Palace Theater
2430 Main Street,
Lake Placid,
NY
12946
2430 Main Street,
Lake Placid,
NY
12946
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https://www.facebook.com/lppalace/
Facebook page says number 2430 Main Street
This one opened on May 29, 1926.
1983 photo added credit & courtesy of Derek Stone.
An article about this classic theater with photos.
In 1955 a cinemascope screen was installed at the Palace. It was a “Raytone Silver Screen”, the same type as in the NYC Paramount.
I worked with Ray Durkee to restore the organ in 1970, although Ray did the brunt of the work. He and I took turns playing it before shows. The theatre had a huge old American flag with 48 stars, almost as large as the screen. I forget if it was suspended in front of or behind the screen. We would always culminate our pre-show organ recital with the National Anthem as a spotlight illuminated the flag. Such fun!
I remember seeing “Harold and Maude” at the Palace before it opened widely. It may have been a sneak preview. Also “Myra Breckenridge” while sitting in the balcony in front of a row of teenage boys from the Northwood School who seemed rather enamored of Racquel Welsh.
I spent Labor Day weekend in Lake Placid and was so pleasantly surprised when I saw the marquee of this theater lighting up the main street. It’s truly amazing what impact an operating theater has on the “liveliness” of a streetscape. Though time did not allow me to visit the theater (I was hoping for a rainy afternoon/didn’t get it) it appeared that the theater was doing well. It was great to see.
Not a big fan of this design. If you tore the marquee off it could easily be a bank or city hall.
I wonder if this theatre is still a multiplex as I’m sure it was built as a single screen theatre?
Chuck1231: Nice article about the organ and vintage b/w photo. I like the marquee then compared to now. Also, the figure skating photos on either side of the marquee.
Modern photos:
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The Palace is now a four-plex and has been for quite some time. The main auditorium is still fully intact and quite impressive. I would have stayed for a movie but could not bring myself to spend money to see “Shark Tale”. Anyway, here’s the new configuration: Main auditorium intact, balcony split down the middle {each containing 160+ seats) a very tiny “auditorium” was created behind the main screen or the stage area which contains 40+ seats.
The “plexing” was done tastefully and the original stenciling was duplicated on the new partitions. The theatre had a good attendance when I looked inside all the auditoriums.