RKO opened the Radio City Music Hall and the RKO Roxy (Center), so that means that these two theatres should be listed with the RKO preceding the theatre name. Cinema Treasures should list theatres as they were named at opening with the first operater under the statistics. Subsequent operators should be listed in the theatre discription or biography. This should include the original name even if was changed within months of the opening just like the Piccadilly Theatre in Brooklyn whose name was changed some months after opening to the Avalon. N'est-pas?
All I know about this is that the matrons were licensed by New York City and Children’s sections had to be maintained. This was probably to protect children from child molesters. Adults were chased out childrens' sections as children were watched if they were sneaking into adult sections or the balcony. This regulation must have “gone with the wind” since multi-screen theatres were required one matron per auditorium, as was the fact at the Midway. Another regulation that “flew the coop” is that exits from a theatres were on ground level or from fire escapes leading to street level. In today’s Manhattan, with their multi-level theatre buildings, the exits are into corridors and stairwells with audiences not aware of where the outside exit from a auditorium on the fifth floor really is. Can you imagine a fire at either AMC 25 or Loew’s E-Walk with the escalators and elevators inoperative and people panicking in smoke filled stairways. This is just another disaster in the making and where are the fire laws to prevent this? As far as children in theatres, they can sit anywhere in any Long Island multiplex. Not only can they buy their tichet for a PG movie, they can see an R or NC-17 once they pass the ticket taker. 12 and 14 screen theatres don’t have a ticket taker at every auditorium entrance. I would never let my child attend any movie theatre alone today.
The audiences of the Bayshore and Patchogue were not solely from the Bayshore and Patchogue areas. In the 1920’s, both were first run exclusive presentation theatres with vaudeville and orchestras. The Bayshore had a stagehouse where the Patchogue had backstage dressing rooms. The population of nearby Brightwaters were famous stars amongst others. They both had the stage and photoplay presentations that were popular in the five Wonder Theatres in New York City. The programs changed weekly. On the north shore, Century’s Huntington held this honor. I don’t believe these theatres had organs except for the Huntington, but I may be wrong.
You are right the building’s 45th St. sidewall is intact as are the other walls of the auditorium which I now believe is a stockroom for truck deliveries for Toys Are Us. The Toys R Us marquee or television monitor is exactly where the theatre’s original marquee was. Since the building was only partially demolished, they were able to keep the ordinance that allowed them to retain the extended marquee they have now. I also worked as a fill in manager for B.S. Moss and I was there for Alien and Bo Dereks film “10”. I can still remember her running on the beach ion her famous scene from that film. It was still a single screen at the time and a Moss theatre. During a Saturday matinee of “10”, there was civil unrest outside the theatre that caused us to close the front doors and suspend the sale of tickets for a hhalf hour until the crowd outside simmered down. People in the theatre were unaware of the turmoil outside. I have a set of 11 x 14 movie stills from ALIEN that were discarded that I kept as a momento of the theatre.
I worked at the Midway in 1977 and the “quadding” took place in the spring of that year to be completed in time to be open for “The Disney Festival” (Remember them?) which started the last week of June. The Midway was always a busy house no matter what played. That summer we also had the “A.I.P. Summer Festival”. For one of those double bills, “Tentacles” and “Squirm”, some teenagers changed the Balcony theatres entrance sign to rhyme with the a certain part of the male anatomy and what it produced. This went un-noticed for a while until a patron informed management as to when we started showing X-rated pictures. There are many more stories. When the blackout occured that summer, the theatre was sold out (all auditoriums). When it was found to be a city blackout and not just the theatre, patrons were told to keep their stubs for re-admission. This caused a furor amongst people who wanted their money refunded (even in the dark). Refunds weren’t issued and the police were summoned to get the refund agitators removed so the building could be closed and secured. The Midway also had two part time matrons and children’s sections in all auditoriums. The lobby was done with a red and black color scheme and the left staircase that led to the balcony had an area for game machines (almost 10) that were very busy on the weekends. Also at this time, we had a union electrician and he also changed the marquee. No one was allowed to change a light bulb except him. I was at the Midway for about six months until I was transferred to the Syosset Theatre on Long Island.
