Garth was correct. The Manhattan-1 was going by the name RKO 59th Street East at the time of THE SAVAGE IS LOOSE. That name would later be revived at the D.W. Griffith by Cineplex Odeon when they found out they owned no legal right to continue using the Griffith name.
During its late seventies porno incarnation Twin One went back to mainstream subrun as the “RKO 59th St East” while Twin Two still played strictly adult sex films as the Spartan. Does anyone know if RKO itself was actually operating this as a hard core porno theatre?
Lovely lobby with a 60’s style sunken seating area and a sprawling candy counter. Stadium seating in the main house thirty years before it became the industry norm. Woody Allen even made it his premiere house after the Beekman closed. A wonderful theatre!
Great memories TonyV. I still remember calling the local police to help a man who claimed to have been injured by a bullet that somehow escaped from the screen in PLATOON and a lady claimed the staff was bugging her home phone to track her movie-going probabilities.
Florida Theatre manager Ralph Puckhaber was head of marketing for ABC Florida State Theatres when I started working for them in 1974, twenty years after the article above was published. He was a flamboyant man who always wore plaid jackets with his trademark pink socks.
If clearances still existed in Manhattan the Ziegfeld would have closed long ago. The 42nd street theatres with staggered showtimes on multiple screens and bigger grosses would deny it any product at all, much less tentpole titles.
You should take everything from Fox News sources in stride. The Ziegfeld couldn’t loose over $1 million a year even if it remained closed all year. The math simply doesn’t add up.
The two theatres on 42nd street do lose more than that with their newer leases, but they are cash producing cows and that cash can be invested elsewhere before the bills have to get paid.
In its early days it was mostly an art house and Cinemascope was not an issue but by 1956 this was South Florida’s first Cinerama house that proscenium obsolete.
I think this engagement of “RETURN TO OZ” in 1985 may have been the last regular movie run at the Hall.
Garth was correct. The Manhattan-1 was going by the name RKO 59th Street East at the time of THE SAVAGE IS LOOSE. That name would later be revived at the D.W. Griffith by Cineplex Odeon when they found out they owned no legal right to continue using the Griffith name.
During its late seventies porno incarnation Twin One went back to mainstream subrun as the “RKO 59th St East” while Twin Two still played strictly adult sex films as the Spartan. Does anyone know if RKO itself was actually operating this as a hard core porno theatre?
The twin is here
This theatre never had Cinerama capability.
triassic4, I found some references to a STATE Theatre in Dania but not in Ft. Lauderdale.
The San Juan was still operating in 1977.
This was still showing movies in 1977.
Love them!
Totally disagree.
Lovely lobby with a 60’s style sunken seating area and a sprawling candy counter. Stadium seating in the main house thirty years before it became the industry norm. Woody Allen even made it his premiere house after the Beekman closed. A wonderful theatre!
sporridge, this is very interesting information. Where did you get it from?
I often suspected Claughton may have been a phantom operator for Paramount Theatres after the Consent Decrees and you may have found the source.
They were also made of metal and very heavy and awkward to work with on a ladder.
Just added an ad for the re-release of THIS IS CINERAMA in the photo section.
Great memories TonyV. I still remember calling the local police to help a man who claimed to have been injured by a bullet that somehow escaped from the screen in PLATOON and a lady claimed the staff was bugging her home phone to track her movie-going probabilities.
The closing never actually took place. It just ran stage shows for a while.
This was already open in 1972 and advertising in the NYT.
The Rivoli closed for summer due to lack of product.
There were two David’s and neither was the 55th Street Playhouse.
Florida Theatre manager Ralph Puckhaber was head of marketing for ABC Florida State Theatres when I started working for them in 1974, twenty years after the article above was published. He was a flamboyant man who always wore plaid jackets with his trademark pink socks.
If clearances still existed in Manhattan the Ziegfeld would have closed long ago. The 42nd street theatres with staggered showtimes on multiple screens and bigger grosses would deny it any product at all, much less tentpole titles.
This is the New York Post folks. What they meant is “that story we made up last week is simply not true.” They do this all the time.
Marc is thinking of the David.
You should take everything from Fox News sources in stride. The Ziegfeld couldn’t loose over $1 million a year even if it remained closed all year. The math simply doesn’t add up.
The two theatres on 42nd street do lose more than that with their newer leases, but they are cash producing cows and that cash can be invested elsewhere before the bills have to get paid.
Apparently it was the SOHO for a few months before it became the SOBO.
In its early days it was mostly an art house and Cinemascope was not an issue but by 1956 this was South Florida’s first Cinerama house that proscenium obsolete.