Visiting the West Newton in the triplex days was a unique experience. The auditorium downstairs was c classic butcher job in which a wall was created the length of the theatre.
Upstairs the balcony provided the seating and a tufted fabric surface covered the area between the balcomy railing and the screen.
Newton Centre is a high rent district. It was impossible for the Sonny & Eddy’s theatre to survive the large rent increases which were typical in the area.
Most of the independant businesses in Newton Centre which were in existance at that time are gone.
Most new independant businesses last under one lease cycle.
Many stores have been converted to realty offices.
I remember the Newton Paramount as being on Washington Street in Newton Corner. A few miles east of the West Newton Cinema.
I think other Sonny and Eddys theatres like the Allston closed on a similar timeframe to the Academy.
I don’t think the West Newton Cinema had much effect. As I remember it the renovations which made the West Newton an attractive venue occurred later.
“There are many theatres listed for that section of Brooklyn. A few examples would be; Marcy theatre; Commodore theatre; Republic theatre and Nassau theatre.”
Its hard to think of this list the same section of Brooklyn as the Rainbow.
The closest other theatres were the Graham at Graham Ave and Grand Street and the Grand on Grand Street.
The Republic was at the outer limits of “walking distance” from the Rainbow.
The other theatres were generally thought of as parts of another neighborhood.
It was what was known as a “dump” in the 1950s. Showing third run features. Saturday matinee included a triple feature, 15 cartoons, and several serials. Many was the hour I spent there. Noon to five on Saturday.
Nearby were the Graham which showed even older and less desireable features and the Rainbow – a first run theater.
There are some 1920s and 1930s movie programs from the Auditorium offered for sale on the-forum.com
http://www.the-forum.com/ephemera/audit.htm
Visiting the West Newton in the triplex days was a unique experience. The auditorium downstairs was c classic butcher job in which a wall was created the length of the theatre.
Upstairs the balcony provided the seating and a tufted fabric surface covered the area between the balcomy railing and the screen.
Newton Centre is a high rent district. It was impossible for the Sonny & Eddy’s theatre to survive the large rent increases which were typical in the area.
Most of the independant businesses in Newton Centre which were in existance at that time are gone.
Most new independant businesses last under one lease cycle.
Many stores have been converted to realty offices.
I remember the Newton Paramount as being on Washington Street in Newton Corner. A few miles east of the West Newton Cinema.
I think other Sonny and Eddys theatres like the Allston closed on a similar timeframe to the Academy.
I don’t think the West Newton Cinema had much effect. As I remember it the renovations which made the West Newton an attractive venue occurred later.
Cougar
Were you class of 59 at JHS 50?
I was a frequent customer at the Jeffery between 1967 and 1969.
It was often a unique entertainment experience with audience members shouting advice to the characters on the screen.
“There are many theatres listed for that section of Brooklyn. A few examples would be; Marcy theatre; Commodore theatre; Republic theatre and Nassau theatre.”
Its hard to think of this list the same section of Brooklyn as the Rainbow.
The closest other theatres were the Graham at Graham Ave and Grand Street and the Grand on Grand Street.
The Republic was at the outer limits of “walking distance” from the Rainbow.
The other theatres were generally thought of as parts of another neighborhood.
It was what was known as a “dump” in the 1950s. Showing third run features. Saturday matinee included a triple feature, 15 cartoons, and several serials. Many was the hour I spent there. Noon to five on Saturday.
Nearby were the Graham which showed even older and less desireable features and the Rainbow – a first run theater.
When I moved to Wellesley in 1972 I was struck by the “plain-ness” of the Community Playhouse.
It offered an austere New England atmosphere unlike the grand theatres I had experienced in New York and Chicago.
I felt it had a lot in common with early New England churches.
I somehow felt the term “playhouse” was an attempt to distinguish from a “theatre”.
On Saturday April 13, 1907. Thomas Jefferson Starred in Rip Van Winkle at the Cumings Theatre.
A broadside adverting this play will be posted at the-forum.com within the next few days.
http://www,the-forum.com/whatsnew.html