If you click on the above Google Map, you can see the Massena Theatre. It looks good. The framework of the marquee is still in place. The image is dated November 2008.
Where did the postcard picture go? It was there this morning. Does anyone have a direct link to the Don Lewis postcard showing the Palace (and the building that replaced the Bijou)? There a few other Buffalo sites that have photos of the Palace Theatre and Shelton Square.
It is amazing how many theaters there were in Buffalo during the 1930’s-40’s. If you ever have the time, see Shea’s Buffalo Theatre. It is astounding! It is the grandest, most extravagent theatre I’ve ever seen. It’s been a while since I’ve been there…I saw “North By Northwest” there in 1996. Radio City Music Hall is fantastic, but for sheer opulence, see Shea’s.
The postcard mentioned in my Jan 15/13 comment can be seen at: wnyheritagepress.org—on the home page, click on “PICTORIALS”/under “DOWNTOWN BUFFALO” click on “14 Lafayette Square”. Scroll down, and it’s there.
Photos of the Olympic Theatre (an its former incarnations) can be seen here: wnyheritagepress.org—
go to the home page and click on “PICTORIALS”/then under “DOWNTOWN BUFFALO”, click on “10 Lafayette Square”
(1/Lafayette St. Church—2/Lafayette Theatre. Click on “14 Lafayette Square” (3/Lafayette St. Church—4/Lafayette Theatre, c.1905—5/Olympic, c.—1915—6/Olympic, c.1920 post card.
7/Olympic, c.1918—above and at link/April 21, 2008
(Direct links or addresses do not work.)
A bit about the Hof…a private residence existed on the site (a part of the former lumberyard) until 1908, when it was torn down and the Park Hof Restaurant was built. Later, the Park Hof became the Lafayette National Bank, for a brief time, which was taken over by the Marine Trust Company. Eventually, the Marine purchased the Olympic and demolished both for the Rand Building.
In the 1830’s, the property was used as a lumberyard. From 1833, a number of churches were established, but failed, on the site. In 1845, a new church named the Park Church Society was successful and was later renamed the Lafayette Street Presbyterian Church. A fire destroyed this church in 1850 and was rebuilt. This structure existed until 1862, when it was demolished and a new church was built. The congregation moved in 1896 and the building was sold. It was remodelled into the Lafayette Theatre, with Burlesque as its attraction. This theater operated from 1901-1913, when the owners moved to the new Gayety Theatre. In 1914, the new owners remodelled the building for movies and vaudeville. As of 1922, only movies were presented. In 1924, the Marine Trust Company purchased the Olympic and, shortly after, demolished it (along with the Park Hof Restaurant) and built the Rand Building. The Rand opened in 1929 and still exists.
There are a lot of great photos, on the WNY Heritage site, that show what was on the property before (and after) the Olympic Theatre existed. There is some contradictory information and the term “remodel” is used a few times to describe a change to the building. The photos seem to show a new structure replacing a former. If the building had been “remodelled”, it was drastically changed. I guess further research would confirm either. From the photo captions and text on the site, I have pieced together a history of the Olympic Theatre. It is similar to the above “arl”/2008 comment, with a little more info and direction to the various photos. If you’re interested, read on…
First, a CORRECTION to my January 15/10:25 comment: The name of the restaurant next to the Olympic is called the Park Hof, not Hop. This post card can be seen at:
http://wnyheritagepress.org—on the home page, click on “PICTORIALS”/then under “DOWNTOWN BUFFALO”, click on “14 Lafayette Square-Rand Building”. The postcard shows the Olympic, the New Lyric and a partial look at a theater on the site of the future Lafayette Theatre and Building (at Washington & Broadway).
This web site is great. It has a lot of great shots of old Buffalo and the surrounding area.
I have two post cards showing the Olympic Theatre. One (c. 1919-20) shows the Olympic with a large horizontal sign, atop the roof, which states: CONTINUOUS VAUDEVILLE. Behind this sign is a water tank.
