I don’t want to start a flame war here, but I am white and my wife and I always shopped at the mall and never felt uncomfortable. I guess perception is reality, at least for some.
The Lil had its auditorium converted into warehouse space for the liquor retailer next door. A friend of mine who worked at the store took me in back to show what remained, which wasn’t much.
I went there quite often in the 50’s. The nicest thing about the Harlem were the in-car heaters. These allowed for wintertime movie viewing without keeping your car running to provide enough heat so the windows wouldn’t steam up.
When they were tearing down the theater to build a laundromat, the brick wall of the buidling standing on the east side was exposed. Obivously, it had been covered over during the Tiffin’s construction. Still painted on the wall and fresh in appearance was an ancient advertisement for Quaker Oats cereal, at only 5 cents a serving! Kinda neat.
Yes, gas pipes feeding exit signs were very common in theaters and other buildings even through the mid-20th century. The reason being was that if the electricity were to fail, the gas lights would still illuminate the exits in an emergency. Nowadays, back up emergency light systems work with a battery circuit to continue the lighting in case of power failures.
The new Chicago customers to whom you allude, might they be of the minority persuasion? These are the kind of biased unsubstantiated remarks that don’t belong on this board.
Yes, there was an Elm theater in Elmwood Park. It was located on the north side of Grand Avenue near the Milwaukee Road RR tracks. It was converted to an Armenettis Liquor store in the late 50’s I believe.
Odd note. I was watching “My Favorite Year” (1982) on AMC today and in one scene, supposedly on Broadway in New York, they pass a movie theater called the “Music Box.” The film was primarily shot in New York, but I cannot find any reference to a Music Box Theater in New York on this site.
It’s possible that this was a set on the backlot of a Hollywood studio. Any one know?
I drove by today and saw that the theater building is not demolished, but rather is being rehabbed, probably for retail. One can see the spaces in the front where the playbills were displayed.
For years, it has been used for storage, and the front always looked like a theater, with the ticket booth covered with metal.
Yes, it is a beautiful place and needs to be reopened. Just a minor correction, tho. I also lived in the neighborhood for many years, and attended St. Pascal (no h) church at the corner of Irving Park and Melvina.
I worked around the corner on Madison St. in the late 60’s and remember that this theater had gone to Spanish-language features by then. I even took in a Mexican vampire flick there once. Fun is fun, no matter what the language.
My Dad used to call it the Pay-she-oh, (like ratio). Perhaps just a neighborhood affectation. In all my years on the west side, we always called it the PAT-ee-oh, just like the place where you have your barbecue grill and lawn furniture. Of course, the Hispanic customers would call it POT-y-oh (As it is pronounced in Spanish)
Some of the statuary and fountains from the Paradise went to the Chateau Royale, a banquet hall built out of the Iris Theater at 5747 W. Chicago Ave. I remember attending weddings and functions there and admiring the beautiful fixtures. The building still exists today, except as a church.
Let’s see, no parking. How about the Music Box on Southport, an artsy little theater? The Music Box arranges for parking at a local school. Patrons take cabs, hustle for street parking, even ride the bus. Where there’s a will, etc. It’s easy to point out all the disincentives, including the major one of people staying home and watching DVD’s and movies on cable.
You know, as the operator of a tourist attraction, I’m in the entertainment business, so I’m always looking for that hook, that reason to get people to come and have some fun. That’s what we need to do here. I had a guy working for me, that whenever I asked him to do something, he would give me 10 reasons why it couldn’t be done. (we’re too far away, too far from other venues,etc.) I would then ask him to give me one reason why it could be done. He couldn’t, it was more fun being a naysayer, I suppose. Guess what, he doesn’t work here any more.
By doing research marketing and targeted promotion and advertising, and scheduling special events, we have increased our visitor count annually, even in these uncertain economic times.
OK, Tim, this is my final post on this subject. Remember, getting in the last word doesn’t mean you win. Nobody wins a p….ng contest.
