HauntBound archive · catalog record
Reported phenomena — as catalogued
Jonesboro's 1926 downtown theater where the ghost of former projectionist Charley still haunts the balcony
115 E Monroe Ave, Jonesboro, AR 72401
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$
Performance tickets vary by show; see foundationofarts.org for current schedule and pricing.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Historic downtown building; ground-floor accessible entrance
Equipment
Photos OK
1920s Downtown Commercial Theater · Community Arts Anchor · Northeast Arkansas Cultural Heritage
The building at 115 East Monroe Avenue in Jonesboro opened in 1926 as the Strand Theatre, one of several downtown movie houses that anchored the commercial district during the early sound era. Like many historic theaters of its generation, it cycled through name changes and operator changes as the business of cinema and live entertainment shifted across the 20th century.
The Foundation of Arts, a non-profit community arts organization, eventually took over operations and renamed the space the Forum Theatre. The organization runs the venue as a producing and presenting house — mounting its own musical theater productions, hosting touring acts, and providing performance space for community groups. The upstairs balcony, where the projection booth once stood during the building's cinema years, remains structurally intact.
Jonesboro is the seat of Craighead County in northeastern Arkansas and the largest city in that corner of the state. The downtown theater district it shares with a handful of surviving commercial buildings represents the built environment of early 20th-century Arkansas commercial life. The Forum Theatre is one of few surviving examples of the era's purpose-built entertainment venues in northeast Arkansas still operating in its original function.
Local KAIT8 television documented the building's paranormal reputation in an October 2021 report that included an on-camera interview with the Foundation of Arts director, grounding the ghost story in firsthand institutional memory rather than in outside speculation.
Sources
The ghost has a name — Charley — and a plausible origin. The legend holds that he was a projectionist who worked in the booth on the second-floor balcony during the Forum's years as a movie house. In the decades since, employees and visitors have reported unexplained sounds and the sense of a presence on the balcony, particularly in the area where the projection equipment once operated.
The Foundation of Arts director spoke on the record to KAIT8 in October 2021, providing institutional confirmation of the legend rather than dismissing it. This is the unusual case where a venue's operating management, rather than outside investigators or aggregator sites, is the primary source for the haunting account.
The reports are consistent and low-drama: sounds with no visible source, a felt presence in the upper reaches of the theater. No dramatic apparitions or physical disturbances have been documented. Charley, if he exists, appears to be a residual occupant rather than an active one — a projectionist still at his post in a booth that no longer exists.
Notable Entities
Media Appearances
The Foundation of Arts presents live musical theater, concerts, and community productions on the Forum Theatre stage year-round. The 1926 building retains much of its original downtown character.
During public performances and events, visitors can see the second-floor balcony where the projection booth once stood — the area most associated with Charley, the building's longtime ghost.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
Joliet, IL
The Rialto Square Theatre opened May 24, 1926, designed by Chicago firm Rapp & Rapp for the six Rubens brothers. Its Neo-Baroque interior — modeled in part on the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles — earned it a place on the American Institute of Architects's '150 Great Places in Illinois' and a listing on the National Register of Historic Places.
Cripple Creek, CO
The Butte Theater on Bennett Avenue is a historic Cripple Creek opera house rebuilt after the April 1896 fires that devastated the city. Associated with the Imperial Casino, it has operated as a performance venue for more than a century and is reportedly haunted by a ghost named Jack, linked to the nearby fire department.
Gainesville, GA
Pearce Auditorium at Brenau University dates to 1878, making it one of the older surviving performance venues in northeast Georgia. The university itself was established in 1878 as a women's institution and has remained a women's college at its undergraduate level. The auditorium has been an active venue for university performances throughout its history.