Hyway Theater
2260 Broadway,
Fair Lawn,
NJ
07410
2260 Broadway,
Fair Lawn,
NJ
07410
3 people
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Showing 26 - 35 of 35 comments
Jim C. talked about the premiere of “The Blue Max”. Here’s the 1966 ad for it. Notice that not only the Hyway, but also the Teaneck Theatre was playing a reserved-seat engagement. It was a popular way to make a special event out of a movie in those days. Not like these days … but the less said about that the better.
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In 1959 the Hyway is billed as a Fabian house.
I never was at the Hyway when it was a single (wish I was) as I was always at it’s sister theater the Wayne Preakness (they both played the same films) I saw Amadeus and Dawn of the dead at the twin theater, it wasn’t bad, but then I saw Species 2 at the 5 plex. What a dank, depressing mono sound bad projection uncomforatable, small theater. I’ll never go there again. It’s a big neighborhood theater so the townies go there.
I also will never go to the Hawthorne anymore (my God, what a shoebox) I saw The Poseidon Adventure and Blazing Saddles and Patton and One Million Years B.C there when it was a palace.
Those theaters with the Allwood and Claridge in Montclair. Former grand palaces now 5 plexes that are the dankest of hellholes.
JIM C. from NJ: nice to see someone posting about the Hyway. I actually live in Fair Lawn now and my wife and I were only in the theater once to see “Speed” back in 1994. I can’t say the place was a nightmare (like the Hawthorne is…) but it wasn’t very nice either. Then again, the Broadway corridor where the Hyway is must’ve been a LOT nice back then as well.
Because of it’s location, it’s managed to stay open and there seems to always be a bit of a crowd there. What’s more amazing to me is that this place actually gets a lot of the firt run movies.
You’d think some smart person could turn it around and really make it nice, right?
The HYWAY theater was my childhood movie palace. It was a single theater then … and it was run by a tough all-business manager named Louis Lefkowitz. He ran it like a high class hotel. I recall him coming outside to make sure everyone was lined up correctly at the box office and that there was no horseplay. I saw some great films there in the 70’s. PATTON, BANANAS, BIG JAKE, EARTHQUAKE, JAWS. The tix were 75 cents for kids, as I recall. I still have the stubs I saved in a jar. I even recall fauntly the premiere of THE BLUE MAX at the HYWAY complete with spotlight that rotated in the night sky. It turned into a twin and then into a 2nd and 3rd run
theatre at bargain prices. Then it closed up for a year or more and was turned into a 5 screener. It is now a shadow of what it was. It is dirty and unkempt. No regard is given to the marquee which
frequently dislays mis-spelled words. IT was once grand and is a monument to cramming in as many people as possible in shoebox auditoriums with bad sound and poor sight lines. I never go back.
It was a great theater in the 40’s and early 50’s when it was a single theater.
On a Saturday afternoon the placed was often filled to capacity because of the double feature, 10 cartoons, movie serial or the races. The races showed the worst stereotypes of all the ethnic minorities…would never be able to show those things today.
Can anyone tell me if this was ever a nice theater? I went there once about 8 years ago and won’t go back again. Not that it was awful but it wasn’t very nice either. And it’s not like it’s a bargain. But they still get first run movies.
The vertical marquee and all advertising for the theatre spell it “HYWAY”.
I believe the correct spelling is Hyway. It seems like it had more than the 1064 seats originally listed.
Unfortunately, I was there not when it was a single theater…I remember in 1974, they showed the premiere of “The Savage is Loose” with an appearance by George C. Scott (while his wife, Trish Vandevere appeared across the county at the Wayne Preakness)…must have been something , seeing George C. outside the Hyway. I remember the Hyway played Jaws…I have the newspaper ads from these. Must’ve been a great single screen theater.
Now, it’s cut up into five screens. I was there when it was a twin. But the front 3 theaters are small with mono sound (at least when I was there)…these once great theaters are now chopped up into sardine cans to feed the public their daily dose of crap (meaning most movies)…I wouldn’t go to the highway to see a flick that rquires a large screen, digital sound and good projection… anyone have any pictures from the Hyway’s heyday?