RKO Keith's Richmond Hill Theatre
117-09 Hillside Avenue,
Richmond Hill,
NY
11418
117-09 Hillside Avenue,
Richmond Hill,
NY
11418
25 people
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Here are some figures on Manhattan. These are from personal files so they have a huge marging of error.
1915 40 sites, 41 screens
1925 45 sites, 48 screens
1935 110 sites, 112 screens
1945 95 sites, 95 screens
1955 61 sites, 61 screens
1965 75 sites, 77 screens
1975 50 sites, 60 screens
1985 69 sites, 116 screens
1995 58 sites, 172 screens
2000 50 sites, 243 screens
2005 44 sites, 232 screens
The early multiplexes were roof gardens that showed movies.
The increase by 1965 was mostly due to arthouse boom.
Most buildings in a single year – 1938. 21 new theatres although some were converted playhouses.
Most screen openings – 2000- 53 new screens. The megaplex arrives late in Manhattan.
Most screen closings – 1971- 50 screens disappeared although many just went over to grind porn and therefore off the radar. Some returned by the blockbuster years after JAWS and STAR WARS.
Screens counts from NATO (National Association of Theatre Owners)
http://www.natoonline.org/statisticsscreens.htm
In the old Film Daily yearbooks they use to have a count of theatres operating/open/closed & seats under each state. For New York City they have it broken down to the five areas, Manhattan/Bronx/Brooklyn/Staten Island/Long Island.
Many theaters lasted into the 70’s, I think the RKO Keith’s fell as an earlier one.
BTW, the RKO Keith’s is far from lost. It’s a diamond in the rough, but entirely restorable. The plaster is in okay shape. Even many of the detailing like Chandeliers all still exist, railings, everything. It would be costly, but it’s not a lost cause by any means, unlike many others that have been gutted, such as the RKO Madison.
There is no damage to the integrity of the Keith’s, and in the meantime, it’s being maintained, so who knows….perhaps if there is a viable use for it, it could come back again.
Thanx for your response Bway. That is a very cool question Tonino. What year did the most movie theatre’s close. Even if the RKO Keith’s Richmond Hill theatre closed in the 1960’s the majority of theatre’s probably closed in the 1950’s. Perhap’s 1955 would be a good guess.
That the Keith’s Richmond Hill has been something other than a theater longer than it was a theater is a sobering thought. Very depressing. It was an attractive, albeit not opulent, venue in a good location, with little competition. I would guess that it ceased being a theater in the early 60s at the earliest. A victim of TV.
Any demogrqaphics regarding the number of theater closings by year?
Perhaps more interesting, the number of theaters opened by year?
I am not sure of the exact date, but I believe at this point it was a Bingo Hall/Flea Market longer than it was a theater. I first set foot in the Keiths back around 1981 or so, and it was already a flea market then already, and by the look, it was closed quite a while already then. I would estimate the early 70’s some time, but that is totally an estimated guess, it perhaps even could have been the late 60’s. It s a LONG time either way.
Very cool. Perhap’s mish-mosh will be the new slogan for his babbling. haha Do any of you fella’s know the year that the RKO Keith’s Richmond Hill theatre became a bingo hall.
Exactly what was your error? Never mind, considering the mish-mosh of information, any further attempt to clarify it is not warranted.
says Kojak,
Does anyone know of any interior photos of the Keiths from when it was still a movie theater?
Thanks, Warren, that’s good to know.
The article included a couple of informative remarks about the Keith’s as follows:
{{Richmond Hill, not to be outdone by the nearby Valencia in Jamaica, preserves its very own classic movie palace of yore… and this one has a marquee that has been returned to its look in its halcyon days, with red neon-lit nameplates and a gold border! The theatre opened as the Keith’s Richmond Hill about 1928 at 117-09 Hillside Avenue. The old marquee, which had been hidden under aluminum siding for some years, was restored in 2001 during production for a feature film, The Guru, featuring Marisa Tomei.}}
Thanks for the lead, Warren
Shalom, ciao, and excelsior
WENT BY SATURDAY…STILL A BINGO HALL…
AT LEAST IT’S STILL THERE!
Fair enough. I wouldn’t think the RKO circuit’s organist would have much time to pick up neighborhood gigs at the roller rink.
Shalom, ciao, and excelsior
I wonder if Arlo was the organist at the roller skating rink on Hillside Avenue in the early 50s?
Used to take the Myrtle Ave bus from Glendale to the end of the line at the Keiths and then a long walk to the rink. Always pigged out at Jahn’s on the return.
Shalom, ciao, and excelsior
Arlo could be a real name fella. Have you not heard of Arlo Guthrie? It appears that you suffer from nomatophobia.
sorry i have been away so i didn’t respond to bway jim- regarding the Highland Park" battlfield" comment- no , I was referring to the gang violence that took over in the 60’s..robbie
A lot of nice images on this site of a number of theaters, as Lost is posting on the various CT pages. You really do need some sort of wide-angle fisheye lens to capture the scale of some of these spaces and I’m glad to see this photographer make use of such equipment. I’m not a fan of the distortion you get with the widest possible angles, but its interesting to see. I wonder what is being shown in that last photo… is this the backstage area?
Interesting photos. They moved the refreshment stand for the flea market since I was last in there, it used to be right in front of the balcony stairs in the back of the orchestra level.
BTW, did they even out the floor in there on the orchestra level? For some reason. the photo taken from up in the balcony, looking down at the procenium arch looks as if the stage is now level with the orchetra level, which appears level. It could just be an illusion though. Last time I was in there, it still had a sloped floor, and the stage was still high up like a stage should, but again, I really can’t tell from the photo.
The building had a lot more interest before they painted the ceiling beige too. Until the 90’s, while the walls were already painted beige, the ceiling was original all different colors with gold leaf.
No, especially if they freely post their expertise and memories.
I’ve got Bob in age by a year or so, but no, don’t know either one personally. Just hoping for more “experts” on the site. You can never have too many, I guess.
I mentioned you to Bob as “BrooklynJim”, saying you were about his age.
Unfortunately, no, but I mentioned the Cinema Treasures site to Bob.
It reads like you know Bob and Danny Gallagher.
OK, Peter, Question of the Day:
Did you give Bob the CT URL for himself and Danny Gallagher?
I walked around inside the RKO Keith’s in Richmond Hill this past Saturday, July 8, 2006, at about 6 p.m. while it was in use as a flea market. I did not go up the side stairs into the balcony, but saw the inner and outer lobbies, orchestra, balcony, side boxes, side exits, proscenium arch, and balcony and ceiling from a distance, with much of the ornate, baroque, elliptical ornamentation still present. There was a man on duty there named Bob, age 59, whom I discussed old theaters with. He pointed to where the children’s section of the theater had been about fifty years ago, when he had sat there as a patron. He mentioned a man named Danny Gallagher who was even more of an expert on old theaters than he was.
It was strange, but interesting, seeing what had once been the orchestra, once only lit by the movie screen, exit signs, and dim aisle and ceiling lights, now a brightly lit open space with the seats removed, daylight entering through the propped-open side exit doors.