Actually, the structure on the right is as new as the rest of this strip mall; the entire old shopping center was demolished. I grew up I this neighborhood, and I now live just a few blocks from this location, so I know from which I speak.
What a shame that there’s only one post per year here, recently. I came here, when I read it was being “renovated,” thinking that there would be some activity on the message boards, because I have a dilemma. I recently came across a photo of a Manhattan theater known as the New Century, located at 932 7th Avenue, between 58th and 59th. There’s no listing for it here on Cinema Treasures at all, and I’m mystified. I wanted to post the 1937 vintage photo that I found, but the theater doesn’t exist on this site.
I just checked Google Maps, and the John Golden/Cort/Elysee/Dick Cavett Theater is still standing, exactly where I described it in my previous post. It is the building on the far right in the picture at the top of this page, and if you look at the Google Maps image of August, 2014, the theater is the building covered with scaffolding.
I’m sorry, but I must beg to differ about the information here regarding the John Golden/Cort Theater. I had an office job at 220 West 58th Street in 1973-74 (that building was recently demolished) and next to it was “The Dick Cavett Theater,” which had previously been the Golden/Cort. I walked that block this past summer, and I could see the remains of the Golden/Cort, though there’s no marquee, and the entrance doors have been surfaced over. (I saw Lucille Ball, as Cavett’s only guest, in this theater, when she was publicizing her movie, “Mame”.)
I was inside the 99-cent store yesterday, while I was walking the Concourse, photographing Art Deco apartment buildings. As soon as I spotted the facade, I knew it had been a theater, which I confirmed when I saw the auditorium side, on Sheridan Avenue. I took pictures, including the ceiling of the auditorium, which I’ll post here later today. Tiny; I can’t imagine it being twinned!
Comments about crime statistics in city neighborhoods seem to me to be not-so-subtle racist attacks, and really don’t belong on these message boards, which are devoted to movie palaces, and not the changes in regional demographics. I find the comments offensive. If you don’t feel safe in Brooklyn or the Bronx, stevebob, don’t go there, and post your comments someplace more appropriate. I used to live in Flatbush, and I walked through the entire area recently, and I’ve lived to talk about it.
I went to the Paradise a few weeks ago, while on a walking tour of the Concourse, photographing the Art Deco apartment buildings. I asked the woman who was sitting in the erstwhile boxoffice if I could go in and take some photos, and I got an abrupt “No”. I asked why, and her answer was, again abruptly, “Security reasons”. By this time, my New York blood was pumping, and I said to her, “You’re turning me away from the House of God?” The reply was “Uh-huh”. It got even worse later that day, when the super of one of the apartment buildings, who had all the earmarks of a major criminal, threw me out of the lobby. “Trespassing” he said in fractured English. Ah, the glory that WAS the Concourse!
Things were VERY different when I went to the Valencia last fall. The pastor and members of the congregation were more than gracious, and I was let loose inside with my camera, without so much as an escort. Same thing when I went to what used to be Loew’s 46th Street, in Brooklyn. It’s now a furniture factory/showroom, but the theater is more or less intact. The owner let me roam around and take as many photos as I wanted, again without an escort.
It would be nice if Cinema Treasures cross-referenced this as the Sanders, so that users wouldn’t have to go to the trouble of leaving this site and going to Google.
It would certainly help if Cinema Treasures cross-referenced the names of theaters that have changed. It’s a nuisance having to go back to Google all the time to find a theater whose name has changed, like the Oceana.
I wonder why, as a longtime member of this site, I can’t find any info whatsoever about the OTHER Apollo in Manhattan, the one that stood on 42nd Street, near the Times Square, Victory, and Lyric Theaters? Can anyone help me out? Sometimes this site is extremely hard to navigate, for even the seasoned user, and I know that one of the reasons is that some theaters operated under a variety of names, and there’s no cross-referencing here. I wanted to help out a friend who had a question regarding the Apollo on 42nd Street, but I can’t refer him here, since even I can’t find it!
