Culver Theatre
4339 18th Avenue,
Brooklyn,
NY
11218
4339 18th Avenue,
Brooklyn,
NY
11218
3 people
favorited this theater
Additional Info
Previously operated by: Fox Circuit, Meyer & Schneider, Randforce Amusement Corp.
Architects: Joseph M. Berlinger, Morris L. Kaufman
Previous Names: Fox Culver Theatre
Nearby Theaters
The Culver Theatre was opened on March 12, 1925. A plain neighborhood movie theatre. The auditorium was oval in shape due to the lot it was built on. It was equipped with a Wurlitzer 2 manual 7 rank theatre organ. There was also an outdoor theatre at the rear, which was designed to replicate a Chinese garden.
Operated first by Meyer & Schneider, then by 1930 Fox Theatres who operated it as the Fox Culver Theatre. Later operated by Randforce Amusement Co., the Culver Theatre was closed in 1965. A bank occupies the spot where the theatre stood.
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Recent comments (view all 23 comments)
I lived on Ditmas Avenue with my family from 1960-67. My brother and I went to the Culver’s horror triple features on many saturday afternoons. Boy, did that theater have some tough, white-uniformed matrons patrolling the aisles with their flashlights, on the look-out for JD’s and other assorted punks. Very cherished memories. James
I agree with James. I also went to the Culver every Saturday during that time. If I remember correctly, the kids were all seated in the section on the left, jam-packed. The rest of the theater was empty.
Whatever happened to the white-uniformed matrons? Did they put them to work at the bank that replaced the theater? They would have made great guards.
I agree with James. I also went to the Culver every Saturday during that time. If I remember correctly, the kids were all seated in the section on the left, jam-packed. The rest of the theater was empty.
Whatever happened to the white-uniformed matrons? Did they put them to work at the bank that replaced the theater? They would have made great guards.
I remember the Culver. I think I saw one movie that I can remember there—Who’s been sleeping in my bed with carol burnett. Not sure of the year but it had to be around 1963-64? Anyhow I recall walking home to Cortelyou Rd. & E 5th and feeling like I walked miles. Funny the way we remember things.
Looks like Christmas 1963 was the release date for the Carol Burnett film. Quite a cast, Martin Balsam, Elizabeth Montgomery, Richard Conte, Dean Martin, Jill St. John
I was born in 1953 and grew up on Parkville Avenue only a few blocks away from the Culver Theater. Many a Saturday afternoon were spent watching top movies as they made their way to the last stop on the theater line. All the big movies in those days opened in Manhattan and then made their way to the local theaters afterwards. I remember waiting a long time waiting to see Ben Hur. Yes, those matrons were tough but the kids really made them earn their money. I remember so vividly the screams in the theater, garbage being tossed at the screen, and the frequent requests made to the matrons to bring their flashlights so some youngster could find his “lost” money. Lots of
I was born in 1957 and lived right across the street from the Culver. I also remember the Saturday movies and those guys with the flashlights. My biggest memory though is when they previewed “What Ever Happened to Baby Jane” It scared the hell out of me. It is a bank now and I remember getting a toaster from them for opening an account.
The Culver Theatre was a major influence on the life of writer Steven Gaines, who vividly recalls his experiences and the movies he saw there in a new memoir, “One of These Things First.” More about the book here: http://www.delphiniumbooks.com/book/one-of-these-things-first/
I’ve added a photo, circa 1939-1941, from the NYC Tax Photo collection, which was digitized and made available online in Nov. 2018.
Listed as Fox Culver in 1930 directory ad displayed here