The Exeter Street Theatre is a

Richardsonian Romanesque Richardsonian Romanesque is a architectural style, style of Romanesque Revival architecture named after the American architect Henry Hobson Richardson (1838–1886). The revivalism (architecture), revival style incorporates 11th- and 12th-century ...

building at the corner of Exeter and

Newbury Street Newbury Street is located in the Back Bay, Boston, Massachusetts, Back Bay area of Boston, Massachusetts, Boston, Massachusetts, in the United States. It runs roughly east–west, from the Public Garden (Boston, Massachusetts), Boston Public ...

s, in the

Back Bay Back Bay is an officially recognized Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, built on Land reclamation, reclaimed land in the Charles River basin. Construction began in 1859, as the demand for luxury housing exceeded the ...

section of

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. It was built as the First Spiritual Temple, 1884–85, by architects

Hartwell and Richardson Hartwell and Richardson was a Boston, Massachusetts architectural firm established in 1881, by Henry Walker Hartwell (1833–1919) and William Cummings Richardson (1854–1935). The firm contributed significantly to the current building stock and ...

. For seventy years, from 1914 to 1984, it operated as a

movie house A movie theater (American English) or cinema (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English), also known as a movie house, cinema hall, picture house, picture theater, the movies, the pictures, or simply theater, is a business ...

. It now houses the Kingsley Montessori School.

History

"Wealthy socialite Mrs. arcellus Ayer(Hattie M. Ayer) and her friends" organized the conversion in 1914 of church into cinema;

Clarence Blackall Clarence Howard Blackall (February 3, 1857 – March 5, 1942) was an American architect who is estimated to have designed 300 theatres. Life and career Blackall was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1857. He attended college at the University of I ...

designed the renovation.

Jane Holtz Kay Jane Holtz Kay (born Jane Holtz; July 7, 1938, Boston – died November 4, 2012) was an American urban design and architecture critic. A columnist for ''The Nation'', ''The Boston Globe'' and ''The New York Times'', she authored three books on the ...

. "The Last Picture Show at the Exeter." ''Boston Globe'', April 3, 1984 It "could accommodate 900 patrons." Proprietors and overseers included Viola and Florence Berlin, and Neil St. John Raymond. The Working Union of Progressive Spiritualists continued to meet in the building's lower auditorium until 1974, when the congregation relocated to neighboring

Brookline Brookline may refer to: Places in the United States * Brookline, Massachusetts, a town near Boston * Brookline, Missouri, a village * Brookline, New Hampshire, a town * Brookline (Pittsburgh), a neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania * Brookl ...

(and subsequently to

Harwich Harwich is a town in Essex, England, and one of the Haven ports on the North Sea coast. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the north-east, Ipswich to the north-west, Colchester to the south-west and Clacton-o ...

, on

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer months. The ...

), and they and/or Hattie Ayer sold the theater operation and building. After the theatre closed in 1984 amidst popular cultural anguish and bottom-line real-estate concerns, the building has been deployed for a variety of mostly commercial purposes. It was occupied by Conran's housewares retailer and

Waterstones Waterstones Booksellers Limited, trading as Waterstones (formerly Waterstone's), is a British bookselling, book retailer based in London, England, owned by the American investment group Elliott Investment Management. It operates 311 shops, ma ...

booksellers. By 1988 "the Exeter Street Theatre building TGI">TGI_Fridays.html" ;"title="oused TGI Fridays">TGIFriday's Restaurant and an office complex." Business consultants Idealab leased space in the building from 2000 to 2003. In 2005 it became the Kingsley Montessori School. One of the cinema's electric signs, scrapped in 1985, was acquired by collector Dave Waller. John Cheever's short story "The President of the Argentine" mentions the Exeter Street Theatre.

Gregory Mcdonald Gregory Mcdonald (February 15, 1937 – September 7, 2008) was an American writer best known for his mystery adventures featuring investigative reporter Irwin Maurice "Fletch" Fletcher. Two of the Fletch books earned Edgar Awards from the Myste ...

's second book in the Fletch series Confess, Fletch (1976) mentions an

Alec Guinness Sir Alec Guinness (born Alec Guinness de Cuffe; 2 April 1914 – 5 August 2000) was an English actor. In the BFI, British Film Institute listing of 1999 of BFI Top 100 British films, the 100 most important British films of the 20th century ...

Saturday matinee double feature of

The Lavender Hill Mob ''The Lavender Hill Mob'' is a 1951 British comedy film from Ealing Studios, written by T. E. B. Clarke, directed by Charles Crichton, starring Alec Guinness and Stanley Holloway and featuring Sid James and Alfie Bass. The title refers ...

and

The Man in the White Suit ''The Man in the White Suit'' is a 1951 British satirical science fiction comedy film made by Ealing Studios. It stars Alec Guinness, Joan Greenwood and Cecil Parker and was directed by Alexander Mackendrick. The film was nominated for an ...

at the Exeter Street Theatre.

Screenings

1910s

* '' The Foundling''"Mary Pickford Week." ''Moving Picture World'', February 12, 1916 * '' Tess of the Storm Country''

1920s

* ''A Virtuous Vamp''''Boston Globe'', February 10, 1920 * ''Haunting Shadows'' *

Robert Z. Leonard Robert Zigler Leonard (October 7, 1889 – August 27, 1968) was an American film director, actor, producer, and screenwriter. Biography He was born in Chicago, Illinois. At one time, he was married to Silent film, silent star Mae Murray with t ...

's ''Stronger Than Death'' * ''Live Sparks'' * ''Passion Flower''''Boston Globe'', June 7, 1921 * ''Just Out of College'' * ''Sowing the Wind'' * ''

Haunted Spooks ''Haunted Spooks'' is a 1920 American silent film, silent Southern Gothic comedy horror film, produced and co-directed by Hal Roach,Workman, Christopher; Howarth, Troy (2016). ''Tome of Terror: Horror Films of the Silent Era''. Midnight Marquee ...

'' * ''Pink Gods''''Boston Globe'', December 12, 1922 * ''The Man Who Saw Tomorrow'' * ''East is West''

1960s

* ''

The Endless Summer ''The Endless Summer'' is a 1966 American surf movie, surf documentary film directed, produced, edited and narrated by Bruce Brown (director), Bruce Brown. The film follows surfers Mike Hynson and Robert August on a surfing trip around the wor ...

1970s

* ''

The Rocky Horror Picture Show ''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' is a 1975 independent musical comedy horror film produced by Lou Adler and Michael White, directed by Jim Sharman, and distributed by 20th Century Fox. The screenplay was written by Sharman and Richard O ...

1980s

* Lynne Littman's ''

Testament A testament is a document that the author has sworn to be true. In law it usually means last will and testament. Testament or The Testament can also refer to: Books * ''Testament'' (comic book), a 2005 comic book * ''Testament'', a thriller no ...

'' * ''

The Leopard ''The Leopard'' ( ) is a novel by Italian writer Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, which chronicles the changes in Sicilian life and society during the ''Risorgimento''. Published posthumously in 1958 by Feltrinelli, after two rejections by the ...

'' * "

The Man Who Skied Down Everest ''The Man Who Skied Down Everest'' is a Canadian documentary about Yuichiro Miura, a Japanese alpinist who skied down Mount Everest in 1970. The film was produced by Crawley Films' "Budge" Crawley and directed by Crawley and Bruce Nyznik. Miur ...

"indelible personal memory of contributor * The Tin Drum