Michigan Building facts for kids
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Michigan Theatre Building
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Exterior photo taken in 1926
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| Address | 220 Bagley Avenue Detroit, Michigan United States |
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| Coordinates | 42°20′04″N 83°03′12″W / 42.334536°N 83.053298°W |
| Owner | John H. Kunsky |
| Capacity | 4,050 |
| Current use | Office Space, Coworking Space, Retail Space, Restaurant, Bar, Parking garage, Parking lot |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 1926 |
| Closed | 1976 |
| Architect | Rapp & Rapp |
| Website | |
| MichiganTheaterDetroit.com | |
The Michigan Building is a tall office building in downtown Detroit, Michigan. It was built in 1925 and has 13 floors. This building used to be the famous Michigan Theater.
Today, the Michigan Building is home to many different things. You can find a bar, a restaurant, shops, and offices there. It also has a parking garage and a shared workspace called Cowork at The Michigan.
Contents
History of the Michigan Building
The Michigan Building opened on August 23, 1926. It was designed by a famous architectural company called Rapp & Rapp. A man named John H. Kunsky, who owned many movie theaters, paid for its construction.
Building the theater cost about $5 million back then. That would be like $62 million today! With 4,050 seats, it was one of the biggest concert halls and movie theaters in Michigan.
From Theater to Nightclub
Through the 1950s and 1960s, the theater had several different owners. It was used for many events. In the 1960s, people could watch Detroit Red Wings ice hockey games on a special TV screen. This was for fans who couldn't get into the nearby Olympia arena.
In the 1970s, the Michigan Theater became a nightclub. It was a popular place for rock bands to play concerts.
Famous Performers and Films
When it first opened, the Michigan Theater could seat 4,050 people. John Kunsky even claimed it had 4,500 seats! Besides showing movies, the theater hosted many famous performers.
Bands led by John Philip Sousa, Benny Goodman, Jimmy Dorsey, and Harry James played there. Famous entertainers like The Marx Brothers, Betty Grable, and Bob Hope also performed live.
The Theater Becomes a Parking Garage
The theater stopped operating in 1976. At that time, it was known as The Michigan Palace nightclub. After it closed, the people who rented offices in the building needed more parking.
To keep these tenants, the building owners decided to turn the theater into a parking garage. They couldn't tear down the whole theater because it was a key part of the office building's structure.
So, parts of the old theater are still there! The beautiful plaster ceiling of the auditorium and the grand lobby are still intact. They are on the ninth floor level. Parts of the balcony areas and their staircases also remain. Even the projection booth, where movies were once shown, is still there.
A Historic Location
The Michigan Theater was built on a very special spot. It's where Henry Ford built his very first car in a small garage. That original garage was carefully moved brick by brick to The Henry Ford Museum in nearby Dearborn, Michigan.
The ninth floor of the Michigan Building was used for filming a donut contest. This scene was in an episode of the TV show The Grand Tour called "Motown Funk."
The Grand Entrance Window
Over the main entrance of the building, there is a huge arched window. It looks like it leads into the grand lobby, but it's actually a false window! The lobby is about 40 feet (12 meters) behind it.
This false window is the largest of its kind in the country. It has a curved back wall with over 50 fancy mirrors. These mirrors used to reflect light from a tall chandelier out to the street. The original chandelier is gone, but new lights have been added inside this five-story-tall window area.
Featured in Movies and TV Shows
The Michigan Building has appeared in several movies and TV shows.
- In the movie 8 Mile, the characters rapped there before going to a restaurant.
- It was shown as a building in future Los Angeles in The Island.
- It also appeared in Street Kings: Motor City, Alex Cross, and Transformers: Age of Extinction.
- Many episodes of the TV show Detroit 1-8-7 filmed scenes inside the building.
- In the movie Only Lovers Left Alive, the main characters talked about the building's history. They used it as an example of how culture can change over time.
Michigan Building at Emporis Michigan Building at SkyscraperPage
Images for kids
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Part of the interior, 2017
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See also
In Spanish: Michigan Building para niños
