Arion Theatre

The Arion's address was 73-26 Metropolitan Avenue. In the heyday of double features, it was under the same management as the Drake Theatre on Woodhaven Boulevard in Rego Park. They used to play the same late-run programs, but not at the same time. The Arion, for example, would show them Thursday-Saturday, and the Drake from Sunday-Tuesday, or whatever. Film Daily Year Books claim that the Arion's seating capacity was 970, as opposed to the Drake's 570, but the Arion was built in a more populated area than the Drake, which probably explains the difference.

I believe the original building which had the ARION name engarved on it was demolished for the current store front now. I couldn't find the actual building 4 years ago.

About 90 % of the Arion theater building is still standing. The auditorium portion remains behind the row of stores that lines Metropolitan Avenue. When the theater closed and was taken over by Jamron Drugs, at the time, the portion of the structure that held the outer and inner lobbies was demolished. The outer lobby, which held the box office and showcases, was two steps above the level of the sidewalk. The small inner lobby had more showcases, the ticket taker’s stand and the rest rooms. This was replaced with a structure that is even with street level.

The Jamron, then Genovese and now Eckerd drug store was built in the shell of roughly the back half of the auditorium. Recently, I caught a glimpse of the ceiling of the theater when some of the drop ceiling tiles were removed for some repair work. How much of the original theater exists is anybody’s guess.

The Arion was the theater of my youth in the 50’s and was where I got my weekly dose of cartoons, serials, Abbot and Costello and that lady in the white uniform who kept us confined to the children’s section. Mr. Rabinowitz, who’s daughter I went to school with, was the projectionist for many years.

Sadly to say, the owners ran the place into the ground. At one point around 1960, the theater closed for renovations. About a month later it reopened with great fanfare announcing “gallery seating - the most comfortable seating in all of Queens”. What a disappointment that was. What they had done is take out every other row of seats for plenty of leg room and replaced the remaining seats with seats that looked like they were discarded from a theater built in the teens – hard leather seats with wooden backs. The seating capacity of some 970 was reduced to about 500. Things went downhill after that until the inevitable closing.

Another renovation in the early eighties announced new seats but this time it was only about 15 rows toward the back of the theatre. They used to still fill this place even though it was so run down and clearly had seen better days. I spent a lifetime going here, so I guess I have fond memories of the place.

Around 66 I used to go here and it was an ok place nothing to brag about

I went to this theater many times after moving from Ridgewood to Maspeth. It was not a very nice theater in the late sixties so I went more to the Oasis.

The Arion was always a run down theatre but it was never dirty. They ran the greatest double bills here. When I would miss something first run I knew it would come sooner or later to the Arion. They also ran offbeat and foreign films.

RobertR is right. The Arion was never dirty and they did have great double features. The theater was a Middle Village fixture since 1921.

As I recollect, from the late 40's (and most likely earlier)through the early 60's, a different double bill ran Sun to Tuesday and Thursday to Saturday. Wednesday's double feature was usually revivals. When Dominant Pictures had theatrical reissue rights to the pre '48 Warner Bros. library, a great many played the Arion on Wednesdays. For a while, Wednesday's were also a revival of "Dish Night". Up until the late 50's, they also had printed programs advertising two weeks worth of programming. These were available at the theater or could be mailed to your home, if you put your name on their mailing list.

Management always tried to run things on the cheap. I was once told that when they used carbon arcs in the projectors, they would buy half used ones. These were the ones from RCMH, the Roxy and other prestige first run Manhattan theaters that used a new carbon rod for each reel change and discarded the previous one. The Arion and probably other thaters were able to buy them at a discount.

In 1954, when they installed their CinemaScope screen, they really splurged and went for 4 channel stereo, which really sounded great.
However, as the supply of 4 track magnetic striped prints dried up over the next few years, the stereo equipment was removed and it was back to mono for the rest of the Arion's life. Showmanship was also out the window with the advent of CinemaScope. The screen curtain, which opened and closed each show was removed and never replaced.

By the mid 80's, the air conditioning and the heating system barely functioned and the Arion was driven into the ground. Too bad they did't go for the triplex idea, which would have meant a complete redo of the place.

