The reports were not guilty of sensationalism, as the architects indeed had given extra special attention to the acoustics, as talking pictures, a relative newcomer to the entertainment field had found a perfect environment in this new, different theater.

For decades, images of such Hollywood stars as Astaire and Rogers, Hepburn and Tracy, Bogart and Bacall, Greta Garbo, Bette Davis, Judy Garland, James Stewart, Cary Grant, John Wayne, and hundreds of others graced the screen of the Gateway.

The exterior of the building was modified to resemble the historic Royal Castle in Warsaw, Poland and seen by commuters driving along the Kennedy Expressway.

The money was raised through the generosity of individuals and corporations that recognized the significance to the community of this symbol of the struggle for freedom in an oppressed country.

That year the Copernicus Foundation took over the administration of the Gateway theatre and opened its doors to the Polish American and other ethnic communities, as well as Jefferson Park civic organizations which it has been serving until the present day.

[citation needed] The Copernicus Center is located one block west of the Lawrence Avenue exit of the Kennedy Expressway.