Montauk Theatre
715 Main Avenue,
Passaic,
NJ
07055
715 Main Avenue,
Passaic,
NJ
07055
9 people
favorited this theater
Showing 176 - 180 of 180 comments
The only thing I ever saw at the Capitol in Passaic was a professional wrestling match in the 70’s. I remember all the concerts there though but as far as films went it was basically a porno theater. Now it’s gone. The Central I was there once, The Cowboys in 72, a good theater before the neighborhood swallowed it up and it played nothing but cheap flicks and karate films. Gone also. Just the Montauk survives, like a cancer of the neighborhood. I’d love to see the interior design but, not enough to go in there as it’s the sleaziest of theaters now. For perverts only. A damn shame.
I mentioned the Capitol twice in the above post, but they’re two different theaters. The Loew’s Capitol in New York had Cinerama, but there was a Capitol in Passaic just another block away from the Central. This is where they had all the legendary rock shows.
I have good memories of the Montauk. I saw “Mary Poppins” and “Hawaii” there, and also my first 35mm viewing of “2001: A Space Odyssey” after seeing it in Cinerama at the Capitol the year before. Like with so many other theaters on this website, it’s sad to consider its ultimate fate. It’s sad to see what’s become of the whole downtown Passaic area – the Central, only a block or two away, was another fine theater, and the Capitol was one of the greatest ‘60’s and '70’s rock concert venues in the whole country.
I’ve never been to the Montauk as I always remember it as being a porn house. But it’s still there, owned by a slumlord who refuses to restore or repair the theater, I guess it’s a good writeoff. The thetaer is a scandal as they’ve caught patrons having sex acts in the isles. They’ve since re-opened it. It’s the same. I’ve written letters proclaiming that a good way to revitalize Passaic would be to restore the theater to it’s original glory. They could have film premieres, concerts, shows and show classic films. But that’s a pipedream since Passaic , NJ is a dump. Gangs, drugs, stripbars etc. Who’d go there. I’ve never seen pictures of the interior..I hear it’s awesome with a great procenium and over 2000 seats and a balcony.
The Montauk Theatre is located on 715 Main Street and it seated 2638 people.