Given those screen counts AMC sees as ideal in its business model, can we also expect them to cut loose the Loews Village VII, the six-screen Loews 19th Street East and Loews 84th Street Theatres, and Loews Orpheum VII or might they make an exception given each site’s clout in their respective zones?
Did Regal own the Crossbay 1? If so, the reason for its closing is as obvious as the pretty green-inked paper that Philip Anschutz probably counts at night in lieu of sheep…
The Angelika is the perfect model for corporate arrogance, plain and simple. The ownership figures people will go there just because of the brand name – presentation and creature comforts, be damned – and while they’re still doing solid business, with all the competition nearby, as hardbop noted, the quality of the bookings has slid in recent years, and that’s no accident. What would be interesting – and unfortunately it’s not going to happen, for obvious reasons – would be to book the same highly-anticipated indie-type flick at the Sunshine and the Angelika at the same time and see which theatre drew the higher grosses. There’s little question as to which would be able to make that claim; the intriguing part would be by how much – and that would be a truly interesting barometer of just how far the Angelika’s reputation has fallen…
The portions I saw, Robert, were actually in good-to-excellent shape; I was expecting something far less beforehand, but I was pleasantly surprised – and a bit saddened, too, at the same time, imagining what the space must have looked like before the orchestra was sealed off, its floor was leveled, and Walgreen’s moved in. I didn’t have a chance to check out the auditorium – I had just enough time before heading off to Shea for the Mets' game and picked up that vibe I wouldn’t have been allowed to take much more of a look without buying a ticket. I will go there again, just to get a chance to soak in the atmosphere and do a bit more exploring, when they book another film I’m interested in seeing. (I already caught ‘War of the Worlds’ the night before in the city and, as entertaining as it was overall – except for that ending – I really don’t have a strong desire to see it again.) My suspicion, as per FoxTheatres' post this past May 2nd, is that it’s indeed inevitable the balcony will be divided into multiple auditoriums (with a smaller one on the ground level, although I saw no evidence of any construction work – prep or otherwise – being or having been done); I could tell the owners are taking an absolute bath financially and the only realistic hope they have of at least breaking even is to go the ‘plex route. There was also no crowd buzz, no sense of excitement, and, in turn, few ticket buyers – pretty astonishing when you consider it was the opening weekend for a major Hollywood blockbuster and a hot summer afternoon.
Also, another note on the hallway – the left wall is of the white painted plaster variety, except for a gold/brown painted melange along the bottom half. It’s a nice enough touch, but the fact that it’s not of more elaborate material (marble, quality tile, etc.) only serves to remind of the tragedy of the orchestra portion being lost from the remainder of the theatre – and the current owners' limited budget… but, still, it IS a functioning theatre and with so many outer-borough theatres closing in recent years, the fact it’s open for business at all is a blessing.
I had an opportunity to check out most of what remains of the Plaza ‘Twin’ this past Saturday. The first sense one gets is what a tragedy it was that the orchestra was separated for retail; the portion of the building still being used for cinema space is huge and I could only imagine, based upon that, just how considerable it must have been.
The entrance and the altered marquee gives one the odd, divided sense of the treasure the Plaza still is, even in its truncated form, but also that it’s become something of an afterthought.
The hallway leading to the Plaza’s lobby is literally lined on both facing walls with movie posters (or one-sheets) of coming attractions, films which had recent engagements at the Plaza, or films out of release which never screened at the Plaza; none are in display cases but merely affixed with tacks, Scotch tape, or some other adhesive. Above the entrance to the lobby is at least a portion of a banner display ad for the film ‘Be Cool’.
As one enters the lobby, the box office is to the left and is very unglamorous; it reminded me of a windowed receptionist’s office one might find within a doctor’s office. Straight ahead is the stairway leading to the balcony (or the one, currently existing auditorium), upon which a woman was sitting on one of the steps; her presence made me reluctant to take photos. Above her and above everything on the ground level was a very high ceiling and what a ceiling… wow! It’s a medium-to-dark blue with a hanging light fixture; the immense nature of it (and primarily the ceiling itself and what I saw of the balcony) gave me a sense of how much of a ‘cinema treasure’ this theatre still is in its truncated form, and what a treasure it must have been, even as a twin and before Walgreen’s moved in.
