I’m trying to imagine, from the July 29, 1982 certficate of occupancy Lost Memory cited in his post from this past May 3rd (great research, as always, on the behalf of LM) and based on the seating capacities in 1979 and 1982 – and presuming the Allerton had a balcony, what the division from a twin to a triplex must have been…
I suspect Clearview is locked into a long-term lease the landlord won’t allow them to terminate.
This theatre really hasn’t had any sustainable ‘oomph’ to it since the three-year disagreement between Fox and Loews Theatres over Manhattan booking terms ended in 2002, and lost a lot of its strength previously when the Loews Lincoln Square opened in November of 1994. During the Fox-Loews discord, it was the beneficiary of being the sole UWS venue (save for the Metro at Broadway & 99th and the Olympia at Broadway & 107th) for Fox product, but, since then, it’s just kind of hung on (much as the former Clearview 59th Street East Cinema did in its final years).
I went there for the first time in over nine years last December and was struck by its lack of charm; the auditorium itself felt more akin to a medium-sized, uni-leveled lecture hall, with curtainless, mostly white walls, save only for some moderate decor from the venue’s Cineplex Odeon days. The lack of character could have been overlooked when this was a popular theatre, but, at current, it’s obvious and depressing.
The Wilshire Galleria was built within a former I. Magnin Department Store (circa 1939); many of the key architectural details have been retained. The M Park 4 Theatre is located on the third floor.
I don’t think we (or anyone else, for that matter) can influence what specific theatres Indy 4 is booked into, as those agreements between theatre chains/owners and distributors are commonly made months in advance.
Here in NYC, along with the Ziegfeld, Indy 4 has been booked into the Village East Cinemas, the AMC Loews 19th Street East 6, the AMC Loews Orpheum 7, the AMC Loews Kips Bay 15, the AMC Loews 34th Street 14, Clearview Cinemas' First and 62nd Street Cinemas, Regal Cinemas Battery Park Stadium 11, the Magic Johnson Harlem 9, and the Coliseum Cinemas, as well as, I believe, the Upper West Side triumverate of the Clearview Cinema at 62nd and Broadway, the AMC Loews Lincoln Square 13, and the AMC Loews 84th Street 6.
I had a feeling the Ridgewood would be closing soon, too, based on the bookings not changing with as much regularly in recent months. The same is true with the Jackson Triplex (even though they are currently showing three major releases early in their runs – ‘Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who', ‘Never Back Down’, and ‘10,000 BC’), so we may need to watch out for that theatre as well…
Jesus Christ… I realize I’m stating the obvious, but real estate developers truly know no limits. I swear they’d give serious thought to selling their own children if someone offered them enough money…
I trust Ian as well. I passed by the Stoneham Cinema once, in the summer of 1987; ‘Spaceballs’ and ‘The Witches of Eastwick’ were the titles on the roadside marquee. I’m sure any hint of the space the cinema occupied within the shopping plaza building disappeared long ago.
Is 1931 Broadway the correct address for the Cinema Studio? Isn’t it uniformly true that odd numbered addresses are on the left side of Broadway and even numbers on the right?
Two of our fellow members, movie534 and Life’s Too Short, posted a concern about the future of the Beacon Theatre and the ways Cablevision have mismanaged several of their other properties is a source of concern. Howard, with all due respect, much as is true with you (and I’m not one to toot my own horn), I have contributed quite a bit of information which has helped enrich this site by providing a broader historical context on several of the theaters featured on this site. There are people who post on this site who abuse the mission of CinemaTreasures.org, but I can say in all introspection and honesty that I am not one of those individuals and I am confident the further you consider the context of my post from yesterday, you will concur.
The brief answer, Life’s Too Short, is the NY Knicks in their current and existing state; the NY Rangers, to a certain degree; the management of Madison Square Garden; The Wiz chain of electronic stores, which went out of business in 2002, not long after Cablevision took control of ownership; Cablevision customer service in general (and their rapidly spiraling service charges); Cablevision, in 2003, refusing to carry the YES (Yankees Entertainment and Sports) Network until the New York state government, in April of 2004, stepped in and negotiated a temporary deal, which eventually led to a long-term carriage contract. Sadly, I could go on, but all of this should give you some idea why movie534 and others who have long enjoyed and appreciated the Beacon Theatre have their fingers crossed.
