By Shelbi LeMeilleur
Photo by Liz Chivvis
On May 4, the iconic Queen Theatre in Downtown Bryan opened its doors once more to usher in a new generation of moviegoers and welcome some familiar faces.
In the 1880s, the Stoddard Hotel opened where the beloved Queen Theatre stands today. After many name changes and ownership exchanges, the Stoddard Hotel evolved into the Brazos Hotel by 1913, with a movie theater on the ground floor showing silent films, according to the Downtown Bryan Association website. The ground floor theater also changed names several times, and in 1914, the theater was renamed The Queen. It wasn’t until 1939 that the old hotel was demolished and reconstructed to become The Queen as it stands today. The grand opening of the new theater was on Nov. 21, 1939.
Like many other small towns with once-bustling downtowns and movie theaters, Downtown Bryan started to decline in the 1970s with many of its storefronts, including The Queen, closing. The City of Bryan kicked off revitalization efforts for Downtown Bryan in the early 2000s, with infrastructure improvements and the purchase of the LaSalle Hotel. In 2010 DBA purchased The Queen to begin restoration of the historic mainstay.
“Originally the thought was to have it as a multi-purpose event venue, but at that time, there weren’t as many of those venues downtown as there are now,” says Sandy Farris, executive director of DBA. “Sometime last year as we talked about what was going to happen there once it was open, it just became apparent that it made so much sense to return it to a movie theater primarily. … It was just a light bulb moment. We always said we would show some movies, but at that point, we realized we needed to return it to what it was and what people remember most about it.”
One of the key players in returning The Queen to its former glory is Rick Schmidlin, who will serve as the house manager and programmer for The Queen.
Texas A&M Parade down Main St. circa 1950s
Schmidlin grew up in Maywood, New Jersey, where he often visited the local theater in nearby Hackensack. He describes himself as “everybody’s movie buddy.” He became fascinated with movies at a young age, and was willing to tag along with members of his family.
His early movie-going days exposed him to films such as the James Bond movies, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, and 55 Days in Peking, among others. He cites Bonnie and Clyde as one movie that impressed him the most, and Easy Rider as the movie that made him decide to be a filmmaker.
The film and music scholar and producer-director has been working in film for more than 30 years and plans to bring his passion and expertise to The Queen.
Schmidlin and his wife relocated to Bryan in 2014 when she started working at Texas A&M University as the associate dean and director of The Cushing Memorial Library. When they would visit Downtown Bryan, Schmidlin says The Queen reminded him of the theaters he used to visit in Hackensack, which had also fallen into disrepair.
“I could see visually The Queen and The Palace and how they were back in the 30s, 40s, 50s, and 60s — what they meant to the town,” says Schmidlin. “It constantly drew me in because I knew what could be done with that theater if I was involved.”
The Queen Theatre in the 1990s
Once he saw the renovations to The Queen, Schmidlin applied for the position of house manager and offered to help Farris with programming needs.
“To be able to have someone with Rick’s caliber who knows the film industry the way he does, I think it was just such a perfect storm of circumstances that brought all of this together,” says Farris. “There will be purpose and meaning behind the programing we have there. To me, that’s the most exciting part.”
Schmidlin plans on bringing a range of movies to The Queen — not just classics. Films coming include large franchises like The Lord of the Rings trilogy and the Indiana Jones franchise, cult classics like Clueless and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, musicals, westerns, classic films from all decades, and independent art house movies, such as Oscar nominee The Florida Project. Schmidlin has access to more than 50,000 films, which is a larger collection than Turner Classic Movies.
Tuesday through Saturday nights, movies will start at 8pm and have some sort of linear connection, says Schmidlin. Sunday at 7pm is being branded as Art House Sunday, where Schmidlin plans to show independent and foriegn films that may not have come to other corporate theaters in B/CS. Tuesday matinee shows at 1pm will be either western or combat movies, and Thursday matinees will be romance or musicals. Weekend matinee shows will focus on children’s programming, with Saturday’s movie shown in English, and the same film shown in Spanish on Sunday. Schmidlin says he hopes this will widen the audience and bring more families to The Queen and Downtown Bryan.
A Sanborn Map was used for insurance purposes. Note the "moving pictures"
Guests can expect to step back through time upon entering The Queen. Although Farris says some of the décor is more elegant than it originally was in The Queen, the goal was to add period-style touches people expect to see. This includes art deco chandeliers, wall sconces, and light fixtures created from molds from the 1930s. Another exciting addition is a 3D image of the crown on the proscenium that frames the stage, painted by Cliff Collard, owner of Arsenal Tattoo.
“I see The Queen as becoming the center of this community,” says Farris. “We are providing something that this community — this area — doesn’t have.”
Schmidlin also notes that The Queen’s central location will help boost economic growth. Moviegoers have the luxury and convenience of shopping, grabbing a bite to eat, and sipping on a drink all within walking distance of the theater.
“When you have a theater in the center of town, and you’re drawing in 500 to 700 people a week who are coming to town for that reason, merchants take note,” says Schmidlin. “All of a sudden it brings in new merchants and they realize there is something that’s developing that they want to be part of because of the new population.”
The Queen will also double as a Visitor’s Center in Downtown Bryan, as well as the new home to the DBA offices located on the third and fourth floors. In the Visitor’s Center, guests can find more information about Downtown Bryan and the City of Bryan and purchase merchandise. T-shirts, coffee mugs, postcards, and other items will be for sale, including a stuffed cat named Queenie in reference to a recent incident where a stray cat was rescued from atop The Queen’s roof.
“We’re all about telling stories and The Queen obviously has a story just in and of itself,” says Farris. “We are going to be creating new stories for people who are going to movies there.”
Summer Fun in Downtown Bryan Mark your calendars now! Downtown Bryan has lots of fun planned this summer in addition to The Queen reopening. Visit www.downtownbryan.com for more information.
Margarita Mayhem The entire month of May, visit participating restaurants and bars downtown to try each location’s special margarita.
Summer Sunset Series On June 14, 21, & 28, DBA brings back the popular Summer Sunset Series at The Palace. The free concerts start at 8pm.
Cheers to Craft Beer The fourth annual Cheers to Craft Beer event takes place on July 21 from 3 to 7pm. Try your hand at various craft beer tastings inside participating retail stores and restaurants. Tickets go on sale beginning June 4.
