This message is a request to Bill Huelbig, since he seems to be an expert on “2001.” I’m trying to figure out when I saw this film originally. I saw it on Long Island at the Hicksville Twin South, which I believe was the only Cinerama theatre on the Island. Do you know when it opened there?
Included with the new Fox DVD of Irwin Allen’s dreadful version of “The Lost World” is a short Fox Movietone News segment showing the premiere of the movie at the Warner (AKA Strand) Theatre on July 13, 1960. It looks like an afternoon matinee attended mostly by kids and their moms. One of the film’s stars, David Hedison, is shown signing autographs. Only the outside of the theatre is shown in the newsreel, but you see a lot of what it looked like decked out for the premiere. If you were one of the kids there that day in 1960, you might want to get the DVD of “The Lost World” and try to spot yourself.
I never went to the Academy of Music Theatre, but I’m glad to read the comment left by “RobertR” back in 2005: “Want to hear a strange double bill? In May of 1969 Fox sent out "Planet of the Apes” and “Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines” as a double-bill. The catch phrase was “Perfect Mates Apes and Men”. It played here at the Academy along with the UA Riviera. posted by RobertR on Jun 10, 2005 at 4:35pm" I thought I was the only person in the world that remembered this double feature, which I saw when I was nine years old out on Long Island at the Lynbrook Theatre. It ran for a week starting on May 28, 1969. Since “Planet of the Apes” is my favorite film, I still celebrate the anniversary of this “strange double bill.”
That reminds me… The same Great Aunt I had that took me to see “Beneath” at the Loew’s State 2 (She lived on Staten Island.)sometime later took me to see “A New Leaf” at Radio City Music Hall. Now, that had to be THE best theatre to see a movie at in Manhattan. Just spectacular. Imagine what it must have been like when “King Kong” was there!
Bill: Thanks for the response. I have all the “Apes” films on DVD but I really can’t stand watching any but the original, which remains THE favorite film of my childhood, though I only saw it originally at the Wantagh Theatre on the Island. I wish I’d seen it first at the Capitol. The strangest thing for me, as I remember, after seeing “Beneath” at the Loew’s State 2 was coming out into New York City and taking a bus back down to the Staten Island Ferry and looking at the streets of Manhattan and thinking, “This is all going to be a buried ruin in two thousand years!” Ah, the suspension of disbelief you had as a kid at the movies.
I remember being taken into Manhattan in June 1970 to see “Beneath the Planet of the Apes” at Loew’s State 2. I was a huge fan of the original “Apes” from 1968, but was too young then (8 years old) to have enough brains to get myself taken to the Capitol Theatre where the original opened. Anyway, my memory of the Loew’s State 2 was that you could definitely tell a much larger theatre had been cut in two. I do remember the ceiling being relately low, as someone mentioned above. Too bad they had to do that to what must have been a grand place. I also recall seeing, before “Beneath” started, the trailer for “Kelly’s Heroes.” I’m not a big fan of “Beneath” these days, though the original “Apes” is still my favorite film, but I am a big fan of “Kelly’s Heroes.” I wish I’d seen that one instead!
I was a kid in Hempstead in the sixties and I saw many a movie at the Calderone. Back in those days a nine-year-old kid could walk by himself, as I did, through downtown Hempstead and go to movies without much fear. I remember seeing “You Only Live Twice” and “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” at the Calderone when they first opened on Long Island there. My favorite though was “Planet of the Apes,” which I first saw at the Wantagh and Levittown theatres in 1968, but saw again at the Calderone during the Memorial Day weekend of 1969 when it was double featured with “Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines.” I also recall seeing a re-issue of “The Longest Day” at the Calderone. It was a nice, big theatre, but one thing I didn’t like about it was that if you were a kid alone they made you sit in the “unaccompanied children” section on the right. I liked to sit in the center of the theatre and so I hated that, and I recall being turned away from the theatre once, I think for the John Wayne movie “The Undefeated,” because the kid’s usher took a sick day or something. Man, was I pissed! The last movie I saw at the Calderone before my family moved off the Island was “Beneath the Planet of the Apes” in late June 1970.
I lived in Hempstead when I was a kid and I remember seeing a kid’s mantinee at the Rivoli of “Mad Monster Pary?” in either late 1967 or 1968. I also remember back in the late sixties this kid telling me about how he had seen “Planet of the Apes” with “this movie about cavemen being chased by dinosaurs.” I had no idea what he was talking about, but years later I looked up ads from the period in Newsday on microfilm at the Levittown library and discovered that what he had seen was a double feature of “Planet of the Apes” and “One Million Years B.C.” that had played at the Rivoli the last week of June 1968. I also remember that my father took me in 1969 to the Rivoli to see a double feature of “The Sand Pebbles” and “Che!” I never recalled much of “Che!” but “The Sand Pebbles” became one of my favorite movies. I can’t recall the Rivoli in any vivid detail but I’ll never forget the movies I saw there.
