The Carnegie Hall Cinema on 57th Street was called that from its inception with the 1961 opening program of White Nights, and as far as I can determine, was called only that in its entire life as a movietheatre.
Here are two photos of the old Pastime Theatre that burned down in 1934, before the current structure was built to replace it that same year. 1929 1930
Regarding Professor Mamlock, which I spoke of on August 18: the Rhode Island Supreme Court, in an opinion written by Francis B. Condon, held that the Providence Bureau of Police and Fire was within its rights in banning a public showing here (in March, 1939)of the Soviet-made film, “Professor Mamlock,” sought by the Thayer Amusemnent Company, operators of the Avon Theatre. The decision came on July 17, 1939 and was reported a day later by The Providence Journal. So the film was indeed banned and the ban upheld.
Film Cut at Request of Town Councilman
An East Greenwich outdoor theater cut three scenes from a movie last night on the request of the town concil prsident after the police chief, several clergymen, and the secretary of the state Commission to Encourage Morality in Youth had previewed it.
(…)
The Hilltop Drive-In in East Greenwich cut three scenes from the film “The Seducers,” at the request of Arthur H. Aker, town council president, after Police Chief John F. Ryan reported to him on the preview which was held at the Palace Theater in West Warwick.
Mr. Aker…said Harry Erinakes, manager of the Hilltop, was willing to cut the scenes and that no pressure was brought to bear on the theater. He thanked Mr. Erinakes for his cooperation.
Mr. Erinakes said the scenes were cut before the opening performance last night.
Viewing the picture at yesterday afternon’s special performance were Chief Ryan, the Rev. Wilmot Murray, pastor of the first Baptist Church in East Greenwich, the Rev. Arthur J. Geddes of St. James Church, Arctic; Albert J. McAloon, secretary of the youth commission; Lt. Edward P. Aptt of the Providence police department bureau of prosecution; and two Journal-Bulletin reporters.
Chief Ryan said later that the film was “strictly adult.”
Mr. Erinakes said it was agreed that the film should be restricted to patrons over 18, and that policemen hired by the theater would be stationed at the gate to enforce the rule.
Mr. Murray, who attended at the invitation of Chief Ryan, said he suggested that the opening scene preceding the picture title be left out.
Father Geddes referred to the “suggestiveness” of the picture and the scenes of violence. He said the picture was “too stimulating” for younger people.
(…)
The world premiere of Republic Pictures' The Eternal Sea took place at the R.K.O. Albee on April 20, 1955. In attendance were stars Sterling Hayden and Alexis Smith, Herbert Yates, president of Republic, Adm. William F. Halsey. Also present was Rear Adm. John M. Hoskins himself, a R.I. resident at the time as Commander of Fleet Air at Quonset Naval Base, and the hero on whose life the film was based. The film narrates his efforts to retain active command despite a World War II injury in which he lost a foot. Here is the newspaper ad on the day of the premiere.
In 1955 The Providence Journal reported on the sale of the Royal:
June 26: Royal Theater’s Sale is Closed
…the long-vacant Royal Theater…changed hands for an indicated price of $75,000. First announcement of the signing of the sales agreement of this transaction were made on February 26. Transfer of the property, from Mr. and Mrs. Earl C. Whelden to the Rosehenta Realty Corp., Sigmund J. Rosenblatt, president, was completed last week. Gamwell & Ingraham, Inc., were the brokers.
August 3: Royal, in Olneyville, to Become Jewelry Shop and Showroom Center
Plans for converting the old Royal Theater, an Olneyville Square landmark, for use by jewelry shops and showrooms were given the green light yesterday by the Providence Zoning Board of Review.
The plans were outlined by Sigmund Rosenblatt, president of Rosehenta Realty Corp., which now owns the building at the junction of Hartford Avenue and Plainfield Street.
Rosenblatt said he plans to install a floor, making the structure a two-story building. The first floor will be used for showrooms and the second for use by jewelry shops, he said.
[it is not clear if that plan came to fruition. I remember in the late 1950s and thereabouts the lobby was used as a fruit market. It’s the only part of the building I ever set foot in. Today the spot is Grasso’s Gulf Service Station.]
An article in The Providence Journal on November 13, 1971 reported on the town’s attempts to stop a film showing:
Theater Owner Refuses to Halt Film, ‘Together’
The management of the United Theater, Westerly, is refusing to discontinue the showing of the film “Together” from its program, Town Manager Eugene F. Gervasini was informed yesterday.
Irwin A. Cohen, president of C&F Theateres, Inc., of Norwood, Mass., operators of the movie house said, “I just cannot place myself in the position of removing films because the town council does not like it or because there have been some complaints.
“If I were to remove this film at the request of the council, I would be opening the door to such a request on any film that they may not like for whatever reason they may find. I cannot believe that the town council wishes to place themselves in the position of being censors,” Mr. Cohen wrote.
“I am operating a business which is dependent upon the public voluntarily coming to see the films we show. The response of the public in the Westerly situation to the film ‘Together’ certainly, without a doubt, shows that they want to see it. And as adults, they should and do have that right. And I as an exhibitor should and must be able to give the public what they want.”
