Sun Theatre
70 Glenwood Avenue,
Binghamton,
NY
13905
70 Glenwood Avenue,
Binghamton,
NY
13905
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Who could forget the Sun Theater, particularly if you lived in the First award. When I was a kid, the admission was up to 25 cents. The manager was a guy named But there would be two movies. Jackcies was right across the street and they had a great collection of comic books.
I remember the manager was a guy named Pete. By my time, the Sun was already in a rapid decline and towards the end it had a rather unglamorous nickname.
But as time passes you only remember the good times and fun going there.
Volume 2 of Bygone Binghamton: Remembering People and Places of the Past, by By Jack Edward Shay, has an entire chapter about the Sun Theatre (Google Books preview.) The Sun opened in 1927 or 1928, and was operated by its owner, Paul Kocak, until closing in 1964. A native of Cleveland, Kocak named the Sun for a neighborhood house in the Ohio city. In addition to second run Hollywood movies, the Sun sometimes ran Czechoslovakian films for the large ethnic population in the neighborhood.
In addition to the chapter on the Sun, Shay’s book has a chapter about the Cameo Theatre, and the opening chapter covers Binghamton’s other movie theaters.
My brothers and I used to go to The Sun Theater every Saturday. Admission was 10 cents. We turned in soda bottles for movie money. They played mostly horror movies, gladiator movies or Hercules Movies wih Steve Reeves. Movies that stuck in my head were The Son of Sparticus and Atlantis The Lost Continent. I have Atlantis in VHS Format No concession, just a broke down popcorn machine in the back. The guy working there was always crabby but how would you feel with a bunch of brats all day Saturday. It was a nice way of spending the day seeing Hammer or Universal films of Dracula with Christopher Lee. Afte we got out my Mom and Dad would pick us up and take us to the Vestal or V drive in for another several hours of horror movies.
See photos of the building in its current state at http://www.cinematour.com/tour.php?db=us&id=23046
The building is still standing, and serves as the offices and warehouse of Tri-Cities Vending.