The story
Charles Frye built the Central Public Market here to compete with nearby Pike Place Market. On July 24, 1939, the space opened as the Show Box, an Art Deco nightclub and movie theater with a blazing marquee. Seattle burlesque star Gypsy Rose Lee played here around 1946, and Duke Ellington and Muddy Waters are among the acts that performed over the years.
During the 1962 World's Fair it became a furniture showroom, and later it was used off and on as a bingo hall for the Talmud Torah Hebrew Academy. A rock era began on September 8, 1979. It became a comedy club in 1990, and it was nearly lost in 2018 when a developer announced a 42-floor apartment tower for the site. The city granted it landmark status on July 17, 2019.
Everything that was here
- 1939–present · still open
The ShowboxTheater
The Show Box opened on July 24, 1939, in a building that had gone up to compete with Pike Place Market across the street.
See the map in 1940 →
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Connected places
The Signature Room at the 95th
Roseland Ballroom
Illinois State Police District 6
Normal Theater
Diamonds Restaurant
Gus Mayer
Explore the full web of connections on the map.
Nearby history
Pike Place Market Public Market Center
The Lusty Lady
Pike Place Market
Starbucks (Original Pike Place Location)
Paramount Theatre
Moore Theatre
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