Comments from Ed Solero

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Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Strand Theatre on Sep 4, 2007 at 11:10 pm

I went to the former site of the old Strand in Rockville Center today and discovered that I was mistaken about the identity of the building I identified above as the possible remnants of the former theater. The building above (which houses a Sleepy’s mattress showroom) is actually 221 Sunrise Highway and can be glimpsed in Warren’s 1929 photo at far left.

Here’s a shot that I took before I realized I was mistaken about the building. Note the two vertical gutters that run down along the front edges of the building and the fireplug to the right of the structure…. you can see both of these elements in Warren’s photo.

Unfortunately, 227 Sunrise Hwy is now a commuter parking lot for the LIRR station just behind Sunrise Hwy and the Strand’s status is properly noted as “Closed/Demolished.”

Warren… May I copy your 1929 photo for inclusion in my scrapbook? I’ll be sure to give you proper credit for unearthing the image.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about United Palace of Cultural Arts on Sep 3, 2007 at 10:15 pm

Forgot to add that the trailer features several shots of the 175th’s old vertical sign lit up in red neon spelling out “El Caribe” from top to bottom. I suppose it might be a CGI composite shot, but it sure looks like the sign was physically installed for the movie. Can anyone verify? The film was shot in the late winter/early spring of 2006.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about United Palace of Cultural Arts on Sep 3, 2007 at 10:10 pm

The exterior of this theater (and perhaps the interior) is used to portray the fictional nightclub “El Caribe” in the new crime movie “We Own the Night” starring Joaquin Phoenix, Mark Wahlberg and Robert Duvall. Imdb lists the Loew’s Paradise in the Bronx as a location, so maybe that other “wonder theatre” was used for interior shots of the nightclub. Or maybe IMDB is mistaken.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Lynbrook Airdrome on Sep 3, 2007 at 5:07 pm

Dunn… a marvelous breakthrough! I’ll actually be dining at my mother-in-law’s tonight in an apartment down the block from St. Raymonds. If the church is open, I’ll go in an inquire about any photos. By coincidence, I was surfing the net last night for info on the Airdrome and the Arcade/Studio One Theaters in Lynbrook. I also emailed the Lynbrook/East Rockaway Historical Society for any information or assistance they may be able to provide. I’ll check back with any results from my inquiries.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Loew's Paradise Theatre on Sep 3, 2007 at 4:44 pm

Thanks for sharing. That clip is actually from an installment in a long running PBS series featuring walking tours through various parts of NYC. Previous episodes include “A Walk down 42nd Street” and “A Walk Up Broadway,” each featuring host David Hartman and NY historian Barry Lewis. It’s an excellent series with lots of great footage, photos and historical anecdotes.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about UA Lynbrook 6 on Sep 3, 2007 at 12:28 am

This page on the Lynbrook Fire Department’s website recounts an incident from earlier this year when the theater’s popcorn machine suffered from technical difficulties. There are some photos of the lobby – and its depressing drop ceiling.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Manhasset Cinemas on Aug 31, 2007 at 12:30 pm

Thanks, saps. I was hoping for the nice intact balcony! How is the size of that auditorium – and more importantly, the screen size? I’m happy they had a proper plate to preserve the film’s correct aspect ratio. Did they mask the screen on the left and right?

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Colonial Theatre on Aug 31, 2007 at 12:22 pm

Warren, if you can open up and view the local.live link I posted, that sliver of a plot still exists between the building on the corner of 105th and the structure that sits on the former theater’s lot. I think all evidence leads me to believe that this structure is the former theater itself, long ago gutted for retail/commercial use.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Manhasset Cinemas on Aug 31, 2007 at 12:47 am

I see that Clearview runs a Hollywood Classics series out of one of the Manhasset auditoriums (I presume this is how you came to watch “Singing in the Rain” here with your daughter, saps). I’ve heard that many of the films at the Chelsea series are actually digital DVD projections… Does the series at the Manhasset run actual 35mm prints or is this also run via a video projection system? I’m curious because the clearview website lists “It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World” starting September 19th here and if I can anticipate a decent 35 mm print, I’d love to make it down. I’ll pass on a DVD projection, however.

