Fabian Theatre

45 Church Street,
Paterson, NJ 07505

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Showing 51 - 75 of 111 comments

BobFurmanek
BobFurmanek on March 6, 2007 at 3:00 pm

Not much I’m afraid.

The boxes are long gone, and the original proscenium is there but hidden above the drop ceiling created in the new booth for theaters 4 and 5, which were built sometime in the late seventies/early eighties.

When they triplexed it, they put up a fake wall in front of the proscenium with a floor leading to it from the balcony. That’s where they put the new screen. The area under the balcony was used for theaters 1 and 2. The backstage was gutted when they made theaters 4 and 5.

Later today I’ll post a color image of the balcony theater. It’s pretty ugly!

ghamilton
ghamilton on March 6, 2007 at 2:48 pm

WHAT is left of that grand interior?Does anyone have a clue?
–=

BobFurmanek
BobFurmanek on March 6, 2007 at 2:30 pm

I’m sorry for the poor quality, but here is a rare photo of the Fabian’s interior, circa 1925:

View link

teecee
teecee on October 8, 2006 at 8:15 am

Don’t think that this one has been posted yet:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/iansummers/175837198/

jsikorsk
jsikorsk on September 21, 2006 at 12:02 pm

who painted the murals in the fabian building?

ghamilton
ghamilton on July 24, 2006 at 4:21 am

I drove through Paterson Friday,since my wife had never been there.It was stunning how grubby,filthy and dreary it all was.The Fabian just sits there rotting.The potential is still there,in theory,but the reality bited.Since my co.will be moving out of Paterson in a year from now,I’ll no longer be tortured by it’s presence.

jane1k
jane1k on July 23, 2006 at 11:01 pm

I was born and raised in Paterson ( live outside usa now ) and I am drawn to Paterson every trip back home.Can’t they start with reno-ing the office buildings to bring in people that care? Then revamp the Fabian into a high end burlesque, dinner, cigar club ? The second floors of the old stores have great spaces for artists or huge living lofts.. Offer the best of the best silk !! companies to sell their silks in Paterson.. Get fashion to move in.. Then they will create restaurants, galleries..the new SOHO .. The bones are there. An aggressive sell to a few good people with a keen eye can get the ball rolling..Asbury Park sparks more interest than Paterson and Paterson has far more to offer as far as buildings, history, location…….and make the Alexander Hamilton a swanky hotel it once was !

Luis Vazquez
Luis Vazquez on July 4, 2006 at 4:11 pm

I just came across this posting. I just spent the weekend in Asbury Park and was amazed how much of it’s historic structures lie in ruins. The Paramount Theater which should be a showcase looks somewhat abandoned thought the page on CT says that it has been renovated. It doesn’t appear to be. I agree with the posters above who want the Fabian saved. A city’s historic treasures are what distinguishes it from others. If you tear them all down, what are you left with? I wish you in Paterson the best of luck in saving the Fabian.

pread
pread on April 15, 2006 at 5:24 pm

“Paterson” now back in print! (via www.bn.com et al)

“I never should have left Paterson,” comedian Lou Costello said in 1951’s “Abbott & Costello Meet the Invisible Man.” In fact, Paterson has been a place of comings and goings for generations, yet still manages to pull at the heartstrings. Larry Doby, who broke the color barrier in the American league, called it home. Among the many notables born in the “Silk City” were shuttle astronaut Kathryn Sullivan and actress Sue Ann Langdon, who played Alice Kramden in the 1962 version of “The Jackie Gleason Show.” What’s more, this city — an industrial giant once envisioned by Alexander Hamilton — gave birth to the famed Colt revolver, the modern-day submarine, the locomotives that linked America’s coasts and the engine that powered Charles Lindbergh’s “Spirit of St. Louis.” Its Danforth Library is a work of art in itself, designed by architect Henry Bacon, who went on to create Washington D.C.’s Lincoln Memorial in its image. Today, it houses an art collection — much of it the family legacy of Paterson’s own Garret Hobart, vice president under McKinley — that could earn it the name “Paterson’s Louvre.” There is also no shortage of local lore. The Ghosts of Eastside High School didn`t get that moniker by accident. The school sits on a one-time cemetery. And yes, Lou Costello couldn’t stay away, coming back for premiers at The Fabian. Philip M. Read, the great-grandson of a Paterson silk weaver whose family like so many others emigrated from Macclesfield, England, is a graduate of Boston University and long-time journalist who has worked for several New Jersey newspapers. His first job, in fact, was at the old Paterson News. Join him in this eye-opening and appreciative look back, mindful of what was and what still might be.

ThePhotoplayer
ThePhotoplayer on March 10, 2006 at 10:30 pm

Have you ever been inside the place? The office building is absolutely unusable. The (broken) windows have let all sorts of weather and critters in the place, and the walls are totally ripped up. Also, the roof of the theater wasn’t maintained and the ceiling is suffering from water damaged.

