Benjamin Marcus Priteca (23 December 1889 – 1 October 1971) was a Scottish architect. He is best known for designing theatres for
Alexander Pantages.
Early life
Benjamin Marcus Priteca was born into a Jewish family in
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
on 23 December 1889. His nickname was "Benny".
He served an apprenticeship in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
under architect Robert MacFarlane Cameron from 1904 to 1909, and earned degrees from the
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
and the Royal College of Arts during this time.
In 1909, he emigrated to the U.S. and settled in
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
.
Career
Priteca met Seattle
vaudeville
Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...
theatre owner
Alexander Pantages in 1910 and won a commission from him to design the San Francisco Pantages Theater (1911), the first of many so-named vaudeville and
motion picture houses in what would become one of the largest theater chains in North America.
In all, Priteca designed 22 theaters for Pantages and another 128 for other theater owners. Notable theaters include the
Coliseum
The Colosseum ( ; it, Colosseo ) is an oval amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphitheatre ever built, and is still the largest standing amphitheatre in the world t ...
(1915) in Seattle;
the Pantages (1918) in
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Pa ...
;
the Pantages (1920) in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
(downtown);
the Pantages in
San Diego, California
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United Stat ...
(1924);
the Pantages (renamed The Orpheum) (1926) in
San Francisco, California
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
(downtown);
the Pantages (1928) in
Fresno, California
Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...
;
the Paramount (1929) in Seattle; the
Pantages
Alexander Pantages (Περικλῆς Ἀλέξανδρος Πανταζής , ''Periklis Alexandros Padazis''; 1867 – February 17, 1936) was a Greek American vaudeville impresario and early film producer, motion picture producer. He created ...
(1929) in
Hollywood, California
Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...
(the last and largest of the Pantages theaters); the Warner on
Pacific Boulevard
Pacific Boulevard is a street and principal commercial thoroughfare in the city of Huntington Park, California and the Los Angeles County neighborhood of Walnut Park. It runs from Vernon and Santa Fe Avenues in Vernon to Cudahy Street in Walnut Pa ...
in
Huntington Park, California (1930); the
Admiral (1942) in
West Seattle
West Seattle is a conglomeration of neighborhoods in Seattle, Washington, United States. It comprises two of the thirteen districts, Delridge and Southwest, and encompasses all of Seattle west of the Duwamish River. It was incorporated as an i ...
; and the
Orpheum (1927) in
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
.
Priteca also designed the 1934 Grandstand and Clubhouse of
Longacres Racetrack in
Renton, Washington, which operated from 1935 to 1994 and has since been demolished. Pantages is said to have liked Priteca as a theater architect for his ability to create the appearance of opulence within a less-than-opulent budget. Pantages is quoted as saying, "Any damn fool can make a place look like a million dollars by spending a million dollars, but it's not everybody who can do the same thing with half a million."
Priteca's apprentices included
Gregory Ain
Gregory Samuel Ain (March 28, 1908 – January 9, 1988) was an American architect active in the mid-20th century. Working primarily in the Los Angeles area, Ain is best known for bringing elements of modern architecture to lower- and medium- ...
, who went on to success as a modernist architect (practicing in a very different manner). Ain worked with Priteca for a short time in the late 1920s and helped draw the Los Angeles Pantages. In 1951, Priteca became a
Fellow of the American Institute of Architects
Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (FAIA) is a postnominal title or membership, designating an individual who has been named a fellow of the American Institute of Architects (AIA).
Fellowship is bestowed by the institute on AIA-member ...
. He remained active as an architect well into his later years, working as a consultant in the design of the
Seattle Opera House (1962) and the
Civic Auditorium (1968) in
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...
.
Death
Priteca died in Seattle on 1 October 1971, at the age of 81. His first name was mistakenly recorded as "Bernard" on his death certificate.
He was posthumously awarded honorary membership of the
Theatre Historical Society of America
The Theatre Historical Society of America (THS) was founded in 1969 to promote the legacy of America's historic theatres and insure the documentation of the architectural, cultural and social history of those theatres. Through programs that include ...
.
Works
Theaters
*
Coliseum
The Colosseum ( ; it, Colosseo ) is an oval amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphitheatre ever built, and is still the largest standing amphitheatre in the world t ...
(1915) in Seattle;
the Pantages (1918) in
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Pa ...
;
*Pantages (1920) in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
(downtown)
*Pantages in
San Diego, California
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United Stat ...
