With community support, it is possible that the Buffalo Cinematheque may help resurrect and upgrade the theater. Look for a KickStarter soon to support this. It will require serious interest on the part of the entire community.
The Riviera in North Tonawanda, by the way, seems to keep it a big secret and tries to dismantle them from time to time. Big mistake. The public should be well aware of how important carbon arc is and help to maintain those systems.
Carbon rods are available all over Asia since it is the primary method in India and other countries.
Not knowing how to contact “arl” in a different way, we are unable to find a listing for The Mark Strand Theater in Buffalo. Would “arl” be kind enough to post the exact URL for this?
We’re thinking “arl” is referring to the Mark Strand in NYC, not the one in Buffalo.
112th Birthday Party for Mitchell and Moe Mark’s Vitascope Theater in Buffalo, NY, USA.
Saturday, October 18, 2008, 1-2PM
Ellicott Square Building, Main and Swan Streets. Enter on Washington Street.
Boring Speeches, interesting tours, official presentations, and BIRTHDAY CAKE. Plus the unveiling of a new, commemorative Poster and Limited Edition Print by artist Scott Alexander Wood.
There is absolutely no doubt that the Pittsburgh Nickelodeon was NOT the first dedicated movie theater. Nor were any of the Talley theaters in LA. The first “store-front converted to a movie theater” was the May 1896 New Orleans' theater that ran for several weeks. The first architect designed, permanent (two years!) dedicated movie theater was the Mark Brothers' Vitascope Theatre opened in Buffalo, New York in October 1896.
What is still to be determined is the first “built from the ground up on an empty lot” movie theater. This is, in July 2008, unknown.
New research has just revealed that Tally’s Electric Theatre was NOT a free standing building: it was part of a larger building. Apparently, it was not a store-front conversion, but a purpose-built storefront.
This now leaves in doubt what the actual first “Theater” built free-standing from the ground up was.
Harold Lloyd Film Festival, April 18-20, 2008.
Sponsored by The Riviera Theatre, The Buffalo Film Society, and the Bufffalo International Film Festival.
Can someone post a photograph of the standing building at 95 Munroe Street? The two reports of “demolition” and “still standing” are sort of contradictory. :–)
Sorry to post this here, but we’ve tried every other way to reach Joe Vogel. Mr. V… if you read this, could you write to us at
BuffaloFilmFestival AT gmail.com ? (substitute @ for AT) Thank you!
The theater was open six days a week until November 1897 when it was opened seven days a week. Shows were presented on the hour from 10:30 in the morning until 11:30 at night.
Between the opening of the theater on October 19, 1896 and November 1897, Mitchell Mark claimed that 200,000 people had visited the theater! This is substantially more than the population of the entire Western New York Region.
To clarify, the theatre itself is “demolished” although the approximate space it occupied has been identified and would have occupied an area now taken up with a workshop and tools.
The Ellicott Square Building still exists and has not been demolished. So, in principal, the location of the theatre exists, but not the actual theater.
There is some ongoing discussion about reconstructing the theater provided enough details about its exact configuration can be located. There are newspaper articles that describe it.
The known facts are that it had 72 seats in 9 rows of 4 seats each separated by an aisle down the center.
There was a stage and screen at one end of the room which was painted white with trim. The floor was covered with a red “velvet” carpet.
It is easy to suppose that the 1896 Vitascope sat on a table at the back of the room since this was the typical mode of projection.
The ceilings of the basement space are roughly 20 feet high so that is the physical boundary of the space.
With community support, it is possible that the Buffalo Cinematheque may help resurrect and upgrade the theater. Look for a KickStarter soon to support this. It will require serious interest on the part of the entire community.
Does anyone have photos of the INTERIOR of the theater at different times in its history?
It’s Mitchel Mark (only one “l”).
Here are several photos of the Avondale Theater http://www.nthistorymuseum.org/Collections/assemblyofgod.html
The PALACE / PARAMOUNT Mystery
According to these sources (and others)
View link
View link
the Lockport Palace Theatre is based in some mysterious way upon the design of the Paramount Theatre in New York City.
What is particularly mysterious about this is that the Paramount Theatre in NYC was built one year AFTER the Palace.
The Lockport theater was designed by Lempert who doesn’t seem to have had anything to do with the NY theater.
Can anyone cite the source of this notion?
