Mall Twin Theatre

Ads start October 6, 1971 and it looks like the Mall Cinema launched on a 20-year lease. In its second cycle, Richard Nathan closed it as the Mall Twin on August 30, 1997. It then relaunched late in 1998 closing March 30, 2003 with “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” and “Two Weeks Notice.”

Closed by owner Richard Nathan in September 1997 (he also owned and closed the Newton, Sparta & Washington theaters at this time). Reopened on 12/18/98 by Nelson Page with two 250 seat auditoriums.

I always noticed the white square marque lit up in white, with black lettering announcing the features. It was located right off Mountain Ave next to the mall entrance, with a steel ladder attached to the side for someone to change the display. Alot of people used to go to K-Mart back in the 80s and the mall was thriving. I never did see a movie there but noticed people always exiting from the left side doors and it usually seemed busy. The one time I did step inside the lobby it felt like I was in a spaceship because of the unusual light fixtures on the ceiling. I like seeing those photos in the site mentioned above too. The mall theatre would get the first run films back then and some would later play at the Washington Theatre in the next town over, which is where I would always see the movies. They were part of a chain that also included the ones in Newton and Sparta. It was a lot of fun back in those days because of the rivalry between Washington and Hackettstown and everyone liked watching films in there hometown.