Alba Theater
750 Flushing Avenue,
Brooklyn,
NY
11206
750 Flushing Avenue,
Brooklyn,
NY
11206
2 people
favorited this theater
Showing 26 - 50 of 63 comments found
Appears that the grumps are not only restricted to the owner of the “bondada”. Tha Alba was a local institution and the focal point of the surrounding neighborhood. The theaters were not just buildings exisiting in a vacuum, but part of the community fabric and at times it helps to get an understanding for the texture of the surrounding area. It’s too bad if some of our members are limited in that perspective.
Hi folks: Warren is right, as this website should be about the old theaters that we enjoyed going to years ago————anyone from the Bushwick area of Brooklyn, or surounding areas should check out BushwickBuddies.com————There, we discuss old times in old Brooklyn from the 1940s through the 1960s———Many Cinema Treasures members belong to BB, and you will find it to be the place to talk about the old days in Brooklyn——-Joe From Florida——aka JoeR at BB
Folks, could we please restrict this space to discussions of the Alba Theatre? There are plenty of other websites for chats about “old” Brooklyn, including Brooklyn Board and On Da Stoop. I’m sure that you’ll be welcomed there, unless you’ve already been banned for abusing their guidelines.
the fruit store owner was harry ,sal the barber his worker was phil.the bread store we use to call her bonadada not right spelling she always was a grump.i think the loaf of bread use to be 15 cents,i still can picture the store,across the street from the store was a candy store,and another small grocery store
Good Old Brooklyn – Just caught your post from last year. Can’t believe that anyone still remembers Angelo the chicken market owner with one milky colored, blind eye, as well as Sal the barber. My dad would place bets with the owner of the fruit & vegetable store next to Linden’s. The best was the bread bakery across from 849 Flushing Ave. The owner was a no-nonsense Italian woman who turned out Italian & French bread from her brick oven. We got to know the baker’s schedule and when the bread would be coming out of the oven. Nothing like it! Anyone remember the owner’s name?
Very nice chatting with you Sara……….Now its almost bedtime for me———-Going into the low 30s tonight———Crazy weather here in Florida——-Last week it was 86 degrees and we set a record for high temps————Tonight we will set a record for low temps———and you are right…..We came from a poor neighborhood, and we all knew right from wrong————Today things are much different——-Oh we if only had a Time Machine just for one day, and could go back just to see the old neighborhood as it used to be——Take care——-Joe From Florida——P.S I wish my Garndkids could experience an old time Saturday Matinee at the old neighborhood theaters with the Matrons—-Bon Bons and Rasinets——-Pop Corn?—they never had that!
I REMEMBER MR SKOLSKY HE WAS A NUT…LOL…IT DOES SEEM LIKE YESTERDAY…MY OLDEST BROTHER WHO WOULD OF BEEN 70 THIS YEAR ALWAYS WENT TO THE ROGERS,HE USE TO SPEND ALL DAY THERE ON SATURDAY…OH TO GO BACK TO THOSE DAYS.. WE DIDNT HAVE MUCH BUT WE WERE HAPPY..THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES…SARA
Mr Gannon was the Principal……..boy it seems like yesterday——-Mr Skolsky was the Science Teacher and he kept a hatchet on his desk…….When the kids would act up he would slam the hatchet into the desk———-He might have been sent to the Funny Farm by the time you got to the 8th grade——He was nuts!…….I didn’t go to the Alba that often since I lived on Willougby Ave between Central and Evergreen aves————The Rogers was my favorite as a kid——and the Alba I remember as being pitch black inside——-darker then the Rogers which was dark, but the Alba was much larger inside———-My Family and I moved to Long Island in 1959; but as a kid I went to all the theaters in the Bushwick, Ridgewood, & Williamsburg areas———-Joe From Florida
yes it was big,i remember Mrs Hitner,MR. GANNON MR. LOROCCA AND MR. COLONE OH HE CAME LOOKING FOR ME MANY TIMES HE WAS THE TRUNE OFFICER,I NEVER WENT TO SCHOOL…I BECAME GOOD FRIENDS WITH HIM I INVITED HIM TO MY WEDDING….SARAH
