Empire Theatre

10 Ralph Avenue,
Bushwick,
Brooklyn, NY 11221

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Showing 76 - 81 of 81 comments

Bway
Bway on August 31, 2004 at 10:44 am

Ooops, I posted that before I saw you responded! Can you see the Empire in that photo? Is it the building with the silver roof and the little coupola (sp?)?

Bway
Bway on August 31, 2004 at 10:42 am

Oh, that’s right! The tower in the background of the photo was for the Lexington El! I guess this theater would be visable in some old photos showing that particular turnout. I have to go through some of my photos.

PeterKoch
PeterKoch on August 31, 2004 at 10:40 am

Bway, I would start with this image of yours :

http://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?26240

Not sure if the big silver peaked roof in the upper center of the image is that of the Empire, or of Loew’s Gates.

PeterKoch
PeterKoch on August 31, 2004 at 10:20 am

Bway, you’re welcome. The building was at the corner of Ralph and Lexington Avenues and Broadway, AT WHAT USED TO BE THE LEXINGTON EL TURNOUT !!! So it is between Gates and Kosciuszko stations. Not sure if the building still exists.

Bway
Bway on August 31, 2004 at 10:17 am

Ah, thanks Peter, (continued from the Ridgewood page). I don’t know why I couldn’t find this earlier.
Anyway, does the building still exist? Was this between Halsey and Gates el stations, or between Gates and Chauncey?
Does the building still exist? I have some photos taken from the J train, and am just wondering if I should look in any of those to see if I can see what the building is now if it still exists.

PeterKoch
PeterKoch on June 4, 2004 at 3:52 pm

The Empire Theatre can be seen above and to the left of the trolley car in the following image :

http://www.nycsubway.org/perl/show?31100

The view is north on Ralph Avenue past Gates Avenue (street sign near mid-right edge of image)and Quincy Street to the intersection of Ralph Avenue, Broadway, and Lexington Avenue in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn. The trolley car shown is on the Ralph Rockaway Line. The el at the vanishing point is still there : the Broadway el, currently the J and Z lines, between the Gates Avenue and Kosciuszko Street stations. The square tower with the peaked roof to the upper right above the trolley car marks the turnout to the Lexington Avenue elevated line, which is no longer there. Its last run was Friday October 13, 1950.

Three other historic theaters, nearby to the southeast, are Loews Gates, one block diagonally away from the Empire, at Broadway and Gates Avenue, and the celebrated RKO Bushwick and Monroe Theaters, three blocks to the southeast near the intersection of Broadway, Howard Avenue and Monroe Street.