Loew's Pitkin Theatre

The pitkin theater oh what memories . lived in Brownsville 1946 -1991. I was reading what everyone was saying about brownsville, it brought me to tears, because all we had to worry about is being kids. Sylvia wrote about the schools she went to,my sisters went to 84, my brother 66, I also went p.s.175 and surely remember kishe king.I went to J.H.S 263 on Chester St,when graduating from the 9th grade graduation was held at loews pitkin. The ceremony was so beautiful from the ambience of the theater. There was no such thing as cap and gown, the girls wore white dresses and the boys dark suits, when the organ played pomp and circumstanceand we marched out everyone felt like kings and queens. Brownsville had so many movies on saturdays we had the biggest arguments there was four of us and everybody wanted to go to a different movie, I was the youngest so Ididn’t care which ever one they picked they had to take me anyway.
Glad I became a member of cinema treaure the nostagia is off the hook ( have teenage grand children)

The NY Times posted a correction to the article I posted above on October 1; the reporter told me that the erroneous information was given to her by the architect of the redevelopment project.

An article about the redevelopment project for the Pitkin: View link

The article also states that when the Pitkin was a functioning atmospheric theater, the floating clouds were created by the use of dry ice. I always heard that they were projections from a machine called a Brenograph. Does anybody know if dry ice was ever used? It seems to me that dry ice vapor tends to stay close to the floor.

Here is an article that I just found:

Showtime for School in Rundown Brownsville Theater
East | 7.29.10 | Matt Chaban

Where Al Joelson once performed, students will soon learn. (Courtesy POKO Partners)
Like many outlying parts of the city, Brownsville fell hard from its turn-of-the-century grandeur, with decaying reminders of its former greatness. Among them is the Loews Pitkin Theater, once home to the likes of Jackie Gleason, Milton Berle, Humphrey Bogart, and Al Joelson’s last performance, as well as thousands of eager movie goers. The building has been closed since 1969â€"until last week, when a ground breaking was held for a new charter school and retail complex. Curbed and Brownstoner were among those in attendance, and they got some pretty amazing pictures of the building’s decrepit interiors (see some after the jump). We’ve since been sent the above rendering by the developers, POKO Partners, who are working with Kitchen & Associates, a firm based in Collingswood, New Jersey on the renovation.

Something tells us they should have no trouble finding space for an auditorium. (Will Femia/Courtesy Curbed) According to POKO, the project will mesh what remains of the building’s sumptuous Art Deco interiors with high-tech, sustainable features, creating something at once historic and cutting edge. The base of the building will house some 70,000 square feet of retail with a 90,000-square-foot, 1,100-seat elementary and middle school above, run by Ascend Learning. The project is expected to be completed in the next 18 months. “The Loews Pitkin Theater is exciting because it embodies POKO¹s core values of revitalizing neighborhoods and enhancing communities through positive and responsible real estate development,” POKO President and CEO Ken Olson said in a release.

This is good news, the interior by the look of the photos is a total wreak. The roof is missing and the elements have taken their toll. At least the exterior will be cleaned and preserved and that is great. Much better than demolition which is usually the case with old buildings whose interiors have rotted away.

John, thanks for your comment. I was about the express the very same sentiment. Nowhere in the article does it say how the school will be incorporated into the site, but I assume it will be done in the same way as the RKO Bushwick. The Pitkin exterior is still beautiful and should be preserved. Unfortunately, from what I have read, the interior is just to far gone for any restoration. Overall, this is great news for the old Pitkin.

This webpage has a number of photos of Loew’s Pitkin; my apologies if any of them have been posted before: View link

I forgot to add The Apollo and The Beacon as performing arts centers. Also, While Loews Jersey does indeed continue to show movies, they also have live concerts, shows and even wedding receptions in their beautiful lobby. The only single screen movie theaters to survive in Manhattan are the Ziegfeld and The Paris; The Ziegfeld has a long term cheap lease on the theater and The Paris is owned by a billionaire who presumably loves keeping The Paris as a cherished part of New York theater history.

This picture of the interior has been posted before, but the previous links do not seem to work: View link

my cousin &I were reminicing about this palace&how beautiful it was in the late50’s&early60’s, whats its fate now? low income housing seems really sad for this monument to entertainment what a shame!
where are the people that could restore it? guess i’m creaming

Click here for photograph taken of Loew’s Pitkin Theatre in 1930 by George Mann of the comedy dance team, Barto & Mann.

There is no listing for the Parkway or Rolland Theater on the site here, did it show film? It should be added if anyone knows any more information about it, and if it showed film.

If you pan the aerial image slightly over to St John’s Place, I noticed there is another theater in this image:

View link

Further Research determines that is now the Holy House of Prayer for All People, and that it once was the Parkway Theater. Is this on the site? I can’t seem to find it, did it show film?

Here’s a street view of the theater.

View link

Any information on it would be appreciated.