Rialto Theater
13 Pennington Avenue,
Trenton,
NJ
08618
13 Pennington Avenue,
Trenton,
NJ
08618
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I suspect the owner of the Rialto also had an interest in the American located on Princeton Avenue just North of Ingham Avenue. It later became a 5 and 10 cent store. You could see the booth in the 5 and 10 cent store that was used as an office. A Bicyclist ran the films from the Rialto to the American. This according to my father and other North Trenton residents.
The 1975 photo is misidentified. The street sign in the picture reads North Clinton Avenue and Meade Street, making that building the Princess Theater.
My best friend’s grandfather, who we called Popouli, ran a hot dog concession that was part of the Rialto. The concession had a counter that opened out on Pennington Ave. So, you could buy hot dogs without going into the theater. I can’t remember whether the stand was accessible from inside the theater, too. Maybe MikeH remembers or someone else can clear that up.
Could have been known as the Majestic. There is a listing for this theater name in the 1917 Trenton City Directory, page 126, under “Moving Pictures” at 15 Pennington av. No listing for the Rialto.
In 1923, the Rialto is listed with no address.
The Rialto is listed in the 1925 Trenton City Directory at 13 Pennington Av. In 1936, the Rialto is listed at 15 Pennington av.
According to my father, the projection booth was accessed via an iron latter. This neighborhood movie house was located in the Battle Monument area of Trenton.
Listed in the 1920 Trenton directory as the “Park Theatre, moving pictures, 13 Pennington av”
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The Rialto was razed in the late 1980s.
According to a nostalgia columnist in the Trenton Times, in the 1930s neighborhood residents nicknamed this theater “The Ranch” because it played mostly Westerns.