Northwest Ohio is full of history everywhere you look.
One form you can find some unique and interesting history in is our area theaters.
Here, we take a look at six in northwest Ohio, as well as one legendary theater in Detroit.
Maumee Theatre
Samuel Johnson of the Maumee Theatre says the building originally opened in 1946 and closed in 1996.
It was closed until the city of Maumee bought it in 2000, and - after putting about $3 million into the building - reopened it in 2005.
"A lot of places that have old buildings like ours won't put the money into restoring it, just because it does cost a lot of money to run a movie theater, but I'm really glad that the city of Maumee saw the value in our building," Johnson said.
As part of the rebuild, the theater got a neon marquee up front as well as red neon running lights on the inside to keep what Johnson describes as an "art deco vibe."
The theater seats 494 people and has a full stage, with a main movie projector and technology to run laptops and cable television through it.
"It's essentially a computer running a projector with a light bulb," Johnson said.
Johnson says movies used to come into the theater in big shipments that needed put together, but now they just come in on a small hard drive which can be downloaded to the projector server - which Johnson says he can control from any laptop in the world.
But converting older theaters to digital projection isn't cheap. Johnson says each one of the projections will run about $2,000 to $3,000.
"So if you have two or three screens, that's a significant up-front cost to make the transition. And if you don't make the transition, you're not going to play movies," Johnson said. "So if you're not willing to put the money and convert to digital like we did back in 2011, you're just not going to be able to play movies anymore."
But Johnson says no matter what you have to do to make a movie appear on screen, it's always fun to go to a theater.
"You get two hours to yourself to enjoy a movie in a great atmosphere with some popcorn, pop, and then you talk about it with the people you were here with afterwards," said Johnson. "I've been in plenty of movies where people clap at the end, I've talked to people as we're walking out. You might make some new friends on the way."
Ohio Theatre
Another historical theater in the area is Ohio Theatre on Lagrange St.
Taylor Moore says the theater is a unique building on the inside as well as the outside.
"On the outside, it's more like the bark is bigger than the bite. It's a lot less impressive on the outside, it's just a brick building," Moore said. "Then, the inside where you come in is a nostalgic experience."
Part of the nostalgia is the carpeting, which is the original from when the building first opened in 1921.
Moore said the theater started off as a film house that did Nickelodeon movies.
"The community would come in, pay five cents, watch a movie, spend some time with their family and they they would skedaddle," Moore said.
Moore said the theater used to have a raised stage with pillars and then a movie screen; they have since taken out the platform stage and made everything level with curtains.
The theater first opened on February 28; the first film showed by Douglas Fairbanks' 1920 picture 'The Mark of Zorro.'
Moore says the theater could use come work but it's a unique experience to see the original architecture and craftsmanship.
"I really enjoy the look of the theater all together, the seats really tie it. The issue we have with them is people in the twenties were generally thinner," Moore said.
But Moore says it's really cool to show people the theater for the first time.
"It's really cool to see also that we are a historical theater, but we're also able to accommodate all of the modern tech needs as well," said Moore.
Moore says the theater has a very "custom rig," with front lights and some down lights, with some being a mix of color.
"I think these are a priceless asset to our theater," Moore said. "I'd be really sad to see them go."
He also points out the "splitters" and all of the manual gear used to edit the films, as well as the antique reels used to show movies.
Moore says the theater has collected a lot of film reels over the years, some as old as some Charlie Chaplin films.
"I think the nostalgia is very much needed to know the history of how we got here is very important, but I think it's more of an inconvenience now to actually go back to these systems and use them," said Moore.
Moore says the Ohio theater is a great opportunity for the Toledo community, and is excited to see what the future holds for it.
Clazel Entertainment
Clazel Entertainment has been a staple in Bowling Green since 1926.
Not only is it well-known by BG students and residents alike, it was also one of the first single-screen movie theaters to open in the state of Ohio.
