Queens Theatre

The Queens Theatre first opened on December 29, 1927, showing vaudeville with a feature movie. It was very similar in size and design to the Prospect Theatre in Flushing, which opened in January of that year. Both theatres were built by the Century Circuit and had the same architect (Thomas Short) and interior decorator (William Rau). Unlike the Prospect, the Queens was never very succesful, due to its location in an area near the borough's border with Nassau County that was not heavily populated and lacked major shopping facilities. Vaudeville was quickly withdrawn and the Queens converted to double features that were first-run for the neighborhood but arrived a week or two after Jamaica, which was only a few miles to the west of Queens Village and the borough's #1 shopping and entertainment center. When the Queens finally started to get first-run movies with the advent of "Premiere Showcase" saturation release in the mid-1960s, business didn't improve much because Queens Village had not kept pace with the rapid development of the rest of the borough.

This theatre managed to stay in pretty good shape even after all the years showing porno. It's too bad the live shows did not work out or that they did not give it another chance showing movies.

Is this presently operating as a church, and if so, does anyone know the schedule of public services? I often pass the site on the LIRR, but can only see the rear of the building. Enormous fire escapes on both sides are still in place, but heavily rusted over. I wonder if they're still safe to use?

I think its still open, it appears that way from the front.

I ushered at the Queens from 1963-65, in maroon double-breasted jacket and pants, for $1.15 an hour. It was a blast. On the rare weekend nights we weren't working, we took our dates there (for free). When I started, the double bill was KING KONG VS. GODZILLA and FREE, WHITE AND 21. This last item was quickly replaced by, I think, THE KING AND I. My swan song as an usher was the first-run Showcase booking of IN HARM'S WAY.

The address for the Queens Theatre is 219-36 Jamaica Avenue, Queens Village, New York. It is NOT, as the introduction says, situated in Springfield Gardens. It was given the name of Queens because of its location in the heart of Queens Village.

I have wonderful childhood memories of Saturday afternoon admissions (50 cents for a double feature with newsreel) at the Queens Theatre just several blocks down from my dad's drugstore on Springfield Blvd. This was in the late 40's, early 50's and we looked forward to this every Saturday; one such memory was of my brother getting in free because his friend was an usher and let him in through the second floor fire escape door. (I think he only did that a couple of times just for the 'fun of it'- as for me, I was too frightened of being caught and that walk up the fire escape looked very precarious!)

On September 13, 1938, a fight broke out in the Queens Theatre's projection booth between the two operators, Nathan Klein and Solomon Schulman. Schulman later claimed that Klein attacked him with a fire extinguisher and that he grabbed a reel of 35mm. film to defend himself. In the tussle, Klein got killed. Schulman was eventually tried and convicted for manslaughter in the second degree, and sent to prison for 15 years, according to newspaper reports at the time.

Having started as an usher in Century's Floral Theater (Floral Park) in 1953, I transferred to the Queens as "Chief of Service (Head Usher)" in 1955; working there for three years under Manager Sy Samuels and his assistant, Art Ringfield. Ken, at $1.15 you were lucky! I made $0.85 an hour in 1955, rising to $1.00 when I left in 1958. Bess, your brother's friend was pretty lucky. Any usher foolish enough to open an emergency exit to let someone in free was summarily fired. Particularly dumb was to do it during the day. Opening ANY of those doors would instantly flood the entire theater with light. Nevertheless, they were great days... if you didn't mind seeing the same movie for 20 to 25 times!

The theatre is currently known as the NY Deliverance Gospel Church and has a market value of $1.29 million, according to NYC records. As a church, it is exempt from property taxes.

Warren, that's a great story about the fight in the projection booth. As I recall, the only access to the booth was via a vertical ladder up the wall after climbing stairs to the top landing of the balcony. No wonder those guys got testy.

Greg, those were great days indeed -- and I learned more about movies from watching them 20 times than from any textbook. Our Asst. Manager part of the time I was there was Tom Bien, a Hungarian stage actor who had fled Hungary after the failed revolution of '56. I ran into him a few years later, managing the movie house that used to be next door to Maxwell's Plum in Manhattan (anyone recall its name?).

Ken - Yes indeed, I remember that vertical ladder to the projection booth.

On rare occasions I had to schlep those heavy lead cannisters of 35mm film - a holdover from the nitrate film days - to the top of the balcony. I'd then climb the ladder and summon the projectionist to get them up into the booth.

I have a vague recollection of a rope hoist for the cannisters... Do you recall?

