If you have been to the Castle Theater for one of the music concerts lately, you may assume that this theater was not a movie theater. The large stage that is so convenient for bands seems to be much too large for screening films. But when Charles U Williams was building the Castle Theater (with architect A T Simmons) and his five story car garage in 1916, the theater was intended to solely be a movie theater. The older theaters in Bloomington had vaudeville shows but the Castle was to only have motion pictures. As an auditorium it could be used for conventions or accommodate another types of gathering. Without dressing rooms, however, it would be impossible to accommodate the vaudeville shows which commonly had at least five acts.
The theater also screened only Triangle Plays, a production company that included D W Griffiths as one of its directors. This meant that the roster of actors who worked for Triangle Plays were repeatedly appearing on the screen at the Castle. The first movie shown there starred Dustin Farnum. Trivia note: Film star Dustin Hoffman has claimed that he was named after Dustin Farnum. Douglas Fairbanks was also a star with Triangle Plays. Of course every billing included a drama and a comedy. It seems that such a limited fare would be a handicap when the vaudeville competition was so varied. When Willard Mack (left) was starring in "The Conqueror" at the Castle, the Chatterton had the Folly Burlesquers. (Below is not the same company, but an example.) Given the choice, which would you go see?
The theater included a pipe organ for musical performances before each screening. One advertisement stated that Triangle provided special music for each movie.
The building was designed by architect A T Simmons, who also built the first home (for himself) in the Cedar Crest addition in Normal. The theater was decorated in colors of grey and coral with Circassian walnut wood decorations. The A T Fagerburg firm completed the interior decorations. The balconies held 260 seats and the main floor 840. With 12 emergency exits, the claim of the owner was that the theater could be emptied in 30 seconds in an emergency. A sprinkler system was installed in the five floors of automobile storage and the building was as fire proof as modern construction practices could make it.