World Theater

The information about the closing date is incorrect. The theater closed in the late 60's and reopened for a short time down the street around 17th and Market. The theater didn't last very long after it reopened.
The original World showed Romeo and Juliet and A Man For All Seasons in the middle to late 60's. They along with the Bryn Mawr theater showed the same films

All the info that I found on this theater gives a closing date of 1964. If you know the year that it closed, the info above can be changed.

When the World building was sold there was a clause in the deal stipulating that the office building that was to be constructed on the site would have space for a theater. That did happen; the theater was called the New World and had an entrance on South 19th Street, around the corner from the original. The new theater never really caught on--I think the side-street location was a handicap--and it only lasted a couple years before becoming a health club or something.

Some people have said that the World was part of the William Goldman chain, but its advertising did not identify it as such (unlike Goldman's more mainstream Chestnut Street theaters).

I am not positive, but the logo used for the World Theatre advertising was very similar to the Rugoff Cinema 5 Theatres in New York City. The name World was encased in a rectangular box much the same as the Cinema 1 and 2 and other Cinema 5 Theatres in NYC. The Bryn Mawr Theatre usually played day and date with the World and that theatre was operated by William Goldman Chain.

I show no listing for the World Theatre after 1964. The New World Theatre located at S 19TH ST and Market ST is another theatre entirely. If may share the name but not the building or location which makes it another theatre unto itself. The New World Theatre should be listed on this site as a seperate theatre. The New World Theatre operated for a few years in the 1970's. I will look into this matter further.

DennisZ is absolutely correct. Please note my Bryn Mawr Theater Cinema Treasures Comment. Rugoff was not the complete name; Rugoff Cinema 5 was the full name...I stand corrected; I read DennisZ's comment after my Bryn Mawr input. I believe New World (later the Center City Sports Club) was also operated by Rugoff Cinema 5. When I saw "The Wild Bunch" there ($1; revival engagement), I spoke to the head usher, and I distinctly remember him specifically telling me that Rugoff was the name of the chain.

In reference to the New World Theatre: It was buitl on the site of the then-closed & demolished RKO Stanley Warner's Stanley Theatre. The New World Theatre opened in 1972 and closed in 1978.

If the Stanley Theatre closed in 1973, how could the New World open on that site in 1972??????

The Stanley was closed between 1970 and 1972, demolition could've started in 1972, and The New World oculd've been built while parts of the Stanley was still standing.

According to the info posted on the Stanley Theatre site, it was demolished in 1973. In Jan. 1973 I spent a weekend in Philadelphia. We stayed at the Holiday Inn on Market Street. We could look out our room and see the closed, but still standing, Stanley Theatre below us. I remember thinking at the time of all the movies I traveled from Lancaster to see at the Stanley - "Cleopatra", "My Fair Lady", "Camelot," "Hawaii." to name a few. That same weekend, we saw "Young Winston" at the Midtown. I still do not believe the New World Theatre was built on the site of the Stanley Theatre.

The New World was located in the basement of an office building on 18th and Market. It didn't last long. The last thing I rememebr there was a tennis club.
As far as the Stanley, it closed in Jan 1970. The last film to play there was Viva Max. The theater was not demolished until 1973 as the above post said.
As I said in a previous post, the original World closed sometime in the middle -late 60's. I am 100% positive about this. They definately played A Man For All Seasons and Zefferrelli's Romeo and Juliet.

According to the book Philadelphia Theatres by Glazer, lost memory has the correct date of closing as 1964.

Thanks for verifying the date Chuck. On Cinematour there are two World Theaters listed for Philadelphia. This link is the World/Pix Theater which closed in 1964. Then there is this World Theater which I don't see listed on C.T. Philadelphia Architects and Buildings also lists two differant World Theaters.

The second link that you posted is for the World Theatre that was opened in 1972 and closed in 1978 according to Glazer's book. I think some of the postings are for the World Theatre that was opened in 1972 which like you said is not listed on C.T. According to his book it was located at 19th & Market seating 500.

