Capri Cinema

Chelly Wilson operated this theater. I understand it was demolished & turned into a parking lot.

According to NYC records, this building still stands. It has a build date of 1920. It is currently listed as the Euro Cafe (at least part of the building is the Euro Cafe since it has 3 floors). In 1996, NYC and the Department of Health took the owners of the Capri Cinema aka Capri Theater to court for unspecified health and zoning violations. The owner(s) listed at that time were Alfred Moody Jr, Teddy Kariofilis and Thomas Gioulos. Anyway, in June of 1996 NYC won the case and the right to shut this theater down.

Also listed for this address is the Starstruck Restaurant. Its not actually a restaurant but a restaurant supply company.

Starstruck Restaurant
738 8th Ave # 1
New York, NY 10036
(212) 391-0603

A 1972 ad for a double bill of Dr. Yes & Airline Cockpit
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a13/ChmnofBrd/Movie%20Ads/LoveUnder17.jpg

The Capri was one of a number of porn houses to list its attractions in the Post's Neighborhood Movie Guide feature well into the 1980's:
NY Post - 12/11/80
NY Post - 3/8/82
NY Post - 1/30/86
NY Post - 10/28/86

There are three porn marquees all on the same block seen in this kinda blurry photo from the late '80's or early '90's. The one furthest to the left is the Capri. The other two (moving from left to right) are the Eros and Venus. This is the east side of Eighth Avenue looking north between 45th and 46th Streets.

The CAPRI was a great porno Theatre! I will always remember the great titles! The gal in the ticket booths name was ETHEL and had been in the business 30 years! Too bad it turned into a crack house!

Taking a lead from Lost Memory's research for his June 13th, 2005, I found some more public-record details about the Capri:

*The building was a plain-jane multiple family dwelling by the time the mandatory C/O laws went into effect in NYC in 1938.

*By 1957, a C/O was issued for the conversion of the 1st and 2nd story to a restaurant.

*A temporary C/O for a theater with a capacity of 171 on the 1st floor and 66 on the mezzanine level (with projection booth) was issued in May of 1969, with a final certificate issued that September. The final includes a "caretaker's duplex apartment" on the 3rd and 4th floors.

*By 1996, permits had been issued to demolish and renovate the 1st floor, remove the mezzanine and remove the storefront and marquee.

The owners at one point were "Capri Cinema Inc." As Lost posted back in 2005, Euro Diner still occupies the former theater space. We can update the seating capacity above to 237 seats.

Here's a current shot that depicts the buildings that formerly housed the three theaters that comprised Chelly Wilson's porn monopoly of this block. The Venus was located in the light colored building on the right, which currently houses Daniela Trattoria. Skip a building to the left and you'll see the former Eros Theater site, now occupied by Playwright Tavern and opposite the small parking lot is the Euro Diner in the building once occupied by the Capri Theater.

Props to Lost Memory, who posted some photos from this site on other pages here (including the Eros) and got me browsing for more. I also posted this on the Venus page.

This case, referred to by LM a while ago, states that the Capri initially showed Greek films (ironically) and then art films before switching to adult fare:
http://tinyurl.com/3695tk

I wonder about the definition of "Greek films" and "art films" in that document... and who provided the theater history. As far as I know, adult films - including the prototype nudies that preceeded the first hard-core films circa 1969-70 - were part of the Capri's bill of fare since Chelly Wilson first opened the theater in 1968/69.

In any event, I think we should update the data at the top of this page to include a seating capacity of 230. Status should also be changed to "closed" and present function to "restaurant" as the building still stands and is now occupied by the Euro Diner.

For anyone who visited this theater during the 1970's - 1980's when it was showing porn flicks, I HIGHLY recommend reading Times Square Red Times Square Blue. A true picture perfect account from that period from a very compassionate author.

The Capri is now fully dismantled. It's air. The entire building is being removed. About 1/3 of the bed and breakfast portion of the building remains as of today.

Here is the Capri in 1986.

seen here in 1992 in the distance behind its neighbours the Venus and Eros
http://www.flickr.com/photos/woody1969/3508916456/sizes/l/