Manhasset Cinemas

PhilMiller on July 7, 2009 at 5:25 am

The Manhasset was also used for private screenings of films by entertainment executives who lived in the vicinity. These were usually shown after the last show in the evening. It was also occasionally used for public events and fund raising. I recall one particular fund raiser for the planned North Shore Hospital that featured stars of opera, and stage. Somehow or other they did manage to get a piano in there. The star of the evening was Licia
Albanese. The manager had every one dressed to the nines-everyone with white gloves. It was a success.

PhilMiller on July 6, 2009 at 9:47 am

I worked at the Manhasset in 1949 and 1950. It was then part of the Skouras chain on Long Island, which included the Beacon in Port Washington and the Playhouse and Squire in Great Neck. However, unlike those theaters the Manhasset was unique for it was a single feature theater, and to my knowledge the only one on the North Shore. Monday through Friday the theater ran one show at 1:00PM,
then closed down, and at 7:00PM reopened and ran two more. Saturday and Sunday it ran continuously from 1:00PM to closing, but during the fall, winter and spring Saturday usually started with a children’s matinee.

serial chapter

DARCYDT on July 5, 2008 at 9:20 pm

According to both the listings in the News and Post this picture currently has the following films, Get Smart, Kit Kittredge:All American Girl, Love Guru, Kung Fu Panda and You Don’t Mess with the Zohan. First don’t they always play more arty fare and second even with Love Guru listed at 1 show a day this works out to four screens when they have 3. I could see one paper printing the wrong listings but both. Has this theater gone commercial?

Ed Solero on September 23, 2007 at 9:04 am

I think an AKA is in order here for “Manhasset Theatre,” since surely this was not called “Cinemas” when it was a single screen.

Ed Solero on September 22, 2007 at 9:12 pm

Well, I attended the 11am showing today of “It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World” at the Manhasset with my two kids. To my delight, the movie played in the former balcony theater and not one of the downstairs theaters as was the case when saps saw “Singing in the Rain” with his daughter. To my great disappointment, however, when we got upstairs to our seats, we found a blue DVD player standby image being projected on the screen – and I knew we were in for what amounts to giant-projection-TV. I wanted to leave right then and there and ask for a refund of my tickets and the unopened water and candy bars we just purchased, but the kids implored me to stay – my daughter in particular keen to see the image of the movie (whatever the source) projected on a theatre-sized screen. I caved-in and we remained for the show – even though I had sworn to myself that I would not pay for a DVD presentation.

I should probably back up to the night before the showing when I called the theatre to confirm the showing. Someone advised me that Clearview had elimated the Saturday and Sunday screenings from the Hollywood Classics schedule and that there would be no further showing of this title. I was miffed and asked if the presentation had been film or video projection – and was told that it had been FILM! This made me even angrier, so I went to Clearview’s site and submitted a complaint. Our old buddy (from the Ziegfeld page) Craig O'Connor responded (as did another Clearview rep) to let me know that there must have been a misunderstanding and that the show was to go on precisely as scheduled (and still advertised on the Clearview site, by the way).

I am greatful for the efforts Craig and the rest of the Clearview staff made in getting back to me at a pretty late hour on Friday to clear this whole thing up, but I was only in for further disappointment at the prospect of what was basically a glorified DVD viewing. After all, I already own the damned DVD of “IAMMMMW!” I took some solace when I won the pre-screening raffle for a free Clearview movie pass (a definite rigged affair as I had purchased three of the five tickets sold for this morning’s screening)!

In any event, the charms of the movie and shared experience with my kids worked their magic and we find ourselves immersed in the film. Well, at least the kids were. The too-dark and grainy (and somewhat distorted) image from the DVD projector and the non-surround sound would frequently jolt me from my complete enjoyment of the movie – but I put those feelings aside for the sake of the kids and we had ourselves a good time despite it all.