Did the Park & 86th really become that much of a move-over house in its final months of operation? Makes me wonder how far in advance Clearview knew they had to leave the space (per their forgetting the lease renewal and Duane Reade stepping into the breach)…
I’ve just read all the comments on this thread and am completely blanking out on where the ‘fourth’ auditorium of the Cheri was physically located. I remember the two (the result of the 1989 split?), located up those few stairs to the left of the concession stand, and the staircase leading to the upstairs auditorium (in the space the Summer Shack currently occupies), but I can’t recall where the fourth one was. (This is embarrassing, considering how many films I saw at the Cheri.) Can someone fill me in?
I have to wonder, Al, if AMC might cut the Village 7 and 19th Street East 6 loose at the first opportune moment. The quality of the bookings at those two theatres had been sliding since the Union Square Stadium 14 opened in November of 1998, but seemingly more so (especially at the Village 7) since the AMC-Loews merger. (The number of move-overs booked into the Village 7 have increased dramatically in recent time.)
When a film adds screens during its initial release, it’s referred to as an expanded first-run or something of the sort. At least in the Boston area (with the Arlington Capitol, Studio Cinema in Belmont, and Lexington Flick – and, to a degree, the Somerville Theatre, now that the majority of films they show are double-booked with the AMC Harvard Square 5), some distributors are most likely allowing former second-run-only theatres to book their films first-run in order to generate better box office grosses.
That’s a relief; thanks for the initial notice, NYCJosh, and thanks for the details, filmgene. When I saw NYCJosh’s post this morning, the ‘more needless luxury housing’ spectre immediately popped up in my mind, but the actuality is much, much better. Again, thanks to both of you guys…
According to a brief piece which ran in yesterday’s NY Post, the conversion of the Times Square Theater into a Marc Ecko store is still being delayed, due to ongoing negotiations with the Landmarks Commission. Am I the only one who thinks at some point Ecko might pull out altogether?
I’m trying to imagine, from the July 29, 1982 certficate of occupancy Lost Memory cited in his post from this past May 3rd (great research, as always, on the behalf of LM) and based on the seating capacities in 1979 and 1982 – and presuming the Allerton had a balcony, what the division from a twin to a triplex must have been…
I suspect Clearview is locked into a long-term lease the landlord won’t allow them to terminate.
This theatre really hasn’t had any sustainable ‘oomph’ to it since the three-year disagreement between Fox and Loews Theatres over Manhattan booking terms ended in 2002, and lost a lot of its strength previously when the Loews Lincoln Square opened in November of 1994. During the Fox-Loews discord, it was the beneficiary of being the sole UWS venue (save for the Metro at Broadway & 99th and the Olympia at Broadway & 107th) for Fox product, but, since then, it’s just kind of hung on (much as the former Clearview 59th Street East Cinema did in its final years).
I went there for the first time in over nine years last December and was struck by its lack of charm; the auditorium itself felt more akin to a medium-sized, uni-leveled lecture hall, with curtainless, mostly white walls, save only for some moderate decor from the venue’s Cineplex Odeon days. The lack of character could have been overlooked when this was a popular theatre, but, at current, it’s obvious and depressing.
The Wilshire Galleria was built within a former I. Magnin Department Store (circa 1939); many of the key architectural details have been retained. The M Park 4 Theatre is located on the third floor.
Indy 4 has been booked into the Regal EWalk Stadium 13 in Times Square.
I don’t think we (or anyone else, for that matter) can influence what specific theatres Indy 4 is booked into, as those agreements between theatre chains/owners and distributors are commonly made months in advance.
Here in NYC, along with the Ziegfeld, Indy 4 has been booked into the Village East Cinemas, the AMC Loews 19th Street East 6, the AMC Loews Orpheum 7, the AMC Loews Kips Bay 15, the AMC Loews 34th Street 14, Clearview Cinemas' First and 62nd Street Cinemas, Regal Cinemas Battery Park Stadium 11, the Magic Johnson Harlem 9, and the Coliseum Cinemas, as well as, I believe, the Upper West Side triumverate of the Clearview Cinema at 62nd and Broadway, the AMC Loews Lincoln Square 13, and the AMC Loews 84th Street 6.
