It’s been a while since I last did these, but it’s time to journey back into time and look at another lost cinema. One which I used to visit during my teenage years.
Corso was located at Kruiskade, but the name had already been used before for anoother cinema. That one was located at Coolsingel 89 and opened in 1911. Before it got that name in 1928 it was called the Palace Bioscope Theatre. It had 350 chairs and it showed high quality films. It’s owner was busy expanding it, but when the second world war started and Rotterdam was bombed on the may 14, 1940 it completely destroyed the cinema.
It would take until 1961 until a new cinema bearing the same name would be opened at Kruiskade 22. The cinema was built by Chermoek’s Theaters and Jogchem’s Theaters. On the 10th of April 1959 they start building and on februari 23rd it opens its door. It has 808 seats.
The main entrance was on the side of the square before town hall, but it also had a second one at Kruiskade, which would be its only one later.
The cinema was designed by architect Dr. Ir. Thomas Nix. The operators of the cinema did so until 1976, when it was sold to Mij. Tuschinski. Shortly after that there is a fire in the cinema.
The look of the orginal screening room (pictured above) isn’t restored. The cinema later is bought by the Cannon group and even later by MGM cinemas. In 1997 though the curtain falls and the cinema closes.
After its closure it is used for several years as a place to go out and there are many parties there. The place is called (off) Corso then, but in 2013 it was forced to close because of noise complaints. The building now houses a casino.
Sources:
“Fantasie, illusie en betovering, herinneringen aan Rotterdamse bioscopen” by Herman Romer
“Over stalles, Rotterdam en het witte doek en parket” by Henk Berg
Rotterdam archives
Other cinemas in this series:
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