On top of the canopy, is a sign which says: THE MILLION DOLLAR MYSTERY / 5 BIG TIME ACTS / MATINEES XXXX SEATS 10 CENTS (XXXX is not readable).
The other card (post marked 1923) shows the new Lafayette Theatre and building and the Olympic. In this view, there are two billboard ads over top of the CONTINUOUS VAUDEVILLE sign. This photo is badly doctored and tinted.
Some sites with information about the Rand Building state: “…built on the site of the 1903 Olympic Theatre.” The Rand was built in 1929, replacing the Olympic and the Park Hop German Restaurant (on the corner of Broadway & Washington). Was the Olympic a “remodeled” church (as commented above) or was it a new structure?
The building to the left of the Olympic is the Buffalo German Insurance Company. It was 81 years old when it was demolished in 1957 for the current Tishman Building. The Tishman was completed in 1959.
The Google map for the Lafayette is incorrect. The same for the Olympic Theatre. The map on the Lyric page is the correct map for the location of these three theaters.
I have a postcard showing the intersection of Broadway and Washington Streets. The New Lyric is shown. A horizontal canopy is seen below a large vertical sign. The top of the sign has admission prices: 15 25 35 50.
The word NEW is horizontal, then LYRIC is vertical. Below, the sign contours wider and states:
XXXXXX XXXXXX STOCK COMPANY. Two words are not readable (horizontally) and the two words underneath are STOCK COMPANY. Below this are other signs that are undreadable, but one may advertise an admission of 10 cents.
The view also shows the former theater on the site of the Lafayette Theatre and Building (on the corner) and the Olympic Theatre. The card is not dated with a postmark.
I have a postcard of the Avda. Corrientes. Buenos Aires showing the Cine Plaza. The name PLAZA (in neon?) is seen across the front of the horizontal canopy and there is a large vertical sign of the name CINE PLAZA. This is seen backwards—I’m assuming the letters of the sign were only seen positively, from one direction.
The English caption on the reverse states: Corrientes Avenue’s lights, street where activity is greatest – Buenos Aires – Argentine Republic. This appears to be a tinted/colored b&w photo.
I have a promotional postcard of the Cinerama film “Search For Paradise”. The back of the postcard states: TECK THEATRE 760 Main Street Buffalo 2, N.Y.
MOhawk 4628 Exclusive Buffalo Home of CINERAMA
I remember when the Main Street businesses were expropriated and torn down. I took pictures of the theatres (Century, Cinema) including one of the Teck marquee and entrance (similar to the Josker photo).
The above photo shows the south entrance on Main Street.
The sign board, under the marquee, says: T HOWARD IN GREEN FOR DANGER ALSO HEARTBEAT WITH GINGER ROGERS. T is for Trevor and both films were released in 1946.
Finally, some action at the Tivoli. The Hamilton Spectator reported (Wednesday, December 26) that a buyer is interested in developing the vacant portion of the Tivoli property. The end of January is the target for the finalization of the deal. You can see the article at thespec.com: Tivoli shall rise again, Ballet pledges.
Correction: The Spectator article is dated Wednesday, December 19, 2012. There is no statement on the Encore or Upper Canada web sites about the closing, but there are no film titles or show times listed.
The Encore Upper Canada Place Cinemas are now closed. The final day of operation was this past Thursday, December 13. The reason for the closure was the high cost of digital conversion. A newspaper article disputes some of the above information. The venue had six screens with a total of 477 seats. It opened in 1985. Encore Films took over operation in 1999.
An article appeared in the Spectator (Hamilton, Ontario) on Wednesday, December 21 entitled “Burlington downtown theatres go silent”. You should be able to see the complete article on-line at theSpec.com (or the Burlington Post, where the article originated).
Does anybody know anything about the Regent Theatre on Elm Street? I have a postcard showing the Regent, but I couldn’t see any of the buildings shown on the Google street view of Elm Street. There is a building, on a corner, up from the Regent that is three storeys in height and has a large sign with the name Felix A. Ricard on it. There are two smaller words on either side of the name, but they are not readable. There is a school named after him, but I don’t know anything about him.
