The Lost Movie Theatres of Inverness
By Ken Marotte, Citrus County Historical Society
The Valerie Theatre has become an important part of the Inverness entertainment scene. Most people are aware that it was built in the 1920s, experienced a decline over the years that led to it being shuttered, and then was restored and resurrected into the venue we see today. Many people think that it was the first commercial motion picture enterprise in Inverness. Is that true? The answer may surprise you.
The First Moving Picture Show
The original wooden Court House was the de facto civic center for Inverness during the early days of our County. Since it was the only building that could accommodate a large crowd, it was common for lectures, concerts and comedy shows to be held in the courtroom after the judge laid down his gavel for the day.
Sometimes such entertainment led to nearly disastrous situations, such as a fire in the courthouse in 1908.
Inverness native Robert Gilooley remembered attending a moving picture show at the old Citrus County courthouse when he was boy. He remarked “People walked, rode and drove from miles around for it was indeed a great event!” Gilooley recalled that the picture was projected onto a plain white sheet. A crude projection machine burning a dim calcium light cast the images onto the sheet. Since rudimentary movies in the early 1900’s did not always have titles and text, the projectionist also served as an announcer so the audience could follow the action.
Allen’s Soda Fountain/Moving Picture Show
Moving picture shows graduated from single performances in rented venues to screenings in established locations. Several thriving theatres opened in Ocala and Tampa. Newspapers across the state carried a short announcement that Inverness finally had its own movie theatre in 1913. Rather than the large comfortable venues we know today, local moving picture shows were typically small and part of a larger mercantile business. By 1915, owner James Allen wanted to move from Inverness and offered his establishment for sale. The ad provides some insights: “Inverness, Fla., five rooms above, two store rooms below. Across from courthouse. One-room restaurant, with $1,250 soda fountain, complete moving picture show in the other, seats, piano and picture machinery…owner sick and must sacrifice”.
The little theatre continued into 1919 when a notice was placed in the Chronicle announcing that a better grade of pictures would result in a rise in ticket prices to 20 cents. The location was offered for sale again in 1922.
Enter the Avalon Theatre
The Hawkins / Hudson Company was founded in 1924 for purpose of building and operating theatres. They had some success in Brooksville and were looking forward to expanding their empire. Allen Hawkins and R. Gordon Hudson purchased property (Inverness Section 110, Lot 6) for their new theatre in July 1924. Construction started immediately and the new venue was ready by October 3. The inaugural program featured a concert by the Gainesville Symphony Orchestra for the benefit of the local Women’s Club.
All of the motion pictures were silent films, using caption cards to display dialogue. A musician at the keyboard provided a steady sound track to accompany the action on the screen. The management prided themselves on providing clean, family-friendly movies. Business was good since the Avalon was the only large theatre in town.
The Maddox Theatre Arrives
In April, 1925 Pearl Maddox announced that she was planning to build a new 500-seat theatre across from the Courthouse. Within a month, the new “Maddox Theatre” was open and ready to compete head-on with the Avalon. Citrus County citizens had a wide variety of shows to attend as the two theaters battled for customers. She later renamed the theatre in honor of her daughter, Valerie Maddox
Talkie Wars
The owners of the Avalon were the first to offer “talkie” movies in 1930. The theatre had been closed for renovations and installation of a new sound system. On the day of the Grand Opening, Inverness was thronged with eager customers who were amazed to hear the voices of their familiar movie stars. Since theatres in Brooksville and Dunnellon had closed, the Avalon was the only “talkie” movie in a 40 mile radius.
The Valerie Theatre fell behind in the competition but quickly caught up. Within four months the Valerie had installed a superior sound system and won back many of the movie goers they had lost to the Avalon.
The battle for Citrus County customers swung back and forth for the next few years. Special discounts and cash award nights were offered by the two competitors. They periodically expanded and remodeled their stages.
The owners of the Avalon scored a coup in 1935 by organizing the first Miss Citrus County pageant. Local merchants sponsored over two dozen entrants in the beauty contest which generated quite a bit of interest. Some of our long time residents may find their grandmother’s names on the list of candidates. The winner was Miss Margorie Bellah, who represented Jerome’s Service Station.
The Demise of the Avalon
Even while the beauty contest was being held, Avalon manager B.M. Winbish was being wooed by the owners of the Valerie. In February 1935, he switched allegiance to the Valerie and the Avalon was closed. While there were some civic events held at the Avalon for the next few years, its days as a viable movie house were over. It was shuttered and eventually torn down. The local Coca-Cola bottler, Pearl Baxley, purchased the property for future expansion since it was adjacent to her existing plant . In 1960, the Coca-Cola bottling capacity was doubled by the construction of a new building where the Avalon once stood.
The Coca-Cola company sold the property to Citrus County in 1983 and the Supervisor of Elections occupied the 1960 expansion building until they moved to Crystal River.
A Case of Mistaken Identity
The story of the Avalon is not complete. In 2000, a historic plaque was placed at the North Apopka site commemorating the old Coca-Cola building. However, the plaque is actually in front of the later 1960 expansion building instead of the original 1930’s building next door. It would be more appropriate to have a separate marker commemorating the location of Citrus County’s first real movie theatre – The Avalon.
Ken Marotte writes for the Citrus County Historical Society. He can be reached via email at kenmarottejr@gmail.com if you have any comments, questions or suggestions.
Reposted 01/22/2025