Mr. Cohen explained to the town manager that the film has played thropughout the country, including several theaters in Rhode Island. These include Wakefield, Narragansett, Woonsocket, Providence, and East Providence.
“The film has been approved for exhibition, without cuts, by the Rhode Island classification board and the Providence Licensing Board,” he said.
[The remainder of the article reports Mr. Cohen clarifying his position further, asserting that no previews would be shown of this movie at kiddie matinees and that no public displays of posters were put up that were deemed offensive for children.]
Hartford is lucky to have this place, plus Cinestudio, Real Art Ways, and the Wadsworth Atheneum for alternative film programming.
I’ve been here, though not that often, having driven out from Providence. I remember seeing The Music Teacher here in October of 1989 and the Moroder-scored version of Metropolis another time. I had heard that the place was becoming a bit tattered with time and am wondering if it has been refurbished at all.
Theater Is Denied Film Permit; Bd. Seeks Injunction
The Providence Bureau of Licenses denied yesterday an application by the Art Cinema, 1017 Broad St., to exhibit the film “Lies,” print number four, from today through Tuesday.
In a compaint filed in Superior Court, bureau memebrs said they viewed the film at the theater yesterday and determined it is probably obscene. They asked the court to judge it obscene and permanently enjoin its showing here.
As the “Seekonk Art Drive-In” in June, 1963, one of the programs was Love and Larceny with Vittorio Gassman, and It Happened in Rome, two Italian films dubbed in English.
An odd bit of programming for the Hollywood occurred in 1951, when the opera film The Barber of Seville, with Ferruccio Tagliavini, played from Wednesday, June 20 through Saturday, June 23. It had played four years earlier, in 1947, at the Avon in Providence and later at the Empire. Either someone at the theatre liked opera or else they were attempting to reach niche audiences.
Excuse me, that’s the Carnegie Hall Cinema on 7th Avenue AT 57th Street.
The Carnegie Hall Cinema on 57th Street was called that from its inception with the 1961 opening program of White Nights, and as far as I can determine, was called only that in its entire life as a movie theatre.
Bill, Frantic (Ascenseur pour l'échafaud) is now right now in re-issue with its original title, in translation, Elevator to the Gallows.
Here are two photos of the old Pastime Theatre that burned down in 1934, before the current structure was built to replace it that same year.
1929
1930
Here is a photo I took of the Huelén Theatre in 1994. The film is the 1993 TV version of Journey to the Center of the Earth, which inspired dreadful comments on IMDb because the movie was perceived as being so awful. Here it is getting a commercial run in a South American house.
Here are two photos I took of this theatre in 1994.
EXTERIOR
LOBBY AND STAIRS
Here is a photo I took of this theatre in 1994. The deathless masterpiece 100 Positions for Making Love was being shown.
Here is a photo I took of this theatre in 1994.
Here is a photo I took of this theatre in 1994.
Here is a photo I took of this theatre in 1994.
Regarding Professor Mamlock, which I spoke of on August 18: the Rhode Island Supreme Court, in an opinion written by Francis B. Condon, held that the Providence Bureau of Police and Fire was within its rights in banning a public showing here (in March, 1939)of the Soviet-made film, “Professor Mamlock,” sought by the Thayer Amusemnent Company, operators of the Avon Theatre. The decision came on July 17, 1939 and was reported a day later by The Providence Journal. So the film was indeed banned and the ban upheld.
The Providence Journal reported on June 6, 1963:
Film Cut at Request of Town Councilman
An East Greenwich outdoor theater cut three scenes from a movie last night on the request of the town concil prsident after the police chief, several clergymen, and the secretary of the state Commission to Encourage Morality in Youth had previewed it.
(…)
The Hilltop Drive-In in East Greenwich cut three scenes from the film “The Seducers,” at the request of Arthur H. Aker, town council president, after Police Chief John F. Ryan reported to him on the preview which was held at the Palace Theater in West Warwick.
Mr. Aker…said Harry Erinakes, manager of the Hilltop, was willing to cut the scenes and that no pressure was brought to bear on the theater. He thanked Mr. Erinakes for his cooperation.
Mr. Erinakes said the scenes were cut before the opening performance last night.
Viewing the picture at yesterday afternon’s special performance were Chief Ryan, the Rev. Wilmot Murray, pastor of the first Baptist Church in East Greenwich, the Rev. Arthur J. Geddes of St. James Church, Arctic; Albert J. McAloon, secretary of the youth commission; Lt. Edward P. Aptt of the Providence police department bureau of prosecution; and two Journal-Bulletin reporters.
Chief Ryan said later that the film was “strictly adult.”
Mr. Erinakes said it was agreed that the film should be restricted to patrons over 18, and that policemen hired by the theater would be stationed at the gate to enforce the rule.
Mr. Murray, who attended at the invitation of Chief Ryan, said he suggested that the opening scene preceding the picture title be left out.
Father Geddes referred to the “suggestiveness” of the picture and the scenes of violence. He said the picture was “too stimulating” for younger people.
