RKO Madison Theatre
54-30 Myrtle Avenue,
Ridgewood,
NY
11385
54-30 Myrtle Avenue,
Ridgewood,
NY
11385
21 people
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Showing 101 - 125 of 1,251 comments
John I know that the blackout was devistating. Bushwick and Bed-Sty gained notariety(sp)whith the looting that went on. I remember watching Ch 7 new the next day. I was living in Coney Island back then.Six people got stuck in the Astro Tower for hours. Park maintainance was unable to lower it before they were able to find a generator large enough to power up the ride to bring it down. Soon after that Astroland bought 2 generators large enough to provide power to the park in case of another blackout. Later on when Con-Ed raised the electric rates they started to use the gens full time. Back then it turned out cheaper. Speaking of which. Astroland as we knew it is now gone. All the rides are for sale. Thanks in part to Community Board 11 and Norman Kaufman who runs the CI Chamber of Commerce. It was also CB 10 in Bensonhurst that didn’t do to much to prevent the Loews Oriental from closing.
Warren, thanks again for the fine photo. In addition to getting the season wrong, the article mis-names the street after which the movie house was named. It is, of course Madison Street, NOT Madison Ave. Coming from a local publication, this is a pretty big gaff.
When the Madison closed in 1978, I was working in Bushwick as the Community Board district manager. In that capacity, I worked very closely with the civic leadership of Ridgewood since the two communities shared many issues and problems. Looking back, what surprises me is the lack of impact the closing of the theater had upon the two communities at the time. While there certainly were many other critical issues to be faced during this very difficult period – only one year removed from the devastating 1977 blackout – you would have thought the closing of this once magnificant palace would have caused more of an uproar. Yet I don’t recall anything like that. Did I miss something – or did the Madison really go out with a whimper?
Any building built during the pre war years were often equipped with large heating and cooling equipment. I happen to work in a building that was constructed during the years Madison was, and it has a large amount of air space, such as a high ceiling. The radiators are huge, almost 6 feet long, that could have doubled as a frying pan. Same for the boiler ,which looked like the A bomb dropped on Japan. When these theater buildings were erected,energy was cheap,therefore the building systems, which were designed before the computer, have a tendency to be “over the top”,which is why they are so hot or cold.
Some of the theatres also had banners saying “Cooled by Refrigeration” I remember when i worked at the Academy of Music and walked through many of the non-pupblic places seeing a huge motor that was used to turn a HUGE and I mean HUGE ventilator fan. The belt was about 18 inches wide and about 20-25 feet long. When it was running there was such a suction that it was hard to open the entry door. It was cold in there and it was so powerful that you could feel it asit flowed in the the domed ceiling. Even back then it must have cost a fortune to heat and cool such palaces.
RKO’s advertising is very clever, the way they promote air conditioned theaters by placing frost on top of the “Air Conditioned” signs and also on top of the RKO banner in Warren’s news clipping.
I had to go back and look at that picture. If you look closley you will also see someone on a scafolding rig and it looks like he is working on the neons on the blade. I also tried enlarging the picture to see what movies were up on the marguee but even at 300% it was to hard to make out before it became all distorted but it does look like it was taken in a warm season.
I did go back and look for pics from the “tour” and found none. If you (peter k) have contact info I think I might follow up and go a bit further ala “underground cities” I will have to document it well as my dad,uncle and some of his friends would not let me live it down if I didn’t. I would like to see if anything has changed since my last “visit”
As far as Gottlieb’s I remember eating there once but more often going with my Dad to go pick up a Turkey club and Dr. Browns (the food of the Gods) for my Mom. Years later I did find Gottlieb’s on Queens Blvd and went ther on a regular basis. Me and a friend did an actual taste comparison with Pastrami King and it was Gottlieb’s hands down (cheaper bigger and tasted better) That enormous diner a few doors down was towards the ratscellar. I remember eating in the place that was there before the McD’s. The greasy spoon on the right of Gottlieb’s was good for hot dogs after movies if the tiny hotdog/hamberger place outside the subway entrance was closed. Then you went for a little wander inside Woolworths running down the stairs and runnin around with my brother. Then We would walk down the avenue and stop in at “Marks Place” (next to the drug store)the army navy store where my Dad would BS with the owner. Dad grew up with his brother. We would wander around in the store..loved that…stale old armyjackets dry cleaned odor…Then maybe if we were good we could go to Villa Maria’s for pizza (before it was a fancy resturant and secret mob hangout) There’s more but after all this is more for the Madison than reminisants than other memories.
Panzer65, I’ll let you know when I plan to go there.
Peter,
I’m all for going on that tour!
Thanks for all the details, Vinmeister and East Coast Rocker.
No need to grease the store owner / manager with $$$. Bway and MrBill went there Sunday October 5th 2008 and, by prior arrangement from, and with the manager / owner’s help, were taken on a tour to see and photograph what’s left of the RKO Madison Theatre above the Liberty Dept. Store. You can read all about it above in posts later than Oct. 5 2008. I was welcome to go there that day, but declined for personal reasons. I have a standing invitation from the manager / owner to return there on my own and “take the tour”.
You could make similar arrangements with the owner / manager.
Vinmeister, I remember seeing “Krakatoa – East Of Java” at the RKO Madison with my parents in November or December 1969. We ate at Gottlieb’s Restaurant, across Myrtle Avenue from the Madison, afterwards. I had the roast turkey dinner, and especially remember the stuffing and sweet potatoes that came with it.
