Hi dave
In the past whenever I have seen buildings sealed off this way with painted wood or paper, it usually indicates that the property is going to be sitting empty for a long period before demolition begins. In this case the landlord might have to wait for the bank’s lease to expire before starting to tear the block down, and until then the former Beekman’s windows and doors have been sealed against curious sentimental nosy photogs (like me!). The big pane of glass was removed right after the closing, maybe they need it clear so they can remove large objects through the window.
You’re very welcome! It is always sad to see formerly excellent places become stripped shells. For some reason I am sentimental about places and become highly attached to them, and remain loyal to them even if I have not visited or seen them for years. Taking picturs like these of the Beekman provides closure of some sort. If not comfort.
I recall this as being named the Paramount. I saw “Ghost” and “Dave” here. Seems like yesterday! And now the theater is a subterranean carpark. What a sad but predictable end to an entertainment venue.
Wow finally I found this theater listed here…it is the one I remember from childhood on the upper east side, my mom took me to see a movie here and then it was demolished. Riding by the 86th street façade either in a bus or a car, we looked out and saw the marquee being dismantled but there was apparently a movie still showing because patrons were buying tickets and going inside. This was sometime in the 1960s, I was very young at the time. The marquee stands out in my memory as radiating the color red, either its light bulbs were red, or parts of the marquee’s structure were red. Later of course Gimbel’s occupied the site, and I clearly remember the department store’s opening days as being crowded and hectic.
I asked my mom what movies she saw here and she answered that she can’t even remember last week, and I expect her to remember stuff from the 60s? But after a while she said she thought the film she remembered taking me to see was “Heidi.”
More pics of the erstwhile Beekman. The pretty metal door-pushes have been removed from the glass doors at the entrance. In the humid, gray weather, the shuttered theater appears gloomy and a mere shell, now that the life is gone from its screen and seats.
I also included a pic of the entire Second Avenue property which included the Beekman. If the whole shebang is going to be demolished, the North Fork Bank on the corner will also have to close soon. The last picture is of the sidewalk that Alvy and Max walked down in “Annie Hall,” when Alvy was meeting Annie at the Beekman.
And the apathy is exactly what the religious right wants…it makes it easier for them to take over the whole country! they already have most of it. I see fascism arriving.
Does anone know when demolition is scheduled to begin on the Beekman? any info appreciated
I agree, it looks like eventually the whole world will be owned by one corporation…cities, movies and cultures will all become sterile and look the same as each other. Snooore.
Yes thank goodness for Jane Jacobs, finally someone stood up to Robert Moses' megalomaniacal, power-mad weirdness.
I agree a sit-in would have been effeective and would probably have made movie theater/entertainment history. Now that it is too late a vigil to show respect for our dead friend the Beekman might still give pause…if not to developers, then perhaps to New Yorkers and others who love older theaters and might protest futures closings and demolitions.
Shade, thank you so much for sharing the wonderful interior photos! They must be kept on view for all to see so we never forget the Beekman. Though I have not been there for a movie since seeing “Manhattan Murder Mystery” on August 26, 1993 (heehee yes I keep a movie log of all movies I see in theatres), most of the images are very familiar. Especially the views of the screen from the upper left of the auditorium, from which I saw “Little Shop of Horrors” during the last 2 hours of December 31, 1986. Later I would see “The Witches of Eastwick,” “The Princess Bride,” “Empire of the Sun,” “Frantic,” and “Gorillas in the Mist.” Funny I always sat in the same area. I love the shots of the carpeted steps in the auditorium, on several occasions I tripped and fell while climbing them. Thank goodness I didn’t fall down them while descending! Well if I had broken my neck at least it would have been in the Beekman.
CConnolly, I like the idea of a vigil instead of a sit-in. Imagine the Second Avenue jammed with hundreds of people standing there silently in all weather, as they do when well-known persons are passing away. In fact there is still time for one, when demolition starts perhaps…hundreds standing outside to pay final respects. Candles maybe? Songs?
