The Hamilton Spectator (our city newspaper) reported on Friday, February 15 that Bella Diamante has finally found a developer to buy the Tivoli…HER HUSBAND!!
More details later…
The 1931 Palace facade photo is #26 on page 4 of the search results…just click on the Feb. 12 link and do a “Market Street” search on the Hagley site. You can see the Savoy across the street in the early construction photos.
Joe (& theater fans everywhere…): There are many progress photos of the demolition and the construction of the PSFS Building, on the Hagley site. The Palace facade can be seen, also the East wall with a Palace sign painted on it. Great stuff!
Joe: That’s Greta Garbo’s head on the left side of the Palace, in the 1931 photo. “Inspiration” is playing. Search the site for “Market Street” and there is a great close-up shot of the Palace Theatre, probably taken the same day…
Bingo!, Joe. The Palace is the theater in the postcard I have. The perspective and depth of focus made it look like this theater was the third building from the corner. I looked at some photos on the Philly history site that showed the buildings on the South side of Market Street from 13th Street. But the buildings they showed didn’t go as far as the theater. When I saw the photos, the theater got further down the block from 13th St. One showed the Fairyland, but that wasn’t it. I just checked your link to the Palace 1931 photo, and this is it! The awning is the same and the building next door with the arched windows matched the one in the postcard. Thanks. Another one down.
Hi, Joe. Thanks for the reply (the Crescent, too). I’ve been looking at Philly photos all morning. Great stuff on the sites. I still have not seen a photo of the theater in the postcard I have. The colored photo on the PAB site (could be a postcard) is taken from the same location, but does not show the theater in the foreground/left. And I do not know why this is included with the Palace photos, since it does not show the Palace or any other theater. This view is near 13th Street and the Palace is closer to 12th Street.
Does anybody know anything about the Crescent Theatre on South Salina Street? I have an old postcard of this street showing the Empire Theatre and directly across the street is the Crescent. This card is not dated, but it is very early (c.1920?). The Empire is shown with a horizontal sign, over a canopy which extends to the edge of the sidewalk. Another 1950’s card shows the Empire, but it appears the Crescent building has been replaced.
Does anybody know anything about a theater, probably a nickelodeon, that was on W. High Street (near the corner of North Pitt)? It was almost straight across the street from the current Carlisle Theatre. The Google street view shows that the portion of this building has been demolished. This theater was in the far easterly portion of the Bolen Building. The Bolen Building is at the corner of W. High & N. Pitt. The first three sections of the building are still standing. The next two sections, (the last/easterly housed the theatre) have been demolished. I have a postcard showing this typical nickelodeon-styled facade. There are also photographs of the Bolen Building showing this facade on the Cumberland County Historical Society website: www.historicalsociety.com. It certainly looks like a nickelodeon or theater. One photo caption dates the photo as 1936. I doubt if this facade lasted into the 1930’s, but research will tell. There are also two photos of the Carlisle Theatre, as well.
More Olympic Theatre photos at wnyheritagepress.org/under “DOWNTOWN BUFFALO”/click on “Washington & Broadway – 1920-Present”/see a photo showing the Olympic and the Lafayette Theatre. Click on “Lafayette Square – then & now”/click on view 2/see a postcard of Lafayette Square showing the Lafayette Theatre (pre-Olympic) and the Lyric Theatre on the corner.
Now here is where I’m not clear. It states above that the Lyric Theatre was renamed the Lyceum. When the New Lyric opened, it was a new theater. It seems it existed at the same time as the former Lyric on the corner. Both are shown on the postcard mentioned before. Was the former Lyric renamed the Lyceum and in business at the same time as the New Lyric? This sounds right. Then both the Lyceum/Lyric and the New Lyric were demolished for the Lafayette Theatre and Building.
Photos of the original bank and the converted Lyric Theatre can be seen at wnyheritagepress.org/click on “PICTORIALS”/under “DOWNTOWN BUFFALO” click on “Corner of Washington & Broadway – 1920-present”.