Ah yes, the rope hoist. Part of our Tuesday night close routine was helping the operator lug the cans down to the lobby, where the movie fairy would swap them overnight for the next double feature. Meanwhile the electrician was up on a 15' ladder changing the marquee. We also changed the printed schedules in the little wall slots.

The "ushers" room was on the mezzanine under the left balcony staircase. We shared it with huge bags of "fresh-popped" popcorn. On the many afternoons when the balcony was empty, you could scrunch down in the far left corner of the loge and see the manager's office -- and sneak a smoke.

Backstage was fascinating -- the clunky metal door, and the huge dimmers that you needed both hands and feet to operate.

Ah, yes.

I remember the ushers' room very well. But sharing it with bags of popcorn?? That's disgusting!

In my five years with Century, all popcorn was REALLY fresh-popped. And for a small premium (I don't recall how much) the container of popcorn was then sprayed with freshly melted butter and sprinkled with extra salt.

Part of my job as Chief of Service was to fill in as others took scheduled breaks. This included the Children's Matron, the Doorman, and the Refreshment Stand Matron. Consequently, I occasionally made, and served, the popcorn. To this day, whenever I smell freshly popped popcorn, my thoughts drift back almost 50 years...

That "clunky metal door" and the asbestos fire curtain suspended above the stage (immediately in front of the main curtain) were, of course, part of the fire containment system dating back to the Vaudeville days (late-20's). That ebony switchboard, with its myriad of switches and huge dimmers, was a beauty. I often tinkered with the dimmers during intermissions to subtly vary the colored lights playing on the main curtain.

Speaking of intermissions, I tired rather quickly of the typical "elevator music" played. As I had (still have) a rather large collection of "sound track" and "musicals" (e.g., Picnic, Guys & Dolls, Giant, etc.), I prevailed on Sy Samuels to allow me to bring in, and play, some of those LPs; particularly when the music neatly fit with a current or future billing. Other times I played classical music, especially Baroque, and got a lot of good comments from some of our patrons.

I too was a smoker; but I don't ever remember doing it "on the sneak." I DO recall, however, that smoking in full uniform (i.e., with jacket on) was strictly forbidden. As I hated those white dickies, I normally wore my own white shirt, and simply took my jacket off when on break.

Ahh, the memories...

By 1963 the dickies were gone -- we wore our own white shirts -- and so was fresh popcorn. The back half of the ushers' room was gated and locked, with a dozen or so bags of popped popcorn stored. The stuff was poured right into the top of the machine.

There was a turntable in the manager's office, but I think the music was usually controlled from the booth. Our regular afternoon operator was a big Floyd Cramer fan. If I never hear 'Wildwood Flower' again I'll die a happy man.

I worked as a candy girl there 1970ish. Married the usher. (we divorced and he's now deceased) Manager was Mr. Mendelsohn always smoked a huge cigar and very strict. Ushers had black jackets and white shirts and flashlights and showed patrons to their seats. WE...ummmm.. snuck into the ushers room a few times. Our dates also brought us to the balcony where we "made out". (giggle) Huge long fire escape stairs. Popcorn came already popped in huge bags and huge plastic containers of all-ready melted imitation butter were used. The mice constantly ate into the bags of popcorn. Somewhere I have a pic of a friend behind that candy stand.
Stores nearby included Bohack supermarket, Woolworths (flat open cases -salesperson stood in the middle), and a place where you could get an egg cream soda.

Ken - Yes, the music normally came from the booth. But there was an override switch on the manager's office wall at eye level above the turntable. That turntable was the one I used. My LPs were played only while I was in the theater. I wouldn't allow anyone, even Sy, to touch them.

BTW, the PA system (over which intermission music played) utilized a different (smaller) set of speakers from those used for the film sound tracks. Every once in awhile, the projectionist would forget to turn off the PA music as the film began. Thus, the override switch was our means of shutting off the music.

Dorothy - You've raised an interesting issue - I remember occasional mice in the theater (inevitable due to food scraps and chewing gum left by patrons). Unsold candy, of course, was removed from the stand during the nightly inventory, and locked in rodent-proof cabinets.

Ken or Dorothy, what was done with the bags of pre-popped corn, when penetrated by mice? Or shouldn't I ask (gag, barf)??

In my era, the candy stayed put in the stand, which had folding panels that closed and locked.

Prowling around in our off-hours, we found relics of the vaudeville and silent movie era. Under the covered orchestra pit was a dusty neglected organ. Behind the faux-tapestry to the right of the screen were the pipes and the forced-air percussion apparatus. Backstage there were rooms full of what seemed to be bits of costumes, carpets, and settings. All that was missing was a phantom.