P.S. At the time managers got 2 ½% commission on candy sales and 1% on the game machines (– shortages).
The Bayshore was more than 1,500 but less than 2,000. When I find my ALmi-Century directory listing the circuit’s movie houses I will post the exact seating capacity. The Patchogue seated about 1,300.
The theatre did open as the Piccadilly as the ads in the Brooklyn Eagle show the name along with the other Loew’s theatres in their directory ad. Go to the library and look it up and then add your corrected comments Warren.
When the Avalon first opened it was known as Loew’s Piccadilly before Century took over operations along with the nearby Loew’s Manor which later on became the Vogue. If Century ran the Kent in the late ‘40’s which I see as 1947 or later, they had it less than a year. I’ll have to scan the Brooklyn Eagle for that year and check up on it.
Mr Goldberg,
The Livingston St. marquee of the Fox Theatre which went to the end of the block on the left exterior sidewall was indeed two blocks from the Loew’s Melba Theatre. I am not talking about the Flatbush Avenue entrance of the theatre and even that entrance is a ¼ mile from the front of the Melba. What did you do, walk around the block a couple of times?
Yes, the Bolton’s recently modernized the Regent with 290 seats in the stadium style. In hindsight, the Regent should have been the YMCA and the Bayshore should have been saved. But then, Bayshore closed in 1982 and the Regent was thriving as a X-rated house until 1990. Bayshore 1925-1982. Regent 1914-1990. The Regent has just recieved a new ultra sleek marquee and grand opened last month. The Bayshore opened as a Ward & Glynne theatre along with the Patchogue Theatre. Ward & Glynne also ran the Alhambra and Century Theatres in Brooklyn at that time. After the Crash of ‘29, Prudential Theatres
took over the twi L.I. houses. In 1968, United Artists and finally ALMI in 1980 and briefly until it closed Almi-Century and RKO-Century in quick succession. The manager of this theatre had a husband who worked the Bayshore Sunrise Drive-In and a daughter who worked the Lindenhurst Theatre for a while. She also fought to get the building landmarked but was thwarted by United Artists who did not want to. After staying empty for several years, the Bolton’s plan for the Bayshore was to turn it into a YMCA. The theatre was totally gutted and only the ornate indoor box-office was saved to be used at a later date. The orchestra is now a basketball court and an extension to the south side of the building in a small part of the vast parking lot is an indoor pool. It is a nice spic and span facility. The theatre exterior walls, roof and enormous stagehouse are still evident.
The Carlton was one of four roof-top theatres in the borough of Brooklyn. The others were Loew’s Kameo (originally the Cameo) on Eastern Parkway, Fox-Metropolitan’s Congress on St. John’s Place and the Rugby on Utica Avenue. It is a shame that the Carlton is gutted since the Brooklyn Tabernacle must have refurbished it from its' movie days prior to becoming their new home. If a drugstore opens in its' place, I wouldn’t be surprised. Whoever it is, they should be boycotted.
This theatre was opened as Century’s Richmond Theatre, their only screen on Staten Island. The anchor department store in this center was E.J.Korvette’s, but I maybe wrong. Century’s policy at most of their first run theatres were the U.A. cartoons The Pink Panther, Ant and the Aardvark, Tijuana Toads and the Inspector which with a trailer preceeded the main feature. Does anyone remember the flying “C”’s logo for Century Theatres that came on before the trailer? The theatre closed in 1984/5 as it couldn’t be expanded or multiplexed because of its' small seating capacity. It was also a leased property.