And as always, Clearview staff is very freindly and the theatre immaculate. I was chatting with one of the workers there and he indicated that 95% of the classics are DVD presentations. I guess I might have known that. Sure makes availability of titles a whole lot wider. The staffer also told me that at the beginning of the series they were getting films – but due to the length of some of the older classics they had been screening, there’d be 12 or more reels to be assembled for the platter (opposed to the usual 8 reels for the average modern movie they play at the Manhasset). So the switch to DVD was also a function of too much damn work to assemble and breakdown reels for a print that would only be screened a few times before being shipped back.

Anyway, with all due respect to Craig and the folks at Clearview and the Manhasset – I won’t be going back for any other DVD presentations. I’ll take my classics strictly on film from here on out. At least until classic series begin to utilize true digital cinema projection – which will probably have to wait until data storage and download fees come down significantly.

Oh… and if you’re out there, Vodhin, I can’t say that I saw your ghost (which I had totally forgotten about until I came back to this page to post these comments) but there were a number of times today that I found myself looking back over my shoulder because I swore there was someone standing or moving around in the back row (which there wasn’t).

Ed Solero on August 31, 2007 at 9:30 am

Thanks, saps. I was hoping for the nice intact balcony! How is the size of that auditorium – and more importantly, the screen size? I’m happy they had a proper plate to preserve the film’s correct aspect ratio. Did they mask the screen on the left and right?

Ed Solero on August 30, 2007 at 9:47 pm

I see that Clearview runs a Hollywood Classics series out of one of the Manhasset auditoriums (I presume this is how you came to watch “Singing in the Rain” here with your daughter, saps). I’ve heard that many of the films at the Chelsea series are actually digital DVD projections… Does the series at the Manhasset run actual 35mm prints or is this also run via a video projection system? I’m curious because the clearview website lists “It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World” starting September 19th here and if I can anticipate a decent 35 mm print, I’d love to make it down. I’ll pass on a DVD projection, however.

Also… what auditorium is the classic series held in? Hopefully, the balcony theater?

Mike (saps) on July 23, 2007 at 2:44 pm

I was here not too long ago for a screening of “Singin' in the Rain” with my 2-½ year old daughter. We’d seen the DVD many times, but we were both mesmerized by the beautiful Technicolor print and full sound up there on the big screen. She didn’t budge an inch for the entire running time, except once to climb on my lap to get more comfy.

Before the show, they had a drawing for a free pass and let her pick the winning number out of a bag — and she picked my ticket! (The fix was in?…nah!)

Mike (saps) on July 23, 2007 at 7:14 am

This theater’s marquee and outside vestibule are featured in the new Verizon cable TV commercials, which is somewhat ironic since the Manhasset is owned by Clearview, which is owned by Cablevision, which is Verizon’s main competitor.

How did something like that slip by, or is Verizon zinging it to Cablevision? Either way, it made me chuckle.

Vodhin on February 24, 2007 at 2:45 am

I have heard of the Playhouse Ghost, believed to be the ghost of someone who hanged himself in the rigging backstage. He supposedly haunts the appartments that are there now. True or not I don’t know.

Vodhin on February 18, 2007 at 12:46 pm

I’m more skeptical of these “woo woo” type things myself (hence trying to find out what might be causing the shadow) and is why I say that there is more in this universe than we could ever know. Whatever it is, it was noticable to just about anyone who had it pointed out to. Eerie, definately… but since it is so subtle, I doubt it will be freightening anyone away. Maybe it will steal your popcorn, though… ;)

Vodhin on February 17, 2007 at 6:32 pm

Good tip on the photobucket. Usually an image tag can contain the term “width=xxx” (where xxx equals the value you want in pixel size) 512 width should be fine here and many other forums. I’m not 100% sure if it works with this site, though (and there is no option to edit a post, so experiments are out of the question lest we have a ton of usless posts).

I actually recommend that you resize your images before even uploading to an image host – make them 512 wide to start with. Then the actual file will be much smaller and load nice and fast.

