Metro Theater (New York City): Difference between revisions
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== History == |
== History == |
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The Midtown opened in 1933.<ref name="LPCReport" /> From its opening until the 1950s, the theater presented first-run films.<ref name="RealDealNY">{{Cite news |date=2014-05-24 |title=Midtown Theater UWS {{!}} UWS Art Deco Theater |work=The Real Deal New York |url=https://therealdeal.com/2014/05/24/midtown-on-the-uws-the-decay-of-an-art-deco-cinema/ |access-date=20 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201204211740/https://therealdeal.com/2014/05/24/midtown-on-the-uws-the-decay-of-an-art-deco-cinema/ |archive-date=4 December 2020}}</ref> In the 1950s and 1960s, it presented art-house films by directors such as [[ |
The Midtown opened in 1933.<ref name="LPCReport" /> From its opening until the 1950s, the theater presented first-run films.<ref name="RealDealNY">{{Cite news |date=2014-05-24 |title=Midtown Theater UWS {{!}} UWS Art Deco Theater |work=The Real Deal New York |url=https://therealdeal.com/2014/05/24/midtown-on-the-uws-the-decay-of-an-art-deco-cinema/ |access-date=20 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201204211740/https://therealdeal.com/2014/05/24/midtown-on-the-uws-the-decay-of-an-art-deco-cinema/ |archive-date=4 December 2020}}</ref> In the 1950s and 1960s, it presented art-house films by directors such as [[Jean-Luc Godard]], [[Luis Buñuel|Louis Buñuel]] and [[Roman Polanski]].<ref name="RealDealNY" /> |
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In the 1970s and 80s it operated as a [[Pornographic film|porn]] theater.<ref name="CrainsNYbusiness">{{Cite web |date=2018-11-21 |title=Take a peek at some of the city's oldest theaters |url=https://www.crainsnewyork.com/gallery/entertainment/take-peek-some-citys-oldest-theaters |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210305220836/https://www.crainsnewyork.com/gallery/entertainment/take-peek-some-citys-oldest-theaters |archive-date=5 March 2021 |access-date=2021-06-20 |website=Crain's New York Business |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Permits_Filed" /><ref name="Observer1" /> |
In the 1970s and 80s it operated as a [[Pornographic film|porn]] theater.<ref name="CrainsNYbusiness">{{Cite web |date=2018-11-21 |title=Take a peek at some of the city's oldest theaters |url=https://www.crainsnewyork.com/gallery/entertainment/take-peek-some-citys-oldest-theaters |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210305220836/https://www.crainsnewyork.com/gallery/entertainment/take-peek-some-citys-oldest-theaters |archive-date=5 March 2021 |access-date=2021-06-20 |website=Crain's New York Business |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Permits_Filed" /><ref name="Observer1" /> |
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Revision as of 23:19, 20 March 2023
The Metro Theater is a New York City movie theater, located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan at 2626 Broadway between 99th and 100th Streets. An example of Art Deco architecture of New York City, it opened in 1933 and closed in 2005.[1][2]
Architecture
In 1931 Architects Boak & Paris designed the Art Deco Midtown (now Metro) Theater at 2626 Broadway between 99th and 100th Streets.[3] The developer was A.C. and H.M. Hall.[4] Similar to the Variety Theater, Boak & Paris used lights on the underside of the marquee. The terra-cotta wall in its facade above the marquee was described in the report designating it a landmark as "The most notable feature of the theater’s facade".[5] The central part of the marquee features a polychromed medallion depicting the figures of comedy and tragedy.[6]
The interior of the single screen Midtown had niches on either side of the screen containing statues of nude women holding glowing dishes.[7]
History
The Midtown opened in 1933.[8] From its opening until the 1950s, the theater presented first-run films.[9] In the 1950s and 1960s, it presented art-house films by directors such as Jean-Luc Godard, Louis Buñuel and Roman Polanski.[9]
In the 1970s and 80s it operated as a porn theater.[10][2][11]
In 1982, Dan Talbot acquired the lease to the theater.[12][13]
In 1989, New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) designated the Midtown (now Metro) an individual landmark. The theater is Boak & Paris' only individually landmarked building.[8]
The Metro was managed by Clearview Cinemas until it closed in 2003.[13] Peter H. Elson then leased the theater from Albert Bialek, operating the theater as Embassy's New Metro Twin until it closed again in 2005.[2][12]
The following year, in 2006, the interior of the theater was gutted. This was permitted because only the exterior was protected by landmarking.[14] In 2007 David Dunlap wrote in the New York Times that "...the inside, visible to passers-by on a recent afternoon, has been gutted. Gone are seats and plaster and curtains and screen. Gone is a golden ceiling molding with a chain of floral bouquets. Gone are the sylph-filled niches. Gone is grille work that sprouted like corn stalks."[15]
In 2009 Dunlap wrote that "When we left our story more than a year ago, the fate of the Art Deco jewel box known as the Metro Theater was up in the air. Though the building’s exterior is one of the most recognizable landmarks on upper Broadway, its interior—no longer usable as a cinema—had been gutted and no one could say for sure what kind of tenant might make use of such an idiosyncratic space, though the Winick Realty Group was searching."[16]
In 2011, Julie Satow reported in the New York Times that "... the longtime owner, Albert Bialek, wrested control of the Metro, an Art Deco landmark, after a protracted legal battle with the leaseholder, John R. Souto. Mr. Souto, whose firm filed for bankruptcy protection last year, had a 49-year lease with an option to buy the property, but defaulted on the terms, Mr. Bialek said. New York City marshals evicted him from the property in January."[17]
In 2015,The New York Times reported that the theater would be transformed into a gym.[18]
In 2016, the West Side Rag reported that "The Texas theater chain Alamo Drafthouse attempted to revive it, but gave up as construction costs rose."[2]:
In 2021 the UWS Patch reported: "Storefront vacancy on the Upper West Side has been a long-growing issue in the community, and there may be no greater symbol of the neighborhood's vacancy blight than the shuttered Metro Theater."[1]
In popular culture
The Metro appeared in the Woody Allen film, Hannah and Her Sisters in 1986.[11]
The Metro appears in a video for Janet Jackson's 1987 release, "Let's Wait Awhile".[16]
References
- ^ a b "Petition Started to Revive Long-Shuttered Metro Theater on UWS". 30 March 2021. Archived from the original on 29 April 2021. Retrieved 19 June 2021.
- ^ a b c d "PERMITS FILED FOR HISTORIC METRO THEATER TO BECOME A GYM". West Side Rag. 4 March 2016. Archived from the original on 3 August 2016. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
- ^ Fletcher, Tom. "Metro Theater". New York Architecture. Archived from the original on 3 March 2020. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
- ^ "2626 Broadway (Midtown Theater – now the Metro Theater)". LANDMARK WEST!. Archived from the original on 2021-06-20. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
- ^ Marthey, Lynne (1989). Midtown Theater (now Metro Theater) Designation Report, [LP-1615]. New York City: Landmarks Preservation Commission, New York, City of New York. pp. 5–6.
- ^ Duncan, Alastair (1986). American Art Deco. Abrams. ISBN 978-0-8109-2349-2. Archived from the original on 2021-06-20. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
- ^ "New Metro Twin in New York, NY - Cinema Treasures". Cinema Treasures. Archived from the original on 26 November 2020. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
- ^ a b Marthey, Lynne D. (11 July 1989). Shockley, Jay (ed.). Designation List 218, LP-1615 (PDF). Landmarks Preservation Commission (Report). nyc.gov. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2016-12-23. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
- ^ a b "Midtown Theater UWS | UWS Art Deco Theater". The Real Deal New York. 2014-05-24. Archived from the original on 4 December 2020. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
- ^ "Take a peek at some of the city's oldest theaters". Crain's New York Business. 2018-11-21. Archived from the original on 5 March 2021. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
- ^ a b Geminder, Emily (2011-02-01). "They Can Make No Strings Attached But They Can't Reinvent the Metro Theater?". Observer. Archived from the original on 2020-09-24. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
- ^ a b Dunlap, David W. (2004-11-22). "Landmark Theater Held Over! 6th Big Broadway Run!". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 29 March 2021. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
{{cite news}}:|archive-date=/|archive-url=timestamp mismatch; 29 April 2021 suggested (help) - ^ a b Hartocollis, Anemona (2003-04-06). "Fade to Black". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 1 March 2020. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
- ^ Mindlin, Alex (2006-01-22). "The Last Picture Show, This Time for Keeps?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29. Retrieved 2021-06-20.
- ^ Dunlap, David W. (2007-11-14). "What to Make of the Metro Theater". City Room. The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2021-04-29. Retrieved 2021-06-19.
- ^ a b Dunlap, David W. (2009-01-06). "From Metro Theater to Urban Outfitters". City Room. The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2021-05-02. Retrieved 2021-06-19.
- ^ Satow, Julie (18 May 2011). "After Legal War, a West Side Landmark May Rise". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 29 April 2021. Retrieved 19 June 2021.
- ^ Satow, Julie (16 October 2015). "Landmark Metro Theater in Manhattan Will be Reborn as a Planet Fitness". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 19 June 2021.