Strand Theatre
355 Main Street,
Buffalo,
NY
14203
355 Main Street,
Buffalo,
NY
14203
1 person
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Additional Info
Previously operated by: Marks Brothers, Mark-Strand Theater Corp.
Architects: Leon H. Lempert, Jr.
Firms: Leon H. Lempert & Son
Previous Names: Mark Strand Theatre
Nearby Theaters
This was the first Strand Theatre in Buffalo. It was operated by Mitchel and Moe Mark, who also operated the Strand Theatre in New York City. First run films came from Paramount. In its day, it was a premier theatre in the area. The Marks also ran the Elmwood Theatre and Victoria Theatre in the city.
As newer movie palaces opened up the street in the early-1920’s, the Strand Theatre’s time ran out, and it closed in 1923, with the auditorium being demolished. Shortly afterward, a new Strand Theatre opened in South Buffalo.
The former entrance to the old Strand Theatre was remodeled, finally becoming a clothing store. That was torn down in 1956.
Contributed by
alan Lapp
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Recent comments (view all 6 comments)
It’s Mitchel Mark (only one “l”).
I am Doing a research on movie theaters, please tell me about the facilities that were available in the Mark strand theater
Information about the Strand Theatre in Ranjit Sandhu’s list of works by Leon H. Lempert & Son says that this house was designed by Lempert, Jr.; that it opened on January 22, 1913; that its auditorium was new construction but its lobby was in the structure formerly occupied by a nickelodeon called the Golden Palace; and that the auditorium was demolished in 1923 and the lobby structure in 1956.
In researching the Bijou Dream, I noticed in a photo that a building nearby (probably the Strand) had a sign on the facade that read something like “Palace” but it was not clear to me that this was a theater. It was either a photograph or a postcard shot, and the facade of this building was in the distance but between the Iriquois Hotel and the Bijou Dream. The Bijou was at the corner of Main and North Division. I’m not clear on the address. There is a postcard showing the Strand, the building that replaced the Bijou, and the Palace Theatre (on the next block). This can be seen at: wnyheritagepress.org by clicking “Iriquois Hotel” on the list. Scrolling down, you can see this card along with other photos of the Iriquois.
I have a postcard of Main Street showing the block from Eagle Street (the Iriquois Hotel) to North Division (Bijou Dream). This is the photo/card I mentioned in my Jan. 31 message. The building in the middle of the block, has a sign that is only partially seen. The sign (one word on each upper floor facade) reads: “DEN” and “ACE”. Probably the Golden Palace nickelodeon. The building has a very distict look, having a peaked top. It almost looks like a tower, and is not a very wide building. There is a panoramic view of this portion of Main Street, taken from the D.S. Morgan building, on the Heritage Press site. The Bijou Dream is shown, but the signs or name are not visible on the Golden Palace/Strand building.
1914 image added via Frank Oster Ostrozinski.