Loew’s Melba started out as Keeney’s in 1902 or thereabouts. It was named for Frank A. Keeney, the owner. It was a showcase for local talent and it is said that Fanny Brice got her start here. The house featured vaudeville and sond and dance routines. When other downtown palaces incorporated vaudeville into their photoplay programs, vaudeville by itself was a hard sell. Mr. Keeney ( who was portrayed in “Funny Girl” ) withdrew in 1926 and Loew’s stepped in. This gave Loew’s 3 houses within a 2 block radius, the others being the Metropolitan and the Bijou ( already playing after the Metropolitan ). The Bijou (1894-1931) closed in 1931 and the Melba picked up their run. Loew’s Melba at 300 Livingston Street was near the Livingston Street entrance of the Fox Theatre ( The Fox had two entrances at the time of its' opening ) up a block or so. Loew’s Melba was demolished in 1954, the same year the RKO Orpheum and Momart Theatres were torn down.
P.S. The above heading should list the Strand as “altered interior”, it four walls and facade remain so it was not demolished. The facade is quite stunning for a corner entrance.
When opened this was known as the Mark Strand Theatre. Then Warner Brothers had it and it became the first house in downtown Brooklyn to install W.B.’s Vitaphone sound and where Al Jolson’s “The Jazz Singer” opened in the early days of sound photoplays. The Strand, Majestic, Orpheum theatres where prestigious houses relegated to second hand status when counterparts Albee, Paramount and Fox Movie Palaces arrived on the scene in the mid 1920’s. During the 1932 “Pool” arrangement Fabian Theatres operated the theatre and then leased it so that he would “compete against himself” because of Strand’s location near his Fox Theatre. Fabian had it until the late 1958 and moved hits from the Fox here usually chaning the co-features. In it’s last years as a theatre, The Strand featured exploitation films dealing with juvenile delinquents, teenage pregnancy and drugs. I don’t include Loew’s Metropolitan in the brew since it was in between the old and new theatre districts of downtown and opened in 1916 in a space that was destined to be a department store.
The Rainbow was built by Fox-Metropolitan Theatres in 1936 and opened in 1937. The theatre was located between the Graham which was on the other side of the street near Meserole St. and the Lindy which was also on the Graham’s side of the street. It closed in 1967 and was used as a catering hall with the marquee still in place. The catering hall lasted until 1980 or thereabouts. It was a post-depression theatre that eventually became a Randforce house. it must have had a long lobby situated in the middle of the block. If you go to the corner, the auditorium wall is about 1/3 down the block. Storefronts run down the third of the block and then this large 100 ft. theatre wall sided by 8 foot alleyways.
Up the block was the Montemartre (aka Momart) a small theatre which opened in 1927 at 590 Fulton Street. The Momart was opened by Warner Brothers and featured foreign films for its' 26 years as neighbor to the RKO Orpheum. This area of theatres came about in the early 1900’s as the turn of cenyury theatres of the 1860’s started to move away from Brooklyn Government Buildings now Cadman Plaza. The movie palaces where in the proximity of Flatbush & Fulton Streets. Brooklyn’s Times Square was just as impressive as New York’s. How 12 theatres in the area boasting over 40,000 seats survived the depression is just how important movies and theatres were a fabric
of society during the 1930’s and ‘40’s.
The Circle Theatre is now a Lucille Roberts, the marquee is there but covered over with the present store’s sign. How much of the interior exists is unknown.
You are correct, when ALMI Theatres took over Century, they were known as ALMI-Century. When RKO was absorbed by them, the name became RKO-Century. When the Cinema V (Rugoff chain) was taken over which included the Cinema Manhasset, this became the RKO-Century Cinema Manhasset. By that time, a few of the old-timers from both circuits were in the home office, but the circuit of theatres were in name only and had nothing to do with the original chains. I worked for ALMI when they started with 5 UA Theatres. They were the Bayshore, Amityville, Farmingdale, Plaza (Patchogue) and the Brookhaven Theatres.
