Backseats Palace – Gary, Indiana

Long Exposure Photograph of the Palace movie theatre; blue strobes and a bare flashlight illuminate its historical decay. Built in 1925 and designed by John Eberson, this Atmospheric-style playhouse hosted both vaudeville acts and motion pictures during a time when Gary was vastly different. Following a spate of crime inside and around the theatre, linked to the decline of US Steel, it officially shut its doors in 1972. Despite multiple renovation efforts, none succeeded. In 2001, Donald Trump held the Miss USA pageant at the Genesis Convention Center, just a few blocks north of the Palace. The neighborhood cleaned up the theatre’s facade, adding murals and “Jackson Five Tonite” to the marquee. Ultimately, vandalism, arson, and water damage overtook this once grand and opulent building, turning it into a haven for urban explorers. Over the decades, curious visitors have come from far and wide to admire a different kind of beauty and create a different kind of art, but art nonetheless.