There is a plaque at the eastern edge of the building that commemorates the site of the “American Theater Wing Stage Door Canteen,” which occupied the theater’s renovated basement level from 1942-1945. It reads, in part, “This tablet is dedicated to the men and women of the entertainment world who brought cheer and comfort to the soldiers, sailors and marines of America and her allies.” As best as I can determine from internet sources, the plaque was dedicated around 1950.
Just remembered that I also saw “Nighthawks” with Sylvester Stallone at the Rivoli (also the 2nd time seeing that movie) and the theater was still a single at the time – which was in the Spring of 1981 (imdb.com lists a premiere date of April 4th). I’ll try and do some research, Rich, and will report back on the Rivoli’s CT page.
Rich… If you go to the Rivoli page, the introduction states the theater was twinned in December, 1981. The theatre was definitely a single when “Dawn of the Dead” played there in early 1979 and I can also tell you from personal experience that it was still a single screen when I saw “1941” (another Lynbrook connection) in January 1980 and “Flash Gordon” in December of 1980. I have newspaper clippings from March of 1982 that clearly indicate the theater had already been twinned, so the date in the introductory comments would seem to be pretty well supported.
Rich… I should revise my comments to read “where I saw PART OF ‘Dawn of the Dead’”… Being a couple of years under 17, and unable to convince the box office girl that we were of age, we purchased tickets to “Rocky II” or someother PG-rated film and then snuck into “Dawn…” Within about 15 minutes, this dorky usher came in looking to see our ticket stubs and tossed us out to the curb! Finally saw the flick in its entirety a couple of weeks later at the Rivoli Theatre in Times Square – where age requirements were taken a little less seriously.
But those seats, with the black painted metal backs and fixed wooden arm-rests, definitely date back to the Lynbrook’s quartet days!
Need to correct my description for this photo… ABC Florida State Theatres were not the original owner/operators of the Sheridan – which opened in 1937 under Paramount’s banner.
Well… the articles I posted about date from January and April and there has been no movement since – not even news of ongoing discussions between the village and Regal. I have a feeling patrons of this theater (however many that may be) will continue to suffer the gnats, broken A/C, falling ceiling tiles, rain flooded hallways (those last two complaints per reader comments posted in the Lynbrook Patch) and lousy sound system for at least a few more years to come. And I will continue to take my moviegoing business away from Lynbrook and into Westbury or Rockville Centre.
I mean just look at the shabby condition of the auditorium depicted in the photo at the top of this page! Looks like the room on the right side of the old orchestra level (would that be theater 2)? This would be the auditorium where I saw “Dawn of the Dead” in 1979 and I swear those are the very same seats my friends and I sat in 32 years ago!
Thanks, Siane. I think that tid-bit is perfectly ON topic and a welcome piece of information. Not to mention that it ties in to cinema in that the events were depicted in the famous film.
Leighton18… the (remove) is there so that you are able to delete your own comment. Each user would only see this function for their own comments and photo uploads. Clicking it removes only the single comment – not your account here.
Nice work, Bway. Thanks for documenting this for us! As for your submission of this theater as demolition news, I’ve noticed that it isn’t as easy to get your submissions posted to what is now known as the “Blog” section on this site. I submitted an article from the Times a while back that never saw the light of day. Under the old system, you would submit it and – I presume – it would be checked for suitability and moved along to publication in short order. Now, you are submitting info and perhaps photos and links via email that are then reviewed and have to be edited into a post by one of the site administrators (I assume that this would be Michael Zoldessy). Seems to me that the new process is more demanding on Michael and, therefore, a bit more editorial discretion has to be applied on his part. Either that, or they are running way behind on submissions.
Nice catch, Bway. I recall sneaking around to various films after seeing the film for which I paid admission. Sometimes a tricky task because there were one or two old timers on patrol in the lobby watching for such shenanigans. It was actually easiest when there were crowds queued up in the ticket lobby for popular films. My friends and I would casually exit from one auditorium into the lobby and visit the men’s room and then wait until we could filter into the crowd as it was allowed to proceed into their auditorium. This sort of thing is so much easier now, with the standard multiplex practice of ripping tickets right by the entrance to the lobby – not to mention the young minimum wage staffers who, by and large, could give a damn if you spend the whole day there migrating from one theater to the next.
Anyway, I was particularly fond of the two upstairs theaters, where we used to sit in the first row with our feet up on the railing due to the comfortable distance to the screen from that vantage point.
