Dapper Companies Purchases Huntridge Theater in Downtown Las Vegas

One of the most renowned and historically significant buildings in Las Vegas will soon be brought back to life, as the renovation of the Huntridge Theater is officially moving forward.

Dapper Companies, headed by homegrown real estate developer J Dapper, announced today the company has closed on the purchase of the Huntridge Theater in Downtown Las Vegas. The company will spend the next three years renovating the theater and the retail buildings on the western side of the property. The company is looking for devoted and enthusiastic partners and visionaries to help with operations for the venue and to create some amazing downtown food and beverage spaces.

The Huntridge Theater opened in 1944 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993. It rocked with performers such as The Killers, Smashing Pumpkins, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Violent Femmes and more until it closed on July 31, 2004, almost 60 years after it opened. In recent years, it has been the subject of several failed attempts to reopen or redevelop the local landmark that once hosted movies, concerts and groundbreaking performances.

"Bringing the Huntridge Theater back to its former glory after lying abandoned for 20 years is insane and something I dreamed about for years," said Dapper. "I remember being there when the Beastie Boys performed. I've heard stories that at a time when Vegas was lined with dirt roads and the Huntridge was the first unsegregated movie theater in town, Elvis rented it out for private openings and Abbott and Costello performed their acts before a show. That's some major history, but now it's time bring it back to life with new music, entertainment and to make history of our own."

Dapper notes that he could not have made it past the finish line without the support of the City of Las Vegas, especially former City Attorney Brad Jerbic, Mayor Carolyn Goodman, Councilwoman Olivia Diaz and other City Council members, in addition to leaders of the Huntridge community.

Dapper purchased the Huntridge Theater for $4 million, adding to his previous investment of nearly $25 million in the five other commercial real estate properties downtown, including the Huntridge Shopping Center, the building at 630 S. 11th St. (formerly Gamblers Book Shop, now home to Henriksen/Butler), The Herbert at 801 S. Main Street (former Western Cab Bldg.), 608 S. Maryland Parkway (former home of Mahoney's Drum Shop) and 201 S. Las Vegas Blvd, which is about to break ground.

The Huntridge Theater was originally operated by the Commonwealth Theater Company of Las Vegas, and in 1951 was taken over by the Huntridge Theater Company of Las Vegas, partially owned by the actresses Loretta Young and Irene Dunne. The theater was built on land which had been owned by the international business magnate Leigh S. J. Hunt, before he left it to his son Henry Leigh Hunt in 1933. The Huntridge Theater and the surrounding Huntridge subdivision are named after the Hunt family.

"It's always been about the people who live and work in the Huntridge neighborhood and the passion that so many of us who grew up here share about the theater and the times we spent there. I'm on a mission to bring it back from the dead and introduce it to new audiences and performers for generations to come," said Dapper.