Question of the Day - 19 February 2025

Thank you for knocking on the opportunity door. 

And yes, the historic El Portal Theater, located at at 310 Fremont Street and turning 100 years old in 2028, is now occupied by In The Game, a 7,000-square-foot arcade featuring classic, video, and virtual-reality games. Owner-operator Family Entertainment Group has nine similar venues around the country, including Reno. A sports-bar-type restaurant will serve the likes of burgers, pizza, wings, and salads when it opens in the near future. In the Game is open 10-2 a.m. daily.

As for the building it occupies, the El Portal Theater opened on June 21, 1928, owned and operated by Ernie Cragin, who moved to Las Vegas at age 16 in 1911 when his father went to work for the San Pedro, Los Angeles & Salt Lake Railroad. He graduated from Las Vegas High, then went to business school in L.A. and returned to run an open-air theater on the future site of the El Portal and start an insurance agency at age 19. He built and ran the El Portal Theater with a partner for three years, then was elected and served one term as mayor of Las Vegas.  

The El Portal was Las Vegas' first air-conditioned movie theater, a huge draw for locals seeking relief from the desert heat. The theater also showcased beautiful Art Deco architecture, a style that was prominent during the 1920s and 1930s. Its marquee and façade added a touch of glamour to Fremont Street. In its prime, El Portal wasn’t just a place to catch the latest films; it was a central gathering spot for Las Vegans, hosting events and bringing people together in an era long before television.

As Las Vegas expanded, particularly with the growth of the Strip in the 1940s and '50s, downtown entertainment venues like the El Portal declined in prominence. The theater finally closed its doors in the mid-1970s. It went through a few incarnations, including a shopping mall and Native American gift shop; at one point, a food court was announced for the site, but that didn't happen. 

And that's pretty much all there is to say about the El Portal. The original building has been renovated several times, so it's unrecognizable as the old movie theater. We wish In the Game good luck, though an attraction for kids in the midst of the Fremont Street Experience seems a bit of a long shot to us.