Biograph Theatre
214 E. Fayette Street,
Syracuse,
NY
13202
214 E. Fayette Street,
Syracuse,
NY
13202
1 person
favorited this theater
The Eckel Theatre opened on Thanksgiving Day, 1913. It would later be operated by RKO, then Schine Theatres before becoming a Cinerama theatre.
It was later renamed Biograph Theatre. It was demolished and the site became a parking lot for the church next door.
Contributed by
Ken McIntyre
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Recent comments (view all 15 comments)
Found. An OLD TATTERED PROMOTIONAL POSTCARD of the Eckel Theatre from 1919. Printed text on message side:
[i]ANNIVERSARY WEEK—-THANKSGIVING—-1913-1919.
Mary Pickford in “The Hoodlum"
ENTIRE WEEK BEGINNING SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 23rd.
Miss Pickford Appearing in an Altogether Unusual Role,
Unique in the Annals of Films.
FOREMOST IN PICTURES— ECKEL THEATRE— ALWAYS A GOOD SHOW
Six years ago, Thanksgiving Day, 1913—-to be exact—-the Eckel opened its doors as Syracuse’s Foremost Pictureplay House. It offered then, as it does now, the best there was in Pictures; pictures that were different. This policy has been more than maintained—-it has been made perfect. Remember the last Mary Pickford picture “Daddy Long Legs?” Well, Mary is here to help celebrate Anniversary Week, beginning Sunday, November 23rd, in her very latest picture “The Hoodlum.” We expect you too.
Very truly yours,
ECKEL THEATRE.[/i]
I remember going to a few “foreign films” at the Eckel. I also saw a couple Cinerama films there.
My family knew the guy who was the projectionist there for years—cannot recall his name.
The Eckel was one of the hidden gems of the downtown Syracuse cinema scene.
George Raaflaub was chief projectionist at the Eckel for many years. When I first started as a projectionist I hung around the booth with George and he’d let me run those magnificent Norelcos.
Here is a 1949 ad from the Post-Standard:
http://tinyurl.com/397tn7
Thanks for jogging my memory—it was indeed George Raaflaub. I met him and his wife in Redfield NY where I went fishing with my parents who knew him. The Raaflaub’s had a camp near there and we met at the Ben Lewis house (Falvey’s) for food and drinks. Those were good times.
Does anyone know the exact location of the Eckel? It seems to have been on the same block as the Biograph — was that a separate theater, or was the Biograph its final name?
The Biograph was the Eckel’s final name. I believe a fire did it in.
Thanks, Joe. Unfortunately, I never got to go inside; I arrived in Syracuse just as it was being torn down.
There’s a picture of the demolition here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/carljohnson/7559441/
Another one gone.
The October 30, 1912, issue of The American Architect said that the proposed theater on Fayette Street in Syracuse would be operated under a long term lease by the Eckel Company. Plans for the project, by architect C. Merritt Curtis, were almost complete.