Century's Prospect Theatre
41-10 Main Street,
Flushing,
NY
11355
41-10 Main Street,
Flushing,
NY
11355
9 people
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Please Update, theatre closed September 11, 1986 with The Fly, Bullies and Born America
I was Mr Decatsky’s assistant manager 1976 through 1977 (Bill Podzamsky). He hired me as an usher at the Century’s Meadows and went with him to the Prospect when I was promoted. Lots of great memories. I remember a projectionist who always drove a marathon checker cab because they were so safe. Fun job that really set me up for success when I went into the Navy.
At some point in the 80s RKO Century Warner was formed putting the Prospect and the Keiths under the same management (I won’t say ownership because I haven’t a clue what the case was for each theater).
Yes, the building was torn down when the Prospect closed in late 1986.
Willburg145 according to the lead the building has been demolished.
Was the auditorium gutted?
The Prospect had an Austin three-manual theatre pipe organ in it. It did not have unit chests, so the organ didn’t have much flexibility. The pipework (all on 10" of wind) was sold in the late ‘70s and some of it was incorporated in the instrument currently playing in Chaminade High School, Mineola, NY.
I saw the Charles Bronson movie “Ten to Midnight” here in 1983. Wow, was that a violent flick.
Photo uploaded of marquee in the twin phase.
The Prospect was always the “fun movie” theater compared to the “blockbuster” mode of the Keith’s. As a young child, I actually won a kid’s fire truck during the occasional Saturday morning cartoons matinee show there. Later on during my teenage years, The Prospect was a cheap night on the town with the boys or a date, along with a meal either both long gone Hurdy Gurdy’s (pizza) or Lenny’s on Roosevelt Ave (hotdogs and beer, they were VERY lenient with age verification).
The Prospect was my second choice for a theater in Flushing in the sixties, following the RKO Keiths which was a short walk away. The bus hub was closer to the Prospect. I seem to recall stars and clouds, on the ceiling that seemed to move, but it was a smaller theater, and usually the better films played at the RKO. The last movie I recall seeing there was, “No time for Sergeants” with Andy Griffith, I had seen many others there, but I just don’t recall. I left NY in 1969.
The description isn’t quite accurate. I worked as a projectionist at the DeMille Theatre in Manhattan until 1974 when it was closed due to a fire. In the beginning of 1975 I went to work at Century’s Prospect in Flushing. At that time it had recently been TWINNED. I was the projectionist in the downstairs auditorium, which was untouched after the twinning. The theatre had two projection crews, one for upstairs and one for downstairs and ran reels in both theatres. Sometime in 1977 I was asked to switch jobs with one of the projectionists at the RKO Alden in Jamaica (across the street from Loews Valencia) because the Alden was being turned into a quad and the projectionist who worked there was afraid to run platters (he had worked the Alden as a single for 40 years and was 90 years old). About a year after I switched with him they decided to split the Prospect’s downstairs theatre making it a triplex and installed platters in all 3 theatres. Now, there was only one crew for all 3 theatres, requiring the projectionists to run all 3 theatres going up to the original upstairs booth as well as running the 2 downstairs theatres. The climb to the upstairs booth could give a healthy person a heart attack, it was a pretty high climb. John Conway, the 90 year old projectionist I had switched with, having no choice, learned platters and worked at the Prospect, climbing the steps, with no problems until it closed. I believe he was about 99 when it closed.
PROSPECT – R-I-P
That is cool. Thank you.
Seeing Al Jolson, as a kid is imbedded in my memory and when skimming here, I caught the name and dug further.
I’m impressed. That was really imbedded in Warren’s post.
I saw the posting from Warren G. Harris of October 5, 2004.
Larry H – I’m confused. How did all of the above discussion on the Prospect lead to your revelation of where you were on August 12, 1949?
WOW! Now I know where I was August 12, 1949. My father took me to the Loews Gates Theater to see Al Jolson.
The pay may have been better at the larger houses, due to bonuses that were allocated on the basis of the theaters income, and the profit sharing that was in place at the time.
I’m old enough to remember the campaign of the fifties to “Help Kill the Movie Ticket Tax”. In your various posting, tkm, you mentioned that your dad was at a number of Century houses of different sizes. Was the pay the same or depended upon the house?
There was also an enormous water tank on the roof- and dressing rooms behind the stage that were from the theater’s vaudeville days. There was a large orchestra pit in front of the stage that was not filled in until the theater was divided up..and the Ushers Room was where the large bags of popcorn were stored…I guess it was just re-warmed on the candy stand! I think this theater had 2 box-offices- and the lobby was totally mirrored on both sides. I remember my dad telling me that the best remedy for removing chewing gum from seats and floors was Coca-Cola! He swore by it-and it dissolved the gum rather well! IremembeseeoOOliver!herethere.ininin in
the 1970’s
If I remember correctly- Century used to show various famous “fights” or Boxing matches that were not available on TV at this theater…I also remember my dad taking part in a campaign to STOP PAY – TV in the 1970’s- The forerunner of Cable as we know it. Century knew its years were numbered!
Warren G. Harris..are you still around? If you or anyone else needs detail info. on this or any other Century Theater Circuit theater from the 1960’s to the 1980’s, please post your question here, and I’ll be happy to tell you whatever I can remember! My late father was a Century Theaters Manager for 30 years, so I grew up hanging out with him while he was working…he managed theaters for Century until he finally retired in 1986, and then they closed the last theater he managed- The Prospect!Regards.
It’s interesting that the picture always comes up for the Deanna Durbin picture Up in Central Park. My aunt was commissioned to come up with textile designs about Central Park and was driven thru the Park in a horsedrawn carriage to get images. The final product was exhibited in Bonwit Tellers windows with a tie in to the movie. For informational purposes my aunt was Libby MacGregor who also did some spectacular batiks.
Here is a larger version of the photo posted by Ed Solero on 5/18/06:
http://tinyurl.com/d2rl7n