The theatre also showed some very popular fare, like Saturday Night Fever, which played there for months. The last film I saw there, with my parents and brother, was “Octopussy.” An older couple came up to us at the end of the screening and asked us, “How was it?” and we figured they were there for the next showing, and they stopped us and said, “No, we mean, how was it without air conditioning?” (It was August.) We said it wasn’t that bad, actually, and then in the remaining exchange, it became clear that this elderly couple OWNED the theatre and were actually very concerned about how the patrons were surviving the heat wave. Very sweet of them. The only experience I’ve ever had like that in a cinema.
The theatre also showed some very popular fare, like Saturday Night Fever, which played there for months. The last film I saw there, with my parents and brother, was “Octopussy.” An older couple came up to us at the end of the screening and asked us, “How was it?” and we figured they were there for the next showing, and they stopped us and said, “No, we mean, how was it without air conditioning?” (It was August.) We said it wasn’t that bad, actually, and then in the remaining exchange, it became clear that this elderly couple OWNED the theatre and were actually very concerned about how the patrons were surviving the heat wave. Very sweet of them. The only experience I’ve ever had like that in a cinema.
Not only did the theatre owners forbid “outside food,” one time, they practically followed my friend’s mother back to her car to make sure she didn’t surreptitiously return with the contraband can of diet soda.
I only saw two movies there: Raiders of the Lost Ark when it was re-released in 1982, and The Trip to Bountiful. At the second one, I was sucking on a lifesaver, and an usher told me to spit it out and I refused, and he said he’d get the manager and I said, “Go ahead,” but nothing happened. Then, they shut off the projector during the end credits. That completely set me OFF and I yelled at the usher, “I paid $6.50 to see this movie and I want to see ALL the goddamned credits!” He was mystified and I stormed off.
The movie “Variety,” mentioned by another poster here, was directed by Bette Gordon, my film teacher at Hofstra U. THe Village Voice panned it, saying that asking Kathy Acker to help on your script was a disaster akin to asking for more helicopters to circle Vic Morrow in the filming of the Twilight Zone movie.
The Variety theatre was for a while a porno theatre, attracting closet cases, much as the Bijou theatre nearby did.
Does anyone know if any NEW theatres are going in to this area. When I first moved to 73rd and Third, there were MANY theatres in the 59th/Third area—a Manhattan Twin and the DW Griffith on 59th St. itself, the Gotham on Third, the Sutton on 57th, and the Baronet-Coronet combo, along with Cinemas 1, 2, and 3 next to the B-C. With all these theatres vanishing, are any new mutliplexes coming in? Will the new Bloomberg building have a theatre at all?
I always liked this theatre. THey showed some good arty movies there, like “Enemies, a Love Story,” and “Remember the Paradise.” I used to have a friend next door who worked for Fox, and she gave me passes to premieres, and most of them were at the Gotham. It attracted a nice, well-mannered crowd that went well with the carpeted swankiness of it all.
I have been to the State many times, and most recently (Oct. 2004) to see the Grudge, for which I paid a full price ticket of $10.25. So much for the discount house… I saw King Arthur there for half price in the summer. I have never seen any signage for the theatre—it’s impossible to see it if it exists! I just know it’s there, but I don’t know how anyone else would ever find it.
I have been to the State many times, and most recently (Oct. 2004) to see the Grudge, for which I paid a full price ticket of $10.25. So much for the discount house… I saw King Arthur there for half price in the summer. I have never seen any signage for the theatre—it’s impossible to see it if it exists! I just know it’s there, but I don’t know how anyone else would ever find it.
This is a dreadful cinema experience. The theatres have been allowed to run down horribly. Rips in carpeting, etc. Horrible, uncomfortable seating. Last movie I saw there was Chicago in 2003. There are six small theatres that make you realize why multiplexes had such a bad name in the 1980s, and one big theatre for the “hit.” Here’s what I wrote about it in the late 1990s.
It is a shame that this theatre has not once benefitted from any sort of renovation since it opened probably twenty years ago. Built during a time when multiplexes were openly contemptuous of the moviegoer, aging has made it the Hag of Multiplexes.
Like many multiplexes, there is one large auditorium, and then smaller ones. And then one very small one that is barely fit. A lot of this is to be expected. However, the Douglaston Movieworld also features ripped carpets barely held together with electrical tape, appalling rest rooms with horrible odors and no toilet paper, and an overall derilect appearance. If you are in the car already, it might not be a bad idea to keep going on the LIE in either direction in search of more suitable surroundings. The seats are also uncomfortable, as a recent screening of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil proved.
Considering the posh surroundings of Douglaston and Little Neck, you really feel like you are in a horrible Time Square theatre, before Disney took over and made everything “safe for families.”