Ten years ago it could have been saved… not now. The death knell was rung when the great city of Paterson plummeted into its great depression. The community has no support behind the theater and it seems the only people getting any use of it are the bums that live in the back alley under the stairs.

That to me, my friend, is what unusable means.

ghamilton
ghamilton on March 9, 2006 at 4:23 pm

The building looked stable,if not sound.Is that an illusion?I’ve seen falling down ruins “saved”.This looks better than some that have been rehabed.I was surprised how bustling and busy downtown looked.(Although my employer has decided to get the heck out of Dodge and put their bldgs up for sale)

ThePhotoplayer
ThePhotoplayer on March 9, 2006 at 12:48 pm

The status of the Fabian is unsavable.

ghamilton
ghamilton on March 3, 2006 at 6:04 am

I drove by the Fabian last week.It is a sad sight.This must be the focal point to turn Paterson around,or there is no point.If you could put potential in a bag,you could fill a landfill with the potential that is Paterson,but if there is no soul,a landfill is what Paterson is.

Mayeli
Mayeli on March 3, 2006 at 5:56 am

What is their any memorial for the Fabian Theater?

Mayeli
Mayeli on March 3, 2006 at 5:54 am

What is the status on the Fabian in this present day?

ghamilton
ghamilton on October 25, 2005 at 6:49 am

I can only pray that some group with smarts,vision and buckets of money can find Paterson before it becomes Port Arthur,Tex.Paterson could be the BEST place for many miles in all directions.I’m glad I work for a co.that appreciates the low overhead that Paterson offers.More capitalists could make the same discovery.It is an ideal location for the distribution of our disposable products(wipers,gloves,etc.)with the location,location,location.Has anybody ever thought of grabbing Trump and taking him on a tour of Paterson?

chconnol
chconnol on October 25, 2005 at 6:24 am

ghamilton: you hit it right on the head about Paterson. The place is like the land that time forgot. Because it’s so undervalued, the old buildings are still there albeit, some quite rundown.

The oddest thing is that the Great Falls is pretty much right in the downtown area and hardly anyone knows about it. It has to be one of the most amazing sites in the northeast.

musicrewind
musicrewind on October 25, 2005 at 5:23 am

Anybody out there have photos of any of the tgheaters that were in Paterson? I would love to include them in my book I am writing about theses treasures, Let me know.

BobFurmanek
BobFurmanek on October 24, 2005 at 7:09 am

Thanks for that image. Do you also have the inside of the program? I would love to see the program.

teecee
teecee on October 21, 2005 at 7:09 pm

Opening night program from 12/14/1925:
View link

ghamilton
ghamilton on October 15, 2005 at 6:45 am

Any place can be “cleaned up"if the will is there.Miami Beach was once a cesspool of vile filth.Everytime I’m forced to venture from VA to the bowels of downtown Paterson(I work for a Co.there)I am blown over by the potential there.The beauty of the bldgs still erect and the natural setting give rise to the imagination.I do have to admit to a degree of occasional real fear,since NJ doesn’t honor VA gun laws.The Fabian’s fate will be a sign of the real fate of this city.If there is no hope for the one,there is none for the other.

umbaba
umbaba on October 15, 2005 at 6:20 am

Exactly, plus the gang element waiting to mug the visitors pockets wouldn’t help either, which is why the people and businesses left. I know a person who was in the Fabian recently, said, the seats are still there, but the place is all waterlogged and falling apart but it provides a home to the squatters and crackheads looking for a place to shoot….maybe they should show a screening of “Man with the Golden Arm” …that would be a start

Julio
Julio on October 14, 2005 at 7:23 am

“Plus, to be brutally honest, downtown Paterson is not a very safe place, even in the daytime.”

Not safe in the daytime? that is ridiculous! Paterson may have a whole lof of problems, but theres is no to exagerate how woeful these problems are. The reason why the Fabian when out of business it was simply because it was not producing any money. When the factories started to move out of the city – and whole bunch of folks moved out – left the city in ruins with an immense number of empty building and unemployed people.

But then again it could have been all the lunch time muggings that scared the folks away from downtown.

umbaba
umbaba on October 9, 2005 at 6:32 am

Joe, In theory, I’m with you 200%. In practice however, Paterson is still Paterson and would take a long while to make people feel like it’s the place to go again. Even Newark, they still have trouble attracting even though they have NJPAC. But, I guess you gotta start somewhere.

musicrewind
musicrewind on October 3, 2005 at 9:07 am

As far as money is concerned, why can’t there be an adopt a seat program? anybody interested in adoptingt a seat would have a small plaque on the back of said seat. There are corporate sponsors just waiting to jump on programs like this, how about volunteers? People who have the expertise donating thier time and effort to save this place. It can be done and I would love to have help in getting a commitee together any body interested please give me a call 973-341-4740 Joe