I lived in Hempstead when I was a kid in the sixties and I can remember going to the Lynbrook Theatre on Wednesday, May 28, 1969, to see a double feature of “Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines” and “Planet of the Apes.” Someone at Fox must have thought that would make a good pairing, the ads called it “The Perfect Mates! Apes and Men!” Anyway, “Men” started at 7 P.M. and since it was over two hours long — and had an Intermission! — “Apes” didn’t start until after 10 P.M. I remember my father wondering how I and my siblings were going to get up to go to school the next day. Since I was only nine back then, I can’t now recall the next day. But I do remember the Lynbrook at that occasion. It had a nice lobby and was a big theatre with a balcony. I vividly recall sitting in the center/front of the balcony. “Planet of the Apes” was — and still is — my favorite movie, so to see it like that was a great thrill. I’m sorry to read that the theatre eventually got divided up and is now in such bad shape, but that’s been the fate of most movie houses. Actually I’m surprised the Lynbrook is still standing!
I remember the Hicksville Twin Theater was were I first saw “2001: A Space Odyssey” in either 1968 or ‘69, I can’t recall which as I was only 8 and 9 years old then. I also recall seeing a double feature of “The Ghost and Mr. Chicken” and “The Reluctant Astronaut” there in 1969 or '70, and later “Tora! Tora! Tora! and much later "Star Wars” on opening day in 1977.
The Wantagh Theatre was where I first saw my favorite film, “Planet of the Apes,” on April 7, 1968. I was only 8 years old but I vividly remember it, standing in line and looking at the poster with my parents and wondering if the movie would be any good. Well, it floored my little 8-year-old mind. It was THE movie of my youth, and because of that I will always remember the Wantagh Theatre. I later saw “Escape from the Planet of the Apes” there in 1971 after I had moved away from Long Island in 1970. I’m sad to find out the theatre was torn down years ago.
Does anyone out there have a photograph of the marquee of the Capitol Theatre when “Planet of the Apes” played there in Feb/Mar of 1968? If so, I’d love to see it or buy a copy as “Apes” is my favorite movie. Please contact Rory at:
This message is a request to Bill Huelbig, since he seems to be an expert on “2001.” I’m trying to figure out when I saw this film originally. I saw it on Long Island at the Hicksville Twin South, which I believe was the only Cinerama theatre on the Island. Do you know when it opened there?
Included with the new Fox DVD of Irwin Allen’s dreadful version of “The Lost World” is a short Fox Movietone News segment showing the premiere of the movie at the Warner (AKA Strand) Theatre on July 13, 1960. It looks like an afternoon matinee attended mostly by kids and their moms. One of the film’s stars, David Hedison, is shown signing autographs. Only the outside of the theatre is shown in the newsreel, but you see a lot of what it looked like decked out for the premiere. If you were one of the kids there that day in 1960, you might want to get the DVD of “The Lost World” and try to spot yourself.
I never went to the Academy of Music Theatre, but I’m glad to read the comment left by “RobertR” back in 2005: “Want to hear a strange double bill? In May of 1969 Fox sent out "Planet of the Apes” and “Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines” as a double-bill. The catch phrase was “Perfect Mates Apes and Men”. It played here at the Academy along with the UA Riviera. posted by RobertR on Jun 10, 2005 at 4:35pm" I thought I was the only person in the world that remembered this double feature, which I saw when I was nine years old out on Long Island at the Lynbrook Theatre. It ran for a week starting on May 28, 1969. Since “Planet of the Apes” is my favorite film, I still celebrate the anniversary of this “strange double bill.”
That reminds me… The same Great Aunt I had that took me to see “Beneath” at the Loew’s State 2 (She lived on Staten Island.)sometime later took me to see “A New Leaf” at Radio City Music Hall. Now, that had to be THE best theatre to see a movie at in Manhattan. Just spectacular. Imagine what it must have been like when “King Kong” was there!
Bill: Thanks for the response. I have all the “Apes” films on DVD but I really can’t stand watching any but the original, which remains THE favorite film of my childhood, though I only saw it originally at the Wantagh Theatre on the Island. I wish I’d seen it first at the Capitol. The strangest thing for me, as I remember, after seeing “Beneath” at the Loew’s State 2 was coming out into New York City and taking a bus back down to the Staten Island Ferry and looking at the streets of Manhattan and thinking, “This is all going to be a buried ruin in two thousand years!” Ah, the suspension of disbelief you had as a kid at the movies.