You know, not everyone has to drive. With the price of gas pushing through the roof, public transportation to the door of this wonderful theater is readily available. Yes, there are restaurants and bars nearby, actually a very vibrant neighborhood. Secondary screening rooms could be established in the upstairs apartments/business spaces which flank the theater.
I went to the nightclub in the 60’s, which was known as the Holiday Ballroom North. It was still very much like a movie theater inside, except that the floor was leveled for dancing. The entire block and theater was leveled in the 70’s to make room for a strip mall and the Jefferson Park Elevated station bus terminal.
I find your comment to be rather snobbish. If you would notice in my posting that there are foreign-born people living in the neighborhood, so perhaps they might like to see foreign language films. At one time, the Patio showed East Indian and Polish films, or maybe you would prefer French and Italian.
Also, people have cars and can drive to the theater or take public transportation right to the door. Perhaps you would like to check out the former Gateway Theater (now Copernicus Center), just 20 minutes from the Patio. Literally every weekend there are foreign language films, classics, etc., being shown there to a packed house. And the parking lot is filled. Mostly with the cars of middle and working class folks.
I lived in the area for nearly 10 years until recently. It is actually, a great middle and working class neighborhood, safe and clean. Neat, tidy brick homes, a lot of Eastern European immigrant families. Closest theater is far away in the burbs. It would be a good venue for art and foreign language films.
I don’t want to start a flame war here, but I am white and my wife and I always shopped at the mall and never felt uncomfortable. I guess perception is reality, at least for some.
Peace.
Trolleyguy
This was a nice place to take a date in the 50’s. Clean and comfortable. Now, a McDonald’s stands on the spot.
The Lil had its auditorium converted into warehouse space for the liquor retailer next door. A friend of mine who worked at the store took me in back to show what remained, which wasn’t much.
I show the address as 11053 S. Michigan and seating capacity at 774.
I went there quite often in the 50’s. The nicest thing about the Harlem were the in-car heaters. These allowed for wintertime movie viewing without keeping your car running to provide enough heat so the windows wouldn’t steam up.
When they were tearing down the theater to build a laundromat, the brick wall of the buidling standing on the east side was exposed. Obivously, it had been covered over during the Tiffin’s construction. Still painted on the wall and fresh in appearance was an ancient advertisement for Quaker Oats cereal, at only 5 cents a serving! Kinda neat.
Yes, gas pipes feeding exit signs were very common in theaters and other buildings even through the mid-20th century. The reason being was that if the electricity were to fail, the gas lights would still illuminate the exits in an emergency. Nowadays, back up emergency light systems work with a battery circuit to continue the lighting in case of power failures.
The new Chicago customers to whom you allude, might they be of the minority persuasion? These are the kind of biased unsubstantiated remarks that don’t belong on this board.
Yes, there was an Elm theater in Elmwood Park. It was located on the north side of Grand Avenue near the Milwaukee Road RR tracks. It was converted to an Armenettis Liquor store in the late 50’s I believe.
Odd note. I was watching “My Favorite Year” (1982) on AMC today and in one scene, supposedly on Broadway in New York, they pass a movie theater called the “Music Box.” The film was primarily shot in New York, but I cannot find any reference to a Music Box Theater in New York on this site.
It’s possible that this was a set on the backlot of a Hollywood studio. Any one know?
Thanks.
The Iris still is in existence as a church.
The theater has now been converted into a retail shoe store. Nothing remains to indicate it ever was a theater.
I drove by today and saw that the theater building is not demolished, but rather is being rehabbed, probably for retail. One can see the spaces in the front where the playbills were displayed.
For years, it has been used for storage, and the front always looked like a theater, with the ticket booth covered with metal.
Yes, it is a beautiful place and needs to be reopened. Just a minor correction, tho. I also lived in the neighborhood for many years, and attended St. Pascal (no h) church at the corner of Irving Park and Melvina.
