You wouldn’t know it today since a single AMC Classic is all that operates in town, but Richmond, Indiana, once boasted a remarkable collection of movie theaters. Early venues like the Gennett or Lawrence, the Murray/Indiana, and the Murette established a rich cinematic tradition that also included the State, Palace, Ritz, and others. One theater stood above the rest, though, and it was the Tivoli. Unfortunately, most of Richmond’s grand movie palace and crown jewel of downtown entertainment is slated to be torn down soon.
The Tivoli was Richmond’s newest and largest theater when it opened on December 30, 19261. “The erection of a theater of the type of the Tivoli in a city the population of Richmond,” the Richmond Item proudly declared, “puts it on a par with the metropolitan cities of the United States2.” With nearly 1,200 seats3, the enormous venue was envisioned as a true statement. For starters, the fireproof structure featured the largest stage in Richmond, an asbestos safety curtain, and every modern safeguard theatergoers expected in the 1920s4.
Just as importantly, the Tivoli was designed to pamper its patrons with comforts usually reserved for theaters in much larger cities. Heavily padded leather seats sat divided into three spacious sections by wide aisles, all atop luxurious carpeting. Perhaps most impressive of all was the Tivoli’s climate-control system- the first air conditioning in all of Richmond. The apparatus pumped an astonishing 100,000 cubic feet of fresh air into the auditorium every minute, which kept the massive theater at a comfortable seventy degrees year-round5.
Opening night at the Tivoli was huge. The evening began when the Tivoli Orchestra performed “The Russian Fantasy,” as an overture. That was followed by a Kinogram newsreel that brought audiences the latest happenings from around the world. Next came a demonstration of the theater’s enormous “Mighty Wurlitzer,” one of the largest theater organs in Indiana. A comedy short, One Sunday Morning starring Estelle Bradley, kept the crowd entertained before the Tivolians -the theater’s house band- took the stage. At last, Tivoli Queen Miss Betty Kenney greeted patrons just before the evening concluded with the feature film Just Another Blonde with Dorothy Mackaill6. I’ve never heard of such pageantry taking place in a local movie house.
Fifteen years after the Tivoli debuted, downtown Richmond gained another major theater when the State opened in 19416. The Art Deco cinema became the city’s fifth downtown movie house and outlasted many of the oldest before closing in 1972. By that point, Richmond’s entertainment landscape had shifted eastward: the new Gateway Mall Cinema opened at the city’s new commercial strip in 19707, and another theater soon followed at Richmond Mall. Like many old movie palaces across America, the Tivoli struggled to adapt to the age of the multiplex. It was temporarily closed in 1971 and 1972, but eventually reopened8.
Jeweler Robert Hoppe of Anderson purchased the old Tivoli building in 19749. Hoppe’s store moved into the theatre’s old lobby the following year, but preserved some of its artwork10. Soon after, the theater’s name was changed to Sidewalk Cinema after a new entrance was constructed on North Ninth Street11. Kerasotes purchased the Sidewalk Cinema in 1976.
The theater underwent a dramatic transformation in 1987 when its auditorium was split into two smaller theaters to keep pace with changing moviegoing habits. Reborn as a discount house, the Sidewalk Cinema reopened with screenings of Hoosiers and An American Tail. Unfortunately, the reprieve didn’t last: Kerasotes expanded its east-side multiplex in 1995. The modern cinema drew audiences away from downtown once again and sealed the fate of the Sidewalk12.
In 1998, the old building became home to the Sentiments store, a gift shop for women and children13. Three years later, it was purchased by an Indianapolis architecture firm that hoped to turn the place into a regional office and coffee bistro14. That seems not to have happened. Improvements came as recently as 2019, but the Tivoli remained empty. The architects appear to have never moved in15.
Today, the auditorium portion of the old Tivoli -eighty-six percent of the structure- is set for demolition thanks to a big hole in the roof that has laid waste to the old auditorium16. The old lobby should be saved, but we’ll see. Hoppe Jewelers has long since moved out and a grassroots neighborhood coalition now owns the front17.
There’s something especially sad about losing a movie palace. Theaters like the Tivoli were never just places to watch films. Instead, they were real statements! The Tivoli was built to prove that Richmond belonged alongside larger, more cosmopolitan cities. For decades, the Tivoli delivered on that promise with spectacle, comfort, and glamour few Hoosiers probably expected to find there. Even after downtown declined and audiences migrated toward the east side multiplexes, the Tivoli kept reinventing itself in hopes of surviving one more generation.
Now, though, the building seems destined to follow most of Richmond’s other theaters into memory. Maybe the old lobby survives, and maybe some fragments of ornamentation linger. Still, Richmond’s grandest theater is nearing the end of its story.
