Embassy 1,2,3 Theatre
707 7th Avenue,
New York,
NY
10036
707 7th Avenue,
New York,
NY
10036
39 people
favorited this theater
Showing 151 - 175 of 1,094 comments
Bigjoe, (Every time I type “Bigjoe” It makes me think of “Big Sam” from “Gone With The Wind”. When he says: “Don’t you worry about a thing Miss Scarlet, Big Sam is here now….HORSE, MAKE TRACKS.-LOL)
Anyway, while I readily admit my short term memory is VERY BAD and getting worse, the doctors say I’ll be dead from the emphysema well before I end up like Ronald Reagan….lucky me. However, I can still see the big corner sign that was totally used for “Cast A Giant Shadow”. The real question was it “2 A Day”. Since my memory is shot, we can ask the next best person….Al Alvarez, I’m pretty sure he will have the answer.
As for Hawaii, that WAS a “2 A Day” Roadshow. The ONLY dispute we have there is that it was a LOSER! It did not do well and was putting people to sleep in the theatre. I liked “The Hallelujah Trail” (1965) that ran in single strip Cinerama, but, many more people HATED IT. Maybe it was the great Elmer Bernstein great music that made it GREAT and fun to watch at the Capitol.
Bigjoe, Why do you say Hawaii was the last Roadshow to have a hardcover souvenir program? I “think” you’re wrong about that, but I would have to actually research it to be absolutely certain. It’s also a technical issue since the program for “The Sound of Music” has a “soft” cover (it was only 1965, while “Hawaii” was 1966.) “The Greatest Story Ever Told” had a hard cover program, but was ALSO 1965. Then there is some confusion of what constitutes a valid “program” if the movie wasn’t a Roadshow. To me, “2 A Day” plus a couple of extra show for the weekend or Wednesday matinee.
Do you have a Program for “The Jazz Singer”? Although it “officially” opened at the WARNER THEATRE, they had private (or special, I’m not sure how to classify them)screenings at the “Winter Garden Theater” and installed all the sound equipment there just for those screenings.
Hello to All-
hey I’m not 19 anymore either but I pride myself on being say 98% correct in my recollections. according to “Movie Roadshows” by Kim Holston CAGS opened at this theater March 30, 1966 on a roadshow engagement. in fact I can remember seeing a full page ad about advance tickets sales in the Arts and Leisure section of the Sunday Times weeks before the film opened.
also I happen to like “Hawaii”. its one of the big roadshow films of the 1955-1972 period that is better than its slightly off reputation. I saw it at this theater during its original roadshow engagement. I just hope at whatever point they release a blu-ray disc of the film it is in fact the complete roadshow print.
also “Hawaii” has interesting distinction. its the last of the roadshow films to have a hardcover souvenir program.
Ed,
I’ve never seen or run a “2 A Day” Roadshow that didn’t have an intermission. Yet, my recollection is that “Cast A Giant Shadow” WAS NOT “2 A Day” Roadshow and didn’t have an intermission. That said, I should also point out that my memory is becoming worse all the time. All these things we’re talking about I used to be able to answer like it was seared into my brain. However, recently, I can look at an actor whose name I should know like the day of the week, but just CAN’T remember it. It seems I can remember 50 years ago better than yesterday. Let me tell ya, it’s a horrible feeling. :(
Could be as simple as missing overture, entr'acte, and exit music, trimmed for general release. That is, assuming the original roadshow version had an intermission. I’m not expert enough to know whether every single roadshow presentation included an intermission – regardless of the film’s running time.
Yes, it “should be a Roadshow Version” however, it’s not always possible to find all the elements from the Roadshow Version. In the case of “Cast A Giant Shadow”, it wasn’t one of the bigger hits that ran there. The only thing worse that I can recall is “Hawaii”. -lol
Hello-
I just watched the Blu-ray disc of Cast A Giant Shadow which was released this past Tues. a very entertaining though fictionalized account of the events. rather a well done grand scale film.
to which my question. the film opened at this theater the Spring of 1966 on a roadshow engagement. the interesting part is that on the blu-ray disc the film has no intermission. I thought intermissions were part and parcel of roadshow engagements?
also the blu-ray disc has a running time of 2 hrs. 18mins.. yet the Wikipedia page on the film gives the film a running time of 2hrs. 26mins. what happened to the other 8 minutes? if you are going to release a blu-ray disc of a roadshow film shouldn’t it be the roadshow print?
R.I.P. – 1910-2014 It’s a very unhappy 104th birthday!
COLUMBIA BURLESQUE
RKO, LOEW’S, BRANDT’S – MAYFAIR
WALTER READE’S DEMILLE
to Ed S.–
it is certainly sad especially since I remember the Mayfair/Demille as one of the prime roadshow houses from 1955-1972(its last roadshow was The Shoes of the Fisherman Nov. 1968).
to which a question. after I discovered this wonderful site the last week of Jan. 2012 I created a project for myself. said project being to find the 1st theater built in Manhattan brick by brick from the ground up with the intent of showing movies or flickers as they were called. using this site the oldest I was able to find is the Crescent which was located at 36 W. 135 St. and opened on the site the night of Dec. 16, 1909 as a combo picture house and vaudeville theater.
