Chicago Theater
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Architect: Cornelius W. & George L. Rapp
Year Completed: 1921
Location: 175 North State Street, Chicago, Illinois
Style: Beaux Arts
The Chicago Theatre was built at a time when the building was just as important as the movie the patrons were going to see. The theater was built for the Balaban & Katz theater chain who called the Chicago Theatre the "Wonder Theatre of the World." Rapp & Rapp also designed the Oriental Theatre that is just around the corner from the Chicago.
The exterior of the Chicago Theatre is an off-white terra cotta decorated with neo-Baroque designs. The arch above the marquee is patterned after the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. The current marquee was installed in 1949 and is the third one that has been used on the building. The "Chicago" sign is the original one.
The theater itself seats 3,800 and the lobby is based on Francois Mansart's Chapelle Royale, at Versailles.