Also… what auditorium is the classic series held in? Hopefully, the balcony theater?

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Colonial Theatre on Aug 31, 2007 at 12:21 am

There isn’t a whole lot of information available in terms of online NYC departmental records for the building and lot currently at 105-06 Northern Blvd. The current building lot actually combines several parcles with an address range of 105-06 -08 & -10. The OASISNYC website – which lists property information obtained from the Department of City Planning – has a build date of 1925 for the structure, but that is an estimate. I can find no C of O information for the 105-06 or 105-08 addresses. There is limited information on the 105-10 address, but the only C of O that is available for viewing is dated 1952 – and that is for an alteration of an existing building spanning all three addresses. Function is mixed-use storage, manufacturing and retail store and lists a cellar, 1st story and “mezzanine” level – so it is entirely possible that this is the original theater building… but there is no way to confirm or refute that assumption based on the infomation at hand.

Here’s a local.live view of the property. It is the lower lying structure sandwiched between the taller 3-story multi-family dwellings that run towards each corner. The blue awning on the left end of the building would be 105-10, while the wider black sign with white lettering covers 105-06 -08 Northern Blvd where, I presume, the theater would have been situated. The current occupants are a Chinese-owned company that installs stereo and alarm systems in automobiles (the blue awning) and a Korean owned construction company (the have the bigger space at 105-08).

I suppose a visit to the site might reveal if any archtictural elements on the facade or the rear of the building (looks like an alley opens up to 105th Street) hint at a former cinema.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about UA Lynbrook 6 on Aug 30, 2007 at 5:18 pm

By the way, I agree with Mike that the introductory comments above should probably be re-written – if only to present a more objective and historically minded intro. I think the thread of comments sufficiently bemoan the theater’s fall from stylish single screen playhouse to dissected and neglected plex.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about UA Lynbrook 6 on Aug 30, 2007 at 5:06 pm

I often wonder if more locals would visit the Lynbrook if it were a more inviting and well kept place. Fixing that A/C will probably go a long way. Replacing the seats would be another. It’s not as if there are any more modern stadium-styled multiplexes in the area. I can’t imagine the Franklin Square theater being any more comfortable than the Lynbrook – and certainly its auditoriums are smaller than the Lynbrook’s four main rooms. Malverne is the same story – thought it has its own niche audience due to the more sophisticated offerings there. Sunrise Cinemas is a dinosaur from the late ‘70’s and both it and the nearby Green Acres likely suffer from an unfortunate racial stigma in the view of many Lynbrook residents.

The strongest competition to the Lynbrook probably comes from the Fantasy in RVC – which, again, offers no stadium-style comforts. The Fantasy probably has more parking spaces available, due to the large lot behind the stores across the street, so that gives it a definite edge. Is parking the big obstacle in gutting the Lynbrook for a stadium-plex refit?

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about UA Lynbrook 6 on Aug 30, 2007 at 12:57 pm

Mike… I think the state of the Lynbrook itself speaks to the lack of attention UA paid this once proud theater. Those uncomfortably padded wooden seats I sat in to watch “The Simpsons” earlier this month are probably the very same seats in which I watched “1941” back in December of ‘79! It has been the experience of many here on CT that UA allowed a number of its theaters (mostly older single-screen nabes split into 2, 3 or 4 screens) to suffer wear and tear with minimal maintenance – at least here in the NYC area. However, I don’t think that Regal has been in control long enough to fairly pass judgment on their care of the theater.

