Casa Linda Plaza in the 1950s. Photo courtesy of Beverly Orris.
The first structure built in Casa Linda Plaza was the Casa Linda Theater. Since its completion in 1945, the shopping center has grown, along with the neighborhood around it.
Above, see an aerial photo taken in the early 1950s. It’s from Beverly Orris, the daughter of Howard Brown, who helped develop the shopping center.
It’s been a while since we looked back at the history of this part of our neighborhood.
Around this same time in 2019, we shared some footage, courtesy of the G. William Jones Film & Video Collection at Southern Methodist University, of a circus that took place at Casa Linda in 1962. There were rides, animals, a Ferris wheel, a merry-go-round and more.
Watch the video below.
According to Cinema Treasures, the Casa Linda Theater was one of the first theaters in the United States built as a part of a shopping center. The first show displayed there was The Affairs of Susan, a romance movie with Joan Fontaine and George Brent. It closed in 1999 and was turned into a Natural Grocers in 2011. Some of the old features of the building, including the marquee and the and the facade, were preserved.
We found some footage promoting Mysterious Island at the theater from December 1961. Some men are setting up an oversized balloon to advertise the film starring Michael Craig and Joan Greenwood.
See the footage, courtesy of the G. William Jones Collection at SMU, below.
Just this year, Baldo’s Ice Cream and Tiff’s Treats opened at Casa Linda. Rodeo Goat and Ellen’s, an all-day breakfast place, have yet to open there.
