Loew's Capitol Theatre
1645 Broadway,
New York,
NY
10019
1645 Broadway,
New York,
NY
10019
47 people
favorited this theater
Showing 751 - 775 of 1,086 comments
I have the 1934 “Treasure Island” on DVD from Warner Home Video. Pretty good print. It’s interesting to look at it now and imagine what it must have been like to view the movie on a huge screen in the large movie palace that the Capitol was.
Perhaps this has been mentioned already, but the musical director of the Capitol was Major Edward Bowes, according to the ad. He was the man behind “Major Bowes' Amateur Hour”, a popular radio show in the thirties and forties.
Here is a 1934 ad from the NY Times:
http://tinyurl.com/296qs4
Was in the Times Square area today. It was crowded with lots of hustle & bustle but it did not feel like Christmas without the old movie palace marquees announcing the latest exclusive run holiday movies. An ingredient of the NY holiday spirit was definitely missing and far from likely to return.
I wonder what exactly it was that Lancaster and company did on stage for those performances… Did he serve as Master of Ceremonies? Perform in skits? Dramatic scenes? Acrobatics?
Most (if not all) books that I’ve ever seen on theatre architecture and history tend to list their subjects by the names under which they initially opened. The custom here seems to be to list them under the last known name that the facility operated as a motion picture theatre or under the current name if the facility is still open for theatrical purposes (whether as cinema or live venue). Perhaps once a more robust search engine is established, CT can adopt a formula that can be applied consistently – as there are many inconsistencies with the current scheme.
Warren said:
“For a period of eight years (1935-43), the Capitol ended stage shows and presented movies only.”
This was an exception:
View link
Sorry, the name changed from 1963 to 1966.
That’s not entirely accurate about the name change.
From 1966 to 1968 the CAPITOL advertised as the CINERAMA without the CAPITOL name being used. It reverted to CAPITOL when Cinerama releases became extinct.
Same with the music labels, Rory. Always a new format or remastered/remixed version of an old album coming out. The classic line on this is from “Men in Black,” where Tommy Lee Jones is explaining how the Gov’t releases new alien technology as needed to raise funds and points to the next generation compact musical-storage device and says to Will Smith, “Which means I’ll have to buy the White Album again!”
Well, Bill, let me see… “2001” shares the top spot with “Planet of the Apes” as my favorite movie. I bought the original VHS release of “2001” in the early eighties, then I seem to remember buying another VHS version, then I discovered letterboxing on Laserdiscs and bought the Criterion edition of “2001,” then later bought the MGM/UA CLV transfer on laserdisc, I almost got the remastered CAV MGM/UA laserdisc, but somehow decided to skip it. Good thing, because the original “non-anamorphic” DVD transfer of “2001” looked better than them all. Then I bought the 16x9 anamorphic “re-mastered” DVD of “2001.” Now I’m going to get this 2-disc special edition, BUT THAT’S STILL NOT THE END! In a year or two I’ll be getting into Blu-ray DVDs (when the catalogs of titles start to include more classic films) and I’ll have to buy “2001” yet again! This is how the home video companies make their money off the devoted fans of certain films, as long as they slightly improve the picture and sound, throw in a few extras, they know they have us!
Rory: when you saw “2001” it was still playing only in 70mm Cinerama. Besides Hicksville, it played that way in Montclair, NJ until March 1969, when it opened wide in neighborhood theaters in 35mm. New York City’s Cinerama run ended in December 1968, because at that time there was only one Cinerama screen in the city (the Cinerama, formerly the Warner, formerly the Strand) and MGM wanted to open their new Cinerama film “Ice Station Zebra” before year’s end.
So you were very lucky to see it the best possible way. I was too – I saw it at the Capitol in June 1968. The way movies are today, I can safely say I’ll never have a better experience seeing a movie in a theater for as long as I live.
I’m definitely looking forward to the special edition DVD, with the commentaries, etc. Counting both VHS and DVD, this will be the 8th version of “2001” I’ve purchased!
