History:
The year 2008 marks the 80th birthday of the Byrd Theatre, which was built in 1928 in Richmond, Virginia as one of the Nation's Grand Movie Palaces and today is both a State and National Historic landmark. The 1300-seat Byrd Theatre, named after William Byrd, one of the founders of Richmond, is one of the nation's finest cinema treasures.
And unlike many opulent theatres that were built during the 1920s and 1930s in the United States, the Byrd Theatre has survived the past 80 years largely unaltered in appearance or function, operating almost continuously since 1928 as a movie theatre. The first movie shown at the Byrd on Christmas Eve, 1928, was Waterfront, a silent movie with sound added. This was a comedy with Dorothy MacKaill and Jack Mulhall. Patrons paid 25 cents for a matinee and 50 cents for an evening movie. Today patrons pay $1.99 for a movie.
In 2007, a purchase agreement for The Byrd Theatre was reached with the Samuel Warren family by The Byrd Theatre Foundation, a non-profit 501 (c) (3) corporation, with the express purpose of purchasing, restoring and preserving this theatre as a vital community resource. The Foundation plans to integrate cultural, educational and community events into the Theatre's programming while still offering movies at reasonable prices.