Was there a Norfolk Theatre on Norfolk Street? I have a postcard showing Norfolk Street from the corner of Robinson/Argyle Street. The theater may be closed. There are no letters on the marquee, only the name Norfolk. A Woolworth’s store is shown (replaced by Leon’s) on one corner, with the Norfolk beyond that.
The other corner shows Budds, but in an older building than in the street view. The same buildings beside Budds still exist in the view, as well. It looks like the theater may have been across from an Eaton’s catalogue store.
Using the Google street view, the Orpheum was probably to the right of the Biltmore/Grand, and demolished. There is a newer building in the view, with an alleyway to the right of this. In the archive photo of the Orpheum, there is an alleyway to the right of the building. The same? Maybe.
The Orpheum Theatre was located on Queen Street. Anybody know the address? On the Sault St. Marie page on Facebook, it states that the Orpheum is “right next door” to the Biltmore, existing now as the Lock City Grand Theatre. The Biltmore opened in 1950 (658 seats), became the Odeon in 1965 and closed in 1989. It was a bingo hall, then it was restored in 2007 as the Lock City Grand.
I have two postcards showing Goderich Street (one card identifies it as Main Street) from Gustavas Street. Both show a movie theater on Goderich at Gustavas, across from the Queen’s Hotel (now Queen’s Bar and Grill). I don’t see a name on the building, but the side of the canopy/marquee states: ALL TALKING. I don’t think this is the same building that is seen on the Google street view.
The Savoy Theatre was at 745 2nd Avenue. The building still exists (see street view) and has been converted to other use. I have two postcards showing the Savoy. One is noted in my last comment. The other shows the marquee reading: GOOD MORNING MISS DOVE & WOMAN’S WORLD IN TECHNICOLOR. The writer on the postcard (dated 7/29/58) states: “…sitting on the beach writing this. We went to the show last night. Terrible picture.” The picture is not identified…
If you click on the above Google Map, you can see the Massena Theatre. It looks good. The framework of the marquee is still in place. The image is dated November 2008.
Where did the postcard picture go? It was there this morning. Does anyone have a direct link to the Don Lewis postcard showing the Palace (and the building that replaced the Bijou)? There a few other Buffalo sites that have photos of the Palace Theatre and Shelton Square. It is amazing how many theaters there were in Buffalo during the 1930’s-40’s. If you ever have the time, see Shea’s Buffalo Theatre. It is astounding! It is the grandest, most extravagent theatre I’ve ever seen. It’s been a while since I’ve been there…I saw “North By Northwest” there in 1996. Radio City Music Hall is fantastic, but for sheer opulence, see Shea’s.
The postcard mentioned in my Jan 15/13 comment can be seen at: wnyheritagepress.org—on the home page, click on “PICTORIALS”/under “DOWNTOWN BUFFALO” click on “14 Lafayette Square”. Scroll down, and it’s there.
Photos of the Olympic Theatre (an its former incarnations) can be seen here: wnyheritagepress.org— go to the home page and click on “PICTORIALS”/then under “DOWNTOWN BUFFALO”, click on “10 Lafayette Square” (1/Lafayette St. Church—2/Lafayette Theatre. Click on “14 Lafayette Square” (3/Lafayette St. Church—4/Lafayette Theatre, c.1905—5/Olympic, c.—1915—6/Olympic, c.1920 post card. 7/Olympic, c.1918—above and at link/April 21, 2008 (Direct links or addresses do not work.)
A bit about the Hof…a private residence existed on the site (a part of the former lumberyard) until 1908, when it was torn down and the Park Hof Restaurant was built. Later, the Park Hof became the Lafayette National Bank, for a brief time, which was taken over by the Marine Trust Company. Eventually, the Marine purchased the Olympic and demolished both for the Rand Building.