Thanks William (and Bill). I seem to recall reading on this site someplace that “2001” opened at the Hicksville Twin on June 26, 1968, but then I was reading about the Guild 50th ad Bill Huelbig wrote there that “2001” opened wide in the NY/NJ area in March 1969! Bill, maybe you could give greater detail. This kind of confused me because I have a vivid memory of the first time I saw “2001.” My father took me (I was only 9 years old), it was a rainy spring or summer afternoon matinee at the Hicksville Twin and I remember the curved Cinerama screen. It had to be the first film I ever saw in Cinerama, and in fact may have been the ONLY film I ever saw in Cinerama (Single lens, of course). Anyway…. I now believe that must have been in the summer of 1968, because “2001” was released again in NYC and Long Island area in late May 1969, and I recall that I’d already seen it at that time (and saw it again then). BTW, Bill, are you looking forward to the 2-disc Special Edition DVD of “2001” that’s coming out soon?
Warren said:
What about all those people who contribute information to this site? Without them, there probably would be no Cinema Treasures.
With me it was the other way around. I had tons of movie ads and clippings collected over many years, but nowhere to show them and share them with people until I found Cinema Treasures.
They are simply being asked for donations, Warren. Strictly voluntary. Member contributions in the form of informative posts and photos are invaluable, but the cost of hosting all this information on a server large enough to accommodate the data and the visitor traffic is quite tangible and – I’m sure – a burden. Patrick and Ross have been generous to fund this worthwhile enterprise for seven years and, now, all they ask is that those of us who are willing and able to make a contribution (no matter how small) to help offset that cost, please be kind enough to chip in and put up with a few unobtrusive advertisements. Is it so much to ask?
Repugnant is such a repugnant word.
And more repugnant still if CT members were unwilling to contribute in any way they can to help sustain the site!
I agree Bill… I think the ads are quite tasteful and discreet. What would be more hideous and repugnant would be to see CT shut down because Patrick and Ross were no longer able bear the financial burden of keeping it running!
Warren: The ads were explained a couple of days ago on the homepage:
In a few weeks, Cinema Treasures will have been online for seven years.
As many of you know, a few months ago we moved this website to a much more powerful (and expensive) server. The new server has been fantastic, and has really helped us keep up with the growth of this website and our traffic.
However, the monthly cost of maintaining this project has become more than either of us can support without additional funding. After seven years, we’ve definitely reached a point where we need your support.
Starting next week, we will begin accepting donations. As well, we’ll be including some tasteful, text-based advertisements on our pages to help offset costs. (Don’t worry… they won’t be annoying.)
And they aren’t annoying. I didn’t even notice them until you pointed them out.
Thanks, Rory, for referring to me as an expert on “2001”. Even though William answered your question, I can’t think of a better thing for someone on this site to call me. You made my day!
“2001” opened at the NGC Fox’s Hicksville Twin South Theatre on June 26, 1968, when MGM expanded the release.
This message is a request to Bill Huelbig, since he seems to be an expert on “2001.” I’m trying to figure out when I saw this film originally. I saw it on Long Island at the Hicksville Twin South, which I believe was the only Cinerama theatre on the Island. Do you know when it opened there?
The interior architecture of the Capitol looks very similar to that of the RKO Madison in Ridgewood, Queens, NY.
Does anyone out there have a photograph of the marquee of the Capitol Theatre when “Planet of the Apes” played there in Feb/Mar of 1968? If so, I’d love to see it or buy a copy as “Apes” is my favorite movie. Please contact Rory at:
I was never in the Capitol, but I have a good memory of it. I was in NYC for Easter Week of 1968. On Wednesday the 3rd, I saw a taping of the Tonight Show, which started at 6:30 p.m. One of the guests was Keir Dullea, who appeared in a tuxedo. He explained that he was on his way to the New York premiere of “2001.” After the taping, I walked a few blocks to the Winter Garden, where I was to meet a friend and see Janice Page in “Mame” (don’t ask). As I turned the corner I saw that Broadway was blocked off and there were searchlights and red carpets and such. We stood and watched as a limo drove up and Keir Dullea stepped out. Only in New York, I thought.