In 1954 for a theatre to have no curtain was really odd wasent it? I remember years ago every theatre, even the dives had a curtain. Its funny I cant recall if there was a curtain or not in the 70's & 80's. One hysterical thing the footlights under the screen or curtain were fluorescent, which I have never seen before because they make an ugly light. Well the bulb all the way to the left was green and all the other ones were white. It used to cast the ugliest green hue that looked so out of place. Also when the side maskings opened the screen had a patch that only was obviouse when a Cinemascope movie was played. They did put in a new screen however about 5 years before they closed.

Wow! A website devoted to the Arion Theater! I grew up in Middle Village (went to PS 49), left for college in 1979 and have only been back a few times since. Hence in my memory the Arion lives on in all its double feature glory. I saw dozens of movies there in the 70s including Taxi Driver, Rocky, Night of the Living Dead, Looking for Mr. Goodbar and many others. I don't mean to offend anyone else's memory but by the 70s the theater was an unqualified dump. The joke was always that there was no need for a concession stand since you could get all the gum, popcorn and candy you could possibly eat right off the seats and floor. I can recall leaving the theater with gunk stuck to both shoes and the seat of my pants. Another memory is the not always reliable projection and sound system. Once, I went to see The Poseidon Adventure, and they had the reels in the wrong order, going direct from the opening scenes to the climax near the end (where Gene Hackman opens a valve by hanging from the wheel). Stangely, the audience, perhaps not expecting better, did not object, and we all just watched the movie with the scenes in the wrong order.

P.S. I learned many years later that "Arion" was a musician in Ancient Greece who is often depicted riding on a dolphin. It was a popular image in Elizabethean times, and is referred to in a few of Shakespeare's plays.

Hey Garrett

The funny thing is that even as a dump I loved this place. There was just something about it. I grew up in Forest Hills and went to Christ the King HS. I actually went after school one day and saw a Russ Meyer double bill at the Arion with some of my buddies. Catholic school taught us well :)

Rob

GarrettH....Finally, another Middle Villageite has made it to this page. I too graduated from PS 49. I was in the last 8th grade graduating class. That was way back in 1953, when dinosaurs roamed Juniper Valley Park.
Yes, in its final years, the Arion left quite a bit to be desired in the cleanliness department and it got worse as time went on. Remember the men's room with those gigantic smelly urinals? They had to date back to when the theater was built in 1921.
Thanks for the explanation of where the name "Arion" came from. I wondered about it all these years, but never tried to research it. Now I am finally in the know.

Meant to add to my last posting....Isn't it odd that the image of "Arion, the Greek musician riding on a dolphin" was never visible in any part of the theater's decor? Perhaps there was something prior to the late 40's, when I started going there regularly, that was covered over or removed in a renovation of one kind or another.

Erwin
I am trying to remember what decorations there were. I know the doors were set back so there was an open area outside and then the outer lobby was long and narrow. I think there were flower boxes on one side with artificial plants in them. Posters on the walls and some old sconces and an ugly chandelier which was changed sometime in the 60's.

Robert...There was little decoration inside or out. The outer lobby with the flower boxes that stood between the doors to the rest rooms on the right as you entered, was more square than long and narrow and was where the ticket taker stood. The inner lobby at the back of the auditorium was on the long and narrow side and was where the concession stand was. This area or inner lobby was separated from the seated area by 4 1/2 foot high marble dividers topped by another 2 1/2 feet of clear glass and nothing above that.
The walls were painted plaster on the lower approximate 5 feet with the balance up to the ceiling being covered in a red damask for acoustical purposes. Wall sconces provided illumination. The ceiling had a huge oval plaster decoration. As far as I know, no
chandelier(s) ever hung from the ceiling. Huge radiators spaced along the side walls provided steam heat, which, at times, clanged merrily away during the show. That is when management decided to provide some heat!

GarrettH--You're not going to believe this, but I WAS AT THE VERY SAME SHOWING OF THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE at the Arion where they had the reels out of order. I remember everyone making fun of the fact that the Shelley Winters character was dead, and then we saw her swimming around ten minutes later!

I too grew up in Middle Village (in the 60's and 70's), and spent many a happy hour at the Arion. Of my many memories, my favorite is the week (usually once a year, in the summer) when the Arion would "Go Ape"--that is, they aired all 5 of the "Planet of the Apes" movies back to back over the course of a single week.

I loved the double features, and discovered some of my favorite movies quite accidentally because of them. I remember going to see a version of "The Three Musketeers," (starring Michael York, Richard Chamberlain, etc.) and having to first sit through the B-feature, a film starring Jon Voight entitled, "Conrack." Well, this many years later, I can't remember a single thing about that version of "Musketeers," but "Conrack' remains a film that changed my life forever.

