Oceana Theatre

My father managed the Oceana Theatre from the mid-1950s until 1960. During the 1950s it was one of three neighborhood theatres owned by Rugoff & Becker (the other two were the Tuxedo, where the Luna Park apartments are located on Ocean Parkway, and the Sheepshead, in Sheepshead Bay). All three theatres were acquired by the Century chain in the late 1950s, and my father worked for them until the late 1960s (Century also owned the Kingsway, Avalon, Midwood and other Brooklyn Theatres). At some point, when Century went bankrupt, the Oceana was converted to a sixplex, and there were often one or two Russian-language films playing for the now-Russian-speaking neighborhood. I went there several times in the 1980s while it was still a movie theater, and was fascinated to see how it had been converted (my father's office and part of the lobby were now a separate theater!). Two years ago on a trip to Brighton Beach I managed to get into the Oceana, which has been operating as a Russian nightclub for some time. The facade was pretty much the same as it had been 40 years ago, but the inside had been totally adapted to resemble an old-fashioned nightclub. There was still a stage where the original screen had been (in the 1950s some stars made personal appearances to plug their movies). Probably the biggest event that I remember was in 1958 when "The Ten Commandments" played a two-a-day run for a number of weeks.

Here's a final question: does anyone remember the Brighton Theater, a legitimate theater that was part of the fabled "subway circuit," a group of theaters around New York City where Broadway shows toured when they closed their original run? The Brighton was located near the Tuxedo Theatre at the end of Ocean Parkway, just before you turned to go to Coney Island (right) or Brighton Beach (left). My father managed the Brighton for some period of time in the early 1950s, and I remember attending a performance of "Top Banana" as a very young child. Anyone have more information on the Brighton?

The Oceana Theatre was located at 1029 Brighton Beach Ave..

I contributed to the description in the article above. I was an usher at the Oceana, when it was owned by GOLDEN. I believe this is the company who owned it after Century went bankrupt. GOLDEN also owned the Fortway, and the Benson at the time.

I was given the usher job, because they needed someone to work New Years eve in 1982, and me and a friend were both called. I worked there about 2 months and change. It was a 4 plex at the time, as the old vaudville clothes and other artifacts were backstage where they eventually put 2 more theatres, that used a side entrance.

Speaking of exits and entrances, we would pull gates down on the fire doors while the last movie of the day was still showing!

I do not remember much about the people that worked there, but the managers at the time were Milton and Martin. One's last name was Rosenburg. There was another usher named Alfredo or Albert who I recall as well. We also had an off duty cop around many times.

Some of the movies I saw mulitple times at the Oceana while ushering included one of the Pink panther movies, The Chosen, The Last American Virgin, The Entity, and several others.

People would line up outside to get in. There was a way to go between theatres through backstage downstairs and a simple door upstairs, which would circumvent the "maze" that was built to keep people from switching theatres.

I wore a bow tie, and a black vest and white shirt.. carried a flashlight.. had to stop people from smoking (no smoking just became the law) and tell rowdy kids (I was a kid also) to quiet down.

Now, ushers clean the theatre and walk out. The movie starts itself. The sensors on the film dim and raise the lights. You do not see any other staff once the movie starts. And in most cases you are seeing the movie in a neat square box.

Brooklyn had some amazing showplaces. See my comments about The Loews Oriental and the Kingsway.

I still love going to the movies. But I will miss the experience of going to the movie THEATER.

Mike

The Oceana first opened in December 1934 with a double-feature topped by Joan Crawford & Clark Gable in "Dancing Lady." Due to its proximity to Coney Island, the programs at the Oceana were several weeks behind those at the first-run Loew's Coney Island and RKO Tilyou, or at least until the 1960s when distribution patterns changed.

The Oceana was sold to an independent theatre owner in late 1973, He also had run the Granada, Highway and Rugby Theatres. The Rugby was first to go to Golden (who had the Quad and Olympia in Manhattan and the Graham on Whitney & Knapp Street and the Benson in Brooklyn). The Granada entered the Golden fold in 1974 followed by the Oceana in 1976. The balcony was sealed off from the public and only the upstairs restrooms were accessible. I worked the Oceana in 1975 for a while. It's auditorium was large and two blue backlit decorative grilles were on each side of the screen. A former Century matron, Gloria, now at the candy counter use to call the theatre a big barn. I was not there for the Golden-transformation thank God. I remember "Hester Street" played an exclusive run here for 4 to 5 weeks before the "Golden" rule. On the second level outside the ladies' room was a bust of the goddess Oceana that was also lit. Milton was there when I worked there and was a doorman. We also had a problem with the seniors who parked thier sun chairs all along Brighton Beach Avenue and had to be asked not to block the theatre entrance. I remember seeing "The Wind And The Lion" here. Century had not gone bankrupt at this or any other time. They just sold off thier buildings as neighborhoods changed and money was needed for them to continue. The Century Circuit was taken over by the Almi Group in 1981 and that's when Almi let go off all the unprofitable Brooklyn houses as well as the Long Island leased properties. I worked for Almi and that's the way it happened.

