York Theatre
1187 1st Avenue,
New York,
NY
10065
1187 1st Avenue,
New York,
NY
10065
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Soupy’s shows were taped at Channel 5, WNYW , located at 205 E. 67th Street, roughly 5 min walk from the York.
That’d explain why when he’d run to the left when he’d got off the ladder.
2/13/23 goofing around on Facebook and I leaned that Soupy Sales taped a show here and was truly grateful for CT for their plethora of information (as always)
I grew up around the corner on E68th St and saw a couple of revivals here
In the 60s the York tried its hand as a revival house, among some great double bills I saw there were On Waterfront/A Place in the Sun, One-Eyed Jacks/Bad Day at Black Rock and the Searchers/Lonely are the Brave.
The 1960 series “Naked City” is currently seen on MeTv. In “The Succession of Heartbeats” a car being chased by the police shows the York as the they turn from 64th onto First.
The Clearview has also closed.
I have lived on 64th between First & York for over 30 yrs now & fondly remember Maxwells Plum esp. since to go anywhere other than the E River, I have to constantly pass this corner. It was a 2 story Blockbuster at one time. I always thought that the space occupied by Little Ricky’s today (before that a drug store & before that a small disco/club) may have been part of the theatre? Glad Mr. Laffs was mentioned because the area used to have more comedy clubs other than the areas still lasting ‘Dangerfields’ I barely remember another comedy club nearby called “Who’s On First.” The area still has the Clearview Cinemas on 62nd btwn First & York but has seen it’s Second Ave. theaters closing.
OK gang Here is the straight scoop on the old York, I grew up around the corner. As A kid in the 50’s it was a small neighborhhod movie house. Buttered popcorn and a soda was a quarter. In the early 60’s it tried becoming a playhouse. I remember seeing young abe Lincoln there with Piper Laurie. Next to it on the corner was Frank’s luncheonette. When the area got bar happy, The theatre and the luncheonette were gutted, and became the famous MAXWELL’S PLUM. building was torn down some years ago and now is another boring high rise.
The map above links to the wrong street as the York was on 64th street. Here is a 1964 re-opening ad as a cinema;
View link
According to the New York Times, from 1924 to 1958 it was a full time movie house. In 1958 it switched over to legitimate shows.
In 1964 it switched back to movies as the York with only 299 seats. By summer 1968 it was closed.
In 1966 a comedy club called Mr. Laffs was operating at 1185 First Avenue, so the original Victor must been scaled down at some point.
The apartment building housing the Duane Reade on the corner of 64th & 1st Ave (actual address 345 E 64th St) was, according to city records, erected in 1996. So presumably the York Theatre was demolished then.
I too have attempted to do some sleuthing on this theatre due to its appearance on the Soupy Sales Show !
Listed in the American Motion Picture Directory 1914-1915 as the Victor Theatre(the address is given as 1185 First Avenue).
By 1926 and thru until at least 1930 it was known as the East End Theatre, 1187 First Avenue, with a seating capacity given as 569. By 1941 it had be re-named York Theatre which it retained until closure.
Yes, that was our first fumbling attempt to return this theater to its former days of non glory. I have such bad memories of that expierence that I had forgotten about the Lean film. Regards, rudy
I visited this theatre only once, to see a specially-touted revival of David Lean’s “Great Expectations” in July of 1964. Was this at the start of the new art/revival policy?
This was my local movie theater when I was growing up on East 67th back in the late 40’s through the mid 50s. It was a shabby belly-run house that changed double bills twice a week (and I went everytime a new pair of movies was offered.) At some point it was purchased or leased by
Warner LeRoy and run as an off-Broadway theatre, with limited success. Ironically, he hired me, in the early 60s, to turn it back into a movie theater, featuring revivals and off-beat programming of independent films. I had worked with Dan Talbot at The New Yorker (running the Monday night film society there) and then been program director of The Bleecker Street Cinema (along with the late Marshall Lewis.) Little came of this scheme, mainly because Mr. LeRoy was a very difficult man to work with. He eventually turned the theater into the very successful Maxwell’s Plum, the start of Mr. Leroy’s restaurant career which included the still successful Tavern On The Green. Regards, rudy franchi