Something else I remember about the Arion... in those days, most of us in Middle Village DIDN'T have air conditioning in our homes. Come summer each year, the Arion would hang out a banner with a picture of a penguin sitting on an ice block, and the advertisement to come see a movie in "air conditioned comfort."

I remember the matrons shining the flashlight at us as kids, and telling us to be quiet. Whatever happened to matrons in movie theaters??

And I remember, as a teenager, smoking cigarettes--legally!--in the last ten rows of the Arion.

It's funny the impact such things as a small neighborhood movie house can have on us, especially while we're young. To this day, every time that I dream I'm in a movie theater (a frequent scenario for me), no matter where I'm "supposed to be" in that particular dream, I realize--it's always the Arion. If I live to be a hundred, I will never forget the place.

Tom C.

ErwinM
Thanks for reminding me about the oval design in the ceiling, I had forgotten all about that. I still miss this place.

Robert R... Here's a bit of Arion trivia for you.

The entrance to the theater was framed by two showcases on the right and a single showcase on the left. The one on the left was actually a disguised door. When opened, it revealed a staircase which led to an apartment above the area over the outer and inner lobbies, the rest rooms and the boxoffice. Sporadically, one would see the tenant coming and going.

WOW, I wish I had a picture of the place for old times sake. Remember their marquee letter's were the old metal ones?

That's hilarious to me that somebody else still living was at that same exact showing of the Poseidon Adventure! (unless, of course, the Arion had the reels in the wrong order during the entire week's run, which would not have been out of character for the Arion's crack staff). I have a vague memory of the Arion's Festival du Apes, but I DEFINITELY remember the blue banner of the penguin on the iceberg advertising It's Cool Inside, or something like that. Like many, my house had no AC and that banner was most attractive on some of those hot humid NYC days. Several times during the summer my friends and I would ride our bikes to the Arion and go see whatever they were showing. One thing I recall from that era is that blinding, jarring sensation you get when you leave a dark, air conditioned movie theater in the middle of the day, and emerge into bright sunshine (and, the Arion's case, the hub-bub of Metropolitan Ave.)

I also remember people smoking at the Arion (and the Drake, where when I was a kid they allowed smoking on the left side of the theater (as if it made a difference)). To this day, I still think when I look up during a movie that I'm going to see that swirling prism of smoke you would see in the illumination from the projection. It is funny how, for moviegoers at least, you carry the images from those first theaters.

As for the movie matrons, it is strange that such a rewarding, fulfilling profession could just vanish.

Some exterior photos of the Arion can be seen in the new feature story about Middle Village at www.forgotten-ny.com

I lived several houses down on 74th street and could see the Arion from my stoop (YES we all had stoops back then).The Arion was a staple growing up in MV,on saturdays all the kids on 74th street went to the matinee's which were usually cartoons or Disney movies.The 1st movie I can remember seeing was "Chitty chitty bang bang" with my grandfather. I was in the Arion with my father when the big blackout of '77 hit,ironically the movie that had just started was "Black Sunday". On saturdays at midnight in the 70's they showed XXX movies for a time. The last movie I remember seeing there was a midnight showing of "The rocky horror picture show" when it 1st came out (stupid us thought it was a horror movie...who knew? )Movies were only $1 and I think I still have a ticket stub around. We used to sit on the steps to watch parades or just to hang out until we got chased away when it opened. We lovingly referred to it as "THE ITCH". It was a sad day when the theatre closed,multiplexes like the Midway were the new thing and single
screen theatres were no good any more. I remember the bldg sat empty for some time because the price tag at the time was so high ($600,000 ...hind site is 20/20 huh?) The whole "Avenue" as it was know has changed,I miss the old neighborhood.

I lived several houses down on 74th street and could see the Arion from my stoop (YES we all had stoops back then).The Arion was a staple growing up in MV,on saturdays all the kids on 74th street went to the matinee's which were usually cartoons or Disney movies.The 1st movie I can remember seeing was "Chitty chitty bang bang" with my grandfather. I was in the Arion with my father when the big blackout of '77 hit,ironically the movie that had just started was "Black Sunday". On saturdays at midnight in the 70's they showed XXX movies for a time. The last movie I remember seeing there was a midnight showing of "The rocky horror picture show" when it 1st came out (stupid us thought it was a horror movie...who knew? )Movies were only $1 and I think I still have a ticket stub around. We used to sit on the steps to watch parades or just to hang out until we got chased away when it opened. We lovingly referred to it as "THE ITCH". It was a sad day when the theatre closed,multiplexes like the Midway were the new thing and single
screen theatres were no good any more. I remember the bldg sat empty for some time because the price tag at the time was so high ($600,000 ...hind site is 20/20 huh?) The whole "Avenue" as it was know has changed,I miss the old neighborhood.

