Hollywood Theatre
237 W. 51st Street,
New York,
NY
10019
237 W. 51st Street,
New York,
NY
10019
14 people
favorited this theater
Designed by architect Thomas W. Lamb for Warner Brothers as a showcase for ‘talkie’ movies, the Hollywood Theatre was one of the last movie palaces to be built in mid-town Manhattan. The gala opening was on April 22, 1930 with the movie “Hold Everything”. Originally the main entry was a narrow Art Deco style lobby on Broadway, that cut through an office building, but by the mid-1930’s, the side entry on W. 51st Street had become the only entrance. Inspired by French Baroque and Rococo styles, the three story rotunda foyer and the 1,603 seat auditorium are exquisitely ornate and awesome, perfect for a Golden Age Hollywood movie palace. The theatre was built with a stage, but while showing movies did not present live entertainment.
In October, 1930, the Hollywood Theatre was the only New York theatre to employ Warner Bros. wide screen process, 65mm Vitascope, to show the feature film “Kismet”. Starting in 1934, during some years of the Great Depression, Warner Bros. leased out the theatre for stage shows and concerts, and during that time it was known as the 51st Street Theatre. During World War II, again known as the Hollywood Theatre, movies succeeded well here.
With a new name, though one that didn’t last long, the Warner Theatre, on August 15, 1947, hosted the world premiere of the movie version of “Life With Father”. On May 16, 1948, the Warner Theatre closed. The theatre was sold and the movie screen was removed. On January 22, 1949, the theatre reopened for stage shows with “All For Love”, renamed Mark Hellinger Theatre, after the producer. The Warner name was then transferred to the Strand Theatre at Broadway and W. 47th Street.
The Broadway musical “My Fair Lady” with Rex Harrison and Julie Andrews opened here in 1956, and lasting for six years, was the first hugely successful stage show at this theatre. By the 1960’s, the theater’s fortunes began to nosedive. The Nederlander Organization became the new owners in 1970. Some productions were less successful than others and the theater barely eeked through the 1970’s and 1980’s. The last successful production was Mickey Rooney and Anne Miller in “Sugar Babes”, which ran from 1979 to 1982. By 1989, the Nederlander Organization leased the theater to a church group. Three years later, the building was sold for $17 million and became the home for the Times Square Church. The church has well maintained the theatre. Both the exterior and interior are protected by New York City landmark law.
Contributed by
Ross Melnick, Howard B. Haas
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Recent comments (view all 151 comments)
Here are some auditorium views taken during a church service: http://vimeo.com/323810
Tonight will mark the 75th anniversary of the opening at the Hollywood Theatre of the international premiere engagement of WB’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” described in advertising as “Three Hours of Entertainment That Was Three Centuries in the Making.” Directed by the great European stage innovator Max Reinhadt with assistance from William Dieterle, the B&W adaptation of William Shakespeare’s comic fantasy had a huge Hollywood cast, including James Cagney, Dick Powell, Joe E. Brown, Mickey Rooney, Anita Louise, Hugh Herbert, and newcomer Olivia de Havilland. All seats were reserved during the Hollywood Theatre engagement, with two performances daily at 2:30 and 8:30pm. Evening tickets were priced at $2.20, $1.65, $1.10, $0.85. and $0.55. Matinees were $1.10, $0.85, aand $0.55. Tickets were being sold eight weeks in advance by mail, at brokers, and at the Hollywood Theatre boxoffice.
Thanksgiving fell on November 26th in 1942, bringing with it to the Hollywood Theatre the NYC premiere engagement of WB’s B&W melodrama, “Casablanca,” which few guessed at the time would become one of the most enduring films made in the 20th century. In fact, WB had bigger hopes for its Errol Flynn boxing biopic, “Gentleman Jim,” which opened the same day at the Strand Theatre, with a stage show topped by Glen Gray and the Casa Loma Orchestra, the Gaudsmith Brothers, and Dean Murphy.
Sixty-four years ago today, WB’s “The Two Mrs. Carrolls,” a B&W melodrama starring Humphrey Bogart, Barbara Stanwyck, and Alexis Smith, opened its world premiere engagement at the Hollywood Theatre. The eagerly-awaited film was based on a hit play that ran for two years on Broadway. To handle the expected crowds, the Hollywood’s last screening that day started past midnight at 1:15am.
The Rev. David Wilkerson, founder of the Times Square Church, died this week in a car crash in Texas at age 79. His religious and charitable works are expected to continue. Here’s a link to a video with some great views of the Times Square area: http://www.tscnyc.org/media_center.php?pg=videos
This auditorium photo suggests that many of the draperies on the stage and in surrounding wall areas are either original or excellent copies:
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In the introduction, Status is given as “Closed.” Why? Public church services are held there frequently throughout the week.
Closed as a theatre, Tinseltoes, per the discussion above. Remember the Katherine Hepburn story when she was going to do Coco? She noticed the construction across the street and said it would be a problem with the noise for the Wednesday matinee. She was particularly concerned about the number “Gabrielle” and was reported to have arranged for construction work to be shut down during that number. And so, each matinee, just as the intro to the piece began, a hush came over the building site. Kate the Great, indeed!
Listing it as “closed” is a no-brainer, discouraging people who read the listing from trying to visit the theatre, which is one of the last remaining Thomas Lamb movie palaces still standing anywhere in the world in close to its original decor.
What an amazing theater. So nice to see it has been so well taken care of. A cinema treasure indeed!