I am so glad I got up there to take those last 4 pictures on Saturday morning, it was a poignant moment for me in spite of the fact that I was sweating propulsively. A big “you’re welcome!!” to all who liked my pics. Glad you enjoyed them. And thanks again to Shade!
re the enraged woman: if she attended movies regularly at The Beekman her whole life and it was as familiar to her as her own home, she must truly be suffering the pain and grief of loss.
Hi Frankie: You’re welcome for the pictures! It’s great that you went to the Beekman one last time. You can email me from the member directory, if you have any spare pics that came out I will gladly scan them and post them here…crediting you as the photog, of course! Take care
Davebazooka
Hi Frankie:
Did you get any pictures of the Beekman’s interior?
I intend to return to the site and take shots of the demolition for the record. Maybe even the new construction, when it begins. Can’t help wondering if a sign will go up announcing “Brand New Breast Cancer Research Facility and Luxury Rental Apartment Tower”.
Glad you like them, Gerald! I wonder if anyone is inside right now taking pics of the interior one last time. :–(
SOB.
It would definitely be nice if the Beekman logo crowning the façade could be reused at the theater that will be renamed for it…I am not sure but I think it is the theater across the street, barely visible in the “Marquee.jpg” photo link in my last post.
These are nothing special but they at least show the Beekman marquee advertising its final feature (“The Interpreter”). I hope someone will be able to take some images inside the theater. I would think the owners would not allow picture-taking, but maybe they will. Or someone can sneak a few!
I will periodically revisit the site and record the progress of the Beekman’s demolition…it’ll provide closure.
Sweating bullets in horrific humidity, I trekked up to The Beekman earlier this morning and took 4 digital pics of the front. Showtime was still hours away, so there is no crowd there. It is eerily silent and the theater looks like I always remembered. The very last movie I saw there was “Manhattan Murder Mystery” in 1993, and I can hardly believe how fast time zooms by! I used to live on Roosevelt Island back in the 70s and 80s, so the Beekman was only a brief ride on the tram and a few streets walk. After leaving Roosevelt Island, the Beekman was no longer convenient so through most of the 90s I did not attend movies there. Bummer, I should have!!! (Kicks self.)
Out front of the Beekman, the trees have grown tall, and they obscure the marquee somewhat. The sun is behind the building so the marquee is not bathed in a golden glow as it should be! :–(
I can post/email the images to Cinema treasures, but on my screen, the “upload photo” function says it is offline. If anyone knows where I can send the images, let me know!
Sweating bullets in the horrific humidity, I trekked up to The Beekman earlier this morning and took 4 digital pics of the front. This was way before the showtime, so there is no crowd there. It is eerily silent and the Beekman looks like I always remembered it, although the very last movie I saw there was “Manhattan Murder Mystery” in 1993.
The trees out front have grown tall and obscure the marquee somewhat.
I can post/email them to Cinema treasures, just tell me where.
Re the Beekman: I would not be surprised in the least if Sloan-Kettering did indeed build a luxury tower on the site with only a couple of floors near the ground (or in the basement) devoted to breast cancer research labs or testing. After a few years they could move those labs to another location and open up that space for more condos. Those in power with tons of money can always find ways around having to provide space that will not turn a dollar profit.
Yikes! Sorry everyone, getting carried away with conjecture. No insult to Memorial Sloan-Kettering intended. Still, the Beekman will be a sad loss. I truly liked that the auditorium was acccessible almost right off the street, and it was not necessary to wander through a maze of movie mall hallways to locate a particular theater.
:–(
I saw “The Poseidon Adventure” here in 1972, and lots of other flicks since. Back in the 1980s the restaurant “Swensen’s” was conveniently right next door. It was always fun to attend a feature and talk about it over a tuna melt or ice cream soda at Swensen’s afterward.
It will be sad to see The Beekman go, but breast cancer research/treatment should take precedence over entertainment. I hope this is indeed what the site will be used for and that Sloan-Kettering doesn’t pull a fast one and lease the land to a luxury high-rise developer.