Yeah, those were the days. ... I saw quite a few double features myself in the late 60's and the 70's. However, I remember one occassion where we had spent all our newspaper and soda bottle recycling profits at Nick & Andy's on candy, and we had to resort to hoolaganism to get in. We pooled all our change, so that one person could buy a ticket, go up to the front row, and then open the door to the left of the screen, so the rest could sneak in from the alley.

This is a typical Arion double bill :)

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a13/ChmnofBrd/JoanCrawfordisBeserk.jpg

What a terrific site! It's taking me hours to catch up on the postings. I have many memories of filmgoing long before the VCR and DVD made it "easy" to see any film. My moviehouse haunts were in Queens, Blyn, and Manhattan. When I was a kid during my early years in College I worked at a couple of independent houses and for Century Theatres as an assistant to management. The trouble we got into. Those times were almost thirty years ago so when my memory cooperates I'll share some thoughts.
The Arion was a shrine for movie buffs. Cheap, I think a $1.00 or $1.50, and always a double feature. Sometimes the lower half of the bill was the draw. Queens had a few of these places in the 70's - Arion, Cinemart, Haven, Bellerose, Austin for a time. Loud theatre. No doors between auditorium and candystand. Always crowded because of price. Poor sound, picture, seating, etc.. But it served its purpose.

I actually remember seeing this Topo Gigio matinee at the Arion. My mother took me and 2 of my cousins.
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a13/ChmnofBrd/WorldofTopoGigio.jpg

Does anyone remember these badly dubbed childrens matiness that were so popular in the 60's and early 70's? A lot of them were from Italy and Germany.
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a13/ChmnofBrd/LittleRedRidingHood.jpg

I like Topo Gigio when he was on the Ed Sullivan show. I don't think I liked him enough to pay money to see him. Kiss me goodnight Eddie!

In 1954 when theatres were changing the bill every few days this holiday pair was making the rounds.
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a13/ChmnofBrd/AdventuresofRobinsonLittleKidnapper.jpg

March 1978 "Saturday Night Fever" opened on a huge neighborhood Academy run.
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a13/ChmnofBrd/SaturdayNightFever5-78.jpg

I remember playing Saturday Night Fever with Looking for Mr Goodbar
as a double feature at the Drake late in '78 or early in '79. It did great business. Coupling a classic musical with a minor classic drama from '77. This is what creative exhibition used to do to generate ticket sales. This is what a film buff would look out for to see a film that they missed on general release. This was the filmgoing experience before VHS and DVD. I enjoy the pristine look of a DVD but miss the theatrical experience. For NY'ers this is what the Bleecker St., Thalia, Elgin, Cinema Village, and at times St Marks qould supply.

I can't believe but I actually remember seeing this re-issue of "Oliver" at the Arion instead of the Oasis because the Arion paired it with "The Trouble With Angels" and the Oasis had it with a western.
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a13/ChmnofBrd/Oliver.jpg

This neighborhood run ad for "2001" saluted the astronauts of Apollo 10
http://photobucket.com/albums/a13/ChmnofBrd/?action=view¤t=1969.jpg

Summer 1967 "Zhivago" on a neighborhood run
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a13/ChmnofBrd/Movie%20Ads/Zhivago67re-issue.jpg

A Wurlitzer organ Opus 1040 Style D was installed in the Arion Theater on 4/18/1925.

The comments above confirm my memories of the Arion having that round plaster ornamental thing on the ceiling. But as I posted under the Drake, I'm pretty sure there was also plenty of peeling paint -- which, considering all the other comments here, seems quite in character.
And "JakeGittes" -- great name! But I saw Chinatown at the Elmwood -- at least, the second time. I can't remember where I saw it the first time. It's possible we went ALL THE WAY OVER to Bayside to the Bay Terrace, as my father was sometimes wont to do...

Another gem
http://youtube.com/watch?v=h9OKRlBGTOM&search=%20intermission

Robert R. I love your JPEG's of old Newspaper movie ads. Hab]=ve any more?