Perhaps the comments should be adjusted to reflect the promise of new ownership. At least the A/C has been fixed and the burned-out lights on the marquee replaced! If you go to the “About Us” link at the top of any CT page, you can send a message to the CT editors via the “Contact Us” link there.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about RKO Madison Theatre on Aug 28, 2007 at 3:53 pm

A “grind house” was a theater (typically a run-down inner-city house) that booked genre films (action, sex, blaxploitation, kung-fu, horror) on a virtual ‘round-the-clock basis and usually on double- and triple-feature bills. It wasn’t an AIP brand so much as an industry term for such theaters. While many second-run theaters operated on a grind (as opposed to the two-a-day showings at the big premier first run houses) throughout the '30’s, '40’s and '50’s, the classic exploitation grinders had their heyday in the '60’s and '70’s – falling prey to the rising popularity of VCR’s by the mid 1980’s.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Flick Theatre on Aug 28, 2007 at 3:44 pm

It was at this theater, back in 1980, where I saw my very first XXX porn movies. I have lived in NYC all my life (save for a year in Miami when I was young) but in August of ‘80, at the age of 15, I flew out to Las Vegas with my great-grandmother to visit my great-uncle. I remember riding by this theater while on a city bus heading to another destination. I’d seen other XXX theaters in NYC – in fact, I walked among them on numerous occasions during frequent trips to the grind houses in Times Square – but I had never really been tempted to venture inside a real porn theater. Something clicked on this occasion, however, (maybe it was that this theater seemed somehow cleaner and safer than those I was accustomed to seeing in NY) and I made a mental note of the theater’s location.

One day, I asked my uncle for permission to take the bus downtown to do some sightseeing, and – to my amazement – he agreed. I walked to the bus stop and took the ride from North Las Vegas to Fremont Street and tentatively approached the Flick’s box-office. I noticed that the theater was a twin, with one theater playing the infamous “Deep Throat” & “Devil in Miss Jones” and the other pairing up “Debbie Does Dallas” with “Behind the Green Door.” Something about “Debbie” star Bambi Woods appealed to me and helped me to decide on which ticket to purchase – or rather, attempt to purchase, since I was convinced I’d be turned away with no proof of age.

To my surprise, the person at the box-office (I’m thinking it was a lady, but I can’t really remember) took my money and punched out a stub for me to enter to the theater and I was off on my first foray into adult cinema. There were only a few patrons in the theater and I admit to being a bit uncomfortable and anxious at first… but I settled in once I realized no perverts were coming over to accost me. After the films were over (or after the program ran to the point where I first walked in), I scooted back to NLV on the bus – but with the thought that I’d have to take this trip again before I left Vegas to check out the Flick’s other double-bill! Fortunately, I was able to do just that just a few days later – with my uncle, aunt and great-grandmother being none the wiser. So I left Vegas with great photos of me at Hoover Dam, standing in front of $1 million in cash behind a glass wall at Binion’s Horseshoe, with the clowns at Circus Circus, $300 dollars I won at Keno (my uncle collected for me) and great memories with my family – but best of all, my private little secret of having snuck off to see what are probably the four best known porn flicks of the ‘70’s.

Once back in NY, I think that this experience emboldened my to convince my buddies to check out the uncensored hard-core version of “Caligula” at the Lyric Theater on 42nd Street.

If anyone has further info on the current status of this theater – or recollections about its days either before or during its porn operations – it would be greatly appreciated!

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Ridgewood Theatre on Aug 28, 2007 at 3:02 pm

Frankie… I suggest you pose the question on the Pavilion page and refer them to this thread on the Ridgewood page. I’d also try contacting Brooklynpix as well as the Brooklyn Historical Society for any possible information on this mystery theater. As Lost indicates, I think we may be exhausted on the internet without a name or exact address – unless someone’s memory can be jogged on the Pavilion page!

