Hippodrome Theatre
1120 Sixth Avenue,
New York,
NY
10036
1120 Sixth Avenue,
New York,
NY
10036
8 people
favorited this theater
The Hippodrome Theatre opened on April 12, 1905. It was a massive theatre presenting spectacular shows. Later a vaudeville and movie theatre, it was closed on August 16, 1939, and was demolished.
Seating 5,697 patrons, its scale wouldn’t be replicated until the construction of the Roxy Theatre in 1927.
Today, a plain office building named the ‘Hippodrome’ sits on the site where this massive theater once delighted thousands.
Contributed by
William Gabel
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Recent comments (view all 35 comments)
There is a segment in NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOWBUSINESS that takes place in the Hippodrome. Probobly special effects but very well done and showing the water tank effects.
Here is a 1929 photo currently being advertised on eBay:
http://tinyurl.com/rbue7a
A 1939 World’s Fair Guide lists the Hippodrome Theatre as a being a professional Jai Alai venue, the only one in NYC at the time. How long did it last ?
Here’s a 1930 view of the B.F. Keith’s marquee: View link 116
Here’s a 1939 view of the Hippodrome in the first stages of demolition:
View link
here is a very high res photo from 1905
http://www.shorpy.com/node/8145?size=_original
Beautiful shot. Note the Hotel Algonquin in the background.
Here is a photo of the Hippodrome in the 1930s
View link
Here’s a link to a batch of images and historical data: http://www.nyc-architecture.com/GON/GON027.htm
In its final decade, the Hippodrome was sometimes used for sporting events, such as this roller derby: http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=6934