I would suppose that the organ was probably abandoned in the 40's. It was a large instrument built by Austin Organs in Hartford, CT (still going strong I might add), opus 1569 (1927/8), 3 manuals (keyboards) and 42 ranks (sets of pipes). That made it somewhat larger than the Valencia's Robert Morton a few miles west. Austins were more refined than Wurlitzers or Mortons and not as unified, so they had a more "churchy" sound. Possibly this led to its demise. Anyway, the Beacon in Port Washington, the Freeport, Prospect (Flushing), and the Huntington all had identical Austin instruments. The Beacon's was in a restored condition and in use up until the time that the theater was sliced up into shoeboxes. One more bit of trivia: both the New York Rialto and Strand had 56 rank Austins. RCMH's Wurlitzer (biggest of 'em all) boasts 58! The Austins were busy beavers populating many of New York's theaters with organs although we hear mostly of Wurlitzers and Mortons as the quintessential choice. Oh, one more bit before I stop. The Freeport Theater's Austin wound up in St. Aloysius RC Church in Great Neck and did admirable churchy service there for many years before wheezing its last breath.

Holy bass pedal, Batman! Are you telling me the Queens had a bigger organ than the fancy-schmancy Valencia? Take that, Loewe's! Go Century! Is it still there?

The Queens Theater had an Austin organ installed in 1927 at a cost of $13,500.

Greg W - don't ask!

We had to inventory - count EVERYTHING..even the cups for soda.. and to my recollection the candy stayed in place and was locked by sliding doors.. I'll have to locate my Queens Theater pix.. I have one of my ex (the usher) as well in his usher uniform plus my friend Lynn the candy girl behind the counter
A few times I even got to sell tickets in the front booth... had to be "bonded" for the job as well. and there was an older gentlemen who was the ticket taker whose name escapes me.

And as to the phantom,,, I heard him

Ken, according to a good friend (the organist in my own parish, who first told me of this website), the organ went to Chaminade High School in Mineola.

Robbie, my organist-friend also confirms what you said about the "churchy" tone of the Austins.

Dorothy, I'm glad I didn't ask... ("Dorothy, those are NOT mouse droppings; that's the new peppercorn-flavored popcorn!")

Chaminade lists the Queens Austin as 13 ranks, but the Austin opus list says 42, so maybe they only found part of it. The rest of Chaminade's instrument was rummaged up from the RKO Richmond. As far as glitz and glitter, the Valencia's Morton could run circles around the Queens' Austin. The Valencia's console flew out of the pit as a cream and gold, gessoed, silver and gold leafed four manual confection complete with an elaborately decorated fence around the top. One could easily hide a volkswagen in it. The Austin, on the other hand, looked more like a walnut, roll-top desk that housed a typewriter. Sort of Jayne Meadows vs Ruth Buzzy,

I just found a photo of the Queens/Chaminade Austin at:

http://www.nytos.org/chaminade.htm

As you say, Robbie, rather plain-looking. But Jayne Meadows v. Ruth Buzzy? Egad. A nightmarish choice.

Dorothy... have you located your Queens snapshots? We're waiting breathlessly. Was one of your doormen a fellow named Schaeffer or Wilkins? They're the only two I can recall who were young enough to have spanned our two eras. Maybe.

Ken F.. I have forgotten a lot of names. I can picture so well the doorman with a black mustache... and the tickets sales lady.. who was a fixture there for years. They would not let us youngins do the ticket sales.. altho at one point they let me after I got "bonded".
I already sent one photo to this site email that I found so far. A pic of my friend Lynn, a candy girl, behind the inside candy stand circa early 1970's.
I have also since located a very old friend of mine Annie from my Queens Village days and she pointed me to this QV MSN group. Besides those who lived in QV many years ago it also contains photos of very early QV.

http://groups.msn.com/queensvillage/thelobby.msnw?pgmarket=en-us

I think you can view the pix without joining. I am going to point that group to this site. Surely there are others out there with some great photos!

Enjoy!
I will continue searching for more photos.

Dorothy, thanks for the tip about the QV website.

When you sent the photo to Cinema Treasures, what response did you get? For as long as I've been a member here, photo submissions have been closed. Did you have better luck?

BTW, my dad worked at the 105th Precinct, so some of the folks at the website may have known him as the cop-on-the-beat. (That's how I got the job at the Queens, heh heh.)

Ken,

So it was YOUR dad who would occasionally sack out in the last row of the orchestra, outside the manager's office (chuckle).

Seriously, the cop on the beat was always quite welcome; especially with the explosion of Rock-n-Roll and "Beach" movies in the mid-'50's. The teenagers would sometimes get out-of-hand; and then we'd put the cop to work (as only he'd know how..., heh, heh)!

