I grew up in Flushing and saw some of my all time favorite movies here. My brother and sister worked here at the theater. (My brother was a manager!) I saw GREASE, SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER and even BACK TO THE FUTURE here. It was a dark, beautiful, and a bit scary theater with an upstairs large auditorium screen and two theaters downstairs. Everything was ornate. Thanks for the memories. I saw countless movies and will always have amazing memories. (I'm 45 now and live in Washington DC!)
I remember this theater like it was yesterday. I can close my eyes right now and actually feel as if i am there as it was in the 70's and 80's. It's a haunting feeling and sad, very sad. Flushing used to be such a great place and now sadly has turned to complete and utter crap. I loved the RKO Keiths! I saw so many movies there, it was like family to me. How this could happen to this place is not only disgraceful but disgusting as well.
Thank you for posting this Tom. So many fond memories from my childhood, seeing movies there, staring up occasionally at the starlit ceiling. The history and grandeur of the place, with its beautiful lobby made you feel like a movie star yourself!
Saw 'Rodan' there back in the fifties. Freaked me out!!! Thought it was real. Got my 2nd real job from the Personnel Agency just above the theater in the sixties. Many great memories!!! It should of been a landmark!!! RKO, Roosevelt, Prospect, Little Neck theater, what happened??? Sad!!!
I was 14 years old when I saw "The Godfather" at the RKO Keith's. I saw dozens of movies there as a kid and took my younger brother with me on Saturdays. I continued going to the RKO Keith's seeing "Lady Sings The Blues", Taxi Driver", "Godfather Part II" and many more. It was an amazing place! The staircases were something out of "Sunset Boulevard". I hate all the multiplex theaters today. There was something magical, just as it should be, about film when you saw it in this environment.
I loved going to the RKO Keith's theatre in the 50's and early 60's. We had nothing like it in Corona with the Plaza Theatre. Its lobby was like entering a world of Moorish palaces, gardens, and harems with that great fountain in a place of prominence. The interior with its gilt, twisted columns, and beautiful expansive blue curved ceiling added to the excitement of seeing any movie. After the show, we would go to Jahn's for an ice cream soda or sundae. This building designed by a famous architect should have been preserved. Perhaps some of it can be restored?
My favorite Theatre as a kid, you had the Quartet, and the Prospect, but this was my favorite, i saw so may movies with my childhood best friend Hector, so may memories during the 70s and early 80s, i moved out of Flushing in 1982. Broke my heart they never restored this place, such a beautiful place lost.
I watched many a movie in the RKO Keiths growing up in Flushing in the 1940's and 50's. We even saw some live stage performances. During one double horror show they had Frankenstein live on stage during the intermission. He leaped off the stage toward the audience and then the lights were turned low and you could hear him walking up the aisle. I remember trying to crawl over my brother and friends to get from my aisle seat toward the center. We were a bunch of scared kids!
I grew up 3 blocks from there in the 50s It was so wonderful to see a show there. Sad to see what happened. like so many elements in my life it has passed on... Soon we will too. I lived 3 blocks from the beginning of Main street now I live 3 blocks from the end of Main ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Great video. Thank you for working on this project. I lived next to the Keith's for 18 years and have nothing but fond memories of it. Keep up the good work and let's bring back the Keith's to Flushing as one of our cultural icon's as it was. rbhood2468
Oh wow! Same here, I grew up in Flushing and as a kid I remember seeing Empire Strikes Back and Jewel of the Nile their. Back then I would either go to the UA Quartet further east down Northern Blvd, or RKO. I miss it, what a shame it's distruction.
I used to take dance lessons at Kayes dance studio and this is where we had our shows at the end of the yr I started dancing there when I was 4 until I was 14 it was a great place and made all the young dancers feel like stars. the lobby with the stair cases and fountain was beautiful its' a shame they let it go to this
I also was sickened when I first heard that this beautiful theatre was almost torn down. I remember seeing Jaws when I was just 8 years old in this place! Also, Star Wars a couple of years later. Whatever it takes to save this old beauty should be done. It should not and cannot be torn down. Thank you for this amazing footage. I know I used those telephone booths! My heart breaks a little to see the inside look like this.
Thank you for posting,I remember this place very well,the movies were part of the experience but the place itself was just so awesome.Alot of good memories,I'm sorry you didn't get to see it in it's grandeur.Thanks again for posting this,it's good to know that others feel the same way I do about the place.
What a great job cartoonsonfilm putting this together. I have some of my best memories seeing movies their. It's heart breaking seeing what happened to it, and some of the beautiful old buildings and houses that where around when I was growing up
Hi, thanks for posting this and showing all that you could of the interior. So sad that it wasn't preserved, but would be fantastic if someone could now. I grew up in Tampa where there is another Lamb's designed theatre and it is a real treasure!!! If you get down there sometime be sure to check it out in downtown.
