Apollo Theater

Thanks, LM! I was not aware it was still showing films that far into the forties.

The Apollo theater has just recieved another $1MM donation from one of its board members to be applied towards the completion of its renovation in time for its 75th Anniversary.

Too bad the Loew’s Kings doesn’t have this kind of support.

That other marquee in the distance is of the old Loew’s Victoria 125th Street theatre, which later became the Victoria 5 theatres.

ShoeShoe…I wholeheartedly agree! While I know that the old palaces could never be replicated in a financially viable way, I don’t know why more of the multiplexes can’t be constructed to at least pay some homage to the old palaces of the past.

One of my favorite multiplexes is the AMC 25 plex in Times Square due to its incorporation of the old Empire Theater into its lobby. I would have been much, much happier it they had just made the Empire one of the 24 screens. It was, in fact a small theater, and could have been spectacularly used. I’m sure they thought of it, but for some reason or another it wasn’t financially viable.

My other favorite is the Loew’s Lincoln Sqaure and only because they paid homage to the old Loew’s movie palaces of the metropolitan New York area with each screening room dedicated to a former palace along with a small history. I only wish that each screening room was decorated to relate directly to the theater being honored. You would think that in this day of cheap faux decorations (of which Vegas is but the biggest example) this would be relatively easy to do.

Maybe not.

Warren, I respect your decision not to accept the Apollo. I, however do not accept almost any of the multiplexes as they are but simple boxes with no architectural distinctions. I stand by my comment that it is about the building. As such, I don’t care if movies were shown simply as fillers between live acts or not. If they were a beautiful strucure and they showed a film, they should be listed on CT. I believe that even a relatively spartan Apollo theater is much more a cinema treasure than almost any of the multiplexes (and many of the single screens as well) on this website.

Regarding movie palaces, these days, it would cost 5 times as much as it did then to replicate, so that’s not going to happen. But what would be cool would be a movie palace replica in fiberglass and other cheap materials, resembling a movie palace. Vegas has some money. I think that’s a great idea. Build a replica of an atmospheric.

There were comments above questioning whether or not movies ever palyed at The Apollo and, as a result, whether it should be included on this site. Thankfully, other posters were able to show that films did indeed play the Apollo and therby insure this theater’s inclusion as a Cinema Treasure.

I mention this because, for me (and I suspect a great many others who love this site) what makes a cinema treasure truly a treasure is the building itself. Virtually all of the most beloved theaters on this site are architectural marvels of their day with luxurious finishes and designs and the opportunity to see a film with not just hundreds, but sometimes thousands of others!

Many of these treasures (especially those before 1930) started out as legitimate playhouses which were subsequently changed to films as the times changed. As a result we have spectacular theaters like Radio City, The New Amsterdam and, of course, The World Famous Apollo (to name just a few) as Cinema Treasures because they were subsequently changed to film only policies. There are a great
many other spectacular theaters that are not present on CT because they have not shown films. Playhouses like the beautiful Cort and The Lyceum theaters in New York are not given their due.

I realize that this web site is called Cinema Trasaures and not Theater Treasures, but I think there a very few multiplex theaters
in this country that are truly “treasures”. What makes a theater a treasure is the building itself and that contributes to the experience of seeing and enjoying a film. Back in the day I could see a terrible film at Loew’s Valencia and at least be entertained watching the clouds rolling overhead and the stars twinkling. I can’t do that the local 24 plex. Yet there are many, many bland, homogenous, uninspired multiplex theaters on this site.

I’ve rambled enough! :–)

Great news about the restoration of the World Famous Apollo. This item appeared in todays issue of the NY Times:

The Apollo Theater in Harlem is scheduled to close in January 2010 for a major expansion, which is scheduled to last nine months. After a bruising conflict that began in the late 1990s â€" in which a lawsuit against the Apollo by the state attorney general was narrowly averted â€" a new management team was installed in June 2003. The new leadership has successfully completed renovation of the lobby, the seats, the facade and the famous Apollo sign in front. The addition will add 4,000 square feet of usable space by moving offices elsewhere. Officials also plan a “Walk of Fame” out front. About $51.5 million of the needed $96 million has been raised, and public appeals are planned for the rest.

They have certainly smartened the place up since i was there in the late 90s to see the Broadway show ‘Harlem Nights’. Beautiful auditorium.

Yes, the marquee has an LED display.

I find it amazing that a theater as famous as the Apollo, perhaps one of the most famous theater in the world, and even though it only was a film house briefly, it’s unimaginable that there is absolutely no opening paragraph or intruduction above.

In today’s NY Times, they talked about (in the MTA strike article) Bloomberg attending a celebration for the newly refurbished facade.

my first trip to the apollo was inthe early 1940s when my father took me there. in the 40s most of the big time black bands played a week or more there. billy eskstine’s band was there alot also louis jordan and count basie and duke ellington. in the mid 50s they featured a lot of jazz artist like sonny stitt sonny rollins,monk.miles davis jerry mulligan and maynard ferguson.