When the news came out that Cinema 1,2,3 on Third Avenue was permanently closing last week, there was much shock expressed. Personally, my reaction was more resigned, tinged with some nostalgia. For a very long time, I was convinced that the theater’s demise was inevitable. That piece of land–across the street from Bloomingdales–was just too valuable to remain as a triplex movie theater. So as much as the pundits will try to frame this as another in a long string of closures signaling the end of the theatrical movie business, it’s actually a real estate story.
I have every reason to be sad about this particular theater’s fate. When I worked for Don Rugoff in the 1970’s, I spent countless hours there, either to see whatever was playing or at our morning acquisition screenings. Every Friday, Bea Brydson, who was our office manager, would roam the halls and hand out four passes that were good for any showing at any of the Cinema 5 theaters. When I started the job, Robert Altman’s “Nashville” was playing at Cinema 2, and I was smitten. I used my passes week after week to see it again and again at what was a perfect venue for a widescreen film that had a multi-channel soundtrack.
My love affair with the Cinema 1 & 2 theaters continued throughout my many incarnations in the distribution business. At U.A. Classics, and later at Cinecom and Fine Line, many of our films had their exclusive first runs at these theaters. And we had many memorable premieres at what were considered at the time to be the most prestigious theaters in Manhattan. One of my favorites was the premiere of the director’s cut of Martin Scorsese’s “New York, New York,” which was not only attended by Marty and the cast of the film, but also, quite weirdly, by Jerry Lewis and the members of The Clash. Continue reading “Obituary for a Movie Theater”