So your the one who did all that. The one time i was able to sneak in to the Madison some 30 years ago i was in the foyer up in the balcony looking torwards the stage when I though I saw something I thought was a statue. Little did I know it was a real live breathing doberman. I managed to get in to a bathroom on that floor. Luckily for me there was a window in there. However there there was a steel security screen that I had to unscrew to open it then I had to scrape paint that was keeping the window it self from opening. When I did get the window open it was six feet above the marguee. I worked my way out and lowered my self down and jumped the last 3 feet. It was late at night and not many people around. I finally got someone who was going in to the dinner across the street to call the fire dept. They came in about 5 min and set up a ladder for me to climb down
See what you did? If you had not been messing around with that wall I wouild not have had to run from the watch dogs. It’s all your fault and now you owe me big time. LOL
Has anyone thought to talk to one of the current employees and be willing to throw them a $20 to look around “behind the door”
When I was just starting HS they were just sectioning off the front area of the madison. The plywood wall was up just behind the ticket booth as I recall. They were building a cement block wall literally across the whole building to create the catolog store. I was a less than honerable youngster who whould explore plases I shouldn’t go after school hours. As they built the wall during the day….after the adult work day was over….one of the old fire doors in the back was unlocked I would go in and take out the bottom row of bricks still wet and wall would crumble.(I was pissed I liked the Madison..saw my first movie there..Krackatoa East of Java!) This went on daily for at least a week. Then they got a guard out front..What a surprise after the second day and the wall still crumbled..
I got to wander ALLL over the inside after it was closed. It has been almost 30 years but I still remember finding some cool stuff. I was under the stage ( I didn’t even know they had a stage) and found the lifting mechanism for it. Behind the curtain they still had alot of different curtains (asbestos too) and alot of stage rigging including some kind of swinging basket that if you were up in it and were creative and released the rope it swang rapidly across the stage and scared the shit out of you. I climbed the stage ladder to the very top of the stage rigging ( a large steel platform with alot of mechanical stuff hung from it. After coming down I found that there were two ways to get to the dressing rooms which were actually on either side of the stage where you had to climb a circular steel stair to get to them. All were small no stars on the doors..You could get at them either from the stage or thru a door from the right side balcony (on the side close to the stage)
I went all over I don’t know how I got alot of the places as it was qite dark but it was an adveture. I was in the ceiling ABOVE the dome. Did you know there were spotlights that could have been shined out from a slot around the edge of the dome? Let me tell you it sure felt high up looking out of that slot. It was mad better than I thought..no wood ALOt of wire mesh and hard plaster with decrepid steel walkways.
I also managed to get into the projection room and some small office above it, Thats where I found the ushers uniforms (should have taken one home just the jackets) The projection room was trashed the really old projectors were there with alot of carbon rods strewn about the floor. If you look from the L platform towards the building you should see a small roof as I recall with a door and a window (just one window) these were from that small room. I can’t say I remember much else. Unfortunately 99% of the seats were gone by that time and malicious vandels had done their damage long before I saw anything.
I would still be willing to grease the store manager for an hour of time to wander at my own risk with a camera. 30 yrs later wouldn’t that be a kick!
I also remember that loooong staircase, from the sidewalk under the restaurant sign, up to the restaurant itself on the second floor.
Thanks, Warren. It’s good to have a picture of the sign for the “Dine and Dance” Ridgewood Terrace Chinese Restaurant, as well as the RKO Madison Theatre. I vaguely remember the restaurant’s sign. I remember well when it burned shortly before Christmas 1965. I was coming home from St. Brigid School on the B-55 (now Q 55) bus at the start of Christmas vacation, and the bus was re-routed onto Wyckoff Avenue, thence northeast on Cornelia Street, my home block. I think the driver let me off at Cypress and Cornelia, by the (then) Ridgewood Times building, close to my home.
Indeed it does, Bway.
It must be a major undertaking, as I have been a member of this site since 2003, and it wasn’t working then already. Yes, it would be nice to have a photo, or photos at the top of so many of these theater pages. And yes, I agree, the introduction of the Madison here leaves MUCH to be desired.
Good point, Lost Memory. Thanks.
Haven’t links to many photos of the Ridgewood and Madison Theatres been posted on their respective pages on Cinema Treasures ?
Lost when will that happen. Seems like it has been FUBAR and OOC since I have been on here.
Can we also change the introduction?
How can we get one of Warren’s wonderful exterior photos put at the head of this page?
I dont think so because when I do go directly to the link. Just like I did now and on the top it says “ Welcome back, EcRocker! Logout”.
So as of right now I am logged in but it does not mean after I attempt to post this it says that dreaded message. Maybe I should change the cookies I use from Choclate Chip to Macadamia Nut. I have tried sending the complaint to the powers that be but I am not sure they get it or reply. I am now going to copy this message and post it.
All we ask is for RESPECT just a little bit. hehehehehehehehe
Lost can you answer me something since you seem to be all over the place. Why is it that I can be logged in here and post a message and find out I was logged off? I have spent time writing messages and hitting submit and get a message saying only members can post please join or log in.
What I have wound up doing is copying my message relogging in and pasting to repost.
Good thing I did cause I got this.
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As long as it’s not a “chain of fools”.
Agreed, Lost Memory.
Why not, indeed ?