Its original owner, John Hampton opened the theatre just 15 years after silent films became passé. He began with his personal collection of silent film favorites and then slowly increased his film library.
His theatre showed Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, Buster Keaton, Laurel and Hardy, Harold Lloyd, Rudolph Valentino and the Keystone Cops in all their glory.
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| John Hampton, 1942 |
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| What original theatre looked like in 1942. |
Hampton’s dedication to preserving these films meant he often placed his new finds in a tub above the theatre in chemicals. This over the years exposed him to deadly toxins. He was diagnosed with Cancer in the 1970s and died in 1990.
Tragedy struck Laurence Austin, the next owner of this theatre in January of 1997. It was first thought he was shot and killed during an apparent robbery.
The police later revealed that Austin’s business partner and long time lover James Van Sickle actually hired a hit man to kill Austin. His motive was to inherit the money. He and the gunman both received life in prison.
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| Laurence Austin in front of theatre in 1996. |
The theatre closed in 1997. But then Charlie Lustman bought and re-opened the silent film house in 1999. After he saw the faded blood stains on the carpet and saw the posters Hampton had hung in the theatre–he stated that Hampton’s spirit inspired him to do this.
He renovated the little 158-seat theatre with fresh paint, new wooden floors, a new screen and projection booth and a neon marquee. The films were still accompanied by piano or organ music.
During the time Lustman owned the theatre it became apparent to him and startled employees that the building was haunted.
John Hampton’s spirit haunts the lounge area of the apartment upstairs where he and his wife Dorothy lived for 45 years.
Lustman states if he strayed from the original purpose for the theatre things would go wrong. When he arranged to show a 3-D film festival in 2000, he received a black eye on a display case. Then the projector that had worked fine for a year, broke down minutes before the first 3-D film could screen.
It appeared Hampton was unhappy with his decision.
Laurence Austin’s spirit has shocked more than one witness in the theatre’s lobby—near where he was shot.
Lustman and a former publicist for the theatre would hear the repeated jingle of keys while alone in the building. Austin was known to have a nervous habit–he would jingle his keys.
To settle down the activity Lustman brought in a shaman, sage was burnt and rose crystals were placed where Austin was murdered.
In 2006, Lustman sold the theatre to the Harkham brothers. They re-opened the theatre as a rival house called the Cinefamily. They show an eclectic mix of sound and silent films.
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| What theatre looks like today. |
The Silent Movie Theatre is located on the west side of Fairfax Avenue just north of the Farmers Market. It is rented out for special events.
Ghost teams in the area should consider renting this venue—an ideal place for a classic horror flick, conference and a ghost hunt.
Ghost teams in the area should consider renting this venue—an ideal place for a classic horror flick, conference and a ghost hunt.