The last time I was in the Carnegie Hall Cinema was, sadly, in the late ‘70s. I went with some very close friends to see, with what could be described as a VERY receptive audience, a revival of “Suddenly, Last Summer”. What a treat to see one of my all-time favorite movies on a big screen; in fact, it was the ONLY time I’ve seen this movie in a theater. What a pity that the days of revival houses in Manhattan have passed.
I was there yesterday, and both the saleswoman and owner were extraordinarily gracious; they gave me permission to roam the theater and take pictures, which I will now post. I’m amazed that anyone had trouble with these good folks!
The photos displayed here should really be removed, because they have nothing to do with the Belair. The theater was in the mall that was previously on this property, but it was totally demolished and rebuilt. The centerpiece of the old mall was Hills supermarket, with the Belair adjacent. It was built in the very early ‘60s, and was not initially a twin. As a matter of fact, the last time I was in it, in the late '70s, it had yet to be twinned. There was nothing distinguished about the Belair, inside or out. It was just a plain auditorium, no more and no less.
Very cool, Flynn. That fits with the PSA two-reeler that I’ve seen on TCM, where theater owners and managers assail the government for the enormous taxes levied on movie theaters. I think the date of that film is also circa 1953, and shows a remarkable number of vintage theaters.
Oddly, my usual steel-trap memory recalls nothing innovative about the auditorium at all. Of course, I was only there once, and it was a long time ago; yet I remember everything else about that evening as if it were yesterday.
Providing a hyperlink is not important. All one has to do is copy the link and then paste it; it’s no big deal. It doesn’t involve any strenuous exertion or sweat, lol.
This theater should be tagged as “demolished,” rather than “closed,” because it WAS demolished. Olive Garden now stands on its site.
Actually, the structure on the right is as new as the rest of this strip mall; the entire old shopping center was demolished. I grew up I this neighborhood, and I now live just a few blocks from this location, so I know from which I speak.
What a shame that there’s only one post per year here, recently. I came here, when I read it was being “renovated,” thinking that there would be some activity on the message boards, because I have a dilemma. I recently came across a photo of a Manhattan theater known as the New Century, located at 932 7th Avenue, between 58th and 59th. There’s no listing for it here on Cinema Treasures at all, and I’m mystified. I wanted to post the 1937 vintage photo that I found, but the theater doesn’t exist on this site.
I just checked Google Maps, and the John Golden/Cort/Elysee/Dick Cavett Theater is still standing, exactly where I described it in my previous post. It is the building on the far right in the picture at the top of this page, and if you look at the Google Maps image of August, 2014, the theater is the building covered with scaffolding.
I’m sorry, but I must beg to differ about the information here regarding the John Golden/Cort Theater. I had an office job at 220 West 58th Street in 1973-74 (that building was recently demolished) and next to it was “The Dick Cavett Theater,” which had previously been the Golden/Cort. I walked that block this past summer, and I could see the remains of the Golden/Cort, though there’s no marquee, and the entrance doors have been surfaced over. (I saw Lucille Ball, as Cavett’s only guest, in this theater, when she was publicizing her movie, “Mame”.)
I was inside the 99-cent store yesterday, while I was walking the Concourse, photographing Art Deco apartment buildings. As soon as I spotted the facade, I knew it had been a theater, which I confirmed when I saw the auditorium side, on Sheridan Avenue. I took pictures, including the ceiling of the auditorium, which I’ll post here later today. Tiny; I can’t imagine it being twinned!
Comments about crime statistics in city neighborhoods seem to me to be not-so-subtle racist attacks, and really don’t belong on these message boards, which are devoted to movie palaces, and not the changes in regional demographics. I find the comments offensive. If you don’t feel safe in Brooklyn or the Bronx, stevebob, don’t go there, and post your comments someplace more appropriate. I used to live in Flatbush, and I walked through the entire area recently, and I’ve lived to talk about it.
