Rugby Theatre
823 Utica Avenue,
Brooklyn,
NY
11203
823 Utica Avenue,
Brooklyn,
NY
11203
2 people
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Showing 26 - 37 of 37 comments
Hey Philipgoldberg…
I don’t know where you get your info but the Rugby NEVER showed XXX hardcore porn. I know ‘cause it was one of the theatres I went to as a kid. In it’s last days they ran all kinds of films not just Kung Fu but usually double bills that consisted of one new release and a second run by the same studio and the admission was about $3.00. This theatre closed just before summer of '84 and remember one of the last movies to play there was a “giallo” Italian zombie flick called “Night of the Zombies”. The theatre was indeed rough or “ghetto” with the pungent stank of marijuana everywhere. Didn’t mind it closing down since it was bound to happen.
I’m confused because the above paragraph mentions the Golden Theatre chain. I always thought they owned and managed theatres like the Oceana and Benson. On one of the theatre pages someone said they were only a booking company and did not manage the theatres. Can anyone shed some light?
My grandparents lived right across thw street from the theatre. Bfore it becamed twinned I used to love going upstair to the balcony as see a film. The lighting the ladies room was nice. This may sound crazy but I can still see my reflection in the mirror. And how it made me feel.
That pizza was so good…. SilverRods — Was that the big one on the corner of Church and Utica that had all the newspaper and magazine racks outdoors on Utica — same side of the street as the Rugby or was it the one across the street?
Any one remember the matron named Millie
I remember the pizzaria..“Little Venice” next to the Rugby. I have some fond memories of the Rugy. We would go to SilverRods Pharmacy and buy a load of candy to bring into the theatre. Those were and still are good memories.
Best Rugby memories include Saturday 60’s rock ‘n roll shows and Frankie Avalon/Annette Funicello movies. There was a pizzeria right by the theater that had some of the best pizza in Brooklyn. Too bad…
In the late 70’s until 1984 when I lived in East Flatbush, I
remember this theatre was still open, by then it was showing
black action and kung-fu movies.
Funny when a neighborhood begins it decline, these are always
the kind of movies that are always shown.
There were times when it was shut down for periods of days or
months, I do remember the marquee and the price of admission
being around $3.
I never frequented it nor do I miss it.(apologies to the Rugby
aficianados)
One of the projectionists who worked at the Rugby told me some incredible stories about how violent this place got at the end. He would lock himself in the booth and always pray there was not a riot inside.
The top of the marquee of the Rugby Theater is visible above the upper left corner of the front of the “Utica” streetcar in the following image. The “R” and the top of the “U” (two short vertical dashes) are visible above the roof of the streetcar :
http://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?31061
anyone remember a candy store next door to the Rugby theatre between 1940 and 1960? It was owned by my grandfather!
The Rugby Theatre is located at 823 Utica Ave. and it seated 973 people.