Marvin Theatre
1216 Broadway,
Brooklyn,
NY
11221
1216 Broadway,
Brooklyn,
NY
11221
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The Van Buren Theatre in Bushwick was one of numerous small, late-run movie houses that once operated under the shadows of the Broadway elevated subway line. It opened on May 2, 1910 with vaudeville acts and movies.
In 1932 it was renamed Greiner’s Hansa Theatre, and screened German films until 1933. In 1934 it was renamed Marvin Theatre.
After closing it was used as a second-hand furniture store. This had closed by 2005, and the building was demolished in 2006.
Contributed by
Warren G. Harris
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Recent comments (view all 24 comments)
Bway….I’m not sure how those addresses work on Broadway. I did a real estate search for 1216 with no listing for that address. It did show a list of neighboring properties. The closest even numbers to 1216 are 1206 and the next is 1224. Now, 1206 is listed as a Zoned Commercial property for sale. The building at 1224 is listed as a one story store building. Either a building using the addresses from 1206 to 1222 Broadway replaced the Marvin theater or there is nothing on those sites.
The Van Buren Theater is a low rise single storey structure which barely rises to the height of the El train tracks. It is located on the corner of Broadway and Van Buren Street (actual given address in F.D.Yearbooks is 1216 Broadway). It is also listed at this address and operating as a movie theatre in the 1914/15 edition of American Motion Picture Directory.
For many years it was in use as a bedding/mattress warehouse and I managed to gain entry and take a look around the building a couple of years ago. There was still quite a lot of architectural decoration to be seen and traces of the proscenium opening were visible between piles of matresses.
It was currently empty when I viewed it a few weeks ago in June 2005. There is a ‘To Lease’ sign on the building for future use as storage.
The Marvin-Van Buren Theater is very much still existing. It was a small theater as Ken mentioned. It’s the small triangle-like building seen in this aerial view:
View link
Sad news folks…
The arial view posted by bway on 12th June is a little out of date. I passed by the site of the former Van Buren/Marvin Theatre today and it has now been demolished. It must have happened earlier in 2006 as already foundations have been laid for constructing a new building on the site.
This theater had a number of alterations done in 1930 and again in 1931. In February of 1930, 456 new seats were installed and the projection booth was enlarged. In December of 1931 a marquee was installed. The owners name was William W. Dashiell. In 1943 this building was a store and showroom for venetian blinds. In March of 1948 there is a furniture store located here.
The theatre had another name between Van Buren and Marvin. For about a year it was called the Hansa Theatre and showcased German imports. The 1932 FDYB lists it as Van Buren, the 1933 FDYB as Hansa, and the 1934 FDYB as Marvin. All three FDYBs give an address of 1216 Broadway. But this newspaper ad from May 1933 says 1218 Broadway. I suppose that both could be correct, since they are adjacent to each other: www.i8.photobucket.com/albums/a18/Warrengwhiz/hansa33.jpg
I found this on the Brooklyn Public Library site. (Guide to the Brooklyn Theater Playbills and Programs Collection, 1875-1972)
Hansa Theatre October 22-28
Program in German and English. “The Home of German Talkies” presents “Dienst Ist Dienst” (Duty Is Duty) with Fritz Spira, Ralph A. Roberts, Maly Delschaft, Heinrich Fuchs, Ernst Ducker, Fritz Schulz, Lucie Englisch et al.
There is no year given, only the month and days. Imdb gives a USA release date of June 5, 1932 for “Dienst Ist Dienst”.
Curiously, on the same day that I posted the 1933 Hansa Theatre ad with a movie starring Jan Kiepura, I happened on a full-page interview with his widow, singer-actress Marta Eggerth, in the NY Daily News. Though Kiepura died in 1966, Eggerth is still giving concerts at age 95. “I am an old bag who doesn’t feel her age. As long as I can do something and stay active, I’m happy,” she says.
More information on the couple, who often teamed on screen and stage, can be found at www.patriamusic.com
Here’s a new link to a 1933 ad for the theatre’s brief existence as a foreign showcase called the Hansa:View link
Here’s a current view of the Hansa site. It’s now a storage facility:
View link