Loew's Kameo Theatre

After nearly 86 years, the details of the terra cotta facade have held up exceedingly well. The building continues to be a focal point along Eastern Parkway.

Yes, the Savoy! And designed by Thomas Lamb! About four or five blocks in the other direction (north-west of the Kameo) from the Rogers (south-west of the Kameo).

But in the mid-1950s, that meant crossing a dangerous line (Eastern Parkway). So, my friends and I generally stayed away from the Savoy. But it was a beautiful theater. I vividly remember seeing “The Young Lions” there. It carried fare from the RKO circuit—in those days, less interesting than the usually better fare at Loew’s.

The Rogers, as a sub-run house, carried fare from both, for shorter (and later) three- or four-day runs rather than than the week-long first-runs at the Kameo and Savoy.

ChicagoSteve—

You probably mean the Rogers, on Rogers Ave between Montgomery St. and Sullivan Place. You can find it on this wonderful CinemaTreasures site by searching its name (there two Rogers listed for Brooklyn— this one is the first listed; the second was on Broadway). It’s not exactly around the corner from Loew’s Kameo, but about five or six short blocks away. I saw a bunch of second-run movies there (and at the Kameo)in the 1950s when I attended high school mid-way between the two theaters.

Bravo, Ken. Your itinerary for the 2007 CTA(UK) tour of NY theatres seems to have been impeccably organized and has yielded some spectacular photographic results. Good show!

I liked Ken’s photos from July 2006. I also noted that he apparently asked the church if he could take the pictures. I should try that as I always get chased out of the church after a few shots.

I remember once when the Kameo was spiffed up in its later days – that was then the documentary “King: A Filmed Record” played there in 1970. That was an important movie and they cleaned the place up when it was shown. I remember that it was one of the first theatres I knew with guards instead of ushers, and I think that was because there were a lot of teenagers and kids (like me ) there on the weekend. We were that tail end of the baby boom generation and I think the theatre’s depended on us a lot to fill seats, but they didn’t want to be babysitters. Of course there were always the troublemakers (see the Duffield) who would get in fights and shoot up a theater, and then if was forced to close.

As I recall, the Kameo was the first theater I ever went to. My father took me there in 1953 (when I was 6 years old) to see John Wayne in Hondo. The theater will always hold special meaning to me.

Conceived by architects Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux in 1866, Eastern Parkway was built in the 1870s expressly for “pleasure-riding and driving,” and as access to scenic Prospect Park. (They had designed that, plus Fort Greene Park in downtown Brooklyn, and Central Park in Manhattan was their crowning achievement.) Years later, as a thoroughfare for autos, Eastern Parkway boasted six lanes across (3 in each direction), plus two side streets, one in each direction. The Loew’s Kameo overlooked this massive parkway.

I “discovered” it in 1959, upon attending high school at Brooklyn Prep in Crown Heights a few blocks away. The Kameo was extremely well-maintained in those days. I even have a fleeting memory of the ushers in uniforms and wearing white gloves, but don’t quote me. Got to see “The FBI Story” in ‘59 and George Pal’s “The Time Machine,” with Rod Taylor and Yvette Mimieux (AND Whit Bissell!) the following year. Admissions always were reasonablely priced for an A-list theater (60 cents) and made dates for movies and Chinese dinners very affordable in those days, like under $5 bucks. The air-conditioning on hot summer days and nights was a blessing from above. So I’m not totally surprised that it’s currently a house of worship…

The Kameo was still open in 1974
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I was a constant visitor during the 50’s and 60’s. The screen was not very big. I recall that the Cinemascope films used to be shown on the sides of the curtain as the screen was too small. They showed mostly MGM films. I remember seeing “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers”,“Kismet” and other MGM films there. Later, they showed films from other studios. The last film I saw there was “Hawaii” with Julie Andrews. I have nice memories of this theatre. I am pleased it was not demolished.

I laughed when I read the post above about “I A Woman” playing here forever. The owner of the Polk told me he ran that film almost a year and it payed for his house outright. Those early porno days when they were real films made alot of people rich.

Kameo was a hangout as a child growing up in early 1970s Brooklyn. The Kung fu films and Black Exploitation films dominated the screen. It was a reflection of that era. Unfortunately, the Kameo was a victim of urban decay. Kameo will always be a part of me. I don’t understand why “people” allow neighborhoods rot and grandiose buildings like “Kameo” fall into ruin. There is nothing unique about cineplexes. No intimacy. May God bless us!

Since this theater was known as Loew’s Kameo for almost 40 years, then owned by Loew’s until it closed, maybe it should be listed as Loew’s Kameo.

I remember being driven past this jewel on Eastern Parkway when I was a boy, and it seemed that “I, A Woman” played here for a long time. (It’s funny how my childhood theatre memories are; see Loew’s Hillside listing for my burlesque memories.)