Lost Memory, I too remember Topo Gigio on the Ed Sullivan Show, and, through my dad and an older friend, learned of his predecessor, Senor Wences.

The Arion was a Jamron Drugs store in the latter 1980's before it became a Genovese. Same difference, huh ?

For some reason, I posted my Arion Theater movie memories on the pages of other theaters, probably mostly the Cinemart.

I very fondly remember my childhood spent in MV and the Arion movie house was a big part of my memories. I went there in the forties and fifties and remember that children's admission was 25 cents and on weekdays it was 11 or 12 cents. Most candy was 6 cents. There were many times directly from school (PS 87) I would go to the movies to watch such films (as I remember) Sunset Blvd, Boris Karloff/Bela Lugosi horror ones, Lon Chaney Jr Wolf Man films, etc.

I'm sorry to read above that in it's latter day it wasn't kept up well.

Nah, it wasn't, OldMariner. Lovethoseoldtheaters and I would both quickly add the Arion to the category of dump theaters. Unlike the many films I'd watched at the Peerless of my '50s youth, and that was a Class Z dive ("The Itch," according to my dad), I'd experienced only a few movies at the Arion in Middle Village in the middle '70s.

The Arion could have been a really good neighborhood outlet, and perhaps in its younger days it did serve a good purpose for the kiddies, but what can one say after MV goes and loses the landmark Niederstein's Restaurant to a blasted fast food corporation, too? Where have the oldtime business values gone?

For Middle Villagers, Ridgewoodites and Glendalers who used to grab a meal here before or after screenings at the Arion, Ridgewood, Oasis, RKO Madison, Maspeth, Drake or Elmwood Theaters:

http://www.subwaywebnews.com/Buses4/8498ndrstn.jpg

Niederstein's Restaurant closed 2-8-05. The pic was taken before the wrecking ball struck. It's a fast food joint now.

Progress.

And I know this is Niederstein's restaurant how? Can lostkemory verify this?

Shalom, ciao, and excelsior

Perhaps your a bit confused. The comment was posted by BrooklynJim. Niederstein's is closed.

Niederstein's is a restaurant. This webpage concerns the Arion Theatre. BrooklynJim could use a refresher course in remedial reading. This drivel is enough to cause a true theatre historian to cringe.

Will the true theatre historians please stand up!

'Tonino, if you go to the website's Archives (under buses), you'll see that the location was verified in their capsule summary.

"BrooklynJim could use a refresher course in remedial reading. This drivel is enough to cause a true theatre historian to cringe."

Three days into his CT membership and Art Theatre already displays an all-wise and sarcastic mouth & keyboard. (Sounds as if he could be related to another pedantic, personality-deprived imbecile we know all-too-well. Maybe Lost Memory isn't the only one who knows how to morph his multiple screen names!)

I wrote that many of us may have eaten at this restaurant "before or after screenings at the Arion, Ridgewood, Oasis..." etc. The place, with a history all its own, is gone forever. Culturally, we tend to mourn theaters no longer there as well as other places associated with those neighborhoods, such as Niederstein's. But this newbie couldn't figure that out and went for the cheap shot instead. What did YOU contribute regarding the Arion, Art?

Just more bilge. KMA.

Variation on an old joke: I went to a Cinema Treasures fistfight, and a hockey game broke out!

"Tonino, aye. True theater historian, present and accounted for.

((For Middle Villagers, Ridgewoodites and Glendalers who used to grab a meal here before or after screenings at the Arion, Ridgewood, Oasis, RKO Madison, Maspeth, Drake or Elmwood Theaters:

http://www.subwaywebnews.com/Buses4/8498ndrstn.jpg

Niederstein's Restaurant closed 2-8-05. The pic was taken before the wrecking ball struck. It's a fast food joint now.))

Duh, it sure says that Niederstein's was in the picture to me.!!! And I know who "writted" it.

BUT, I could always rely on lostmemory to provide accurate, as well as informative, information. That's why I asked if he could verify it.

And I tried available combinations and permutations at ?website's Archives (under buses), ? ti verify.

Guess I'll go back to the hockey game now.

Shalom, ciao, and excelsior

'Tonino, go to www.subwaywebnews.com and when the title page appears, click on "Bus Photo of the Day" at left. When that appears, scroll down to the Archives listing and click on "X." Then scroll down six rows. The photo and summary you want are in the #1 spot at far left.

