Magento 1.9. The default theme package is set to cache and cannot find another theme

When I change the theme of the "Standard Configuration" storage area under "Configuration"> "General"> "Design", it will load by default only the default / default. Or it will download the theme I used. But, if I try to download my new custom theme package, it can't find it. Here are the details ...

Past: I used theme for my default config, which worked fine. It was in app/frontend/default/my_theme/

and skin/frontend/default/my_theme/

.

In the Default Configuration> Design tab, I had the following configuration:

Current Package Name: default/my_theme

      

        
        
        
      

    

The rest of the fields were blank. It loaded my_theme

just fine.

Present: I have now created a multi-user setup which now has 2 websites and 2 stores on each site. I decided to create a new theme package so that I have different "skins" for each website. I have moved my_theme

to:

app/design/frontend/my_theme/theme1/
skin/frontend/my_theme/theme1/

      

        
        
        
      

    

and

app/design/frontend/my_theme/theme2/
skin/frontend/my_theme/theme2/

      

        
        
        
      

    

I have updated the default configuration store (top level global settings) under General> Design:

Current Package Name: my_theme 
Translations: theme1
Templates: theme1
Skin (Images/CSS): theme1
Layout: theme1
Default: theme1

      

        
        
        
      

    

The second website in my multi-user mode has this configuration under General> Design: Current package name: my_theme Translations: theme2 Templates: theme2 Skin (images / CSS): theme2 Layout: theme2 Default: theme2

Problem: The second website finds theme2

and loads it just fine, but my main site can't find it theme1

. It loads the default theme.

Troubleshooting I've tried: Changing the 2nd site to load theme1 using the same setting as the Default Config - the 2nd site finds and loads theme1 just fine.

Changing the basic website configuration at the website and storeview levels to bypass the default and use theme1 also does not work.

Renaming the folder my_theme

on the server to new_theme

and then updating the default Config> General> Design package default/new_theme

doesn't even work. The only thing that works is it default/my_theme

!

Cleared all my cache in admin panel and deleted all files from var/cache

on server.

Bottom Line: It seems like somehow my site has cached default/my_theme

and can only find one. I am unable to update the Default Configuration theme package for anything else. The second site loads in other themes fine, but this is the main website that can only load the default theme or the old theme.