On August 31, 1961 at 8:00pm, the Cheltenham Theatre opened its doors for the first time with the showing of Walt Disney’s “The Parent Trap” starring Hayley Mills and Brian Keith.

According to local historian Chuck Langerman, the theater seated 1,500 and was owned by Stanley-Warner Theatres. It had Hi-Fi stereo sound and a screen measuring 60’x 25′, making it one of the largest in the nation at the time. It operated in the Cheltenham Shopping Center, located at 2385 Cheltenham Avenue, what is now called Greenleaf at Cheltenham.

The theater was taken over by the now defunct Budco Theatres in 1978 and was twinned. Budco was sold to AMC in 1987, and the large multiplex decided to close for good that same year.

A newer eight-screen multiplex bearing the Cheltenham name and operated by United Artists was located in the mall until it closed in 2008.

For a full-page spread of the grand opening in The Philadelphia Inquirer, you can click here.

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Photos courtesy of CinemaTreasures.org