I haven't attended either the theater or the restaurant since the mid-'70s, but I believe they were relatively close, perhaps a few blocks at most. Ciao.

Thanks BrooklynJim. The buildings behind the bus just didn't look like my recollection of Niederstein's exterior. I haven't been in that area since the late '50s, and frankly I thought it was further east on Metropolitan Ave.

Here's a map link to the surrounding areas, showing theaters:
>>http://maps.yahoo.com/maps_result?name=Niederstein%27s+Restaurant&addr=6916+Metropolitan+Ave&state=NY&csz=Flushing+NY&ds=n&uzip=&mag=1&desc=%28718%29+326-0718&country=us&dma=&cat=ent&resize=l&trf=0&lat=40.712063&lon=-73.886066&mlt=40.712063&mln=-73.886066&rezoom=1&.intl=us&addrtype=12&compass=&BFKey=tht<<

Ugh, that was ugly. But it would have included the Ridgewood and most movie-houses of my youth with the exception of those in Richmond Hill and Jamaica.

Shalom, ciao, and excelsior,

I lived on Metropolitan Ave. and 71st St. in my pre-teen years, so the second-run Arion was my favorite theatre for quite a while. I was only 11 or so, but the theatre seemed gigantic to me at the time.
It was pretty rundown, with red duct tape over the upholstered seats, but they charged $1.50 for kids and I was there pretty much every weekend. They had a smoking and a non-smoking section! I remember a double feature of the corny Western comedy The Villain &
the equally corny Hot Stuff. I also saw Chapter Two, California Suite, Kramer vs. Kramer, the Who's The Kids Are Alright, Apocalypse Now, Breaking Away, Foxes & The Changeling there. They
had an eclectic booking policy, as I remember quite a few softcore sex comedies playing there, mostly Italian stuff like Wifemistress and The Sensuous Nurse. Sadly, the wily clerk there wouldn't
let us in. I also remember the infamous Caligula having quite a long run there. They had lobby cards in addition to the movie posters which you don't see anymore. When I saw that it became
a Jamron Drug store when I moved back to Queens years later, I wasn't surprised....I was just glad it lasted as long as it did.

Here's a rare ad describing the Arion as "House of Talkies." This engagement in August, 1928, came nine months after the silent movie's NYC premiere at the Central Theatre in November, 1927. In the interim, Universal added a musical soundtrack in the Movietone system. I suspect that the claim "Now! You can HEAR as well as SEE 'Simon Legree'" is a distortion of the truth. The movie had no spoken dialogue, but perhaps there were sound effects that included Simon Legree cracking his whip:
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/arion28.jpg

The 1926 Film Daily Year Book lists two Arion Theatres on Long Island, a 422-seat Arion in Maspeth and an 800-seat Arion in Middle Village. I wonder if they could have been under the same ownership?

What is the basis for the claim that the Arion was the first theatre in Queens to be wired for sound? What sound movies, if any, played there prior to "The Jazz Singer," which opened at the Arion on June 12th, 1928 and ran for four days. The first Queens engagements of that "talkie" were in early May of that year, at theatres including the Fox Jamaica, Fox Ridgewood, Prospect in Flushing, and Grand in Astoria.

The Duke on a huge second run
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a13/ChmnofBrd/Movie%20Ads/TrueGrit1969Showcase.jpg

Another kiddie double bill from 1969
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a13/ChmnofBrd/Movie%20Ads/DaydreamersecretofmagicIsland.jpg

The Arion must have been a quite small theater, as I am trying to find it on local.live, and I was having trouble, but I think this is an aerial view of the building....

http://local.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&cp=qsjyp78v94rb&style=o&lvl=2&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=1828800&encType=1

What's left of the Arion SHOULD be the building to the rear of and spanning several storefronts on the south side of Metropolitan Ave., with 73rd Pl. a few stores to the left (looking northward; Lutheran Cemetery would be another block to the left) and 74th St. intersecting with Metropolitan across the street just to the right.
I think.

This website has a number of Middle Village photos including a "depiction of the Arion theater as it looked in 1942". Checkout the photo of the old M train station.

I'd be willing to bet that the depiction of the Arion "as it looked in 1942" is incorrect. Most of the neon display on the marquee has been replaced by metallic trimming, and the entrance and display cases have also been "modernized." I suspect that the artist used a photo taken in the 1960s or later as reference, and then put one of his favorite movies on the marquee. Unfortunately, even that is incorrect. Though "Casablanca" did have its initial release in November, 1942, it didn't reach late-run nabes like the Arion until the spring of 1943. On the night of March 4, 1943, it was presented with three Academy Awards, for best picture, screenplay, and direction. Is the artist correct even on that? I can't quite make out the number of awards on the marquee. Is it 3 or 6 or 8?