Thank you.
The Riviera in North Tonawanda, by the way, seems to keep it a big secret and tries to dismantle them from time to time. Big mistake. The public should be well aware of how important carbon arc is and help to maintain those systems.
Carbon rods are available all over Asia since it is the primary method in India and other countries.
The Riviera Theatre, The Capital Theatre in Rome, NY, The Shea’s Buffalo and others…
Sorry. Carbon arc is disabled. Lamphouses there, but they are using Xenon.
The original post (abvoe) from Nov 2, 2008 at 4PM reads.
Information on the original Strand Theater is under Mark Strand.
posted by arl on Nov 2, 2008 at 4:00pm
We wondering exactly where this listing is…. We can’t find it.
Thank you.
Not knowing how to contact “arl” in a different way, we are unable to find a listing for The Mark Strand Theater in Buffalo. Would “arl” be kind enough to post the exact URL for this?
We’re thinking “arl” is referring to the Mark Strand in NYC, not the one in Buffalo.
Does anyone have information about the ORIGINAL Strand Theater on Main Street?
Years?
Address?
Thank you.
View link
Here is correct link.
The building, still standing, is now the Autumnwood Senior Center.
View link
112th Birthday Party for Mitchell and Moe Mark’s Vitascope Theater in Buffalo, NY, USA.
Saturday, October 18, 2008, 1-2PM
Ellicott Square Building, Main and Swan Streets. Enter on Washington Street.
Boring Speeches, interesting tours, official presentations, and BIRTHDAY CAKE. Plus the unveiling of a new, commemorative Poster and Limited Edition Print by artist Scott Alexander Wood.
There is absolutely no doubt that the Pittsburgh Nickelodeon was NOT the first dedicated movie theater. Nor were any of the Talley theaters in LA. The first “store-front converted to a movie theater” was the May 1896 New Orleans' theater that ran for several weeks. The first architect designed, permanent (two years!) dedicated movie theater was the Mark Brothers' Vitascope Theatre opened in Buffalo, New York in October 1896.
What is still to be determined is the first “built from the ground up on an empty lot” movie theater. This is, in July 2008, unknown.
New research has just revealed that Tally’s Electric Theatre was NOT a free standing building: it was part of a larger building. Apparently, it was not a store-front conversion, but a purpose-built storefront.
This now leaves in doubt what the actual first “Theater” built free-standing from the ground up was.
There is a MySpace site at:
myspace.com/singlescreenmovietheaters
Harold Lloyd Film Festival, April 18-20, 2008.
Sponsored by The Riviera Theatre, The Buffalo Film Society, and the Bufffalo International Film Festival.
More information:
View link
Can someone post a photograph of the standing building at 95 Munroe Street? The two reports of “demolition” and “still standing” are sort of contradictory. :–)
The article above appeared on November 25, 2007, not October 25, 2007 as stated. A typo.
An opening day (October 19, 1896) advertisement refers to it as “The Electric Theater.”
Vitascope Hall is also referred to as The Vitascope Theater.
Sorry to post this here, but we’ve tried every other way to reach Joe Vogel. Mr. V… if you read this, could you write to us at
BuffaloFilmFestival AT gmail.com ? (substitute @ for AT) Thank you!
The theater was open six days a week until November 1897 when it was opened seven days a week. Shows were presented on the hour from 10:30 in the morning until 11:30 at night.
Between the opening of the theater on October 19, 1896 and November 1897, Mitchell Mark claimed that 200,000 people had visited the theater! This is substantially more than the population of the entire Western New York Region.
To clarify, the theatre itself is “demolished” although the approximate space it occupied has been identified and would have occupied an area now taken up with a workshop and tools.
The Ellicott Square Building still exists and has not been demolished. So, in principal, the location of the theatre exists, but not the actual theater.
There is some ongoing discussion about reconstructing the theater provided enough details about its exact configuration can be located. There are newspaper articles that describe it.
The known facts are that it had 72 seats in 9 rows of 4 seats each separated by an aisle down the center.
There was a stage and screen at one end of the room which was painted white with trim. The floor was covered with a red “velvet” carpet.
It is easy to suppose that the 1896 Vitascope sat on a table at the back of the room since this was the typical mode of projection.
The ceilings of the basement space are roughly 20 feet high so that is the physical boundary of the space.