I went to the Paradise a few weeks ago, while on a walking tour of the Concourse, photographing the Art Deco apartment buildings. I asked the woman who was sitting in the erstwhile boxoffice if I could go in and take some photos, and I got an abrupt “No”. I asked why, and her answer was, again abruptly, “Security reasons”. By this time, my New York blood was pumping, and I said to her, “You’re turning me away from the House of God?” The reply was “Uh-huh”. It got even worse later that day, when the super of one of the apartment buildings, who had all the earmarks of a major criminal, threw me out of the lobby. “Trespassing” he said in fractured English. Ah, the glory that WAS the Concourse! Things were VERY different when I went to the Valencia last fall. The pastor and members of the congregation were more than gracious, and I was let loose inside with my camera, without so much as an escort. Same thing when I went to what used to be Loew’s 46th Street, in Brooklyn. It’s now a furniture factory/showroom, but the theater is more or less intact. The owner let me roam around and take as many photos as I wanted, again without an escort.
It would be nice if Cinema Treasures cross-referenced this as the Sanders, so that users wouldn’t have to go to the trouble of leaving this site and going to Google.
It would certainly help if Cinema Treasures cross-referenced the names of theaters that have changed. It’s a nuisance having to go back to Google all the time to find a theater whose name has changed, like the Oceana.
This website has a few vintage photos of the Delft. One, taken in 1941, shows the theater playing “The Night of January 16th”.
http://genealogytrails.com/mich/alger/citymunising.html
I wonder why, as a longtime member of this site, I can’t find any info whatsoever about the OTHER Apollo in Manhattan, the one that stood on 42nd Street, near the Times Square, Victory, and Lyric Theaters? Can anyone help me out? Sometimes this site is extremely hard to navigate, for even the seasoned user, and I know that one of the reasons is that some theaters operated under a variety of names, and there’s no cross-referencing here. I wanted to help out a friend who had a question regarding the Apollo on 42nd Street, but I can’t refer him here, since even I can’t find it!
The last time I was in the Carnegie Hall Cinema was, sadly, in the late ‘70s. I went with some very close friends to see, with what could be described as a VERY receptive audience, a revival of “Suddenly, Last Summer”. What a treat to see one of my all-time favorite movies on a big screen; in fact, it was the ONLY time I’ve seen this movie in a theater. What a pity that the days of revival houses in Manhattan have passed.
The photos that I took yesterday, of the exterior and interior, are now uploaded. Enjoy!
I was there yesterday, and both the saleswoman and owner were extraordinarily gracious; they gave me permission to roam the theater and take pictures, which I will now post. I’m amazed that anyone had trouble with these good folks!
The Valley Stream, circa the early to mid-60s, when it was part of the Skouras chain.
The photos displayed here should really be removed, because they have nothing to do with the Belair. The theater was in the mall that was previously on this property, but it was totally demolished and rebuilt. The centerpiece of the old mall was Hills supermarket, with the Belair adjacent. It was built in the very early ‘60s, and was not initially a twin. As a matter of fact, the last time I was in it, in the late '70s, it had yet to be twinned. There was nothing distinguished about the Belair, inside or out. It was just a plain auditorium, no more and no less.
Very cool, Flynn. That fits with the PSA two-reeler that I’ve seen on TCM, where theater owners and managers assail the government for the enormous taxes levied on movie theaters. I think the date of that film is also circa 1953, and shows a remarkable number of vintage theaters.
Regarding saps' comment above, does anyone else recall the Hillside being a burlesque theater? I surely don’t!
Oddly, my usual steel-trap memory recalls nothing innovative about the auditorium at all. Of course, I was only there once, and it was a long time ago; yet I remember everything else about that evening as if it were yesterday.
What a pity that there’s only this photo here of what once was the Kingsway. I have to cruise the net to see if I can find some vintage pics.
Providing a hyperlink is not important. All one has to do is copy the link and then paste it; it’s no big deal. It doesn’t involve any strenuous exertion or sweat, lol.
saps, thanks for that link. OMG, what an Art Deco jewel (no pun intended)!
Thanks for that good-news update, CTCrouch!
MJuggler, that really stinks!