Paramount Theatre

Was just in Newark working at the arena 2 weeks ago. Walked by all 3 of these theatres. Such a shame how they just sit there and rot away.

Willburg145, you know that the Proctors also stands in Newark, not far from the Adams.

I would just like to add to what LuisV said. I work as a stagehand at the prudential center. Most times I get parking in the deck next door. But there are times, as was the case a week ago after the Stones concert, that I had to park blocks away on the street. The first time a year or so ago I was nervous about doing this, but now, even at 4 am I felt safe and ok. As far as the Paramount, as well as the Adams and the Proctors, it is truely a shame they are just rotting away. Its too bad years ago when they were building the NJPac that someone didnt just think about saving these structures, which still have more beauty than anything new built today.

Tom De Poto writes in the The Star-Ledger “Newark OKs early plan to revitalize the Four Corners downtown district” on December 19, 2012 that a rehab plan is in the early stages of development as part of the Four Corners Millennium Plan in which the Paramount is “slated to have 2 floors of retail and the the remaining floors will house 220 housing units”, contingent on landmark preservation approvals and receipt of New Jersey Urban Transit Hub tax credit; funding may come in part from Goldman Sachs. See mention: http://www.nj.com/business/index.ssf/2012/12/newark_oks_early_plan_to_revit.html#incart_river_default

I was working at the Prudential Center arena for the NBA draft about 2 weeks ago and passed both the Paramount and Adams Theatres in Newark. (Did not have time to get to the Proctors) The Paramount is indeed all boarded up. There is a dollar type of store in what looks to be the lobby of the Adams. If I am in town again (maybe July 20 – 21 for Jennifer Lopez concert) I will try to find out more on both venues.

http://www.nj.com/news/mustsee/index.ssf/2009/04/paramount_theater_owner_looks.html

I walked by the Paramount on 5/9/11. It is completely boarded up. Whatever store was there is gone. No notice that any future construction or renovation was planned.

Any word on what is happening at this theatre?
Has the new owner done anythning with it?

Well, it looks like Don Lewis and Ayers have discovered another long lost theater! I searched the database to see if there was another Paramount listed in Newark as a former name and there is not. This theater looks rather substantial. What we don;t know is if it actually showed movies. If this photo is accurately from the early 1900’s it is possible that it was solely a vaudeville house and never actually showed films, but it looks like it was a beautiful theater nonetheless.

Thanks gallion.Jerry Lewis writes about his theatre days in “DEAN and ME” he even writes about his failed twin cinemas.

From 1948 to 1952 there were four first run movie theaters in downtown Newark.
They were Loews State, Paramount, Branford, and Proctors. The Adams was not in
their league during this time. I was head usher at Loews State in 49&50 and later
asst mgr there. I read somewhere about “Ben Hur” shown at the Adams in the late
fifties. Not likely as this was MGM and Loews was still open then.
Also, the local wisdom them was that Jerry Lewis had worked at the Paramount in
the early forties as an usher. About 10 years ago Jerry mentioned, during a TV interview, that
he worked at Loews State around 1941, and was fired for trying to unionize his
fellow ushers. I am hazy on the Adams, but believe it became a burlesque house
in the late forties. There was also a burlesque on Washington called the Empire, and
perhaps I am confusing these two. Loews State on Broad st was to my mind the most
beautiful of these old movie palaces. by gallion 6/13/10

In the late 1950’s my family lived in Linden, NJ. In June of 1959 my cousin visited from MO and we went to see “Around the World In 80 Days” at a theater in downtown Newark. The lobby was all white, appeared to be mostly marble, with a huge staircase leading to the balcony. Does anyone recall which theater that was and if it is still standing? I’ll never forget how beautiful the lobby was.