brightly colored green and yellow-glazed 1927 milwaukee venetian theater exterior roofline terra cotta finial pot

largely intact 1927 salvaged milwaukee richly colored polychrome venetian theater exterior terra cotta roofline finial designed and executed by the american terra cotta company, chicago, ills. the single-screen 1400-seat venetian theatre (1927) was wisconsin’s first atmospheric theater - designed by the architectural firm of peacock and frank. the auditorium featured antiqued walls, gold, blue, and red velvet hangings, lush tapestries, and velvet stage curtains accentuated with rhinestones. the walls featured richly ornamented tree-lined parapets interspersed with statuary with a dark blue plaster sky equipped with blinking electric “stars” high above. after permanently closing in 1954, the building was transformed into a furniture store, the venetian sales company, and finally a liquor store occupying the once grand lobby. when the liquor store moved out, the power was cut and the doors chained shut. after years of neglect and abdonement, the theater fell to the wrecking ball in 2007.