Curtain Soon to Ring Down on State Theater
December 28, 1997, article one

I got to thinking of Cash Flagg the other day. Who on earth is Cash Flagg, you're wondering? Cash Flagg might own the distinction of being the star of the very worst movie in the history of the universe - which I think is kind of an endearing honor.

Cash had the lead in "The Incredibly Strange Creatures Who Stopped Living and Became Mixed Up Zombies," a stunningly forgettable bit of cinema. Old Cash popped to mind as I was tramping through the rubble and debris inside the old State Theater at 114 N. Main St.

On November 26 Fostoria firefighters Mike Stahl and Brian Anderson, Zoning Inspector Dale Helms, Mayor Jim Bailey and three fellows who were placing bids on asbestos removal in the theater entered the old movie house to do a little inspection. Asbestos removal will precede the demolition of the theater.

Your intrepid reporter tagged along to keep an eye on these guys and to have a last look at what was once a centerpiece of the entertainment scene here in Fostoria. I stuck with the mayor because he had the best flashlight. It was Mr. Bailey's first time in the theater. Me, on the other hand, well, I had been there many, many times.

It was, I have to confess a very sad experience. The State had a concrete ceiling. In the absence of proper maintenance on the roof, water damage caused the ceiling to deteriorate and, bit by bit, to crumble and fall to the floor. Walking in the theater is lie trodding on a few inches of loose ground.

The seats are all gone, save for a few in the upper balcony. In a couple places, the walls still have tattered, faded remnants of the red tapestries with their golden crisscross design.

Dale said he found an old hand-cranked film rewinding machine, but other than that and a few dirt-encrusted film reels there's not much left but a shell of a building.

The State Theater was opened in 1916. Until 1937 it was known as the Colonial Theater. When it opened, it could seat 300 moviegoers. Sometime after World War 1, the seating was expanded to 700.

Art Buck knocked around the movie business in Fostoria for 47 years. He held almost every theater job from usher to owner. He worked at or owned a piece of three local theaters, the Majestic (located across Main St. from the State), the Civic (the Sharing Kitchen) and the State.

In 1955, when he sold his remaining interest in the State and Civic Theaters to Jack Armstrong of Bowling Green, he told the Review-Times that once Fostoria had six "nickel shows," theaters that presented 15 minute, one reel programs for five cents.

In the early 20s, Mr. Buck decided to raise the Colonial's price to a dime for a Mary Pickford flick called "Hearts Adrift." On opening night, he said that "people stayed away in droves." Charging an entire dime must have seemed pure extortion at the time.

Mr. Buck was an aggressive businessman. He was frequently successful in booking new releases a week or two before theaters in large cities like Toledo and Cleveland got them.

In the days of silent films, the Colonial had a six-piece orchestra pit. Local musicians played an accompanying score provided by the movies' producers.

Mr. Buck also tried to make Christmas merrier for Fostoria by showing a free movie every Dec. 24 for all comers. The first showing began at 10 a.m. and the movie was rerun throughout the day until midnight. During the Depression, the Colonial/State frequently ran free Saturday morning movies for kids.

In 1965 manager Mack Wall oversaw a major remodeling of the State. New restrooms, projection equipment, carpeting and seats were installed. The dark green curtain was illuminated with red footlights. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling. Not as spiffy as Tiffin's Ritz, but a snappy looking place nonetheless..

Over 400 people turned out to see "Mary Poppins" on "re-opening"night after the remodeling was complete. A ribbon cutting preceded the movie. Children received balloons and women orchids when they entered.

Now, why was I thinking of Cash Flagg? Well, I remember a hot Friday or Saturday night one summer, maybe 1963 or ‘64 sitting in the balcony of the State sweating and watching "The Incredibly Strange Creatures." The theater was packed with a few hundred other teenagers.

I also recall that a few years later, perhaps 1970 or ‘71, I saw my last movie at the State one time when I was home from college. It was "2001: A Space Odyssey." That night there was no throng of slightly rambunctious teenagers. There was me and two other guys. Competition from cineplexes and other forms of entertainment were beginning to do the State in.

According to the City Directories, the State changed managers three times in three years in the mid-70s. No manager is listed in 1980 and the State disappeared from the directory in 1981.

Soon the last of Fostoria's downtown theaters will be only a memory and that's too bad. But the good news is that the City is removing a building that has been allowed to become an eyesore. Let's hope something even better will take its place.