Cine 42
216 W. 42nd Street,
New York,
NY
10036
216 W. 42nd Street,
New York,
NY
10036
7 people
favorited this theater
Showing 51 - 65 of 65 comments
I have an exterior photo of the Cine 1 & 2 (circa early 90s). I’ll e-mail it to some if they want to post it.
Check this link to the UK Cinema Theatre Association CTA Online Yahoo group.Ive added six photos of 42nd st area cinemas, including a 1995 photo of the Adonis, the David, the Empire, Cine 42, New Amsterdam and Harem
As well as two postcards one of 42nd street in the snow in all its eighties sleazy glory and one very early eighties one of it at night…enjoy!
View link
posted by woody on Jan 29, 2005 at 3:42pm
Just a random thought – I wonder what ever became of those beautiful street-entrance doors which once graced patrons and passersby of the Empire (tossed in a dumpster, I fear, but I hope I’m wrong). By the time I became aware of them, they were coated with years of grime, but that didn’t take away from their unique detail.
There was also a scene – if memory serves, the one following the scene saps makes mention of – set within, I believe, the interior of the then-rundown Empire (or at least a fascimile of a theatre which had seen better days).
I recall that they created an elaborate facade for the Empire, which they crashed into or something. It was a beautiful version of how the Empire could have looked at one time.
It’s nice to discuss something other than the Roxy and the Music Hall.
About the most impressive thing – heck, make that the ONLY impressive thing – in the Arnold Schwarzenegger flick ‘The Last Action Hero’ (from which the photo Bryan links to is derived from) are the multiple shots of the 42nd Street (and Deuce-area) grindhouse marquees illuminated at night.
The marquee of the New Amsterdam in the pic above must have been dressed for a movie shoot, because the N.A. always played double features, and always breathlessly described their movies right on the marquee. And I don’t think they owned letters that big or in that style.
Like all 42nd Street box offices, you bought your ticket outside and then entered a narrow plexiglass door into a long and narrow lobby, with one sheets on each side usually advertising upcoming releases but sometimes displaying movies that had long come and gone, an that intixicating smell of fresh popcorn in the air. Midway down the lobby there was a concession stand on the right hand side. To the right of the concession stand was a small passageway that led to the rear of the downstairs cinema and a staircase up to the second show. If you continued past the concession there was another entrance to the theatre, where you’d go up a few steps and wind up at the front of the theatre, in front of the screen. I always felt a little self-conscious coming in this way, as everone in the theatre could see you. Being in the white minority at this time I wanted to minimize my presence! And that reminds me, the concession girls here always treated me and my friend Anthony extra special for some reason, and I think it was because they realized we were sort of strangers in a strange land, and they were helping us get comfortable. Or maybe they just thought we were out of our minds coming here! In any case, we were always real nice back and eventually developed a nodding acquaintance with each other. And I have to agree that this was probably a re-purposed commercial space, because I can’t imagine building a theater from scratch on this tight piece of land.
Now were cooking. Thanks for the pic Bryan, that reinforces my intrigue. That sign which advertises the Cine is exactly where the current New Amsterdam box office is now. Fascinating. Saps, were their any lobbies or elevators in this theatre?
I think this was once a single screen with a balcony, because when I was going, there was one cinema upstairs and one downstairs. I much preferred the upstairs because the seating was raked, or stadium as they call it now, so every seat had a good view and if it wasn’t crowded you could hang your feet over the seats in front of you. This was also one of the narrowest cinemas I’ve been in, being only one lot wide, about 20 to 25 feet. The audience was usually drinking and smoking their heads off.
I am quite certain that the Cine 42 property has not been gutted and not been converted. The New Amsterdam has about 5 floors in their office tower section of the theatre that has not been touched, the 8th floor being the floor that connects to the rooftop. The tower is actually 12 stories high. Disney has its offices at the address of 1450 Broadway so I think this rules out Cine 42 being used as an office space. Their is an intrigue factor about this that is quite difficult to explain for me, why has this Cine 42nd st theatre space fell of the face of the Deuce?
It’s difficult to imagine Disney – the owner of the former Cine 42 property – preserving what were two rather unspectacular cinemas. My guess is they’ve probably been gutted and the space which formerly housed them has been converted for alternate uses (i.e., offices).
Saps, everything you just mentioned is exactly why it is in fact enchanted. Top all that with 13 years of vacancy, I can only imagine what the place looks like today. I dont think anything in new york has as much mystique about it as does old school 42nd, and to think there is a theatre which is in the same condition as it was before the disneyfication, and on the Deuce(between 7th and 8th) is fascinating to me. I am quite curious of the layout of the two screens, were they one on top of the other? And once again, how is disney sitting on these!! They spent 100+ million on BOMBS at the box office, (ex. treasure planet???), yet they leave these caves on the Deuce unscathed???
The Cine 42, which can easily be seen from the movie Taxi Driver is actually still in tact. The building sits to the right of the New Amsterdam and is probably the most hidden theatre on 42nd street. Disney’s giant billboards cover the facade and what used to be the theatre’s lobbies is now the new amsterdams box office. The street level of the theatre was actually a disney store until some months ago when it closed down. What is Disney doing with this theatre if their even in charge of it? It probably has been abandoned now for 13 years and I can only imagine what lies behind the giant lion king billboard and inside the walls of this enchanted theatre space. Anybody have any info??
posted by caspers42 on Jan 13, 2005 at 1:44am
Enchanted? Like from a Grimm fairy tale. There was no charm in this barely functional grindhouse, whose seats were not even upholstered and whose patrons had wandered in from a Monogram horror movie. That said, I too wonder what is behind the facade.
posted by saps on Jan 13, 2005 at 2:08am
The New Amsterdam box office currently occupies the former Cine 42 Twin 1 & 2 space.