Loew's Lincoln Square Theatre

The theatre destroyed by fire in 1931 must have been rebuilt. In the '50s, the Lincoln Square at 1947 Broadway became CBS TV Studio 60, demolished as part of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts complex.

The address as given on 10/13 for the Lincoln Square was 1947 Broadway.

The Lincoln Square had 1,546 seats and opened as a playhouse in 1906. Marcus Loew acquired it in 1909 and switched the policy to family vaudeville and movies. It was one of his first Manhattan theatres. As time passed and Loew built bigger and better theatres, the Lincoln Square was reduced to playing double features near the end of their circuit run. If there was a fire in 1931, the damage must have been repairable because Loew's Lincoln Square operated for quite a few years after that until conversion into a TV studio and then demolition for the construction of Lincoln Center.

Comments taken from removed duplicate listing for this theatre:



Built as the Walter Hampden at 1947 Broadway near 65th Street. In the early '50s converted to a CBS-TV studio. Balcony seats retained for audience.
posted by DougDouglass on Aug 4, 2002 at 7:17pm

Can anyone tell me if this was at one time called the Lincoln Arts? Also, where on this listing is the Tower East theater? Sorry I have to post these questions here. Perhaps at some point, there will be some kind of "aka" function for theaters that changed names.
posted by CConnolly on Dec 2, 2004 at 9:53am

CConnolly......I think that the theater your looking for is the Loews Tower East which is here:
http://cinematreasures.org/theater/7766/
posted by lostmemory on Dec 2, 2004 at 10:01am

I'm not sure which theater in the Lincoln Square area this theater was. But I'm wondering if it was the theater on the east side of Broaway, a bit north of where Broadway intersects with Columbus Ave.? If so, I think I may have seen "Carmen" with Julia Mignes-(?)[a very good movie] there in the early 1980s.

If it is the same theater, somehow I don't recall it being called the Lincoln -- although it may have been.

In any case, I don't think it was the Lincoln Arts theater. The Lincoln Arts theater was between 57th and 58th Sts., just east of Broadway. I believe there were articles in the "Times" when 1) it became some sort of ethnic movie theater (maybe showing films from India?) and 2) when it was demolished and replaced with a "gourmet" deli/supermarket.
posted by Benjamin on Dec 21, 2004 at 1:38pm

This theater was called the Loew's Lincoln Square. It was a wonderful theater, showing first-run movies. I lived on 65th between Broadway and Amsterdam in the 1940s and 1950s. In the age of television, it became a studio for filming TV shows. All of the neighborhood kids would wait outside for autographs from stars like Red Skelton, Chico Marx, and others who filmed their shows at this once great movie house.
posted by westsidegirl on Apr 11, 2005 at 3:54pm

The Lincoln Theater which is at the address given in the headers (1947 Broadway) is listed in various editions of Film Daily Yearbooks that I have from 1930, seating 1,539. It was known as the Lincoln Square Theatre in the 1941 edition of F.D.Y. By the 1950 edition it was the Loew's Lincoln Square Theatre and by 1957 it had reverted back to being the Lincoln Theatre, 66th & Broadway, with no seating capacity given (maybe it had closed by then?).
posted by KenRoe on Apr 11, 2005 at 4:23pm

The 2004 edition of "The City and the Theatre" by Mary C. Henderson states that 'the Lincoln Square Theatre was opened in 1906 and was managed by Charles Blaney, who installed a stock company for a short time. Thereafter, it became a vaudeville theatre, but by 1909 was showing movies. The Lincoln Square Theatre was torn down during construction of Lincoln Center in the 1960's.
posted by KenRoe on Apr 11, 2005 at 4:40pm

This theatre seems to have two listings, the other as Loew's Lincoln Square. I believe that this one is incorrect, and should be combined with the other one. As far as I know, this theatre was never known as just the Lincoln, even after Loew's dropped it, when it became simply the Lincoln Square.
posted by Warren on May 14, 2005 at 6:34pm

Some early images. Most of the fire was confined to the front of the building, and the auditorium escaped major damage, which enabled the theatre to re-open after repairs were made.
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/lincolnsq3.jpg
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/lincolnsq.jpg
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/lincolnsq2.jpg

This is probably the 66th Street side of the theatre, but I can't swear by it:
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/lincolnsq4.jpg

There is a two-page photo of the Loew's Lincoln Sq. Theater as it burned down on January 30, 1931 (pages 12 - 13) in the book "New York's Bravest", compiled by Shawn O' Sullivan (Powerhouse Books).

The Red Book Guide for 1930 lists seating at 1639.

This is a January 1931 fire photo from the NY Daily News:
http://tinyurl.com/nwhmnt

ken mc's picture is sad but a great find,only picture I have seen of the LOEWS LINCOLN.

Here is a snapshot of the Loew's Lincoln Square Theater in its last incarnation as CBS TV Studio 60. This picture was taken by my father, Merwin Dembling, in December of 1959; the view is looking towards the northwest across Broadway from the corner of 65th St :

http://www.cbsretirees.com/blog/uploaded_images/CBS-Studio-60-1959-774227.jpg