I was in the Bushwick Theatre about a month after the Sept. 11 attacks on the Trade Center. It was on a Sunday and I was admitted to see what was behind the walls of this once magnificent theatre. A B.F.Keith’s theatre before going RKO. After use as a film house in 1968/9 it was in use as a church but never converted to office building. The foreman said to be careful as interior demolition was in progress and not to step off the stage. Sun streamed in from where the exit doors were on the upper balcony levels, the middle balcony had been ½ way demolished and the box seats were also gone. the upper (2nd balcony) was intact minus seating. The proscenium arch was partially demolished but the centerpiece of the arch (a goddess) was still in place. Even though the theatre was in bad shape prior to interior demolition, enough was there to put it back together again. In a movie called “The Believers” with Martin Sheen, an exorcism scene was filmed inside the Bushwick Theatre showing Robert Loggia in the lobby and the the derelict interior of the orchestra and stage (where the exorcism took place). The exterior of the building is also seen. On that Sunday, 90 years after the Bushwick opened, I wept as I took some of the last pictures from the stage that was once trodden by the likes of Moe & Shemp Howard of “The Three Stooges” fame and others. I also left with a piece of plaster from the proscenium arch. The ceiling was still intact at this time. I did jump off the stage and roamed the entire orchestra level of the building. The distinct facade of the Bushwick, the most ornate of any Brooklyn Theatre is to be restored as part of the school facade. At least the exterior will survive.
I doubt if any of the original Paramount staff was on hand for the “Thunderball” engagement during the 1964-5 Christmas booking. The WWF occupied the storefront behind the restored marquee and arched window. Since the entire theatre was gutted, WWF couldn’t have been operating in the “stage area” of the original theatre as mentioned several comments before. That would have meant occupying the whole ground level of that side of the building, which they didn’t. I hope the marquee and arch window remain intact for whatever use follows the WWF. The Paramount needs to be remembered and these two reminders will do just that even if they are not original.
The last movie to play the Paramount was “Thunderball” which had been rented/leased by “Cubby” Brocoli and the United Artists film company after the theatre ceased operation under the “United Paramount Theatre” chain. “Thunderball” played continuously 24 hours a day for the first three weeks. It played a total of 10 weeks. The film also played one other east side theatre. In between “The Carpetbaggers” engagement, the theatre was sparadically used for concerts to little avail. The grosses for the Paramount for “Thunderball” were blockbuster numbers, so if the bookings had been continued at this caliber, the theatre might have remained opened for a little while longer.
I have photos of the demolition showing the sun streaming in and exposing the blue painted walls. The theatre had an oval cut out in the upper lounge allowing patrons to see the last rows of the orchestra. I remember once going in here and foung the marble lobby and it’s appointments very rich. If I remember, an elevator to the right of the indoor box-office once took patrons to the second level. As it being a RKO house, I don’t think so because it is not listed in any display RKO ad that I have from the 1930’s-1960’s. If it was, it wasn’t for long. Remember, RKO ran the Mayfair in Times Square before opening Radio City and The Center at Rockefeller Center. The Mayfair then passed on to Loew’s in 1933 and then the Brandt’s ran it in the ‘40’s and '50’s. The Mayfair then became the DeMille. Prior to being the Mayfair it was the Columbia burlesque theatre. The RKO presence in the Times Square area was the Palace Theatre during this time still with Vaudeville shows into the 1950’s before it went legit. By the way, the Adonis screened their all male hits from a projector that was located directly in the center aisle of the orchestra. Most of the patrons were moaning and groaning and my visit did not include sitting or watching the on-goings on the screen.
Initially, the Drive-In and it’s Indoor Theatre played the same double bill, with the Drive-In showtimes at roughly 7 PM and 11 PM and the co-feature at 9 PM, while the Indoor screened the main feature at 9 P.M. and the co-feature at 7 PM and 11 PM. Therefore, the prints where constantly in use (Continuously between the two screens). The booth to the drive-in was incorporated into the indoor theatre with the snack bar. When buying tickets, you needed to specify indoor or outdoor so that the correct tickets were issued and there was a doorman on duty to make sure outdoor customers weren’t using the indoor theatre. Later on in the 1970’s, two seperate double bills played the Indoor and Outdoor theatres. The Cinema next door was a seperate theatre from the drive-in, even though it was next door and had it’s own staff. The staff was known to work both locations.