I also went to PS 145——I was born in 1941——I had Mrs Hitner for 8th grade; but the one thing I remember most about PS 145 was the wonderful Auditoreum————It was like a movie theater, and when they showed us kids films the screen was very large——-In fact I think that Auditoreum was twice the size of the old Rogers on Brodway under the El……Joe From Florida
i lived on bushwick ave near flushing ave i remember on my
way to and from school i use to stand by the window of
kirschs soda plant and watch the bottles as they were
filling up,every once in a while someone would come out and
bring me and my friends a bottle of soda,those were the days
and they were the best ,i went to ps24 and then to jhs145
Edward G. Robinson’s brother had a Dentist
Office next door from the albe theater i did use him a few times,that was back in the earley 60s,i do remember bushwick ave and flushing ave i was born there 1945 we were eight children,my oldest brother vincent use to shine shoes on flushing ave and broadway,right by the train station,i worked in woolworths in the 60s behind the cafe, from there i went to work in mets supermarket on flushing ave and garden st,on garden st there was a chicken market and my mom use to send me there to get fresh killed ckickens the man that owned it was angelo,there was a pool hall on flushing ave ,when i got married i lived on flushing ave right upstairs from linden store front and a barber shop,the albe theather use to have colering contest wich one of my sisters won it was a bike,Manhattan ave was the place to buy material,my mom always bought all her sewing needs there ,there was Bickford’s New Light Cafeteria ,white towers,i remember all of it,one of my fathers friend use to have a push cart on the corner of flushing and broadway and sell fruit,those were the good old days.
The Alba topped this alphabetical list of Fox Brooklyn theatres, which was published on September 14th, 1930 in the Daily Eagle:
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/foxnabes.jpg
The Alba topped this alphabetical list of Fox Brooklyn theatres, whixh was published on September 14th, 1930 in the Daily Eagle:
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/foxnabes.jpg
Was the Alba still showing movies when it was torn down, or was it already abandoned when Woodhull bought the property?
Hi Bill: Thanks for adding the info on the Rogers, my favorite place to watch westerns with my fellow childhood friends back in the late 1940s and early 1950s…..Joe From Florida—-P.S. I wish somebody could come up with a photo of the old Rogers, or any other of the old Movie Houses in the old neighborhood
Just to add to this board the Rogers Theatre which was about 2 blocks up from the Alba on Broadway was owned and operated by Jack and his wife. Jack also owned the Lindy on Graham Ave.& McKibbon St. Bill Erbis
Hi my name is Bill Erbis.. I lived about 3 blocks away from Alba.. Besides Bickford’s cafeteria across the street on Flushing & Broadway the other resturant was the New Light Cafeteria as I remember.
I think it was menioned that the Williamsburg had a few names over the years….I don;t remember the Aster, and I worked on Kent Ave from 1959 to 1960….and many times I would go to Bickfords for lunch, which was right there——Yet i do not recall it—-Joe From Florida—-sasheegm
That may have been the Williamsburg, which has its own listing.
Sunset Carson,Wow.I would have felt I went to heaven if I had ever met the likes of him or any of those Cowboy Hero’s.I loved them all.
I was a Geene Autry fan but came to respect and admire Roy Rogers.
A real wonderful person just as Autry was.Straight-Shooters.
You know I just did a search of a movie house that I couldn’t find on here. It was called the Playhouse and it was on Broadway near the Bridge Plaza.The next block up from the Marcy Theater.I saw Disney's
Pinocchio there.My Dad was taking my Momand I to the Marcy and I
believe that Bogart was playing there.They admission was .25 cents.
and Dad got upset because they wanted to charge me for going in.
I had to be around 5 years old.We walked across the street to the
Playhouse Theater and seeing Pinocchio was great for me.Wonder if
anyone remembers the movie house I’m stating?
