Did You Know That Portland’s State Theater Showed Adult Films Until 1990?

The State Theatre opened its doors back in 1929 as a movie theater to a talkie..it was a couple of decades later that the porn hit.

According to Wikipedia, the gorgeous State Theater we know today, was even grander when it first opened as a 2,300 seat movie theater. There were so many expensive features: wrought iron stairs, bronze doors, tapestry rugs hung from vaulted ceilings decorated with intricate moldings and paintings, four Spanish balconies, and a Wurlitzer organ.

Those were some of the features of the original state. It was also way ahead of its time with technology. It was meant to be one of the best movie theaters in the state..and beyond. The theater ran first-run films for decades.

It was in the mid '60s to '70s that the State Theater fell on hard times.  Again, according to Wikipedia, the theater was leased as an adult movie venue by the American Theater Corporation. The State stopped showing porn in 1990. 1990? That doesn't seem that long ago!

When the American Theater owned the State, they pretty much let it fall apart. All the original gorgeous pieces were either lost or stolen. New owners hired a local architect and reopened in 1993 with big hopes! It still had problems. Management and owners came and went. The building still had big problems, like ancient wiring, and worse, fire escapes all over the building needed fixing and they struggled to meet code enforcement laws. So, concerts were sporadic at best.

New owners appeared in 2010 and an investment of $1.5 million! Another grand opening in 2010 saw what the glory of the State Theater should be! It has thrived since...and not one porn flick has been shown!