Rapp and Rapp
The architectural firm Rapp and Rapp was active in Chicago, Illinois during the early 20th century. Brothers Cornelius Ward Rapp (1861–1926) and George Leslie Rapp (1878–1941) of Carbondale, Illinois were the named partners and 1899 alumni of the University of Illinois School of Architecture.
| Industry | Architectural Design |
|---|---|
| Founder |
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| Headquarters | Chicago, Illinois , |
A third brother, Isaac Rapp, was also a well-known architect, primarily in Colorado and New Mexico. The firm is well known as one of the leading designers of early 20th century movie palaces. It designed over 400 theatres, including the Five Flags Theater, Dubuque, Iowa (1910), the Chicago Theatre (1921), Bismarck Hotel and Theatre (1926), Oriental Theater, Chicago (1926), and the Paramount Theatres in New York (1926) and Aurora (1931). If murals were to be included in the interior design look, Louis Grell of Chicago was commissioned to paint them.
Buildings
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Some of the notable buildings that the firm designed include:
Chicago, Illinois
- Central Park Theatre
- Chicago Theatre
- Gateway Theatre, now Copernicus Center
- New Bismarck Hotel, today "Hotel Allegro"[1]
- Old Dearborn Bank Building, also known as 203 North Wabash Street[2]
- Oriental Theatre, now James M. Nederlander Theatre
- Palace Theatre
- Riviera Theatre
- Uptown Theatre
Other areas
- Al. Ringling Theater
- Denver, Colorado
- Paramount Theatre
- Orpheum Theater
- Orpheum Theatre
- Miller Theater 1922-1972
- Michigan Theatre
- St. Louis, Missouri
- Ambassador Theatre
- St. Louis Theater
- Loew's Jersey Theater
- Paramount Theatre, Brooklyn
- Paramount Theatre, Times Square
- Loew's Kings Theatre, Brooklyn
- Cincinnati, Ohio
- St. Francis Hospital
- Cleveland, Ohio
- Palace Theatre
- Akdar Theatre 1922-1964
- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Loew's State Theatre, now the Providence Performing Arts Center
- Orpheum Theatre
- Paramount Theater
- Seattle, Washington
- Paramount Theatre
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin
- Uptown Theatre
- Warner Theatre - became Centre Cinema and Building then Grand Cinema, now vacant but intact, future home of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra
- Gateway Theatre - now the Rhode Center for the Arts
- RKO Main Street Theatre
- The Majestic Theatre
References
- At La Salle Street / Randolph Street / Wells Street. The German architect Albert Eitel worked together with Rapp and Rapp at the facade design and was responsible for the interior design of the hotel. House builders were Emil, Karl and Otto K. Eitel stemming from Germany. See: New Bismarck-Hotel in Chicago. Moderne deutsche Einrichtungskunst in Amerika. In: Innendekoration 38.1927, Seite 254-272.
- Virgin Hotel Phorio
External links
- Theatre Historical Society of America
- History of Chicago's Uptown Theatre
- Friends of the Uptown
- Balaban and Katz
- Friends of the Loew's (Jersey Theatre)
- Rialto Square Theater Official Website
- 203 North Wabash building website
- Rapp and Rapp at archINFORM
- Hotel Warner website
- Louis Grell Foundation/
- Architectural records for buildings by Rapp & Rapp, (ca. 1911-1971 (bulk 1911-1959)), held by the Chicago History Museum