Click on “Lafayette Square – then & now”/see a postcard
of the square showing the Lyric (c. 1908).
Click on “10 Lafayette Square…”/see a photo showing the Lyric in the distance. The upper peak of the theater is seen, but the name is obscured—but the word THEATRE can be seen. Also, the sign on the corner reads “10-20 cent VAUDEVILLE”.
Click on “14 Lafayette Square…”/see the postcard mentioned on Jan. 15-18. The Lyric can be seen on the corner in the right foreground. The sign on the corner now reads “PHOTOPLAYS” (changed from “VAUDEVILLE”).
It appears that there were two Lyric Theatres. The first Lyric opened in the converted bank building located on the corner of Washington and Broadway. This structure was built by the Buffalo Savings Bank in 1866-67. When the bank moved to its new location (Main and Genesee) in 1901, this building was converted to the Lyric Theatre. The main facade and entrance was on Washington Street.
It seems the Peoples Building is at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Walnut Street, and has a Walnut Street address. In the satellite shot, it looks like a building exists where the State was located. This may not be the original structure. Anybody know? Thanks.
Who is J.P. Harris? There apppears to have been two other McKeesport theaters with the “Harris” name. I’ve heard of Sam Harris. On the tubecityonline.com site there is a picture of a theater with a large vertical HARRIS sign. This building looks nothing like the State or the Memorial. This building (the Hippodrome, but only the HARRIS sign identifies it) was partially demolished in 1943 for a Ford car dealership. The basement and part of the first/ground floor were retained and incorporated into the building. It is stated on the site that this building still “survives”.
Does anybody know about the Harris State Theater? I have a McKeesport post card showing “Fifth Avenue, looking East” which is postmarked l932. The cars in the photo look earlier than 1932. The sign on the theater show 15 cents, over the Harris name. The theater is on the left side in the picture, and the Peoples Building is shown beyond this on the corner of the next block of Fifth Avenue. The Peoples Building was built in 1906 as the headquarters for the Peoples Bank and Trust Company. It still exists. This section of Fifth Avenue is not accessable on the Google street view.
There is great photograph of Main Street showing the Hippodrome Theatre on the Library of Congress website. The Hippodrome can be seen at the extreme right of the photo, in the next block down from the Ellicott Building. The admission is advertised as 5 cents. Go to www.loc.gov./do a search for Main Street Buffalo (or similar) and there are multiple results/click on “Main Street, Buffalo N.Y.” for the photo.
If you are interested in other comments about the Tivoli Theatre project, see the “Skyscraper” forum. There are comments as current as early February 2013. (A direct address to the forum would not work for me.) Do a Google search for “Tivoli Theatre Hamilton”/go to page 2 of “web results”/and select “Tivoli Theatre [Archive]-Skyscraper Page Forum…”. It is the 8th item on the list on page 2. There are many comments, including some from somebody who made an offer to develop the property/project.
There is still no word on any development at the Tivoli Theatre. As mentioned in my December 27 comment, the finalization of the deal has not been announced. If you are interested in the saving and restoration of old theatres (or any kind of building) see “The Cost of History” on this site. Go to the home page and see “Latest Movie Theater Videos”. It is short, but there is a lot of information about what goes along with the restoration and the upkeep of a building.
I have a postcard of Main Street showing the block from Eagle Street (the Iriquois Hotel) to North Division (Bijou Dream). This is the photo/card I mentioned in my Jan. 31 message. The building in the middle of the block, has a sign that is only partially seen. The sign
(one word on each upper floor facade) reads:
“DEN” and “ACE”. Probably the Golden Palace nickelodeon.
The building has a very distict look, having a peaked top. It almost looks like a tower, and is not a very wide building. There is a panoramic view of this portion of Main Street, taken from the D.S. Morgan building, on the Heritage Press site. The Bijou Dream is shown, but the signs or name are not visible on the Golden Palace/Strand building.
