Dundee Theater

The Dundee Film Streams' Dundee Theater

Theater is an
historic movie
theater located
at 4952 Dodge
Street in
Omaha,
Nebraska. Now
operated by the
nonprofit Film
Streams, the
Dundee is the
longest-
surviving
neighborhood
cinema in
Omaha.[1] Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap

Contents 4952 Dodge Street

Address Omaha, Nebraska
1 History United States

2 Present day Owner Film Streams

3 References Type Independent art house
4 External links
Capacity 300
History Current use Movie Theater
Opened 1925
The Dundee
Years active 1925-present
Theater opened
Website
to the public on
December 19, http://www.filmstreams.org/
1925. Described by the Omaha World-Herald as "Omaha's
newest photoplay house," the Dundee opened with the silent
comedy The Trouble with Wives and the short film The
Fighting Dude, written and directed by Fatty Arbuckle.[2]
Four years later, in 1929, management at the Dundee
installed sound equipment and the cinema entered a new era
of film exhibition.[3] In 1938, the Dundee Theater underwent
a major renovation, including the installation of new
projection and sound equipment, new seats, and a new
marquee.

In 1958, the owners of the Indian Hills Theater, the Cooper

Foundation, purchased the Dundee from the Goldberg
Circuit. In 1963, it rebranded as an art house, reopening with
Federico Fellini's 8 1/2. In 1965, the theater underwent
another significant renovation prior to its historic run of The
Sound of Music, which lasted 118 weeks. At the time, it was
second only to a theater in London for the longest first run of
a film.[4]

After a few more long runs of popular features, the theater

returned to programming art and foreign films. In 1974, the
Cooper Foundation sold the Dundee to Edward Cohen and
David Frank of Omaha. They changed the theater's offering
to family pictures in an attempt to create a "top-notch
house".[5] The theater closed for a short time and in 1980
was purchased and renovated by Denny Moran of Moran
Cinemas. Moran operated the theater for more than three
decades, typically playing art films and the occasional wider
release. It also became a fixture for its midnight movie series
of classic and cult films.[6] Popular titles featured as part of
the Midnights at Dundee series have included The Big
Lebowski, Donnie Darko, Pulp Fiction, Princess Bride, El
Topo, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Rushmore, Who
Framed Roger Rabbit, Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory,
Foxy Brown and The Room.

In 2013, the Dundee Theater closed for planned renovations.

A few years later, it was sold to Sherwood Foundation, with
plans to turn over operations to the nonprofit Film Streams.
[7] In 2016, Film Streams launched a capital campaign to

support its renovation and expansion of the Dundee Theater,

which would become the organization's second location.
Renovations began in February 2017. Improvements and
additions included a new entrance on the north side of the
cinema, updated ticketing and concessions counters, a new
bookstore ("Katie's Video") offering film periodicals, Blu-rays
and DVDs, an expanded lobby shared with restaurant
partner Kitchen Table Central, and a new 25-seat screening
room, the Linder Microcinema. New seats, screen, projection
and sound equipment were installed in the historic
auditorium. Named in honor of Peggy Payne, mother of
Oscar-winning filmmaker, Omaha native and former Film
Streams Board Member Alexander Payne, the main theater
seats 300.

Present day
Film Streams completed its renovation of the Dundee
Theater in November 2017, and reopened December 1, 2017.

References
1. Deknok, J. (2004). Dundee Offers Continental Charm.
Omaha World-Herald, Jan 15, 2004. Retrieved 7/08/07.
2. (1925) New Dundee Theater Opens Saturday, 7:30 P.M.
Omaha World-Herald, December 18, 1925.
3. (1929) Suburban Houses Open with Sound. Omaha
World-Herald, December 8, 1929.
4. (1966) Longest Film Run in Omaha. Omaha World
Herald, August 7, 1966.
5. (1974) 2 Omahans Buy Dundee Theatre. Omaha World-
Herald. Mar 3, 1974.
6. DeGroot, M. (2004) Midnight movies cinema treasure
at 'Dundee's'[permanent dead link]. Daily Nebraskan, Oct 11,
2004. Retrieved 7/08/07.
7. Micah Mertes (Feb 24, 2016). "Sherwood Foundation
 will donate Dundee Theater to Film Streams, with
spotlight on 2018". The Omaha World-Herald
Newspaper, Omaha, NE, USA. Omaha.com. Retrieved
20 January 2017.

External links
Film Streams

Coordinates: 41°15′36″N 95°59′23″W