I also recall during midnight showings of “Rocky Horror Picture Show” that folks would run out onto the floor beyond the railing in front of the screen to participate in some of the usual audience rituals for those viewings (such as jumping up to “touch” the image of Susan Sarandon’s breasts during the “Touch Me” number). Looking back, I realize now that the floor between the seats and the screen was just a false ceiling erected to seperate the balcony theaters from the orchestra level. It’s a wonder none of the “Rocky Horror” participants ever fell through onto whatever was screening below!
Passed by again and seems they’ve extended the back of the rear stage wall to the lot line with a 1-story cinderblock structure that has a large opening on the south side. I presume this will be a bay for loading in productions. Other than that, the building looks much like it did in the most recent photos I posted from July.
What’s the street view looking at? Is that an alternate entrance to theater’s 4 and 5 in the former stage area? Hardly looks like the 1920’s facade I’d have imagined.
I posted a couple of images from old Miami News editions, concerning the engagement here of “A Clockwork Orange.” Seems that the movie had been scheduled to open at the Coral on February 18th, 1972, in an exclusive South Florida run. That engagement, however, was cancelled by none other than Stanley Kubrick himself. While the article states that no official reason was given, it is intimated that the film’s reputation as a “dangerous” work that might possibly incite outbursts of violence might have been the rationale for the cancellation. The article also hints that the root cause may have been over the film’s advertising. As commented earlier in this thread, the Miami newspapers held all “X” rated films (as “Clockwork” was rated on its initial release) to two inch block ads, with no display advertisement allowed – placing a serious film like “Clockwork” in the same category as a porno flick.
The article also notes that the owners of the Coral, Florida State Theaters, planned on campaigning for a Miami showing of the movie despite the cancellation. Eventually, Kubrick must have relented, because the film finally opened at the Coral in the middle of April, 1972. Online editions of the Miami News are not complete for the period, but the block ad appears as early as the April 17th edition, which would lead me to believe the film must have opened the previous Friday, April 14th.
A sample of the April 17th block ad has been uploaded here, where one can see only the film’s title is displayed, indistinguishable in presentation from the other porn titles listed in similar blocks in the clipping.
Hey Ripshin. I’m 46, so just a few years behind you. We only lived in Miami for a year and moved back to our native New York City in the summer of ‘72, but I have fond memories of all the moviegoing the family did while in Miami. In addition to the Disney fare at the Coral and Twin Gables, we frequented many a drive-in double and triple feature. That early exposure to such lurid titles as “Blood on Satan’s Claw,” “Cat o Nine Tails,” “Return of Count Yorga” and “The Beast in the Cellar” struck a chord in me that would resonate for years. Some years later, as a teenager back in NYC, these early B-movie experiences would lead me towards the grindhouses of 42nd Street and Times Square, seeking out similar fare to that which had so entertained and thrilled me at such a young age at the Drive-Ins of Florida.
Late comment to an old thread, but there was some discussion on the New York Theatre and Roof page from back in 2007 that seemed to confirm that the Wonderland Theatre was a re-christening of the Rooftop garden. That address – if accurate – would also place it squarely on the block occupied by the New York Theatre (former Olympia and Lyric) complex.
To carry over a conversational thread from the nearby (and demolished) Riverhead Theatre, the address for this theater seems to be wrong. The Suffolk Theatre is on East Main Street and the address listed above (11 West Main) belongs to the L.I. Science Center, several blocks to the west and on the other side of the street.
I think we should reconsider the address someone posted earlier of 118 East Main Street. Seems to fit better in the way the rest of the businesses on the street are numbered.
The address for the Suffolk Theatre would appear to be wrong. It is listed as 11 West Main Street, but the Suffolk is on East Main Street on the even side of the street. Addresses for business around the Suffolk support this. 11 West Main is actually the address for the L.I. Science Center adjacent to the parking lot where I think the Riverhead Theatre stood. The street numbering is a bit strange in that it seems to skip a lot of numbers between lots, but works to support that assumption because the second store immediately to the right of the parking lot, Luisa’s Magic Scissors, has an address of 51 West Main Street.
I believe this is the correct site for two other reasons: The bend in the road just to the right side of the site is very similar to the one in the vintage photo posted earlier by Warren and the building to the left, visible in the American Classic Images pic from 1967, looks like it could be the same structure that currently houses the L.I. Science Center (except that there was siding on part of it in ‘67). It appears that the theater was set back a bit further than the adjacent building and that there was some sort of recessed entrance to that building behind the corner column – which has since been glassed in by the Science Center and extended a bit into the parking lot for an entrance vestibule. Just seems to make sense to my eye. The bend in the road is really what nails it for me. Of course, can’t be 100% sure, but I think the probability is very high.
As for the Suffolk Theatre, I think an address correction is in order.