Clazel continued to be a movie theater until the late 1990s when they still did the Rocky Horror Picture Show every Thursday.
The building also had another life as a night club and special event venue.
"The owner remodeled the place and reopened in 2008, and we were one of the biggest bars in clubs in Northwest Ohio," said John Carroll. "As the climate kind of changed up here for Bowling Green bars, we dropped away from the club scene and we focus more on special events."
Carroll says what sets Clazel apart from a lot of venues is that you can have your dance floor and your dining space; they also have the screen from when the building was a movie theater, and Carroll says they will still occasionally play a movie.
"Most people when they walk in for the first time, the usually say, 'oh, wow' out loud," said Carroll.
Carroll says some of the other cool features of the building is a glass table top with telephone poles and the Tiffany lamps hanging from the ceiling.
"That was always a big sticking point when we would sell one of the VIP lofts here," said Carroll. "You were fine as long as you didn't touch one of the lamps. If you did, that was pretty much game over for the night."
The history combined with the cool atmosphere makes this a job Carroll loves doing.
"I love coming to work here, it doesn't feel like a job," said Carroll.
Collingwood Arts Center
The Collingwood Arts Center is a registered historical site that once housed the convent for the Ursuline Order of the Sacred Heart and the Mary Manse College and St. Ursula Academy.
Pat Tansey said the arts center took over the building in 1985.
"We took the keys in October of '85. I met the nuns out in front of the building after working with them to get ready and they handed me the key as they left," Tansey said.
The theater originally sat about 600 people, with VIP boxes and even a "Bishop's box."
"The reason for that was when the Catholic school would be doing a graduation ceremony or a performance or whatever they had going on and the bishop was invited," said Tansey.
Tansey said the bishop would come out through the back of the box and sit in his chair, which would signal to the audience that the program was about to start.
"It's the worst place to see a play from, but the best place to be seen," said Tansey.
Tansey says the theater's orchestra pit used to go underneath the stage, but in the 1950's the nuns who inhabited the building put a false wall there and moved the orchestra pit forward.
The stage itself is designed to host a small trio or even a single performer rather than to have a group perform, according to Tansey.
Tansey says theater also has fantastic acoustics, which is "both a positive and a negative."
"This theater is unique in Toledo right now as far as the house in concerned. A small child could be on the stage speaking in a normal voice like we are today and it could be heard throughout the 600-seat auditorium because of the very fine acoustics," said Tansey.
Tansey says the theater's dressing rooms were made possible in part by a donation from a downtown building being remodeled.
"We put up these walls that we got from a donation from a building being remodeled downtown, then we've installed dressing rooms on either side of a general space in the middle so there would be men's and ladies' dressing room on each side of the stage."
The arts center's campus features the Nelson Theater, The Underground Theater and the Gerber House.
Tansey says the Louise Nelson Theater is where a lot of the center's props, costumes and other things are stored that are not only utilized by the art center, but are also loaned out to other people.
The Black Box Underground Theater was created in the 19th century.
"The whole idea was just like an artist who was going to put a painting on a canvas," said Tansey. "The look around and they got their canvas mounted and pick out their brush and a color and they make a stroke. The whole idea to us non-painters is how did they know what brush, what color, where to put that first stroke on that blank canvas?
"Well, it's the same thing with a performing artist. They come into the Black Box and there's nothing here. There's not seat chart, no chairs, no stage - there's nothing. And they say, 'geez, I want to do a show with the stage here."
Tansey says the Underground Theater is best used for small plays for about 100 to 150 people.
The arts center strives to offer different kinds of things for different types of uses.
Valentine Theatre
The Valentine Theatre opened on Christmas Day in 1895 and has had a rich history ever since.
From its conception until the 1920's, the theater was going strong.
Then came the Lowe's movie houses that were taking over a lot of the live performance houses and turning them into movie palaces, according to Jori Jex of the theater.
Gone with the Wind then opened at the Valentine in January 1940.
