
The building began life as the "Peter White Building", and would be soon transformed into a showpiece for the film industry. In June of 1935, renovations began and ground was broken inside the building. The "unofficial opening" took place on Saturday, April 11th, 1936 with a formal "Grand Opening" planned for the day after on Easter Sunday the 12th of April.
The first showing at the Nordic would be the United Artists Release, "Red Salute", starring Barbara Stanwyck and Robert Young.
The First showing: "Red Salute"
The architecture for the new theatre was created by a New York City Architect, Michael Meredith Hare. The new design of the theater was applauded by experts in the motion-picture industry as well as members of the technical aspects of the industry as "the last word in interior design for perfect projection and sound production" (at the time).
The architecture of the Nordic was applauded and revered so much, that it even made an article in "The Architectural Forum" periodical, September 1936. The publication ran from November 1932 to 1974.
Its highly imaginative use of light and the unusual design of its auditorium are two features which distinguish the Nordic Theater. Small, with a seating capacity of only 452 persons, it exhibits a kind of thinking and an attention to detail that is not always found in larger work.
The auditorium, shaped like a flattened egg, was designed to focus attention on the screen, avoiding the restless ornament which has no place in a room of this kind, and its only decoration consists of the small squares of the acoustic ceiling. A strip which runs down the center of the ceiling contains the supply duct outlets and the two rows of lights. These lights, and the two rows at the sides, are connected with an elaborate master switchboard, by means of which literally thousands of color combinations can be produced. The aisle lights, set beneath the handrails, are a useful and attractive innovation.
Much of the furniture and equipment was specially designed, such as the carpeting, auditorium chairs, hardware, and furniture in the men’s and women’s lounges. The exterior is of aluminum and black glass. The marquise, of aluminum and porcelain enameled metal, is brilliantly illuminated by neon tubes and recessed lamps. A flower shop is incorporated in the entrance design. The men’s lounge, is in brown and red, with one wall a solid mirror from floor to ceiling. The metal furniture is a variant on the standard tubular designs, and is upholstered in a dark red leather. The ticket window, is simple and effective.
- The Architectural Forum, Sept. 1936
Some of the Architectural Drawings from the design are shown here:
Michael Hare was a junior partner at the architectural firm Corbett & MacMurray which healped to create and build New York’s Rockefeller Center as well as Radio City Music Hall. He was seen as an imaginative, progressive young architect who produced controversial designs and theaters using unconventional methods for acoustics.
Ironically, he was married to Jane Jopling, the great granddaughter of Peter White for which the building had originally been named.
Hare was a member of the Board of Design for the 1939 New York World's Fair where he pushed for the Fair to be contemporary rather than colonial. His theme, "The Fair of the Future", was modified to "The World of Tomorrow."
Entrance (1970's)
The Nordic Theater’s ultra modern architecture was created with Streamline Moderne influences and called for a complicated type of construction which required much more skilled workmanship, plus many more hours of labor than would be necessary on a theater of ordinary design.
Theater construction and equipment specialists who constructed the Nordic expressed extraordinary interest in it because there was not a theater like it anywhere in the country. In almost every particular way, it was unique and its design was an entirely original concept.
The construction outline of the Theatre included the following for notes and materials:
FOUNDATION : Walls — Poured Concrete. Cellar Floor — 5 in. concrete on sand fill. Waterproofing — hydrated lime.
STRUCTURE : Exterior walls — brick facing 4 in thick backed up with 8 in of cinder blocks; all piers and pilasters—solid brick; all bearing partitions—brick or hollow building tile.
ROOF : Wood deck on wood joists supported on structural steel girders, covered in 1 in. of celotex insulation and 4 ply Johns-Manville built up roof—20 year bond.
SHEET METAL WORK : Flashing—galvanized Armco iron. Leaders—cast iron.
FLOORS : Auditorium, lobby, and foyer—all reeforced concret and carpeted over ozite. Offices on 2d floor—battleship linoleum. Rest rooms in basement—carpet over ozite.
HARDWARE : Interior—chrome finish on bronze. Exterior—brass finish on bronze.
ACOUSTICAL CEILING : Kalite tiles, Certain-teed Products Corp.
PAINTING : Interior walls and ceilings—special treatment; trim—4 coats lead and oil, 2 coats enamel.
ELECTRICAL INSTALLATION : Fixtures—both direct and indirect
PLUMBING : Cast iron vent and drain pipes, copper water piping.
HEATING AND AIR CONDITIONING : Steam system, air conditioned, water cooled, American Blower system. Kewanee steel boiler, coal-fired, automatic stoker. Radiators, American Raditor Co. Thermostat, Johnson Service Co. Hot water heater, Taco steam.
Acoustic drawing of the Design for "Sound Deflector" process for the interior.
Michael Hare had been known to "dabble" in philosophical and theological creative processes, developed an experimental concept in sound projection for the Nordic’s unique interior. Acoustic tile would be placed along the back wall of the theatre and extending to the top of the interior. The thought was that this would create better sound dynamics along with the installed angled rectangular glass being placed directly behind the seating. This design was to "ricochet" the sound from the front of the theatre to the back, and then send it back to the front once again. This was to give it the 1930's version of "Surround sound" and proved to be a very unique concept and appeal to theatre-goers.
Showtime ad display
The visual appeal, which was one of its most noted features, was best represented in it’s unique, stainless steel marquee that was popular in modern architecture of the time. The marquee began in a conventional manner on the left side of the building before curving and protruding drastically to the right side, providing a deep canopy for film patrons to socialize and converse outdoors before features began.
