I wondered about the history of this place as I walked by it a couple of days ago on the way to the Capitol Center for the Arts. The Phenix is right near the former Capitol Theatre. Are there any photos available of the interior of the Phenix? I took one of the outside.
The Copley Place has long been the venue for the annual Boston Film Festival. Where would it move to in the event of the theatre’s demise? Loew’s Boston Common? The Kendall Square???…even though it is in Cambridge. http://www.bostonfilmfestival.org/
From the outside you would never know that this is a classic movie/vaudeville theatre, unless you walked around the side and back of the building and could clearly see the original part of the complex. The original entrance and foyer (though I have never seen them) were entirely restructured to give a “modern cultural center” look to the place, creating a kind of functional if radical hybrid. There is a large waiting rooom off the new lobby where banquet functions can be provided.
The auditorium is a place of simple elegance, and the Egyptian motif alluded to in the description is rather subdued and employs the asp symbol in various decorative configurations. The waiting area has some nice framed Capitol publicity posters of mostly early sound movies that played here: Four Sons, Unfaithful, Ladies Love Brutes, Dawn Patrol, East Lynne, The Vagabond King, Remote Control, Little Accident, Once a Sinner.
The theatre maintains a professional 35mm projection booth, and there is a big-screen movie series in addition to the cultural and theatrical bookings. This year people can see Rear Window, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Godfather, Babe, The Magnificent Seven, Grease, A Night at the Opera, A Day at the Races.
The William H. Gile Community Concert Series provides several FREE programs a year, through an endowment. Last night I saw, absolutely free, the renowned Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra here. Earlier in the week thay had performed twice at Carnegie Hall in New York at premium prices!
A wide variety of Broadway plays, popular acts, opera, children’s programs, dance, symphony add to the yearly line-up which includes something for every taste.
The Capitol Center for the Arts represents what can be successfully done with old theatres in towns across America where they have not been wantonly destroyed.
On May 29, 1981 I brought a group of Italian students to the (first) Nickelodeon (formerly Abbey) by bus from Providence to see Federico Fellini’s CITY OF WOMEN with Marcello Mastroianni. Anyone have an idea exactly when this theatre closed and was replaced by the newer Nickelodeon?
The Abbey was actually located on Brandford Street, at the corner of Cummington Street. “600 Commonwealth Avenue” was the address given in newspapers so that people could more easily find where it was. The Green Line stop was at the corner of Brandford St. and Commonwealth Ave. The theatre building and entrance were on that side street. There was a parking lot between the theatre and Commonwealth Avenue along Brandford Street. In time the theatre became the (first) Nickelodeon, then was closed a few years later. The second Nickelodeon, replacing the Abbey/ first Nickelodeon, was constructed about a hundred feet away on Cummington Street and is listed as a separate theatre on Cinema Treasures.
That bus, mentioned above, would first go by the R.K.O. Albee and what was then called the Westminster Playhouse, both on Westminster Street, both now gone, before passing the Capitol.
As a kid in the 1950s I went to this theatre a good number of times…but I wish I had gone more and spent all of my allowance there. It was unique and cheap and always showed double bills. I believe admission at the time was 35¢. It was located right near downtown Providence, between the city and Hoyle Square. The bus I took would go right by it as it went up Westminster Street. The same bus would then pass the Olympia (which I never went to) at Olneyville Square as well as the long-abandoned Royal, also in Olneyville at Plainfield Street and Hartford Avenue. Among the movies I remember seeing at the Capitol were a revival of THE YEARLING and the boy-loves-bull film THE BRAVE ONE, which I went back to see several times. As we all know, this kind of place does not exist and cannot exist any more. Sad.
Yeah, “Midnight Cowboy,” which won the Academy Award for best picture, was actually rated X. Its initial run had been at the Saxon, I believe. The Saxon is now the Cutler-Majestic at Emerson College.
