Last night at Rialto

posted by Michael Zoldessy on June 16, 2008 at 10:00 am

RIDGEFIELD PARK, NJ — Here’s a touching account of the final night screening of “Cinema Paradiso” at the closing night of the Rialto Theatre.

Then, as my car slowed in anticipation of a traffic light, I could see the letters — those six red letters, evenly separated and against a yellow backdrop, which brought back the memories like a biblical flood.

RIALTO

As I passed the movie theater that has forever influenced my life, I could see the title of the movie I had come to see up on the marquee: “Cinema Paradiso,” an Italian fable about the magic of movies and the lasting presence of friendship.

Read the full story at The Leader.

Theaters in this post

Comments (4)

moviebuff82
moviebuff82 on June 16, 2008 at 2:26 pm

the closure of the rialto leaves the loews in ridgefield park as the only choice of going to the movies in that area.

GaryParks
GaryParks on June 16, 2008 at 11:13 pm

I have heard of several theatres which have chosen “Cinema Paradiso” as the last film to show before they close, a very apt choice. In my local area, one such theatre that did so was the Varsity in Palo Alto, when it closed in 1994. Since it was closing on a Saturday, they ran one last screening of “Rocky Horror…” at Midnight (thus technically being the last movie shown) before shutting off the projectors for good. The Varsity has been a Borders bookstore ever since, though most of the exterior and many features of the interior were retained in the conversion.

markp
markp on June 17, 2008 at 10:47 pm

Does anyone know what will become of the Rialto, and why has it closed?

PeterApruzzese
PeterApruzzese on June 17, 2008 at 11:55 pm

Closed for good, equipment being sold, owner selling building:

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