I believe the location of this theater was where the parking lot is for the L.I. Science Center. In the current street view, which faces east down Main Street, if you swing around to the right (south) the parking lot will come into view. This matches up with the slight angular turn in the road that is evidenced to the right of the theater in the vintage image posted by Warren on July 27, 2008. Yet another street view in need of repair.
I think this was the theater where my folks would take me to see the various Disney re-releases such as “Lady and the Tramp” and “Song of the South” when we lived in Miami for a year from 1971 – 1972. One of the two apartments we lived in during that time was on Coral Way somewhere, and I know we attended films at the Coral Theatre as well as the Tropicaire, Dixie and Coral Way drive-ins. Been pillaging the google online editions of the old Miami News from around that time to pinpoint some of the titles and theaters we went to. Great fun, but can really suck all the time out of your day! Thanks to AlAlvarez for leading me to that great resource!
Near the end of our 1-year residency in Miami, my folks and I piled into the family car (a red 1968 Volvo) one evening in May of 1972 (likely on Saturday the 20th), and headed over to the Coral Way Drive-In to enjoy a triple feature consisting of “Godzilla Vs. The Smog Monster,” “The Incredible 2-Headed Transplant” and “The Return of Count Yorga!” This was likely the last of many such evenings at either the Coral Way, the Dixie or the Tropicaire drive-ins, as we departed back for New York City early that summer. I’ve been trying to nail down the exact date and location of that triple bill for many a moon, and that search finally came to an end today with a thorough scouring of the daily movie sections from Google.com’s online archive for The Miami News. In fact, for a long time I thought it was just a Godzilla/Yorga double feature and that 2-Headed Transplant was part of some other 2-headed attraction we had also seen – glad to have that clarified, as well. Anyway, thanks again for the hot lead, AlAlvarez!
I saw “Bedknobs and Broomsticks” here, when my family and I lived in Miami in November or December of 1971. Looks like the theater has been replaced by a Morton’s Steakhouse, which has an address of 2333 Ponce de Leon Blvd. Can’t tell if it’s the same building or not. If the theater wasn’t demolished, the building appears to have undergone significant alterations.
Agreed, Ron Salters. In fact, I believe that is one of the guiding principles of this website – regardless of dissenting opinions.
There is a plaque at the eastern edge of the building that commemorates the site of the “American Theater Wing Stage Door Canteen,” which occupied the theater’s renovated basement level from 1942-1945. It reads, in part, “This tablet is dedicated to the men and women of the entertainment world who brought cheer and comfort to the soldiers, sailors and marines of America and her allies.” As best as I can determine from internet sources, the plaque was dedicated around 1950.
Just remembered that I also saw “Nighthawks” with Sylvester Stallone at the Rivoli (also the 2nd time seeing that movie) and the theater was still a single at the time – which was in the Spring of 1981 (imdb.com lists a premiere date of April 4th). I’ll try and do some research, Rich, and will report back on the Rivoli’s CT page.
Rich… If you go to the Rivoli page, the introduction states the theater was twinned in December, 1981. The theatre was definitely a single when “Dawn of the Dead” played there in early 1979 and I can also tell you from personal experience that it was still a single screen when I saw “1941” (another Lynbrook connection) in January 1980 and “Flash Gordon” in December of 1980. I have newspaper clippings from March of 1982 that clearly indicate the theater had already been twinned, so the date in the introductory comments would seem to be pretty well supported.
Rich… I should revise my comments to read “where I saw PART OF ‘Dawn of the Dead’”… Being a couple of years under 17, and unable to convince the box office girl that we were of age, we purchased tickets to “Rocky II” or someother PG-rated film and then snuck into “Dawn…” Within about 15 minutes, this dorky usher came in looking to see our ticket stubs and tossed us out to the curb! Finally saw the flick in its entirety a couple of weeks later at the Rivoli Theatre in Times Square – where age requirements were taken a little less seriously.
But those seats, with the black painted metal backs and fixed wooden arm-rests, definitely date back to the Lynbrook’s quartet days!
Need to correct my description for this photo… ABC Florida State Theatres were not the original owner/operators of the Sheridan – which opened in 1937 under Paramount’s banner.
Well… the articles I posted about date from January and April and there has been no movement since – not even news of ongoing discussions between the village and Regal. I have a feeling patrons of this theater (however many that may be) will continue to suffer the gnats, broken A/C, falling ceiling tiles, rain flooded hallways (those last two complaints per reader comments posted in the Lynbrook Patch) and lousy sound system for at least a few more years to come. And I will continue to take my moviegoing business away from Lynbrook and into Westbury or Rockville Centre.
