Calgary has a movie palace built by a family you have probably never heard of.
Bernard Allen and his sons Jay and Jule built the Palace Theatre in 1921. Parks Canada says the family ran the biggest cinema chain in Canada, and one of the largest anywhere.
A big name behind the bricks
The Palace was designed by Howard C. Crane, a renowned theatre architect. Parks Canada notes it is one of only three surviving Canadian examples of his work.
Alberta’s heritage guide adds that the Allens ran the largest independent theatre chain in Canada until they sold to Famous Players in 1923. That is just two years after the Palace was built.
Parks Canada calls the Allens pioneers of film distribution in Canada. In its words, they helped make the movies a respectable, affordable and accessible kind of entertainment. That is a pretty good legacy for a family business.
Come to think of it, the Palace still looks the part. The heritage guide describes an Edwardian Classical front stretched across four city lots. It was built to impress, and it still does.
Parks Canada says the building shows the Allens’ impact on Canadian life and on the Canadian film industry. The Palace became a National Historic Site in 1996.
Our take
Everybody knows the big studios. Far fewer people know the families who put the screens into Canadian downtowns.
We love that Calgary still has one of their rooms standing on Stephen Avenue. It tells a story that does not fit on a poster.
We are still piecing together more about the Allens, including where else their theatres stood, so we will not guess. If you have family papers or photographs connected to the Allen theatres, we would love to hear from you.
Next time you are on Stephen Avenue, stop and look up at the Palace. A family put it there more than a century ago, and it is still standing.
Keep going with Hoot Gibson Rode Into Calgary and Made a Stampede Movie or Nell Shipman and the Alberta silent film that cleaned up, whichever calls to you. Or try Calgary heard its first public radio in a movie theatre for a change of pace.
More from the archive: Before He Was Premier, Aberhart Broadcast From the Palace and Calgary Still Has a Palace From Canada’s Biggest Cinema Family.
Quick answers
The Palace Theatre was built in 1921 by Bernard Allen and his sons Jay and Jule. It became a National Historic Site in 1996. Famous Players bought the Allen chain in 1923, just two years after the Palace was built, according to Parks Canada.
Howard C. Crane, a renowned theatre architect, designed the Palace. Parks Canada notes it is one of only three surviving Canadian examples of his work. The heritage guide describes an Edwardian Classical front stretched across four city lots.
Parks Canada says the building shows the Allens’ impact on Canadian life and on the Canadian film industry. It calls the Allens pioneers of film distribution in Canada, and says they helped make the movies a respectable, affordable and accessible kind of entertainment.
