A.O.-
You guys do a great job over at the Elwood. Moviegoer should try a birthday party at the local multiplex, if she wants to see a REAL expensive debacle. Public apology? I’m glad that the December 19th comments are not going unchallenged, as they would at a large chain theater!
JP
I don’t remember this theater being called the Cinema Bayshore? If it’s the Bay Shore Cinema, that was at 1881 Sunrise Highway, in front of the Drive-In. Yes Bill, Bay Shore is two words, like East Hampton!
LongIsland, you’re right about this area at night. I worked for UA during the ‘80’s, and they had a lady Barbara who ran the place. She was one of the nicest, gutsiest people I’ve even known, and it was a miracle that she was able to run the place, in light of the “dynamics” of the area. RIP Barbara.
I worked there as a rampman starting around 78-79 (hello Tony G.). It was a very low paying, great job. I guess at this point, the job of “rampman” has gone the way of the job of “stage coach builder”. Who would have ever though there would be no drive-in theaters here? I guess economics, and not nostalga, really dictates the land use.
When I first started there, field 2 was still using speakers, and I remember we would get complaints about the noise from the locals if we didn’t make a sweep and turn down the speakers a couple of times a week (nobody turned them down when they re-hung them on the post).
So they go and install AM Cinema Radio out in theater 2 around 1980, and do away with the speakers, which was a great idea (maintenance on speakers was a never ending issue). They end up transmitting on the same frequency (I think 540 kHz) as a Cuban radio station, that we found out was transmitting at about 100,000 watts. During peak sun spot activity of the summer, the Cuban station used to boom in out in field #2, loud and clear. Some people took exception with watching a movie with unrelated Spanish music in the backgroud. A few refunds were issued!
John, I agree. I don’t remember an indoor theater in field #2, just the projection booth building. And yes, we used to call the Third Pct. if the “walk in” situation got really bad. But the home office would bust our chops about walk-ins, because they would see increases in the concession stand “per capita” sales, due to the “walk ins” (they had it calculated how much each paying customer should spend, any excess was probably people who didn’t buy tickets. I hate bean counters).
As far as the Bay Shore Cinema (also addressed 1881 Sunrise Hwy), it was a totally separate entity (own staff, manager, budget, etc), though also United Artist theater. The Pier-One building that stands on Sunrise Hwy to the west, was built a few years (mid-80’s), before the demolition of the Cinema, on an undeveloped parcel of land. I even thought at the time it was a very stark contrast: An old single screen movie theater (certainly a struggling breed for many years), next to a new-styled retailer. What I didn’t realize then that the “Box” stores would take over every piece of land in sight (including 1881 Sunrise Hwy); and we would loose every single Drive-In movie theater on Long Island. A real shame.
I was a contractor at this theater in the 90’s, and I sent my invoices to 38-39 Bell Blvd. And yes, they got paid; so the address does seem to need an update.
The old “back stage” area was a blast. You had to cut thru one of the downstairs theaters, and it had an old creeky “weighted” steel fire door on the left side, near the screen that led to this area. The lighting was poor, and the ceiling was incredibly high. You had to watch where you walked, because the roof leaked back there forever, and hence the floor boards were rotting in certain sections. The old vaudeville dressing rooms were still back there, though they were in total shambles, and were at this point, just used for storage (light bulbs, seat parts and the like). Just looking around back there, you could almost imagine how great that place had to be back in it’s glory days. Unfortunately, I only had an opportunity to see the theater after many years of disrepair.
A.O.-
You guys do a great job over at the Elwood. Moviegoer should try a birthday party at the local multiplex, if she wants to see a REAL expensive debacle. Public apology? I’m glad that the December 19th comments are not going unchallenged, as they would at a large chain theater!
JP
I don’t remember this theater being called the Cinema Bayshore? If it’s the Bay Shore Cinema, that was at 1881 Sunrise Highway, in front of the Drive-In. Yes Bill, Bay Shore is two words, like East Hampton!
LongIsland, you’re right about this area at night. I worked for UA during the ‘80’s, and they had a lady Barbara who ran the place. She was one of the nicest, gutsiest people I’ve even known, and it was a miracle that she was able to run the place, in light of the “dynamics” of the area. RIP Barbara.
I worked there as a rampman starting around 78-79 (hello Tony G.). It was a very low paying, great job. I guess at this point, the job of “rampman” has gone the way of the job of “stage coach builder”. Who would have ever though there would be no drive-in theaters here? I guess economics, and not nostalga, really dictates the land use.
When I first started there, field 2 was still using speakers, and I remember we would get complaints about the noise from the locals if we didn’t make a sweep and turn down the speakers a couple of times a week (nobody turned them down when they re-hung them on the post).
So they go and install AM Cinema Radio out in theater 2 around 1980, and do away with the speakers, which was a great idea (maintenance on speakers was a never ending issue). They end up transmitting on the same frequency (I think 540 kHz) as a Cuban radio station, that we found out was transmitting at about 100,000 watts. During peak sun spot activity of the summer, the Cuban station used to boom in out in field #2, loud and clear. Some people took exception with watching a movie with unrelated Spanish music in the backgroud. A few refunds were issued!
John, I agree. I don’t remember an indoor theater in field #2, just the projection booth building. And yes, we used to call the Third Pct. if the “walk in” situation got really bad. But the home office would bust our chops about walk-ins, because they would see increases in the concession stand “per capita” sales, due to the “walk ins” (they had it calculated how much each paying customer should spend, any excess was probably people who didn’t buy tickets. I hate bean counters).
As far as the Bay Shore Cinema (also addressed 1881 Sunrise Hwy), it was a totally separate entity (own staff, manager, budget, etc), though also United Artist theater. The Pier-One building that stands on Sunrise Hwy to the west, was built a few years (mid-80’s), before the demolition of the Cinema, on an undeveloped parcel of land. I even thought at the time it was a very stark contrast: An old single screen movie theater (certainly a struggling breed for many years), next to a new-styled retailer. What I didn’t realize then that the “Box” stores would take over every piece of land in sight (including 1881 Sunrise Hwy); and we would loose every single Drive-In movie theater on Long Island. A real shame.
I was a contractor at this theater in the 90’s, and I sent my invoices to 38-39 Bell Blvd. And yes, they got paid; so the address does seem to need an update.
The old “back stage” area was a blast. You had to cut thru one of the downstairs theaters, and it had an old creeky “weighted” steel fire door on the left side, near the screen that led to this area. The lighting was poor, and the ceiling was incredibly high. You had to watch where you walked, because the roof leaked back there forever, and hence the floor boards were rotting in certain sections. The old vaudeville dressing rooms were still back there, though they were in total shambles, and were at this point, just used for storage (light bulbs, seat parts and the like). Just looking around back there, you could almost imagine how great that place had to be back in it’s glory days. Unfortunately, I only had an opportunity to see the theater after many years of disrepair.