Roxy Theatre
153 W. 50th Street,
New York,
NY
10020
153 W. 50th Street,
New York,
NY
10020
83 people
favorited this theater
Showing 376 - 400 of 1,209 comments
and later on the Rivoli and the State. And the list goes on and on. For as big a city as New York is, they had no desire whatsoever to save anything old and historic, like say Chicago or St. Louis, or Oakland CA. In New York it was always out with the old, in with the new. Heck if it wasn’t for some last minute miracle, Radio City would have bit the dust in the late 70’s.
The eternal shame of New York City has a lot to regret, starting with Pennsylvania Station, one human history’s great buildings, not to mention the old Metropolitan Opera House, the Roxy, the Capitol, the 72nd Street, and the Paramount Theatres.
Thanks brucec for the info. on the “Naked City”. I remember seeing the clip of the rotunda years back and have never been able to find out since which film it was from.
I don’t live in the U.S. so didn’t visit the Roxy in my early years but have always considered it (from photos) to be the greatest movie palace of them all and its loss so quickly in the early 60’s has to be forever to the eternal shame of New York City.
RE:
“Its still strange there was no goodbye show for the Roxy which would have done well as a fond goodbye to one of the most important movie palaces in the world.It seems that parties involved didn’t want to draw any attention to the closing of the Roxy.”
Not so strange when you realize the parties involved were Rockefeller Center and Willam Zeckendorf, who both wanted the ROXY out of the way as quickly and quitely as possible. The closing, though reported in trade publications, barely made the daily newspapers and most average New Yorkers were not aware it was to be demolished until after the closing.
FreedomLand, the failed Bronx Disneyland want-to-be amusement park, was advertised on the ROXY marquee during the summer of 1960 after the theatre closed for good and was being demolished. Zeckendorf was very involved with the creation of FreedomLand
Interesting, in late 1959 Variety, reported that Robert Rothafel and a group of other investors, were considering presenting lavish sophisticated “Las Vegas type” entertainment at the ROXY along with live TV broadcasts and other event shows. Also the NY Philharmonic was looking for a home after being ousted from Carnegie Hall and was considering the ROXY. None of these plans ever saw the light of day. The Philharmonic eventually went to Lincoln Center which was already in the final planning stages. And what became of Robert Rothafel after the ROXY closed? Anyone know.
I found this site 6 hours ago. First, I wrote a long piece starting with “Today is Christmas 2008. I know where I was Christmas 1953. I was a 16 year old usher working in the Roxy. I got kicked out twice before getting logged on. I started with "Peter Pan” (its last day). Next came “Pick Up On South Street.” I stayed until “The Left Hand of God.” I thank Roxydon for reminding me of all those people I worked with. However Don’s name was “Poland” not “Pollack.” Don Poland was the captain of the permanent closing shift which I joined in the winter of 1953 because I could have Sundays and Mondays off. By 1955 I had grown into a pretty cushy job. I seem to have gotten all the special assignments such as running the mimograph machine for schedules, going to the Stage Deli or the Taft for the guys in the keno booth and the managers, running the staff elevator and, best of all, housechecking. Hence my name “Housechecker.”
Housechecker
OK. Now let’s see if I can get in.
Housechecker
I saw “The Naked City” last night on TCM and it was great to see the interior shot of the Auditorium and the Rotunda of the great Roxy Theatre.brucec
It would be interesting if someone posted the grosses of the films that played the Roxy from 1957-1960. I would like to see the erosion that contributed to the demise of the Roxy after “Windjammer”.The Roxy and Radio City were the only two theatres combining movies and stage shows. It seemed the Roxy still did well with its Christmas Shows, its the rest of the year that is the problem. Its still strange there was no goodbye show for the Roxy which would have done well as a fond goodbye to one of the most important movie palaces in the world.It seems that parties involved didn’t want to draw any attention to the closing of the Roxy. I remember when Radio City was about to close for the last time with the movie “Crossed Swords” and the grosses were huge. The Fox in San Francisco was given a major Goodbye show and both theatres were controlled by Fox for most of there lives.brucec
You are, indeed right about attendance and grosses Warren, but the point I was trying to make was that the Roxy made a good choice for the holidays. And 7th Voyage did a lot better than either the plodding Inn of Sixth Happiness or dull Rally Round the Flag would have done.
After listening to the commentary and watching the documentary, it seems like more future filmmakers were inspired to enter the business after seeing “The 7th Voyage of Sinbad” than from any other movie since “Citizen Kane”.
The Blu-Ray image is so beautiful, I’d say it hasn’t looked that good since it played the Roxy (without actually having seen it at the Roxy, unfortunately).
Nice comments Bill, “The 7th Voyage…” was not only a stunning visual treat and great family entertainment (still is) but also had the highest holiday gross ($190,000) in the Roxy history beating the record opening of “Forever Amber,” ($180,000) and second only to the grosses of “The Robe” ($264,000 opening week).
