The DeLuxe Theater

The DeLUXE Theater opened in April 1941 as the premiere Black movie theater and is located at 3303 Lyons Avenue in the heart of Houston’s 5th Ward. In the early 20th-century, the 3300 block of Lyons Avenue was predominantly residential with a smattering of small commercial enterprises such as a blacksmith shop and drug store. The McGowen School, later Phillis Wheatley High School, was also located in the adjacent block (3400) of Lyons Avenue. By the mid-1930s, the Crystal White Taxi Line and its associated businesses (a beauty shop, hotel, and domino and shoe shine parlors) were operating in the 3200 block of Lyons and continued at this location through the late 1950s. The Houston City Directory lists the Crystal White Taxi Line as the parent company of many businesses in the area, including the famous Club Matinee known locally as the “Cotton Club” of the South.