Final installment of series on Winfield theater

[Editor’s note: This is the third and final installment of the series on the history of Winfield’s theater.]

In addition to managing the theater, Mr. Thompkins took over Roy Mason’s interest in the bowling alley and ran it with Ralph Joy. It was open every afternoon and evening except Sunday. Just where the bowling alley was located could not be found though it was frequently advertised in the Beacon no address was given. Bowling was introduced to Winfield residents in 1938 by Mr. Dale Newbanks, and from all indications it became a popular sport.

In 1943 Mr. Thompkins joined the Army and was stationed overseas for more than a year when Mrs. Tompkins received a letter stating he was in Australia. In his absence Mrs. Thompkins continued to operate the theater. Shortly after receiving word from Mr. Tompkins, Mrs. Thompkins announced they had sold the theater to Kennth R. Hodges, a WWII veteran who lived in Burlington and had been operating theaters in the Burlington area.

Mr. Hodges took over the theater in 1945 and soon bought Roy Mason’s interest in the bowling alley and ran it with partner Ralph Joy. Mr. Hodges said he would keep the current personnel for the present with Clayton Carlson operating the machines and Jean Butler taking tickets and running the popcorn machine. He would soon move his family (wife and pre-school son) to Winfield. They had purchased the house that was then occupied by the Ed Moore family. Hodges also operated the Cozy Theater in Morning Sun.

In November of 1946 Harold Hill purchased the theater from the Hodges. It was stated that he came from Burlington, but his name and the names of his family were often mentioned in the Beacon as attending social events in Winfield as far back as 1942. This leads one to think they were residents prior to purchasing the theater.

Mr. and Mrs. Dayle Allen and their 10-year-old daughter, Wilda, followed Mr. Hill as owners of the theater. They purchased the theater in 1948 and lived in the small theater apartment for a short time before moving into the house on Bashford now occupied by Jacob and Makayla Truitt. In 1952 they turned the operation over to Daniel Webb who had been running the projector for them for some time. He only operated the theater for two months before declaring that it was not profitable to keep it open.

After 38 years in operation, the Winfield Theater closed on July 5, 1952. The last show was Cattle Drive. Soon some of Winfield’s prominent citizens began discussing ideas for another means to help keep the youth of Winfield occupied. Then, in 1954, along came E.J. Kramer who purchased the theater equipment from Mr. and Mrs. Allen and signed a three-year lease with the Pratt brothers for the building. Hoping to give new life to the theater, he reopened the theater in February 1954. No date was found as to when it closed for the second and final time, but it was still in operation in 1955.

When the Winfield Theater was in operation the Beacon ran a weekly ad with information about current and upcoming movies. When the Winfield Theater was closed, the ads were replaced with ads showing what was available at the Cozy Theater in Morning Sun.

Through the years the theater was used for more than just movies. Traveling entertainers were among the special attractions held on the stage of the theater. Santa made visits to the theater to listen to Christmas wishes of area children, and in June 1938 the theater was leased for the purpose of hosting a a two-day cooking school.

It was in August of 1955 when Clyde Pratt made an offer to sell the Pratt building to citizens of Winfield.

More about the fate of the Pratt building in a future issue of the Beacon.

Memories of the Theater

Some Winfield residents who lived here when the theater was in operation shared memories from that era. Chris Trees recalled his mother, the late Alice Trees, talking about the times she visited her friend Wilda, the only child of the Allen’s who owned the theater. They lived in a small apartment above the theater where the projector was located. Alice and Wilda would lay across Wilda’s bed and watch the movie through the opening. Betty Huston also remembers watching movies while laying crossways on Wilda’s bed sharing friendship and free entertainment.

Beverly (Anderson¬} McCulley talked about watching Gone with the Wind at the Winfield Theater six times! She said she took her little brother and current Winfield resident, Andy Anderson. “He was five years old, and I don’t think he was too excited about the movie. He slept through them most of the time.”

Andy must have slept through them because when Andy was asked about it, he didn’t recall seeing Gone with the Wind, but he did recall his sister, Beverly, taking him to see Hansel and Gretel when he was a young lad. He even remembers the shirt he wore, a “yellow/orange” terry cloth shirt, with a fish on it. Andy also recalls a group of naughty, but nameless boys who would sit in the front row and cause quite a ruckus.

Rose (Bates) Custer, a former teacher and Winfield resident, sold tickets and popcorn at the theater one summer when she was in high school. Her brother, Gilbert Jr., ran the projector. He later joined the Army and now lives in California. He said that Jim Honts also worked there at the time.

Carla Trees told of the time her Uncles, Bill and Joe Klopfenstein, were given money to attend the theater on Saturday evenings, but only after they had completed their chores to the satisfaction of their Dad, Fred Klopfenstein. Apparently, they did not meet his expectations one Saturday. When Fred discovered an error in their work, he told them they could either forfeit their pay or walk to town. The two young lads chose to walk two miles rather than miss the movie.

Larry Jennings said he saw his first movie at the Winfield Theater at the age of eight. It was To Please the Lady starring Clark Gable as a race car driver and Barbara Stanwyck.

No doubt there are many more memories of the old theater floating around the building that now sits empty, waiting for new owners with new ideas. After the building was sold it took on a new life as the Winfield Community Center. Look for more of the history of the Community Building and what followed in an upcoming issue of the Beacon.