In the 1830’s, the property was used as a lumberyard. From 1833, a number of churches were established, but failed, on the site. In 1845, a new church named the Park Church Society was successful and was later renamed the Lafayette Street Presbyterian Church. A fire destroyed this church in 1850 and was rebuilt. This structure existed until 1862, when it was demolished and a new church was built. The congregation moved in 1896 and the building was sold. It was remodelled into the Lafayette Theatre, with Burlesque as its attraction. This theater operated from 1901-1913, when the owners moved to the new Gayety Theatre. In 1914, the new owners remodelled the building for movies and vaudeville. As of 1922, only movies were presented. In 1924, the Marine Trust Company purchased the Olympic and, shortly after, demolished it (along with the Park Hof Restaurant) and built the Rand Building. The Rand opened in 1929 and still exists.
There are a lot of great photos, on the WNY Heritage site, that show what was on the property before (and after) the Olympic Theatre existed. There is some contradictory information and the term “remodel” is used a few times to describe a change to the building. The photos seem to show a new structure replacing a former. If the building had been “remodelled”, it was drastically changed. I guess further research would confirm either. From the photo captions and text on the site, I have pieced together a history of the Olympic Theatre. It is similar to the above “arl”/2008 comment, with a little more info and direction to the various photos. If you’re interested, read on…
First, a CORRECTION to my January 15/10:25 comment: The name of the restaurant next to the Olympic is called the Park Hof, not Hop. This post card can be seen at:
http://wnyheritagepress.org—on the home page, click on “PICTORIALS”/then under “DOWNTOWN BUFFALO”, click on “14 Lafayette Square-Rand Building”. The postcard shows the Olympic, the New Lyric and a partial look at a theater on the site of the future Lafayette Theatre and Building (at Washington & Broadway).
This web site is great. It has a lot of great shots of old Buffalo and the surrounding area.
I have two post cards showing the Olympic Theatre. One (c. 1919-20) shows the Olympic with a large horizontal sign, atop the roof, which states: CONTINUOUS VAUDEVILLE. Behind this sign is a water tank. On top of the canopy, is a sign which says: THE MILLION DOLLAR MYSTERY / 5 BIG TIME ACTS / MATINEES XXXX SEATS 10 CENTS (XXXX is not readable). The other card (post marked 1923) shows the new Lafayette Theatre and building and the Olympic. In this view, there are two billboard ads over top of the CONTINUOUS VAUDEVILLE sign. This photo is badly doctored and tinted.
Some sites with information about the Rand Building state: “…built on the site of the 1903 Olympic Theatre.” The Rand was built in 1929, replacing the Olympic and the Park Hop German Restaurant (on the corner of Broadway & Washington). Was the Olympic a “remodeled” church (as commented above) or was it a new structure? The building to the left of the Olympic is the Buffalo German Insurance Company. It was 81 years old when it was demolished in 1957 for the current Tishman Building. The Tishman was completed in 1959.
The Google map for the Lafayette is incorrect. The same for the Olympic Theatre. The map on the Lyric page is the correct map for the location of these three theaters.
I have a postcard showing the intersection of Broadway and Washington Streets. The New Lyric is shown. A horizontal canopy is seen below a large vertical sign. The top of the sign has admission prices: 15 25 35 50. The word NEW is horizontal, then LYRIC is vertical. Below, the sign contours wider and states:
XXXXXX XXXXXX STOCK COMPANY. Two words are not readable (horizontally) and the two words underneath are STOCK COMPANY. Below this are other signs that are undreadable, but one may advertise an admission of 10 cents.
The view also shows the former theater on the site of the Lafayette Theatre and Building (on the corner) and the Olympic Theatre. The card is not dated with a postmark.
I have a postcard of the Avda. Corrientes. Buenos Aires showing the Cine Plaza. The name PLAZA (in neon?) is seen across the front of the horizontal canopy and there is a large vertical sign of the name CINE PLAZA. This is seen backwards—I’m assuming the letters of the sign were only seen positively, from one direction.
The English caption on the reverse states: Corrientes Avenue’s lights, street where activity is greatest – Buenos Aires – Argentine Republic. This appears to be a tinted/colored b&w photo.
