Comments from Ed Solero

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Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Ziegfeld Theatre on Dec 16, 2005 at 8:20 am

Stevebob… I wholeheartedly agree with you. This is certainly not a “movie palace” in the traditional sense of the phrase – but then, neither are probably more than 80% of the theaters listed on this site. The Ziegfeld is basically a larger more decked-out version of some of the more upscale suburban boxes that were built in the ‘60’s (like the Fox in East Setauket or the Loew’s Bay Terrace in Bayside). The seating is plush and there’s a sufficient amount of velvet and brocade trim for the theater to have passed as “elegant” in the '60’s and '70’s (sort of wedding-hall chic). I felt the same towards the former Astor Plaza, which was a bit less flashy than the Ziegfeld but shared with it the one virtue that made both places a rare treat for moviegoers, particularly as older theaters (the true palaces) were either multiplexed or razed in the '80’s and '90’s: an extraordinarily spacious single screen auditorium.

That’s still good enough reason to seek out the Ziegfeld when an interesting enough film is booked there. But, I would agree that there is nothing particularly palatial about the theater’s architectural merits and certainly nothing in its interior appointments to merit favorable comparison with true lost cinematic treasures like the Rivoli, Strand, Loew’s State or Roxy Theaters.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Westbury Drive-In on Dec 16, 2005 at 7:06 am

A little trivia going back to RobertR’s posting of the “Born Losers” ad… This was the precurser to Tom Laughlin’s notorious Billy Jack movie series from the 1970’s. Love those ads, by the way. Keep ‘em coming! I’d love to see more of those lurid double bills from the '70’s and even very early 80’s that played Times Square and certain neighborhood screens… I’m thinking about blacksploitation and Kung Fu flicks, but also some of the horror twin-bills from the turn of the decade '79-'81. Unfortunately, those ads didn’t really run as large as they did in the '60’s, if they even ran at all. Sometimes, you just had to scour the Neighborhood Movie Clock listings in the papers to see what was playing.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Loew's State Theatre on Dec 16, 2005 at 6:57 am

Very sad, RobertR. I saw this version of Kong at the Astoria, which has been gutted to it’s bare walls for retail/commercial use. But, on the bright side, at least the Paradise, Metropolitan, Elmwood and Valencia are still standing and being well preserved (or in the process) as houses of worship. Better still, they are all more or less open to the public. I dare say that for the most part these theaters are in better shape now than when they last saw a feature film presentation, with all traces of multiplexing having been elmininated. One might argue against the current garish color scheme of the former Valencia (which was never twinned or triplexed), but at least it retains it’s original configuration, unlike the partitioned American.

Is the Lane in Staten Island still open as a nightclub? I thought I read on this site that the interior is landmarked.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about UA Quartet on Dec 16, 2005 at 6:24 am

Thanks Warren. It’s difficult to reconcile that facade with the current pictures I posted above. Or even with the red-brick facade I seem to recall from before the conversion to drug-store and the destruction of the neighboring storefronts to the left of the theater. Then again, look at how the original presumably beaux-arts interior described by mike69 on September 26th was obscured for so many years once the theater was divided by four.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Strand Theatre on Dec 16, 2005 at 6:17 am

I don’t know that the Strand ever really could have been called a “movie palace” davebazooka, but I’m sure there a plenty of little single screen neighborhood theaters hidden behind discount store, drug store and supermarket facades all around the 5 boroughs and on Long Island. Most of them are probably listed here on this site.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Loew's Inwood Theater on Dec 16, 2005 at 5:52 am

I’ll have to get uptown again and check it out. Thanks for responding, jack4c.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Cross Island Cinemas on Dec 16, 2005 at 5:46 am

Please correct the address to “Cross Island Parkway” and eliminate the duplicate listing here.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Loew's State Theatre on Dec 16, 2005 at 3:55 am

Isn’t Hilton Theater the new name of the former Ford Center for the Performing Arts, the “new” theater that was cobbled together in the combined shells of the Lyric and Apollo on 42nd Street? I believe that is where the show “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” is playing. And I did mean to write that the “site of the original Loew’s State” and the Hilton are within a few blocks… my error made it seem as if the old State was still standing, which, as you correctly point out, is not so.

