While on this subject, in Warren’s message above from Sept 5th, he mentions “Heights Theaters, Inc. ran the Glenwood, Irving, Parthenon, and Wyckoff theatres, and was in the process of building the United and Knickerbocker."
Could the mysterious "Knickerbocker” theater that no one ever heard of and keeps coming up over and over in various theater sections here be the one other mysterious theater at 326 Knickerbocker Ave that keeps coming up? We solved the mysterious Mozart theater was really the Irving, and I even photographed the building the other day that still exists (see the Irving Theater )section. Now it’s time to solve the Knickerbocker.
And this is all I am going to say about this, because I come here to read about theaters, not “gossip”, however:
This may not prove the information is wrong (it may be right, or it may be correct), however, the webmasters have also discovered something is wrong. Apparently, they have voided the account of FastEddie, RidgewoodBill, Sally G. Sally G.. and S G Cogan If you click on any of those, the accounts are voided.
Although the alternate accounts: Sally-G, Sally. Sally Genova S.G.Cogan SG Cogan S-G Coglin S.G.Cogin. and SGCogin are all still active accounts, so didn’t catch those yet.
Why would two different people make the exact same mistakes of having multiple accounts each time they post, and all the accounts are variations in the same way for both names, by the same exact method of adding a period, dash, or taking out spaces.
Interestingly, the Associated Supermarket seen in my photo linked above now on the site uses “229 Knickerbocker Ave” as their mailing address. Actually, also you can see the “scars” of the Starr theater on the side of the building to the left of the Associated from when they tore the theater down.
Wow, that is really outdated! It’s never been closed, and it hasn’t been only 3 theaters for about 20 years when it became a 5plex….!
Someone should really email them.
Ah, my photos seem to be back up again. The webmasters said they may go on and off for a bit, but as of now they are working.
Anyway, I may get over to Bushwick some time in October, so I’ll keep you posted the current shots of theaters I forgot the last time, like the Empire and the Halsey, etc.
Oh by the way, the site I put all my photos on of the various Bushwick and Ridgewood Theaters last week is having technical difficulties, so if you click on any of my photos, they will not come up. The webmasters claim they will be up again shortly, so please try again later if you have problems with my Sept 22 or Sept 24 link above, or any of the other theaters I added photo links on this site to.
Has anyone ever heard of the Knickerbocker Airdrome which was supposedly was at Halsey St and Knickerbocker Ave? Lostmemory has suggested that the Alhambra probably replaced the Knickerbocker Airdrome, since the Alhambra was also at the corner of Knickerbocker and Halsey.
I will one day see if I can find anything out about the 274 Knickerbocker Ave site. I entered current photos of both the Starr Theater now a supermarket (As well as many of the Bushwick-Ridgewood theaters – check them if you like), and the Willoughby theater, now a Spanish Church. Actually, the Starr theater was on the opposite side of the street from the Willoughby theater. However, if there was a Knickerbocker-Casino, it would be only doors from the Willoughby theater
I will one day see if I can find anything out about the 274 Knickerbocker Ave site. I entered current photos of both the [url=/theaters/8018/Starr Theater [/url]site, now a supermarket (As well as many of the Bushwick-Ridgewood theaters – check them if you like), and the [url=/theaters/8019/]Willoughby theater[url], now a Spanish Church. Actually, the Starr theater was on the opposite side of the street from the Willoughby theater. However, if there was a Knickerbocker-Casino, it would be only doors from the Willoughby theater.
There’s a lot of filmintg the last week in the area. They were filliming in front of and in a mansion on South COuntry Rd in Bellport Village the last couple of days too.
Hi Neo, the only reason I took that photo with the arches is beacause I was taking the photo as an “after” shot to compare to a “before” shot that a friend of mine has from the 70’s when the building where Mc Donalds is now still took up that corner, right up the the sidewalk. I am standing in the exact spot the 1970’s photo was taken from, and wow, what a difference. Garbage, graffiti, refrigerators, and abandoned cars are everywhere in the 70’s photo, and the boarded up building to the right too….
Here’s a current photo without the arches:
I asked a friend about this, and he claimed this is a photo of the Irving (Mozart) Theater. The marquee was where that sign is now. You can still see the attachments on the wall between the upper windows where the “cables” held up the marquee.
The gas station on the small triangle property to the left of the Irving theater may have been part of the property at one time, but must have been sold off in the 50’s. Although the building appears to be vacant, it does appear in half way decent condition.