I remember being taken into Manhattan in June 1970 to see “Beneath the Planet of the Apes” at Loew’s State 2. I was a huge fan of the original “Apes” from 1968, but was too young then (8 years old) to have enough brains to get myself taken to the Capitol Theatre where the original opened. Anyway, my memory of the Loew’s State 2 was that you could definitely tell a much larger theatre had been cut in two. I do remember the ceiling being relately low, as someone mentioned above. Too bad they had to do that to what must have been a grand place. I also recall seeing, before “Beneath” started, the trailer for “Kelly’s Heroes.” I’m not a big fan of “Beneath” these days, though the original “Apes” is still my favorite film, but I am a big fan of “Kelly’s Heroes.” I wish I’d seen that one instead!
I was a kid in Hempstead in the sixties and I saw many a movie at the Calderone. Back in those days a nine-year-old kid could walk by himself, as I did, through downtown Hempstead and go to movies without much fear. I remember seeing “You Only Live Twice” and “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” at the Calderone when they first opened on Long Island there. My favorite though was “Planet of the Apes,” which I first saw at the Wantagh and Levittown theatres in 1968, but saw again at the Calderone during the Memorial Day weekend of 1969 when it was double featured with “Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines.” I also recall seeing a re-issue of “The Longest Day” at the Calderone. It was a nice, big theatre, but one thing I didn’t like about it was that if you were a kid alone they made you sit in the “unaccompanied children” section on the right. I liked to sit in the center of the theatre and so I hated that, and I recall being turned away from the theatre once, I think for the John Wayne movie “The Undefeated,” because the kid’s usher took a sick day or something. Man, was I pissed! The last movie I saw at the Calderone before my family moved off the Island was “Beneath the Planet of the Apes” in late June 1970.
I lived in Hempstead when I was a kid and I remember seeing a kid’s mantinee at the Rivoli of “Mad Monster Pary?” in either late 1967 or 1968. I also remember back in the late sixties this kid telling me about how he had seen “Planet of the Apes” with “this movie about cavemen being chased by dinosaurs.” I had no idea what he was talking about, but years later I looked up ads from the period in Newsday on microfilm at the Levittown library and discovered that what he had seen was a double feature of “Planet of the Apes” and “One Million Years B.C.” that had played at the Rivoli the last week of June 1968. I also remember that my father took me in 1969 to the Rivoli to see a double feature of “The Sand Pebbles” and “Che!” I never recalled much of “Che!” but “The Sand Pebbles” became one of my favorite movies. I can’t recall the Rivoli in any vivid detail but I’ll never forget the movies I saw there.
I lived in Hempstead when I was a kid in the sixties and I can remember going to the Lynbrook Theatre on Wednesday, May 28, 1969, to see a double feature of “Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines” and “Planet of the Apes.” Someone at Fox must have thought that would make a good pairing, the ads called it “The Perfect Mates! Apes and Men!” Anyway, “Men” started at 7 P.M. and since it was over two hours long — and had an Intermission! — “Apes” didn’t start until after 10 P.M. I remember my father wondering how I and my siblings were going to get up to go to school the next day. Since I was only nine back then, I can’t now recall the next day. But I do remember the Lynbrook at that occasion. It had a nice lobby and was a big theatre with a balcony. I vividly recall sitting in the center/front of the balcony. “Planet of the Apes” was — and still is — my favorite movie, so to see it like that was a great thrill. I’m sorry to read that the theatre eventually got divided up and is now in such bad shape, but that’s been the fate of most movie houses. Actually I’m surprised the Lynbrook is still standing!
I remember the Hicksville Twin Theater was were I first saw “2001: A Space Odyssey” in either 1968 or ‘69, I can’t recall which as I was only 8 and 9 years old then. I also recall seeing a double feature of “The Ghost and Mr. Chicken” and “The Reluctant Astronaut” there in 1969 or '70, and later “Tora! Tora! Tora! and much later "Star Wars” on opening day in 1977.
The Wantagh Theatre was where I first saw my favorite film, “Planet of the Apes,” on April 7, 1968. I was only 8 years old but I vividly remember it, standing in line and looking at the poster with my parents and wondering if the movie would be any good. Well, it floored my little 8-year-old mind. It was THE movie of my youth, and because of that I will always remember the Wantagh Theatre. I later saw “Escape from the Planet of the Apes” there in 1971 after I had moved away from Long Island in 1970. I’m sad to find out the theatre was torn down years ago.
Does anyone out there have a photograph of the marquee of the Capitol Theatre when “Planet of the Apes” played there in Feb/Mar of 1968? If so, I’d love to see it or buy a copy as “Apes” is my favorite movie. Please contact Rory at: