Historic Savannah Foundation (HSF) will host a fascinating lecture by Savanah College of Art and Design Professor of Cinema Studies Dr. Chad Newsom titled “Making Film History on West Broad Street” on Thursday, November 19. 

Part of the ongoing HSF Lecture Series titled “The People, Places and Stories that Define Savannah,” Newsom will speak at the Murray C. Perlman and Wayne C. Spear Preservation Center, located in the Historic Kennedy Pharmacy at 323 E. Broughton St. in Savannah, Ga. Attendees are invited to attend a wine reception at 5:30 p.m. The lecture will start at 6 p.m.

From the 1910s to the 1960s, Savannah’s West Broad Street – which is currently known as Martin Luther King, Jr., Blvd. – was home to a thriving movie theater district that served the city’s African American community during the Jim Crow era. The city’s West Broad theaters included some of the nation’s first theater palaces, supporting the work of the earliest African American filmmakers and legendary performers who brought a touch of Hollywood to the Hostess City.

Newsom will emphasize the fact that West Broad’s theater district wasn’t merely a place where film history happened – it’s where film history was made. His lecture will include stories of theaters, entrepreneurs, films and movie stars, examining how these local Savannah tales enrich and enlarge the conventional understanding of American cinema.

On Saturday, November 21, Newsom will lead a walking tour titled “Savannah’s African American Movie Theaters: A Walking Tour of Historic West Broad Street.” The walking tour will explore local African American cinema history along the former West Broad Street, now known as Martin Luther King, Jr., Blvd.

This walking tour will not only introduce participants to significant theaters, but also provide a broader perspective on local Black history and Savannah history. “Savannah’s African American Movie Theaters: A Walking Tour of Historic West Broad Street” is $30 for HSF members and $40 for non-members and will meet outside of Origin Coffee, located at 356 MLK Jr. Blvd.

For much of the 20th century, West Broad served an important cultural hub and a thriving business district, which included a range of theaters whose screens featured classic films and whose stages hosted some of the all-time greatest blues and jazz performers.

Newsom is an accomplished film historian and professor whose research focuses on the intersection between cinema history and Savannah history. His forthcoming book, Movietime Down South, will be published by University of Georgia Press in 2027.

Historic Savannah Foundation’s HSF lecture series will pause for a winter break in December before resuming in January 2027. For more information about upcoming HSF Lectures, please visit myhsf.org/events/lecture-series.