Symphony Cinema I & II
252 Huntington Avenue,
Boston,
MA
02115
252 Huntington Avenue,
Boston,
MA
02115
2 people
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Additional Info
Previous Names: Symphony II
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Opening March 31, 1965, this theatre was carved out of the first floor of a building across from Symphony Hall on Huntington Avenue in Boston.
It was an art house showing a mixture of off-beat, independent American, and foreign-language films. The seating was not raked and it was often difficult to see all of the screen (and subtitles) if you were in a bad spot. The programming was very interesting and adventuresome, however. It disappeared, I believe, by the end of the 1970’s.
Contributed by
Gerald A. DeLuca
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Recent comments (view all 21 comments)
Ron;
Thanks for posting those details, it is always good to piece together another slice of the history, especially when it comes from ‘the horses mouth’.
I recall standing in line awaiting to get in to see “I Am Curious, Yellow” like it was the second coming or something. yawn.
I remember seeing The Collector, The Chase and A Funny Thing Happend on the way to the Forum. We always went to Brigham’s afterwards
I recall seeing the classic (and infamous) horror/slice-and-dice film “Last House On The left” there in late 1976…I guess the place was not long for this world by that point, and had fallen on pretty hard times.
I remember going to see I Am Curious Yellow. there. I worked by Fenway Park and didn’t want to drive home at 3.30 pm so I hoped the T and went to the movies. I should have gone home because this is the afternoon the police raided the theatre and all the TV staions were out front filming for the 6pm news. The police shut the theatre down but it resumed playing the next day without problems. Never did get to see the last 15 mins or so.
I remember seeing all the kung fu movies back in the 1970’s when I was kid at the symphony.
This opened on March 31, 1965. Ad and picture uploaded.
After all these years I finally got to see I Am Curious Yellow complete a few months ago on of all places Turner Classic Movies. What a waste of time.
Boston University sold this along with the nearby BU Theatre (which houses the Huntington Theatre Company). The Huntington will remain, but the former Symphony Cinema building will probably be demolished and replaced with newer development.
1969 photo added courtesy of the Old School Boston Facebook page. Symphony Cinema marquee on the far right.