Moorlyn Square Theatre
835 Moorlyn Terrace,
Ocean City,
NJ
08226
835 Moorlyn Terrace,
Ocean City,
NJ
08226
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Philly Voice 7/29/24 article,includes photo of inside one of the auditoriums
https://www.phillyvoice.com/century-old-moorlyn-theatre-reopens-ocean-city-boardwalk/
Please update, re-opened on July 26, 2024 and new total seat count is 714
The memorial day weekend in May 2003, became 4 stadium seating theatres, ad in photos section
This is awesome news.
Sold to local chain Town Square Entertainment for $1,350,000. They hope to be showing movies here by summer. Inquirer.com story with vintage and recent pictures here.
Trying to update my original description… The Moorlyn was built in 1905 by William G Moore as a bowling alley (Moore’s Bowling Casino). The second floor, overlooking the boardwalk, housed the “Casino Club” which offered dancing, music, and billiards. In 1922 the bowling alley was converted to a theater with about 1,600 seats and was renamed: The Moorlyn Theatre. It opened on June 19, 1922 The adjacent street, Moorlyn Terrace, was created in 1901.
In July 1929 the building was moved 355 feet toward the ocean to connect to the new boardwalk of 1928. New sound equipment was installed for the first time.
It was purchased in 1931 by William F. Shriver and was operated by Shriver and later his daughter, Helen, until 1989 when it was sold to the Frank Theater chain.
By 1931, Shriver owned or operated all the boardwalk theaters in Ocean City, including the Strand, Village, and Showboat.
Although the front half of the building was replaced in 2002, the auditorium area is still from the original bowling alley, making it the second oldest surviving building on the Boardwalk (after the Champion Building next door, that housed Simms' Restaurant).
The March 4, 2018 issue of CCNJ Daily said that the Ocean City Tabenacle had closed the Moorlyn Theatre and listed it for sale. The March 13 issue said that the building had been sold to Sey West Realty Partners LLC of Ocean City. I haven’t found anything about the purchaser’s plans for the property, but there are no listings on the Internet so the theater remains closed. It was last operated by Ocean City Tabernacle under the name Moorlyn Family Theatre.
Is this theater still open?
That is a great video.
Seth Basacas that was one of the best speehes on the love of the theatre and cinema I’ve ever heard.
Wonderful news. Glad the Frank’s are out.
Joe Vogel – I’m just now seeing your link to BOXOFFICE and the pictures of the Moorlyn. That is So Cool! I remember that entrance. The stainless steel had been painted white (as you see in my picture at the top of this page)and I kind of thought that it was probably Stainless originally. Very cool photos. Believe it or not, I have the one of the original neon “O"s from the MOORLYN sign in that art deco style. Thanks for the link.
It is now owned by the Ocean City Tabernacle. A newspaper article from a couple months ago stated that the Tabernacle would use a few screens for family movies.
Is this theater open it is not listed on Frank theaters web page?
I like the 1981 marquee better.A lot better.
A small photo of the Moorlyn’s facade and a slightly larger photo of one wall if the lobby can be seen at the lower left on this page of the March 7, 1936, issue of Boxoffice. The marquee in the 1936 photo was still there in the 1981 photo linked above, but it is gone in the more recent photo.
For sale, asking $5.5 million. The Strand is also listed at the same price. Frank Theatres still plans to operate both theaters for the 2011 summer season. Video story from NBC Philadelphia here.
i was just down there tuesday looking at some theater options, i run the broadway in pitman but the movies are slowly fading away despite my efforts to the live theater
Some years the Moorlyn has stayed open all winter, other times it hasn’t. The other Ocean City theater, the Strand, has been seasonal only for as long as I can remember.
do these shore theaters just run seasonal
Movies are showing on three screens per today’s AC Press. Phone number is 609-399-0006. Advertised as Moorlyn Stadium Theatre.
Here is an undated photo. Atlantic Book Shops was a chain with stores in Atlantic City and Ocean City. I bought cheap sci-fi paperbacks at the AC store for years:
http://tinyurl.com/3b7bzv
Closed/demolished?
http://tinyurl.com/2sfzlk
http://tinyurl.com/2rjcpj
http://tinyurl.com/33e5zt
http://tinyurl.com/33p3lh
In it’s heydey
View link
Listed as part of Shriver Theatres Co. in the 1976 International Motion Picture Almanac. Listed as the Moorlyn Twin.