It's been said that The Nordic was a wonderful theater with a great entrance and concession lobby.
Some of the Notoriety
One of the most noted films to be shown at The Nordic was on June 29, 1959 when it was designated as the world premiere location of "Anatomy of a Murder", which had several local ties between the story, the locations in the story, as well as the filming locations used.
“Anatomy Of A Murder” the 1959 film starring Jimmy Stewart, George C. Scott, Lee Remick, Ben Gazzara, and Howard (“Floyd the Barber”) McNear.
It was a story based on an event which took place in Big Bay, MI. in 1952. The story was where Charlotte Peterson stated she was assaulted by local bartender Mike Chenoweth, and her husband, Lt. Coleman Peterson, kills Mike in a place called the Lumberjack Tavern, with plenty of witnesses standing by.
In the trial, Peterson was found not guilty and left town soon thereafter, and soon after he left the town, he and his wife soon divorced. Its not clear if it was because of the case, or for other reasons.
The film was shot in several locations in the Upper Peninsula (Big Bay, Marquette, Ishpeming, and Michigamme) with some scenes being filmed in the Thunder Bay Inn in Big Bay. This location was strangely ironic in that it was only a block away from where the 1952 incident that had inspired much of the novel.
Before the premiere, many of the actors imprinted their hands and feet in wet cement blocks and autographed them. These slabs were installed as part of the sidewalk and resided in front of the Nordic Theater for decades. An additional "world premiere" screening occurred in Detroit on July 1 of 1959.
1970's/80's view of the Nordic (left) and Delft (right) on a snowy winter's day.
The End of the Nordic
Throughout the late 1960’s and up until 1990’s, the Nordic was managed by Paul Florence who maintained the Nordic’s architectural integrity despite industry trends to divide older movie houses into multiple screens to accommodate increasing ticket sales.
1984
The development and opening of the GKC Royal Cinema multiplex in 1993, just two miles away from Marquette’s downtown, became problematic to the Delft and Nordic Theater’s existence. The Nordic Theater was then sold to Rogers Cinema Inc. in May of 1994.
1983
On August 11, 1994, at 7pm, the Nordic screened "Black Beauty" as it’s final movie.
Not long after, the iconic Nordic Theatre's marquee and interior decor was removed, and the building would come to life again as a local bookstore, but without much of the "show" that it once had.
The Revival
The bookstore did well for many years, but eventually the customers stopped coming, and the business was not able to be maintained. The bookstore would then close at this location as well.
The building (2016), stripped of its Theatre-esque designs and open as a bookstore
The building stayed empty until recently when a non-profit group from Detroit established a plan to revive the Theatre building itself as an entertainment venue once again. Those plans included obtatining the original blueprints of the theater, along with other interior photos which would allowed it’s restoration to be as accurate as possible to the original designs of Michael Hare.
The "revival plan" for the Nordic.
The new Nordic Theater was to feature all new rocker-recliner seating, 4K digital projection, an exact replica of the original marquee and an enhanced concession stand with modern snacks and memorabilia.
The plans included dynamic programming with not only big movies, but also art films and live performances. Theaters like this had worked in other places across the country, such as one that was noted in Billings, Montana. In Billings, there is an incredible art movie house that was once a bowling alley.
Ultimately, the plans did not come to fruition and the revival idea ended.
In 2019, the facility was purchased by another company and the building and facility will have life once again utilizing the former lobby and also auditorium with its unique and artistic decor. With these recent renovations, there are plans to incorporate some of the original Theatre items (at least many of the design cues, if not the original items themselves) such as the facade and marquee.
The venue is no longer used for films as it once was, but there are folks that remember the Nordic and reminisce about the entertainment that was held and shown here.
*Information and Image Sources: www.nordictheater.com, WaterWinterWonderland.com, CinemaTreasures.com, imdb.com, Google
Another one of the many things that can be said of this small theatre, it is most-definitely
a wonderful and history-filled part of Michigan and its rich entertainment history.
That history includes the fond memories that will live on for many years to come.
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IF you have any more information or
details on this theatre, please email me
and i will include it in the description.
Thank you.
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The puzzle:
(Updated 10/15/2024)
N46 32. A B C W087 23. D E F
Updated the Puzzle as an information-find.
Please review the page info for the answers.
- A: What is the Last digit of the unofficial opening year for the building
- B: How many inches of Celotex Insulation were used in the roof?
- C: How many inches of Concrete on sand fill for the Cellar Floor
- D & E: “Anatomy Of A Murder” was the 19-DE- film
- F: The Nordic was featured in an article in "The Architectural Forum" periodical, September 19_F_6
**Solution Checker is at the bottom of the page and has not changed**
*ONLY* the puzzle was updated.
The final container is nearby, within walking distance as it could not be placed here.
Any questions, feel free to ask.
Thank you!
The ORIGINAL PUZZLE is now BELOW.
Unfortunately the original puzzle information was either
removed or covered with recent renovations.
You will need to visit the location to solve the puzzle.
In front of the building, look down at your feet.
You will find some information to assist you with the puzzle.
A: The first line, how many letters are there in the word?
B: The third line, what is the FIRST digit in the line?
C: The second line, third letter, If A=1 and B=2,
-- what digit does this letter represent?
D: The SECOND digit in the total seats the theatre held originally
E: The SECOND digit of the day that "Anatomy" premiered here.
F: The building was originally named after a person.
-- Subtract 2 from the total count of letters in their last name.
The final container is nearby, within walking distance as it could not be placed here.