UA certainly did run down the Criterion. The last films I saw there was “My Best Friend’s Wedding” and “Ten Things I Hate About You.” Here’s what I wrote about it in the late 90s.
The one and only time I was in this theatre, until last year, it was to see Presumed Innocent. That was a few years ago, and it was a rather abysmal experience. Times Square was a much different place, and at any hour, even the early afternoon, was an opportunity to be surrounded by teenage delinquents or worse. The one time I was there, the fire alarm went off during the climax of the film. Of course, there was no fire, and of course, there was no one getting up to leave the movie either.
All that has changed, although the theatres themselves do not seem so different. A recent trip (to see My Best Friend’s Wedding) shows a whole different sort of clientele. The couple in front of me where speaking Russian and the man behind me only spoke French. The seats are still old; not the newer more comfortable ones theatres are installing when they renovate or are built new.
There are six theatres and they are split into two levels with separate entrances. This helps reduce sneaking into extra screenings, although once inside, it seems rather easy to walk into a second movie after having just seen one.
UA certainly did run down the Criterion. The last films I saw there was “My Best Friend’s Wedding” and “Ten Things I Hate About You.” Here’s what I wrote about it in the late 90s.
The one and only time I was in this theatre, until last year, it was to see Presumed Innocent. That was a few years ago, and it was a rather abysmal experience. Times Square was a much different place, and at any hour, even the early afternoon, was an opportunity to be surrounded by teenage delinquents or worse. The one time I was there, the fire alarm went off during the climax of the film. Of course, there was no fire, and of course, there was no one getting up to leave the movie either.
All that has changed, although the theatres themselves do not seem so different. A recent trip (to see My Best Friend’s Wedding) shows a whole different sort of clientele. The couple in front of me where speaking Russian and the man behind me only spoke French. The seats are still old; not the newer more comfortable ones theatres are installing when they renovate or are built new.
There are six theatres and they are split into two levels with separate entrances. This helps reduce sneaking into extra screenings, although once inside, it seems rather easy to walk into a second movie after having just seen one.
I saw The Magnificent Ambersons in the 1980s on a very humid June evening—the theatre had no AC for a while. When it became a first-fun theatre, I saw “Career Girls” and “Ulee’s Gold” there. You can catch a glimpse of The Regency and its marquee in the Tom Cruise movie “Cocktail.” There’s a scene where he’s at some swanky opening at a place next to the theatre.
Here’s what I wrote about the old theatre in 1997:
Going to this theatre (to see Mimic) was like being in a time warp, but not in a good way. This theatre was clearly built or remodeled in the 1960s, and has not changed since. The theatre displays its personality in the form of bizarre lampshapes and big chess pieces on the back wall near the projectionist’s peepholes. The seats are originals, and therefore uncomfortable. Seating technology has come a long way since the 1960s. There is something to be said for the upsurge of chain theatres in Manhattan; the seating is vastly improved over the older theatres. If you really can only see a movie here, then by all means, go. Otherwise, pick the Loews Orpheum around the corner on Third Avenue. A trip to this theatre is merely a (bad) trip down memory lane. On the plus side, the woman at the ticket window was very nice. Not the usual surly variety.
Since that time, the theatre has been renovated and features a clean but dark and austere metal design scheme reminiscent of something “Dieter” of SNL sketch fame would like. A vast improvement over the old theatre.
The last movies I saw here were “Rabbit Proof Fence” and “ANything But Love,” the latter being a real musical that was lucky to get release. Thank god the Sutton was willing to show it.
The theatre did have entrances on both 86th St. and Third Avenue. Last time I remember seeing it was 1989; The Abyss was playing there. There were a lot of theaters on 86th St., but now it seems the only ones are the new Loews Orpheum and a City Cinemas quad on 86th between Second and Third. Other theatres were around 86th and Lexington and Park. The new Loews Orpheum is reminiscent of an IND subway station. It has three levels—theatres on the first and third levels, and an empty middle level. This was an early 1990s construction and it features a sloped floor, but no stadium style seating. Because there are no movie theatres between 86th Street and East Harlem, 86th St. is a bit of a playground for younger latinos, and a lot of the movies that come to this theatre appeal to a teen and young adult audience, whereas the City Cinemas theatre around the corner has more “art movie” fare for the Upper East Side crowd.
The best place to find a photo of this theatre is on a 12-in. single by the Aussie band INXS (circa 1986). The neon “68” is visible even though it’s a daytime shot. The record cover shows Third Avenue looking south from E. 69th St.
This is the first theatre where I had to yell at someone talking on a cell phone. It was during the final moments of the film “Picture Bride” (1994) and this idiot whipped out a large cell phone with a very bright green keypad and yelled, “Yeah, it’s almost over,” and I screamed at full volume (right behind him) “Get off the goddamned telephone!”
