Theater is supposed to be opening Spring/Summer 2015. All seats and screens being replaced plus other upgrades. Long delay because of reimbursement problems, a usual Sandy story.
Photos of Fine Arts marquee and Nassau Garage in 1910, the building from which the theater was crafted, linked via comments now in photo section. Links tend to be broken in time.
Photo of Studio 1 from American Classic Images and a 1916 photo of the Arcade have been uploaded. Arcade was on the west side of Atlantic Avenue so this view looks south. Note the original entrance to the Arcade WAS an arcade. Now we need a later shot with the Arcade marquee referred to by Ed Solero in earlier postings.
Newspaper articles always refer to it as First Playhouse so it sometimes passes under the radar. Now that we have a meeting date we know when to check back. No big deal to resubscribe.
The fate of the Playhouse is still up in the air. Discussion on demolition was removed from the agenda of the March Village Board meeting. It MAY be placed on the agenda for April 13th.
Photo of the original Edwards', which had, obviously, been a store previously. Determined it, too, was located on Main Street which should be update in the lead.
Loaded the postcard image of the Lyric to which Dooley Jones referred. I dispute the contention that the Lyric burnt down. As I recall from my youth the building in the picture was the same albeit with the addition of a vertical. It now houses offices of the Town of Oyster Bay.
In the book, Huntington Station “A Vanished Community” there are several pages devoted to the theater. There is also a grainy image which is of no value. One resident remembers, that as a youth, doing a balancing act to get from the retaining wall of the hillside in back of the theater to the theater roof and looking in the mushroom ventilation unit to see the movie.
From Route 111 you can see a mushroom ventilation unit. Was not the theater air conditioned from the beginning? Unfortunately the unit cannot be seen from ground level, only the significantly higher Route 111. Hence, no photo.
The following is the description of the Strand from the Archives of the Rockville Centre Public Library: “The Strand Theatre stood on the north side of Sunrise Highway between Park and Village Avenues. It had 1,035 seats, an organ, mushroom ventilation (the forerunner of air conditioning), large dressing rooms and large aisles. It opened on June 8, 1922 and offered both vaudeville shows and motion pictures.
According to local lore, boys would scrape together 10 cents for one admission. One boy would go in and open the fire exit in the balcony (which was not alarmed) to allow in his buddies.
Two photos circa 1930 added. The distance shot is from the Archives of the Rockville Centre Public Library. The frontal was originally posted by Warren Harris and subsequent relinked by Ed Solero.
I think artpf may be thinking about either of the two large theaters in Sunnyside, the Bliss or the Sunnyside, which were in the 2,000 seating range. According to the 1944 FDYB the capacity of the Center was 600.
Photo as Beacon in 1954 and later as Clearview uploaded.
Better picture uploaded
Theater is supposed to be opening Spring/Summer 2015. All seats and screens being replaced plus other upgrades. Long delay because of reimbursement problems, a usual Sandy story.
I saw the opera, The Magic Flute there.
Uploaded interior of the Orpheum in the day.
Uploaded three pictures: the theatre on Main Street, Mr. Poro at the box office, Mr. Poro with the marquee.
Photos of Fine Arts marquee and Nassau Garage in 1910, the building from which the theater was crafted, linked via comments now in photo section. Links tend to be broken in time.
Photo of Studio 1 from American Classic Images and a 1916 photo of the Arcade have been uploaded. Arcade was on the west side of Atlantic Avenue so this view looks south. Note the original entrance to the Arcade WAS an arcade. Now we need a later shot with the Arcade marquee referred to by Ed Solero in earlier postings.
Newspaper articles always refer to it as First Playhouse so it sometimes passes under the radar. Now that we have a meeting date we know when to check back. No big deal to resubscribe.
The fate of the Playhouse is still up in the air. Discussion on demolition was removed from the agenda of the March Village Board meeting. It MAY be placed on the agenda for April 13th.
Photo of the original Edwards', which had, obviously, been a store previously. Determined it, too, was located on Main Street which should be update in the lead.
Uploaded a photo with image of the theater on the left. Will try and get a full image.
Loaded the postcard image of the Lyric to which Dooley Jones referred. I dispute the contention that the Lyric burnt down. As I recall from my youth the building in the picture was the same albeit with the addition of a vertical. It now houses offices of the Town of Oyster Bay.
I’ve added a current photo of the façade.
In the book, Huntington Station “A Vanished Community” there are several pages devoted to the theater. There is also a grainy image which is of no value. One resident remembers, that as a youth, doing a balancing act to get from the retaining wall of the hillside in back of the theater to the theater roof and looking in the mushroom ventilation unit to see the movie.
From Route 111 you can see a mushroom ventilation unit. Was not the theater air conditioned from the beginning? Unfortunately the unit cannot be seen from ground level, only the significantly higher Route 111. Hence, no photo.
The following is the description of the Strand from the Archives of the Rockville Centre Public Library: “The Strand Theatre stood on the north side of Sunrise Highway between Park and Village Avenues. It had 1,035 seats, an organ, mushroom ventilation (the forerunner of air conditioning), large dressing rooms and large aisles. It opened on June 8, 1922 and offered both vaudeville shows and motion pictures.
According to local lore, boys would scrape together 10 cents for one admission. One boy would go in and open the fire exit in the balcony (which was not alarmed) to allow in his buddies.
Two photos circa 1930 added. The distance shot is from the Archives of the Rockville Centre Public Library. The frontal was originally posted by Warren Harris and subsequent relinked by Ed Solero.
July 1, 1953 opening ad from Patchogue Advance of June 25th added.
I think artpf may be thinking about either of the two large theaters in Sunnyside, the Bliss or the Sunnyside, which were in the 2,000 seating range. According to the 1944 FDYB the capacity of the Center was 600.
Added 1914 image of Main Street showing the vertical of the New Regent.
Post card image of the Carlton Opera House added.
Added photo of crowd in front of theater for the St. Patrick’s day parade as published in 3/15/2014 Newsday.
Why would anyone favor a photo from the Chicago RKO Palace which is posted on the Old Country, Plainview, NY site. Doesn’t belong here.
Seems odd that it’s thriving when the Babylon in town couldn’t make it. The parking?