(…)
The world premiere of Republic Pictures' The Eternal Sea took place at the R.K.O. Albee on April 20, 1955. In attendance were stars Sterling Hayden and Alexis Smith, Herbert Yates, president of Republic, Adm. William F. Halsey. Also present was Rear Adm. John M. Hoskins himself, a R.I. resident at the time as Commander of Fleet Air at Quonset Naval Base, and the hero on whose life the film was based. The film narrates his efforts to retain active command despite a World War II injury in which he lost a foot.
Here is the newspaper ad on the day of the premiere.
In 1955 The Providence Journal reported on the sale of the Royal:
June 26:
Royal Theater’s Sale is Closed
…the long-vacant Royal Theater…changed hands for an indicated price of $75,000. First announcement of the signing of the sales agreement of this transaction were made on February 26. Transfer of the property, from Mr. and Mrs. Earl C. Whelden to the Rosehenta Realty Corp., Sigmund J. Rosenblatt, president, was completed last week. Gamwell & Ingraham, Inc., were the brokers.
August 3:
Royal, in Olneyville, to Become Jewelry Shop and Showroom Center
Plans for converting the old Royal Theater, an Olneyville Square landmark, for use by jewelry shops and showrooms were given the green light yesterday by the Providence Zoning Board of Review.
The plans were outlined by Sigmund Rosenblatt, president of Rosehenta Realty Corp., which now owns the building at the junction of Hartford Avenue and Plainfield Street.
Rosenblatt said he plans to install a floor, making the structure a two-story building. The first floor will be used for showrooms and the second for use by jewelry shops, he said.
[it is not clear if that plan came to fruition. I remember in the late 1950s and thereabouts the lobby was used as a fruit market. It’s the only part of the building I ever set foot in. Today the spot is Grasso’s Gulf Service Station.]
An article in The Providence Journal on November 13, 1971 reported on the town’s attempts to stop a film showing:
Theater Owner Refuses to Halt Film, ‘Together’
The management of the United Theater, Westerly, is refusing to discontinue the showing of the film “Together” from its program, Town Manager Eugene F. Gervasini was informed yesterday.
Irwin A. Cohen, president of C&F Theateres, Inc., of Norwood, Mass., operators of the movie house said, “I just cannot place myself in the position of removing films because the town council does not like it or because there have been some complaints.
“If I were to remove this film at the request of the council, I would be opening the door to such a request on any film that they may not like for whatever reason they may find. I cannot believe that the town council wishes to place themselves in the position of being censors,” Mr. Cohen wrote.
“I am operating a business which is dependent upon the public voluntarily coming to see the films we show. The response of the public in the Westerly situation to the film ‘Together’ certainly, without a doubt, shows that they want to see it. And as adults, they should and do have that right. And I as an exhibitor should and must be able to give the public what they want.”
Mr. Cohen explained to the town manager that the film has played thropughout the country, including several theaters in Rhode Island. These include Wakefield, Narragansett, Woonsocket, Providence, and East Providence.
“The film has been approved for exhibition, without cuts, by the Rhode Island classification board and the Providence Licensing Board,” he said.
[The remainder of the article reports Mr. Cohen clarifying his position further, asserting that no previews would be shown of this movie at kiddie matinees and that no public displays of posters were put up that were deemed offensive for children.]
Hartford is lucky to have this place, plus Cinestudio, Real Art Ways, and the Wadsworth Atheneum for alternative film programming.
I’ve been here, though not that often, having driven out from Providence. I remember seeing The Music Teacher here in October of 1989 and the Moroder-scored version of Metropolis another time. I had heard that the place was becoming a bit tattered with time and am wondering if it has been refurbished at all.
From The Providence Journal, December 8, 1971:
Theater Is Denied Film Permit; Bd. Seeks Injunction
The Providence Bureau of Licenses denied yesterday an application by the Art Cinema, 1017 Broad St., to exhibit the film “Lies,” print number four, from today through Tuesday.
In a compaint filed in Superior Court, bureau memebrs said they viewed the film at the theater yesterday and determined it is probably obscene. They asked the court to judge it obscene and permanently enjoin its showing here.
As the “Seekonk Art Drive-In” in June, 1963, one of the programs was Love and Larceny with Vittorio Gassman, and It Happened in Rome, two Italian films dubbed in English.
An odd bit of programming for the Hollywood occurred in 1951, when the opera film The Barber of Seville, with Ferruccio Tagliavini, played from Wednesday, June 20 through Saturday, June 23. It had played four years earlier, in 1947, at the Avon in Providence and later at the Empire. Either someone at the theatre liked opera or else they were attempting to reach niche audiences.
Here is a newspaper ad for the Gem Theatre from October 17, 1915.
Newspaper ad for Esquire Theatres in Rhode Island on December 7, 1971.
Newspaper ad for Esquire Theatres in Rhode Island on December 7, 1971.
Newspaper ad for Esquire Theatres in Rhode Island on December 7, 1971.
Newspaper ad for Esquire Theatres in Rhode Island on December 7, 1971.
Newspaper ad for Esquire Theatres in Rhode Island on December 7, 1971.