BTW, although I lived in Bellerose (249th Street), I spent 5 1/2 years at PS 33 - across the street from the 105th Precinct.

It most likely was. Tall redheaded guy. In my day the gendarmie preferred the back of the balcony. We'd give them a swing of our Century flashlight if some sergeant came snooping.

Do I remember correctly that the right third of the house, by the mgr's office, was the Young Adult section? Always wise to have NYPD blue on hand.

Where on 249 St? I lived on 85 Ave off 246 St. Spent a year at PS 133 before St Greg's opened.

Are the 105 and PS 33 still across the street? I'll bet the staff of most schools these days wish they had a hundred cops nearby'

During matinees, the right third was the Children's section; complete, of course, with the ugliest matrons in the world, with dispositions to match!! One was a spitting - excuse me, barfing - image of Bloody Mary in South Pacific.

If you qualified for a children's ticket, and was unaccompanied by an adult, you had to sit in that section, and be out of the theater by 7:00 PM! Maybe the rules, or the age limit, changed when you were there.

If the cops later migrated to the balcony, perhaps it was to watch Dorothy "make out..."

Where on 249th? 89-09, second house behind the frozen custard stand on Jamaica Avenue. As my deceased mother's executor, I sold the house just 18 months ago. It's been completely rebuilt by the new owners.

I spent my first 3 1/2 school years (K-3A) in PS 133. Living south of the Creedmoor track, we were then "zoned out" of 133, and had to travel to 33. By September, 1950, the east wing of PS 133 was open. With but one year to go (i.e., 8th grade), I was allowed to choose between 33 and 133. I chose to stay at 33. Two of my brothers were forced to return to 133. My youngest siblings all went to St. Greg's.

My wife still has a cousin living around the corner from where you had lived: 85-40 247th!

Greg -- your Wagnerian [or Hammersteinian] nightmare of a matron sounds just like barrel-shaped old Mrs. Frey with grey skin and a Bloody Mary bun atop her head, who was Commandant of Kiddies during my tenure. Perhaps she's immortal. I hear her speaking (barking, really) with a German accent, though this may be an unreliable traumatized memory.

I graduated from St Greg's in 1960. Might I have known any of your siblings? Check out queenspix.com for interesting shots of the old nabe, including PS 133 standing alone like a monolith amid many empty lots and unpaved streets.

Ken,

Wagnerian? Hammersteinian? More likely Frankensteinian!!

I didn't remember her name, but you've accurately described her. Immortal? Naah! Formaldehyde ran in her veins, which accounts for the grey skin (think of the corpses at Stutzmann's). She had been resuscitated by Dr. Josef Mengele.

You might possibly have known my brother George; although (I think) he graduated in '59. Steve and Tim followed a few years later.

My wife and I were married there September 3rd, 1960. I literally married "the girl next door (89-11)!"

Hey, everyone! I'm Dorothy's friend, Annie, from Queens Village, and I still live there! However, from 1971-73,I worked as a candy girl at the Community Theater on Jamaica and 215th. I now live on 215th Place, right down the block from the theater. We had an awful matron, Mrs. Bossert, at the Community. Poor thing was hard of hearing and I remember one patron complaining that when he asked her where the bathroom was, Mrs. B replied, "last nine rows!" Of course, that was the smoking section. We had a lot of laughs over that one. I still hear about some of the people who worked at the Community, like Judy Burns, whose husband Tom was assistant manager at the Queens. There's also Larry O'Gara, a Nassau County cop, and Lindi (I can't remember her last name). One of our other matrons was a nice lady named Mrs. Jorgenson, I think. And, of course, our favorite candy lady was my old next door neighbor, Eleanor Schwarz, who passed away several years ago. I do remember hanging out at the Queens Theater, after hours, with some of the gang. We had so much fun, and it was great getting the free movie passes, to any of the Century theaters! Now both the Queens and Community theaters are churches, which I pass almost everyday. QV isn't what it used to be, but it's certainly home for me.

Annie,

By chance, do you remember the name of the Community's manager when you were there?

About the time I left Century (Summer '57), I was also breaking up with the stepdaughter of Bud Hansen, the Community's manager. I've often wondered whatever happened to him (and her).

Greg, could that have been the same Mr. Hansen who managed the Queens (and hired me) in '63? Tall slim dour-looking fellow. Smiled when he was unhappy.

Ken, most likely, the same guy! Tall and slim - yes! But dour-looking? He didn't strike me as such.

Anyway, Bud was a very good, efficient, manager; and as Century's HQ was in the Community building, I viewed his eventual promotion to a larger, high profile, theater - such as the Queens, the Meadows, or the Kingsway - as a given.

