Palace Theatre
160 W. 47th Street,
New York,
NY
10036
160 W. 47th Street,
New York,
NY
10036
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Showing 51 - 75 of 295 comments
bigjoe59….I don’t have a subscription to Variety online to double check this in their archives but just unearthed my Preston Kauffman hardbound Fabulous Fox book which has every film listed that played there by year (including weekly grosses) from opening to closing of the theatre. The Diary of Anne Frank played there during the 30th and 31st weeks of 1959 – sometime in late July. It was released on March 18, 1959, (the premier was at the Palace?). So wondering if that indeed was a first run engagement. Or if so, it may have been moved over to another smaller theatre. It grossed $12,652 the first week and $10,198 the 2nd, about average for films that played this 4651 seat theatre during a time of declining movie attendance. The highest grossing film that year was The Shaggy Dog which had a $26,151 1st week gross (and played a 3 week run). Throughout the time the Fox was open (1929-1963) 1 and 2 week runs were the norm. The longest running films (at 9 weeks) were The Robe and The King and I.
Hello-
as always thanks to Al A. for your info. I can’t help but wonder why 55 Days…… went the continuous performance route whereas Kings of Kings, El Cid, The Fall of the Roman Empire and Circus World had traditional roadshow engagements.
you’ll find this interesting assuming of course I
understood my friend out in Calf. correctly. whereas
The Diary of Anne Frank had a roadshow engagement at
this theater that lasted 5? months its sole first
run engagement in San Francisco was a 2 week run at
the S.F. Fox.
The other three theatres were the RKO 23rd St., Trans-Lux 85th St., and the RKO Albee in Brooklyn. Judging by the show times at the Trans-Lux, I suspect there was no intermission.
Hello-
to Al A. thanks for the info on 55 Days at Peking. It seems odd that of the five big epics Bronston produced from 1961-64 its the only one not exhibited on a roadshow engagement. if you don’t mind 2 additional questions-did it even have a intermission and if you know what were the other three NYC theaters many thanks in advance.
The whole idea is a waste of time and money and a threat to one of Broadways finest theaters. That hotel is not even 30 years old. The theater was closed from 87-91 when they reopened with The Will Rogers Follies. What a waste. I can’t believe the Neederlanders agreed to this. They must not own the property. UGH
What happened to the plan to raise the theater one story to provide retail space? They keep booking shows there.
bigjoe, it was not a roadshow. It actually opened at four locations in NYC.
Hello-
I usually have a good memory when it comes to films
having had roadshow engagements in Manhattan. to which
didn’t 55 Days at Peking have a roadshow engagement at
this theater?
A quick search shows you are correct. Baxter replaced Bacall July 26, 1971. Arlene Dahl later replace Baxter for one month before the show closed July 27, 1972.
https://www.nytimes.com/1971/07/27/archives/theater-anne-baxter-she-succeeds-lauren-bacall-in-applause-in-an-in.html
https://www.ibdb.com/broadway-production/applause-3519
I should have said the recently posted circa ‘69 photo. This was the beginning of the steep decline of Times Square. Although for those who were already visiting it they might say it began earlier. Unfortunately the great wraparound DeMille billboard was to feature only one more movie and that was a softcore porn film which I believe was called Ginger. I’m basing this all on memory. No more Hawaii or Spartacus spectaculars. Not even a Shoes of the Fisherman or Battle of Britain.
Circa ‘69 is in early 70s. You can see Anne Baxter is in Applause and I believe she replaced Bacall in '71. I saw Bacall do it in June of '71 and that same summer I saw Cliff Gorman in Lenny the billboard of which you can also see in that photo.
Circa 1983 photo added via John Michael Wilkinson.
Hello-
are the Nederlenders still going thru with their plan to raise the theater 2 stories?
1955 photo added via Al Ponte’s Time Machine-New York Facebook page.
During that last renovation, they scrapped the original Seventh Ave facade entirely (marquee and office building above the entry foyer included) and incorporated it into the facade of the new high rise hotel that was constructed above and around the theater at the corner of W 47th. So, a recreation of the original marquee is probably not in the cards. It would actually look entirely incongruous with the rest of the facade, frankly.
I still think the idea is stupid. Bigjoe59 I know they did a lot of renovations while they were closed from 88-91. I still would like to see the prior marquees restored
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to lazydave- why can’t they simply renovate the Palace to its original condition as is? otherwise I have this picture in my head of the theater collapsing onto 7th Avenue.
Haven’t seen any reports since 2015 about the proposed renovation, but apparently the project is still alive. Unlike others who have commented, I quite like the proposal. The only part of the original Palace still extant is the auditorium, and it will be not only preserved but also restored to its original condition. So what if it is raised 29 feet? Retail space at street level in that area is enormously valuable, so it makes perfect sense for the owners to access that value. It is wonderful that they are willing to invest big bucks to save the Palace for ages to come.
1940 photo added courtesy of David Kroger.
Thank you HDTV267. Awesome history of a great theater.
Circa 1926 photo added, credit Duke University Collection.
NYer I agree 100% about the marquee.
Concept boggles the mind.
This makes so much sense when the retail space can go above it instead. Even if this succeeds what are the long term consequences for such an old building? Nobody has any idea. For God’s sake why can’t they leave the theater as it is?
Miserable wretched Ed Koch who did everything he could to destroy the Morosco and Helen Hayes(not to mention the Gaiety, Astor and Bijou)must be dancing a jig in hell.
Current article about expansion plans. Requires an e-mail sign-in to access.
http://newyorkyimby.com/2015/11/palace-theater-to-be-lifted-29-feet-for-expanded-facilities-and-retail.html