In 1934, the ‘lady in red’ betrayed gangster John Dillinger at this theater, which used to show movies. FBI agents shot him in the alley beside the building.
The whole thing started out as a date – Dillinger took new girlfriend Polly Hamilton to the show and Polly’s roommate Anna Sage tagged along, wearing a red dress. Alas, Dillinger was a notorious bank robber and the FBI’s very first ‘Public Enemy Number One’. Sage also had troubles with the law and was about to be deported. To avoid it, she agreed to set up Dillinger. The venue now hosts plays by the Victory Gardens Theater.