When I knew him (and later, his stepdaughter Linda), he was living in Brooklyn (Carroll Gardens) on Butler Street - directly across the street from St. Francis College (which I attended from '55 to '57, before transferring to Pace at night).

He probably got dour after I went to work there. I have that effect on employers.

As I wrote my earlier response, I had a somewhat opposite thought:

I wondered if he got dour because I dumped his stepdaughter...

Good Memory Annie.. better than mine! Thanks for posting it!

Ken F... I sent the photo to the email on this site and I realize the photo section is closed but I did it anyway. (hmmm.. it is possible too that it could be the candy stand of the Community as opposed to the Queens).. but had to be either of the two that's for sure.

I attended P.S. 34.

Hi Everyone,

I grew up on 249th Street and 81st Avenue in Bellerose. In the 50's my mother, Sylvia Fein, worked in various Century Theatres as manager of the candy counter. Her longest tenure was at the Queens Theatre. I loved that place. Often, on Saturdays I would go with her, and spend the afternoon exploring the lodge and the balcony areas. I saw the first Cinemascope movie there over 20 times, The Robe!! To this day I cannot look at that film.

I had many other experiences at that theatre which I will reserve for another posting. :-)

Michael

Portions of the Queens Theatre's exterior can be seen in the background of two color photos in the new article about Long Island Rail Road stations at www.forgotten-ny.com The two photos are in the section devoted to the LIRR's Queens Village station.

The right photo shows one of the oddest features of the Queens -- the fire-door-to-nowhere, which can be seen just under the water towers. I discovered this unnerving nook on a self-conducted off-duty tour of backstage. Pushing open a fire-door, I found myself eight stories up, on a tiny, distinctly rusty iron slat platform rather tentatively bolted to the wall and connected to nothing else. I discovered the true meaning of 'acrophobia,' and hightailed it back inside. I'm amazed it's still there after 40 years.

Greg,I see you lived at 89-09 249th street....Did you know the Magera family @ 89-27 250th?Pat, Mickey...Dad was a cop but I don't know where...house right next to Bellerose Bowl(now gone)..What years did you live there....did you go to St.Greg's?

KFP,

I knew quite a few people on 250th Street; and the Magera name is vaguely familiar, but I can't place the faces. There were a lot of cops living in Bellerose - on virtually every street! In those days you couldn't work for the NYPD if you didn't live within NYC limits.

At the age of 12 (1949), I delivered the Long Island Press to the entire area, from Commonwealth Blvd. to 250th Street (251st didn't then exist south of the track), and Jamaica Avenue to 88th Road, inclusive.

Are you sure of that house number? I thought 250th Street was all in the 88-XX series, since 89th Avenue ends at 249th Street.

I lived there from May, 1944 until I got married in September, 1960. My mother was there until she died in November, 2002.

Re, "St. Greg's," if you mean the church, yes - and I was very active there. But the school was not yet built. See my post of 2/7/05 (above) for more details.

Yes, I am sure of the #s,they still live there and the mail gets to them....Do you recall Hughes family, John Lydon,Armstrongs, Patty Kelly, Ann Sullivan,Dan Casey...all in the area...hard to remember names :)...You say you have siblings who went to St Greg's..What are their names and when did they graduate?

KFP,

Frankly, I think we're getting too far off the subject (the Queens Theatre) for this venue.

My e-mail address should be available for registered members.

Sorry,

I snapped the photo below in 1993 when the theater was vacant and about to be taken over by the church that presently occupies the building:

Coming Soon: New York Deliverance Gospel Tempel

I haven't driven by the place in a while, but I do know that the word "Queens" has been removed from all sides of the current marquee.

Here's a small ad for the Queens (as well as the Austin and Olympia Theaters) from its XXX porn days:

Prisoners of Paradise

I assume the three theaters (all in various parts of Queens) fell under the same ownership during the time. The ad appeared in the 12/9/80 edition of the Daily News grouped in a lower corner of the page with an ad for a Kung Fu grind feature and some local "short stay" Motels.

Our favorite thing about the Queens Theater was, after seeing the movie, sneeking up to the balcony "living room" area and turning off all the lights. We would then hide and make the ushers find us. I was small enough to fit in space that was part of large chair. Sorry Greg W but if it wasn't for us what would you ushers do? I wrote a book about growing up in QV in the fifties and there is a chapter on how to sneek into the Queens never the Community. It also covers Winter's and Mueller's Ice Cream Parlors,OLL,PS33 and Braddock Park.There is also a plan for getting a kiss while not getting slapped.

