Capitol II Theatre

The Capitol II Theatre is a historic movie theater at 116 1st Street North in downtown Newton, Iowa, United States. It occupies part of the Hotel Maytag Building on the town square and was built in 1927 by Fred Maytag, founder of the Maytag Washing Machine Company. At opening it was among the largest theaters in Iowa, with 995 seats. The theater has remained in continuous operation for nearly a century, surviving the transition from silent films to sound, the arrival of air conditioning, the shift from reel-to-reel projection to platter systems, and the twinning of the auditorium in 1988. Today it operates as a two-screen neighborhood cinema showing first-run films, offering food and drink, and hosting community-oriented free movie events tied to charitable donations. It is independently owned and is a local landmark in Newton. The theater's history is closely tied to the Hundling family. Fred Maytag hired George Hundling to manage the Capitol, and in the silent era the Hundling Family Orchestra provided live musical accompaniment, with family members playing clarinet, trumpet, violin, organ, piano, cello, and xylophone. After George Hundling's death in 1948, his son Dorman Hundling took over management, adding a larger marquee. In 1988 Dorman paid to have the theater "twinned," creating two auditoriums so that two films could be shown simultaneously, a response to the industry's shift to platter projection systems that no longer required two projectors per screen. The Capitol II Theatre remains a privately held, independent cinema. Its programming mixes current releases with special free screenings; for example, the official website advertised free PG-rated movies in October in exchange for donations of personal-care items such as toothpaste, toothbrushes, floss, body wash, soap, shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, hand sanitizer, feminine products, and baby wipes. The theater sells gift cards online, offers an app, and maintains a weekly showtimes email list. Its address, phone number (641-792-FLIX/3549), and manager email are published on its website. The venue also includes Joy's Page, a section of the site, and provides information on food and drink, directions, and policies.

The Capitol Theatre was built in 1927 by Fred Maytag, founder of the Maytag Washing Machine Company, in the Hotel Maytag Building on First Street on the Square in downtown Newton, Iowa. At that time it was considered one of the largest theaters in Iowa, with a total of 995 seats. Maytag hired George Hundling to run the Capitol. In the silent-film era, before "talking" pictures existed, the Hundling Family Orchestra provided live music for the movies. George's son Dorman played clarinet, son Lloyd played trumpet, daughter Carol played violin, daughter Lois played the organ and piano, George played cello, and his wife Helen played xylophone. Other area musicians were hired to fill in parts not played by the Hundlings. By 1929 the first "talking and singing" pictures were being shown at the Capitol, and the orchestra disbanded in the early 1930s. By 1937 the theater was advertising "Air Conditioning" on its marquee as one of the first movie houses to have AC. Dorman Hundling took over management of the Capitol in 1948 after the death of his father, George. Around that time a new, larger marquee was added. In the 1960s the platter system was developed. Rather than playing the first movie reel on one projector and the second reel on the other and switching back and forth, a single platter could hold the entire movie with all the reels spliced together. Movie theaters no longer needed two projectors to play one movie. As a result, Dorman paid to have the theater "twinned" in 1988 so it could play two movies simultaneously. The theater continues to operate as the Capitol II Theatre, a two-screen cinema at 116 1st Street North, Newton, Iowa 50208, with phone number 641-792-FLIX (3549) and website capitol2.com. It offers food and drink, publishes directions and policies, maintains a page called Joy's Page, and sells gift cards online. It also hosts free movie events tied to donations of personal-care items and maintains a weekly showtimes email list and a mobile app.

• 1988

  Theater is "twinned" to allow two movies to be shown simultaneously.

• 1948

  Dorman Hundling takes over management after the death of his father, George Hundling; a larger marquee is added.

• 1937

  Theater advertises "Air Conditioning" on its marquee as one of the first movie houses to have AC.

• 1929

  First "talking and singing" pictures shown at the Capitol.

• 1927

  Capitol Theatre built by Fred Maytag in the Hotel Maytag Building, Newton, Iowa, with 995 seats.

Independent historic neighborhood cinema and community gathering place in downtown Newton, Iowa.

• Movie tickets

• Concessions (food and drink)

• Gift cards

• Free community screenings

1. 1Capitol II Theatre - Homecapitol2.com
2. 2Capitol II Theatre - Our Historycapitol2.com
3. 3Capitol II Theatre - Wikidatawikidata.org