Yes, Robert, it was a memorable place…one where a good deal of my “cinematic education” took place. It was a pleasing auditorium with an old-fashioned small-legit-theatre look to it. The only minus for me was that they never bothered to add a wider screen suitable for CinemaScope pictures. Instead, whenever showing a CinemaScope picture the image would appear “letterboxed” as a thin ribbon within the old standard dimensions, since they had no additional physical screen width. The screen must have dated to the early fifties and perhaps earler. But at least they respected the aspect ratio that way, although they would have had plenty of room for a wider installation to accomodate all formats.
The “Boston Theatre,” as a newspaper ad for March, 1962 called it, was showing the Cinerama feature SOUTH SEAS ADVENTURE at that time.
One evening show daily. Matinees Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday, and holidays at 2:30.
The address for the Fine Arts was 20 Norway Street. It was located in the old Loew’s State building on Massachusetts Avenue, just a hop up the street from Symphony Hall. Program for March 3, 1962: the Russian A SUMMER TO REMEMBER (about a young Russian boy) paired with the BP-sponsored featurette GIUSEPPINA (about a young Italian girl.)
Saturday, March 3, 1962, a typical day at the Old Howard, taken from the Boston Record American: film THE RIGHT APPROACH at 9 A.M. Film MAN TRAP at 10:13, 5:14. Stage show: 12:00 2:30, 7:15, 10:00. The stage show for that day featured one Cindy Parker.
A July 21, 1969 newspaper ad refers to this theater as the E.M. Loew’s Park, “formerly the Dorchester.” The film on that day was CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG.
Typical of the kind of programming at this theatre: in July of 1969 one screen featured Max Ophüls' LOLA MONTES in a revival while the other had Jean-Luc Godard’s WEEKEND. It should be noted that the screens were not sizable here, the sight-lines were imperfect, and the seating was fairly cramped…but the programmnmg was top-notch. They could screen both 16mm and 35mm prints.
In July of 1969, according to newspaper ads, the E.M. Loew’s West End Cinema was showing I, A WOMAN PART II. This was a Swedish sex film of the kind very popular at the time. It was rated X. Reflecting the tastes of the moment, on that same date I AM CURIOUS (YELLOW), another Swedish sex film, was playing at the Symphony Cinemas I & II across town in Back Bay. The West End was located opposite the Hotel Madison at North Station. The whole area, near the terminus of the Big Dig traffic artery, continues to be completely restructured, and many of the buildings that were originally there are now gone, including this theatre.
A July 21, 1969 newspaper ad for the theatre has it as the Symphony I & II. So at some point in the late 1960s a second screen was added. The movie playing on that date was the very successful Swedish sex film I AM CURIOUS (YELLOW, directed by Vilmot Sjöman. On that date, a Saturday, the X-rated film was playing on both screens, with staggered starting times: first show at 11 A.M. and the last one at 10:45 P.M. People must have been turning up in droves.
A newspaper ad from March 3, 1962 lists the Mayflower (formerly Modern) showing a double bill of “The 3 Stooges Meets Hercules” and “Underwater City.”
The theater looks like it is currently in the process of being restored. It is a few steps up from the Opera House, which has just undergone a complete and magnificent renovation.
This was a nudie-film theatre in the late 1950s-early 1960s. In March of 1962 they were showing PARADISIO…“The best ‘nudie’ movie to date.” “In ‘TRI-OPTIQUE’—–"Broad-minded adults only!” Plus second feature THE CHOPPERS.
I believe the semi-legendary nudist-camp film GARDEN OF EDEN had already played here in the 1950s.
A newspaper ad I just found in the Boston Record American for March 3, 1962, lists the State address as 617 Washington Street. That day they were showing NAKED ISLAND, “Land of 1001 surprises…scenes in blushing color.” Also on the bill was THE FACTS OF LOVE.
“Taxi zum Close”?????
You mean “Taxi zum Klo” or “Taxi to the Toilet”
Something the likes of which we are never likely to see again in either mainstream theatres or art houses.
I wondered about the history of this place as I walked by it a couple of days ago on the way to the Capitol Center for the Arts. The Phenix is right near the former Capitol Theatre. Are there any photos available of the interior of the Phenix? I took one of the outside.