I mean just look at the shabby condition of the auditorium depicted in the photo at the top of this page! Looks like the room on the right side of the old orchestra level (would that be theater 2)? This would be the auditorium where I saw “Dawn of the Dead” in 1979 and I swear those are the very same seats my friends and I sat in 32 years ago!
Thanks, Siane. I think that tid-bit is perfectly ON topic and a welcome piece of information. Not to mention that it ties in to cinema in that the events were depicted in the famous film.
Leighton18… the (remove) is there so that you are able to delete your own comment. Each user would only see this function for their own comments and photo uploads. Clicking it removes only the single comment – not your account here.
Nice work, Bway. Thanks for documenting this for us! As for your submission of this theater as demolition news, I’ve noticed that it isn’t as easy to get your submissions posted to what is now known as the “Blog” section on this site. I submitted an article from the Times a while back that never saw the light of day. Under the old system, you would submit it and – I presume – it would be checked for suitability and moved along to publication in short order. Now, you are submitting info and perhaps photos and links via email that are then reviewed and have to be edited into a post by one of the site administrators (I assume that this would be Michael Zoldessy). Seems to me that the new process is more demanding on Michael and, therefore, a bit more editorial discretion has to be applied on his part. Either that, or they are running way behind on submissions.
Nice catch, Bway. I recall sneaking around to various films after seeing the film for which I paid admission. Sometimes a tricky task because there were one or two old timers on patrol in the lobby watching for such shenanigans. It was actually easiest when there were crowds queued up in the ticket lobby for popular films. My friends and I would casually exit from one auditorium into the lobby and visit the men’s room and then wait until we could filter into the crowd as it was allowed to proceed into their auditorium. This sort of thing is so much easier now, with the standard multiplex practice of ripping tickets right by the entrance to the lobby – not to mention the young minimum wage staffers who, by and large, could give a damn if you spend the whole day there migrating from one theater to the next.
Anyway, I was particularly fond of the two upstairs theaters, where we used to sit in the first row with our feet up on the railing due to the comfortable distance to the screen from that vantage point.
I also recall during midnight showings of “Rocky Horror Picture Show” that folks would run out onto the floor beyond the railing in front of the screen to participate in some of the usual audience rituals for those viewings (such as jumping up to “touch” the image of Susan Sarandon’s breasts during the “Touch Me” number). Looking back, I realize now that the floor between the seats and the screen was just a false ceiling erected to seperate the balcony theaters from the orchestra level. It’s a wonder none of the “Rocky Horror” participants ever fell through onto whatever was screening below!
Passed by again and seems they’ve extended the back of the rear stage wall to the lot line with a 1-story cinderblock structure that has a large opening on the south side. I presume this will be a bay for loading in productions. Other than that, the building looks much like it did in the most recent photos I posted from July.
What’s the street view looking at? Is that an alternate entrance to theater’s 4 and 5 in the former stage area? Hardly looks like the 1920’s facade I’d have imagined.
I posted a couple of images from old Miami News editions, concerning the engagement here of “A Clockwork Orange.” Seems that the movie had been scheduled to open at the Coral on February 18th, 1972, in an exclusive South Florida run. That engagement, however, was cancelled by none other than Stanley Kubrick himself. While the article states that no official reason was given, it is intimated that the film’s reputation as a “dangerous” work that might possibly incite outbursts of violence might have been the rationale for the cancellation. The article also hints that the root cause may have been over the film’s advertising. As commented earlier in this thread, the Miami newspapers held all “X” rated films (as “Clockwork” was rated on its initial release) to two inch block ads, with no display advertisement allowed – placing a serious film like “Clockwork” in the same category as a porno flick.
The article also notes that the owners of the Coral, Florida State Theaters, planned on campaigning for a Miami showing of the movie despite the cancellation. Eventually, Kubrick must have relented, because the film finally opened at the Coral in the middle of April, 1972. Online editions of the Miami News are not complete for the period, but the block ad appears as early as the April 17th edition, which would lead me to believe the film must have opened the previous Friday, April 14th.
A sample of the April 17th block ad has been uploaded here, where one can see only the film’s title is displayed, indistinguishable in presentation from the other porn titles listed in similar blocks in the clipping.
