Nickelodeon Cinemas

When the Nickelodeon first opened, it was an art house that often shared bookings with the Orson Welles Cinema across the river in Cambridge.

After Alan Friedberg’s USACinemas (formerly Sack Theatres) bought it, he talked of creating a chain of Nickelodeon Cinemas, and even put a “Nickelodeon” sign on the Harvard Square Theatre in Cambridge. But this plan never went anywhere, and the Nickelodeon gradually lost its distinctive art-house identity, especially after Loews acquired USACinemas. By the time the Nickelodeon closed, the Kendall Square Cinema in Cambridge had become the Boston area’s major art-house venue.

Yes, I remember the Abbey and went to many movies there before it became the (first) Nickelodeon. Perhaps that should be added as another listing.

The Nickelodeon had several screens. It was a premiere art house for the Boston area especially in the 1980s and 1990s and replaced an earlier incarnation down the corner of Cummington Street and another street that leads to Huntington Avenue. The place was one Green-Line stop or a short walk from Kenmore Square. After the Kendall Square Cinemas in Cambridge was built, there was some day/dating in the programming. I used to go to the Nickelodeon often. The programming was great. The projection was usually first rate, and they served terrific ice cream by the scoop. The last time I went there was when I brought some Italian club students to see Giuseppe Tornatore’s “Malena” on February 10, 2001. One week later the Nickelodeon was closed!