Caprock Chronicles: The Lyric Theatre, first proper picture show of Lubbock
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
Editor s Note: Jack Becker, editor of Caprock Chronicles, is a librarian at Texas Tech University Libraries. He can be reached at jack.becker@ttu.edu. Today’s article about Lubbock’s early movie theaters is the second of a two-part series by frequent contributor Chuck Lanehart, Lubbock attorney and historian. In Part One, the Band Hall and Orpheum Opera House were examined.
Erving McElroy, operator of the rickety old 1909 Opera House theater, decided Lubbock needed a proper movie house, and his idea produced the first big bright lights in a small dark town. In 1913, he established the Lyric Theatre on Texas Avenue at a prime location across the street from the Lubbock County Courthouse, and the Opera House soon disappeared.
Michael Peart, 35, said he owes his second chance at life to Judge Ruben Reyes, who he met 29 months ago when he started drug court, a specialty court program in Lubbock for probationers whose addiction is the source of their criminal troubles.
On Dec. 17, the second-to-last drug court session of the year, Peart walked to the front of the 72nd Court Room, and received a certificate and other gifts for graduating from drug court.
It was a bittersweet moment. On one hand, Peart was solidly walking on a path of sobriety that he wouldn t be on had Reyes not inspired him. On the other hand, Reyes was not there to congratulate him.
BILL SOWDER
I started leaving footprints in and around the Lubbock County Courthouse over 50 years ago. I will stop leaving near as many footprints there Dec. 31. Hanging around the courthouse that long taught me a whole lot about life.
I began to leave footprints way back when I was 10 or so as I assisted my dad in moving ballot boxes around the courthouse for elections. My dad was the Democratic Party chairman and was responsible for helping run the elections. My job was to get those boxes cleaned out from the past election and get them ready for the next one and haul those boxes down from the fourth floor of the courthouse out to the east side of the courthouse and put them in the precinct chairperson’s vehicle. We would reverse that process after the election. The only part of the process I didn’t like was it was usually late when the boxes would come back in and I didn’t like the jail birds yelling all kinds of things at me from the windows in their cell across the s
Lubbock Legal Aid Society benefits from gun safe raffle
Lubbock radio host Randy Mudflap Smith on Wednesday spun a raffle drum before drawing the winning ticket for a Winchester 26 gun safe at the Lubbock County Courthouse Gazebo.
The raffle was the last of three fundraising events officials with the Legal Aid Society of Lubbock organized this year to take place of its annual Duck Derby fundraiser, which was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lee Ann Kidd, the group s associate director, said the legal aid society sold tickets for the raffle for three months during which they organized golf and clay shoot tournaments.