Hey Ripshin. I’m 46, so just a few years behind you. We only lived in Miami for a year and moved back to our native New York City in the summer of ‘72, but I have fond memories of all the moviegoing the family did while in Miami. In addition to the Disney fare at the Coral and Twin Gables, we frequented many a drive-in double and triple feature. That early exposure to such lurid titles as “Blood on Satan’s Claw,” “Cat o Nine Tails,” “Return of Count Yorga” and “The Beast in the Cellar” struck a chord in me that would resonate for years. Some years later, as a teenager back in NYC, these early B-movie experiences would lead me towards the grindhouses of 42nd Street and Times Square, seeking out similar fare to that which had so entertained and thrilled me at such a young age at the Drive-Ins of Florida.
Here’s a Disney movie you never see re-released or restored to Blu-Ray.
Late comment to an old thread, but there was some discussion on the New York Theatre and Roof page from back in 2007 that seemed to confirm that the Wonderland Theatre was a re-christening of the Rooftop garden. That address – if accurate – would also place it squarely on the block occupied by the New York Theatre (former Olympia and Lyric) complex.
To carry over a conversational thread from the nearby (and demolished) Riverhead Theatre, the address for this theater seems to be wrong. The Suffolk Theatre is on East Main Street and the address listed above (11 West Main) belongs to the L.I. Science Center, several blocks to the west and on the other side of the street.
I think we should reconsider the address someone posted earlier of 118 East Main Street. Seems to fit better in the way the rest of the businesses on the street are numbered.
The address for the Suffolk Theatre would appear to be wrong. It is listed as 11 West Main Street, but the Suffolk is on East Main Street on the even side of the street. Addresses for business around the Suffolk support this. 11 West Main is actually the address for the L.I. Science Center adjacent to the parking lot where I think the Riverhead Theatre stood. The street numbering is a bit strange in that it seems to skip a lot of numbers between lots, but works to support that assumption because the second store immediately to the right of the parking lot, Luisa’s Magic Scissors, has an address of 51 West Main Street.
I believe this is the correct site for two other reasons: The bend in the road just to the right side of the site is very similar to the one in the vintage photo posted earlier by Warren and the building to the left, visible in the American Classic Images pic from 1967, looks like it could be the same structure that currently houses the L.I. Science Center (except that there was siding on part of it in ‘67). It appears that the theater was set back a bit further than the adjacent building and that there was some sort of recessed entrance to that building behind the corner column – which has since been glassed in by the Science Center and extended a bit into the parking lot for an entrance vestibule. Just seems to make sense to my eye. The bend in the road is really what nails it for me. Of course, can’t be 100% sure, but I think the probability is very high.
As for the Suffolk Theatre, I think an address correction is in order.
I believe the location of this theater was where the parking lot is for the L.I. Science Center. In the current street view, which faces east down Main Street, if you swing around to the right (south) the parking lot will come into view. This matches up with the slight angular turn in the road that is evidenced to the right of the theater in the vintage image posted by Warren on July 27, 2008. Yet another street view in need of repair.
I think this was the theater where my folks would take me to see the various Disney re-releases such as “Lady and the Tramp” and “Song of the South” when we lived in Miami for a year from 1971 – 1972. One of the two apartments we lived in during that time was on Coral Way somewhere, and I know we attended films at the Coral Theatre as well as the Tropicaire, Dixie and Coral Way drive-ins. Been pillaging the google online editions of the old Miami News from around that time to pinpoint some of the titles and theaters we went to. Great fun, but can really suck all the time out of your day! Thanks to AlAlvarez for leading me to that great resource!
Near the end of our 1-year residency in Miami, my folks and I piled into the family car (a red 1968 Volvo) one evening in May of 1972 (likely on Saturday the 20th), and headed over to the Coral Way Drive-In to enjoy a triple feature consisting of “Godzilla Vs. The Smog Monster,” “The Incredible 2-Headed Transplant” and “The Return of Count Yorga!” This was likely the last of many such evenings at either the Coral Way, the Dixie or the Tropicaire drive-ins, as we departed back for New York City early that summer. I’ve been trying to nail down the exact date and location of that triple bill for many a moon, and that search finally came to an end today with a thorough scouring of the daily movie sections from Google.com’s online archive for The Miami News. In fact, for a long time I thought it was just a Godzilla/Yorga double feature and that 2-Headed Transplant was part of some other 2-headed attraction we had also seen – glad to have that clarified, as well. Anyway, thanks again for the hot lead, AlAlvarez!
Yeah, I thought so. Looked way too different.
I saw “Bedknobs and Broomsticks” here, when my family and I lived in Miami in November or December of 1971. Looks like the theater has been replaced by a Morton’s Steakhouse, which has an address of 2333 Ponce de Leon Blvd. Can’t tell if it’s the same building or not. If the theater wasn’t demolished, the building appears to have undergone significant alterations.
I know. I’m envious of that shot myself. Great framing and wonderfully lit.