I contacted the New York Historical Society and asked them since if anyone could say authoritatively they could. guess what? the Reference Librarian e-mailed back and said even they are a tad fuzzy on the 1st purpose built brick by brick from the ground up movie theater in Manhattan. since whatever “movie theaters” existed in Manhattan in the first several years of the biz were music halls, vaudeville theaters, legitimate theaters or decent sized unused retail spaces that were simply converted to show films you would think the first purpose built brick by brick from the ground up movie theater would have been made note of in the press of the day.
This listing is all but ready for the “demolished” label. The space the theater once occupied is now just a hollowed out concrete and steel cavern. The rest of the building’s interior has nearly all been stripped down to iron and mortar as well. I just posted a picture from last week, where you can still make out, behind the construction netting, the fenestration and some of the signature wrought iron work that decorated the facade just above the Mayfair/Demille’s entrance and canopy. I image that these elements, too, will be hacked off and carted away in due time.
Meanwhile, I still wonder (and worry) about the fate of the landmarked Embassy 1 (Newsreel) Theatre, one block to the south. Restored and used for over a decade as the Times Square Visitor’s Center and Museum, it has now been closed and, once again, boarded up.
For some reason the end of the lines in my post appear to be cut off, however, you can still copy and paste the links.
As for whether the Cheyenne premiere was a press showing, there have been MANY premieres in a specific theatre only to have the actual run in a different theatre. I guess it’s just a matter of “what meaning of what the word IS….IS”.
Coate on August 4, 2014 at 2:12 pm A few weeks ago techman707 wrote: “Upon further investigation it appears I was correct. Cheyenne Autumn did have its ‘World Premiere’ at the The Lincoln Theater, 1615 Central Avenue in downtown Cheyenne, Wyoming on October 1, 1964……..”
The Lincoln Theater website claims the “world premiere” was there in October 1963, not 1964(as I had stated). However, this isn’t where I got the original info I posted to begin with. This is just another source “claiming” the “world premiere”. On the list of movies rattling around in my head, it’s just not that important to me. It’s not as though it was the premiere of “My Fair Lady”, which I can speak about since I was there.
Checkout these websites relative to the premiere.
http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM7F3W_Lincoln_Theater_Cheyenne_WY
http://cheyenneinternationalfilmfestival.com/blog/film/cheyenne-autumn-and-carroll-baker-live/
http://digitalcollections.uwyo.edu:8180/luna/servlet/detail/uwydbuwy~1~1~6664~100792:Carroll-Baker-and-James-Stewart-in-
There was also the need to premiere something to be eligible for Academy Award nominations. That was often done in LA. Then NY and wherever would follow suit.
Sometimes Hollywood studios had more than one “world premiere” sometimes one in LA & one elsewhere.
A few weeks ago techman707 wrote: “Upon further investigation it appears I was correct. Cheyenne Autumn did have its ‘World Premiere’ at the The Lincoln Theater, 1615 Central Avenue in downtown Cheyenne, Wyoming on October 1, 1964. It opened at the Capitol on October 3, 1964.”
Referencing more credible source material reveals the world premiere of “Cheyenne Autumn” was actually held in London in mid-October 1964; the early-October event in Cheyenne, Wyoming, was simply a press preview. And, as Al Alvarez correctly pointed out, the film opened on a roadshow basis at the Capitol in New York on December 23, 1964. The first of its few roadshow bookings in the United States was in Denver (presumably because Denver was the roadshow market closest to Cheyenne), opening a week before New York.
And were all of the Lamb theatres unique? Were there a number of designs repeated at various locations with just a change in the facade to reflect the name or to conform with local requirements?
In more recent years chains have built cookie cutter venues on Long Island.
to AL A.–
after posting my query I looked up on Amazon and both a vhs and dvd of CAGS have been released. I am surprised I never came across either when home video stores were all over Manhattan.
also a new question you’re going to need to put your thinking cap on for. in the NYC metropolitan area countless theaters were designed by premiere movie theater architects Thomas Lamb and John Ebberson. so many I figured how did either one have time to eat or sleep. and this isn’t even counting other theaters they designed across the country. now rather recently I read that after their careers were up and running both created firms that had architects other than them. so that many of the movie theaters attributed to “Thomas Lamb” per se may have actually been designed by someone else in the firm. this sounded reasonable to me since I can’t imagine how either Lamb or Ebberson could possibly have designed and coordinated construction all the theater attributed to them.
to which my question- how can one find out how many theaters attributed to either Lamb or Ebberson were actually personally designed by them? much in the same vein as how many buildings, monuments etc… attributed to the firm of McKim/Meade/White were actually designed by McKim, Meade or White?
Amazon has “Cast a Giant Shadow” in several formats — DVD, Blu-Ray, VHS and instant streaming (free for Prime members.)
