Riverside Theatre
2561 Broadway,
New York,
NY
10025
2561 Broadway,
New York,
NY
10025
5 people
favorited this theater
Showing 1 - 25 of 27 comments found
The mural above the proscenium appeared to be Christopher Columbus discovering “America”. There seemed to be that theme running through this house. A panel in the ceiling depicted Columbus taking his case to the King and Queen of Spain.
Thank you Joe. These images appear to be rare.
Thank You so much for posting this. As you can see from the above postings, I am more than obsessed with The Riverside and The Riviera.
Here are two small photos depicting the Riverside and Riviera theaters, featured in an ad for the builder, Libman Contracting Company, from the Year book of the Architectural League of New York, 1914.
Although the Riverside did have a long run of “American Graffiti”, it was still open after that and was showing a double feature of “The Super Cops” and “White Lightning” in May of 1974, which may have been the last bookings.
Check out “The Seven Ups” with Roy Scheider (I think that is how you spell his name). Great car chase, French Connection /Bullit good.
Thanks! Those marquee shots of these theatres seem to be rare.
You are correct sir as I have gone frame by frame with the DVD.
I believe a glimpse of the Riviera and Riverside marquees can be seen in the 1962 version of “The Manchurian Candidate” as Frank Sinatra and Janet Leigh take a taxi ride home from the police station.
Can anyone confirm it was these two theatres?
I know two different people who rehearsed two different shows in the former Japanese Gardens. The first show was rehearsed around 1960. The second show was either Bubblin' Brown Sugar or Eubie. The latter show could have been in there after Riverside was demolished.
It might be of interest that above one of the theaters was a rehearsal space that was used for Broadway shows. Possibly that might have been the roof garden described above. At the northwest corner of 96 street and Broadway was a luncheonette, and I remember having breakfast there once, and seeing Jason Robards, John Baragray , and other cast members of a play called The Devils, by John Whiting,which was rehearsing in the space above. This would have been in September or early October of 1965.
Which part was mentioned by Bob Hope?
This was mentioned by Bob Hope on the Dick Cavett Show DVD.
Ed,
the club that you are refering to was on Broadway between 95th and 96th streets. The Riverside was demolished around 1973, after Amercian graffiti played there for 6 months.
RobertR,
I saw that movie in that theatre.
Movie Place NYC
A 1969 horror matinee
View link
There’s an ad for a club at 2551 Broadway in this 1985 clipping from the Spanish language publication El Diario:
Club Broadway – El Diario 9/20/85
I know the Riverside’s address was 2561 and the Riviera was 2575. Would 2551 have been on the wrong block – the one between 96th and 95th streets? I was just curious if this club might have used some of the old theater building. I’m not sure when the Riverside was demolished.
Warren,
oh my gosh, where did you get the picture? It is fantastic. I have an earlier view and a later view taken from practically the same spot. Do you have any interior shots? I have one vintage shot of the interior and a bunch of color slides from the THSOA. Did the Skouras people remodel the Riverside?
nycmovieplace
A Wurlitzer organ Opus 1925 Style 205 was installed in the Riverside Theater on 8/8/1928. Status of organ: Junked.
Thank you for clarification of the address, Warren. (And for the photo!) In my efforts to discover the street addresses for every Manhattan theatre listed on the site, I’ve only got three question marks left:
Camelot Twin
Jean Renoir
Juliet I & II
Any assistance on these three would be appreciated. (My personal list also includes each theatre’s zip code, to help avoid ever posting any duplicate entries. Speaking of which, thank you as well for setting me straight on the Uptown and Audubon.)
Here’s an early image of the Riverside under Keith’s management. The theatre was actually in two sections, the first with the entrance and lobby in a retail/office building that connected to the auditorium behind it. The Japanese Garden was the top part of a piggy-back building that also contained the Riviera Theatre. In this photo, only some of the signage for the Japanese Garden is visible:
www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/139-3985_IMG.jpg
FDYBs give an address of 2561 Broadway for the Riverside, not 2651.
Might the address for this theatre be incorrect? Could it have been 2551 Broadway?
I’ve read references to this theatre being closer to 96th Street while the Riviera is mentioned as being in the vicinity of 97th, which would make sense if the address provided for the Japanese Roof Theatre (2559 Broadway) elsewhere on the site is accurate. The current address listing for this theatre puts it up by 101st St.
Oy, glad I missed those.
On 8/10/69 the Riverside was playing a showcase double bill of Cher in “Chastity” along with “3 in the Attic”. The only other Manhattan theatre playing it was the Harris on 42nd St which appears in the ad. In Queens it’s at Astoria, Bayside, Boulevard, Lefferts and Midway and Oasis. In the Bronx at Kent, Interboro and Marcus. In Brooklyn Albermarle,Fortway, Dufield and Marine. In Nassau Alan, Cove, Gables, Rivoli, Rockville and Valley Stream. In Suffolk Islip, Lindenhurst and Rialto. In Westchester at the Bronxville and Larchmont. I guess Staten island was spared of these gems.
As I explained above, Keith’s took over the theatre after William Fox had built and opened it.