Anyway… it’s hard to keep up with the name changes in the New York theatrical community. Several legitimate theaters have recently been re-christened – including a pair of Shubert theaters that were named after a couple of the Organization’s Board members: the Royale is now the Bernard Jacobs and the Plymouth now the Gerald Schoenfeld.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Loew's State Theatre on Dec 15, 2005 at 5:11 pm

Gustavelifting… the Loew’s State and the Hilton Theater are within a few blocks of each other, never mind a mile. Haven’t seen the “Chitty” show yet, though my ex did take the kiddies to see it. I saw the movie in theaters as well when I was a very young boy, but it was in a neighborhood theater in Queens, not Times Square. I loved the Loew’s State all the same, even though I never knew it as a single screen theater. Both theaters were spacious, but I remember the upstairs theater being the better of the two because of the original high ceiling. This and the Rivoli were the nicest and most ornate of the theaters on the Square as I can recall, although, I must admit I never made it into either the Criterion or Movieland during the years I frequented the area in the ‘80’s.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Embassy 1,2,3 Theatre on Dec 15, 2005 at 11:40 am

One small correction. The information on this site that John Eberson was architect for the Civic Theatre in New Zealand seems to be in error. The theatre’s description states the style is “Ebersonian” and the theatre’s official website notes C. Bohringer as architect.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about King Kong takes Manhattan on Dec 15, 2005 at 11:39 am

One small correction. The information on this site that John Eberson was architect for the Civic Theatre in New Zealand seems to be in error. The theatre’s description states the style is “Ebersonian” and the theatre’s official website notes C. Bohringer as architect.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Civic Theatre on Dec 15, 2005 at 11:35 am

The theatre’s website, listed above in the introduction, cites one C. Bohringer (of the firm Bohringer, Taylor and Johnson) as the Civic’s architect. There is no mention of John Eberson’s involvement at all. The description states “Ebersonian” implying the design in Eberson’s style but supporting that it may be the work of another. Perhaps there should be a correction here.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about New Victory Theater on Dec 15, 2005 at 11:11 am

I wonder why the 1968 movie “The Night They Raided Minsky’s” wasn’t filmed here, since the Victory was home to Minsky’s Follies back in the days? There is a post on the Village East page that claims the movie filmed its interiors there. Was the Village East vacant at the time and therefore easier to settle into for a long shoot? Perhaps the erotic fare at the Victory was too lucrative at that time for the owners to let it close for filming.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Village East by Angelika on Dec 15, 2005 at 11:06 am

From dave-bronx’s comments on September 10, sounds like a theater that’s worth keeping an eye out for, as long as the film you want to see is in the main auditorium.

The opening comment on this page (from 2002) says that the movie “The Night They Raided Minsky’s” was filmed here. Was the interior of the Victory Theater on 42nd Street so run-down in 1968 that they couldn’t have filmed in the real-life location of Minsky’s Follies? Or perhaps the owners wouldn’t allow filming.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Costello Theatre on Dec 15, 2005 at 10:52 am

Please correct the address to “New York, NY.” This theater is in upper Manhattan and should come up when searching for “New York” by city.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about RKO Keith's Theatre on Dec 15, 2005 at 10:24 am

Warren… if you (or anyone else) find out when demolition is set to begin, please post the information here. I’d very much like to see if I can arrange to be in the area when that happens and try to document it as best I can.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about UA Lynbrook 6 on Dec 15, 2005 at 10:17 am

The cinematour site has this vintage postcard rendering of the Lynbrook’s original exterior and marquee. I can’t recall if there was ever a structure on the corner to the right of the theater during the days I frequented the place, but the postcard indicates something was there. It’s currently a vacant lot with the full side elevation of the theater exposed to Hempstead Ave. And I believe the current marquee is flat with no canopy over the entrance to the building.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about King Kong takes Manhattan on Dec 15, 2005 at 9:25 am

I posted this earlier on the Embassy 2,3,4 site and was considering posting a news item, but thanks Patrick for beating me to it!