Peace
I worked around the corner on Madison St. in the late 60’s and remember that this theater had gone to Spanish-language features by then. I even took in a Mexican vampire flick there once. Fun is fun, no matter what the language.
Excuse me, Jim, but the i in Spanish is pronounced ee (long e). it is the e in Spanish that has the long a sound.
Peace
My Dad used to call it the Pay-she-oh, (like ratio). Perhaps just a neighborhood affectation. In all my years on the west side, we always called it the PAT-ee-oh, just like the place where you have your barbecue grill and lawn furniture. Of course, the Hispanic customers would call it POT-y-oh (As it is pronounced in Spanish)
The intersecting street at Division where this theater is located, is Mayfield, not Mansfield.
I remember going to Saturday matinees at the Park in the early 50’s.
For a dime, you got 10 cartoons, newsreel, serial chapter, and a feature. Needless to say, the cartoon-a-thons on TV effectively killed this business.
John Ford’s “The Quiet Man” enjoyed a several months run in first release here, due to the heavy Irish immigrant presence in the neighborhood.
As an aside, the wading pool in Austin Park across the street, was known as the “Mud Hole”, because that’s what it was before WWII.
Some of the statuary and fountains from the Paradise went to the Chateau Royale, a banquet hall built out of the Iris Theater at 5747 W. Chicago Ave. I remember attending weddings and functions there and admiring the beautiful fixtures. The building still exists today, except as a church.
Let’s see, no parking. How about the Music Box on Southport, an artsy little theater? The Music Box arranges for parking at a local school. Patrons take cabs, hustle for street parking, even ride the bus. Where there’s a will, etc. It’s easy to point out all the disincentives, including the major one of people staying home and watching DVD’s and movies on cable.
You know, as the operator of a tourist attraction, I’m in the entertainment business, so I’m always looking for that hook, that reason to get people to come and have some fun. That’s what we need to do here. I had a guy working for me, that whenever I asked him to do something, he would give me 10 reasons why it couldn’t be done. (we’re too far away, too far from other venues,etc.) I would then ask him to give me one reason why it could be done. He couldn’t, it was more fun being a naysayer, I suppose. Guess what, he doesn’t work here any more.
By doing research marketing and targeted promotion and advertising, and scheduling special events, we have increased our visitor count annually, even in these uncertain economic times.
OK, Tim, this is my final post on this subject. Remember, getting in the last word doesn’t mean you win. Nobody wins a p….ng contest.
Peace.
You know, not everyone has to drive. With the price of gas pushing through the roof, public transportation to the door of this wonderful theater is readily available. Yes, there are restaurants and bars nearby, actually a very vibrant neighborhood. Secondary screening rooms could be established in the upstairs apartments/business spaces which flank the theater.
All you need is a vision. (And money)
I went to the nightclub in the 60’s, which was known as the Holiday Ballroom North. It was still very much like a movie theater inside, except that the floor was leveled for dancing. The entire block and theater was leveled in the 70’s to make room for a strip mall and the Jefferson Park Elevated station bus terminal.
I find your comment to be rather snobbish. If you would notice in my posting that there are foreign-born people living in the neighborhood, so perhaps they might like to see foreign language films. At one time, the Patio showed East Indian and Polish films, or maybe you would prefer French and Italian.
Also, people have cars and can drive to the theater or take public transportation right to the door. Perhaps you would like to check out the former Gateway Theater (now Copernicus Center), just 20 minutes from the Patio. Literally every weekend there are foreign language films, classics, etc., being shown there to a packed house. And the parking lot is filled. Mostly with the cars of middle and working class folks.
Remember what happens when you make assumptions.
Peace.
I lived in the area for nearly 10 years until recently. It is actually, a great middle and working class neighborhood, safe and clean. Neat, tidy brick homes, a lot of Eastern European immigrant families. Closest theater is far away in the burbs. It would be a good venue for art and foreign language films.