Carbon-izer - Westworld Cinema
Westworld Cinema
9204 Buffalo Speedway


In doing work for "Version 6" of the Westheimer Road page, I came across 9204 Buffalo Speedway, which was an adult movie theater that existed in the late 1970s. Intrigued by the lack of CinemaTreasures' entry on it and how it and the whole shopping center it was attached to vanished, I did a bit of research on it. The modern site is occupied by Pemberton Circle, a private townhome development built around 2000 (gated community).

The theater was originally Wards Food Market, built in the late 1950s in Buffalo Plaza Shopping Center. Wards Food Market was also part of the "Lucky 7" franchise of independent supermarkets in the Houston area, and the the last mention of it was in 1969.

There were a few other tenants in the shopping center as well--in 1971, Cattleman's Crossing (a bar) was at 9206 Buffalo Speedway. The former Wards Food Market served as a few transient tenants (Southwest Auction & Liquidating Company in 1973 and early 1974; St. Mary's Orthodox Mission in 1974) but on February 18, 1976, it reopened as Westworld Cinema.

Now known officially as "Dome Shadow Shopping Center", Westworld (it appears it was a single screen theater) opened on February 18, 1976, it opened with a triple feature: "Behind the Green Door", "Resurrection of Eve", and "Sodom & Gomorrah". Westworld was part of a chain of Houston-based adult theaters, which at one time operated nearly a dozen adult theaters in the area.

It's unknown to when exactly the theater was shuttered. The theater actually used to advertise in the mainstream Houston Chronicle, but the last listing was in 1982; whereas the paper itself photographed the (presumably still operating theater) in January 1987. They used the photo in one of their slideshow articles (a script blocker and/or ad blocker is highly recommended), but you can see the photo of the theater (and by extension, the rest of the center) here.

The plaza was still extant as of 1995 but it was eventually torn down. As previously mentioned, Pemberton Circle is at the site today.


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