This theater was located on Main Street (near North Division) at Shelton Square. Photos of this theatre can be seen at wnyheritagepress.org, by clicking on “Shelton Square” on the “Downtown Buffalo” list. The Palace can be seen behind the bus shelter. In one photo, only a partial glimpse can be seen at the extreme left. A postcard shot can be seen by clicking on “Iriquois Hotel”. Scroll down and there is a postcard of Main Street which shows the full facade of the Palace, to the right.
In researching the Bijou Dream, I noticed in a photo that a building nearby (probably the Strand) had a sign on the facade that read something like “Palace” but it was not clear to me that this was a theater. It was either a photograph or a postcard shot, and the facade of this building was in the distance but between the Iriquois Hotel and the Bijou Dream. The Bijou was at the corner of Main and North Division. I’m not clear on the address. There is a postcard showing the Strand, the building that replaced the Bijou, and the Palace Theatre (on the next block). This can be seen at: wnyheritagepress.org by clicking “Iriquois Hotel” on the list. Scrolling down, you can see this card along with other photos of the Iriquois.
There are some great photos of the Aberdeen Theatre on this site: jonesphotocollection.com. Do a site search for the Aberdeen or theaters in general. The photos are amazing!
There are a number of photos of the Weir Theatre on the Jones Photo website mentioned above. Looking at the photos, the Weir and the Rex were two separate theaters and even existed at the same time. The current Google view shows the Weir demolished and the building next door (with the arched upper windows) still existing. The buildings to the right of this, have been demolished. This would have included the building housing the Rex.
THE MILLION DOLLAR MYSTERY mentioned in my Jan. 15/11:15 comment, may be a Tanhouser serial. In June of 1914, the Tanhouser Syndicate Film Corporation released its first episode of “The Million Dollar Mystery”, a 23-episode cliffhanger serial. An advertising slide and text on the serial can be seen at: www.starts-thursday.com / scroll down and on the right there is a list of “Featured Slides” / select “Million…”. The showing at the Olympic may have been current, so the card/photo may date back to 1914/15. This card can be seen at the Western New York Heritage site (see Jan. 18 comment).
The Hamilton Spectator (our city newspaper) reported on Friday, February 15 that Bella Diamante has finally found a developer to buy the Tivoli…HER HUSBAND!! More details later…
The 1931 Palace facade photo is #26 on page 4 of the search results…just click on the Feb. 12 link and do a “Market Street” search on the Hagley site. You can see the Savoy across the street in the early construction photos.
Joe (& theater fans everywhere…): There are many progress photos of the demolition and the construction of the PSFS Building, on the Hagley site. The Palace facade can be seen, also the East wall with a Palace sign painted on it. Great stuff!
Joe: That’s Greta Garbo’s head on the left side of the Palace, in the 1931 photo. “Inspiration” is playing. Search the site for “Market Street” and there is a great close-up shot of the Palace Theatre, probably taken the same day…
Bingo!, Joe. The Palace is the theater in the postcard I have. The perspective and depth of focus made it look like this theater was the third building from the corner. I looked at some photos on the Philly history site that showed the buildings on the South side of Market Street from 13th Street. But the buildings they showed didn’t go as far as the theater. When I saw the photos, the theater got further down the block from 13th St. One showed the Fairyland, but that wasn’t it. I just checked your link to the Palace 1931 photo, and this is it! The awning is the same and the building next door with the arched windows matched the one in the postcard. Thanks. Another one down.
Hi, Joe. Thanks for the reply (the Crescent, too). I’ve been looking at Philly photos all morning. Great stuff on the sites. I still have not seen a photo of the theater in the postcard I have. The colored photo on the PAB site (could be a postcard) is taken from the same location, but does not show the theater in the foreground/left. And I do not know why this is included with the Palace photos, since it does not show the Palace or any other theater. This view is near 13th Street and the Palace is closer to 12th Street.
Does anybody know anything about the Crescent Theatre on South Salina Street? I have an old postcard of this street showing the Empire Theatre and directly across the street is the Crescent. This card is not dated, but it is very early (c.1920?). The Empire is shown with a horizontal sign, over a canopy which extends to the edge of the sidewalk. Another 1950’s card shows the Empire, but it appears the Crescent building has been replaced.
