In the late sixties, the South City was part of the Northeast Drive-In Theater Corp., headquartered in Boston. Northeast at that time operated drive-ins in eleven states. One of the chief officers was Sumner Redstone. The other two chief officers were Redstones as well.
Google must had a very small budget for these photographers. Half the time they shoot directly into the sun, or they stand behind a bus that completely blocks the shot. Anyway, here are some photos from the site: http://tinyurl.com/6a9xdc http://tinyurl.com/658w3s
1940 is the last building on the block, currently. None of the photos show the theater as a corner building. I don’t think the theater was ever at 1942.
Here’s a photo from the NYPL. You can zoom in for a better look. No date was given. http://tinyurl.com/5t9qgt
I had some trouble matching this building on Google due to the address. The building that corresponds to the vintage photos would be at 1938 Webster. 1940 is a rental hall on the corner of Webster and 178th. The two buildings bracketing the Tremont appear to be the same in all the photos. However, the Park Overlook Hotel is also listed at 1938 Webster. The hotel appears to be the building on the theater’s left in the photos. Confusion abounds.
If you compare this photo from Google maps to the June 30 view, you can see that the building on the left in both shots still exists. However, the theater on the right has been replaced by a newer building. The theater has been demolished. http://tinyurl.com/67j5gt
There are a lot of churches on E. 131st north of Miles. I tried to figure out which one could have been the Avalon, but no luck. The church may have done some remodeling.
According to the comment on July 4, the theater building apart from the airdrome had 1370 seats. Even if the auditorium was demolished, the remaining frontage would be much bigger than what’s there now. The theater has been demolished.
For sale:
http://tinyurl.com/6z66u8
Good luck with the operation, and lots of success.
Here is a photo taken off Google maps:
http://tinyurl.com/6qcgrj
Racy goings-on in October 1947:
http://tinyurl.com/666fw9
There are some vintage photos here:
http://tinyurl.com/68u2hj
Here is some Montello propaganda:
http://tinyurl.com/6zrlbv
The late Lloyd Kogle and his wife were owner-operators of the theater in the 1950s:
http://tinyurl.com/5fqopj
The marquee has been removed. I wasn’t sure if that had been mentioned yet.
Here are some details about the renovation:
http://tinyurl.com/5sby23
In the late sixties, the South City was part of the Northeast Drive-In Theater Corp., headquartered in Boston. Northeast at that time operated drive-ins in eleven states. One of the chief officers was Sumner Redstone. The other two chief officers were Redstones as well.
A White Castle is at this address now:
http://tinyurl.com/5tkqfj
Here is a photo from Google maps:
http://tinyurl.com/5sondl
Google must had a very small budget for these photographers. Half the time they shoot directly into the sun, or they stand behind a bus that completely blocks the shot. Anyway, here are some photos from the site:
http://tinyurl.com/6a9xdc
http://tinyurl.com/658w3s
Here is the updated link for the 1941 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/6qmokg
The green awning says “Cinelli’s Building”. I think the hotel is next door.
That’s what I thought.
1940 is the last building on the block, currently. None of the photos show the theater as a corner building. I don’t think the theater was ever at 1942.
Here’s a photo from the NYPL. You can zoom in for a better look. No date was given.
http://tinyurl.com/5t9qgt
I had some trouble matching this building on Google due to the address. The building that corresponds to the vintage photos would be at 1938 Webster. 1940 is a rental hall on the corner of Webster and 178th. The two buildings bracketing the Tremont appear to be the same in all the photos. However, the Park Overlook Hotel is also listed at 1938 Webster. The hotel appears to be the building on the theater’s left in the photos. Confusion abounds.
Here is a photo taken off of Google maps:
http://tinyurl.com/5pngb2
This June 2005 blog calls the theater a grubby little duplex.
http://tinyurl.com/5ggw49
If you compare this photo from Google maps to the June 30 view, you can see that the building on the left in both shots still exists. However, the theater on the right has been replaced by a newer building. The theater has been demolished.
http://tinyurl.com/67j5gt
There are a lot of churches on E. 131st north of Miles. I tried to figure out which one could have been the Avalon, but no luck. The church may have done some remodeling.
The church has an interesting cinema-themed website:
http://www.crosslands.org/
It works better this way:
http://www.thegerold.com/contact.html
The Hulk movie opened on July 4th, according to the website, so they are indeed open.
Here is a 2007 photo from Wikipedia:
http://tinyurl.com/64p4oj
According to the comment on July 4, the theater building apart from the airdrome had 1370 seats. Even if the auditorium was demolished, the remaining frontage would be much bigger than what’s there now. The theater has been demolished.