One present tenant at 744 Allerton Avenue in The Bronx is a Payless ShoeSource location; whether it’s based in the former Allerton Theatre space or an altogether new building is something I can’t attest to.
Thank you for this important addition to the site, Gerald. I don’t recall from some old research I no longer have at hand if it was before or after the Anthology Film Archives moved out, but I do know that Film Forum also once resided in the former AFA space @ 80 Wooster Street.
In approximately 700 posts on this site, I’ve established and defined myself; in about 10 posts on this site, you’ve done the same for yourself, Jack. Case closed.
You can obviously disagree with me, Jack; it’s your right and, to borrow from the classic expression, I’d defend to the death your right to do so. What I DON’T agree with is you tying me and my pro-union stance with two well-known organized crime figures. The facts are, you don’t know me and you paint what I believe, the positive effects I saw unions have on my family, on my father to provide for my family growing up, and for myself when I was a member of unions, with an extreme broad brush. Are there – have there been – corrupt union officials and individuals who muscled in and manipulated unions, individuals such as Jimmy Hoffa and John Gotti? Absolutely. But there are plenty of legitimate, honest unions that provide for and defend their members, and my respect for the good that the vast majority of unions do VIA THROUROUGHLY LEGAL MEANS is what has ultimately been the deciding factor in my decision to not patronize or otherwise support the IFC Center until they hire unionized projectionists.
Part of the beauty of this message board is the option of anonymity it provides its members with. I suggest you respect it by not utilizing its cloak by taking unwarranted swipes at others… you know, the ‘decent’ and ‘common sense thing(s)’ to do…
To follow up on my post from this past February 3rd at 11:28 pm – I FINALLY remembered yesterday afternoon to keep my eyes peeled when walking by the intersection of Canal and Mulberry and it appears the building which housed the Jade Theatre is no more (the Wah Dor and whatever may have been the ‘other’ Canal Theatre seemed to have met the same fate); the only logical place the Jade could have been located was the southeast corner of Canal and Mulberry, and that area is presently occupied a rather typical (for Chinatown) building covered in faux-dark gray marble tiles. Meanwhile, the former Music Palace is still standing, its basement floor occupied by a food supply store (with relatively new signage). Why nothing has been done with the Music Palace space (if, as it turns out, there are, as it seems obvous there aren’t any longer, plans to tear down the building) is a continual mystery to me…
There was an article in the Times, Robert, some months ago discussing the poor condition of the NY State Pavilion at Flushing Meadows and, if memory serves (and I KNOW this will come as a total shock :–), the inaction of the city on restoring it. If only we, the people, truly had a say in what goes on at City Hall…
Responding, hardbop, to your posting from this past May 14th – I wonder if the ads you saw at the time for ‘Dear Frankie’ and ‘Look at Me’ listed any other outer-borough theatres where either of those films were showing. I think the reason theatres outside of Manhattan are left out of such ads comes down to the discretion of the individual theatre owners (each owner has to pay for their theatre(s) to be listed in display ads or movie clocks) or the amount of ad space the distributor of a film is willing to pay for.
The entire block bordered by 4th Avenue, Broadway, 13th, and 14th Streets had been cleared by the summer of ‘95; I remember passing by the then-boarded-off site at the time.
I have to admit I haven’t been able to bring myself to see a film at the IFC Center, despite the one-man hype machine I was acting as last month. I grew up in a liberal, pro-union family and every time I walked by the IFC Center the last couple of weeks, I was tempted to go in and see ‘Me and You and Everyone We Know’, but then I’d look at the projectionist union members protesting, at one point reading their hand-out flier, and continue walking my way down 6th Avenue. I did see ‘Me and You’ when I was in Boston earlier this week, enjoyed it enormously, and want to see it at least another one or two times; those opportunities won’t come until John Vanco, Jonathan Sehring, and the IFC management change their stance (or show some spine and demand a change) and hire union projectionists. It’s the decent and common sense thing to do.
