{"nrhp_refnum":"80001371","name":"Paramount Theatre","other_names":["Paramount Arts Centre"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"23 E. Galena Blvd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Aurora","county":"Kane County","state":"IL","lat":41.757035624000025,"lon":-88.31516005999998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-03-18","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Entertainment/Recreation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A movie palace at 23 East Galena Boulevard in Aurora, Kane County, Illinois, on the east bank of Stolp Island in the Fox River. It opened in September 1931 and was designed by C. W. & George L. Rapp of Chicago.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the theatre is significant in the history of the entertainment industry and in theatre architecture. It belongs to a new generation of movie palaces built by Paramount Pictures for talking film, with proportions and acoustics set by film technology rather than live theatre needs. Few of this type were built before the Depression halted such plans.","narrative":"Opened in September 1931 on the Fox River in downtown Aurora, this theatre at 23 East Galena Boulevard was designed by the Chicago firm of C. W. & George L. Rapp for Paramount Pictures and cost $1,000,000 to build. It is a brick-faced building of terra cotta, concrete and steel, with an octagonal five-story entrance tower covered in terra-cotta relief panels and topped by a tile roof. Inside, the auditorium is a stylized outdoor colonnaded space with painted murals, a deep blue ceiling medallion and Art Deco columns and lighting. It was planned for the new medium of talking film, with a large projection booth and minimal live-performance space, unlike earlier vaudeville-era theatres. Few of this type were built before the Depression ended such plans. A renovation from 1977 to 1978 restored the colors, stencils, fixtures and seats, remade the marquee and sign, and added stage and dressing room space for live performance. The auditorium now seats 1,885.","period_of_significance":"1900-","architect_builder":"C. W. & George L. Rapp, Architects, Chicago","architectural_style":"Art Deco design elements; early 20th century movie palace","criteria":[],"status_note":"Renovated 1977-1978 at a cost of $2.5 million and described as in excellent condition; occupied and used for entertainment.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:35.331465-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/94/8931/28893194/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/80001371.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80001371/bed31ca62a-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80001371/bed31ca62a-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Cbradshaw (talk)","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Paramount-LeLand.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Cbradshaw (talk)</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Paramount-LeLand.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"100008483","name":"Aurora Broadway Historic District (Additional Documentation)","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/illinois/aurora-broadway-historic-district-additional-documentation-100008483/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28893194","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paramount_Theatre_(Aurora,_Illinois)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7135366"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/kane-county/paramount-theatre-80001371/"}