260 Thayer Street began as the Toy Theater in 1915.
 The theater soon closed and possibly served as an amateur theatre or gymnasium with parking garage for a few years.
 
The Dulgarian family purchased the theatre in 1938, advertising it as devoted to "the showing of unusual pictures."
The new cinema debuted on February 15, 1938 with the French film Beethoven's Great Love (titled "The Life and Loves of Beethoven" in the U.S.).
Tickets cost 50 cents for evening shows, 40 cents for matinees, and 25 cents before 2pm.

According to Cinema Treasures, the movie Marty premiered here, among others.
 They had what was also described as a "first-run 'class' policy" continuing through the 1960s.
In the 1970s the Avon became a repertory house and was known as the Avon Repertory Cinema.
 In 1983, they returned to showing "first run foreign and domestic films of distinction."

During the Blizzard of 1978, the Avon retained power despite a widespread outage.
The owners kept the heat on, and allowed patrons to stay the night.

In 2018, the cinema celebrated 80 years of continuous operation in the hands of a single family.
The owners say they try to "keep the experience as close to how our grandparents saw movies as possible."
260 Thayer Street began as the Toy Theater in 1915.  The theater soon closed and possibly served as an amateur theatre or gymnasium with parking garage for a few years.  
The Dulgarian family purchased the theatre in 1938, advertising it as devoted to "the showing of unusual pictures." The new cinema debuted on February 15, 1938 with the French film Beethoven's Great Love (titled "The Life and Loves of Beethoven" in the U.S.). Tickets cost 50 cents for evening shows, 40 cents for matinees, and 25 cents before 2pm. 
According to Cinema Treasures, the movie Marty premiered here, among others.  They had what was also described as a "first-run 'class' policy" continuing through the 1960s. In the 1970s the Avon became a repertory house and was known as the Avon Repertory Cinema.  In 1983, they returned to showing "first run foreign and domestic films of distinction."
During the Blizzard of 1978, the Avon retained power despite a widespread outage. The owners kept the heat on, and allowed patrons to stay the night.
In 2018, the cinema celebrated 80 years of continuous operation in the hands of a single family. The owners say they try to "keep the experience as close to how our grandparents saw movies as possible."
Avon Cinema