THE GOTHAM!!!! HOLY CRIPES, yes that was definitely it. I remember waiting outside to see Towering Inferno. I know I saw something there in the 80s but I forgot what. Thanks for jogging my memory!
Dave B
I saw “Scrooge” and “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” here when I was a kid. The “Scrooge” was a holiday re-release sometime in the 70s. The lobby had artificial building facades and latticework. Saw “Godzilla versus Megalon” here too I believe. 1976?
Hi Gerald!
I remember the Baronet/Coronet, they have just been replaced by a luxury tower on Third Avenue between 59th and 60th. The theater I recall was on Third Avenue between 57th and 58th, one block downtown from Alexander’s. I used to think it was connected on the inside to the Sutton around the corner but I don’t think it was.
I have been keeping a list of movies I have seen and the theaters I saw them in since 1986, I’ll check tonight and see if any of them have the name of that theater where I saw “Towering Inferno."
It has been driving me nuts for a while now that I can’t remember that theater!
Dave B
Passed by on Third Avenue on Saturday April 9 and saw nothing but a gap between buildings where the Sutton used to stand. The last movie I saw there was “The Lion King” in 1994. Saw quite a few there in the decades before that. Definitely saw “The Bad News Bears” there around 1975. There used to be another movie house directly around the corner on Third Avenue but I do not remember its name. I do know I saw “The Towering Inferno” there. Now it’s a Wendy’s.
I also noted that all the windows on wall of the apartment building adjacent to where the Sutton was are freshly sealed with brick. I guess the original builders were hoping the Sutton would always be there and included windows that viewed out directly above the theater. Now with the new tower coming in they have to go! Major bummer. That’s skyrights and zoning for you. The windows can be seen unsealed in the photo of the Sutton at the top of this page.
Hi dave
In the past whenever I have seen buildings sealed off this way with painted wood or paper, it usually indicates that the property is going to be sitting empty for a long period before demolition begins. In this case the landlord might have to wait for the bank’s lease to expire before starting to tear the block down, and until then the former Beekman’s windows and doors have been sealed against curious sentimental nosy photogs (like me!). The big pane of glass was removed right after the closing, maybe they need it clear so they can remove large objects through the window.
View link
View link
View link
You’re very welcome! It is always sad to see formerly excellent places become stripped shells. For some reason I am sentimental about places and become highly attached to them, and remain loyal to them even if I have not visited or seen them for years. Taking picturs like these of the Beekman provides closure of some sort. If not comfort.
I recall this as being named the Paramount. I saw “Ghost” and “Dave” here. Seems like yesterday! And now the theater is a subterranean carpark. What a sad but predictable end to an entertainment venue.
Wow finally I found this theater listed here…it is the one I remember from childhood on the upper east side, my mom took me to see a movie here and then it was demolished. Riding by the 86th street façade either in a bus or a car, we looked out and saw the marquee being dismantled but there was apparently a movie still showing because patrons were buying tickets and going inside. This was sometime in the 1960s, I was very young at the time. The marquee stands out in my memory as radiating the color red, either its light bulbs were red, or parts of the marquee’s structure were red. Later of course Gimbel’s occupied the site, and I clearly remember the department store’s opening days as being crowded and hectic.
I asked my mom what movies she saw here and she answered that she can’t even remember last week, and I expect her to remember stuff from the 60s? But after a while she said she thought the film she remembered taking me to see was “Heidi.”
View link
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View link
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View link
More pics of the erstwhile Beekman. The pretty metal door-pushes have been removed from the glass doors at the entrance. In the humid, gray weather, the shuttered theater appears gloomy and a mere shell, now that the life is gone from its screen and seats.
View link
View link
View link
View link
View link
View link
View link
View link
View link
View link
View link
I also included a pic of the entire Second Avenue property which included the Beekman. If the whole shebang is going to be demolished, the North Fork Bank on the corner will also have to close soon. The last picture is of the sidewalk that Alvy and Max walked down in “Annie Hall,” when Alvy was meeting Annie at the Beekman.