RKO opened the Radio City Music Hall and the RKO Roxy (Center), so that means that these two theatres should be listed with the RKO preceding the theatre name. Cinema Treasures should list theatres as they were named at opening with the first operater under the statistics. Subsequent operators should be listed in the theatre discription or biography. This should include the original name even if was changed within months of the opening just like the Piccadilly Theatre in Brooklyn whose name was changed some months after opening to the Avalon. N'est-pas?
All I know about this is that the matrons were licensed by New York City and Children’s sections had to be maintained. This was probably to protect children from child molesters. Adults were chased out childrens' sections as children were watched if they were sneaking into adult sections or the balcony. This regulation must have “gone with the wind” since multi-screen theatres were required one matron per auditorium, as was the fact at the Midway. Another regulation that “flew the coop” is that exits from a theatres were on ground level or from fire escapes leading to street level. In today’s Manhattan, with their multi-level theatre buildings, the exits are into corridors and stairwells with audiences not aware of where the outside exit from a auditorium on the fifth floor really is. Can you imagine a fire at either AMC 25 or Loew’s E-Walk with the escalators and elevators inoperative and people panicking in smoke filled stairways. This is just another disaster in the making and where are the fire laws to prevent this? As far as children in theatres, they can sit anywhere in any Long Island multiplex. Not only can they buy their tichet for a PG movie, they can see an R or NC-17 once they pass the ticket taker. 12 and 14 screen theatres don’t have a ticket taker at every auditorium entrance. I would never let my child attend any movie theatre alone today.
The audiences of the Bayshore and Patchogue were not solely from the Bayshore and Patchogue areas. In the 1920’s, both were first run exclusive presentation theatres with vaudeville and orchestras. The Bayshore had a stagehouse where the Patchogue had backstage dressing rooms. The population of nearby Brightwaters were famous stars amongst others. They both had the stage and photoplay presentations that were popular in the five Wonder Theatres in New York City. The programs changed weekly. On the north shore, Century’s Huntington held this honor. I don’t believe these theatres had organs except for the Huntington, but I may be wrong.
You are right the building’s 45th St. sidewall is intact as are the other walls of the auditorium which I now believe is a stockroom for truck deliveries for Toys Are Us. The Toys R Us marquee or television monitor is exactly where the theatre’s original marquee was. Since the building was only partially demolished, they were able to keep the ordinance that allowed them to retain the extended marquee they have now. I also worked as a fill in manager for B.S. Moss and I was there for Alien and Bo Dereks film “10”. I can still remember her running on the beach ion her famous scene from that film. It was still a single screen at the time and a Moss theatre. During a Saturday matinee of “10”, there was civil unrest outside the theatre that caused us to close the front doors and suspend the sale of tickets for a hhalf hour until the crowd outside simmered down. People in the theatre were unaware of the turmoil outside. I have a set of 11 x 14 movie stills from ALIEN that were discarded that I kept as a momento of the theatre.
I worked at the Midway in 1977 and the “quadding” took place in the spring of that year to be completed in time to be open for “The Disney Festival” (Remember them?) which started the last week of June. The Midway was always a busy house no matter what played. That summer we also had the “A.I.P. Summer Festival”. For one of those double bills, “Tentacles” and “Squirm”, some teenagers changed the Balcony theatres entrance sign to rhyme with the a certain part of the male anatomy and what it produced. This went un-noticed for a while until a patron informed management as to when we started showing X-rated pictures. There are many more stories. When the blackout occured that summer, the theatre was sold out (all auditoriums). When it was found to be a city blackout and not just the theatre, patrons were told to keep their stubs for re-admission. This caused a furor amongst people who wanted their money refunded (even in the dark). Refunds weren’t issued and the police were summoned to get the refund agitators removed so the building could be closed and secured. The Midway also had two part time matrons and children’s sections in all auditoriums. The lobby was done with a red and black color scheme and the left staircase that led to the balcony had an area for game machines (almost 10) that were very busy on the weekends. Also at this time, we had a union electrician and he also changed the marquee. No one was allowed to change a light bulb except him. I was at the Midway for about six months until I was transferred to the Syosset Theatre on Long Island.