So the mystery has finally been solved for the Irving, aka mysterious “Mozart” theater. Now just imagine the people piling in the front doors (you can see where they’ve been rebricked) to watch the “Nazi” propaganda films that were claimed to be played here in the years before WWII.
I guess we should have the above reference changed to just “closed” instead of “closed/demolished”.
Wow Pete, your old neighborhood “fell” and is now rising from the ashes in all that time you were gone. That sure is a long time. My life in Ridgewood was only just beginning just as you were leaving in 1971! I left around 10 years ago.
There’s still work to be done, but there is so much construction and reconstruction going on in Bushwick right now. Amazing how it’s turning around.
Peter, I think I figured it out. The photos of the Casino were taken looking northwest. Meaning the building faces southeast. The Casino Theater is located between Dodworth and DeKalb. DeKalb becomes a one way street driving south. I was on Dekalb not Kosciuszko. That is the old DeKalb Ave main entrance to the theater.
My confusion yesterday, and why I missed the theater, is because I thought the Casino was on the other side of DeKalb (which you probably did to, since you mentioned Kosciuszko St)!
Dekalb Ave becomes one way northbound south of Bushwick Ave.
Whew!
Hehe. After all this, now I can’t remember if that was DeKalb or Kosciuszko St! You are absolutely correct about the odd number thing. See, I was so confused yesterday when I was looking for the Casino, and now I still am! One of the biggest theaters I took photos of yesterday, seemingly the hardest to miss, and the most confusion! I think it’s because I thought it was on the other side of DeKalb that confused me at first, and why I am still confused even after being there! I really felt like a fool when I rode through there, and then only noticed it from like four blocks away after going in circles!
And after all that, I forgot to even look for “Bargain Town”!
Peter, they are at 75 Lewis Ave in Bedford-Stuyvesant. In their website they have a History Section that gives an all to brief history of them, and I can;t find any more information. In another section, they give a photo of the interior, which obviously is a “lower” church, or the main church with a “fake” drop ceiling.
Yes, I love those type of conversions, like the one in “Basic Instinct”. I remember the conversion in Greenwich village too. Is is still a nightclub, and do you know it’s name?
Actually, maybe that is part of my confusion, I believe DeKalb becomes a one street, right around there. COuld I be further confused yet, and that this is DeKalb? The library is just out of view to the left in the first photo I linked to. I think that’s what got me so confused to begin with. I think the Casino is actually west of DeKalb, and I had thought it was east. Or am I still confused?
Hehe. Anyway, at first I didn’t thing this was the theater, but if you look at the side, you can tell the front has been resurfaced with a new brick vanir at one time, giving the look it has now.
I know this is off topic to theaters, but one post should be fine.
Speaking of Churches and theaters, I finally drove by the church I had always seen boarded up from the Myrtle-Bway station el platform. I found out it is “St John the Baptist RC Church” church, and is still open, although boarded up. What a beautiful building, a shame.
I looked on their website, and it shows a photo of their sancuary, and it is not what you would think with the high ceiling. It has a low ceiling. Either they have a “lower” church (like some other large Catholic churches) and the upstairs sits empty, or they put a a “drop ceiling” in the church to save maintenence costs, and then boarded up all the windows upstairs to protect them, as you can’t see them anyway from the interior. ALso, they sold their “Great lawn” in front of the building and homes are built on it, so now the “front” of the church is an alley. Very sad for a beautiful building.
Maybe someone should do the opposite, convert the church into a theater….. Here’s a link to a photo of St John the Baptist
I would love to find out more about what they did. Obviously the main church is either unused, or has a “fake” low drop ceiling.
Yes Peter you are correct.
I sort of felt like a fool yesterday, but actually had trouble finding this theater, despite it’s size! I was driving around in circles.The first time down the DeKalb Ave side, I blew right by it! There was a library on one corner, and I was looking in the direction of that for the theater. It wasn’t until I drove around and back towards bushwick Ave that I noticed the theater in the distance from a few blocks away, then I had to laugh at myself because it’s so huge! There is no entrance on DeKalb that I saw.
Anyway, do you guys think that is the original entrance to the theater in that photo? It seems too ornate not to be. Was there a similar fasade on the other side of the building on DeKalb? If there was an entrance on Bway, it’s gone now.
Thanks for posting that article, it has confirmed what I thought all along that the open air theater was on the parking lot.
Would love to see it. Can you post it somewhere?
While on this subject, in Warren’s message above from Sept 5th, he mentions “Heights Theaters, Inc. ran the Glenwood, Irving, Parthenon, and Wyckoff theatres, and was in the process of building the United and Knickerbocker."