"People lined up for blocks to come see the movie here at the Valentine, and it played for quite some time," Jex said.
Then, the theater was closed down when One Government Center opened and the last of the government workers who had been in the building had left.
The theater faced the wrecking ball until concerned citizens came together to "save the Valentine."
Jex said they were able to work through the governor's capital request budgets and raise about $23 million to renovate the theater.
The Valentine reopened on October 9, 1999 and has been going strong again ever since.
One of the renovations that needed to be made to the theater was to give more space for the number of people coming through, so Jex said the grand lobby was built as an addition to the original structure.
The theater also boasts box seats, the main stage, orchestra seats and a balcony.
Jex says the balcony is considered an intimate venue because you're farily close to the stage no matter where your seat is.
The orchestra pit can also hold about 40 or 50 musicians.
Jex says it's cool to think about all the people who have walked into the door of the Valentine.
"You think about all the people who have been through this building. We'll be celebrating our 125th anniversary of the building next season," Jex said. "The people who came through Toledo, the turn of the century this was a hub for artistry and for the touring circuit. It was New York, Chicago, Toledo. So we were able to bring the greats in here."
Jex says historical theaters like the Valentine speak to America.
"They speak to the importance of performing arts and the rich history we have in this country and the support and the understanding and the need to continue on with the performing arts as an important part of our humanity," said Jex. "Downtown Toledo would be very different without it."
Toledo Repertoire Theatre
The Toledo Rep, founded in 1933, was originally built for a church.
Chris McAnall says the theater boasts a stained glass window from the original church.
"From the outside, you can see where there used to be windows, completely closed in now, so it would have been one of those," McAnall said.
Above the house and theater is where McAnall says the theater stores their smaller props.
"We try to keep them organized by different types, so books, kitchenware, suitcases," said McAnall.
The mission of the theater is to educate, entertain and serve Toledo and the surrounding region through live theater.
Harpo's Theatre
Everybody from U2 to Snoop Dogg has played at the world famous Harpo's Theater in Detroit.
Ironically, the owner of Harpo's now says he used to own Blondie's in the 1980s, when Harpo's was his competition with touring bands.
"I said, 'man, one day I hope I am going to own a big theater like Harpo's,' and here I am," said Ruzvelt Stevanovski. "I used to come here when I was younger. They got this Saturday night fever disco floor and I used to dance. Now, I own the whole floor."
Stevanovski says the theater was converted into a disco club in the 1970s, then became a heavy metal club in the 1980s.
Stevanovski says Harpo's is mostly known for heavy metal, and bands used to pack the theater with lines out the door and around the building to see them.
But the dance floor from the '70s still lights up to make coming to Harpo's an experience like no other.
Stevanovski says the floor is the only existing floor in the United States that still works, and a movie was even filmed at Harpo's because of the floor.
Being a heavy metal club, the theater has a big mosh pit where concertgoers go to rock.
Stevanovski says the curtain is also fire-proof, which comes in handy for the more wild concerts that get booked at Harpo's.
"I was the first one that booked Slayer in Detroit back in the '80s," Stevanovski said. "A lot of bands tell them that they're nervous, they're excited to be here because they heard about it, they know who performed on that stage: Krokus, U2, Huey Lewis, Gary Moore, Quiet Riot, Joe Walsh, Golden Earring, Uriah Heep, Rick Darringer, James Brown - the list goes on forever."
Stevanovski says that even though the theater isn't in the best part of town, he feels like it's his calling to preserve the legendary building.
"It's in my blood, man. It's not like I'm making money," Stevanovski said. "I don't want this venue to become another parking lot just like the other theaters; they're demolishing everything."
Stevanovski says a lot of people say Harpo's must be worth some money and they want to know why he isn't selling it.
For those people, Stevanovski has this answer:
"I'm not going to sell it. It's part of the history here. I love rock and roll. For the Detroit scene, I got to keep it going. I got to keep the legend going."