Palladium Times Square
1515 Broadway,
New York,
NY
10036
1515 Broadway,
New York,
NY
10036
33 people
favorited this theater
Showing 51 - 75 of 577 comments
This name just sounds so moronic to me, just my opinion
The Selwyn Theatre was restored and renovated by the Roundabout Theatre company and re-opened on July 27, 2000 with a production of “The Man Who Came To Dinner” starring Nathan Lane. It was renamed for its generous benefactor, American Airlines.
Thanks Joe Vogel. The American Airlines Theater aka Selwyn has kept its name since becoming a legit theater.
It’s money, Mikeoaklandpark, and the value of publicity. AEG in particular doesn’t like to leave so much as a penny on the table. They cash in on selling naming rights to companies that know every event advertisement, every review, every social media post that mentions the venue with their name on it is an advertisement for them and their products. Companies will bid each other up, and the one willing to pay the most gets its name on the venue.
Old time showmen like Marcus Lowe and William Fox built famous brands out of their own names, but modern promoters have realized they can make even more money by charging other companies for five-year piggyback rides. I believe five years is the most common term of a naming rights contract, so the names are apt to change that often unless the current contact holder is willing to pay for another five years, usually at a higher price. If some other company is willing to pay more, then it’s goodbye Best Buy Theatre and hello PlayStation Theatre.
I hate the new name. Why has this theater gone through so many name changes?
Wow thanks a lot buddy
I use HTML because I’m accustomed to it, but Cinema Treasures also supports Markdown code, which is much simpler. To italicize with Markdown simply put an asterisk * at the beginning of the first word you want italicized and another asterisk at the end of the last word you want italicized (or an asterisk at the beginning and end of a single word if that’s the only one you want in italics.) You can also use underscores _ the same way. Doubling either asterisks ** or underscores gives you bold type instead of italics. You can also use Markdown to make text hyperlinks, as described in this official post.
Jo, how do you get italics into your comment?
When it was Best Buy Theatre it was owned and/or operated by AEG Worldwide, one of the companies controlled by secretive billionaire Philip Anschutz. They haven’t updated their web site with the new name, so I don’t know if they still own it, or if they are just a bit slovenly about keeping their web site up to date.
Does the name “PlayStation Theater” (there’s no space between the words) sound to anyone else like it would be a 1970s storefront porn house? To be sure, if selling naming rights helps historic theaters to survive then I’m all for it, but oy, what a name this is.
So who actually has the lease and operates this since Loews left? I’m sure Nokia, Best Buy and now Play Station just pay to have their name on it and have nothing to do with the operation. It looks like they sign on for five year deals.
I remember going on a double date with my brother to see Star Wars at the Astor Plaza Theater in June of 1977, i think it was the 7pm showing , it was a long line i can tell you that much lol.
http://www.polygon.com/2015/10/1/9432529/playstation-theater-times-square-nyc-best-buy i heard about it on facebook. They should change the name on CT. BTW Sony used to have the naming rights to this theater when it was Sony Astor Plaza.
I think this is called the PlayStation Theater now…
Ugh. How far can you get from “Loew’s” and “Astor” and “Plaza”
If only a single screen theater like this one showed the new star wars movie just like the Original trilogy…remember when Star wars was reissued in 1997 the astor chose not to show it as the rival ziegfeld from cineplex odeon got the rights to show it as well as the prequels when it became a clearview due to the loews cineplex merger. If the ziegfeld closes, as it was with Loews 72nd st, then an era of single screen non-imax palaces are over…
I saw several movies here when I lived in NYC. From what I remember, Star Wars, Altered States, Superman, Raiders Of The Lost Ark and the rest I can’t remember
I had the pleasure of seeing 2001: A Space Odyssey here during the 70mm reissue by Warner Brothers/Turner in Dec. 2001. While the auditorium and lobby were nothing special, the picture and sound quality were both excellent. The picture was bright, sharp & the soundtrack was crystal clear as well. In a bit of a funny irony I had also seen 2010: The Year We Make Contact in Dec. 84, seventeen years prior, no where even close to the original from 1968. I can only imagine what a breathtaking experience it must have been to see 2001 originally at the Loew’s Capitol in 68.
I will add that the auditorium was orange in color. My photos are linked but none of the auditorium as even its last days staff didn’t allow interior photos. My digital camera then wouldn’t likely have well captured the auditorium though my current camera would as evidenced by my photos of the Ziegfeld, Paris, and in other cities shared on this site.
Unlike the Ziegfeld, there really weren’t any “surroundings” nor was the auditorium very notable in terms of visuals other than being large. It had great sightlines & great surround sound & used the curtain. It was a great presentation of movies.
The only movie I saw at this theater, when it was known as the Loews Astor Plaza, was “Jade.” I literally arrived right when it was starting and had no time check out the surroundings. I only remember the screen and auditorium being large. I wish I’d seen more films here.
To many sci fi fans this was the theater to see the original Star Wars movie trilogy in Manhattan on one big screen. I always seen this theater on TV. Imagine if it still showed movies rather than be converted into a live venue for concerts and special events. Happy belated 40th to this theater and 10th for its reincarnation as its current form next year.
its a bit over 10 years since this large single screen theatre bit the dust.
Would always go here for the big films, one of my favorites..
I remembering when i was 21` i went on a double date to see Star Wars in July of 1977 with my brother at the Astor Plaza Theater it was a hot summer night we waited on that long line with our dates it was a very good movie for its time, the Astor Plaza was a nice movie theater, this movie was talked about for so long we had to go see it, those was the good old days and 1977 was a wild year a lot of things happen that year the black out in all big movies came out that year
Thanks Tinseltoes for your BOXOFFICE. LOEWS Astor was a great place to see a picture…Nothing that large left in Chicago at present. I fear for the Zeigfeld in NY..
Yes, I believe that is because the UA Twin is no longer in operation, so the best known name is used. If however the Rivoli was currently open, it would be titled the UA Twin.