5317 Chene Street
Fredro Theatre, King Theatre, Lord Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith Church, The Detroit Temple
The Fredro Theatre was designed by Feldman & Scaler and opened in 1913 on Chene Street. Fredro is a Polish name and was common in that era. The Rosenbaum Brothers, who would later open Max’s down the street, originally had a shop called the Fredro Jewelry Store. Additionally, the theatre was near Frederick Street. This theatre was initially built for theatrical productions but later converted to show movies.
By August 1914, the structure had changed hands. The buyer was undisclosed, but the sellers were Wladislaw and Teodozya Chilinski and, at the time of the sale, was valued at around $33,000, or just under $1,000,000 today. The listing in the paper said that the “building contains the Fredro Photo-Playhouse, two stories and five offices.” It likely had at least one storefront, too.
In 1919, events inside the theatre led to a court date and a story in the Detroit Free Press. Stephania Eminowicz Sawicka, an actress at the Fredro, took offense to words spoken by Robert M. Lessel, a newspaper reporter. According to the Detroit Free Press, he “spoke sarcastically of her large shoulders, her carriage, ridiculed her Polish and did a lot of other nasty things.” Sawicka slapped the reporter and hurled insults back at him. This resulted in a charge of disturbing the peace for Sawicka and Sigmond Neuberg, the prompter at the Fredro Theatre. A jury found them not guilty.
In December 1927, a bandit tried to hold the theatre up, but Mrs. Marie Zaniszewski, the cashier, screamed for help, and the thief fled with his gun to a parked car outside with two other men inside.
In 1939, The Fredro became the King Theatre. It had just one screen, which was common for the smaller neighborhood theatres in the city. Detroit may now be known for its majestic movie palaces downtown, but it was known for its neighborhood theatres in its heyday. For every Fox and United Artists downtown, there was a Franklin, Frontenac, Zellah, Oakland, and Eastown in the neighborhoods.
The King was one of many theatres in Poletown East, but it’s one of the few that still stands. Despite that fact, its most recent use wasn’t to show movies.
By 1971, it had become Lord Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith Church. According to a piece in the Detroit Free Press, the parish was neither Protestant nor Catholic. Bishop S. McDowell Shelton said the group believes “Jesus Christ and God are one and the same. Jesus was the father in the Creation and the Son in the redemption and now is the Holy Ghost in the church. We feel there is no other God besides him.” They did not observe Christmas or Easter because the dates weren’t real and, according to Bishop Shelton, “everyday is a birth and resurrection.” Their Detroit church was at 5317 Chene Street, the former Fredro and King Theatres, pictured here.
A 1979 image in the Detroit Public Library Digital Collection shows the church at this location. Above the church’s name, ‘The Detroit Temple’ is painted on the facade. The theatre doors were still intact, and there were ‘Now Showing’ poster frames filled with church information. The brick wasn’t yet painted, and the structure was very handsome.
I’m not certain when, but at some point, the church closed its Detroit chapter. They still own the building and operate numerous churches nationwide, but I didn’t see a Detroit Ediface on their site. In 1991, Bishop S. McDowell Shelton, the man who introduced the church to Detroit in the Detroit Free Press, died. He wasn’t the pastor in Detroit and lived in Philadelphia at the church’s headquarters.
On July 13, 2012, the theatre-turned-church went up in flames. The second alarm fire gutted the interior, destroying most of the building in its path. The roof has since been compromised, and it feels inevitable that this structure will come down.
I’ve spoken about it on this page prior, but churches often get a bad rap in Detroit. Some argue that churches sit on too many historic properties and that they’re hindering historic redevelopment in some Detroit neighborhoods. Today, that might be true. However, in some of Detroit’s most decimated corridors, the structures still standing are often thanks to the church. Congregations took over these structures when nobody else would, and they’re often the reason they’re still standing. Sometimes, they’re the reason they’re in poor shape, too, but they wouldn’t be there if the church hadn’t looked after them when nobody else was interested.
If Lord Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith Church hadn’t moved into the Fredro/King Theatre, it likely would have been demolished decades earlier. I’m unsure if the church has any plans for the structure, but I can’t imagine any of them include a renovation attempt.
While taking these photographs yesterday, I spoke to a gentleman who owns one of the structures across the street. He told me he inquired about purchasing the building on the theatre’s right a while back, but the Land Bank gave him trouble. He said it’s probably worthless now that the roof is gone, but he seemed disappointed that nonprofits like Recovery Park were practically handed land they’d do nothing with. In contrast, he purchased a building and is fixing it up on his own dime.
He said that he thought that Peacemakers International across the street had purchased the theatre at some point, but online records show that the church based in Philadelphia still owns it. Peacemakers is a religious organization that helps homeless people and those affected by addiction. It’s been on Chene Street since the late 1990s.
Eventually, I’ll post about the structure my new friend was hoping to purchase, the one he currently owns, and the building the Peacemakers are in. Those are stories for another day, though!
If anyone knows when the church took over for the King Theatre or when the church closed its doors, please let me know.
September 2024 Update
Around September 26, 2024, the structure was put up for sale through Signature Associates for $50,000. Considering the structure lacks a roof and is in danger of collapse, the seller is likely looking to cash out on the land. Still, $50,000 seems to be priced right but steep at the same time, considering the shape of the building. Still, maybe somebody will step in to save the Fredro Theatre. The sign really spruces the place up, huh?
