Kent Cinema Twins
959 McLean Avenue,
Yonkers,
NY
10704
959 McLean Avenue,
Yonkers,
NY
10704
2 people
favorited this theater
Additional Info
Previously operated by: Brandt Theaters
Functions: Dance Studio, Office Space, Retail
Previous Names: Cameo Theatre, Kent Theatre, Kent Cinema
Nearby Theaters
The Cameo Theatre was opened on August 25, 1925. It was remodeled and reopened as the Kent Theatre on August 15, 1940 with Robert Taylor in “Waterloo Bridge” & Eddie Cantor in “Forty Little Mothers”. On December 16, 1983 it was operating as the Kent Cinema Twins. It closed on September 30, 1984 with Robert Ginty in “Exterminator 2”.
Contributed by
RobertR
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Recent comments (view all 22 comments)
My thanks to Mr. Kovar and Mr. Zornig. Old geezers romanticize, but the Woodlawn folks who shared the Kent with my family were an especially nice lot. Work has exiled me to the Midwest since the early 1970s — nothing but inhumane suburban-mall Multiplexes around here (groan!) — so I hardly ever go to movies any more, except for “Harry Potter” flicks with my grandkids. It’s sad.
I just discovered Cinema Treasures about a month ago, after acquiring a snazzy new iMac. My old steam-driven boxy Mac was about 19 cyber generations out-of-date. This Website brings back many, many happy memories.
Happy New Year!
The very last movie I saw at the Kent was “There Was a Crooked Man”, starring Kirk Douglas and Henry Fonda. Maybe I saw it in 1971 or so. There was a “B” feature too, but memory has blanked regarding that one. I wish I could recollect what the first flicks I saw at the Kent were, back during WWII, but I have no clue at all. Saturday afternoon B&W “action” movies from those days all merge together in my dimming memory — Westerns, War movies, Bogart, and lots of boring stuff starring Bette Davis or Irene Dunne, my Mom’s favorite actresses. I kept waiting for Bogart to eliminate the ladies, so John Wayne could get on with his “action” scenarios….
The “New Kent Cinema” did have an emergency exit, directly opposite the First National illuminated clock. I remember it well as I used the exit as an entrance a few times in the 70’s when funds were low.
Saw my first movie there “Bullit” in 1969 I think. Went straight to the downstairs front row to discover everything was a blur so close to the screen.
That bloody clock appears to have been the Kent’s most memorable feature — like the Rockettes, at Radio City Music Hall! The clock should be memorialized with a humongous statue, at the corner of McClean and Kimball!
Love ya' all! Say “hello!” to St. Barnabas for me.
“There was A Crooked Man” is one of my favorite westerns,Fonda is the warden of a prison in the wild west.He knows Douglas has buried his loot for when he breaks out and wants it. Henry Fonda stated it was good Western,but the public had no one to pull for since both the Warden and the outlaw were on the bad side,A good Western with a strong supporting cast. Guess I am off topic, Sontaran 6.
A fire ended the building’s career as a theater. Storefronts occupied the building’s lobby until, at least, the early 1990s, when I last visited the neighborhood. Google Maps now appear to show a two-floor commercial building in the old Kent’s place. Sad!
I’ve lived up the street from this area for 20 years (I live close to Coyne Park and the Webster Bank) and I can’t believe there was a theater that close to where I live that wasn’t the Kimball, which is another local legend. It’s so sad, I wonder if there’s a way we can bring another theater back to this area that isn’t the Cross County Multiplex, since there’s efforts now to restore the Park Hill and the Proctor.
Hey prompterbob you are a hero. It is so cool to hear from a projectionist. The Kent was an important part of the neighborhood and beyond. I lived just on the other side of White Plains Rd. I was in high school in the mid-70s and it was a rare place we could walk to safely(even at night). It was clean, cheap, and still a bargain even when it only had 2d run movies and their motto was “it pays to wait”. I saw Rocky and Rocky II there. I guess progress made it close. The neighborhood has really improved lately, so maybe an entrepreneur will try it again. There used to be a bowling alley across the street and upstairs. Such great memories!
This opened as the Cameo theatre on August 25th, 1925 as the Cameo theatre. It reopened as the Kent on August 15th, 1940. Grand opening ads posted.
The Kent rebranded as a twin screen venue on December 16, 1983 as the Kent Cinema Twins. The final screening appears to be of “Exterminator 2” on September 30, 1984.