And the apathy is exactly what the religious right wants…it makes it easier for them to take over the whole country! they already have most of it. I see fascism arriving.
Does anone know when demolition is scheduled to begin on the Beekman? any info appreciated
I agree, it looks like eventually the whole world will be owned by one corporation…cities, movies and cultures will all become sterile and look the same as each other. Snooore.
Yes thank goodness for Jane Jacobs, finally someone stood up to Robert Moses' megalomaniacal, power-mad weirdness.
I agree a sit-in would have been effeective and would probably have made movie theater/entertainment history. Now that it is too late a vigil to show respect for our dead friend the Beekman might still give pause…if not to developers, then perhaps to New Yorkers and others who love older theaters and might protest futures closings and demolitions.
Shade, thank you so much for sharing the wonderful interior photos! They must be kept on view for all to see so we never forget the Beekman. Though I have not been there for a movie since seeing “Manhattan Murder Mystery” on August 26, 1993 (heehee yes I keep a movie log of all movies I see in theatres), most of the images are very familiar. Especially the views of the screen from the upper left of the auditorium, from which I saw “Little Shop of Horrors” during the last 2 hours of December 31, 1986. Later I would see “The Witches of Eastwick,” “The Princess Bride,” “Empire of the Sun,” “Frantic,” and “Gorillas in the Mist.” Funny I always sat in the same area. I love the shots of the carpeted steps in the auditorium, on several occasions I tripped and fell while climbing them. Thank goodness I didn’t fall down them while descending! Well if I had broken my neck at least it would have been in the Beekman.
CConnolly, I like the idea of a vigil instead of a sit-in. Imagine the Second Avenue jammed with hundreds of people standing there silently in all weather, as they do when well-known persons are passing away. In fact there is still time for one, when demolition starts perhaps…hundreds standing outside to pay final respects. Candles maybe? Songs?
I am so glad I got up there to take those last 4 pictures on Saturday morning, it was a poignant moment for me in spite of the fact that I was sweating propulsively. A big “you’re welcome!!” to all who liked my pics. Glad you enjoyed them. And thanks again to Shade!
re the enraged woman: if she attended movies regularly at The Beekman her whole life and it was as familiar to her as her own home, she must truly be suffering the pain and grief of loss.
Hi Frankie: You’re welcome for the pictures! It’s great that you went to the Beekman one last time. You can email me from the member directory, if you have any spare pics that came out I will gladly scan them and post them here…crediting you as the photog, of course! Take care
Davebazooka
Hi Frankie:
Did you get any pictures of the Beekman’s interior?
I intend to return to the site and take shots of the demolition for the record. Maybe even the new construction, when it begins. Can’t help wondering if a sign will go up announcing “Brand New Breast Cancer Research Facility and Luxury Rental Apartment Tower”.
Glad you like them, Gerald! I wonder if anyone is inside right now taking pics of the interior one last time. :–(
SOB.
It would definitely be nice if the Beekman logo crowning the façade could be reused at the theater that will be renamed for it…I am not sure but I think it is the theater across the street, barely visible in the “Marquee.jpg” photo link in my last post.
Excellent suggestion, thanks, Gerald!
Here they are, I hope everyone can view them. The album is not private:
View link
View link
View link
View link
These are nothing special but they at least show the Beekman marquee advertising its final feature (“The Interpreter”). I hope someone will be able to take some images inside the theater. I would think the owners would not allow picture-taking, but maybe they will. Or someone can sneak a few!
I will periodically revisit the site and record the progress of the Beekman’s demolition…it’ll provide closure.
Sweating bullets in horrific humidity, I trekked up to The Beekman earlier this morning and took 4 digital pics of the front. Showtime was still hours away, so there is no crowd there. It is eerily silent and the theater looks like I always remembered. The very last movie I saw there was “Manhattan Murder Mystery” in 1993, and I can hardly believe how fast time zooms by! I used to live on Roosevelt Island back in the 70s and 80s, so the Beekman was only a brief ride on the tram and a few streets walk. After leaving Roosevelt Island, the Beekman was no longer convenient so through most of the 90s I did not attend movies there. Bummer, I should have!!! (Kicks self.)
