 Edward Franklin Albee II opened the Carlton on November 11, 1926 as one of a series of elaborate new Keith-Albee-Orpheum vaudeville theaters.The investment was ill-timed as the public was moving to less expensive movies, and Albee was soon pushed out.The theater chain was absorbed into Keith-Albee-Orpheum in 1928 and was soon controlled by Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr..