Echo Theatre
368 Bushwick Avenue,
Brooklyn,
NY
11206
368 Bushwick Avenue,
Brooklyn,
NY
11206
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The Echo Theatre was located on Bushwick Avenue near Moore Street. It was opened in 1921. It was closed in 1941.
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Lost Memory
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Recent comments (view all 31 comments)
Bushwick Hylan Houses opened in 1961 but the “urban renewal project” which involved the condemnation proceedings began in the mid to late 50’s. Moore St. was its own commercial hub which centered around the municipal market on Humboldt St. bounded by Moore and Varet. The Echo could not keep up with the technological advances and population shifts of the area, and although Bushwick Ave. was a busy thoroughfare, it was not as centrally located as nearby Graham Ave., or served by bus/trolley or elevated subway lines.
I agree that their less than optimal location – especially compared to that enjoyed by the theaters situated on nearby Broadway and Graham Ave. – speeded the demise of both the Echo and the G&M Theaters.
That said, I remain very interested to know the nature of the community that the old theaters served. As we know, this area was pretty well obliterated when Bushwick Hylan Houses was constucted here over fifty years ago. I have been told, albeit without any firm documentation, that a small Italian (mostly Sicilian) commuity once resided here. These were probably the residents who, about 100 years ago, established Our Lady of Pompeii RC parish about a block east of the old Echo’s site. However, without any firm evidence to either confirm or dispute this, I really can’t be sure if this was the case. So, any facts that can be provided to fill in this gap will be greatly appreciated.
Hi John,
You raise an interesting point. Despite the presence of large ethnic communities in that vicinity foreign language product corresponding to the Italian or Yiddish enclaves that were in the area failed to be presented. It wasn’t until after WWII that theaters like the Sun & the Alba began importing Mexican movies primarily through Columbia Pictures, for the Latino population that moved into the neighborhood. As late as the ‘60s, the Graham may have been presenting some Italian films, but not the art house fare that was popular then.
Of course I’m familiar with Our Lady of Pompeii having attended many a family function there. As it may not relate specifically to the message parameters of CT, let me know if you’d want me to contact you off-line to go into further detail.
Hector, if you – or anyone else – wishes to discuss the old neighborhood in more detailed length off line, please contact me at
However, I believe that most of the items that I raised should be discussed on these pages. In discussing the old movie houses, it is essential that we explore the relation that those theaters had to the communities that they served. This is particularly true of the old “nabe” theaters – like the Echo – that were hardly architetural wonders, but provided very meaningful services to their “nabes” for many years. Thus, in trying to determine “Who went there?”, we need to know the character of the community that hosted and supported them. The fact that this neighborhood has not existed for a half century makes this an especially valuable endeavor in urban history.
So, for these reasons, I think it is entirely appropriate for us to explore these questions on this page. Such a discussion could mimic the wonderful dialogue on the Colonial Theatre page, where the interplay of that Bushwick theater and the members of Our Lady of Lourdes parish frames a wonderful – and highly insightful – discussion. The fact that some of the more extreme defenders of “CT discussion purity” would oppose any such discussion should not prevent this very valuable dialogue from going forward.
Talk soon.
Hopefully, this will begin a very interesting diologue – or not.
I have found three photos taken in 1940 of adjacent buildings to the Echo Theater. These photos were taken by the NY City Department of Finance, for property tax purposes. You can see partially the marquee in all three shots.
Wow! Thanks so much Gigantor for these priceless photos. Besides providing a view of the actual theater, this captures a community that essentially ceased to exist long ago. This is now all a part of Bushwick/Hylan Houses. This is a great addition to the archive!
Had missed this posting when it first appeared but I too am impressed by Gigantor’s pic of the Echo. The surrounding shops give a clear sense of the simple life of that community. Confirming an earlier comment by John D, there was a strong Sicilian enclave that began to ebb in the 1950’s as the Hispanics began to emerge. Curiously, there were also wood-frame dilapidated tenements that were exclusively for the Negro population in the neighborhood. The various ethnic groups appeared to have coexisted well.
Photo from March 2019 added to photos
The character actor Nehemiah Persoff, who passed away last year at 102 years of age, related in an interview with Rob Word (‘A Word on Westerns’ on YouTube) that he grew up attending westerns at this theatre. His favorite western hero was series star Bob Steele. Years later, when he was working on John Wayne’s “The Comancheros,” an old man whom he vaguely recognized came shuffling up to him between takes, and said, “Mr. Persoff, I just wanted to tell you how much I have admired your work on TV, my name’s Bob Steele.” Then Persoff told him that he had been his boyhood hero. Small world. Persoff mentions the Echo at about the 2:44 mark on the linked video.
https://youtu.be/mLaT2UzNocc
Thanks for your very interesting comments about the role the Echo Theater played in the young life of Nehemiah Persoff. I think I will look up his obit to learn more of his Williamsburg roots.