I happened upon this site via the BOYD (Philadelphia site). I went to one film at the Majestic, the most depressing “Let No Man Write My Epitaph” starring Shelley Winters back in the late 1950’s/ early 60’s. I was a young Boy Scout from rural Luzerne County not far from Wilkes-Barre on a field trip with our scoutmaster Mr. Grebe (Greebee) en route to Washington. it was getting dark and Mr. Grebe needed a beer…or two…or, uh,three…..so we piled out of his station wagon in view of the Majestic. He farmed us out to the movies while he hit the nearest bar. I guess that half a dozen 12/13 year olds will cause one to need a few beers….. lol. Anyway, it’s alovely theater and Gettysburg has done well to restore this beauty!
Thimbs down on the casino for gettysburg. Good grief…. what next?
I cannot wait to attend a performance at the BOYD when it re-opens. What a satisfying occaasion to have this old palace spared!
And then, the next challenge is to re-open thePhiladelphia Metropolitan Opera House (constructed by Oscar Hammerstein in the 20’s, in a hurry, a lavish 4,000 seat house…..)up at North Broad and Poplar Steets……
I can’t wait for the opening either and am delighted that this palace has been saved! Philadelphia seems to have had so many wonderful theaters, many of the best and biggest now gone..I picked up a copy of Irvin Glazers' “Philadelphia Theaters” (paperback) at the Philadelpia Museum of Art…It’s a fantastic book filled with
photos and info of the city’s glorious theater architectural history up to and including the enormous MASTBAUM which resembled Boston’s present day WANG CENTER but was 1,000 seats bigger at 4,800.
Thanks…that’s very good insight…..I have a friend in Scranton from NYC, a Florida native who has taught at the U (theater) and I think knows some of the peeps involved in this building….maybe there’s hope as Scranton and Wilkes-Barre begin to get back on track…..
How interesting..all the above posts…I remember one trip to the West Side Theater as a kid…we lived in rural Huntington Mills, in Luzerne County, app. 25 wsw of Wilkes-Barre; The West Side was the only area theater equipped to show Cinerama movies, a process whereby a film was made using three cameras to achieve the affect of putting the audience “in' the picture and it worked very well. I remember the roller coaster sequence in "This is Cinerama!” the first of those films…it really felt like you were on the ride…. I was a kid and I demanded that my older brother drive me there, since he had a license. I had a secret about him that I threatened
to reveal, otherwise I would never have gotten his cooperation. it
was worth it! So sorry that the theater is gone!. My Dad went to the POLI in Wilkes-Barre as a kid..for a dime! There were several vaudeville houses in Wilkes-Barre and an opera house.
I knew of this theater and have seen the (now) shabby exterior but have never seen an interior picture til now. Wow! what a beauty!It’s funny, because I attended a performance of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic last week in Scranton, held at the Scranton Cultural Center, an old, large and historic theater I believe designed by the architect who designed Radio City Music Hall. However, the Cultural Center, while interesting in many ways, has none of the opulence and interest of the Ritz as depicted in your photograph. One hopes to see the Philharmonic performing at the magnificent RITZ….and soon!!!!! Thanks for an interesting revelation! Kerry Balchun, E. Hampton, NY
I happened upon this site via the BOYD (Philadelphia site). I went to one film at the Majestic, the most depressing “Let No Man Write My Epitaph” starring Shelley Winters back in the late 1950’s/ early 60’s. I was a young Boy Scout from rural Luzerne County not far from Wilkes-Barre on a field trip with our scoutmaster Mr. Grebe (Greebee) en route to Washington. it was getting dark and Mr. Grebe needed a beer…or two…or, uh,three…..so we piled out of his station wagon in view of the Majestic. He farmed us out to the movies while he hit the nearest bar. I guess that half a dozen 12/13 year olds will cause one to need a few beers….. lol. Anyway, it’s alovely theater and Gettysburg has done well to restore this beauty!
Thimbs down on the casino for gettysburg. Good grief…. what next?
I cannot wait to attend a performance at the BOYD when it re-opens. What a satisfying occaasion to have this old palace spared!
And then, the next challenge is to re-open thePhiladelphia Metropolitan Opera House (constructed by Oscar Hammerstein in the 20’s, in a hurry, a lavish 4,000 seat house…..)up at North Broad and Poplar Steets……
I can’t wait for the opening either and am delighted that this palace has been saved! Philadelphia seems to have had so many wonderful theaters, many of the best and biggest now gone..I picked up a copy of Irvin Glazers' “Philadelphia Theaters” (paperback) at the Philadelpia Museum of Art…It’s a fantastic book filled with
photos and info of the city’s glorious theater architectural history up to and including the enormous MASTBAUM which resembled Boston’s present day WANG CENTER but was 1,000 seats bigger at 4,800.
Thanks…that’s very good insight…..I have a friend in Scranton from NYC, a Florida native who has taught at the U (theater) and I think knows some of the peeps involved in this building….maybe there’s hope as Scranton and Wilkes-Barre begin to get back on track…..
How interesting..all the above posts…I remember one trip to the West Side Theater as a kid…we lived in rural Huntington Mills, in Luzerne County, app. 25 wsw of Wilkes-Barre; The West Side was the only area theater equipped to show Cinerama movies, a process whereby a film was made using three cameras to achieve the affect of putting the audience “in' the picture and it worked very well. I remember the roller coaster sequence in "This is Cinerama!” the first of those films…it really felt like you were on the ride…. I was a kid and I demanded that my older brother drive me there, since he had a license. I had a secret about him that I threatened
to reveal, otherwise I would never have gotten his cooperation. it
was worth it! So sorry that the theater is gone!. My Dad went to the POLI in Wilkes-Barre as a kid..for a dime! There were several vaudeville houses in Wilkes-Barre and an opera house.
I knew of this theater and have seen the (now) shabby exterior but have never seen an interior picture til now. Wow! what a beauty!It’s funny, because I attended a performance of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Philharmonic last week in Scranton, held at the Scranton Cultural Center, an old, large and historic theater I believe designed by the architect who designed Radio City Music Hall. However, the Cultural Center, while interesting in many ways, has none of the opulence and interest of the Ritz as depicted in your photograph. One hopes to see the Philharmonic performing at the magnificent RITZ….and soon!!!!! Thanks for an interesting revelation! Kerry Balchun, E. Hampton, NY