Maryland's Motion Picture Theaters

Since movies were first exhibited in the late 19th century, Maryland has been home to hundreds of theaters. Some of these theaters were built for movies, but others were traditional theaters, academies of music, lodge halls, and even town halls. This volume illustrates the development of movie theaters throughout Maryland with historic photographs from the author's extensive collection as well as from the collections of several historical societies, libraries, and individuals. Contemporary theaters have not been neglected; as the average life span of a movie theater is 25 years or fewer, these theaters may vanish almost overnight. This has been the fate of almost all of the theaters built in the 1960s and the multiplexes built between 1964 and 1990. Readers can relive the nostalgia of past trips to the movies as they explore the pages of this book.

Retired linguist Robert K. Headley has been researching local movie theaters for more than 40 years. This research has resulted in three books: the first, Exit, published in 1974 and long out of print, is now available only as a rare book and has sold for much as $500. His history of Washington-area movie theaters was published in 1999, and a comprehensive history of Baltimore-area movie theaters was published in 2006.