Butterfield Lease On Majestic Ends; Keys Turned Over

Butterfield Lease On Majestic Ends; Keys Turned Over

The Majestic theater formally passed from the control of W. S. Butterfield Theaters, Inc., today, and the future of the 35-year-old theater remained wrapped in the uncertainty that has existed since the Majestic ended 34 years of operation last March 17.

L. E. Mull, former manager of the theater and now manager of the State, this morning turned the keys of the Majestic over to Mrs. Laura Atkinson of Port Huron, one of the three owners of the theater. The Butterfield lease expires at midnight.

Even before the theater discontinued operations last March, it had been the subject of some discussion. Butterfield officials sough permission to improve and modernize the building, but were refused by city officials.

It was believed that the failure to obtain permission to remodel the older theater was partly responsible for the decision to build the State, and the Butterfield circuit announced that as far as It was concerned, the new State was replacing the Majestic.

Recently, there were rumors that the Majestic was to be reopened either as a theater or for some other public purpose. The rumors were followed by a statement from the city building inspector, William C. Maulbetsch, to the effect that the theater does not meet construction requirements and that a "fire in the present building would create an inferno so fast that loss of lives might result before the theater could be vacated.”

The Majestic opened in December of 1907 with a performance of the famous "Girl of the Golden West." In 1908, the Butterfield theater circuit began to operate the theater. In Ann Arbor, Butterfield theaters now operate the Michigan, the State, the Whitney, the Wuerth and the Orpheum.