Art-house audiences have become almost as fickle as mainstream audiences, it seems. I can’t remember any specific examples offhand, but there have been a handful of specialty titles which opened to solid reviews but, poof!, in a week or three, they were completely out of theatres. Guess sometimes there’s little accounting for what people will see and what they won’t see…
Looking at fellow Cinema Treasures poster Ken Roe’s impressive photo essay on the Pacific Theatres at the Grove on the Cinematour web site (http://www.cinematour.com/tour.php?db=us&id=20400), it’s no wonder it’s dominating the market it serves; it’s truly an impressive venue.
Golden let go of control of the then-Olympia Quad at Broadway and 107th on the UWS in the spring of ‘87 and I think the Quad Cinema not long thereafter (maybe within a years’ time at most?), so I’d guess Cineplex Odeon took over the Alpine sometime around then.
The Kips Bay Theatre is a Loews property, as is the Orpheum at 3rd and 86th.
If AMC/Loews is forced to divest itself of either the E-Walk or the Empire, I suspect it’s the Empire they’d let go of, just on the sheer basis of its size. (Not that that wouldn’t represent a goldmine of an opportunity in the eyes of Philip Anschutz, the principal owner of Regal, or, they’re willing to make the investment, the Dolans and Clearview Cinemas/Cablevision/Rainbow Media…)
Had a chance to peek inside the Jackson Triplex when I was in the area a couple of weeks ago and have to say I was very impressed with how well-preserved it is, save for some graffiti on the upper facade and a somewhat modernized (with stucco walls) vestibule area between the main entrance and secondary set of doors. It’s clear the owners recognize the value of the property; they’re also, from what I could tell, doing a solid business.
True, Dave, true – seems like the renovated quad at the 86th Street East was almost an accident…
Given those screen counts AMC sees as ideal in its business model, can we also expect them to cut loose the Loews Village VII, the six-screen Loews 19th Street East and Loews 84th Street Theatres, and Loews Orpheum VII or might they make an exception given each site’s clout in their respective zones?
Did Regal own the Crossbay 1? If so, the reason for its closing is as obvious as the pretty green-inked paper that Philip Anschutz probably counts at night in lieu of sheep…
The Angelika is the perfect model for corporate arrogance, plain and simple. The ownership figures people will go there just because of the brand name – presentation and creature comforts, be damned – and while they’re still doing solid business, with all the competition nearby, as hardbop noted, the quality of the bookings has slid in recent years, and that’s no accident. What would be interesting – and unfortunately it’s not going to happen, for obvious reasons – would be to book the same highly-anticipated indie-type flick at the Sunshine and the Angelika at the same time and see which theatre drew the higher grosses. There’s little question as to which would be able to make that claim; the intriguing part would be by how much – and that would be a truly interesting barometer of just how far the Angelika’s reputation has fallen…
Shouldn’t that be ‘Cinderella Man’? :–)
Given the times, thankfully the AFA owns their building, ensuring they’ll continue to be around…
The portions I saw, Robert, were actually in good-to-excellent shape; I was expecting something far less beforehand, but I was pleasantly surprised – and a bit saddened, too, at the same time, imagining what the space must have looked like before the orchestra was sealed off, its floor was leveled, and Walgreen’s moved in. I didn’t have a chance to check out the auditorium – I had just enough time before heading off to Shea for the Mets' game and picked up that vibe I wouldn’t have been allowed to take much more of a look without buying a ticket. I will go there again, just to get a chance to soak in the atmosphere and do a bit more exploring, when they book another film I’m interested in seeing. (I already caught ‘War of the Worlds’ the night before in the city and, as entertaining as it was overall – except for that ending – I really don’t have a strong desire to see it again.) My suspicion, as per FoxTheatres' post this past May 2nd, is that it’s indeed inevitable the balcony will be divided into multiple auditoriums (with a smaller one on the ground level, although I saw no evidence of any construction work – prep or otherwise – being or having been done); I could tell the owners are taking an absolute bath financially and the only realistic hope they have of at least breaking even is to go the ‘plex route. There was also no crowd buzz, no sense of excitement, and, in turn, few ticket buyers – pretty astonishing when you consider it was the opening weekend for a major Hollywood blockbuster and a hot summer afternoon.