I don't remember the Arion marquee looking like that either. Its even too modern looking for the 1960s. Its hard to tell if the number is a "6" or an "8" on the marquee. Casablanca was nominated for eight Academy Awards so maybe the number is an "8".

The number on the marquee is a 6, but you're right, that depiction is completely wrong. Even the style of movable marquee lettering looks too modern. I don't know who the artist is or why or when this picture was created, but it should not be confused with reality.
On the other hand, the photos on that site are wonderful.

Whatever the number, the marquee claim is incorrect. It says "Academy Awards," not "Academy Award Nominations." Without "nominations," the claim implies that the movie won that number of awards. And by the time "Casablanca" reached the Arion, the awards had already been presented, so the movie was no longer in the nominations phase.

If the number is "6", I'd like to know what it stands for. The numbers "3" and "8" make some sense. This is the website for the artist that did the painting/drawing of the Arion Theater. You can own your very own copy for $295. I'll pass on this one.

Thx for providing the website URL above, LM, but is there any way to enlarge those postage-size pix of the Arion and the 1949 shot of the Metropolitan Ave station? - Ol' squint-eye Jim

The introduction needs to be updated. The building is now part of the Rite Aid chain, designated as store #10603. Genovese was taken over by Eckerd, which this year was acquired by Rite Aid. I think that's more ownership changes than the Arion Theatre ever had.

Thats funny and probably true.

Jim....Are you talking about this link? Just click on the thumbnails and they will expand. After that, click on the larger photo and that should expand further. After you do that, goto the top of the page where it reads S Medium L and click the "L" to get a full screen view. Some of the photos on that site are larger than others, so some of them might not fill the screen. The June 1949 photo of the M train station will expand to full screen by click on the "L".

Obviously, Doug Leblang's paintings are intended to be somewhat idealized memories of his old neighborhood, some more accurate than others. Note that on his website he has another one showing the front of the Arion on which the background color of the front ARION sign differs from that on the one we originally saw. Also note that he's got a photo of the Arion from what appears to be the late 60s (unfortunately, it doesn't expand if you click on it) and it clearly shows a larger illuminated marquee area than does his painting.

I isolated the Arion photo which is here in case the other link expires. I can't read the movie titles on the marquee, but judging by the cars, the photo is probably from the late 60s (68?).

I tried blowing that photo up, but it's not high enough resolution and breaks down pretty quickly. However, I was suspicious due to the small number of letters -- and it looks to me like it says
TEMPORARY CLOSED
FOR
[SOMETHING]
Cannot make out that last word.
Anybody remember a time in the late 60s when the Arion was closed?

The Arion ("The Itch") ....I grew up in Middle Village on Furmanville Ave.--it was safe as young kid back then to go to the movies on a Saturday afternoon with friends. Elvis & Ann Margaret movies, King Kong vs. Godzilla movies (......yes...the matron shined that flashlight in my eyes and told me if I did'nt stop crying I would have to leave). My friends would make fun of me all the way walking back home. Great memories.

As it was the closest $1 movie house to Greenpoint, I would often take the Q-54 bus - when it was still the B-54 - from Brooklyn to visit it. I specifically remember seeing Footloose here and - despite the poor print and dreadful sound - enjoying it greatly. (I clearly concur with the Arion's technical and maintenance shortcomings - but you could not beat the price!.)

Here are two views taken in 1977, during a double-feature engagement of "Rollercoaster" and "The Seven Per-Cent Solution":
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/arion77a.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/arion77b.jpg

That's just how I remember the Arion.

THANK YOU, Warren, for sharing these photos. I felt like I was right back there again...

Does anyone remember Willie's Deli which was down the next block on the same side of the street?

Of course I remember Willie's! Best damn hot dogs and knishes on earth. While we're at it, anybody remember Zweibel's (sort of a 5 & 10 store) a little further down Metro on the same side of the street?

Thanks for posting about Willie's -- you're so right!!! -- the best hot dogs and knishes on the face of the earth --in Middle Village anyway :) About Zweibel's -- I'm not sure. However what I do remember that at the very corner down from Willie's was I where I always brought my 45's -- oh the memories :). Again -- thanks for posting about Willie's. ...and yes -- I know this is a website about the Arion Theatre, but one hand washes the other -- it's nice to reminice back in the ole neighborhood where the Arion once stood.

