Movies brought a welcomed escape from the Depression’s tough times for those who had a dime for admission. By 1933 box office attendance was declining so theaters held contests offering prizes to encourage attendance. Durango’s Kiva Theatre at 813 Main Ave. had contests offering coveted Shirley Temple dolls, movie passes and gasoline vouchers.
The 1930s could be considered “The Golden Age of Hollywood”. Technology improved the quality of sound and color images became possible. Popular movie subjects were gangster films, musicals, westerns and screwball comedies. Legendary stars of the 30s included; Shirley Temple, Katharine Hepburn, Fred Astair, Ginger Rogers, Bette Davis, Spencer Tracy, James Cagney, Jimmy Stewart and the Marx Brothers. Many movies from the 1930s are considered classics today.
- The Thin Man (1934)
- Gone with the Wind (1939)
- Wizard of Oz (1939)
- Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)
- Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
- Frankenstein (1931)
- Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)
- All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
- Stagecoach (1939)
- Dark Victory (1939)
- It Happened One Night (1934)
- The Public Enemy (1931)
- A Night at the Opera (1935)
- The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939)