I have a promotional postcard of the Cinerama film “Search For Paradise”. The back of the postcard states: TECK THEATRE 760 Main Street Buffalo 2, N.Y. MOhawk 4628 Exclusive Buffalo Home of CINERAMA I remember when the Main Street businesses were expropriated and torn down. I took pictures of the theatres (Century, Cinema) including one of the Teck marquee and entrance (similar to the Josker photo).
The above photo shows the south entrance on Main Street. The sign board, under the marquee, says: T HOWARD IN GREEN FOR DANGER ALSO HEARTBEAT WITH GINGER ROGERS. T is for Trevor and both films were released in 1946.
Finally, some action at the Tivoli. The Hamilton Spectator reported (Wednesday, December 26) that a buyer is interested in developing the vacant portion of the Tivoli property. The end of January is the target for the finalization of the deal. You can see the article at thespec.com: Tivoli shall rise again, Ballet pledges.
Correction: The Spectator article is dated Wednesday, December 19, 2012. There is no statement on the Encore or Upper Canada web sites about the closing, but there are no film titles or show times listed.
The Encore Upper Canada Place Cinemas are now closed. The final day of operation was this past Thursday, December 13. The reason for the closure was the high cost of digital conversion. A newspaper article disputes some of the above information. The venue had six screens with a total of 477 seats. It opened in 1985. Encore Films took over operation in 1999. An article appeared in the Spectator (Hamilton, Ontario) on Wednesday, December 21 entitled “Burlington downtown theatres go silent”. You should be able to see the complete article on-line at theSpec.com (or the Burlington Post, where the article originated).
The YouTube video states that the Strand Theatre opened in 1926 and was open until 1974.
Does anybody know anything about the Regent Theatre on Elm Street? I have a postcard showing the Regent, but I couldn’t see any of the buildings shown on the Google street view of Elm Street. There is a building, on a corner, up from the Regent that is three storeys in height and has a large sign with the name Felix A. Ricard on it. There are two smaller words on either side of the name, but they are not readable. There is a school named after him, but I don’t know anything about him.
Was there a Norfolk Theatre on Norfolk Street? I have a postcard showing Norfolk Street from the corner of Robinson/Argyle Street. The theater may be closed. There are no letters on the marquee, only the name Norfolk. A Woolworth’s store is shown (replaced by Leon’s) on one corner, with the Norfolk beyond that. The other corner shows Budds, but in an older building than in the street view. The same buildings beside Budds still exist in the view, as well. It looks like the theater may have been across from an Eaton’s catalogue store.
Using the Google street view, the Orpheum was probably to the right of the Biltmore/Grand, and demolished. There is a newer building in the view, with an alleyway to the right of this. In the archive photo of the Orpheum, there is an alleyway to the right of the building. The same? Maybe.
The Orpheum Theatre was located on Queen Street. Anybody know the address? On the Sault St. Marie page on Facebook, it states that the Orpheum is “right next door” to the Biltmore, existing now as the Lock City Grand Theatre. The Biltmore opened in 1950 (658 seats), became the Odeon in 1965 and closed in 1989. It was a bingo hall, then it was restored in 2007 as the Lock City Grand.
I have two postcards showing Goderich Street (one card identifies it as Main Street) from Gustavas Street. Both show a movie theater on Goderich at Gustavas, across from the Queen’s Hotel (now Queen’s Bar and Grill). I don’t see a name on the building, but the side of the canopy/marquee states: ALL TALKING. I don’t think this is the same building that is seen on the Google street view.
The Savoy Theatre was at 745 2nd Avenue. The building still exists (see street view) and has been converted to other use. I have two postcards showing the Savoy. One is noted in my last comment. The other shows the marquee reading: GOOD MORNING MISS DOVE & WOMAN’S WORLD IN TECHNICOLOR. The writer on the postcard (dated 7/29/58) states: “…sitting on the beach writing this. We went to the show last night. Terrible picture.” The picture is not identified…