While we're at it, the description at the top of the page should probably be changed. It says "it is now a Genovese drugstore" -- but there ARE NO Genovese drugstores anymore. Genovese was taken over by Eckerd; Eckerd was taken over by Rite Aid. So you could say it is now a Rite Aid drugstore... but with the way things have been going, it would probably be safer to just say "it is now a drugstore"!

Decembra--That was Midville Radio & TV where you used to buy your 45's. I bought mine there too! They used to keep the 45's in a spinner rack with the titles and artists hand-printed in black magic marker below each of the slots. I hate to sound like an old man, which I'm not, but those were truly great times to be a kid! TC

Thank you TONY :) ...and it just so happens that in my best childhood friend's possession are most the 45's (which are like 40yrs. old now) in her basement -- the music still sounds good -- they just played that music on PBS -- "My Music, My Generation". She is holding onto a goldmine I believe. Thanks again for remembering the name of that corner shop.

...btw...do you by any chance remember the Scheinfeld clothing stores over there?

Of course, I remember Scheinfeld's! We shopped at the Men & Boy's store next door to Kopp's Bakery, across the street from the women's store. I was friends with the Scheinfeld boys, actually. We worked at the same summer camp up in the Catskills. Besides being a terrific store, they were the finest, nicest family one could ever hope to meet. Thanks for sharing the memories! T.C., N.Y.

:) You're one in a million Tony-- the Scheinfeld's were fantastick people, as well as their in store help (businesses today should be that good).

With holidays around the corner -- I will be visiting Metropolitan Ave. in Middle Village.

Loved sharing the memories.
Decembra

The Arion Theater was the focus of many of my Sat afternoons while growing up in MV during the 1950s. I remember the 25c admission and the 6c candy. They also had a 5c popcorn vending machine that gave small but better tasting popcorn than the popping machine at the candy counter that replaced it. And I saved the penny from the 6c my parents gave me for candy.

The Sat matinee was usually horror, comedy or westerns. At one point, they were giving toy prizes to the kids attending the show. The first week they gave us bottles of bubble soap and blowing wands BEFORE the feature. The theater was filled with bubbles and the matrons couldn't throw all of us out. After that they gave out the prizes as we left.

Thanks to all for the great comments on this site.

A friend of mine is liquidating the shelving presently. He has come across walls of the original Arion Theater & architecture. Feel free to stop in for old times sake & picture taking! He'll be there until Thursday morning December 18th!

Remember the Arion well, I live in Florida now and I take my kids to the movies with 20 movies to choose from stadium seating and a great sound system, but I still enjoyed the Arion.I tried to explain to them about the Arion, with 1 screen but they just didn't get it, said I was old...yeah... Arion was just different sticky floors and all.. Use to go to Carlo's for a slice of pizza and italian ice after movie... Try to get up to MV once a year just to walk around the old neighborhood. I do stop into Carlo's each time for Several slices,(can't get good pizza in Tampa) and Carlo's son still remembers me each time I go in. I'am his long distance customer... upset when I went to Willy's and it wasn't there anymore....Anyone remember flato brothers? fruit store it was by Flamms, and the Stop clothing stores.

Ticker, I remember the Flatow Brothers fruit store! They always had some kind of straw/hay strewn about the tile floor. One of the brothers, I remember, was named Murray. They were nice guys. Most of all, I remember the smell of fresh produce there...it's right in the forefront of my sense memory. Everything was so fresh and ripe. If I close my eyes, I can bring the place right back.

By the way, my folks still live in the town, and I go back to Carlo's Pizza most every time I visit. It's still the best slice of pizza in the world to me--and yes, Carlos' sons always remember me too. They're the kind of guys that make a neighborhood great.

It seems as if the drug store that replaced the Arion is now gone for good. (The link comes from the Queens Crapper blog, which you should access in case it doesn't come out here.)


http://queenscrap.blogspot.com/2009/03/temporary-displacement-becomes.html

Any information on what is happening now on the site?

The Arion was still advertising in May of 1984. Here is an ad for "Greystoke".

I'm having problems linking to that blogspot site so if the previous link doesn't work, try this link.

As of a week or so ago, when I passed it on the bus, the situation with the old Arion had not changed since my March 14 post.