The Grand Rex celebrates its 90th anniversary, a look back in images at the destiny of a legendary cinema

Ninety years after its construction, the Grand Rex is enjoying a new lease of life.

The Art Deco facade - very fashionable at the time - has been completely renovated and will be unveiled on Thursday evening.

To celebrate this longevity, the cinema is planning a big evening, closing with the preview of

's next film

.

A look back at a century of cinematic adventures.

Queue in front of Le Grand Rex, 1979. Le Grand Rex

December 1932. Nearly 3,300 Parisian spectators flock to the largest cinema in the world.

After months of work, Le Grand Rex and its sprawling building stand proudly at number 1, boulevard Poissonnière.

The cinema was on the rise and theaters flourished by the dozens in the capital.

It is this collective enthusiasm for the seventh art which gave the idea to Jacques Haïk, co-founder of the place and French distributor of Charlie Chaplin, to create in Paris one of the “most innovative” cinemas in the world.

That evening, we come to attend the preview of The

by Henri Diamant Berger.

The director of this silent "blockbuster" has created a new version, compatible with this new cinema more conducive to spoken cinema.

For the first time, French spectators will be able to hear the musketeers.

A first.

Louis Lumière is the guest of honor at the screening.

A temple to the glory of cinema

The excessive Grand Rex was born in a particular context.

,” rewinds Shahram Abadie, author of the essay

(ed. Artelia).

With the advent of talkies, exhibitors are investing in new, larger, more spectacular and more profitable cinemas.

The competition is fierce, all seek to offer an "experience" to retain the public.

It is in this perspective that Jacques Haïk imagines the "atmosphere room", whose three floors and the paintings on the walls must give the impression that one is in the open air.

And in a more pleasant climate than the grayness of Paris.

All these innovations contribute to attracting a public fond of exoticism.

The facade of the Grand Rex in 1985. The Grand Rex

It was also at this time that performances in theaters multiplied.

Before the screening of the film, the cinemas sometimes broadcast information, sometimes shows, sometimes accompanied by a theater driver.

For its first evening, the Rex gives in the bidding.

An orchestra, a tap show, a ballet and the concert of a cathedral organ, which emerges from the basement, follow one another on stage.

, completes Shahram Abadie.

This second wave of cinephilia, which emerged with the beginnings of talkies, was short-lived.

Less than a decade later, the craze for giant halls is waning.

The Rex resists well, but its owner, Jacques Haïk, who is too indebted, decides to give up the room to bail out.

The Rex passed through the hands of Gaumont, before being sold to the Helmmann family - who are still at the controls today.

The Féerie des eaux show, at the Grand Rex.

The Grand Rex

Requisitioned by the Nazis to show propaganda films during the Second World War, the cinema reopened its doors after the Liberation, showing American films and distributing chewing gum during intermission.

Some exclusives break attendance records.

It is showing

, Walt Disney's first film.

In accordance with tradition, the films always take place in the second half of the evening, after an orchestra or

, an aquatic show that has become a signature of the place.

In 1981, the Ministry of Culture, led by Jack Lang, included the cinema in the inventory of historical monuments.

Insolent good health

The Rex is now in good economic health, which denotes in these times of historic decline in cinema attendance.

,” notes Alexandre Hellmann, the director of the establishment.

The operator, who has staked everything on the diversification of its activities, hosts marathons for film lovers, film concerts and shows.

,” Hellmann continues.

Screening of the film

, in the main hall.

The Grand Rex

Creating atmosphere, special events, investing in "niches" such as anime to bring together communities of fans, the only way to bring the public back to theaters, according to the director of Rex.

Efforts that paid off, since the cinema recorded more admissions in 2021, when it reopened post-Covid, than in 2019. For 2022, the cinema recorded a 10% drop in turnover, compared to 30 at 40% on average for the rest of the sector.