Comments from michaelkaplan

Showing 26 - 50 of 59 comments

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Colony Theatre on Feb 7, 2012 at 12:06 am

I grew up in Jackson Heights in the 1950s and saw a few movies at the Colony, including High Noon, Disney’s The Living Desert, and at least one of Ingmar Bergman’s films. The Colony was one of two “art houses” in the neighborhood, the other being the Earle on 74th Street.

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Polk Theater on Feb 6, 2012 at 6:54 pm

went to the Polk many times as a kid. They had a good Saturday kid’s matinee, as did the Boulevard and Fair. I think the last time I went to the Polk, it had already been converted into a porn house, the third theater in Jackson Heights so transformed (along with the Earle and Fair). On the next block, also on 37th Avenue, was the fabulous Dragon Seed Restaurant, which had one of the first stereophonic music systems in the city. On Mondays, when the restaurant was closed, the owner opened it to neighborhood audiophiles. Great neighborhood!

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Loew's Commodore Theater on Sep 16, 2011 at 9:55 pm

The PBS American Masters documentary on Elia Kazan (mentioned above) was shown again tonight. There was a nice exterior view of the Commodore marquee.

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Loew's State Theatre on Jun 15, 2011 at 12:01 am

Here’s a link to a remembrance and photo of Loew’s State Memphis: http://www.memphistechhigh.com/memphis/memories/state.html

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Loew's Palace Theatre on Jun 14, 2011 at 11:53 pm

Here’s a remembrance and photo of Loew’s Palace in Memphis: http://www.memphistechhigh.com/memphis/memories/palace.html

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Marcus Loew Bronze Plaque for sale on Jun 11, 2011 at 12:40 am

The Theatre Historical Society in Elmhurst, IL, already has one of these.

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Capri Cinema I & II on Jan 15, 2011 at 8:58 am

I think the Pike may have been the little theater next to (and connected to) the Capri. I was there on the day workers ripped off the old silver screen. The buildings are still intact and have been remodeled into an art gallery.

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Bay Ridge Theatre on Jan 4, 2011 at 12:30 pm

The 1959 photo has been moved to the following website:

http://yfrog.com/h80mohj

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Loew's Triboro Theatre on Dec 19, 2010 at 12:30 am

There are likely thousands of photo links on this site that no longer work. Has anyone found a solution? Can’t photos be uploaded to this site and stored here?

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Bay Ridge Theatre on Dec 18, 2010 at 12:22 am

Here’s a photo of the Loew’s Bay Ridge c.1959
http://twitpic.com/3gz4o4

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Jackson Heights Cinema on Jun 20, 2010 at 10:18 pm

Does anyone remember seeing Hitchcock’s Dial M for Murder at the Jackson in the 1950s? If so, was it screened in 2D or 3D? I seem to recall it being shown in 3D ..

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Bama Theatre on Oct 16, 2009 at 12:40 am

There was a nice video of the marquee of the Bama in the Joan Baez documentary that aired last night on PBS.

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Marcus Loew bronze plaque for sale on Oct 14, 2009 at 6:01 pm

This item has been sold.

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Marcus Loew bronze plaque for sale on Aug 22, 2009 at 5:36 pm

This item has been relisted at a lower price.

View link

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Marcus Loew bronze plaque for sale on Aug 10, 2009 at 9:14 pm

The item didn’t sell on eBay but is still available. Anyone interested can contact me at

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Chicago Theatre on Aug 6, 2009 at 11:21 am

There are great Technicolor views of the Chicago in these 1948 short documentaries:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaMGqzkNwLY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pi9VrrVLMn0

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Paramount Hudson Valley Theater on Aug 5, 2009 at 2:35 pm

It’s not a great theater, but it’s very nice and hasn’t been overrestored, so you still feel like you’re in an old theater. The current projection/sound system is first rate; it’s a pleasure to see movies there.

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Marcus Loew bronze plaque for sale on Aug 4, 2009 at 4:26 pm

That’s a big piece of paper .. a stack of movie posters, perhaps?

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Marcus Loew bronze plaque for sale on Aug 4, 2009 at 3:29 pm

That’s interesting, because I contacted Friends of the Loew’s last week to ask whether the original plaque was still in place! Haven’t yet heard from them …

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Marcus Loew bronze plaque for sale on Aug 4, 2009 at 12:07 pm

I should mention that there is no signature or other identification of the artist of the bust.

Thanks to Warren Harris for the 1929 article from the New York Times.

At the time of Loew’s death in 1927, 144 theaters had been completed and 24 more were in construction. It is likely (though unconfirmed) that each of those 168 theaters had a memorial plaque installed in 1929. I wonder how many of the original plaques are still in place …

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Marcus Loew bronze plaque for sale on Aug 2, 2009 at 1:59 pm

I’ve now listed this on eBay
View link

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Bijou celebrates 100 years on Jul 31, 2009 at 5:24 pm

Unfortunately, this is how the theater looked BEFORE the addition of the marquee. It’s a beautiful building and the entry was quite elegant. That’s now gone.

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Fair Theatre on Jul 31, 2009 at 3:05 pm

This discussion has to take the prize for the most amusing on cinematreasures.

The Fair was one of my favorite theaters growing up in East Elmhurst. I think the first film I saw there was “From Here to Eternity.” Then they started showing 3D movies. Wow! My regret was not seeing “I, The Jury” when it played at the Fair in 3D. Happily, I got to see it at the Egyptian in Hollywood in 2006.

michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Bijou Theatre on Jul 31, 2009 at 2:43 pm

As Will mentioned above, the Bijou recently received a new marquee and vertical sign. Both are poor designs. The marquee looks like three commercial retail signs bolted together at the corners. A view of that beautiful entry arch (in the image above) has been obliterated. It’s doubtful any architect was involved, and astonishing that this design made it through what is usually a very demanding downtown historic preservation process. As an architect, I’m sure a fine design could have been produced within the budget, but, alas, it seems like no one tried ..

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michaelkaplan
michaelkaplan commented about Marcus Loew bronze plaque for sale on Apr 13, 2009 at 2:04 pm

Is it a photographic repro or done in real bronze?