(1924)
*Pantages (renamed The Orpheum) (1926) in
San Francisco, California
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
(downtown)
the Pantages (1928) in
Fresno, California
Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...
;
* Paramount (1929) in Seattle
*
Pantages
Alexander Pantages (Περικλῆς Ἀλέξανδρος Πανταζής , ''Periklis Alexandros Padazis''; 1867 – February 17, 1936) was a Greek American vaudeville impresario and early film producer, motion picture producer. He created ...
(1929) in
Hollywood, California
Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Pictures, ...
(the last and largest of the Pantages theaters)
* Warner on
Pacific Boulevard
Pacific Boulevard is a street and principal commercial thoroughfare in the city of Huntington Park, California and the Los Angeles County neighborhood of Walnut Park. It runs from Vernon and Santa Fe Avenues in Vernon to Cudahy Street in Walnut Pa ...
in
Huntington Park, California (1930)
*
Admiral (1942) in
West Seattle
West Seattle is a conglomeration of neighborhoods in Seattle, Washington, United States. It comprises two of the thirteen districts, Delridge and Southwest, and encompasses all of Seattle west of the Duwamish River. It was incorporated as an i ...
; and the
Orpheum (1927) in
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
Other buildings
*Chevra Bikur Cholim synagogue (1912) in Seattle, now the
Langston Hughes Performing Art Center
*Seattle's
Crystal Pool natatorium (1916)
*Alhadeff Sanctuary of Seattle's
Temple De Hirsch Sinai
*Civic Auditorium (now
Keller Auditorium
Keller Auditorium, formerly known as the Portland Municipal Auditorium, the Portland Public Auditorium, and the Portland Civic Auditorium, is a performing arts center located on Clay Street in downtown Portland, Oregon, United States. It is part ...
) in Portland
*
Longacres racetrack clubhouse and grandstand in
Renton, Washington
Gallery
Image:Orpheum exterior 1946.jpg, Priteca's Orpheum Theatre on Granville Street
Granville Street is a major street in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and part of Highway 99. Granville Street is most often associated with the Granville Entertainment District and the Granville Mall. This street also cuts through resid ...
in Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
, 1946
Image:Pantages.JPG, Priteca's Pantages Theater in Hollywood
Image:Seattle Langston 04.jpg, Detail of Priteca's Chevra Bikur Cholim synagogue in Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
, now the Langston Hughes Performing Art Center
File:Coliseum Theatre construction, November 12, 1915 (SEATTLE 1612).jpg, Coliseum Theatre, Seattle under construction 1915
Image:Seattle Coliseum Theater 09.jpg, Terracotta Green Man
The Green Man is a legendary being primarily interpreted as a symbol of rebirth, representing the cycle of new growth that occurs every Spring (season), spring. The Green Man is most commonly depicted in a sculpture, or other representation of ...
, Coliseum Theatre, Seattle
Image:Seattle - Cristalla 05A.jpg, Terracotta Griffins
The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (Ancient Greek: , ''gryps''; Classical Latin: ''grȳps'' or ''grȳpus''; Late Latin, Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a legendary creature with the body, tail ...
, Crystal Pool, Seattle
Image:Seattle-Alhadeff-Sanctuary-3604.jpg, The Alhadeff Sanctuary of Seattle's Temple De Hirsch Sinai, a late Priteca project
File:Keller Auditorium.JPG, Civic Auditorium (now Keller Auditorium
Keller Auditorium, formerly known as the Portland Municipal Auditorium, the Portland Public Auditorium, and the Portland Civic Auditorium, is a performing arts center located on Clay Street in downtown Portland, Oregon, United States. It is part ...
) in Portland
File:Crystal Pool natatorium, 2035 2nd Ave at Lenora St, Seattle (CURTIS 456).jpeg, Seattle's Crystal Pool natatorium, 1916
References
Biographical sketch of B. Marcus Priteca (with photographs) at Puget Sound Theatre Organ Society* Statt, Daniel
Pantages, Alexander (1876-1936) HistoryLink.org Essay 2999, February 19, 2001, Corrected December 18, 2002. Accessed 10 March 2007.
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Priteca, B. Marcus
1889 births
1971 deaths
American theatre architects
Jewish architects
Architects from Seattle
Scottish emigrants to the United States
Scottish Jews
Architects from Glasgow
Fellows of the American Institute of Architects