This article is about the Washoe Theater, probably Montana's most famous movie theater. They've completely redone their marquee in celebration of the theater's 90th anniversary, which is coming up this Thursday the 24th.
My wife and I went to a movie there a couple of weeks ago on our way to the Rocky Mountain Theatre Convention in Spokane. The theater is amazing for sure, but there is a strangeness about it in the presentation department. They don't have a functioning dimmer; the lights just drop to black instantly when the picture hits the screen, and pop back on to full brightness at the very end of the film (not during the credits). And, they insert an intermission in the middle of the movie, which is pretty jarring, not to mention contractually not allowed, but who's complaining? Not me, it was nice to have a leg-stretch break. And the staff was exceptionally welcoming and freindly. And they take credit cards.
The best thing about this place, besides the decor (art deco, completely original and beautiful), is the sound. In the film era they had a Sony SDDS digital system. I don't know what they're using now, but it sounds really nice.
Anyway...in previous times I've seen this theater, the marquee has been in a sad state compared to the inside, but now they've remedied that. I wish we could be there to watch them light it up, that would be very cool to see. Hopefully someone catches it on video. Screen shot from the newspaper (with pics) below the article. I'm not putting in a link because it's behind a paywall anyway.
I'll add a picture of the lighted marquee when one becomes available. Here's a link to the theater's website, but sadly there are no pictures of the auditorium on it -- but Google can provide. http://www.washoetheatre.com/
Historic Anaconda theater marquee revitalized
by Duncan Adams
People step around the lolling Labradors, paragons of ease, and ask Jerry Lussy about the ambitious revival of the marquee for the Washoe Theatre.
When will it be finished? When will you light it up?
Aside from a few tweaks and minor fixes, the months of work to strip and repaint the marquee, and replace some 200 pieces of neon tubing and hundreds of light bulbs, is done.
The toil required close to a year, partly because Dillon-based neon bender Ben Kenealey had to replicate the sometimes-challenging original neon pieces, including those with compound curves, and partly because other projects demanded time and attention.
Lussy, whose family has ties to the Washoe Theatre's earliest days, said he researched the paint colors used early on and landed on yellow and blue, with the addition of brown behind the movie sign, and red accents.
"I call it the marquee in the sky because the yellow is sunshine, the blue is the sky and then the red is like a nice sunset," he said during a recent interview.
The festivities for the upcoming 90th anniversary of the landmark Art Deco Washoe Theatre will include the marquee's premiere public illumination on the night of Sept. 24.
That signature event will follow a free screening of the first movie ever shown on the Washoe Theatre's big screen: "Texas Rangers," a film from 1936.
The stars included Fred MacMurray and Jean Parker, the latter a native of Deer Lodge.
The movie starts at 7 p.m. Lussy estimates the movie previews, an intermission and the film itself will consume two-plus hours, which suggests the marquee illumination will happen sometime after 9 p.m.
Kenealey talked about the role he played in the marquee makeover.
"Getting to work on projects like this is really rewarding," he said. "Getting to see the marquee once it is finished feels great. I often feel that my work is to keep this little bit of history alive, and when I get to work on these old signs and marquees I can really feel that."
Lussy, 63, acknowledged he has seen the renovated marquee lit up, during daylight.
"Beautiful, yeah, beautiful," he said. "Heartwarming. Nostalgic."
What does a revitalized marquee mean to him and his family?
"That we're keeping on," Lussy said. "Another chapter."
The Washoe Theatre survives on Anaconda's Main Street even as many other historical, single-screen cinemas have either gone dark, become nonprofit venues or been carved into multiscreen theaters.
"Between the decline in attendance and a single screen, it makes it very hard in a large, large building, large everything. It makes it hard to operate," Lussy said.
The closing of cinemas in Butte and Dillon have boosted attendance to some extent at the Washoe Theatre, he said.
Two grants covered most of the marquee renewal's expense, and Washoe Amusement covered the rest. One grant came from the Anaconda Community Foundation and one from the Anaconda Tax Increment Finance District. The grants totaled $40,000.
The Lussy family's ties to the Washoe Theatre date back to Jerry Lussy's great grandmother, Maria Paumie Rimboud. She was an early investor in the theater, a member of its board of directors, and a businesswoman whose Paumie's Dyeing and Cleaning House served customers in Butte.
Later, Henry F. Lussy, Jerry's father, inherited her shares and bought out Joe English, who had started the Washoe Amusement Co.
When Henry F. Lussy died in 1988, those shares, along with the privilege and burden of managing the Washoe Theatre, fell to Jerry.
The community's economic engine, the copper smelter, had closed in 1980.
"That was a tough time, the '80s," Lussy said. "A lot of people moved away. We didn't know what was going to happen."
Today, many Anacondans still feel a strong connection to the Washoe Theatre.
The theater persevered, just as it had during labor strikes, when union leaders pressured the theater to close because household money was tight and they deemed movies — unlike bars — to be a luxury.
The theater is restrained, though intricate brick exterior provides no hint of "the magnificence of the interior," as described in a National Register of Historic Places nomination.
Seattle-based architect B. Marcus Priteca designed the Washoe Theatre, considered an Art Deco treasure. It opened in 1936, with a small marquee that was later replaced.
Nat Smythe of Los Angeles directed the decoration of the elaborate interior and painted some of the murals on walls and ceilings.
Meanwhile, as the days shorten, Lussy ponders when the Washoe Theatre should light the marquee going forward.
"You know, before the shows and probably after the shows, I'm guessing," he said. "So, we'll be flipping the switch twice, you know. It'd be cool to light it up for people as they leave."
The Washoe Theatre celebrates its 90th anniversary on Sept. 24 with a free screening at 7 p.m. of 'Texas Rangers,' a 1936 film, followed by the lighting of the theater's revitalized marquee.
