The Informer: Historic Arcade Theater destroyed in 1985 Thanksgiving Day fire - American Press

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The Informer: Historic Arcade Theater destroyed in 1985 Thanksgiving Day fire - American Press

The historic Arcade Theater in downtown Lake Charles — where John and Ethel Barrymore, Harry Houdini and  George and Ira Gershwin once graced the stage — was destroyed by fire on Thanksgiving Day Nov. 28, 1985. Built in 1910, the building had been vacant and was awaiting restoration when it was engulfed in flames. The fire — started by transients who used bug spray and lighter fluid to ignite several small fires throughout the building to stay w…