Does anybody know anything about a theater, probably a nickelodeon, that was on W. High Street (near the corner of North Pitt)? It was almost straight across the street from the current Carlisle Theatre. The Google street view shows that the portion of this building has been demolished. This theater was in the far easterly portion of the Bolen Building. The Bolen Building is at the corner of W. High & N. Pitt. The first three sections of the building are still standing. The next two sections, (the last/easterly housed the theatre) have been demolished. I have a postcard showing this typical nickelodeon-styled facade. There are also photographs of the Bolen Building showing this facade on the Cumberland County Historical Society website: www.historicalsociety.com. It certainly looks like a nickelodeon or theater. One photo caption dates the photo as 1936. I doubt if this facade lasted into the 1930’s, but research will tell. There are also two photos of the Carlisle Theatre, as well.
More Olympic Theatre photos at wnyheritagepress.org/under “DOWNTOWN BUFFALO”/click on “Washington & Broadway – 1920-Present”/see a photo showing the Olympic and the Lafayette Theatre. Click on “Lafayette Square – then & now”/click on view 2/see a postcard of Lafayette Square showing the Lafayette Theatre (pre-Olympic) and the Lyric Theatre on the corner.
Now here is where I’m not clear. It states above that the Lyric Theatre was renamed the Lyceum. When the New Lyric opened, it was a new theater. It seems it existed at the same time as the former Lyric on the corner. Both are shown on the postcard mentioned before. Was the former Lyric renamed the Lyceum and in business at the same time as the New Lyric? This sounds right. Then both the Lyceum/Lyric and the New Lyric were demolished for the Lafayette Theatre and Building.
Photos of the original bank and the converted Lyric Theatre can be seen at wnyheritagepress.org/click on “PICTORIALS”/under “DOWNTOWN BUFFALO” click on “Corner of Washington & Broadway – 1920-present”. Click on “Lafayette Square – then & now”/see a postcard of the square showing the Lyric (c. 1908). Click on “10 Lafayette Square…”/see a photo showing the Lyric in the distance. The upper peak of the theater is seen, but the name is obscured—but the word THEATRE can be seen. Also, the sign on the corner reads “10-20 cent VAUDEVILLE”. Click on “14 Lafayette Square…”/see the postcard mentioned on Jan. 15-18. The Lyric can be seen on the corner in the right foreground. The sign on the corner now reads “PHOTOPLAYS” (changed from “VAUDEVILLE”).
It appears that there were two Lyric Theatres. The first Lyric opened in the converted bank building located on the corner of Washington and Broadway. This structure was built by the Buffalo Savings Bank in 1866-67. When the bank moved to its new location (Main and Genesee) in 1901, this building was converted to the Lyric Theatre. The main facade and entrance was on Washington Street.
It seems the Peoples Building is at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Walnut Street, and has a Walnut Street address. In the satellite shot, it looks like a building exists where the State was located. This may not be the original structure. Anybody know? Thanks.
Who is J.P. Harris? There apppears to have been two other McKeesport theaters with the “Harris” name. I’ve heard of Sam Harris. On the tubecityonline.com site there is a picture of a theater with a large vertical HARRIS sign. This building looks nothing like the State or the Memorial. This building (the Hippodrome, but only the HARRIS sign identifies it) was partially demolished in 1943 for a Ford car dealership. The basement and part of the first/ground floor were retained and incorporated into the building. It is stated on the site that this building still “survives”.
Does anybody know about the Harris State Theater? I have a McKeesport post card showing “Fifth Avenue, looking East” which is postmarked l932. The cars in the photo look earlier than 1932. The sign on the theater show 15 cents, over the Harris name. The theater is on the left side in the picture, and the Peoples Building is shown beyond this on the corner of the next block of Fifth Avenue. The Peoples Building was built in 1906 as the headquarters for the Peoples Bank and Trust Company. It still exists. This section of Fifth Avenue is not accessable on the Google street view.
