I was rewatching “The Ladykillers” (w/Tom Hanks) and noticed this theatre all in disrepair as the leading lady walked through town twice. Saw the location at the end as being Natchez, MS and lo and behold, found it on CT.
I stopped by there the other day. All retail in front is no longer and there’s a great mural on the side of the auditorium that I don’t remember ever being there. The nearby Garden Cinemas is behing this theater.
I was here last week and it’s located right off the D and R canal trail. On the right is Finkles and across the street is the Strand. Nowhere does it say Finkles uses it. There are no Finkles cars parked there, rather regular cars. The town is an 18th century town so the theater (no fly space) looks and fits in the town with its block design and white color. Strand Theatre is on the top center. There is no marquee or elaborate front doors, rather a white building with 2 single doors, one on either end. Maybe they use it for storage? They have a performing arts center at the other end of town for performances, but Lambertville is such a cool town, they could really use a theater. Across the river in New Hope, they have Bucks County Playhouse, but no real theater either. Both towns flourish with the arts and could use another venue, IMHO.
Finally saw this theater last week. It looks pretty weathered. It looks like an office building from the front, with that beige-ish brickwork and the back, flyspace looks worn out and has this metal curved siding all around. It should be refurbished. It resides on Route 183 (old Route 206) and Lake Musconnetcong is behind it.
Passed by this large movie house last weekend. The marquee is huge and it says it has been entertaining crowds since 1926? I could’ve sworn it said Lyons, not Lions. The building looks exactly like the one in Newton, NJ.
The head of the Crescent Theater in Sussex, NJ told me it was demolished 5 or 6 years ago. They contacted them to offer assistance in saving the State and they refused. Never refuse help, unless you like tearing down history and having grass grow on an empty lot.
Definitely feels like you go back in time when you walk in. The marquee is still there, but i wouldn’t say 180 lights are in it, but at least 100 light bulbs. It is pretty big for the town it sits in. There is no fly space but it is a massive building with very little parking.
Those are all right. I found this theater earlier today while biking through. I told the head lady about CinemaTreasures.org and asked if i could have a tour. She obliged and was very helpful. The above website has a great history about the theatre.
The auditorim is completely gutted when it was a community/senior center and is still vacant. The projection booth is her office. The balcony holds 99-seats and those are the original seats left intact, they are red leather. There are some pilasters on the walls and you can see the original vaudeville wallpaper that was unearthed and still under the plaster. What used to be where the audience saw down to the stage is now a floor so it’s another theater in the balcony. The proscenium juts 5 feet above the (now) floor, (that’s a big proscenium). I was taken backstage to see all the elevators that don’t work. She took me up the stairs to the flyspace, where she said they found lots of pulleys and stuff. The town had erected the staircase back in the 80s and this theater was the first air-conditioned building in Sussex County. There once was a marquee, but no more.
So. Went by today and the whole property’s trees have been cut down to stumps. There’s a sign on the roadway saying it will be the new Saturn of Danbury. Great. More cars.
Yes. Just came back from seeing it. The mighty Wurlitzer is beautiful, they showed it in a scene. The movie didn’t show a great facade of the theatre whatsoever which is what I was waiting for, however there are other great shots of the various rooms, but no great big shots. It makes it seem cozy during the movie. There is a bust of F. Scott Fitzgerald in the luxury box.
So. They finally have a website but there’s no theater history on it. I’ll talk to my friend Liz who is the GM and have her put it up soon. It’s www.bethelcinema.com
Also, they’ve again opened the cafe next door. Don’t know the name but let’s hope it lasts longer than the other two incarnations.
They are starting to have dinner theater shows now and will be presenting bands too. My favorite CT band, Max Creek will be playing there on June 10 (www.maxcreek.com) and the owner of the theater posted on their message board about their new offerings. They said it will only hold 250 patrons so people will have to get them ahead of time. I can’t wait to see a show in this theatre.
The marquee is still up and it’s still an American Apparel clothing shop (socially conscious, American and union made, sweatshop free).
The little pics above the marquee on the sides are no longer there but the “1, 2, 3” still is with messages on the side.
But people have lives and other theaters they are into.
Well, don’t rely on us to give you answers, try calling the City of Bridgeport.
http://www.jclandmarks.com/loews.shtml
I was rewatching “The Ladykillers” (w/Tom Hanks) and noticed this theatre all in disrepair as the leading lady walked through town twice. Saw the location at the end as being Natchez, MS and lo and behold, found it on CT.