I saw the new “King Kong” from Peter Jackson last night and it features some stunning digital recreations of New York City circa 1933. While artistic liberties are taken, Times Square is well represented in the film. The Mayfair Theater in particular, with it’s huge wrap-around corner billboard, is probably the most prominently recognizable Times Square landmark featured in the climactic New York sequence of the film. The theater where Kong is put on display in the film is a fictional “Alhambra Theater” that has more or less displaced the Palace on the block between 47th and 46th Street, although Jackson has it located on the other side of the old Newsreel Theater (Embassy 1) in his “reel” world. The action and camera movements in this sequence are very rapid-fire, so I’m sure I’ll be making good use of the “pause” and “rewind” buttons on my remote to make geeky study of all the digital detail work in the recreation (particularly as it relates to the theaters depicted) when the movie is released on DVD.

The atmospheric interior of the “Alhambra” belongs to the very real Civic Theatre in Auckland, New Zealand, which is evidently still very much in use for both cinematic presentation and live events. The theater is a stunning overseas effort by atmospheric guru John Eberson.

As for the movie itself, if anyone is interested… the first hour didn’t really work for me; I found it unevenly acted, under-directed, over-scored and poorly written. However, once the characters are set to sea and their ship encounters the mysterious fog that shrouds Kong’s native Skull Island, the film really takes off on a rip-roaring adventure. Great fun. Technically dazzling and rather touching throughout… and there are some clever (and not-so-clever) references to bits of dialog and business (and use of Max Steiner’s classic score) from the original Cooper/Shoedsack film sprinkled about with varying success. Bottom line, the old B&W version still reigns supreme, but this is a worthy re-envisioning and technical update.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Loew's Paradise Theatre on Dec 15, 2005 at 7:31 am

Here’s a link to the Paradise’s cinematour page which features an array of photos taken while renovations were still in progress back in August 2004. Please forgive if this is a duplicate of an earlier post, but there are so many comments to sift through on this page I thought it’d be useful to take a look at them now that the theater is open again:

http://www.cinematour.com/tour.php?db=us&id=16520

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Embassy 1,2,3 Theatre on Dec 15, 2005 at 6:11 am

I saw the new “King Kong” from Peter Jackson last night and it features some stunning digital recreations of New York City circa 1933. While artistic liberties are taken, Times Square is well represented in the film. The Mayfair Theater in particular, with it’s huge wrap-around corner billboard, is probably the most prominently recognizable Times Square landmark featured in the climactic New York sequence of the film. The theater where Kong is put on display in the film is a fictional “Alhambra Theater” that has more or less displaced the Palace on the block between 47th and 46th Street, although Jackson has it located on the other side of the old Newsreel Theater (Embassy 1) in his “reel” world. The action and camera movements in this sequence are very rapid-fire, so I’m sure I’ll be making good use of the “pause” and “rewind” buttons on my remote to make geeky study of all the digital detail work in the recreation (particularly as it relates to the theaters depicted) when the movie is released on DVD.

The atmospheric interior of the “Alhambra” belongs to the very real Civic Theatre in Auckland, New Zealand, which is evidently still very much in use for both cinematic presentation and live events. The theater is a stunning overseas effort by atmospheric guru John Eberson.