The theatre also showed some very popular fare, like Saturday Night Fever, which played there for months. The last film I saw there, with my parents and brother, was “Octopussy.” An older couple came up to us at the end of the screening and asked us, “How was it?” and we figured they were there for the next showing, and they stopped us and said, “No, we mean, how was it without air conditioning?” (It was August.) We said it wasn’t that bad, actually, and then in the remaining exchange, it became clear that this elderly couple OWNED the theatre and were actually very concerned about how the patrons were surviving the heat wave. Very sweet of them. The only experience I’ve ever had like that in a cinema.
The theatre also showed some very popular fare, like Saturday Night Fever, which played there for months. The last film I saw there, with my parents and brother, was “Octopussy.” An older couple came up to us at the end of the screening and asked us, “How was it?” and we figured they were there for the next showing, and they stopped us and said, “No, we mean, how was it without air conditioning?” (It was August.) We said it wasn’t that bad, actually, and then in the remaining exchange, it became clear that this elderly couple OWNED the theatre and were actually very concerned about how the patrons were surviving the heat wave. Very sweet of them. The only experience I’ve ever had like that in a cinema.
Not only did the theatre owners forbid “outside food,” one time, they practically followed my friend’s mother back to her car to make sure she didn’t surreptitiously return with the contraband can of diet soda.
I only saw two movies there: Raiders of the Lost Ark when it was re-released in 1982, and The Trip to Bountiful. At the second one, I was sucking on a lifesaver, and an usher told me to spit it out and I refused, and he said he’d get the manager and I said, “Go ahead,” but nothing happened. Then, they shut off the projector during the end credits. That completely set me OFF and I yelled at the usher, “I paid $6.50 to see this movie and I want to see ALL the goddamned credits!” He was mystified and I stormed off.
I saw “Mean Girls” there most recently. The theatre, when it was a Loews, was often used for preview screenings.
The movie “Variety,” mentioned by another poster here, was directed by Bette Gordon, my film teacher at Hofstra U. THe Village Voice panned it, saying that asking Kathy Acker to help on your script was a disaster akin to asking for more helicopters to circle Vic Morrow in the filming of the Twilight Zone movie.
The Variety theatre was for a while a porno theatre, attracting closet cases, much as the Bijou theatre nearby did.
Does anyone know if any NEW theatres are going in to this area. When I first moved to 73rd and Third, there were MANY theatres in the 59th/Third area—a Manhattan Twin and the DW Griffith on 59th St. itself, the Gotham on Third, the Sutton on 57th, and the Baronet-Coronet combo, along with Cinemas 1, 2, and 3 next to the B-C. With all these theatres vanishing, are any new mutliplexes coming in? Will the new Bloomberg building have a theatre at all?
I always liked this theatre. THey showed some good arty movies there, like “Enemies, a Love Story,” and “Remember the Paradise.” I used to have a friend next door who worked for Fox, and she gave me passes to premieres, and most of them were at the Gotham. It attracted a nice, well-mannered crowd that went well with the carpeted swankiness of it all.
I have been to the State many times, and most recently (Oct. 2004) to see the Grudge, for which I paid a full price ticket of $10.25. So much for the discount house… I saw King Arthur there for half price in the summer. I have never seen any signage for the theatre—it’s impossible to see it if it exists! I just know it’s there, but I don’t know how anyone else would ever find it.
I have been to the State many times, and most recently (Oct. 2004) to see the Grudge, for which I paid a full price ticket of $10.25. So much for the discount house… I saw King Arthur there for half price in the summer. I have never seen any signage for the theatre—it’s impossible to see it if it exists! I just know it’s there, but I don’t know how anyone else would ever find it.
This is a dreadful cinema experience. The theatres have been allowed to run down horribly. Rips in carpeting, etc. Horrible, uncomfortable seating. Last movie I saw there was Chicago in 2003. There are six small theatres that make you realize why multiplexes had such a bad name in the 1980s, and one big theatre for the “hit.” Here’s what I wrote about it in the late 1990s.
It is a shame that this theatre has not once benefitted from any sort of renovation since it opened probably twenty years ago. Built during a time when multiplexes were openly contemptuous of the moviegoer, aging has made it the Hag of Multiplexes.
Like many multiplexes, there is one large auditorium, and then smaller ones. And then one very small one that is barely fit. A lot of this is to be expected. However, the Douglaston Movieworld also features ripped carpets barely held together with electrical tape, appalling rest rooms with horrible odors and no toilet paper, and an overall derilect appearance. If you are in the car already, it might not be a bad idea to keep going on the LIE in either direction in search of more suitable surroundings. The seats are also uncomfortable, as a recent screening of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil proved.
Considering the posh surroundings of Douglaston and Little Neck, you really feel like you are in a horrible Time Square theatre, before Disney took over and made everything “safe for families.”
