Kiwanis Kineto Theatre

The Kiwanis Kineto Theatre is a historic single-screen movie house at 24 King Street West in Forest, part of Lambton Shores, Ontario, Canada. It is owned and operated by the Kiwanis Club of Forest, a local service club, and is widely described as one of the oldest continuously operating movie theatres in the world. The theatre shows first-run films across a weekly schedule of Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday screenings, and also hosts concerts, film festivals, art exhibits and community events. Tickets are sold both online through its own website and at the door, with online sales closing two hours before each show and all tickets being final sale. The Kineto's story reaches back to 1905, when the Rumford family — Floyd, Marty and Tommy — showed the first moving pictures in the Town of Forest at the old town hall beside the Carnegie building on Main Street North. Floyd Rumford, known as 'Toby', powered a 'Kineto' brand all-brass motion picture projector imported from England by rigging a generator to the back wheel of an old Ford car. On April 13, 1917 the Rumford brothers purchased property on what was then Front Street, now 24 King Street West, the site of today's theatre. The building itself has a longer history still: the land was surrendered by the Crown to surveyor Timothy Resseguie on May 26, 1836, and in 1859 Resseguie sold it to William Bradley, who built a frame building and ran a harness shop there. In the modern era the Kiwanis Club of Forest has owned and operated the theatre, maintaining it as a community asset. With the acquisition of the adjacent flower shop, the club undertook a major expansion and capital renovation of the historic building. The all-in project budget was $1,500,000, covering the building contract, architect and engineer fees, a new marquee, kitchen equipment and accessories, a donor wall, electronics, permits and licences. The main level gained a state-of-the-art lobby, concession, accessible washrooms, accessible theatre seating, a new marquee and a community room; the lower level gained an industrial kitchen, serving area, unisex washroom and an updated, accessible community room. The campaign reached its $1.5 million target. Today the Kineto is more than a cinema. The club describes it as a 'people place' providing movie entertainment year-round for families and people of all ages, and a cultural place hosting film festivals, concerts and art exhibits. Over the five years preceding the renovation write-up, the Kiwanis Club of Forest donated more than $150,000 throughout the Forest community. The theatre remains a heritage landmark and a gathering point for the town, with its programming, concession and community spaces all run in service of the local area.

The Kineto's origins lie in the earliest days of show business in the Town of Forest, Ontario. In 1905 the Rumford family — Floyd, Marty and Tommy — showed the first moving pictures in the town, projecting them from a metal booth within the gallery of the old town hall, which stood beside the Carnegie building on Main Street North, next to the town bakery also owned by the Rumfords. George A. Lundy, a friend of the Rumfords, originally partnered with Floyd Rumford but sold his share to the others a few years later. Floyd Rumford, known to friends as 'Toby', devised an ingenious power source for the shows: he hooked a generator to the back wheel of an old Ford car and connected it to a 'Kineto' brand all-brass motion picture projector imported from England. The car was slid backwards so that its wheel touched a steel pulley, which in turn operated the generator. With this arrangement he showed silent films at the town hall gallery, at the old curling rink near where the United Church stands today, and sometimes out near the lake. On April 13, 1917 the Rumford brothers purchased a piece of property in Forest on what was then known as Front Street — now 24 King Street West, the site of the Kiwanis Kineto Theatre. The building's site has a deep history of its own: on May 26, 1836 the Crown surrendered the land to surveyor Timothy Resseguie, and on March 8, 1859 Resseguie sold it to William Bradley, who built a frame building on the land and started a harness shop. In the modern era the theatre has been owned and operated by the Kiwanis Club of Forest, which has maintained it as a community institution for roughly fifty years. With the acquisition of the adjacent flower shop, the club undertook a significant expansion and capital renovation of the historic building. The all-in project budget was $1,500,000, covering the building contract, architect and engineer fees, a new marquee, kitchen equipment and accessories, a donor wall, electronics, permits and licences. The main level gained a state-of-the-art lobby, concession, accessible washrooms, accessible theatre seating, a new marquee and a community room; the lower level gained an industrial kitchen, a serving area, a unisex washroom and an updated, accessible community room. The campaign reached its $1.5 million target, and the work was framed as a facelift for one of the oldest continuously operating movie theatres in the world. The Kineto today operates as a single-screen cinema with a weekly schedule of Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday screenings, alongside a concert series and other cultural programming. It is described by its owners as more than just a movie theatre: a 'people place' offering year-round movie entertainment for families and people of all ages, and a cultural place hosting film festivals, concerts and art exhibits. Over the five years preceding the renovation write-up, the Kiwanis Club of Forest donated more than $150,000 throughout the Forest community.

• 2024

  The Kiwanis Club of Forest completes a $1.5 million expansion and capital renovation of the historic theatre, reaching its fundraising target.

• 1917

  On April 13 the Rumford brothers purchase the property at what is now 24 King Street West, the site of the Kiwanis Kineto Theatre.

• 1905

  The Rumford family (Floyd, Marty and Tommy) show the first moving pictures in the Town of Forest at the old town hall.

• 1859

  On March 8 Resseguie sells the land to William Bradley, who builds a frame building and starts a harness shop.

• 1836

  On May 26 the Crown surrenders the land where the theatre now stands to surveyor Timothy Resseguie.

A heritage, community-owned cinema and cultural gathering place — one of the oldest continuously operating movie theatres in the world — run by a local service club for the benefit of the whole community.

• Weekly film screenings

  First-run films shown Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and Tuesdays, with ratings such as PG and 14A.

• Concert series

  Live concerts with varying ticket prices and door times, sold online and at the door.

• Kineto movie passes

  Passes usable for ticket purchases at the door.

• Community room

  Accessible community space on the main and lower levels, added in the renovation.

1. 1Kineto Movie Theatre — official websitekineto.ca
2. 2Our Story — Kineto Theatrekineto.ca
3. 3Our Renovation Story — Kineto Theatrekineto.ca
4. 4Kiwanis Kineto Theatre — Wikidatawikidata.org