P.S. At the time managers got 2 ½% commission on candy sales and 1% on the game machines (– shortages).
The Bayshore was more than 1,500 but less than 2,000. When I find my ALmi-Century directory listing the circuit’s movie houses I will post the exact seating capacity. The Patchogue seated about 1,300.
The theatre did open as the Piccadilly as the ads in the Brooklyn Eagle show the name along with the other Loew’s theatres in their directory ad. Go to the library and look it up and then add your corrected comments Warren.
When the Avalon first opened it was known as Loew’s Piccadilly before Century took over operations along with the nearby Loew’s Manor which later on became the Vogue. If Century ran the Kent in the late ‘40’s which I see as 1947 or later, they had it less than a year. I’ll have to scan the Brooklyn Eagle for that year and check up on it.
Mr Goldberg,
The Livingston St. marquee of the Fox Theatre which went to the end of the block on the left exterior sidewall was indeed two blocks from the Loew’s Melba Theatre. I am not talking about the Flatbush Avenue entrance of the theatre and even that entrance is a ¼ mile from the front of the Melba. What did you do, walk around the block a couple of times?
Yes, the Bolton’s recently modernized the Regent with 290 seats in the stadium style. In hindsight, the Regent should have been the YMCA and the Bayshore should have been saved. But then, Bayshore closed in 1982 and the Regent was thriving as a X-rated house until 1990. Bayshore 1925-1982. Regent 1914-1990. The Regent has just recieved a new ultra sleek marquee and grand opened last month. The Bayshore opened as a Ward & Glynne theatre along with the Patchogue Theatre. Ward & Glynne also ran the Alhambra and Century Theatres in Brooklyn at that time. After the Crash of ‘29, Prudential Theatres
took over the twi L.I. houses. In 1968, United Artists and finally ALMI in 1980 and briefly until it closed Almi-Century and RKO-Century in quick succession. The manager of this theatre had a husband who worked the Bayshore Sunrise Drive-In and a daughter who worked the Lindenhurst Theatre for a while. She also fought to get the building landmarked but was thwarted by United Artists who did not want to. After staying empty for several years, the Bolton’s plan for the Bayshore was to turn it into a YMCA. The theatre was totally gutted and only the ornate indoor box-office was saved to be used at a later date. The orchestra is now a basketball court and an extension to the south side of the building in a small part of the vast parking lot is an indoor pool. It is a nice spic and span facility. The theatre exterior walls, roof and enormous stagehouse are still evident.
The Carlton was one of four roof-top theatres in the borough of Brooklyn. The others were Loew’s Kameo (originally the Cameo) on Eastern Parkway, Fox-Metropolitan’s Congress on St. John’s Place and the Rugby on Utica Avenue. It is a shame that the Carlton is gutted since the Brooklyn Tabernacle must have refurbished it from its' movie days prior to becoming their new home. If a drugstore opens in its' place, I wouldn’t be surprised. Whoever it is, they should be boycotted.
This theatre was opened as Century’s Richmond Theatre, their only screen on Staten Island. The anchor department store in this center was E.J.Korvette’s, but I maybe wrong. Century’s policy at most of their first run theatres were the U.A. cartoons The Pink Panther, Ant and the Aardvark, Tijuana Toads and the Inspector which with a trailer preceeded the main feature. Does anyone remember the flying “C”’s logo for Century Theatres that came on before the trailer? The theatre closed in 1984/5 as it couldn’t be expanded or multiplexed because of its' small seating capacity. It was also a leased property.
