Gem Theatre
36 W. 135th Street,
New York,
NY
10037
36 W. 135th Street,
New York,
NY
10037
No one has favorited this theater yet
Showing 3 comments
Hello-
the Crescent/Gem was designed and built to showcase films as well as vaudeville and as such opened on the night of Dec. 16, 1909. so doesn’t that make it the 1st theater built brick by brick from the ground up in Manhattan for the purpose of showing movies?
for the next several years after the faithful night of April 23, 1896 at Koster and Bial’s Music Hall i should think any “movie theaters” that existed in Manhattan were simply music halls and vaudeville/legitimate theaters converted to show flickers as they were known.
I neglected to properly list the theatre’s status as “Closed/Demolished.” Harlem Hospital Center now utilizes the land on which the theatre once stood.
The American Motion Picture Directory;1914-1915 has the Crescent Theatre listed at the address 38 West 135th Street.
The Film Daily Yearbook;1926 edition has this theatre listed as the New Gem Theatre with 300 seats. The 1930 edition of F.D.Y. has it listed as the Gem Theatre with 299 seats.