Most of the conversation in here is about the second World Theater. If anyone is looking for a theater to add, the second World Theater would be a good candidate.

There was a theatre in the basement of the former Holiday Inn at 18th and Market called Eric's Mark 1. Is that what mikeoaklandpark is mentioning.

Hdtv267 - The Mark 1 Theatre opened in December 1970 with the roadshow attraction "Song of Norway" I believe. It was a totally different theatre than the World. The theatre closed in Oct. 1989 as United Artists did not renew the lease after they purchased the Sameric theatre chain.

Thank you for this site: I thought I would never find the name of this theater !!
I went to Central High from '60-'64 and remember getting $.50 and $1 passes for weekday shows when it was showing all the New Wave movies in a VERY grungy sorroundings. It then was renovated somewhat- st the same location- and went "upscale" with espresso and morsels being sold/served ? in the lobby .... I recall seeing Romeo & Juliet there before they closed (which must have been around 1968 at least) .... so it survived past 1964 .....
Mark K

Here is the layout on Market Street in the late 1970's, when I was in college. Forgive me if some of the theaters are misplaced. Walking from City Hall to 30th Street, the Fox was of course on the south side of Market at 15th, followed by a few adult film houses. There was at least one adult theater between 17th and 18th on the north side of Market. There was another adult theater on the south side of Market between 22nd and 23rd. I don't recall seeing the World, but then again I can't recall any theater names except the Fox.

The New World shows up in the movie pages of the Inquirer of May 28, 1975, playing "Le Secret" starring Jean-Louis Trintignant. "Le Secret" was also playing at the Bryn Mawr at that time so it seems that the day-and-date booking policy that had been used for the Bryn Mawr and the original World was revived, at least for a little while. The address is given only as "19th at Market Street." I don't see the New World listed in May 1974 papers, so it looks like we can assume a 1974 or '75 opening date for that house.

here is a list of the theatres along Market that I was able to compile. Address, Theatre, Seating and dates of operation.

*****Philadelphia Theatres on Market Street*****
1018 Market, Princess Theatre, (446) 1911-1954
1211 Market, Savoy Theatre, (376) 1908-1948
1214 Market, Palace Theatre, (1106) 1908-1971
1230 Market, News Theatre, (400) 1937-1971
1311 Market, Family Theatre, (547) 1908-?
1632 Market. Regent Theatre, (416) 1913-1980
1638 Market, Center Theatre, (439) 1936-1985
16th & Market, Stage Door Theatre, (495) 1971-1980
16th & Market, Stanton Theatre, (1457) 1914-1980
18th & Market, Mark 1 Theatre, (611) 1970-?
1930 Market, World Theatre, (600) 1946-1964
19th & Market , World Theatre, (500) 1972-1978
20th & Market, Mastbaum Theatre, (4746) 1929-1958
21st & Market, Erlanger Theatre, (2916) 1927-1978
22nd & Market, Forum Theatre, (250) 1975-?
722 Market , Capitol Theatre, (562) 1919-1954
There were a ton of Nickelodeon Theatres in the early 1900's but I didn't list them.

Chuck 1231: I would like to add two theatres to your very comprehensive list. They are:
16th & Market St, Fox Theatre (2,423), 1923-1980
19th & Market St, Stanley Theatre, (2,916) 1921-1970

Dennis, thanks, I have them on my list but didn't type them in.

Here is an article from the Bucks County Courier Times dated 10/30/75:

A film a day for a buck a day — that's the new policy at the New
World Theater, 19th & Market Sts., Philadelphia. This novel idea, designed by Cinema 5 Ltd. vice president and booker Sol Horowitz, calls for a daily change in the film schedule and a $1 at-all-times policy. The program list includes numerous impressive offerings ranging from the classic Hitchcock thriller "The 39 Steps" to the futuristic science fiction piece "Silent Running".

