The American Theatre was under construction (planned as the Bell Theatre) at the time of the April 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Repairs were made on the partially surviving structure and construction was completed with the opening of the theatre in January 1907.

Before the end of the silent era, the theatre was sold and renamed a number of times with the Embassy Theatre being its last name of the 1920s. The theatre was converted for Vitaphone sound films by at least 1929.

The theatre, which was now known as the Warner Bros. Theatre, was sold again to Dan McLean in 1933.

Substantially damaged by the October 1989 Bay Area earthquake, the building was condemned and demolished.

References: Tillmany-TheatresSF pp. 18, 19, 34.