Flatbush Theatre
2207 Church Avenue,
Brooklyn,
NY
11226
2207 Church Avenue,
Brooklyn,
NY
11226
3 people
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Additional Info
Previously operated by: Brandt Theaters, B.S. Moss Enterprises, Keith-Albee
Architects: Robert T. Rasmussen
Functions: Furniture Showroom
Previous Names: Werba's Theatre, B.F. Keith's Flatbush Theatre, Brandt's Flatbush Theatre
Nearby Theaters
The architect of the Flatbush Theatre was Robert T. Rasmussen. Vaudeville, plays, and movies were featured. It was equipped with a Wurlitzer 2 manual 8 ranks, style V organ. I saw “Kiss Me Kate” with the original cast during a summer in the late-1940’s. (Like the Brighton Theatre, Broadway shows appeared there during the summer months).
After the theatre closed in 1952, the marquee was removed, and it became a rug and carpet store at the stage end of the building.
Contributed by
ERD
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Recent comments (view all 22 comments)
This article from July 1920 relates B.F. Keith’s time as operator or the Flatbush theater. See link below:
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someone recently thought the Flatbush was just plays and vaudville..no growing up during ww2…………
on a satuday we would go at 10 or 11am for cartoon then 3 short like stooges……then the coming attractions………then 5h3 first movie………..the lights would go up on the stage and there would be several acts of vaudville……..then the lights dimmed and another movie………..by the end it would be six or more and mom never let us stay for one more showing……..
ALL 4 A PRICE OF THIRTEEN (13) cents!!!!!!!
Keith’s leased and operated the Flatbush Theater until October 13, 1928, when L. F. Werba, who at that time was operating Werba’s Brooklyn Theater downtown on Flatbush Extension and two other houses as legit venues, assumed the lease and introduced that format in place of Keith’s Vaudeville and movies which moved over to the new Kenmore Theater down Church Avenue west, of Flatbush Avenue .
On 30 July 1920 Keith’s took over B. S. Moss theaters including Flatbush for Vaudeville and movies. See story at link:
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Link to article on construction of Flatbush Theater in 1914:
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Jerry DeRosa began his theater career in 1920 as assistant manager of the B.S. Moss Flatbush Theatre before moving on to manage Moss’s Cameo Theatre on Eastern Parkway and the Colonial in the Eastern District.
In 1928 he became manager of Loew’s Paradise in the Bronx where he died at his desk in October 1945.
Another great find Tinseltoes.
Hostile Country is 1950 … I believe this photo is ‘51
Last post over 6 years ago. This past Sunday at dusk, I walked past the former Flatbush Theatre Building and the upper windows for the offices are being replaced along with some alterations. I was pleasantly suprised to see the added projection booth with the port holes still in place in the upper rear wall. After 65 years of being closed, a part of the theatre was in still in place. I will try to get a peek. Got some photos… I don’t post. The nighttime construction lights that were on afforded me this view from the past.
The organ in the Flatbush was an early Wurlitzer, their opus 59 (out of a total of 2234 organs). The factory records show a Style “V” – vee, not roman numeral 5 – the first of 26 Style V instruments built over the next 3 years. The V was a fairly small instrument for a house of this size; 2 manuals and 8 ranks of pipes, lacking the distinctive Tibia Clausa which became the iconic sound of the Mighty Wurlitzer organ.