Bigjoe59, you can catch it on TCM once in a while. It is not great but, hardly as bad as its reputation.
By the way this link has some great vintage Times square theatre shots;
http://stuffnobodycaresabout.com/2013/06/07/old-new-york-in-photos-29/
Hello-
I was thinking about all the roadshow engagements this theater hosted in the prime Oct. 1955 to Dec. 1972 period. one in particular came to mind “Cast A Giant Shadow” released by United Artists and starring Kirk Douglas which opened here the Spring of 1966.
to which my question- of all the films which played this theater on a roadshow engagement CAGS is the only one I have never seen on home video vhs let alone dvd or blu-ray. I have always wanted to see the film to judge it for myself. could there be some legal hold up as to why its never been out on any home video format.
Hello to my fellow posters-
there are a number of roadshow engagements that had souvenir programs but I do not have in my collection. hence my question. other than EBay does anyone know of a website that sells movie memorabilia? of the handful of sites selling movie memorabilia that I’ve seen the only programs listed are the ones I already have.
I recently read “Movie Roadshows” by Kim Rolston and I was amazed at the number of such films that had souvenir programs I have never come across. any help would be appreciated.
bigjoe59,
You’re right, it’s working sporadically. I just received 5 emails. While they all show today’s date, with the exception of your post dated July 6th, the rest were from days ago that I already saw or responded to.
They must be having an intermittent (no pun intended) problem.
to techman 707-
the not sending out of messages noting someone has responded to a comment is happening again. I did not receive a note in my inbox that my entry on souvenir programs had been replied to by you..
Ed Solero,
I still have a few “vintage” booklets that weren’t damaged when I had a flood in my house in Florida a few years ago. Fortunately for me, my favorite (and probably the most valuable) ones were here in New York at the time. In addition, when I moved to Florida, Roadshow booklets were among many of the non-hardware things that were donated to the “Museum of the Moving Image”. I’m sorry that I donated so many things to only ONE PLACE. They misled me about how, when and the conditions under which many of the things (both hardware and manuscripts, etc.) would be displayed. I was VERY disappointed to say the least.
While I “did” have a souvenir program for Oklahoma, it too was ruined in the flood. I would guess the most valuable ones, at least to me, are The Sound Of Music, Around the World in 80 Days, My Fair Lady (given to me by Jack Warner, who was a friend of my father, when MFL opened at the Criterion, although my sister claims he gave it to her).
Although when I moved to Florida I got rid of my 35mm film collection, at the time of the flood I also discovered that I RUINED nearly half of my 16mm collection by not refrigerating them down in Florida(at least the Eastman prints). For all practical purposes, these were NEW Eastman prints that were now IN THE GARBAGE. Today, the only prints left are the Technicolor IB prints….and a few are VERY rare and valuable ones. I have replaced virtually ALL my films with Blu-ray discs that actually look (and sound) better than the 16mm prints they’re replacing on a 12foot wide scope screen using my JVC RS35 projector. At this point, I’m too sick to go downstairs into my film projection booth anyway. Now I have to determine who I’m going to donate the film to (which includes Technicolor scope print of It’s A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World). While I could have sold them, Some of the film preservationist groups will NEVER see Technicolor prints of some of these films ever again. One NEW PRINT (the print is new, but it was made in 1947 of a 1946 movie)“The Jolson Story” is a spectacular print. While they can make new Eastman prints, like the 70mm LG-blow-up Columbia made when “The Jolson Story” ran at the Ziegfeld, anyone familiar with Technicolor IB prints will tell you they CAN NEVER LOOK QUITE THE SAME OR AS GOOD AS THE REAL THING.
P.S. – Just came across another souvenir program for “PEPE”
to Ed S.–
the prime roadshow era was from the Oct. 1955 opening of Oklahoma to the Dec. 1972 opening of Man of La Mancha after which the studios discontinued the policy. I have 137 souvenir programs in my collection. I have to admit a dozen or so of that number are not actual souvenir programs sold in the theater lobby but fancy brochures the studio released to publicize the film.
of the 125 souvenir programs in my collection
13 are hardcover.other than the hardcovers in my collection the only other one I know of is for Porgy and Bess which played the Warner.
of the 13 I own two are from films which opened when this theater was the Demille a prime roadshow house. namely Spartacus and Hawaii.
the other 11 are-
The Alamo Around the World in 80 Days Ben-Hur(1959) El Cid The Greatest Story Ever Told How The West Was Won King of Kings(1961) Mutiny on the Bounty(1962) My Fair Lady South Pacific The Wonderful World of the Brothers Grimm
a bit of info on just how elaborate these hardcover programs could get. both the Ben-Hur and Spartacus programs had a fold out with several watercolor paintings of scenes from the film. and to top that the King of Kings program included a sealed package of 8x10 color photo portraits of the main actors in the film.
The Los Angeles Roadshow run of “Cheyenne Autumn” was also a short run. It ran only 8 weeks at the RKO Pantages Theatre in Hollywood.