UA certainly did run down the Criterion. The last films I saw there was “My Best Friend’s Wedding” and “Ten Things I Hate About You.” Here’s what I wrote about it in the late 90s.
The one and only time I was in this theatre, until last year, it was to see Presumed Innocent. That was a few years ago, and it was a rather abysmal experience. Times Square was a much different place, and at any hour, even the early afternoon, was an opportunity to be surrounded by teenage delinquents or worse. The one time I was there, the fire alarm went off during the climax of the film. Of course, there was no fire, and of course, there was no one getting up to leave the movie either.
All that has changed, although the theatres themselves do not seem so different. A recent trip (to see My Best Friend’s Wedding) shows a whole different sort of clientele. The couple in front of me where speaking Russian and the man behind me only spoke French. The seats are still old; not the newer more comfortable ones theatres are installing when they renovate or are built new.
There are six theatres and they are split into two levels with separate entrances. This helps reduce sneaking into extra screenings, although once inside, it seems rather easy to walk into a second movie after having just seen one.
UA certainly did run down the Criterion. The last films I saw there was “My Best Friend’s Wedding” and “Ten Things I Hate About You.” Here’s what I wrote about it in the late 90s.
The one and only time I was in this theatre, until last year, it was to see Presumed Innocent. That was a few years ago, and it was a rather abysmal experience. Times Square was a much different place, and at any hour, even the early afternoon, was an opportunity to be surrounded by teenage delinquents or worse. The one time I was there, the fire alarm went off during the climax of the film. Of course, there was no fire, and of course, there was no one getting up to leave the movie either.
All that has changed, although the theatres themselves do not seem so different. A recent trip (to see My Best Friend’s Wedding) shows a whole different sort of clientele. The couple in front of me where speaking Russian and the man behind me only spoke French. The seats are still old; not the newer more comfortable ones theatres are installing when they renovate or are built new.
There are six theatres and they are split into two levels with separate entrances. This helps reduce sneaking into extra screenings, although once inside, it seems rather easy to walk into a second movie after having just seen one.
I saw The Magnificent Ambersons in the 1980s on a very humid June evening—the theatre had no AC for a while. When it became a first-fun theatre, I saw “Career Girls” and “Ulee’s Gold” there. You can catch a glimpse of The Regency and its marquee in the Tom Cruise movie “Cocktail.” There’s a scene where he’s at some swanky opening at a place next to the theatre.
Here’s what I wrote about the old theatre in 1997:
Going to this theatre (to see Mimic) was like being in a time warp, but not in a good way. This theatre was clearly built or remodeled in the 1960s, and has not changed since. The theatre displays its personality in the form of bizarre lampshapes and big chess pieces on the back wall near the projectionist’s peepholes. The seats are originals, and therefore uncomfortable. Seating technology has come a long way since the 1960s. There is something to be said for the upsurge of chain theatres in Manhattan; the seating is vastly improved over the older theatres. If you really can only see a movie here, then by all means, go. Otherwise, pick the Loews Orpheum around the corner on Third Avenue. A trip to this theatre is merely a (bad) trip down memory lane. On the plus side, the woman at the ticket window was very nice. Not the usual surly variety.
Since that time, the theatre has been renovated and features a clean but dark and austere metal design scheme reminiscent of something “Dieter” of SNL sketch fame would like. A vast improvement over the old theatre.
The last movies I saw here were “Rabbit Proof Fence” and “ANything But Love,” the latter being a real musical that was lucky to get release. Thank god the Sutton was willing to show it.
The theatre did have entrances on both 86th St. and Third Avenue. Last time I remember seeing it was 1989; The Abyss was playing there. There were a lot of theaters on 86th St., but now it seems the only ones are the new Loews Orpheum and a City Cinemas quad on 86th between Second and Third. Other theatres were around 86th and Lexington and Park. The new Loews Orpheum is reminiscent of an IND subway station. It has three levels—theatres on the first and third levels, and an empty middle level. This was an early 1990s construction and it features a sloped floor, but no stadium style seating. Because there are no movie theatres between 86th Street and East Harlem, 86th St. is a bit of a playground for younger latinos, and a lot of the movies that come to this theatre appeal to a teen and young adult audience, whereas the City Cinemas theatre around the corner has more “art movie” fare for the Upper East Side crowd.
The best place to find a photo of this theatre is on a 12-in. single by the Aussie band INXS (circa 1986). The neon “68” is visible even though it’s a daytime shot. The record cover shows Third Avenue looking south from E. 69th St.
This is the first theatre where I had to yell at someone talking on a cell phone. It was during the final moments of the film “Picture Bride” (1994) and this idiot whipped out a large cell phone with a very bright green keypad and yelled, “Yeah, it’s almost over,” and I screamed at full volume (right behind him) “Get off the goddamned telephone!”