I have a number of local newspapers from the 1980's, saved for various reasons (the murder of John Lennon, the death of John Belushi, the Challenger tragedy, etc.) and I've posted a number of ads on this site from those papers. One thing I noticed from perusing those yellowing pages is that advertising for XXX theaters seemed to prosper in the NY Post and Daily News, particularly in the early part of the decade. The Times stopped allowing such advertising in the late 1970's (after the chic had worn off). I never noticed any ads or listings for porn houses in Newsday until I came across these small ads from the fall of 1985:

Little Oval Annie - Newsday 9/23/85
Call Girls and Superstar Ladies - Newsday 10/5/85

Ed,

I remember - from my days as Head Usher - the occasional wad of gum on seats, missed by the cleaners.

Your Newsday ads evoke an interesting question: During the porn days, were the seats even more sticky??

Further to my post of 2/3/04 above, here are two images copied from microfilm of the Long Island Press. The feature movie was, of course, silent, but was later re-made at least twice as a "talkie":
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/queens01.jpg
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/queens02.jpg

Didn't one of those "talkie" remakes involve the Ritz Brothers? The caricatures in that ad feature expressions similar to those in just about every Ritz Brothers publicity still I've ever seen! I guess to have them in the remake was a natural. And taken from a stage play, no less.

The original facade was pretty subdued, judging from that newspaper photo. Of course, we don't have the advantage of a vintage color photograph... but here is an image from 1993 (which I previoulsy posted) with the ornamentation appearing to be largely intact. I'll try to take some current day photos as soon as I get a chance. From driving by, I know the marquee has been spruced up - if not replaced - since '93.

Thank you for sharing this photo of the Queens Theatre. This is one of the three Century Theates my mom worked in during the 50's behind the candy counter. I spent many a weekend there as a kid watching films over and over again. When I was a teenager I also went to that theatre regularly with my Jr. High and neighbourhood buds. I always found the balcony a fascinating area to explore. You would be amazed what went on up there.

I wonder if anyone has any inside photos of this theatre to share with us.



Michael

Warren - Those are fantastic finds from the LIP archives.

Ed - Your 1993 photo of the marquee is as it existed in the mid-'50s. But in the mid-'50s, the vertical still existed.

In the '20s, all marquee and vertical lighting was incandescent. But by the mid-'50s only clockwise "traveling" lights around the perimeters remained with incandescent lamps; all other lighting was neon or back-lighted florescent.

Michael - In your earlier post, you weren't precise on your mother's tenure at the Queens. Might 1955 through August '57 be included?

As for "what went on" in the balcony, read Dorothy's post of 12/22/04. For over two years it was my (unfortunate) responsibility to STOP that stuff (chuckle)!

Hello GregW,

Yes, it is very possible my mom worked in the Queens Theatre in the 1955 - August 1957 period. I believe she worked for the theatres until about 1958 or 59. Most of her time was spent at the Queens, but she also did time at the Fresh Meadows, The Alan, The Community and the Bellerose. Her name was Sylvia Fein.

Someone earlier mentioned the possiblity of mice in the popcorn bags or something like that. One day, when my mom was scooping out popcorn from that huge tank, she once took out the scoop and rather than popcorn, she found a rat.

The activity in the baclony was not quite the making out that most people described. It was far more "alternative living" kind of stuff.

Michael - If your mom was there during that timeframe, I'm sure I knew her. Unfortunately, her name doesn't ring a bell. But then we're talking 50 years ago...

For a discussion of the popcorn and mice, check out the posts of 12/22/04 (above).

Re "alternate living," you're losing me. What do you mean?

There was a time, before the theatre was completely out of business, that there was quite a bit of gay sexual activity in the balcony. By this time I no longer lived in the neighbourhood, but this was conveyed to me by several friends who would most definitely be in "the Know." :-)

Michael,

You might well be speaking of the theater's later life as a porn house. There was absolutely nothing like that under Century Theaters management.

You might very well by correct Greg. As I said, I was no longer in the area at the time, so I have no idea who was actually running the theatre. I just was told that the Queens Theatre had become a real "hot" zone for this kind of activity, but my sources did not mention whether or not the theatre had been sold or whatever.

Gay hanky-panky in the upper reaches of the Queens? Not while I guarded the purple carpet and enforced the "Balcony Closed" sign in the mid-60s. And certainly not while my dad was among the gendarmie from the 105 who kept the back of the balcony safe for democracy (and the occasional nap).

