Roxy Theatre
1545 Boardwalk,
Atlantic City,
NJ
08401
1545 Boardwalk,
Atlantic City,
NJ
08401
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This theater indeed was beautiful. Why Hamid used the Virginia as the big Roadshow theater is beyond me. It had no masking or curtains. The Roxy had both plus a beautiful screen that sat on a stage.
The Stanley theatre opened as the world’s most beautiful seashore theatre on July 3rd, 1925, and became the Roxy theatre on June 26th, 1957, as George A. Hamid takes it over. It was listed under the General Drive-In Corporation in the IMPA alamancs for 1961 and 1964. It closed in 1974. Grand opening ads posted.
I building and amusement park burned in the summer of 81 or 82
Closed in 1974.
1955 photo as the Stanley Theatre added, courtesy of the Kodachrome Heaven Facebook page.
1957 photo added courtesy of the AmeriCar The Beautiful Facebook page.
Here is a 1968 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/cqdc9y
Renewing link.
When a site is removed, what happens to the information and postings that were on it? Have they been threaded into this one or just erased? I’d hate to see the information just liquidated.
The Stanley Theatre can by seen in the center background in this 1925 view of the Boardwalk:
View link
This may clear up the mystery. Look up the Stanley Theater in Atlantic City. There is a link to a picture. Looking at the picture and the other buildings surrounding the “Stanley” I’m almost certain that the Stanley became the “Roxy” we are discussing here. The “Stanley” is listed as having over 1900 seats, which seems about right from my memories of the “Roxy” in the 60’s.
I vaguely recall the amusement park. I think there were a couple of childrens' rides and some skeeball games.
The Roxy played “A Hole in the Head” for several weeks in the summer of 1959. Beautiful theater. I’d rank it second only to the Warner/Warren in Atlantic City in the 1950s. — Ed Blank
I remember Super Simplex projectors & Ashcraft arc lamps. The water circulator to cool the carbons was a sink of running water connected to the lamhouses. The theatre entrance was on the boardwalk, but the theatre ran paralell to it. You got to the booth though the back of the large balcony. I stood on the back roof on the way up to the booth and looked at the Traymore Hotel. One of the projectionist, Richard DeHaven, use to sunbath on that roof. He also use to swim around The Steel Pier at the age of 80!
Listed in the 1970 FDY as part of G.G. Theatres.
I was pretty young when I went to theatres such as the Roxy, and my technical knowledge of presentation was slim at best. I really did not truly appreciate these palaces until they were all gone. I really regret not photographing these treasures for posterity. I was recently in one of the two big auditoriums at Neshaminy 24 with my 13
year old son and he was pretty awed when I explained to him that most
of the theatres I attended at his age or younger had twice the number of seats (600) that the two big rooms at the 24 have. By the
way, if you live in the area, auditoriums 2 and 24 at Neshaminy are probably the best places to see an “event” type film. Really large screens, good sound, 600 seats and not too many projection screw-ups even though it does appear that the boothes are “manned” by teenagers.
I thought the theater where I saw Jungle Book was on the boardwalk, but you may be right. It’s been a long time.
Ken, I may be wrong, but you probably saw Jungle Book and Charlie The
Lonesome Cougar at the Center Theatre on Atlantic Avenue (that’s where I saw them). Oliver to my recollection never played at the Roxy, but did play at the Shore Theatre, also on Atlantic Avenue.
I went to a double feature with my mother at the Roxy in 1967. The films were Jungle Book (the cartoon) and Charlie the Lonesome Cougar, a nature documentary of sorts released by Disney. I can picture the theater in my mind to this day. I also saw Oliver there the same year or possibly the next.
I was only in the Hollywood once when it became a $1.00 house before they closed. I rememebr the Beach had a beautful balcony. It’s a shame it became a porno theater in it’s later years.
I think the Hollywood had a balcony and the best marquee and front(it looked amazing all lit up). The Beach definately had a balcony, but the Center did not. The Hollywood was big and beautiful also, but from a strictly movie viewing standpoint, the Roxy ruled (bigger
screen, better sight lines, etc.).
I have no idea why they didn’t use this theater for roadshow engagements. The Virgina had no balcony and didn’t have a very large screen. It didn’t even have curtains or masking The Roxy had curtains, masking and a beautiful balcony. This was the only theater that didn’t show roadshow engagements. The SHore had a small balcony, but I don’t think the Center did and I can’t remember about the Hollywood.
The last year for movies at the Roxy was 1973. They opneed for the season on June 27 with a Sidney Poiier movies entitiled, A Warm December. The following year, the Hamid family used the lobby for a moviee museum called MovieWolrd. George Hamids son ran it. The following year it was turned into an indoor amusement park, In 1981 it burned down.