I just finished watching “The 7th Voyage of Sinbad” on Blu-Ray, and am listening to the audio commentary right now. It may have been a low-budget swashbuckler, but it’s still one of the most wonderful movies ever made. Everything about it is memorable, most especially Ray Harryhausen’s visual effects and Bernard Herrmann’s music. It’s been dearly loved and remembered for 50 years now, long after many expensive A-pictures of its time (like “Rally Round the Flag Boys”) have been almost completely forgotten.
Another one bites the dust. How sad to read/hear about another beautiful theatre closing down.
RE: seating capacity
“The Roxy was promoted at its opening as having a seating capacity of 6,214. But for the bulk of its existence it was reported as seating about 5,700. While replacement of the original seats could account for this (were they replaced?),…there is common speculation that the Roxy literally counted every "seat” in the house, including toilets and dressing room chairs, to come up with this impressive number. Does anyone have information whether or not 6,214 was ever actually the real seating capacity of the theater and if so, what alteration accounted for the lower number later on?
In 1958 the seating was vastly reduced for the showing of “Windjammer” in Cinemiracle. Probably the rear orchestra and the top baclony were draped off. But the theatre returned to its capacity of 5700 after Windjammer ended. Thanks for your help.
posted by MarkDHite on Dec 1, 2008 at 12:03am"
According to the ROXY blue prints copied in AMERICAN THEATRES OF TODAY, originally published in 1927, the auditorium was seated as follows:
Ground floor 2,840
Mezzanine 1,054
Balcony 2,026
Total 5,920 seats
I believe RCMH opened with 5,960 seats, almost identical.
The ROXY’s seating capacity was ruduced somewhat during the 1930s remodling which extended the stage apron further out into the auditorium and also muted the organ grills which spoke from beneath the stage.
For Windjammer, the seating was not physically reduced. Reserved seats were sold only for the center orchestra and lower blacony. All other areas were closed off. Some by the hanging of drapery. The CineMiracle projection booth was set up in the closed to public mezzanine.
The NY Public Lib at Linclon Ctr has (had, not sure its been so long since I viewed)a stack of publicty photos relating to the ROXY/CineMiricale/Widjammer set up. Pictured was the temporary booths, the drapery to close up sections of the theatre, the installation of the huge screen (which was in front of the procedium (sp)), even the ticket lobby reserved seat booth and the poster display cases outside.
Yes, early publicity did claim 6,214 seats. This was an exageration.
Several non-consistant seating numbers were published during the 1950s. Most were 5700 to 5800 or a bit more. I have to do some research to determine what the actually seating capacity was at closing.
RE:
Maybe Joseph would know if the Roxy had a private screening room, but if so that would have accounted for another two projectionists on a shift, and there were two shifts a day (at least) in the main Roxy booth.
Yes, the ROXY had a smaller projection room on the orchestra level, 51st street side of the building. Complete with a mini stage and foyer. It was near the library, switch board and properties room.
RE: Fox Movietone studios
Sony to shutter historic studios
By Marlene Naanes, amNewYork Staff Writer
June 14, 2007, 7:30 AM EDT
Citing difficult times in the recording industry, Sony BMG is closing its historic Hell’s Kitchen studios, where artists such as J. Lo have recorded and movies such as “Shaft” were filmed.
The five-story red-brick building on West 54th Street and 10th Avenue will no longer house Sony Music Studios, according to an internal memo obtained by amNewYork. The June 8 memo said that employees will be terminated when the studios close in mid-to late-August.
Some employees possibly will be allowed to transfer to different parts of the company. It is unclear how many employees will be affected and what the future holds for the studio building that once housed Fox Movietone studios, where one of the first technologies to combine sound and film in the 1920s was used.
The music-industry giant is being hush-hush on the deal, only saying that Sony BMG, the studios' parent company, signed a purchase and sale agreement with a New York developer called HSAC Corp. Efforts to contact the developer were unsuccessful. It was unclear what will happen to the building.
Movies such as “Miracle on 34th Street” and television shows like the original “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” were filmed there. The studios also hosted the New York filming of “America: A Tribute to Heroes,” a bi-coastal telethon that raised money for the families of Sept. 11 victims just days after the attacks.
Before Sony bought the warehouse-sized building in 1993, Camera Mart, an equipment rental company, called it home. After renovating the building, Sony Music Studios soon became a popular and high-tech recording spot.
In a 2001 article in the on-line recording industry publication Mix, Andy Kadison, the studios' senior vice president said" “We’re like the millennium’s version of an old-time Hollywood studio. We can do virtually every aspect of an entertainment project under one roof, ranging from audio recording, mixing, mastering, archive restoration and plant production, to television production and satellite broadcasts, to audio and video post-production.”
When reached Wednesday on his cell phone, Kadison declined to comment on the sale or the future of the building.
Copyright 2007 Newsday Inc
It only managed 14 weeks in its initial run at the Opera House in Chicago, but as I recall that was both because the new opera season supplanted it, and because the Opera House patrons were dismayed that their venue was stooping to such crass entertainment as the motion-picture.