Well KenF and GregW, I'm delighted to know there were such responsible and alert officials guarding the Queens balcony from such audacious behaviour. I always felt we should get sex out of the bedrooms and theatres, and into the bathrooms and Cunningham Park where it belongs. :-)

Ha. Sex in Cunningham Park. Why am I reminded of the evening of Jamaica High School Senior Day in June of 1982???

STOP PORNO! A picket line in front of the entrance in 1977:
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/queens77.jpg

Warren, I hate to say it, but I enjoyed your earlier pictures much more... Yuk!

EdSolereo, I gotta know. What happened at the Jamaica High School Senior Day in June of 1982?

GregW... like it or not, it is a part of this theater's history. Warren... did you notice that below the marquee and above the entrance doors it appears that the sign might read "Queens Village Theater?"

And Micheal D. Fein... I'll never tell. The innocent must be protected!

Attended many double features here in the early and mid-60s ('Portrait of a Mobster'/'Fever in the Blood' comes to mind for some reason); it was by far the largest venue in the area, though I never realized it had that many seats; somehow can't picture a theater that size flourishing as an XXX house, though it probably afforded patrons ample 'breathing' room.

A rare individual ad for the Queens Theatre from 1940. Since most neighborhood theatres in the Greater New York area ran double features by that time, I don't understand the logic behind "You can always see 2 top hits for the price of one at the Queens & save the difference." Wouldn't that have been true of all theatres showing double features, not just the Queens? I don't know of any theatre that charged a separate admission for each movie, at least not in that era: www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/queens1940.jpg

Thanks for posting that ad. That is a bizarre pitch, since the theaters listed below (including the Community about 3 blocks away, also a good-sized venue as I recall) all advertise double features as well.

Warren & JKane,

Back in the pre-TV heydays, a REAL "top hit's" first run was always as a single on Broadway (or Hollywood Boulevard); often including some vaudeville acts. So-called "first run" showings in suburban theaters followed several weeks later. At this point, a second film was normally added to replace the vaudeville; especially since the "feature" averaged only 90-100 minutes in length to begin with.

However, to call the second film a "hit" was pure hokum. It was extremely rare when a "co-feature" film outshone the feature. The Ernest Borgnine classic, "Marty," was an especially outstanding example. The Queens, Floral, and Meadows theaters were packed for two solid weeks!

On reflection, I believe that the "pitch" was an attempt to show only the top "A" features from the double bills that originated on the Loew's and RKO circuits, thus eliminating the lesser "B" product.
In the ad, for example, "Brother Rat and a Baby" had been the main feature to "Swiss Family Robinson" on the RKO circuit, and "Raffles" had played the Loew's circuit, with "Congo Maisie" as the supporting feature. In those days, the Queens was not a first-run theatre. It played the movies at least a week after they had finished their runs at all the Loew's and RKO theatres in the borough.

This photo was taken in 1941 when the theater had a double feature showing "Love Crazy," starring Myrna Loy and William Powell, and "Underground," starring Jeffrey Lynn and Philip Dorn. Note the banner advertising the "cool" air conditioned theater. Also note the young couple walking to the theater.

This photo is from the NYC Municipal Archives. This is one of 700,000 photos taken of NYC buildings between 1939 to 1941 for tax purposes.

http://i118.photobucket.com/albums/o91/youngnyer1/QueensTheater.jpg


Please look at my other comments to see more photos from this

collection.

Hi "Youngnyer1!" I am amazed by some of the tax photos that you posted. Thank you for sharing them with us! I am a preservationist who has high hopes for a number of these properties. I would like to correspond with you via e-mail, since I have a few questions to ask. Please e-mail me at unlockthevault@hotmail.com Thanks! - Michael

I can solve the theatre organ mystery. Austin was primarily a church organ company, but theatre organs were generally "unified" instruments. 42 ranks certainly has more punch to it than 11 ranks, but opus 1569 had only 11 ranks. I was the recipient of the organ's being donated to Chaminade High School in Mineola, Long Island. It was a 3/11, not a 3/42. The Valencia did, indeed, blow this instrument away. It had 23 ranks and 4 manuals, and the ranks were on an even higher pressure than the Queens Village Austin.

The QVT's reed ranks had already been taken by "midnight organ supply" before I took out the remnant in 1978. We managed to get exact replacement reeds from the Prospect Theatre and from the Beacon Theatre in Port Washington.

9 original Austin ranks remain in the 15 rank Chaminade instrument. All the Austin chests have since been replaced since releathering them would have been even more costly than getting new chests. The Austin console was replaced (given away) when we got the Robert Morton console from the RKO Keiths Richmond Hill in the mid-1980's. Even the 7.5 hp Spencer turbine was replaced by the 15 hp Spencer from the RKO Keiths Richmond Hill. The old 7.5 is now working for the Middletown NY theatre's Wurlitzer.