Loew’s Melba started out as Keeney’s in 1902 or thereabouts. It was named for Frank A. Keeney, the owner. It was a showcase for local talent and it is said that Fanny Brice got her start here. The house featured vaudeville and sond and dance routines. When other downtown palaces incorporated vaudeville into their photoplay programs, vaudeville by itself was a hard sell. Mr. Keeney ( who was portrayed in “Funny Girl” ) withdrew in 1926 and Loew’s stepped in. This gave Loew’s 3 houses within a 2 block radius, the others being the Metropolitan and the Bijou ( already playing after the Metropolitan ). The Bijou (1894-1931) closed in 1931 and the Melba picked up their run. Loew’s Melba at 300 Livingston Street was near the Livingston Street entrance of the Fox Theatre ( The Fox had two entrances at the time of its' opening ) up a block or so. Loew’s Melba was demolished in 1954, the same year the RKO Orpheum and Momart Theatres were torn down.
P.S. The above heading should list the Strand as “altered interior”, it four walls and facade remain so it was not demolished. The facade is quite stunning for a corner entrance.
When opened this was known as the Mark Strand Theatre. Then Warner Brothers had it and it became the first house in downtown Brooklyn to install W.B.’s Vitaphone sound and where Al Jolson’s “The Jazz Singer” opened in the early days of sound photoplays. The Strand, Majestic, Orpheum theatres where prestigious houses relegated to second hand status when counterparts Albee, Paramount and Fox Movie Palaces arrived on the scene in the mid 1920’s. During the 1932 “Pool” arrangement Fabian Theatres operated the theatre and then leased it so that he would “compete against himself” because of Strand’s location near his Fox Theatre. Fabian had it until the late 1958 and moved hits from the Fox here usually chaning the co-features. In it’s last years as a theatre, The Strand featured exploitation films dealing with juvenile delinquents, teenage pregnancy and drugs. I don’t include Loew’s Metropolitan in the brew since it was in between the old and new theatre districts of downtown and opened in 1916 in a space that was destined to be a department store.
The Rainbow was built by Fox-Metropolitan Theatres in 1936 and opened in 1937. The theatre was located between the Graham which was on the other side of the street near Meserole St. and the Lindy which was also on the Graham’s side of the street. It closed in 1967 and was used as a catering hall with the marquee still in place. The catering hall lasted until 1980 or thereabouts. It was a post-depression theatre that eventually became a Randforce house. it must have had a long lobby situated in the middle of the block. If you go to the corner, the auditorium wall is about 1/3 down the block. Storefronts run down the third of the block and then this large 100 ft. theatre wall sided by 8 foot alleyways.
In addition to above, The Momart went down with the Orpheum 1n 1953-54. The Strand was out by 1958. The Majestic just kept on going.
Up the block was the Montemartre (aka Momart) a small theatre which opened in 1927 at 590 Fulton Street. The Momart was opened by Warner Brothers and featured foreign films for its' 26 years as neighbor to the RKO Orpheum. This area of theatres came about in the early 1900’s as the turn of cenyury theatres of the 1860’s started to move away from Brooklyn Government Buildings now Cadman Plaza. The movie palaces where in the proximity of Flatbush & Fulton Streets. Brooklyn’s Times Square was just as impressive as New York’s. How 12 theatres in the area boasting over 40,000 seats survived the depression is just how important movies and theatres were a fabric
of society during the 1930’s and ‘40’s.
The Circle Theatre is now a Lucille Roberts, the marquee is there but covered over with the present store’s sign. How much of the interior exists is unknown.
You are correct, when ALMI Theatres took over Century, they were known as ALMI-Century. When RKO was absorbed by them, the name became RKO-Century. When the Cinema V (Rugoff chain) was taken over which included the Cinema Manhasset, this became the RKO-Century Cinema Manhasset. By that time, a few of the old-timers from both circuits were in the home office, but the circuit of theatres were in name only and had nothing to do with the original chains. I worked for ALMI when they started with 5 UA Theatres. They were the Bayshore, Amityville, Farmingdale, Plaza (Patchogue) and the Brookhaven Theatres.
