Tyson Theatre
7043 Castor Avenue,
Philadelphia,
PA
19149
7043 Castor Avenue,
Philadelphia,
PA
19149
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According to the Google Maps image, the name of the business now occupying is L.N. Flooring Corp. The signage is utilizing the marquee framing.
I believe I saw “La Cage Aux Folles ” here. It was a nice theater
This property is again available for SALE or LEASE. Does anyone know what the interior looks like since those discount furniture stores moved on? I’m sure they had no interest in preservation! And without a doubt they sold the murals.
There’s a new furniture store in the space. The murals are still intact, though they’re partly obscured by the merchandise. I just wonder how long they can last.
Interior photos on a real estate website. Copy & paste into brower: http://www.loopnet.com/xNet/MainSite/Listing/Profile/Profile.aspx?LID=17602135
Apparently some of the theater’s features were retained when it was adapted for retail, but it’s unknown if they will survive a conversion to a multi-user space. Brief story from Hidden City Philadelphia here.
My first job was cleaning up after the Saturday afternoon kiddie matinee in the early 50s for which I received no money but instead free admission to all movies for the following week. I forget the reason that my employment was terminated. I do remember the manager, Morris Lev, chasing Stanley Snyder and me out of the movie and down the street. Until that time, I saw every movie that played at the Tyson. There were four Ellis theatres in Oxford Circle. A movie would play first at the Regal Theatre, about a month after it closed at a downtown theatre, then a week later at the Benner Theatre, a week later at the Tyson Theatre and finally at the Castor Theatre. The Saturday matinees consisted of a serial (e.g. The Crimson GHost, Mark of Zorro, Jungle Girl), a kiddie featute (e.g. Abbot and Costello) and a western (e.g.; Johnny Mack brown, Gene Autry or Roy Rogers). Admission was 25 cents. No one under 12 was admitted under 12 was admitted into the Tyson for evening performances unless accompanied by an adult. Adults complained about unruly children.
I attended the Tyson when I moved to Philly in 1979. I remember it as being one of the nicer neighborhood theaters still operating in Northeast Philly at the time. The murals on the walls of Atlantis were quite beautiful and it had a more than decent sized screen along with a nicely lit marquee. I actually presently live within a few blocks of the old Tyson, which is now a discount furnture store so I pass it every day.
Here is a 1983 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/cejzqg