Cinema Manhasset

Wasn’t this the most elegant little cinema on Long Island? After years of longing to go, I persuaded my Dad to take me – it was a double bill of “Winning” (Paul Newman racing cars, and competing with Robert Wagner for the affections of Joanne Woodward), and “Tell Them Willie Boy is Here” (Robert Redford and Katherine Ross, and Robert Blake in the title role). Only two seats in each of the side aisles (against the wall), and a black-and-silver motif. Of course, it was a Rugoff/Cinema 5 theater – the only one on LI – so it was like a Manhattan theater in the ‘burbs’. After I got a car in ‘74, I came here frequently – for the Lina Wertmuller hits (Love and Anarchy, Swept Away, Seven Beauties); Dona Flor and her Two Husbands (at which a friend of mine discovered that subtitles aren’t so bad!).

Wonderful place to see movies.

Yes, an elegant gem. Howard Ackely was the manager when I was working there in 80’s. He wore his black tuxedo every Saturday night, greeting patrons at arrival and running a tight ship. His Assistnat manager, Mary, was more of a Janis Joplin character with a big heart. Quite the polar opposites. A friend staged his garage band after hours on the stage one night and that placed rocked. My career was almost ended by the theme to Chariots of Fire that ran for something like 10 months straight. Diva was also a memorable showing. I was fired when the new manager, George, arrived who was probably alright but I hated that he was messing with our clubhouse. I still have my dark red initials that I salvaged from the marquee alphabet.

I started at the Manhasset Cinema in the summer of 1979. Because it was in the shopping center it had to be open for matinees. The first movie I worked was “Tree of the Wooden Clogs”, a three hour movie about Italian peasants. We might get five people in a midweek matinee.
Howard and Mary were the odd couple but it all worked. I used to hide Mary’s cigarettes. I worked through my senior year of high school. Later Mr. Ackley would always find work for me when I came back for college breaks, I later worked for him again when he moved to the Roosevelt Field Theatre.
It was a fun place a work, so many good memories of people there.
It seems odd now to think of movies running for months at a theatre, but they did. Chariots of Fire did run forever! and the theme song drove you crazy after a while. I fondly remember the Laura Antonelli movies and admiring her breasts as she was ravished in a barn or elsewhere. La Cage Aux Folle ran forever too and certain scenes always cracked me up.
I went back for a visit years ago and it was the site of the Met Museum Store. The plug holes for the stands for the ropes were still in the sidewalk.

My father worked at this cinema from 1965 to 1973, I was 5 year old and my brother was 9 years old in 1968- we use to spend the day in the cinema in the morning to about 3 pm we use to help clean the movie room up find money and stuff, go on the stage and sing beatle songs lol- then we use to walk to Newburrys store stare at all the beatles rolling stones albums go downstairs to the toy room they also had a small room with pin ball and gun shooting arcade machines, there was also a store on the other side right next to the cinema they sold coffee and comic books I still have my hulk comic books from there, and of course they had Floyds store about 70 yards away from the cinema but that was too far away my father would not let us go there, sometimes we would sneak their to look at the toys and P.F. FLYER SNEAKERS. I ust to hang out in the little ticket room go up stairs they also had a basement very scary looking but the cinema owner had a son alittle older them me and my brother he had some cool rock albums down there and alittle record player . I have many more memories of the first and many movies I saw there, planet of the apes- mary poppings

It should be noted that the theater closed in 1985 - I believe - and that the outdoor mall was called the Americana. “Miracle Mile” refers to a stretch of Northern Boulevard that included the Americana. Saw KISS OF THE SPIDER WOMAN here, not to mention that awful NATIONAL LAMPOON’S EUROPEAN VACATION, which I only went to for the travel scenery. A-ha’s clip for “Take On Me” was screened along with “Vacation”.