Sources Cited
1 Program For Opening Performance At New Tivoli Theatre Thursday Night Announced (1926, December 29). The Richmond Palladium and Sun Telegram. p. 24.
2 Steady Progress Marks Fitzpatrick-M’Elroy Co. (1926, December 30). The Richmond Item. p. 17.
3 Sidewalk Cinema (n.d.). Cinema Treasures. Web. Retrieved May 16, 2026.
4 Tivoli Is Modernly Equipped; Fire-Proof Construction Used (1926, December 29). The Richmond Palladium. p. 18.
5 Comfort And Health Of Theatre Patrons Cared For At Tivoli (1926, December 29). The Richmond Palladium-Item. p. 21.
6 State Theater, Richmond’s Newest, Ready for Formal Opening Saturday (1941, May 10). The Richmond Palladium-Item. p. 15.
7 Gateway Mall Cinema (n.d.). Cinema Treasures. Web. Retrieved May 16, 2026.
8 Tivoli Name To Change (1974, October 27). The Richmond Palladium-Item. p. 2.
9 Hoppes Buy Tivoli Building (1974, January 7). The Richmond Palladium-Item. p. 4.
10 Hoppe Opens Jewelry Store (1975, September 25). The Richmond Palladium-Item. p. 26.
11 Mikesell, T. (1987, April 24). The Richmond Palladium-Item. p. 1.
12 Sheeley, R. E. (2001, December 27). Tivoli will mark 75th anniversary. The Richmond Palladium-Item. p. 3.
13 Scarborough, J. (1998, February 22). The Sentimental side of downtown Richmond. The Richmond Palladium-Item. p. 29.
14 Shuey, M. (2016, October 28). Indianapolis architect firm buys Tivoli Theater site. The Richmond Palladium-Item. p. A3.
15 Tivoly improvements are coming along (2019, January 15). The Richmond Palladium-Item. p. A2.
16 Emery, M. (2026, February 18). Damaged portion of Tivoli building must come down. Western Wayne News. Web. Retrieved May 16, 2026.
17 (See footnote 16).
First, I wonder why so many movie theaters were named Rivoli and Tivoli?
Second, that vintage shot is likely from 1929, the year of that Richard Dix film on the marquee.
Finally, I remember newspaper ads promoting “The Groove Tube” nonstop for months and months. And I have never seen it show up on TV, video stores, cable or streaming services ever since. Now I’m curious.
Tivoli, apparently, was an ancient Italian resort near Rome. Rivoli, I’m led to believe, was a fashionable boulevard in Paris. I’m sure both meant to evoke the romanticism or grandeur of them.
I never thought to google the film being promoted, so thanks!
I gather that The Groove Tube was similar to Kentucky Fried Movie sort of, but maybe not as wide in its scope of satire. While very dated by then, KFM was a favorite of mine in high school, but I confess I haven’t returned to it in forever.
We had so much fun working there in high school! It was in poor shape even in the early 80’s. So sad…
They sound like great memories. Unfortunately, many old movie palaces like the Rivoli fell into bad shape in the seventies, eighties, and beyond. They take a lot to maintain!
I recall early 60’s going to the Tivoli or State Theater. I was around 10 years old. I lived on South 27th street. Mom would give me 60 cents to go to town with my buddy most every weekend. He had 60 cents too. That money got us a bus ride to town, a movie ticket, popcorn, a drink, and return bus ride back home. If we didn’t go to the movies, we would go the “The Skate”. It was a much more innocent world then. No parent would allow their kid to venture out like this today.
Agreed- a much more innocent time. It’s crazy how much sixty cents was worth in those days!
I worked at the Tivoli and watched west side story in 1962 to many times.
That sounds like fun. I wish I’d gotten a chance to see inside back then!
So many good memories. So much fun. So much love. So much sadness now!
I wish I’d been able to see a movie there in its heyday!
How long was it the Tivoli florist shop in the 90s?
Hi Elizabeth, it looks like it was open at least through 1998. That’s all I know!
This absolutely breaks my heart. As a Hoppe employee, I knew many hidden places in this building; the basement under the original stage where there were individual sinks, mirrors & dressing areas for the stage performers or upstairs where there was once balcony seating, huge crystal like chandeliers remained & little piece’s of film strip on the floor. Boy the stories that building could tell. I love the history of old buildings and I LOVE this building. When Hoppe’s moved to the new store on the east side, I knew it would sit & decay, like so many others in Richmond, so sad. This is a beautiful piece of Richmond history that’ll be gone forever. That’s so very sad.
What great memories you have, especially regarding the nooks and crannies. I’m sorry they’ll be lost too.