Avenue de Gaumont

“Was there ever a grander cinema than the Gaumont-Palace?” a passerby might have exclaimed in the 1930s. Right here, where apartments stand today, once stood the Avenue de Gaumont, leading to the legendary Gaumont-Palace. Imagine a 1930s Paris, buzzing with excitement for the premiere of a new film. The Avenue de Gaumont would be thronged with eager moviegoers. They would be making their way to the Gaumont-Palace, the largest cinema in France. This Art Deco masterpiece, with its 6,000-seat capacity, was the place to see the latest and greatest films, from both France and Hollywood. Each week, fifty to sixty thousand people would flock to this grand cinema, eager to be transported to other worlds. But the Gaumont-Palace’s reign was not to last. Its very size, once its pride, became its downfall. The audio quality suffered in the cavernous space, leading to plans for renovation. Sadly, these plans were abandoned and in 1972, Gaumont sold the property. A year later, the grand Gaumont-Palace was demolished, making way for the residences we see today. Although the Gaumont-Palace is gone, the Avenue de Gaumont still stands as a quiet reminder of a time when Paris was the heart of cinematic grandeur.