Ridgewood Theatre

55-27 Myrtle Avenue,
Ridgewood, NY 11385

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Ken Roe
Ken Roe on May 3, 2007 at 8:53 am

The North Star Theatre is listed in the American Motion Picture Directory 1914-1915 at 1250 Fifth Avenue, Manhattan. The 1926 edition of Film Daily Yearbook gives the same address with a seating capacity of 1,000. It has gone from listings by 1931 (the next edition of F.D.Y. that I have) and I don’t see a theatre listed at that address in subsequent F.D.Y.’s that I have (1941, 1943, 1950, 1957).

PKoch
PKoch on May 2, 2007 at 8:17 pm

Lost Memory, does this photo have a date ? Could this building have become the Museum Of The City Of New York ?

PKoch
PKoch on April 30, 2007 at 2:28 pm

I’m glad to read that management has begun to take an active interest in this page.

Thanks for your answer, Lost Memory, including the gag items, some of which I’d known about. There was also a fake ice cube with a fly in it.

The first or second Saturday in September 1975, after seeing the Robert Altman film “Nashville” with two friends from high school in a midtown East Side theater, we walked around Times Square to check out the sleaze. There was a penny arcade with a movie titled “Crime Does Not Pay !” in which you could see a criminal executed in the electric chair. Sort of a “Faces Of Death” predecessor.

The irony of it, of course, was that, outside on the street, many forms of crime (drugs, prostitution) continued to pay a great deal.

Bway
Bway on April 30, 2007 at 1:16 pm

Actually, for a theater with so many responses, and it’s status as the longest continuously operating theater in the City and perhaps NY state, it’s whole introduction leaves much to be desired.

boatday
boatday on April 30, 2007 at 12:51 pm

mrbillyc, do you still post on this site.

I grew up on palmetto and Seneca and now live in Glendale.

I get off the L train every day and park in the area every day.

I grew up with a friend that I think lived right next to you. I have not seen him for about 15 years and can’t seem to find anything on him.

Thanks

Patrick Crowley
Patrick Crowley on April 20, 2007 at 4:40 pm

This isn’t the place for talking about race issues, mikemovies.

If I have to intervene here again, your account may be suspended and /or comments for this page will be closed.

mikemorano
mikemorano on April 20, 2007 at 4:13 pm

Very good PKoch. What did you fella’s think about Jesse Jackson calling New York himey town. Why wasn’t he fired for using that phrase. Imus should be rehired.

PKoch
PKoch on April 20, 2007 at 1:27 pm

Lost Memory, by “action” in Manhattan movie theaters, do you mean picking up girls ?

The Reverend Al Sharpton will next impersonate Little Richard, singing “Good Golly Miss Brawley”.

Warren, do not take the Lord’s name in vain.

Patrick Crowley
Patrick Crowley on April 19, 2007 at 5:10 pm

Please, guys. Let’s be civil with each other.

mikemorano
mikemorano on April 19, 2007 at 12:13 pm

Perhap’s only an idiot would continue to incite trouble by referring to other’s as idiot’s. Your recent messages are nothing more then trivial trash fella. I thought Tonino’s message was very funny. Imus for president. haha

AntonyRoma
AntonyRoma on April 19, 2007 at 10:51 am

Disney to hold press conference at 10:00 a.m. today. Word on the street is that Disney will apologize for the Seven Dwarfs singing “Hi Ho, Hi Ho” in the movie Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Disney plans to remove all items, currently for sale, associated with this movie. This includes books, dolls, and movies.

Later in the week the Seven Dwarfs will appear on the Al Sharpton radio show to apologize and undergo a 7 hour grilling.

Je$$e Jack$on has not been contacted for comment on this. His office stated that he and his personal secretary were attending a meeting in the Bahamas. However, people at PUSH hinted that a large protest is being scheduled at Disney World.

Snow White could not be reached for comment.

mikemorano
mikemorano on April 12, 2007 at 12:01 pm

haha PKoch the ‘Alien Outlaw’ movie did remind me somewhat of ‘The Wild Wild West’ only with aliens instead of earth villains. ‘Alien Outlaw’ is worth a look. The price has been reduced to $5.99 on the deepdiscount website. Another inexpensive movie is ‘Battle Of The Worlds’ 1961 starring Claude Rains. Not a great movie but not too shabby a movie for under $6.

PKoch
PKoch on April 10, 2007 at 2:35 pm

mikemovies, your flick reminds me of “The Wild Wild West”, both TV show and film.

