The Active Historian

Hey, Friend! Welcome back to another post. Today, I want to explore the history of the Sooner Theatre in Norman, Oklahoma. I saw this building when I was walking around Norman and snapped a photo so I could look it up later. I vaguely remembered it being on the National Register of Historic Places when I had researched Norman. Let’s go find out more about it!

History of the Sooner Theatre

The Sooner Theatre Building was designed and built by Harold Gimeno. He graduated from the University of Norman and attended the Harvard Graduate School of Architecture before moving back to Oklahoma.

He built the Sooner Theatre in the Spanish style – a first for the town of Norman. According to the National Register of Historic Places nomination form, the Sooner Theatre is thought to be the oldest example of a Spanish style movie theater in Oklahoma. The theatre cost around $200,000 to build and showed one movie at a time.

His father, Patricio Gimeno was an artist and professor at the University of Oklahoma. He assisted his son with much of the detail painting inside of the auditorium.

The Sooner Theatre formally opened on Sunday, February 10, 1929. It was capable of showing movies with sound and had a fully equipped stage for productions. They also had acts from the Orpheum Circuit regularly.

The Sooner Theatre ceased operation as a movie theater in June 1974.

The Sooner Theatre Building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977.

In 1979, the city of Norman purchased the building before it was demolished. The city leased it to the Sooner Theatre of Norman, Inc – a non-profit organization. The group wanted to preserve the building for generations to come and give the community a place to see a show or take an acting class. The venue now hosts concerts, stage performances, and more!

Visit

101 E Main St.

Norman, OK 73069

Sources

Secondary Sources

Websites

“The History of the Sooner Theatre.” Sooner Theatre.

“Sooner Theatre Building.” National Register of Historic Places.

Susan E. Booker, “Opera Houses and Early Movie Theaters,” The Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture, Oklahoma Historical Society, January 15, 2010.

“Historic Sooner Theatre.” Visit Norman.

Primary Sources

Newspapers

“Formal Opening of the New Sooner Theatre.” The Norman Transcript (Norman, Oklahoma), February 10, 1929.