Take a look at “The Cost of History” featuring the Patio Theatre. Go to the CT home page and click on “Latest movie theater videos”.
There is great photograph of Main Street showing the Hippodrome Theatre on the Library of Congress website. The Hippodrome can be seen at the extreme right of the photo, in the next block down from the Ellicott Building. The admission is advertised as 5 cents. Go to www.loc.gov./do a search for Main Street Buffalo (or similar) and there are multiple results/click on “Main Street, Buffalo N.Y.” for the photo.
If you are interested in other comments about the Tivoli Theatre project, see the “Skyscraper” forum. There are comments as current as early February 2013. (A direct address to the forum would not work for me.) Do a Google search for “Tivoli Theatre Hamilton”/go to page 2 of “web results”/and select “Tivoli Theatre [Archive]-Skyscraper Page Forum…”. It is the 8th item on the list on page 2. There are many comments, including some from somebody who made an offer to develop the property/project.
There is still no word on any development at the Tivoli Theatre. As mentioned in my December 27 comment, the finalization of the deal has not been announced. If you are interested in the saving and restoration of old theatres (or any kind of building) see “The Cost of History” on this site. Go to the home page and see “Latest Movie Theater Videos”. It is short, but there is a lot of information about what goes along with the restoration and the upkeep of a building.
I have a postcard of Main Street showing the block from Eagle Street (the Iriquois Hotel) to North Division (Bijou Dream). This is the photo/card I mentioned in my Jan. 31 message. The building in the middle of the block, has a sign that is only partially seen. The sign (one word on each upper floor facade) reads: “DEN” and “ACE”. Probably the Golden Palace nickelodeon. The building has a very distict look, having a peaked top. It almost looks like a tower, and is not a very wide building. There is a panoramic view of this portion of Main Street, taken from the D.S. Morgan building, on the Heritage Press site. The Bijou Dream is shown, but the signs or name are not visible on the Golden Palace/Strand building.
This theater was located on Main Street (near North Division) at Shelton Square. Photos of this theatre can be seen at wnyheritagepress.org, by clicking on “Shelton Square” on the “Downtown Buffalo” list. The Palace can be seen behind the bus shelter. In one photo, only a partial glimpse can be seen at the extreme left. A postcard shot can be seen by clicking on “Iriquois Hotel”. Scroll down and there is a postcard of Main Street which shows the full facade of the Palace, to the right.
In researching the Bijou Dream, I noticed in a photo that a building nearby (probably the Strand) had a sign on the facade that read something like “Palace” but it was not clear to me that this was a theater. It was either a photograph or a postcard shot, and the facade of this building was in the distance but between the Iriquois Hotel and the Bijou Dream. The Bijou was at the corner of Main and North Division. I’m not clear on the address. There is a postcard showing the Strand, the building that replaced the Bijou, and the Palace Theatre (on the next block). This can be seen at: wnyheritagepress.org by clicking “Iriquois Hotel” on the list. Scrolling down, you can see this card along with other photos of the Iriquois.
There are some great photos of the Aberdeen Theatre on this site: jonesphotocollection.com. Do a site search for the Aberdeen or theaters in general. The photos are amazing!
There are a number of photos of the Weir Theatre on the Jones Photo website mentioned above. Looking at the photos, the Weir and the Rex were two separate theaters and even existed at the same time. The current Google view shows the Weir demolished and the building next door (with the arched upper windows) still existing. The buildings to the right of this, have been demolished. This would have included the building housing the Rex.
THE MILLION DOLLAR MYSTERY mentioned in my Jan. 15/11:15 comment, may be a Tanhouser serial. In June of 1914, the Tanhouser Syndicate Film Corporation released its first episode of “The Million Dollar Mystery”, a 23-episode cliffhanger serial. An advertising slide and text on the serial can be seen at: www.starts-thursday.com / scroll down and on the right there is a list of “Featured Slides” / select “Million…”. The showing at the Olympic may have been current, so the card/photo may date back to 1914/15. This card can be seen at the Western New York Heritage site (see Jan. 18 comment).