Make that ‘changing as regularly in recent months’…
I had a feeling the Ridgewood would be closing soon, too, based on the bookings not changing with as much regularly in recent months. The same is true with the Jackson Triplex (even though they are currently showing three major releases early in their runs – ‘Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who', ‘Never Back Down’, and ‘10,000 BC’), so we may need to watch out for that theatre as well…
Yet another twitch in the death rattle of the U.S. newspaper industry…
Thank you for the advice, Michael. I e-mailed them yesterday; fingers crossed…
Nothing good, I’d guess, Nushboy07, but I hope I’m wrong…
Jesus Christ… I realize I’m stating the obvious, but real estate developers truly know no limits. I swear they’d give serious thought to selling their own children if someone offered them enough money…
I trust Ian as well. I passed by the Stoneham Cinema once, in the summer of 1987; ‘Spaceballs’ and ‘The Witches of Eastwick’ were the titles on the roadside marquee. I’m sure any hint of the space the cinema occupied within the shopping plaza building disappeared long ago.
The Laemmle Playhouse 7, which was built from scratch, silverquill, opened in December of 2000, sometime around the middle of the month.
Will the SVA operate the Chelsea West as a traditional cinema or as one more geared towards special events and programming?
Is 1931 Broadway the correct address for the Cinema Studio? Isn’t it uniformly true that odd numbered addresses are on the left side of Broadway and even numbers on the right?
How was the Cinema Studio twinned?
Two of our fellow members, movie534 and Life’s Too Short, posted a concern about the future of the Beacon Theatre and the ways Cablevision have mismanaged several of their other properties is a source of concern. Howard, with all due respect, much as is true with you (and I’m not one to toot my own horn), I have contributed quite a bit of information which has helped enrich this site by providing a broader historical context on several of the theaters featured on this site. There are people who post on this site who abuse the mission of CinemaTreasures.org, but I can say in all introspection and honesty that I am not one of those individuals and I am confident the further you consider the context of my post from yesterday, you will concur.
The brief answer, Life’s Too Short, is the NY Knicks in their current and existing state; the NY Rangers, to a certain degree; the management of Madison Square Garden; The Wiz chain of electronic stores, which went out of business in 2002, not long after Cablevision took control of ownership; Cablevision customer service in general (and their rapidly spiraling service charges); Cablevision, in 2003, refusing to carry the YES (Yankees Entertainment and Sports) Network until the New York state government, in April of 2004, stepped in and negotiated a temporary deal, which eventually led to a long-term carriage contract. Sadly, I could go on, but all of this should give you some idea why movie534 and others who have long enjoyed and appreciated the Beacon Theatre have their fingers crossed.
Did the Park & 86th really become that much of a move-over house in its final months of operation? Makes me wonder how far in advance Clearview knew they had to leave the space (per their forgetting the lease renewal and Duane Reade stepping into the breach)…
I’ve just read all the comments on this thread and am completely blanking out on where the ‘fourth’ auditorium of the Cheri was physically located. I remember the two (the result of the 1989 split?), located up those few stairs to the left of the concession stand, and the staircase leading to the upstairs auditorium (in the space the Summer Shack currently occupies), but I can’t recall where the fourth one was. (This is embarrassing, considering how many films I saw at the Cheri.) Can someone fill me in?
I have to wonder, Al, if AMC might cut the Village 7 and 19th Street East 6 loose at the first opportune moment. The quality of the bookings at those two theatres had been sliding since the Union Square Stadium 14 opened in November of 1998, but seemingly more so (especially at the Village 7) since the AMC-Loews merger. (The number of move-overs booked into the Village 7 have increased dramatically in recent time.)
Of course, now with the Regal Union Square Stadium 14 and AMC Loews 19th Street East 6 in the same zone, Chelsea gets most of the top product.
When a film adds screens during its initial release, it’s referred to as an expanded first-run or something of the sort. At least in the Boston area (with the Arlington Capitol, Studio Cinema in Belmont, and Lexington Flick – and, to a degree, the Somerville Theatre, now that the majority of films they show are double-booked with the AMC Harvard Square 5), some distributors are most likely allowing former second-run-only theatres to book their films first-run in order to generate better box office grosses.
That’s a relief; thanks for the initial notice, NYCJosh, and thanks for the details, filmgene. When I saw NYCJosh’s post this morning, the ‘more needless luxury housing’ spectre immediately popped up in my mind, but the actuality is much, much better. Again, thanks to both of you guys…
According to a brief piece which ran in yesterday’s NY Post, the conversion of the Times Square Theater into a Marc Ecko store is still being delayed, due to ongoing negotiations with the Landmarks Commission. Am I the only one who thinks at some point Ecko might pull out altogether?