Oakland's Paramount Theatre still knows how to make an entrance

Oakland’s Paramount Theatre is the kind of building that tells you to slow down and look up. It opened on December 16, 1931, right in the hard years of the Great Depression. Even then, it was built with real showmanship: a tall marquee, layered Art Deco details, and a sense that going to a movie could feel like a night out in a palace.

The building was designed by Timothy L. Pflueger, one of the Bay Area’s important architects from that period. Among his theater work, the Paramount stands out because the whole place was part of the show. It came from an era when theaters competed by making the entire visit feel special, from the lobby to the ceiling to the lights.

Like a lot of big downtown theaters, the Paramount had rough years as movie habits changed. Its 1973 restoration helped keep it from becoming only a memory. Today it still works as a performing arts home, which is the best kind of preservation: people still gather there.

If you are walking downtown, the outside alone is worth a pause. If tours or events are available, the inside gives you the better story.