PORT ANGELES — When the owners of Captain T’s Shirt Shoppe bought a new downtown building for their business in April, they thought they were simply getting a better location.
But Johnnie Montice and Randy Lester soon found they had acquired something much more.
While poking around the building at 116 E. Front St., which most recently housed the Blue Dolphin gift shop, a piece of Port Angeles’ past was unveiled before their eyes.
They found an old projection room, brightly colored walls and a ceiling painted with a pattern described as “Mayan motif,” as well as chandeliers all hidden from view by a false ceiling installed about 50 years ago.
Remnants of theater
What they discovered was the remnants of the Elwha Theatre, one of Port Angeles’ early cinemas. The movie theater opened in 1932 and closed about 1957.
“We didn’t have any idea of this,” Lester said. “We were just looking for a good location.”
“That was just like an added bonus,” Montice said.
After Lester discovered the old theater, he shouted to Montice to come upstairs, she recalled.
“Holy moly, that changed everything,” Montice said.
The couple said they were amazed by the find and have no intention of keeping it to themselves.
Open to the public soon
They have been at work over the past five months to make the remaining theater artifacts open to the public through Don Perry’s Heritage Tours — something likely to happen within the next few weeks.
Perry, the city’s deputy mayor, said he has been waiting for 25 years for a light to be shown on this piece of Port Angeles’ history.
“I literally dreamed of this,” he said.
And he doesn’t spare Montice and Lester compliments.
“They have really been working so hard on this,” Perry said.
“They are turning this dream into a reality,” he added.
Those who go on a tour shouldn’t be disappointed.
After walking up newly built stairs, the original multicolored walls and ceiling stretch down the entire length of the building and quickly catch the eye’s attention from what used to be private seating booths.
Next to that is the projection room, which from the inside resembles a large tin box.
Its walls and ceiling are covered in metal used as a fire retardant.
The projectionist’s toilet, situated a few feet from where the projection machine stood, is still there.
So are the projection machine’s wall mount and seven hatches through which movies used to be shown, though the machine itself has long been removed.
Golden age
While peering through the hatches, it’s not hard to imagine a large screen on the far wall illuminated by images of Clark Gable, Katharine Hepburn and other stars of Hollywood’s golden age.
It’s that imagery that Montice and Lester want to recreate.
They plan to make their own makeshift screen that would display the first movie ever shown there: the 1931 film “Cracked Nuts.”
And, yes, Montice has the DVD.
She said they feel like they were given a gift and want the rest of the town to enjoy it.
“Port Angeles needs to embrace its uniqueness,” Montice said, adding that she worries this piece of history could be hidden forever if nothing is done.
The couple also uncovered and restored tile on the building’s facade and reopened access to the basement where the theater’s original bathrooms still exist.
Montice said they may be able to get them working again.
But when may the public get a glance?
Montice said they may move the store within the next couple of months from its current location at 124 W. Railroad Ave. but plan to open the upstairs to Perry’s tours soon.
The restoration won’t be done by then, but they have no intention of stopping halfway.
“This is our opportunity,” she said.
“Once work begins, you don’t step back again.”
For more information about the Heritage Tours of Port Angeles, visit www.portangelesheritagetours.com.
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Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.
