The conqueror Ishbar converted the Cathedral of St. Gorboduc into a mosque, adding a Moorish interior that was often compared with the interior of a theatre in South Bend, Indiana modeled after the ancient Spanish mosque [St. Fidgeta & Other Parodies, 34].
The Alhambra is a Moorish citadel, a group of buildings on a hill overlooking Granada, Spain. They were built chiefly between 1230 and 1354 and they formed a great citadel of the Moorish kings of Spain. The interior of the building is adorned sumptuously with magnificent examples of the so-called honeycomb and stalactite vaulting; its walls and ceilings are decorated with geometric ornamentation of minute detail and intricacy, executed with surpassing skill in marble, alabaster, glazed tile, and carved plaster. The interior sounds almost as detailed and extravagant as that of St. Gorboduc's.
Moorish opulence was a favorite decorating theme in the great days of the Picture Palaces. Myers recalls one theater in South Bend that easily dated from the 1920s but does not recall its name "despite having seen dozens of movies there over the course of four years. That was the era when theaters with outlandish, exotic decor were being built all over the country. I would trust Bellairs knew of a theater in South Bend that had a Moorish theme. If it did, John would have loved it, because he was attracted to kitsch in any way, shape or form, the more outlandish the better."
"South Bend didn't have an Alhambra Theatre in our time, but it did have a Granada," notes Bowen. "Also, you should take the tour of the Fox Theater in Atlanta if you ever find yourself hanging out there to see a Moorish decorating theme. South Bend's Granada presumably participated in this trend. I am sure I went there, but I can't remember it now. In fact, the only reason I'm able to tell you anything about the movie theaters of South Bend is that I wrote a movie guide for the first issue of the Scholastic in Fall '58. Current films were listed by theater, so all the names were there. I wrote it as a favor to the editor, basing the reviews not on seeing the films but on information supplied by a film review service to which the Scholastic subscribed. I was uncomfortable with this dodgy method, and never did it again."
In regard to the South Bend allusion, Myers says he does recall one large movie palace that no doubt dated from the 1920s. "I simply don't remember either its name or decor, despite having seen dozens of movies there over the course of four years. That was the era when theaters with outlandish, exotic decor were being built all over the country, the most famous of course being Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. Lately it has been the fashion to restore these theatres to their full garish splendor, and several cities have found them to be excellent homes for their symphony orchestras. In fact, my wife and I heard of an superb all-Mozart concert in just such a place in San Antonio in 1989. As the Alhambra in Granada is arguably Spain's leading tourist attraction (with the possible exception of numerous topless beaches, which are really much more fun), I'm guessing that Bellairs inadvertently conflated the two names and misremembered the true name of the theatre in South Bend."
Bowen also assumes Ishbar is just another generic name (see words).
