Dewey Theater

2384 Coney Island Avenue,
Brooklyn, NY 11223

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Additional Info

Previously operated by: Island Theater Circuit

Functions: Pharmacy

Previous Names: Homecrest Theatre, Sunshine Theatre

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Dewey Theater

This one-story theatre stood on Coney Island Avenue (between Avenue U and Avenue T, standing less than one block from the Mayfair Theatre). The Homecrest Theatre was opened in 1915 and operated until 1923. In 1924, it reopened as the Sunshine Theatre, and had 375 seats. In 1932 it was renamed Dewey Theatre, and the seating capacity was reduced to 348. By 1941 it was operated by the Island Theater Circuit. It closed in 1954.

Most recently it was a plumbing supply business, but I believe the theatre building still stands, although its facade has been covered to advertise the former plumbing supply business. By 2018 it was in use as a pharmacy.

Contributed by philipgoldberg

Recent comments (view all 6 comments)

pswgoldberg
pswgoldberg on November 5, 2003 at 11:06 am

The address matches up with a Plumbing supply house that has been in the location for years. The building looks like it could have been a single-level movie house.

cheap
cheap on December 21, 2004 at 10:46 am

all i remember of the dewey is that in 1945 my mother took me there to see the ‘dolly sisters’ with john payne, betty grable and june haver
albert peckmam

Ken Roe
Ken Roe on December 21, 2004 at 10:57 am

In the Film Daily Yearbook 1930, the theatre at this address is named the Sunshine Theatre with a seating capacity of 372.

It had been re-named Dewey Theatre by 1941 with a seating capacity of 350.

Louella
Louella on November 14, 2005 at 7:11 am

We neighborhood kids used to call this place the “Itch” for very obvious reasons.
Karl B

bkbill
bkbill on October 17, 2006 at 8:49 am

The word of mouth kids news stated that if you go to the DEWEY, you can get in for 5¢ —– if you bring your own chair!
I did go once, in the late 40’s, to see a Halloween show â€" two Frankenstein movies and a live magic act. I didn’t bring my own chair but there was a small section that had had its seats removed. It was empty that day. So the 5¢ bit could have been true.

HomecrestGuy
HomecrestGuy on December 8, 2018 at 4:42 pm

I just uploaded the only known picture of the Dewey to this site. The photo is from the wonderful NYC Tax Photo Archives project, a collection of hundreds of thousands of previously unreleased NYC photos. I was surprised and happy to find that the owners of cinematreasures allow users to do uploads like this. The site of the Dewey is no longer a plumbing supply business, it’s now Coney Island Chemists.

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