I lived at 27 Sachem Street, East Rockaway, from 1928 (when my Dad built the house) to 1954. My sister and I used to walk from home to the Criterion frequently. We called it the “Crite.” I was in school with Larry Saphier, whose father operated the Criterion. I think that admission was 11 cents – 10 cents plus 1 cent tax, same as the Arcade Theater (the “Itch”) in Lynbrook. The Lynbrook Theater at Five Corners was more expensive, because it ran “first run” movies, like the Fantasy in Rockville Centre, where my wife served as usher for a time. The Criterion was as it has been described in other entries here. The entire building was a rectangle. The theater lobby was at the north end. The theater hall ran north-south parallel to Atlantic Avenue, along the rear of the building. The Atlantic Avenue frontage was built as a series of stores. The theater was maintained nicely. Parking was available on vacant lots to the rear of the building. I remember singing on stage there with a juvenile choral group run by Lillian Quinlan. Saturday matinees consisted of a feature film and then a lesser film, such as “scary” movies with evil doers played by Bela Lugosi, John Carradine, and other “bad guys.” The Criterion was part of my life, growing up in East Rockaway, which was a nice town then, and it still is; although we get back there infrequently now.
I lived at 27 Sachem Street, East Rockaway, from 1928 (when my Dad built the house) to 1954. My sister and I used to walk from home to the Criterion frequently. We called it the “Crite.” I was in school with Larry Saphier, whose father operated the Criterion. I think that admission was 11 cents – 10 cents plus 1 cent tax, same as the Arcade Theater (the “Itch”) in Lynbrook. The Lynbrook Theater at Five Corners was more expensive, because it ran “first run” movies, like the Fantasy in Rockville Centre, where my wife served as usher for a time. The Criterion was as it has been described in other entries here. The entire building was a rectangle. The theater lobby was at the north end. The theater hall ran north-south parallel to Atlantic Avenue, along the rear of the building. The Atlantic Avenue frontage was built as a series of stores. The theater was maintained nicely. Parking was available on vacant lots to the rear of the building. I remember singing on stage there with a juvenile choral group run by Lillian Quinlan. Saturday matinees consisted of a feature film and then a lesser film, such as “scary” movies with evil doers played by Bela Lugosi, John Carradine, and other “bad guys.” The Criterion was part of my life, growing up in East Rockaway, which was a nice town then, and it still is; although we get back there infrequently now.