“Windjammer” in New York City was 24 weeks at the Roxy. In San Francisco 32 weeks, but in Toronto it played 52 weeks straight in the Eglinton Theatre and an extra 6 weeks later.
William: The L.A. run of “Windjammer” must be the longest of any in the country. They did run it recently (relatively) at the AMC Cinerama in Seattle. I can never remember whether it was at the Dome or Seattle, but I did find the pictures on Film-Tech today. While the Dome listed as the Cinerama Dome, the Seattle listing is preceded by “AMC”. The pictures are pretty impressive, including one of the screen showing the effect of the dyes fading on the picture and the attempt to counteract it by using a gel. Considering the age of the print, the film must have the flexibility of cardboard by now. I’m amazed that they were able to get all three panels through the projectors!
“Windjammer” in CineMiracle opened at the Chinese Theatre and played 37 weeks before it moved-over to the Fox Theatre (aka:Music Box, Henry Fonda, Pix) for another 15 weeks. “Windjammer” played regular scope (non-multi panel) presentation in 1973 at the Dome. At the National Theatres testing theatre (Melrose Theatre) in Los Angeles. They built a special booth on a platform in front and just below of the regular booth.
Joseph, thanks for the information. That makes sense, but judging from the picture it was still a really cramped booth. I would really like to have seen Cinemiracle there (or for that matter in Chicago). “Windjammer” is kind of the “lost” three strip film, although I think they have run it at the Dome in L.A. It must have had the shortest run of any of the three-strip pictures, possibly because the houses they used had other commercial commitments (it played the Opera House in Chicago which limited its run there, although Micael Coate indicates it did move over to the McVickers at one point).
mjc: I don’t know about the Roxy, but there were three projectionists on a shift at the Hall, with one being an “inside man” who brought reels to the operating projectionists, and then hand rewound the reel that just finished. He also answered the phone and was used during the stage show. There was a rule that if the booth had spotlights adjacent to film projectors they were operated by projectionists (in fact the B.A. of Local #306 once told me that the walls dividing the Music Hall booth to separate the North and South spot booths from the film booth were put in because it was cheaper to use stagehands to operate spots than projectionists). The Roxy booth looks as if it might accomodate a couple of spots, as well as a Brenograph or slide/effect projector for effects in the stage show. (Even that operation was subject to jurisdictional politics: if there was no motion-picture projector nearby the slide projector would fall under stage jurisdiction — after all — projectionists were MOTION PICTURE operators. We got involved in some nifty jurisdictional discussions at the Hall over some of the newer lighting instruments that used “scrollers” to move an image on a large piece of transparent material across the stage. There was “motion” but it was being used in a large format slide projector.)
Maybe Joseph would know if the Roxy had a private screening room, but if so that would have accounted for another two projectionists on a shift, and there were two shifts a day (at least) in the main Roxy booth. In addition, at the Hall the operators all put in less than a 40 hour week, so there was a complex schedule equalizing the shifts so that all operators had the same number of openings, closings and weekend shifts over the year. That could account for the 16 projectionists you see listed.
mjc, in those days all of the B'way houses had at least two men on for each shift. RCMH had 3 or 4 I beleive but I never saw more than two at a time at the Roxy. each man would be responsible for a projector, threading, cleaning and making the change over to his machine. They never left their assigned projector keeping an eye on focus and carbon trimming at all times.
We also had reel boys who were basically apprentices learning the ropes.
Yes Rob It was the larger one, the smaller one was used mostly for running Movietone News dailies and was a very hectic place to be.
MGM also had a screening room on another floor of the Fox building which was used for News of the Day. MGM had their cutting and sound editing rooms for the news there as well.Those News departmente were a hot bed of activity, turning out newsreels faster than a speedy bullet. I seem to recall RCMH having had two or three newsreels a week delivered from several of the major studios. The Music Hall staff would then piece together the best parts to create RCMH News.
I wondered what became of that building, I have not been in that area in years. I used to take the subway to 42nd/Times Square and then walk up B'way to, what was it, 51st street? and then down to the Fox/Deluxe building which cornered 10th Ave.
RE:
“Vito: I would have loved to have seen that booth. There was a picture on the wall at Local #306 which showed what was probably the Roxy booth with the three projectors set up for Cinemiracle and it did seem pretty cramped.”
FYI, the CineMiracle booth was a temporary set-up in the closed mezzanine section built especiallay for the Windjammer engagement. The front balcony projection room was not used for this engagement.
Bob or Vito:
Thanks for all the great projection information.
How many projectionists worked on a shift at the Roxy? If the booth was that small, I can’t see it being practical to have any more than two.
According the Ben Hall, in its heyday the Roxy had a staff of 16 projectionists. If the stage crew controlled all the lighting and curtains, the projectionists would only be left with doing changeovers. What else did they do?