Also, another note on the hallway – the left wall is of the white painted plaster variety, except for a gold/brown painted melange along the bottom half. It’s a nice enough touch, but the fact that it’s not of more elaborate material (marble, quality tile, etc.) only serves to remind of the tragedy of the orchestra portion being lost from the remainder of the theatre – and the current owners' limited budget… but, still, it IS a functioning theatre and with so many outer-borough theatres closing in recent years, the fact it’s open for business at all is a blessing.
I had an opportunity to check out most of what remains of the Plaza ‘Twin’ this past Saturday. The first sense one gets is what a tragedy it was that the orchestra was separated for retail; the portion of the building still being used for cinema space is huge and I could only imagine, based upon that, just how considerable it must have been.
The entrance and the altered marquee gives one the odd, divided sense of the treasure the Plaza still is, even in its truncated form, but also that it’s become something of an afterthought.
The hallway leading to the Plaza’s lobby is literally lined on both facing walls with movie posters (or one-sheets) of coming attractions, films which had recent engagements at the Plaza, or films out of release which never screened at the Plaza; none are in display cases but merely affixed with tacks, Scotch tape, or some other adhesive. Above the entrance to the lobby is at least a portion of a banner display ad for the film ‘Be Cool’.
As one enters the lobby, the box office is to the left and is very unglamorous; it reminded me of a windowed receptionist’s office one might find within a doctor’s office. Straight ahead is the stairway leading to the balcony (or the one, currently existing auditorium), upon which a woman was sitting on one of the steps; her presence made me reluctant to take photos. Above her and above everything on the ground level was a very high ceiling and what a ceiling… wow! It’s a medium-to-dark blue with a hanging light fixture; the immense nature of it (and primarily the ceiling itself and what I saw of the balcony) gave me a sense of how much of a ‘cinema treasure’ this theatre still is in its truncated form, and what a treasure it must have been, even as a twin and before Walgreen’s moved in.
One present tenant at 744 Allerton Avenue in The Bronx is a Payless ShoeSource location; whether it’s based in the former Allerton Theatre space or an altogether new building is something I can’t attest to.
Thank you for this important addition to the site, Gerald. I don’t recall from some old research I no longer have at hand if it was before or after the Anthology Film Archives moved out, but I do know that Film Forum also once resided in the former AFA space @ 80 Wooster Street.
What’s happening with the fight to preserve/restore the Rialto as a single-screen house?
…and it’s, at least in part (from what I saw a couple of weeks ago), a marquee of the LED variety.
In approximately 700 posts on this site, I’ve established and defined myself; in about 10 posts on this site, you’ve done the same for yourself, Jack. Case closed.
You can obviously disagree with me, Jack; it’s your right and, to borrow from the classic expression, I’d defend to the death your right to do so. What I DON’T agree with is you tying me and my pro-union stance with two well-known organized crime figures. The facts are, you don’t know me and you paint what I believe, the positive effects I saw unions have on my family, on my father to provide for my family growing up, and for myself when I was a member of unions, with an extreme broad brush. Are there – have there been – corrupt union officials and individuals who muscled in and manipulated unions, individuals such as Jimmy Hoffa and John Gotti? Absolutely. But there are plenty of legitimate, honest unions that provide for and defend their members, and my respect for the good that the vast majority of unions do VIA THROUROUGHLY LEGAL MEANS is what has ultimately been the deciding factor in my decision to not patronize or otherwise support the IFC Center until they hire unionized projectionists.
