RKO Chester Theatre

To view recent pics of this huge old theatre building, click here:
http://kraybill.home.mindspring.com/48/48theatres.html

You can still make out Chester on the side faintly:
http://kraybill4.home.mindspring.com/48theatres/boston1938_050902_det3.jpg

Does anybody out there know if "Marty" ever played at the RKO Chester?

In its original neighborhood release, "Marty" played on the Loew's circuit, so I doubt that it was ever shown at the RKO Chester unless later on as a re-issue...Incidentally, the Loew's second feature with "Marty" was "Top Gun," a western with Sterling Hayden and not to be confused with the later Tom Cruise movie of the same title.

Marty may have not played here but the front of the RKO Chester is visible in film "Marty" when the Marty and Clara leave the Stardust Ballroom for the first time they walk right in front of this theatre under the marquee. The RKO Chester name is quite visible in the backround. Later in the film they walk in front of the RKO Fordham Theatre as well.

This theater became a hot sheet motel and was an eyesore for years.
Not too long after Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion was sworn in, he and a van full of policeman raided the former movie palace and closed it down. Since then Howard Johnson has taken over and renovated the interior and exterior of the building. Because of this and increased police prescence prostitutes have been doing buisness elsewhere. The entire area which suffered from the urban decay and mysterious fires in NYC during the 70's is being revitalized by community groups, the trendy Bronx river art gallery and a team of Bronx River restoration organizations that have installed a greenway along the banks of the river. NYC Market rate homes are now being built on former empty lots with more applicants than homes as well as affordable housing for seniors and the low income families.
Actually these fires werent mysterious at all they were usually set by landlords in rent controlled apartament buildings to milk the insurance companies. So what did the city do about it?
They shut down several fire houses down in the decade when the south central section of the bronx was burning.

A Wurlitzer organ Opus 1793 Style 260SP was installed in the Chester Theater on 11/23/1927.

I was passing through the neighborhood and got off the bus to snoop around at the old RKO Chester. First, the 'hot sheets' hotel, referred to above, has been renovated, inside and out, into a new Howard Johnsons hotel. The exterior renovations are only on the hotel section of the building. The other storefronts including what was at one time the lobby entrance to the theatre are still run down and closed. Then, if you go around on the West Farms Rd. side of the building, there is a muffler and tune-up shop. If you go into the shop through the large garage door, you are in the auditorium of the Chester theatre. The concrete balcony structure is still there, though the decorative ceiling on the underside of it is gone and cars are parked there, but the seats are still in place above. The back of the balcony is so dark I couldn't tell what condition the ceiling is in. The ceiling and the upper walls from about mid-balcony and forward still have the decorative plasterwork with flaking brown and beige paint. Through the procenium in the stage area are automobile lifts for the muffler shop. The lower part of the procenium plaster work has been removed. The organ screens are largely intact, but the draperies are gone. It looks eerily similar to the photos we've all seen of the Michigan Theatre in Detroit, with the upper plasterwork hanging in limbo above the cars inside the one-time picture palace.

hi, my name is carol and i attend the university of michigan in flint. i work in the theatre department and i am doing some research on 1950's movie theatre experience. i have read alot of commets you have posted and i was wondering if you could point me into the right direction of some factual information dealing with 1950's movie theatre popular candies, employee uniforms, posters of horror films... i need to turn our theatre loby into a 1950's movie theatre loby. our musical is based on classic 1950's era horror films and i need your help in recreating a classic loby. thank you

CarolK--

If you can get your hands on a trade journal named "Theatre Catalog" (note precise spelling: It's a USA publication, despite the orthography), you'll find lots of advertisements with pictures for theater equipment, uniforms, concession stands, poster displays, et al. Volumes appeared annually between 1944-55, precisely the years you designate. It should likely be available through interlibrary loan from the Ann Arbor campus.

This website has a few posters from horror/sci-fi movies of the 1950's. Godzilla, Attack of the 50ft Woman (nothing horrible about that one) and Forbidden Plant. I'm sure that there are other sites that carry posters.

To promote his new film "The Ladies Man," Jerry Lewis appeared on stage at this theater on July 12, 1961.

The theatre opened on Dec. 26th, 1927. The original seating of the theatre was broken up as follows. It seated 2473, 1333 on the orchestra floor and 1140 in the balcony.

Seven photographs of the RKO Chester Theatre I took in June 2005:
http://flickr.com/photos/kencta/221432827/
http://flickr.com/photos/kencta/221433671/
http://flickr.com/photos/kencta/221434304/
http://flickr.com/photos/kencta/221434731/
http://flickr.com/photos/kencta/221435162/
http://flickr.com/photos/kencta/221435529/
http://flickr.com/photos/kencta/221435899/

Easter 1958 because of it's long running time "A Farewell to Arms" went out on the RKO circuit single with a short subject. The Loew's theatres are playing a re-release of a Shirley Temple film and "Gullivers Travels".
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a13/ChmnofBrd/Movie%20Ads/FarewelltoArmsRKOwiderun.jpg

A rare image of the auditorium, copied from a 1928 issue of Architecture & Building Magazine. The ceiling had a shallow dome at the center: www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/chesteraud.jpg

We went to the site two weeks ago but the auto shop moved and the theater is now closed. The manager of the adjoining hotel said it will be demolished and didn't wanted to help us getting inside.
If somebody have more informations or is around, and could sometimes check what's happening to it, that could be great.

For a fleeting second the RKO Chester is quite visible in the background of the Frank Sinatra & Gene Kelly musical "ON the TOWN", while on the el they are singing "Bronx is up and the Battery down".

This is a circa 1943 photo of the RKO Chester.

Here is a new link for the circa 1943 photo posted on Jun 3, 2008.

Here's a new link to the auditorium view described above on 1/2/07: http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/chesteraud.jpg

This is a 2007 photo.