Riverside Theater
824 Tonawanda Street,
Buffalo,
NY
14207
824 Tonawanda Street,
Buffalo,
NY
14207
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This former neighborhood theater was opened before 1941. It was operated by the Schine Theatres circuit. When it closed the seats were removed and it became the Ski Deck. People skied down the slanted floor. The theater was demolished and a library was built on this site in the 1980’s.
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Loub
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The Riverside opened December 25,1926 with 1,500 seats. I believe that the architects were Bacon & Lurkey.
The Riverside and the Kensington Theaters both opened on Christmas Day 1926. There had also
been a Riverside Theater at 855 Tonawanda St in the 1910s. This theater (#824) was part of the
Schine Chain, which had about 60 theaters running in the Eastern US when it ran the Riverside.
Schines also ran the Granada Theater in Buffalo. A number of other businesses were in the
same building with the theater. The foyer and lobby ran between these businesses, with the
auditorium behind them. The theater also had a Wurlitzer Organ. The Riverside closed in
May 1961, and became an indoor skiing center for a few years. It became vacant after this
venture and was torn down years later.
Phone number 1960: RIverside 9477