The Laurier Palace Theatre fire sometimes known as the Saddest fire or the Laurier Palace Theatre crush was a small fire that occurred in the theatre on January 9,1927 in Montreal, Canada. The fire–reportedly caused by a discarded cigarette smouldering beneath wooden floorboards–started in early afternoon during a comedy called Get ‘Em Young. 800 children came to watch, and panic erupted when smoke began to billow into the theater. 78 persons died in the ensuing mayhem.