As for the movie itself, if anyone is interested… the first hour didn’t really work for me; I found it unevenly acted, under-directed, over-scored and poorly written. However, once the characters are set to sea and their ship encounters the mysterious fog that shrouds Kong’s native Skull Island, the film really takes off on a rip-roaring adventure. Great fun. Technically dazzling and rather touching throughout… and there are some clever (and not-so-clever) references to bits of dialog and business (and use of Max Steiner’s classic score) from the original Cooper/Shoedsack film sprinkled about with varying success. Bottom line, the old B&W version still reigns supreme, but this is a worthy re-envisioning and technical update.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Civic Theatre on Dec 15, 2005 at 5:35 am

According to the internet movie data base site (imdb.com), the interior of the Civic stands in for the interior of the fictional Alhambra Theater in Times Square where the great ape is put on display in Peter Jackson’s remake of “King Kong.” I saw this movie last night and the Civic’s gorgeous interior is on good display itself throughout the sequence – that is, until Kong breaks free of his chains and starts smashing up the place.

When this film comes out on DVD, Times Square enthusiasts will wear out the “pause” and “advance frame” buttons on their remotes as they try and freeze frames and take in the splendid detail in which Jackson has digitally recreated the Square circa 1933. If I didn’t know any better, I might have thought the crew were somehow transported back in time to film on location!

Anyway… I trust the good people of Auckland are grateful to have a showplace as magnificent as the Civic still in theatrical and cinematic operation. Not a single atmospheric theater remains in use (other than a few conversions to houses of worship) on the isle of Manhattan – or in the rest of the boroughs of NYC for that matter. Shame on us.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Mixed-Use Project Gets OK at Flushing's RKO Keith's Site on Dec 15, 2005 at 4:45 am

I have to admit, begrudgingly, that I’d rather save this small piece of the Keith’s than see it completely erased from existence. It just saddens me that this once magnificent showplace has been sitting there in the most conspicuous of locations and allowed to rot and decay for the last 19 years while an assortment of self-serving politicians, greedy real estate developers and oily attorneys have been cutting back-room deals to seal the old gal’s fate.

The theater is lost. Period. What is to remain will offer a feeble hint of the grandeur that once was the RKO Keith’s â€" and then only really in the minds of those of us who can recall first hand how this remnant fit in contextually with the rest of the theater. It makes a mockery of the unfortunate LPC decision to designate only the lobby and grand foyer by failing even to honor the limited scope of its mandate for preservation. I have no choice but to accept this fate and I suppose that I can take some solace in the fact that it at least leaves me with a place where I can stand and gaze into the past using my mind’s eye; piecing together the missing elements through memory. But, I think that as much as nostalgia will fill my heart as I stand in the center of RKO Plaza some time in 2007, so will a fair amount of anger and bitterness and thoughts of what might have been.

To paraphrase JFK, some folks see the Keith’s as it is and ask “why?” I see the Keith’s as it isn’t and ask “why not?”

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Roxy Theatre on Dec 14, 2005 at 7:13 am

It looks to me as if that Roxy sign might be a bit more in the foreground than the Rivoli Theater, Warren, thought it’s hard to tell for sure. It looks too high to have been on the roof of the Winter Garden Theater, so perhaps it was on the roof of the office building that stood on 51st along with the old Roseland ball room. That looks about right to me. And the Roxy itself was just a block to the east.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about UA Lynbrook 6 on Dec 14, 2005 at 5:01 am

Yes… that’s right. Each auditorium had two sets of doors – one closer to the center lobby area and the other down the foyer hallway leading towards either side of the theater. I think there used to be benches against the wall near those doors down the hall.

Ed Solero
Ed Solero commented about Mixed-Use Project Gets OK at Flushing's RKO Keith's Site on Dec 14, 2005 at 4:40 am

Bah, humbug! Go to the Keith’s page here and read the comments. This is vandalism under the guise of preservation. Sure there’ll be some interesting architectural elements to be seen and appreciated by passersby and people who enter the building, but it seems to me that all sense of space will be destroyed by the development as currently planned. Unfortunately, landmark protection – at least in this particular case – does not extend to ambience and utility, only to the bricks and mortar (which in this case will at least be partially demolished to make way for that “curtain of glass” anyway).