I was in the Bushwick Theatre about a month after the Sept. 11 attacks on the Trade Center. It was on a Sunday and I was admitted to see what was behind the walls of this once magnificent theatre. A B.F.Keith’s theatre before going RKO. After use as a film house in 1968/9 it was in use as a church but never converted to office building. The foreman said to be careful as interior demolition was in progress and not to step off the stage. Sun streamed in from where the exit doors were on the upper balcony levels, the middle balcony had been ½ way demolished and the box seats were also gone. the upper (2nd balcony) was intact minus seating. The proscenium arch was partially demolished but the centerpiece of the arch (a goddess) was still in place. Even though the theatre was in bad shape prior to interior demolition, enough was there to put it back together again. In a movie called “The Believers” with Martin Sheen, an exorcism scene was filmed inside the Bushwick Theatre showing Robert Loggia in the lobby and the the derelict interior of the orchestra and stage (where the exorcism took place). The exterior of the building is also seen. On that Sunday, 90 years after the Bushwick opened, I wept as I took some of the last pictures from the stage that was once trodden by the likes of Moe & Shemp Howard of “The Three Stooges” fame and others. I also left with a piece of plaster from the proscenium arch. The ceiling was still intact at this time. I did jump off the stage and roamed the entire orchestra level of the building. The distinct facade of the Bushwick, the most ornate of any Brooklyn Theatre is to be restored as part of the school facade. At least the exterior will survive.
I doubt if any of the original Paramount staff was on hand for the “Thunderball” engagement during the 1964-5 Christmas booking. The WWF occupied the storefront behind the restored marquee and arched window. Since the entire theatre was gutted, WWF couldn’t have been operating in the “stage area” of the original theatre as mentioned several comments before. That would have meant occupying the whole ground level of that side of the building, which they didn’t. I hope the marquee and arch window remain intact for whatever use follows the WWF. The Paramount needs to be remembered and these two reminders will do just that even if they are not original.
The last movie to play the Paramount was “Thunderball” which had been rented/leased by “Cubby” Brocoli and the United Artists film company after the theatre ceased operation under the “United Paramount Theatre” chain. “Thunderball” played continuously 24 hours a day for the first three weeks. It played a total of 10 weeks. The film also played one other east side theatre. In between “The Carpetbaggers” engagement, the theatre was sparadically used for concerts to little avail. The grosses for the Paramount for “Thunderball” were blockbuster numbers, so if the bookings had been continued at this caliber, the theatre might have remained opened for a little while longer.
I have photos of the demolition showing the sun streaming in and exposing the blue painted walls. The theatre had an oval cut out in the upper lounge allowing patrons to see the last rows of the orchestra. I remember once going in here and foung the marble lobby and it’s appointments very rich. If I remember, an elevator to the right of the indoor box-office once took patrons to the second level. As it being a RKO house, I don’t think so because it is not listed in any display RKO ad that I have from the 1930’s-1960’s. If it was, it wasn’t for long. Remember, RKO ran the Mayfair in Times Square before opening Radio City and The Center at Rockefeller Center. The Mayfair then passed on to Loew’s in 1933 and then the Brandt’s ran it in the ‘40’s and '50’s. The Mayfair then became the DeMille. Prior to being the Mayfair it was the Columbia burlesque theatre. The RKO presence in the Times Square area was the Palace Theatre during this time still with Vaudeville shows into the 1950’s before it went legit. By the way, the Adonis screened their all male hits from a projector that was located directly in the center aisle of the orchestra. Most of the patrons were moaning and groaning and my visit did not include sitting or watching the on-goings on the screen.
Initially, the Drive-In and it’s Indoor Theatre played the same double bill, with the Drive-In showtimes at roughly 7 PM and 11 PM and the co-feature at 9 PM, while the Indoor screened the main feature at 9 P.M. and the co-feature at 7 PM and 11 PM. Therefore, the prints where constantly in use (Continuously between the two screens). The booth to the drive-in was incorporated into the indoor theatre with the snack bar. When buying tickets, you needed to specify indoor or outdoor so that the correct tickets were issued and there was a doorman on duty to make sure outdoor customers weren’t using the indoor theatre. Later on in the 1970’s, two seperate double bills played the Indoor and Outdoor theatres. The Cinema next door was a seperate theatre from the drive-in, even though it was next door and had it’s own staff. The staff was known to work both locations.