Hi JoeS & cjdv: The RKO Albee was in downtown Brooklyn on Dekalb Ave & Fulton Street……..The Albee would receive its films on 2nd run from the RKO-Palace on Broadway in Manhattan most of the time; but in the 50s, when RKO was staring to go belly-up, it started showing many other companies films…..One wild Double feature I saw there around 1955/56(not sure about the year) were two Italian Imports with subtitles——“The Iron Crown”-1941 with Gino Cervi & “La Lupa”-1950 i believe with Kerima & May Britt——-It was advertised as “Adults Only” 18 and over because of subject matter & some partial nudity……I was only 14 or 15 at the time, but i grew a foot when i was 12 to 13,(went from the front of the line to the rear in one year—lol) so I could pass for an 18 year old easily as I was 6 ft tall…….Don’t know about Edw.G’s Brother, but Roy Rogers also made another all star cast western called Trail of Robin Hood-1950——I had both titles on 16mm years ago——-but the one most people remember most fondly was “The Bells of Rosarita”…….I knew Sunset Carson pretty well in his latter days—-We met at a Convention in 1980 in Charlotte, N.C. and stayed in touch from that time until his death in 1990…..I was 6ft tall, and Sunset made me look like a Dwarf——lol——he was 6 ft 6 inches—-add his jeweled cowboy boots with those 3 inch heels, and he towered over everyone——-Joe From Florida
In the Weekly Chat, October 11th, 1929, there is an ad for the “Fox Alba”—
Excerpts from the ad:
“Celebrating Fox Jubilee"
"Now Open!"
"New Palace of Amusement in Williamsburgh Added to the vast Fox chain of Theatres"
"Presenting the pick of talking pictures"
"Equipped with Famous Western Electric Sound Apparatus”.
Showing Oct. 14th-15th is “The Green Murder Case” with William Powell
(“All Talking”)
“Continious performance 1 to 11pm”.
Joe S.
The film you could be thinking of is the Bells of Rosarita starring Roy Rodgers with cameo appearances by all the Republic Studios cowboy stars minus John Wayne. One of my favorite “B” westerns.
I was always under the impresion that the Alba Theater was the
RKO Alba.I could be wrong on this but it’s what I always thought
of it as being.It’s possible it wasn’t because I don’t know of
Charles Sandblom building an RKO Theater.
I was also told that Edward G. Robinson’s brother had a Dentist
Office next door.Also don’t know if that is true or not.His last
name was Goldenberg.
I found an address online of a Physician at the address in 1873.
1873 BROOKLYN CITY BUSINESS DIRECTORY
Kappot J.C..Physician 750 Flushing Ave.
I also have a photo taken at that address in 1883 of children
dressed in what appears to be Halloween costumes.
Photographs of children in two different sets of costumes in a single backyard in Brooklyn, New York. Writing below picture says:“George, Adolf, Julia”. Writing on back side of photo says: “Backyard – 750 Flushing Ave. Brooklyn, N.Y. circa 1883
The photo was on ebay.
I remember being taken to the Alba as a child and seeing a movie
with all the famous cowboys of that era in it.I don’t know the
name of the movie and it was a cameo type of film.This was in the
forties.
Thanks BWAY: I’ll be dreaming of those stations which I passed so many times…….Incidently a few years back, A&E ran a special on the NY Subway system, and one of the old wooden gate cars was shown——-what a rattle-trap those where……..The platforms were much thinner at Central & the rest of those stops at the metropolitan line………I believe they were narrowed to accomodate the wider Chambers St trains, as I remember to get into the narrow wooden cars, there was about one foot of space between the platform and the old cars——-Conductors would scream out—“WATCH YOUR STEP”——then when everyone was aboard, even with passengers riding on the outside platforms with the cars full, the Conductor in the last two cars would pull his cord and a bell would signal the next conductor, until it reached the engineer——-I can imagine the foul-ups with that system…..when the bigger & wider Chambers trains arrived, it was a perfect fit…..no space between Platform & train……Also at the end of line at Metropolitan Ave, there used to be the Old Farmers Oval Baseball Stadium where the three-i league of minor league baseball teams would play…..The Glendale Tigers were a farm club for the Brooklyn Dodgers——the St.Josephs was a farm team for the NY Giants(and Farmers Oval was their home field)…….They were there since the late 1800s playing ball…..and one of the most famous Free-Lance teams would also play their games there—-The House of David——-I will have many pleasant dreams tonight….Thanks BWAY—think I’ll call it a night Ciao, Joe From Florida—-sasheegm—-P.S. have other theaters to comment on and list from Brevard County, here in Florida—-and possibly more in Manhattan around the lower East Side(my old stomping grounds)—-cannot recall the names, but it will come back to me!