Could the mysterious "Knickerbocker” theater that no one ever heard of and keeps coming up over and over in various theater sections here be the one other mysterious theater at 326 Knickerbocker Ave that keeps coming up? We solved the mysterious Mozart theater was really the Irving, and I even photographed the building the other day that still exists (see the Irving Theater )section. Now it’s time to solve the Knickerbocker.
And this is all I am going to say about this, because I come here to read about theaters, not “gossip”, however:
This may not prove the information is wrong (it may be right, or it may be correct), however, the webmasters have also discovered something is wrong. Apparently, they have voided the account of FastEddie, RidgewoodBill, Sally G. Sally G.. and S G Cogan If you click on any of those, the accounts are voided.
Although the alternate accounts: Sally-G, Sally. Sally Genova S.G.Cogan SG Cogan S-G Coglin S.G.Cogin. and SGCogin are all still active accounts, so didn’t catch those yet.
Why would two different people make the exact same mistakes of having multiple accounts each time they post, and all the accounts are variations in the same way for both names, by the same exact method of adding a period, dash, or taking out spaces.
Now, back to the movies….
Interestingly, the Associated Supermarket seen in my photo linked above now on the site uses “229 Knickerbocker Ave” as their mailing address. Actually, also you can see the “scars” of the Starr theater on the side of the building to the left of the Associated from when they tore the theater down.
Wow, that is really outdated! It’s never been closed, and it hasn’t been only 3 theaters for about 20 years when it became a 5plex….!
Someone should really email them.
Ah, my photos seem to be back up again. The webmasters said they may go on and off for a bit, but as of now they are working.
Anyway, I may get over to Bushwick some time in October, so I’ll keep you posted the current shots of theaters I forgot the last time, like the Empire and the Halsey, etc.
Oh by the way, the site I put all my photos on of the various Bushwick and Ridgewood Theaters last week is having technical difficulties, so if you click on any of my photos, they will not come up. The webmasters claim they will be up again shortly, so please try again later if you have problems with my Sept 22 or Sept 24 link above, or any of the other theaters I added photo links on this site to.
Wow, what a difference a few years makes, I found this photo on the web. I don’t know how old the photo is:
Click here, you won’t believe it
Has anyone ever heard of the Knickerbocker Airdrome which was supposedly was at Halsey St and Knickerbocker Ave? Lostmemory has suggested that the Alhambra probably replaced the Knickerbocker Airdrome, since the Alhambra was also at the corner of Knickerbocker and Halsey.
Hmm, let’s try that again:
I will one day see if I can find anything out about the 274 Knickerbocker Ave site. I entered current photos of both the Starr Theater now a supermarket (As well as many of the Bushwick-Ridgewood theaters – check them if you like), and the Willoughby theater, now a Spanish Church. Actually, the Starr theater was on the opposite side of the street from the Willoughby theater. However, if there was a Knickerbocker-Casino, it would be only doors from the Willoughby theater
I will one day see if I can find anything out about the 274 Knickerbocker Ave site. I entered current photos of both the [url=/theaters/8018/Starr Theater [/url]site, now a supermarket (As well as many of the Bushwick-Ridgewood theaters – check them if you like), and the [url=/theaters/8019/]Willoughby theater[url], now a Spanish Church. Actually, the Starr theater was on the opposite side of the street from the Willoughby theater. However, if there was a Knickerbocker-Casino, it would be only doors from the Willoughby theater.
There’s a lot of filmintg the last week in the area. They were filliming in front of and in a mansion on South COuntry Rd in Bellport Village the last couple of days too.
Ooops, I meant “1468 Bway” of course, and the theater was between Putnam and Jefferson, not Madison.
Hi Neo, the only reason I took that photo with the arches is beacause I was taking the photo as an “after” shot to compare to a “before” shot that a friend of mine has from the 70’s when the building where Mc Donalds is now still took up that corner, right up the the sidewalk. I am standing in the exact spot the 1970’s photo was taken from, and wow, what a difference. Garbage, graffiti, refrigerators, and abandoned cars are everywhere in the 70’s photo, and the boarded up building to the right too….
Here’s a current photo without the arches:
Click here for photo
I asked a friend about this, and he claimed this is a photo of the Irving (Mozart) Theater. The marquee was where that sign is now. You can still see the attachments on the wall between the upper windows where the “cables” held up the marquee.
The gas station on the small triangle property to the left of the Irving theater may have been part of the property at one time, but must have been sold off in the 50’s. Although the building appears to be vacant, it does appear in half way decent condition.