The Copley Place has long been the venue for the annual Boston Film Festival. Where would it move to in the event of the theatre’s demise? Loew’s Boston Common? The Kendall Square???…even though it is in Cambridge.
http://www.bostonfilmfestival.org/
Re: Dresden…“twice at Carnegie Hall in New York"
My mistake. That was actually Avery Fisher Hall.
From the outside you would never know that this is a classic movie/vaudeville theatre, unless you walked around the side and back of the building and could clearly see the original part of the complex. The original entrance and foyer (though I have never seen them) were entirely restructured to give a “modern cultural center” look to the place, creating a kind of functional if radical hybrid. There is a large waiting rooom off the new lobby where banquet functions can be provided.
The auditorium is a place of simple elegance, and the Egyptian motif alluded to in the description is rather subdued and employs the asp symbol in various decorative configurations. The waiting area has some nice framed Capitol publicity posters of mostly early sound movies that played here: Four Sons, Unfaithful, Ladies Love Brutes, Dawn Patrol, East Lynne, The Vagabond King, Remote Control, Little Accident, Once a Sinner.
The theatre maintains a professional 35mm projection booth, and there is a big-screen movie series in addition to the cultural and theatrical bookings. This year people can see Rear Window, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Godfather, Babe, The Magnificent Seven, Grease, A Night at the Opera, A Day at the Races.
The William H. Gile Community Concert Series provides several FREE programs a year, through an endowment. Last night I saw, absolutely free, the renowned Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra here. Earlier in the week thay had performed twice at Carnegie Hall in New York at premium prices!
A wide variety of Broadway plays, popular acts, opera, children’s programs, dance, symphony add to the yearly line-up which includes something for every taste.
The Capitol Center for the Arts represents what can be successfully done with old theatres in towns across America where they have not been wantonly destroyed.
Ron, I would like to know when the old Abbey/Nickelodeon closed down and when the newer Nickelodeon opened. Do you have the dates?
On May 29, 1981 I brought a group of Italian students to the (first) Nickelodeon (formerly Abbey) by bus from Providence to see Federico Fellini’s CITY OF WOMEN with Marcello Mastroianni. Anyone have an idea exactly when this theatre closed and was replaced by the newer Nickelodeon?
The Abbey was actually located on Brandford Street, at the corner of Cummington Street. “600 Commonwealth Avenue” was the address given in newspapers so that people could more easily find where it was. The Green Line stop was at the corner of Brandford St. and Commonwealth Ave. The theatre building and entrance were on that side street. There was a parking lot between the theatre and Commonwealth Avenue along Brandford Street. In time the theatre became the (first) Nickelodeon, then was closed a few years later. The second Nickelodeon, replacing the Abbey/ first Nickelodeon, was constructed about a hundred feet away on Cummington Street and is listed as a separate theatre on Cinema Treasures.
That bus, mentioned above, would first go by the R.K.O. Albee and what was then called the Westminster Playhouse, both on Westminster Street, both now gone, before passing the Capitol.
As a kid in the 1950s I went to this theatre a good number of times…but I wish I had gone more and spent all of my allowance there. It was unique and cheap and always showed double bills. I believe admission at the time was 35¢. It was located right near downtown Providence, between the city and Hoyle Square. The bus I took would go right by it as it went up Westminster Street. The same bus would then pass the Olympia (which I never went to) at Olneyville Square as well as the long-abandoned Royal, also in Olneyville at Plainfield Street and Hartford Avenue. Among the movies I remember seeing at the Capitol were a revival of THE YEARLING and the boy-loves-bull film THE BRAVE ONE, which I went back to see several times. As we all know, this kind of place does not exist and cannot exist any more. Sad.
Yeah, “Midnight Cowboy,” which won the Academy Award for best picture, was actually rated X. Its initial run had been at the Saxon, I believe. The Saxon is now the Cutler-Majestic at Emerson College.
