The Lyric Theatre, at 205 E. Foothill (originally White Oak), and the Colonial, at 314 S. Myrtle Avenue, were for a time the only places in town to see movies. Though there were one or two small venues in town with projection screens that predated the theaters, these were apparently little more than converted storefronts.

Remnants of the Colonial, first opened in 1920, can still be seen today. Although the front of the theater was converted into a furniture store in the mid-1950s (and is today Patty's Antiques), the rear exit and wall remain and are visible from the parking lot behind the store. 

The theater's original façade was somewhat classical in style, though it was later converted to a more basic marquee. Having approximately 300 seats and a small balcony about 25 feet wide, it was Monrovia's first true moviehouse and remained open for more than 30 years. Judy of Rogue's Harbor was rumored to have been the first film shown at the theater in 1920. 

In its later years, it became the Monrovia Theater, but not before receiving competiton from another nearby venue, the Lyric, which opened in 1925.

Larger than the Colonial, the Lyric had around 500 seats and was built in Spanish Colonial revival style, with a streamline moderne interior. It also came equipped with a Wurlitzer pipe organ that was used regularly until silent movies went out of fashion. (The organ eventually made its way to the auditorium of Monrovia High School, where it remained for many years.)

Steve Baker, a local historian who grew up in Monrovia, has fond memories of both theaters from his youth and vividly remembers seeing Bwana Devil, an adventure film about man-eating lions, at the Monrovia Theater in 1952.

"It was the first 3-D movie," he recalled. "At one point somebody hurled a spear, and there was this collective reaction, because it was almost as though the spear were coming at you."

The Colonial/Monrovia's glory days were short-lived. In the mid-1950s, according to Baker, the theater closed and was reconverted to its current use as a retail furniture and antiques store.

The Lyric, which became the Crest Theater some time in the 1960s, struggled on, partly by leasing itself out to events of various kinds. For a time, the Monrovia Police Department would hold its annual children's Christmas party at the Crest; in 1974, three city council candidates who were running as a team rented the marquee of the cinema to advertise their campaign. In 1962, the Monrovia Civil Defense Department also named the theater as one of several buildings suitable for use as "possible fallout shelters."

The Lyric/Crest closed its doors in July 1977, after then-owner Richard Tesse announced plans to hold rock concerts at the theater, a proposal that stirred the ire of city officials. On Jan. 8, 1978, the Los Angeles Times reported: "The 53-year-old Crest Theater in Monrovia has been ordered demolished by the City Council with agreement by the theater owner." Deemed "beyond repair" by City Manager Bud Ovrom, the building was demolished in 1979.

Between 1979 and 2000, Monrovia had no movie theater at all, and locals had to trek to neighboring cities to see films. In 2000, the Krikorian multiplex opened and has remained Monrovia's only movie theater since then.

Author's note: Stay tuned next week, when we take a look at Simon M. Lazarus, a former owner of the Lyric Theater, who helped finance the blacklisted 1954 film Salt of the Earth, and was investigated by the FBI and House Un-American Activities Committee as a result.