the website movie-theatre.org has a map of staten island theatres circa 1950, the only palace theatre shown is on port richmond ave, not far from the ritz.
the website shows a ticket stub from this theatre dated january 1970.i was 11 at the time but was already an avid movie fan, and i don’t remember the theatre operating at that time. i would be interested to know exactly when the thetre closed.
i just revisited the photo, the caption says “palace theatre,port richmond”.yet you can clearly see “tottenville” on the marquee.the accompanying list of theatres names a palace theatre in both towns.iwould like to know exactly where the theatre(s) stood.
i caught a brief glimpse passing by the other day, the former theatre appeared to be some kind of discount food outlet, i didnt catch a name so cannot verify that it is still an entenmann’s bakery outlet.
recently i again toured the theatre, ms rosemary is doing a spectacular job.like vito, i would very much appreciate an occasional classic movie night.the thought of seeing a film in this venue is very exciting,perhaps it could be once a month or so….
it is now the ua hylan plaza, with 5 screens.the last time i visited, about 6 months ago,it was being run by a staff of teenagers and had become somewhat run down (one of the screens had a stain,etc.) this and the other current theatres on s.i. took a major hit when the stadium 16 opened.
the theatre no longer stands,but when it did it was not on the 5200 block of hylan blvd.that would put it at the southern tip of the island. it was more like the 2500 block,between new dorp lane and rose avenue.
someone has already bought the building,and from what i have read in the s.i. advance that person will not use it as an entertainment forum, i believe townhouses and retail shops are his plan.
i remember the balcony was always closed,when i would attend matinees as a teen. my dad took my brothers and i to an evening showing of the clint eastwood flick “high plains drifter” ,for once the balcony was open, and it was magnificent!they also always had a second feature.
this theatre is being mistaken for the former fox plaza theatre.the hylan cinema,originally one screen and later twinned, was located on hylan blvd just south of new dorp lane. annie sez and applebee’s now stand at the location. the ua hylan plaza is the renovated site of the former fox plaza, in the k mart shopping plaza.
this theatre, when it was the fox plaza (later twinned ) in the 70’s, actually showed hard core porn flicks as weekend midnight shows for a while. this ended when the staten island DA’s office raided the place during a showing, and locked up the manager (!) for violating the “blue laws”!
i recall it being a very crappy theatre, in light of the still open paramount , fox etc. you could hear the traffic from outside on hylan blvd.,and you could hear the soundtrack from the adjoining theatre as well!
the theatre never became an adult movie house. the owners were going ahead with that plan, but when the news hit the local paper, community opposition was too strong.the owners relented, and closed the theatre.
well said vito, very sad. also, thank you for your wisdom regarding these s.i. theatres.
the website movie-theatre.org has a map of staten island theatres circa 1950, the only palace theatre shown is on port richmond ave, not far from the ritz.
the website shows a ticket stub from this theatre dated january 1970.i was 11 at the time but was already an avid movie fan, and i don’t remember the theatre operating at that time. i would be interested to know exactly when the thetre closed.
i just revisited the photo, the caption says “palace theatre,port richmond”.yet you can clearly see “tottenville” on the marquee.the accompanying list of theatres names a palace theatre in both towns.iwould like to know exactly where the theatre(s) stood.
jerry lewis cinema was on forest avenue in mariner’s harbor,not far from south ave.
i drove by the other day and the former theatre is still in use as a storage area for farrell lumber.
i caught a brief glimpse passing by the other day, the former theatre appeared to be some kind of discount food outlet, i didnt catch a name so cannot verify that it is still an entenmann’s bakery outlet.
recently i again toured the theatre, ms rosemary is doing a spectacular job.like vito, i would very much appreciate an occasional classic movie night.the thought of seeing a film in this venue is very exciting,perhaps it could be once a month or so….
robert, it was never a jerry lewis cinema.what other theatre did the owner have?
it is now the ua hylan plaza, with 5 screens.the last time i visited, about 6 months ago,it was being run by a staff of teenagers and had become somewhat run down (one of the screens had a stain,etc.) this and the other current theatres on s.i. took a major hit when the stadium 16 opened.
the theatre no longer stands,but when it did it was not on the 5200 block of hylan blvd.that would put it at the southern tip of the island. it was more like the 2500 block,between new dorp lane and rose avenue.
the website oldstatenisland.tripod.com has a great photo of this theatre.
for a photo go to oldstatenisland.tripod.com
you can see a photo of this theatre in its glory days at the website oldstatenisland.tripod.com
someone has already bought the building,and from what i have read in the s.i. advance that person will not use it as an entertainment forum, i believe townhouses and retail shops are his plan.
it became a porno theatre in the ‘70s,dont know when it closed.
i remember the balcony was always closed,when i would attend matinees as a teen. my dad took my brothers and i to an evening showing of the clint eastwood flick “high plains drifter” ,for once the balcony was open, and it was magnificent!they also always had a second feature.
i recall it being a sub-par theatre,constructed cheaply.even the popcorn was lousy.
this theatre is being mistaken for the former fox plaza theatre.the hylan cinema,originally one screen and later twinned, was located on hylan blvd just south of new dorp lane. annie sez and applebee’s now stand at the location. the ua hylan plaza is the renovated site of the former fox plaza, in the k mart shopping plaza.
thanks to ms.rosemary and family
this theatre, when it was the fox plaza (later twinned ) in the 70’s, actually showed hard core porn flicks as weekend midnight shows for a while. this ended when the staten island DA’s office raided the place during a showing, and locked up the manager (!) for violating the “blue laws”!
i remember seeing all the bond films there. it was a very decent theatre.
i recall it being a very crappy theatre, in light of the still open paramount , fox etc. you could hear the traffic from outside on hylan blvd.,and you could hear the soundtrack from the adjoining theatre as well!
the theatre never became an adult movie house. the owners were going ahead with that plan, but when the news hit the local paper, community opposition was too strong.the owners relented, and closed the theatre.
i recall it was also a disco later on. the usual problems associated with a youthful clientel resulted in its demise.