Ooops. Sorry about that!
I stopped by there the other day. All retail in front is no longer and there’s a great mural on the side of the auditorium that I don’t remember ever being there. The nearby Garden Cinemas is behing this theater.
I went by this address the other day. Nothing resembling a theater at all, but a building is in its place with lots of retail.
I passed by here the other day and the address is now 76 Post Road in the center of Westport. Behind the building you can tell it was a cinema.
I was here last week and it’s located right off the D and R canal trail. On the right is Finkles and across the street is the Strand. Nowhere does it say Finkles uses it. There are no Finkles cars parked there, rather regular cars. The town is an 18th century town so the theater (no fly space) looks and fits in the town with its block design and white color. Strand Theatre is on the top center. There is no marquee or elaborate front doors, rather a white building with 2 single doors, one on either end. Maybe they use it for storage? They have a performing arts center at the other end of town for performances, but Lambertville is such a cool town, they could really use a theater. Across the river in New Hope, they have Bucks County Playhouse, but no real theater either. Both towns flourish with the arts and could use another venue, IMHO.
Finally saw this theater last week. It looks pretty weathered. It looks like an office building from the front, with that beige-ish brickwork and the back, flyspace looks worn out and has this metal curved siding all around. It should be refurbished. It resides on Route 183 (old Route 206) and Lake Musconnetcong is behind it.
Passed by this large movie house last weekend. The marquee is huge and it says it has been entertaining crowds since 1926? I could’ve sworn it said Lyons, not Lions. The building looks exactly like the one in Newton, NJ.
The head of the Crescent Theater in Sussex, NJ told me it was demolished 5 or 6 years ago. They contacted them to offer assistance in saving the State and they refused. Never refuse help, unless you like tearing down history and having grass grow on an empty lot.
Here’s the card the woman gave me at the box office with info about it online. http://www.bigscreenclassics.com/
Definitely feels like you go back in time when you walk in. The marquee is still there, but i wouldn’t say 180 lights are in it, but at least 100 light bulbs. It is pretty big for the town it sits in. There is no fly space but it is a massive building with very little parking.
Those are all right. I found this theater earlier today while biking through. I told the head lady about CinemaTreasures.org and asked if i could have a tour. She obliged and was very helpful. The above website has a great history about the theatre.
The auditorim is completely gutted when it was a community/senior center and is still vacant. The projection booth is her office. The balcony holds 99-seats and those are the original seats left intact, they are red leather. There are some pilasters on the walls and you can see the original vaudeville wallpaper that was unearthed and still under the plaster. What used to be where the audience saw down to the stage is now a floor so it’s another theater in the balcony. The proscenium juts 5 feet above the (now) floor, (that’s a big proscenium). I was taken backstage to see all the elevators that don’t work. She took me up the stairs to the flyspace, where she said they found lots of pulleys and stuff. The town had erected the staircase back in the 80s and this theater was the first air-conditioned building in Sussex County. There once was a marquee, but no more.
Was on 131 Pike Street. Biked by it yesterday and it was demolished.
So. Went by today and the whole property’s trees have been cut down to stumps. There’s a sign on the roadway saying it will be the new Saturn of Danbury. Great. More cars.
Yes. Just came back from seeing it. The mighty Wurlitzer is beautiful, they showed it in a scene. The movie didn’t show a great facade of the theatre whatsoever which is what I was waiting for, however there are other great shots of the various rooms, but no great big shots. It makes it seem cozy during the movie. There is a bust of F. Scott Fitzgerald in the luxury box.
So. They finally have a website but there’s no theater history on it. I’ll talk to my friend Liz who is the GM and have her put it up soon. It’s www.bethelcinema.com
Also, they’ve again opened the cafe next door. Don’t know the name but let’s hope it lasts longer than the other two incarnations.
FYI: New Haven is not Bethel’s competition. They do fine by their own.
According to Cinematour.com there is no organ.
They are starting to have dinner theater shows now and will be presenting bands too. My favorite CT band, Max Creek will be playing there on June 10 (www.maxcreek.com) and the owner of the theater posted on their message board about their new offerings. They said it will only hold 250 patrons so people will have to get them ahead of time. I can’t wait to see a show in this theatre.
What happened? Hurricane?
The marquee is on the front page of the New Haven Advocate (New Haven, CT) at www.newhavenadvocate.com