In 1972. the original World Theater was torn down as part of the
city's urban renewal program for the Bicentennial On Feb. 26, the
New World Theater opened and continued its former policy of booking foreign art films of cinematic masters such as Federico Fellini, Vittorio De Sica, and Ingmar Bergman However, the management soon discovered that the former art crowd had deserted center city and moved to the suburbs, consequently, the New World has been losing money.

Cinema 5 also owns the Cinema 19 at 19th and Chestnut Sts., Philadelphia, and has used that theater as a house showing double bills for the last two years. The policy at the New World Theater is unique. Unlike most $1 houses that keep films for one week or more, the New World will only play a film for one day. That way, the theater can maintain a steady flow of classic films.

From Boxoffice magazine, January 1960:

PHILADELPHIA-Rugoff & Becker, New York circuit, has taken over the management and operation of the World Theater here. The World is owned by Pathe Cinemas and is a first run downtown house specializing in foreign and special domestic films.

This is from the same source in September 1946:

PHILADELPHIA-Sam Cummins announced that his new house, the Pix, will be ready to open some time in November. It will seat 499, and will operate as a first-run house. Cummins said the cost of the project, started two years ago, has tripled, and will now cost from $250,000 to $300,000 when it is completed.

The house will contain the latest in modern equipment, with the cooling system as the highlight. Several new wrinkles have been worked into structure of the one-floor building. Architects are Roth and Fleisher.

1968 phot6o of the World Theatre.
http://americanclassicimages.com/Default.aspx?tabid=141&txtSearch=CATAdvancedSearch1%2c38%2c3%2c2268&ProductID=33185

Renewing link.

Wow this is a mystery! If the original theatre closed in 1964, how can there be a photo from 1968 of the original theatre? The original theatre definitely did NOT close in 1964. I remember seeing and enjoying such post '64 features as A Man for All Seasons, Morgan, Romeo and Juliet (Zefferilli), Adalen '31, The Fox (photo by Chick 1231 above) and many others between 1965 and 1971 when apparently there was no theatre to see them in. Glazer needs to retract and correct.

The World on Market St. was one of my favorite theaters when I was a Philly teen in the 1960s. It most definitely was open through the end of that decade because that's where I saw "If..." and "Last Summer" in 1969.
The theater stood out from the other downtown movie houses because it was smaller and had a distinct "arty" vibe - the small lobby was painted white (with only a few posters and paintings as decoration). It was the place where I saw my first subtitled movie - the Swedish hit "Elvira Madigan" in 1967.
I also remember going downtown to see "A Man for All Seasons" there when it opened for its exclusive first-run engagement in 1966.
Thanks for triggering some nice memories!

The World Theatre at some point in the 60s was managed by David Grossman, who later became well known and beloved as the director of Temple University Cinematheque and later still of the Film Forum. He organized art exibits in the lobby of the World. My late father Robert Lenton had some paintings in a group show along with the late photographer Sam Moskowitz. Some subjects in Moskowitz's photos sued the theatre and everyone associated with the exhibit, including my Dad. I don't know what year that was, but it was most likely before 1964.

One of the biggest problems with this page is that we have two seperate theatres listed on the same page. Coments about one theatre are ment for the other and vice versa. It makes it difficult to follow. As far Mr. Glazers book, I am sure there are inaccuracies as well as any other written information. Look at Box Office magazine for exaample and all the inaccuracies. The purpose of this forum is to supply the information with what we find, if there are corrections then simply submit them and the site will be updated. We know for a fact that the closing date of the original World was not 1964 even though that is the date given in more than one research finding. The photo link shows that the old World was still open in 1968 playing "The Fox". So now we have to determine exactly what the closing date was. We know that it was demolished in 1972, so it closed betwen 1968 and 1972. Again it would be easier to follow if the two theatres weren't listed on this same page.

Great site, by the way. One thing that might help with the dilemma Chuck refers to is that the theatre that was built to replace the original World Theatre was actually called the New World Theatre, so more accurate information might be found if you search under N instead of W. I think, but am not sure, that the New World was not on the same site as the World. As I recall the New World and the office building which it was in the basement of, were built on the site of a Penn Fruit supermarket.