As a former member of IATSE Local 306 I worked at dozens of theatres within NYC. Indeed I worked at the Queens in the early 80's when it had a porno grind policy. At the time the Diaz brothers owned the place. I also woked at the community when it was a twin.

FYI, in the early 70's the Community was known as the Community Gardens........rock n roll shows were the policy then...many stories of so many houses.

Today few union operators actually run films.......thanks in part to a corrupt local union and an international union who did not give a damn about the projectionists all over the USA.

Hi all:
I also worked at the Queens, and Community theater's from 1952 till 1969 as manager.
In later years I was a projectionist with Local 640.

Anyone remember me?

Art Ringfield

Dear Art,

Oh my goodness! Speaking of voices out of the past! I certainly DO remember you - and your limp - and your wife (Patricia, yes?) - and your home on Jamaica Avenue in Bellerose!

You and I have 50 years to catch up on. Please write to me, ASAP, at gregwalsh@verizon.net

Warmest regards,

Greg Walsh

I've never seen this advertised or publicized as anything but Queens Theatre (not "Theater") from the time that it first opened:
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/queens01.jpg

oops sorry theater was a typo..... my mom danced in the "THEATRE" that would be the QUEENS THEATRE when they had vaudeville before any of us were born....actually my mom and dad met in front of the Queens Theatre.....

Here are new links to images related to the theatre's grand opening:
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/queens01.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/queens02.jpg

Great pictures of a go by era.
Artie16

Thanx for the terrific photos, Warren. I find it interesting that the headline of the story right under the second photo is titled ,The Gay Retreat." I wonder, back in those days, in which way they were using that word.

Michael, I'd be willing to bet that "Gay" was just being used in its "normal" sense and not with any homosexual intent.

My guess, Warren, is that you are totally correct. As someone who grew up living in the proverbial closet for my entire childhood in that surrounding neighbourhood (Bellerose), the title of the film made me chuckle.

Michael,

Please take discussion of your sexual orientation elsewhere. I think I can speak for most of us in saying that we don't care if you've come out of the closet.

Such discussion is unseemly, and clearly inappropriate for this website.

Just who the hell do you think you are GregWalsh, to determine what is seemly and unseemly? Since when is someone who is gay not permitted to mention it? Did I go into a discussion of sexual activity of any kind? I simply stated an experience from my past, and how it related to something I saw in a posting that caused me to chuckle. What is god's name do you find unseemly about that?

Michael,

You were not merely "mentioning" it; you were - in your own way - flaunting it. As to what is seemly and unseemly, I suggest you re-read the policies addressing relevancy of postings.

All other Members,

My opinion is strictly my own. Please weigh in with yours.

How in heaven's name is my mentioning that I was a gay boy living in the closet in the 50s and 60s flaunting anything. Do you hesitate to mention your wife or girlfriend in a postings? Does that fact that anyone in this group might allude to their being heterosexual, by mentioning a spouse for example, equate with being unseemly? Or do you, GregWalsh, have some kind of separate standard of your own?

Yes I would be very interested if any of the other members believe my post is unseemly. I did not come here to discuss anything other than the cinema, but the posts always relate not only to the theatre, but to people's experiences in the neighbourhood in which they grew up.up.other

As a child I was always in awe of the size of the balcony. The main floor didn't seem all that large. I also remember the rumble of the old LIRR steam locomotives as they would roar past on the express tracks.

I could be wrong, but during the 1980's, if this was a porn theatre at that time, then this, along with the Earle in Jackson Heights, the Globe in the Bronx, The Polk, as well as the Cinema 9 and Sayrewoods in New Jersey were all run by the same person. I worked at the Sayrewoods, and I know every week we would shuffle the film around from one theatre to the next. He made a lot of money out of those places, I could tell you that.

RVB,

You have a long memory - the last of the steam locomotives (Class G-5s) were retired in October, 1955.

And yes, those locomotives - at 60MPH eastbound into the Queens Interlocking - set up quite a vibration in the balcony.

I'd be willing to bet that passing locomotives weren't the only cause of vibrations in the balcony.

Warren,

For sure! See my post of 9/27/06 (2:07 PM)

Here is a 1986 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/dzezdt

In addition to changing the type of movies shown they also changed the marquee. The background color used to be green, the chasing lights yellow. Also the chasing lights from the side panels continued across the front to the other side.

1987 photo and a 1986 night photo.

Unfortunately, both of these shots are "under the new management" after the original color scheme. Also the vertical is gone. When was that removed?