I appologize to the fine folks here are Cinema Treasures if I have upset the apple cart with this info (but having images of these great old theatres available for view is a major benefit, and with external image hosts, it should save your server space and bandwidth). Everyone should read the TOS (http://cinematreasures.org/legal/) and understand that materials (e.g. images) you post, either as links or otherwise, automatically include your release of any copyright, granted to Cinema Treasures. On that note, you should not post images or other material (links or otherwise) to material that does not belong to you.

Back to Manhasset and relevant information.

Something comes back to me about the old chandelier that was in the stairwell- it should still exist in the old safe room /manager’s office in the back theatre 3 (the old balcony). I remember when UA renovated that we had it moved and installed in that little room (last door just after the door to the projection booth) because it was going to be thrown out. Last I knew, that room was used for paperwork storage.

On a ghostly note- I and several others who have worked there have experienced first hand, an eerie apparition: a disembodied shadow cast on the wall of the back of that old balcony theatre. We’ve even spotted it drifting along the back wall downstairs (when walking to the theatres, the wall on the right). How and when- Well, I first spotted it while standing outside under tha marquee, having a smoke while waiting for the last shows to let out. I thought someone was behind the candy stand, keeping an eye on it using the mirrors in the outter lobby to see all the way up and around the corner. Several nights went by and it happened again, this time to other employees.

It seems to show up more often during the summer, mostly between 11:30 pm and 1 am. As you walk down the hall downstairs past theatre 1 and 2 or if you stare at the back wall of theatre 3, you’ll notice “arches” of light from the high hat lighting in the ceiling. The shadow can be seen only in the “half light” between the bright area and the dark area, a five or five and a half foot humanoid silhouette moving with “purpose”.

It took us over two months to trace out “her” route, and follows this path: It starts on the wall behind the candy stand, about where the right soda machine is and moves toward theatre 1 where it waits for a little bit. It then moves down the hall and up the stairs to the old balcony. It cannot be seen again until it is in the balcony where it slowly drifts to the door to the projection booth (to the hall to the booth- I think it might go into the old generator room below the booth for a moment). After about a minute or so, the shadow moves to the old safe room/ manager’s office and then very quickly darts back toward the entrance of the balcony (but I think it’s heading toward the fire exit on that side).

Not a truely spectacular event other than it was a regular occurance every night all the time since it was first noticed, and it seems that everyone can see it if you point it out. To see it, don’t look directly at it, but look a few feet away from where it should be (focus on the dark area between the arches of light). The shadow moves as a slow walk (downstairs) and then at a hurried walk (upstairs). What you see is a shadow on the wall shaped like a person about five to five and a half feet tall, darker than what should be there and moving but only in that transition from light to dark- you cannot see it in the bright area of the light or the darker section between the lights – and come to think of it, when Clearview took over, they replaced the incandescant lights in the fixtures downstairs with flourescent retrofits that do not create the needed arches of light. The light in that ahlls is probably too flast to notice it. The Balcony should still be a good spot to see the “ghost”, though.

Now, please understand that I don’t think that it’s an actual ghost- not the sort that you see on TV or one that jumps out at you and goes ‘boo’ (though some folks have left the balcony before the show was over citing a creepy feeling up there). Personally, I believe that there is a whole lot more in this universe than we could ever understand, but a ghost this is not. I and other’s have seen it, and have gone to lengths to try to rule out possibilities: passing car or aircraft light, moonlight, anything. We’ve stood right next to the wall when it passed. We’ve even done research to see if there was ever any kind of incident at the Manhasset that might make a “ghost” – a robbery or other foul deed. Nothing turned up. If I was to venture an opinion as to what it is: perhaps some kind of memory that’s retained in the walls of the building (it is a huge iron wirelath structure and might be able to ‘record’ someone’s strong emotional state (scorned lover?) as they moved by it. Then again, maybe not.

And that’s the only “ghost” I know that’s ever been in the Manhasset (other than the one with Demi Moore).