Yes, Robert, it was a memorable place…one where a good deal of my “cinematic education” took place. It was a pleasing auditorium with an old-fashioned small-legit-theatre look to it. The only minus for me was that they never bothered to add a wider screen suitable for CinemaScope pictures. Instead, whenever showing a CinemaScope picture the image would appear “letterboxed” as a thin ribbon within the old standard dimensions, since they had no additional physical screen width. The screen must have dated to the early fifties and perhaps earler. But at least they respected the aspect ratio that way, although they would have had plenty of room for a wider installation to accomodate all formats.
The “Boston Theatre,” as a newspaper ad for March, 1962 called it, was showing the Cinerama feature SOUTH SEAS ADVENTURE at that time.
One evening show daily. Matinees Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday, and holidays at 2:30.
EL CID is listed as playing here in early 1962. 70mm Super Technirama. One evening show daily and matinees on Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday.
The address for the Fine Arts was 20 Norway Street. It was located in the old Loew’s State building on Massachusetts Avenue, just a hop up the street from Symphony Hall. Program for March 3, 1962: the Russian A SUMMER TO REMEMBER (about a young Russian boy) paired with the BP-sponsored featurette GIUSEPPINA (about a young Italian girl.)
Saturday, March 3, 1962, a typical day at the Old Howard, taken from the Boston Record American: film THE RIGHT APPROACH at 9 A.M. Film MAN TRAP at 10:13, 5:14. Stage show: 12:00 2:30, 7:15, 10:00. The stage show for that day featured one Cindy Parker.
A July 21, 1969 newspaper ad refers to this theater as the E.M. Loew’s Park, “formerly the Dorchester.” The film on that day was CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG.
Typical of the kind of programming at this theatre: in July of 1969 one screen featured Max Ophüls' LOLA MONTES in a revival while the other had Jean-Luc Godard’s WEEKEND. It should be noted that the screens were not sizable here, the sight-lines were imperfect, and the seating was fairly cramped…but the programmnmg was top-notch. They could screen both 16mm and 35mm prints.
In July of 1969, according to newspaper ads, the E.M. Loew’s West End Cinema was showing I, A WOMAN PART II. This was a Swedish sex film of the kind very popular at the time. It was rated X. Reflecting the tastes of the moment, on that same date I AM CURIOUS (YELLOW), another Swedish sex film, was playing at the Symphony Cinemas I & II across town in Back Bay. The West End was located opposite the Hotel Madison at North Station. The whole area, near the terminus of the Big Dig traffic artery, continues to be completely restructured, and many of the buildings that were originally there are now gone, including this theatre.
A July 21, 1969 newspaper ad for the theatre has it as the Symphony I & II. So at some point in the late 1960s a second screen was added. The movie playing on that date was the very successful Swedish sex film I AM CURIOUS (YELLOW, directed by Vilmot Sjöman. On that date, a Saturday, the X-rated film was playing on both screens, with staggered starting times: first show at 11 A.M. and the last one at 10:45 P.M. People must have been turning up in droves.
A newspaper ad from March 3, 1962 lists the Mayflower (formerly Modern) showing a double bill of “The 3 Stooges Meets Hercules” and “Underwater City.”
The theater looks like it is currently in the process of being restored. It is a few steps up from the Opera House, which has just undergone a complete and magnificent renovation.
This was a nudie-film theatre in the late 1950s-early 1960s. In March of 1962 they were showing PARADISIO…“The best ‘nudie’ movie to date.” “In ‘TRI-OPTIQUE’—–"Broad-minded adults only!” Plus second feature THE CHOPPERS.
I believe the semi-legendary nudist-camp film GARDEN OF EDEN had already played here in the 1950s.
A newspaper ad I just found in the Boston Record American for March 3, 1962, lists the State address as 617 Washington Street. That day they were showing NAKED ISLAND, “Land of 1001 surprises…scenes in blushing color.” Also on the bill was THE FACTS OF LOVE.
And the Gayety Saga continues! Read it here.
And the Saga continues! (Long article)
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