Part of the beauty of this message board is the option of anonymity it provides its members with. I suggest you respect it by not utilizing its cloak by taking unwarranted swipes at others… you know, the ‘decent’ and ‘common sense thing(s)’ to do…
To follow up on my post from this past February 3rd at 11:28 pm – I FINALLY remembered yesterday afternoon to keep my eyes peeled when walking by the intersection of Canal and Mulberry and it appears the building which housed the Jade Theatre is no more (the Wah Dor and whatever may have been the ‘other’ Canal Theatre seemed to have met the same fate); the only logical place the Jade could have been located was the southeast corner of Canal and Mulberry, and that area is presently occupied a rather typical (for Chinatown) building covered in faux-dark gray marble tiles. Meanwhile, the former Music Palace is still standing, its basement floor occupied by a food supply store (with relatively new signage). Why nothing has been done with the Music Palace space (if, as it turns out, there are, as it seems obvous there aren’t any longer, plans to tear down the building) is a continual mystery to me…
There was an article in the Times, Robert, some months ago discussing the poor condition of the NY State Pavilion at Flushing Meadows and, if memory serves (and I KNOW this will come as a total shock :–), the inaction of the city on restoring it. If only we, the people, truly had a say in what goes on at City Hall…
Responding, hardbop, to your posting from this past May 14th – I wonder if the ads you saw at the time for ‘Dear Frankie’ and ‘Look at Me’ listed any other outer-borough theatres where either of those films were showing. I think the reason theatres outside of Manhattan are left out of such ads comes down to the discretion of the individual theatre owners (each owner has to pay for their theatre(s) to be listed in display ads or movie clocks) or the amount of ad space the distributor of a film is willing to pay for.
The entire block bordered by 4th Avenue, Broadway, 13th, and 14th Streets had been cleared by the summer of ‘95; I remember passing by the then-boarded-off site at the time.
I have to admit I haven’t been able to bring myself to see a film at the IFC Center, despite the one-man hype machine I was acting as last month. I grew up in a liberal, pro-union family and every time I walked by the IFC Center the last couple of weeks, I was tempted to go in and see ‘Me and You and Everyone We Know’, but then I’d look at the projectionist union members protesting, at one point reading their hand-out flier, and continue walking my way down 6th Avenue. I did see ‘Me and You’ when I was in Boston earlier this week, enjoyed it enormously, and want to see it at least another one or two times; those opportunities won’t come until John Vanco, Jonathan Sehring, and the IFC management change their stance (or show some spine and demand a change) and hire union projectionists. It’s the decent and common sense thing to do.
Art-house audiences have become almost as fickle as mainstream audiences, it seems. I can’t remember any specific examples offhand, but there have been a handful of specialty titles which opened to solid reviews but, poof!, in a week or three, they were completely out of theatres. Guess sometimes there’s little accounting for what people will see and what they won’t see…
Looking at fellow Cinema Treasures poster Ken Roe’s impressive photo essay on the Pacific Theatres at the Grove on the Cinematour web site (http://www.cinematour.com/tour.php?db=us&id=20400), it’s no wonder it’s dominating the market it serves; it’s truly an impressive venue.
Golden let go of control of the then-Olympia Quad at Broadway and 107th on the UWS in the spring of ‘87 and I think the Quad Cinema not long thereafter (maybe within a years’ time at most?), so I’d guess Cineplex Odeon took over the Alpine sometime around then.
The Kips Bay Theatre is a Loews property, as is the Orpheum at 3rd and 86th.
If AMC/Loews is forced to divest itself of either the E-Walk or the Empire, I suspect it’s the Empire they’d let go of, just on the sheer basis of its size. (Not that that wouldn’t represent a goldmine of an opportunity in the eyes of Philip Anschutz, the principal owner of Regal, or, they’re willing to make the investment, the Dolans and Clearview Cinemas/Cablevision/Rainbow Media…)
From a historical perspective, there’s no word on whether the Loews name will disappear or remain on the properties being consumed by the merger.
Had a chance to peek inside the Jackson Triplex when I was in the area a couple of weeks ago and have to say I was very impressed with how well-preserved it is, save for some graffiti on the upper facade and a somewhat modernized (with stucco walls) vestibule area between the main entrance and secondary set of doors. It’s clear the owners recognize the value of the property; they’re also, from what I could tell, doing a solid business.