So the mystery has finally been solved for the Irving, aka mysterious “Mozart” theater. Now just imagine the people piling in the front doors (you can see where they’ve been rebricked) to watch the “Nazi” propaganda films that were claimed to be played here in the years before WWII.
I guess we should have the above reference changed to just “closed” instead of “closed/demolished”.
Wow Pete, your old neighborhood “fell” and is now rising from the ashes in all that time you were gone. That sure is a long time. My life in Ridgewood was only just beginning just as you were leaving in 1971! I left around 10 years ago.
There’s still work to be done, but there is so much construction and reconstruction going on in Bushwick right now. Amazing how it’s turning around.
You’re welcome, and to further confuse things, I meant:
“Dekalb Ave becomes one way SOUTHbound south of Bushwick Ave.”
Peter, I think I figured it out. The photos of the Casino were taken looking northwest. Meaning the building faces southeast. The Casino Theater is located between Dodworth and DeKalb. DeKalb becomes a one way street driving south. I was on Dekalb not Kosciuszko. That is the old DeKalb Ave main entrance to the theater.
My confusion yesterday, and why I missed the theater, is because I thought the Casino was on the other side of DeKalb (which you probably did to, since you mentioned Kosciuszko St)!
Dekalb Ave becomes one way northbound south of Bushwick Ave.
Whew!
Hehe. After all this, now I can’t remember if that was DeKalb or Kosciuszko St! You are absolutely correct about the odd number thing. See, I was so confused yesterday when I was looking for the Casino, and now I still am! One of the biggest theaters I took photos of yesterday, seemingly the hardest to miss, and the most confusion! I think it’s because I thought it was on the other side of DeKalb that confused me at first, and why I am still confused even after being there! I really felt like a fool when I rode through there, and then only noticed it from like four blocks away after going in circles!
And after all that, I forgot to even look for “Bargain Town”!
Peter, they are at 75 Lewis Ave in Bedford-Stuyvesant. In their website they have a History Section that gives an all to brief history of them, and I can;t find any more information. In another section, they give a photo of the interior, which obviously is a “lower” church, or the main church with a “fake” drop ceiling.
Yes, I love those type of conversions, like the one in “Basic Instinct”. I remember the conversion in Greenwich village too. Is is still a nightclub, and do you know it’s name?
Actually, maybe that is part of my confusion, I believe DeKalb becomes a one street, right around there. COuld I be further confused yet, and that this is DeKalb? The library is just out of view to the left in the first photo I linked to. I think that’s what got me so confused to begin with. I think the Casino is actually west of DeKalb, and I had thought it was east. Or am I still confused?
I wonder if it closed before the early 1970 release of “The Exorcist”. The irony of playing that in a theater that is to become a church.
Hehe. Anyway, at first I didn’t thing this was the theater, but if you look at the side, you can tell the front has been resurfaced with a new brick vanir at one time, giving the look it has now.
I know this is off topic to theaters, but one post should be fine.
Speaking of Churches and theaters, I finally drove by the church I had always seen boarded up from the Myrtle-Bway station el platform. I found out it is “St John the Baptist RC Church” church, and is still open, although boarded up. What a beautiful building, a shame.
I looked on their website, and it shows a photo of their sancuary, and it is not what you would think with the high ceiling. It has a low ceiling. Either they have a “lower” church (like some other large Catholic churches) and the upstairs sits empty, or they put a a “drop ceiling” in the church to save maintenence costs, and then boarded up all the windows upstairs to protect them, as you can’t see them anyway from the interior. ALso, they sold their “Great lawn” in front of the building and homes are built on it, so now the “front” of the church is an alley. Very sad for a beautiful building.
Maybe someone should do the opposite, convert the church into a theater…..
Here’s a link to a photo of St John the Baptist
I would love to find out more about what they did. Obviously the main church is either unused, or has a “fake” low drop ceiling.
Yes Peter you are correct.
I sort of felt like a fool yesterday, but actually had trouble finding this theater, despite it’s size! I was driving around in circles.The first time down the DeKalb Ave side, I blew right by it! There was a library on one corner, and I was looking in the direction of that for the theater. It wasn’t until I drove around and back towards bushwick Ave that I noticed the theater in the distance from a few blocks away, then I had to laugh at myself because it’s so huge! There is no entrance on DeKalb that I saw.
Anyway, do you guys think that is the original entrance to the theater in that photo? It seems too ornate not to be. Was there a similar fasade on the other side of the building on DeKalb? If there was an entrance on Bway, it’s gone now.