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Ridgewood Theatre on Aug 28, 2007 at 2:51 pm

Just a thought… perhaps the webmasters can be contacted at brooklynpix.com. They may have a copy of the print where they can make out the grease-pen writing on the photo. That writing may idenitfy the theater name. I can’t quite make it all out – particular on the left side of the image.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Ridgewood Theatre on Aug 28, 2007 at 2:43 pm

This is a now one large parcel that covers the corner of the traffic circle and Prospect Park SW and running partially along the circle and then all the way back from Prospect Park SW (where the theater entrance fronted) to 16th Street (the next block to the southwest). The address range is listed as 1 Prospect Park SW, 197-201 Prospect Park W (the addresses facing the circle) and 481 16th Street. Numerous C of O’s are listed online for various storefronts, mixed-use, residential dwellings and the apartment building that currently sits where the theater was (built in 1962, it seems). I can find no information on a former theater on that site. I’m sure the old address was something different, anyway.

Perhaps our gal is one of the theaters on your silent movie theater list, Lost.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Ridgewood Theatre on Aug 28, 2007 at 1:59 pm

There’s a Windsor Theater listed on CT, but it was in Boro Park and seems to be a different building entirely. I really can’t make out the name over the entrance at all… I may have just projected “Windsor” in my mind due to the location in Windsor Terrace.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Ridgewood Theatre on Aug 28, 2007 at 1:54 pm

Hey guys… I think I found the photo that frankie was talking about.

Here’s the image of what looks like a theater on that same traffic circle (called Bartel-Pritchard Square per the caption) dated 1929. Looks to be the site of that more modern brick apartment building with concrete terraces I pointed out in the local.live view I posted above. Does it say “Windsor Theater” over the entrance?

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Ridgewood Theatre on Aug 28, 2007 at 1:06 pm

So frankie, where was the other theater in relation to the Sanders/Pavillion? Was it on the traffic circle that sits on that corner of Prospect Park? Directly across to the right of the Sanders is an apartment building that looks like it dates back to the ‘20’s or earlier.

Here’s a local.live view that shows the buildings that currently surround the Sanders/Pavillion. The area doesn’t look like it has changed all that much in the last 70 years or so. However, the building with the terraces diagonally opposite the Sanders – across the traffic circle and in the lower left corner of the local.live view – appears to be more modern. Photo 1 posted by Lost above seems to point in that direction, but the site is obscured by the park’s trees.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Ridgewood Theatre on Aug 28, 2007 at 12:29 pm

Thanks, frankie. Yeah, I tried Park Slope since it was near the Sanders-Pavillion, but didn’t see it. Not being an expert on Brooklyn, I wasn’t sure if the theater might have bordered on another neighborhood and been listed there instead.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about RKO Keith's Theatre on Aug 28, 2007 at 12:23 pm

I was in the area yesterday and saw the sign in front of the Keith’s (as well as one in front of Town Hall). I’m happy that someone (or some group) was able to get these markers installed – and not just for the theater, but for the other historic sites that dot this strip along Norhtern Blvd and might otherwise be obscured in the avalanche of Chinese-language signs that seem to fall on top of one another everywhere you look.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Ridgewood Theatre on Aug 28, 2007 at 12:16 pm

Frankie… Was the photo in the “Theater” section of Brooklynpix.com? If so, there are only 3 photos on that page right now – none of which seem to be of the theater across from the Sanders. The rest of the site is broken down by neighborhoods – in which neighborhood would the theater have been located?

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Red Rock 11 Theaters on Aug 26, 2007 at 10:08 pm

Great! Another cinematic mystery from my past is solved thanks to the members of CT! Thanks again, Teri. Now I have to wrack my brains and figure out where I saw the “Deep Throat” & “Devil in Miss Jones” double feature. Is it possible these two double features alternated at the Flick? I know I saw all four films in a movie theater – and I’m blanking out on where I saw these two. The only legitimate porn theater I can recall ever going to in NY was for a flick called “The Girl from S.E.X.” and I was with a bunch of buddies. I definitely saw DT and DIMJ on the same bill and I was alone and very, very young. I was in LV for a month and might have easily gone back to the same theater to check it out. Could the Flick have been a twin featuring each double feature in separate auditoriums?

At any rate, Teri, you ought to create a listing for the Flick. I think you have enough info to start it up. Let others fill in the gaps with their comments, you know?