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The Des Plaines Theater Preservation Society is excited to thank Nancy Frugoli of June Moon in Park Ridge for her recent donation of two decorative Terra Cotta blocks that originally graced the Theater's lobby. Nancy acquired 10 of these blocks several years ago after holding an estate sale on Arlington Street in Des Plaines. After an earlier donation of a vintage postcard of downtown Des Plaines, she advised the DPTPS that she had terra cotta blocks that she believed came from a theater lobby.

Later, the DPTPS acquired copies of diagrams prepared by the Northwestern Terra Cotta Company, the firm who created the colorful Terra Cotta decoration visible on the theater's exterior. These drawings are housed at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC, and copies were given to the DPTPS courtesy of their donor, Mertes Contracting Corporation of Broadview. Using the information and serial numbers from this drawing, the DPTPS was able to positively identify the blocks as having come from the Theater's lobby. Because of some unique markings on some blocks, it is believed that these may have come from the theater's original ticket booth, which was located in the center of the lobby and removed during the theater's “Art Deco” remodeling in 1935. More of these blocks may be buried under layers of plaster and drywall in the theater's lobby itself.

These blocks provide valuable evidence of the theater's original decoration. We can begin to appreciate what the Des Plaines Suburban Times described shortly before the theater's 1925 opening as “a glorified edition of a Moorish harem in the Spanish Moresque, with polychrome terra cotta wainscot, wrought iron lamps and ticket booth, and an interesting design of tile floor”. Although DPTPS does not have any original photographs of the theater's interior, we have been able to assemble a good impression of the theater's original beauty using the large amount of ornament that still remains, along with several of the original blueprints and drawings. Nancy's decision to donate this ornament to both the DPTPS and Des Plaines Historical Society ensures that we will always have a record of the theater's decor, and gives us enough to be able to recreate much of the decoration if necessary. If you have more materials that can help us, such as old photos, terra cotta, or documents, please contact us. Each new piece of information brings us one step closer to realizing the grandeur of the theater.