Screenshot 2026-09-20 204722.png
My wife and I went to a movie there a couple of weeks ago on our way to the Rocky Mountain Theatre Convention in Spokane. The theater is amazing for sure, but there is a strangeness about it in the presentation department. They don't have a functioning dimmer; the lights just drop to black instantly when the picture hits the screen, and pop back on to full brightness at the very end of the film (not during the credits). And, they insert an intermission in the middle of the movie, which is pretty jarring, not to mention contractually not allowed, but who's complaining? Not me, it was nice to have a leg-stretch break. And the staff was exceptionally welcoming and freindly. And they take credit cards.
The best thing about this place, besides the decor (art deco, completely original and beautiful), is the sound. In the film era they had a Sony SDDS digital system. I don't know what they're using now, but it sounds really nice.
Anyway...in previous times I've seen this theater, the marquee has been in a sad state compared to the inside, but now they've remedied that. I wish we could be there to watch them light it up, that would be very cool to see. Hopefully someone catches it on video. Screen shot from the newspaper (with pics) below the article. I'm not putting in a link because it's behind a paywall anyway.
I'll add a picture of the lighted marquee when one becomes available. Here's a link to the theater's website, but sadly there are no pictures of the auditorium on it -- but Google can provide. http://www.washoetheatre.com/
Historic Anaconda theater marquee revitalized
by Duncan Adams
People step around the lolling Labradors, paragons of ease, and ask Jerry Lussy about the ambitious revival of the marquee for the Washoe Theatre.
When will it be finished? When will you light it up?
Aside from a few tweaks and minor fixes, the months of work to strip and repaint the marquee, and replace some 200 pieces of neon tubing and hundreds of light bulbs, is done.
The toil required close to a year, partly because Dillon-based neon bender Ben Kenealey had to replicate the sometimes-challenging original neon pieces, including those with compound curves, and partly because other projects demanded time and attention.
Lussy, whose family has ties to the Washoe Theatre's earliest days, said he researched the paint colors used early on and landed on yellow and blue, with the addition of brown behind the movie sign, and red accents.
"I call it the marquee in the sky because the yellow is sunshine, the blue is the sky and then the red is like a nice sunset," he said during a recent interview.
The festivities for the upcoming 90th anniversary of the landmark Art Deco Washoe Theatre will include the marquee's premiere public illumination on the night of Sept. 24.
That signature event will follow a free screening of the first movie ever shown on the Washoe Theatre's big screen: "Texas Rangers," a film from 1936.
The stars included Fred MacMurray and Jean Parker, the latter a native of Deer Lodge.
The movie starts at 7 p.m. Lussy estimates the movie previews, an intermission and the film itself will consume two-plus hours, which suggests the marquee illumination will happen sometime after 9 p.m.
Kenealey talked about the role he played in the marquee makeover.
"Getting to work on projects like this is really rewarding," he said. "Getting to see the marquee once it is finished feels great. I often feel that my work is to keep this little bit of history alive, and when I get to work on these old signs and marquees I can really feel that."
Lussy, 63, acknowledged he has seen the renovated marquee lit up, during daylight.
"Beautiful, yeah, beautiful," he said. "Heartwarming. Nostalgic."
What does a revitalized marquee mean to him and his family?
"That we're keeping on," Lussy said. "Another chapter."
The Washoe Theatre survives on Anaconda's Main Street even as many other historical, single-screen cinemas have either gone dark, become nonprofit venues or been carved into multiscreen theaters.
"Between the decline in attendance and a single screen, it makes it very hard in a large, large building, large everything. It makes it hard to operate," Lussy said.
The closing of cinemas in Butte and Dillon have boosted attendance to some extent at the Washoe Theatre, he said.
Two grants covered most of the marquee renewal's expense, and Washoe Amusement covered the rest. One grant came from the Anaconda Community Foundation and one from the Anaconda Tax Increment Finance District. The grants totaled $40,000.
The Lussy family's ties to the Washoe Theatre date back to Jerry Lussy's great grandmother, Maria Paumie Rimboud. She was an early investor in the theater, a member of its board of directors, and a businesswoman whose Paumie's Dyeing and Cleaning House served customers in Butte.
Later, Henry F. Lussy, Jerry's father, inherited her shares and bought out Joe English, who had started the Washoe Amusement Co.
When Henry F. Lussy died in 1988, those shares, along with the privilege and burden of managing the Washoe Theatre, fell to Jerry.
The community's economic engine, the copper smelter, had closed in 1980.
"That was a tough time, the '80s," Lussy said. "A lot of people moved away. We didn't know what was going to happen."
Today, many Anacondans still feel a strong connection to the Washoe Theatre.
The theater persevered, just as it had during labor strikes, when union leaders pressured the theater to close because household money was tight and they deemed movies — unlike bars — to be a luxury.
The theater is restrained, though intricate brick exterior provides no hint of "the magnificence of the interior," as described in a National Register of Historic Places nomination.
Seattle-based architect B. Marcus Priteca designed the Washoe Theatre, considered an Art Deco treasure. It opened in 1936, with a small marquee that was later replaced.
Nat Smythe of Los Angeles directed the decoration of the elaborate interior and painted some of the murals on walls and ceilings.
Meanwhile, as the days shorten, Lussy ponders when the Washoe Theatre should light the marquee going forward.
"You know, before the shows and probably after the shows, I'm guessing," he said. "So, we'll be flipping the switch twice, you know. It'd be cool to light it up for people as they leave."
The Washoe Theatre celebrates its 90th anniversary on Sept. 24 with a free screening at 7 p.m. of 'Texas Rangers,' a 1936 film, followed by the lighting of the theater's revitalized marquee.
Screenshot 2026-09-20 204722.png
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