EdSolero, I enjoyed the Metro in the early 1980’s as a revival theater a few times. Also enjoyed the Olympia at 108th and Bway as a first-run movie house.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero on April 10, 2007 at 12:58 am

I have no memory of a Tapia Theater, Lost and Al. Of course, my Manhattan movie-going back in the day was typically confined to the Times Square area, one or two houses in the Village and the midtown theaters in the upper 50’s. I didn’t get that far uptown too much. The Metro on B'way and 99th was about as far north as I ever went to see a movie.

mikemorano
mikemorano on April 9, 2007 at 12:47 pm

Fella’s over the weekend I scored a copy of ‘Alien Outlaw’ from 1985. Directed by Phil Smoot this movie is cowboy’s vs alien’s. Wild Bill Cody and Lash LaRue are both in this movie. One of the best B movies I’ve seen in a long time for under $10.

BrooklynJim
BrooklynJim on April 8, 2007 at 6:36 pm

“… Is that Carl LaFong? Capital ‘L,’ small ‘a,’ capital ‘F,’ small ‘o,’ small ‘n,’ small ‘g’?”

LaFong? I wouldn’t admit it even if it waz…

Al Alvarez
Al Alvarez on April 8, 2007 at 3:57 pm

Thanks for that Tapia ad.

I have another suspect now for the Tapia.
The PEERLESS, 314 East 148th Street.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero on April 8, 2007 at 3:00 am

Wow, this page has been busy… Warren would be displeased with all the non-Ridgewood Theater content! Nice detective work on that Photo Drama Theater. That photo definitely shows what would have been at that time the future site of the 42nd Street Harris Theater. You can make out under the words “Photo Drama Theater” the sentence that begins “Now being constructed on this site”. The Harris had a very long marble clad foyer that led from the 42nd street entrance to the auditorium which sat on 41st Street, behind and to the east of the Candler Bldg, not within it.

Lost… did you post the image over in the Harris page?

Bklyn Jim… Is that Carl LaFong? Capital “L”, small “a”, capital “F”, small “o”, small “n”, small “g”?

Al Alvarez
Al Alvarez on April 6, 2007 at 7:40 pm

So could the TAPIA be the Vandberbilt Live Theatre(1931-1933?)

148 West 48th stree??

PKoch
PKoch on April 6, 2007 at 4:18 pm

Thank you all.

No sooner had I posted my last post, then I remembered “The Amazing Cinematograph” in London in the late 1880’s in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1992 “Dracula” film : Gary Oldman as Dracula as a Victorian hippie, visiting it with Mina (Winona Ryder) and wreaking havoc with it.

Where were the TAPIA and HARRISON theaters ?

Any updates on the Ridgewood Theater ?

Arcadia Press, Images Of Rail series, has a good, high-quality book on “Forgotten Trolleys of Manhattan, The Bronx and Westchester”. There are several images of trolleys running on East and West 42nd Street in Manhattan.

BrooklynJim
BrooklynJim on April 6, 2007 at 3:21 pm

Q: “Did 42nd Street have trolley tracks as the photo depicts?” – mm, 4/6

A: Yes. The Third Ave. Railway ran the “X” crosstown line from the west side piers at 12th to Tudor City on the east side. There were no overhead catenaries. Electricity was provided through underground conduits between the rails.

Al Alvarez
Al Alvarez on April 6, 2007 at 1:43 pm

By the way, I have your attention on the popular Ridgewood thread, I have two more Manhattan sites I cannot locate.

The TAPIA operated in the early seventies showing arthouse/soft core films. By the name I assume it was in a Puerto Rican or otherwise hispanic neighborhood.

The HARRISON advertised in 1994 for a very short time.

Al Alvarez
Al Alvarez on April 6, 2007 at 1:28 pm

PKoch, PHOTO DRAMA was a common generic name for movies back then so the sign may have just meant “Deluxe Movie Theatre Coming Soon”.

The Candler name may have been hastily used as it was in the Candler building. Once Cohen & Harris plays were introduced it switched to COHEN & HARRIS and eventually HARRIS.

Silent dramas do go back to the late 1800’s but I think THE BIRTH OF A NATION introduced full time movie theatres with full-time features in 1915 for the first time giving some movies equal status to plays. Otherwise they were shorts or novelty portions of stage acts, as in the case of Vaudeville.

mikemorano
mikemorano on April 6, 2007 at 12:32 pm

Very cool fella’s. The two photograph’s do resemble each other. The window above the McDonald’s entrance is the same shape as in the vintage photo. Did 42nd street have trolley tracks as the photo depict’s. PKoch is Thomas Edison’s production of ‘Frankenstein’ available on DVD. That would be so cool to own. Perhap’s NativeForestHiller can inform us where the land marking status is at now.

PKoch
PKoch on April 6, 2007 at 12:13 pm

Thank you, AAlvarez and Lost Memory.

What year did silent films begin ? What was the first one ? Thomas Edison’s production of “Frankenstein”, around 1899 ?

Does the Photo Drama Theatre DeLuxe / Candler Theater have a page on this site yet ?

Any news about the Ridgewood Theater, landmarking / preservation process or otherwise.