Out front of the Beekman, the trees have grown tall, and they obscure the marquee somewhat. The sun is behind the building so the marquee is not bathed in a golden glow as it should be! :–(
I can post/email the images to Cinema treasures, but on my screen, the “upload photo” function says it is offline. If anyone knows where I can send the images, let me know!
Thanks to all and farewell to the Beekman.
Dave Bazooka
Sweating bullets in the horrific humidity, I trekked up to The Beekman earlier this morning and took 4 digital pics of the front. This was way before the showtime, so there is no crowd there. It is eerily silent and the Beekman looks like I always remembered it, although the very last movie I saw there was “Manhattan Murder Mystery” in 1993.
The trees out front have grown tall and obscure the marquee somewhat.
I can post/email them to Cinema treasures, just tell me where.
Farewell to the Beekman
Dave Bazooka
Re the Beekman: I would not be surprised in the least if Sloan-Kettering did indeed build a luxury tower on the site with only a couple of floors near the ground (or in the basement) devoted to breast cancer research labs or testing. After a few years they could move those labs to another location and open up that space for more condos. Those in power with tons of money can always find ways around having to provide space that will not turn a dollar profit.
Yikes! Sorry everyone, getting carried away with conjecture. No insult to Memorial Sloan-Kettering intended. Still, the Beekman will be a sad loss. I truly liked that the auditorium was acccessible almost right off the street, and it was not necessary to wander through a maze of movie mall hallways to locate a particular theater.
:–(
I saw “The Poseidon Adventure” here in 1972, and lots of other flicks since. Back in the 1980s the restaurant “Swensen’s” was conveniently right next door. It was always fun to attend a feature and talk about it over a tuna melt or ice cream soda at Swensen’s afterward.
It will be sad to see The Beekman go, but breast cancer research/treatment should take precedence over entertainment. I hope this is indeed what the site will be used for and that Sloan-Kettering doesn’t pull a fast one and lease the land to a luxury high-rise developer.
Check out the listing for the Crown Gotham…isn’t that the Gotham Cinema that was around the corner from the Sutton?
THE GOTHAM!!!! HOLY CRIPES, yes that was definitely it. I remember waiting outside to see Towering Inferno. I know I saw something there in the 80s but I forgot what. Thanks for jogging my memory!
Dave B
I saw “Scrooge” and “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” here when I was a kid. The “Scrooge” was a holiday re-release sometime in the 70s. The lobby had artificial building facades and latticework. Saw “Godzilla versus Megalon” here too I believe. 1976?
Hi Gerald!
I remember the Baronet/Coronet, they have just been replaced by a luxury tower on Third Avenue between 59th and 60th. The theater I recall was on Third Avenue between 57th and 58th, one block downtown from Alexander’s. I used to think it was connected on the inside to the Sutton around the corner but I don’t think it was.
I have been keeping a list of movies I have seen and the theaters I saw them in since 1986, I’ll check tonight and see if any of them have the name of that theater where I saw “Towering Inferno."
It has been driving me nuts for a while now that I can’t remember that theater!
Dave B
Passed by on Third Avenue on Saturday April 9 and saw nothing but a gap between buildings where the Sutton used to stand. The last movie I saw there was “The Lion King” in 1994. Saw quite a few there in the decades before that. Definitely saw “The Bad News Bears” there around 1975. There used to be another movie house directly around the corner on Third Avenue but I do not remember its name. I do know I saw “The Towering Inferno” there. Now it’s a Wendy’s.
I also noted that all the windows on wall of the apartment building adjacent to where the Sutton was are freshly sealed with brick. I guess the original builders were hoping the Sutton would always be there and included windows that viewed out directly above the theater. Now with the new tower coming in they have to go! Major bummer. That’s skyrights and zoning for you. The windows can be seen unsealed in the photo of the Sutton at the top of this page.
DITTO!!!