24th October 1942
Cover sent from the 'Resi' Lichtspiele cinema in Karlsruhe to the Deutsche Filmvertriebsgesellsch (German Film Distribution Company) in Frankfurt. Ref: 24.10.1942
Karlsruhe Cinema
On 5th September 1896 the first film screenings in Karlsruhe took place in the Stadtgartentheater (which no longer exists today). The occasion was the 70th birthday of Grand Duke Friedrich. Between 1900 and 1905 the Varietétheater Colosseum also served as the city's movie theater.
The first permanent cinema in Karlsruhe was opened in 1907 by Otto Alban Kasper at Waldstraße 26. It didn't have a name, it was just called a cinematograph (after the projection apparatus). Short films on political topics (E.g. 'The German Emperor in England - Arrival in Portsmouth') or cultural films were shown. It was purely an in-store cinema with darkened shop windows and a screen at the front.
On 12th December 1908, a new cinema building was integrated into the building at Waldstraße 30 and opened with a sloping floor and staggered rows of seats. It was given the name Residenztheater ('Resi' for short). The first sound film was shown there in 1930. It existed until 1971.