BROOKLYN — For some 50 years, the Star Theatre in Brooklyn was the scene of first dates (and perhaps first kisses), kids getting to see their first movie, a place where residents of the small town could gather and build community.

Now, after standing empty for decades, the place once known as “The Jewel of Brooklyn” is seeing new life thanks to a group of area residents who are working to restore and re-open the downtown landmark.

The Star opened on Oct. 7, 1937, with a run of the movie “Thin Ice” starring William Powell and three-time Olympic ice skating champion-turned-actress Sonja Henie. It was actually the third building in Brooklyn to bear the Star name, according to Jessica Malcheff, development director for the “Restore the Star” capital campaign.

The theater quickly became a much-loved fixture in the community, even growing from its original 200 seats to a seating capacity of 463 by 1950.

The Star even played an important role in supporting local agriculture. A little-known fact about Brooklyn is that the area was once one of the country’s leading producers of popcorn. And, rather than its popcorn coming from a commercial supplier, the Star’s popcorn was sourced from local farmers.

But then times and tastes, and movie technology itself, began to change, and the Star finally went dark in 1986.

A couple of efforts over the years to reopen under new ownership were unsuccessful. Then, in October 2024, the building passed into the hands of Irish Hills Sports and Recreation.

That group is a 501(c)3 non-profit started in 2021 by Heart O’ The Lakes Church near Brooklyn and its pastor, Cyle Young, who’s now known as the “Star Czar.” Its aim is to promote the area and foster activities that benefit community residents and provide family-friendly entertainment.

When the organization approached community leaders in Brooklyn to see what they wanted most, “they all said, ‘Reopen the Star Theatre,’” Malcheff said.

And so, Cody Morehead, the church’s associate pastor, reached out to the theater’s owner and told him that Irish Hills Sports and Recreation “wanted to do something family-friendly to draw the community together,” Malcheff said. “The owner loved that idea.”

With that, the group acquired the theater and the “Restore the Star” effort, led by Young, Morehead (the Memories Curator), Rob Freeman (Community Relations), and Malcheff, was born.

The city of Brooklyn, the Irish Hills Regional Chamber of Commerce, and the Jackson County Chamber of Commerce are partners in the project.

The capital campaign aims to raise $1.937 million, a figure chosen to honor the year the Star opened. Of that amount, $1.4 million would go to the restoration effort and $537,000 would go to create an endowment.

The group is pursuing grants and other funding as well as welcoming private donations. Malcheff said that right now, they are “very close” to raising the 15 percent of the campaign’s total funding that will make the project eligible for Michigan Economic Development Corp. funds.

Besides installing a new roof and new audio, lighting, and projection equipment, and seating for 300 people, as well as other general needs involved in restoring the building, the group plans to build out the stage area so it can be used in various ways.

Irish Hills Sports and Entertainment hopes to use the Star not only to show movies, but to host community events, stage shows, community-theater plays and musicals, recitals, weddings, birthday parties, and more, including tie-in activities with other local businesses.

In late November 2024, about a month after purchasing the building, the non-profit held its first event there, hosting the Grinch in the lobby in connection with the city’s holiday parade.

It was a great opportunity for people to see at least that part of the theater, either bringing their own memories of the times they’d spent there or visiting the building for the very first time.

“I was pleasantly surprised [during] the holiday parade,“ Malcheff said. “People were always asking, ‘when are you going to open?’ They are so excited.”

The event even drew someone who’d been one of the Star’s ushers, as well as the grandson of one of the original owners who recalled being in his grandfather’s office lounging on the couch during construction.

“We’ve heard a lot of first-date, first-kiss stories,” Malcheff said. “This space carries a lot of memories for people here.”

Local residents have shared their reminiscences not only about those first dates and first kisses, but of what tickets cost way back when and how, as kids, they were dropped off by parents and picked up after the movie was over.

“One lady told me that her mom wouldn’t let her go to ‘the big city’ [of Jackson] to the movies, but she could come here,” she said.

Whether at that November 2024 event or in other ways, “we’ve had a lot of good conversations with people. Everyone involved with this project wants to bring this place to life again.”

The Star recently gave a very visible hint of what’s going on with the renovation effort. The old marquee came down in October, replaced by a brand-new marquee purchased and installed thanks to a donation from Brooklyn Products owner Lisa Bascom.

“We were very excited about the marquee project,” Malcheff said. “It was an external project that showed the community that [the renovation] is going to happen.”

Malcheff said that Irish Hills Sports and Recreation hopes to reopen the Star in early 2027. 

“We know how beloved this structure is. … We want to restore it to its former glory and be a safe, fun place for families,” she said.

To learn more, go to restorethestar.com or facebook.com/restorethestar.