Has all the multi-plexing been removed now that this is a live theatre again?

Yes, I saw the Golden Gloves boxing match last year in the original auditorium orchestra space. Some of the exterior is the same, the box-office removed within the past three years. The lobby marble has been removed and redone, the coved ceiling intact. I believe the balcony is now the Millenium Theatre and must have been de-multiplexed even though that staircase was closed to the public that night. It was funny because the Daily News did an item on the theatre that I was quoted to have worked there. In addition, when I asked the manager/owner about the changes to the building, she told me it was a landmark and couldn't be changed (however many changes did occur). Some of the theatre's features are noticeable but you have to know ehere to look. Thi person obviously didn't know much about the origins of her building.

What do they show in the Millenium theatre upstairs? I bet the two backstage theatres are still there, might make a few dollors to run it as a twin if it could be done cheaply.

Shouldn't this be listed as the Oceana Theatre? I believe that Atlantic Oceana is the name for the restaurant/nightclub currently operating at that site. In its many years as a movie theatre, it was known only as the Oceana.

My mother's mother used to go to the movies here every Saturday after she was done with the shabbos lunch dishes. Even though my grandfather was strictly orthodox, she somehow brokered a deal for herself whereby once a week, she got to go to the movies by herself without acceding to his demands and the chores of housewifery. Good for her!

Lived near the oceana, sheepshead ,lakeland and tuxedo.Also near me was the kings highway theater.across from the oceana was the brighton baths and downstairs was Zeimars deli.

On Saturday afternoons we kids had to sit on the left side...the center, the good seats, were off-limits, and an annoying woman ("matron") in a white outfit would patrol with a flash light. Years later I learned of a New York state law requiring segregation of children, apparently for their own safety. But for budding movie buffs to have to sit off-center was an insult, let alone a joy dampener.

The "sections" were not only for the protection of children, but also made it easier for them to see the screen, since there would never be "big people" sitting in front of them.

This website has a photo of the Atlantic Oceana. Scroll down, its the second photo from the bottom of the page.

A C/O was issued to a New building at this address on April 16, 1934 for a 2188 seat motion picture theater. In 1976 it is listed as a twin theater. In February of 1983 it is listed as four theaters. Then in March of 1985 it is listed as having six theaters. Seating at that time was Theater#1-431, Theater#2-441, Theater#3-222, Theater#4-367, Theater#5-367, Theater#6-137. As of February 2004 this building is listed as a Banquet Hall/Bar & Lounge/1360 seat theater w/projection booth.

The two backstage theatres could easily be opened for movies again if they have not been torn out.

The Oceana was an attractive neighborhood theatre. It was was close to the once fashionable Manhattan Beach.

Here are some photos of the Oceana Theater/Restaurant.

This is a 1934 sketch of the proposed Oceana:
http://tinyurl.com/z5xb5

does anyone remember Zeimars Deli which was located in Brighton Beach? My uncle used to own it.

Living on Brighton 12th street in the 1960's, the Oceana was my neighborhood theater. I remember attending a premire of The Monkey's Uncle, starring Annette Funicello, in 1965. After the picture started I remember following Annette and watching her hail a cab on Brighton Beach Avenue. What a time, no security, no escort, no chaperone.

I took piano lessons from Mrs. Bocher in a studio over the Oceana's marquee. There was an electronic repair shop in the storefront to the east of the entrance. I used to wait there before catching the bus to go to school. By the way, singer Neil Diamond's parents had an infant's aparell shop located a few doors east of the theater.

The year given for this photo is 1972, but the movie title on the marquee wasn't released until around 1976.

A recent view as the Millennium can be seen near the end of this new article about Brighton Beach: http://www.forgotten-ny.com/NEIGHBORHOODS/brighton.beach/brighton.html