I just tried to add a nice 1938 view of the theater, when it was the United Artists, but this site has become very hard to navigate, and I couldn’t get it uploaded. And it’s not as though I’m some senile old geezer; I’ve loaded many photos here, over the years.
I give up.
vindanpar, I saw “Funny Girl” at the Criterion in October of 1968, when I was 18. Having been a Barbra fanatic since the beginning of her career, it was an exciting event for me; it would have been, no matter what the theater, but being in the legendary Criterion made it extra special. I then saw her second film, “Hello, Dolly!” at the even more celebrated Rivoli, and her third, “On a Clear Day” at Loew’s State, which, if my memory serves me correctly, was twinned by 1970.
My experiences at the Central were limited. To the best of my really good memory, I was there twice: “Far from the Madding Crowd” in 1967 and “Mommie Dearest” in 1981.
Walgreens has abandoned the building, which is now vacant. I’ll post a shot from Google Maps; you can see the ghost of the Walgreens sign which was removed.
Walgreens has abandoned the building, which is now vacant. I’ll post a shot from Google Maps; you can see the ghost of the Walgreens sign from where it was removed.
I’m guessing this is 1939. I can make out “Claudette Colbert” om the marquee, and it looks like the movie she appeared in was “Zaza,” which was in release early in 1939.
The Globe prominently appears in the 1949 âD.O.A.â as Neville Brand and Edmond O'Brien are driving down South Broadway, near the climax. I just added a screenshot to the photo section.
@ Mike (saps): Look at that photo again. The screen IS wall-to-wall; you’re looking at a pre-feature card projected in the old Academy-standard aspect ratio, but the screen itself is much wider than that image.
@bigjoe59, I came out in New York after Stonewall in the early ‘70s, and there were so many popular cruising spots in the five boroughs in the '70s and '80s that I can’t even begin to list them here. Perhaps you’re not a New Yorker.
For those complaining about no photos having been uploaded, there are 23 photos that I took of the exterior AND interior of the theater when it was a furniture store, on September 12, 2013. I didnât get up into the balcony, but there are photos taken from the orchestra floor, as well as shots of the former lobby, which was then serving as the furniture showroom. If you haven’t looked through the entire gallery, stop complaining.
I saw movies fairly often at the Avenue U in the late ‘70s, and I don’t recall it being a dollar theater. The films we saw there were all first-run, in Brooklyn, anyway: “Annie Hall,” “Murder by Death,” and the Italian “A Special Day,” starring Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni.
I agree with Ed; it’s history. I was on a bus this afternoon and was dumbfounded at the sight, because I had no idea of the theater’s impending doom. I have vivid memories of seeing “Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?” there with my best friend, in the fall of 1962, when we were both 12. We lived in Valley Stream; my mother drove us there, and his father picked us up, and now I’m the only one living who remembers that event.
Sorry, but I didn’t get any photos. I was unprepared for the sight of the rubble, and by the time I got my phone out, the bus was moving east. Coming home, the bus was too crowded for me to grab any photos.
“Cat People” played to packed houses at the Rialto in 1942, and was held over for many weeks. The Rialto audiences were considered “the most savvy movie-goers in the world”.
I just read buick8’s comment, and I have a big scoop for him (or her). Making thinly veiled racist comments is unacceptable here, and I have further news for buick8. Neighborhoods wouldn’t “change for the worse” if ignorant people didn’t panic and move away at the sight of the first person of color.
I just tried to add a nice 1938 view of the theater, when it was the United Artists, but this site has become very hard to navigate, and I couldn’t get it uploaded. And it’s not as though I’m some senile old geezer; I’ve loaded many photos here, over the years. I give up.
Remade as “Paid” in 1930, starring Joan Crawford.
vindanpar, I saw “Funny Girl” at the Criterion in October of 1968, when I was 18. Having been a Barbra fanatic since the beginning of her career, it was an exciting event for me; it would have been, no matter what the theater, but being in the legendary Criterion made it extra special. I then saw her second film, “Hello, Dolly!” at the even more celebrated Rivoli, and her third, “On a Clear Day” at Loew’s State, which, if my memory serves me correctly, was twinned by 1970.
My experiences at the Central were limited. To the best of my really good memory, I was there twice: “Far from the Madding Crowd” in 1967 and “Mommie Dearest” in 1981.
Walgreens has abandoned the building, which is now vacant. I’ll post a shot from Google Maps; you can see the ghost of the Walgreens sign which was removed.
Walgreens has abandoned the building, which is now vacant. I’ll post a shot from Google Maps; you can see the ghost of the Walgreens sign from where it was removed.
I can’t make out the title of the second feature at all, but the star was Fred MacMurray.
I’m guessing this is 1939. I can make out “Claudette Colbert” om the marquee, and it looks like the movie she appeared in was “Zaza,” which was in release early in 1939.
And then he killed her in 1981.
These trashy movies were booked into the Criterion?
This played at the Criterion? đł
He got mentioned in the caption, which is more than Audrey and Mel got.
Why is this here? It has nothing to do with the Criterion.
The Globe prominently appears in the 1949 âD.O.A.â as Neville Brand and Edmond O'Brien are driving down South Broadway, near the climax. I just added a screenshot to the photo section.
@ Mike (saps): Look at that photo again. The screen IS wall-to-wall; you’re looking at a pre-feature card projected in the old Academy-standard aspect ratio, but the screen itself is much wider than that image.
@bigjoe59, I came out in New York after Stonewall in the early ‘70s, and there were so many popular cruising spots in the five boroughs in the '70s and '80s that I can’t even begin to list them here. Perhaps you’re not a New Yorker.
I just added a current photo of Norris Hardware, ©Google Maps.
In the ‘20s, Daly’s had a reputation for presenting risquĂ© plays, including “Red Dust,” “White Cargo,” and most notoriously, “Sex,” written by and starring Mae West. The play was considered pornography, and landed West in the Women’s House of Detention.
For those complaining about no photos having been uploaded, there are 23 photos that I took of the exterior AND interior of the theater when it was a furniture store, on September 12, 2013. I didnât get up into the balcony, but there are photos taken from the orchestra floor, as well as shots of the former lobby, which was then serving as the furniture showroom. If you haven’t looked through the entire gallery, stop complaining.
I saw movies fairly often at the Avenue U in the late ‘70s, and I don’t recall it being a dollar theater. The films we saw there were all first-run, in Brooklyn, anyway: “Annie Hall,” “Murder by Death,” and the Italian “A Special Day,” starring Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni.
As if the Brooklyn Paramount would have neon palm trees on its marquee!
I agree with Ed; it’s history. I was on a bus this afternoon and was dumbfounded at the sight, because I had no idea of the theater’s impending doom. I have vivid memories of seeing “Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?” there with my best friend, in the fall of 1962, when we were both 12. We lived in Valley Stream; my mother drove us there, and his father picked us up, and now I’m the only one living who remembers that event. Sorry, but I didn’t get any photos. I was unprepared for the sight of the rubble, and by the time I got my phone out, the bus was moving east. Coming home, the bus was too crowded for me to grab any photos.
It’s Rossano Brazzi.
“Cat People” played to packed houses at the Rialto in 1942, and was held over for many weeks. The Rialto audiences were considered “the most savvy movie-goers in the world”.
I just read buick8’s comment, and I have a big scoop for him (or her). Making thinly veiled racist comments is unacceptable here, and I have further news for buick8. Neighborhoods wouldn’t “change for the worse” if ignorant people didn’t panic and move away at the sight of the first person of color.