Now just the a small part of the R K O theater entrance is left. Where the theatre seats & screen were sits a huge aparment complex. Perfect, Just what no one ever needed. One look at the area makes you wonder what the decision makers were thinking.
Thank you for this video. I have seen the others. It's just so sad to see this beautiful theater deteriorate to the point of almost no return as the owners have it ties up in court and red tape
I been to many movies at this theater. But one thing that sticks out is when while standing out front I see this car flying making the right turn from Main St on to Northern Blvd and over the bridge. Right behind that car were like 10 police cars chasing it. We jumped back into the car and follwed it to the Iron triangle. We stopped on the corner. We heard a gun shot. We see this black male running who turns out to be a member of the Blak panthers that robbed a bank. Cops shot him in the head.
@Fizz826 I was born in flushing and lived there the first 6 years of my life then came to FL. I lived with my Dad every summer in Flushing and I used to love that theater. Last movie I saw there was Return of the Jedi. It's such a shame that someone hasn't restored in.
... place than where they came from but at the same time learn some values and respect the elderly. Great video! Thank you very much, after 22 years of living here I've finally met people who's been inside and appreciates what this building once was.
i spent my childhood and teens (60s/70s) in this theater. they were referred to as "movie palaces" the first one (the regent, new york city) built in 1913 and then about 4,000 more throughout the U.S. from 1914 -1922. the reason for the ornate fantasy like palaces (water fountains, mural ceilings of night skies filled with stars etc.) was to be used as an escape from the day-to-day life. they were magical. (continued)...
I use to go watch movies here when I was a kid. It was a beautiful place. I still live in the area and not very far from the theater. I pass it every now an then and now most of the building is gone.
My last memory of this majestic theatre is about 1968 seeing Romeo and Juliet and sitting on the balcony. Most of my movie memories were at another theatre down main St where they had double features on Saturdays and raffled bicycles. I remember velvet curtains- I think they were red. I wonder why I don't remember going after 11 years old...
My family moved to Flushing in 1966 and the RKO was still operable but signs of decline were evident throughout the seventies. I go back to visit friends and some family still in the area. It is sadly gone. All that beautiful architecture that will never be replaced. They have though, restored the Loew's Paradise in the Bronx, another theater we went to, where I lived as a child. Who knows? Maybe someday the RKO may rise from the ashes!
THIS is incredible ! Thanks for posting cartoonsonfilm, and more than that Thank You for recording this footage. Wow. It would turn Flushing around if this old theatre was to be restored. Have you seen the restored Paradise Theatre in the BX ? Beautiful.
@Kateb411 I wish you were right, but it would probably take $20 million or more to restore the theatre. There's a great book on the restoration of the New Amsterdam theatre by Disney. You might want to check it out. As for the RKO Keith's, there have been a number of plans for the place, some of which have promised to keep the lobby, which apparently, isn't in too bad a shape.
It's a shame how they trashed this awesome theater. Return of the Jedi was the last movie I saw there in 1983. Downtown Flushing needs a good movie theater and this was a great one. They should definitely restore it, but they probably won't
the keiths, man, what a theater.. best part were the rowdy crowds for the midnight shows. I'll never forget seeing ReAnimator at a midnight show at the keiths in 1985. everytime someone eyes exploded or head got chopped off the place went nuts. the rowdiest crowd i ever saw a movie with. I remember, during the scene where they are trying to revive the cat, some guy in the back yelled out, "hey give it a cat scan". and the entire audience spent the next five minutes calling him a dick.
@campirella Hi, I used to go to the Keiths during the late 50's and early 60's with my brother. Mom would drop us off on a rainy day and we would spend the whole day there watching Marx brothers and three stooges and Jerry lewis movies for about a quarter! We lived on 61st. rd. in front of Queens college. I went to elementary school at P.S. 201 off Kissens blvd. Let me know if you get this please, thank you........Doug
I ill always love the RKO my fondest memories were of star wars must have see it 10 times that day ,my uncle Marc worked there and also met his first wife there my aunt Marie id say back in the late 40s early 50s .There was also a fountain in the square out front on northern blvd my father played in as a kid the picture has rko in the back ground . my grand parents lived on 41st rd a few blocks away and we went there often ,They don't build them like that any more .
@bobszvetics1 Your brilliance and intellect speaks for itself. Not that it should matter, but I'm not asian and my family has been in this country for 114 years.
I'm currently 35 years old, came to Flushing in 1989 with my grandparents from Taipei, Taiwan. Ever since I've been here the RKO has been closed. I'd love to see this theater restored, even though i've only been here for 22 years I'm disliking what Flushing has become.. Land developers knows nothing about the past and just want to put up apartment complexes and malls. The people living here now just care about giving birth to their next generation on this land. I understand this is a better pla
ah, my beloved keiths.. my favorite theater of all time... the last movie i saw there was a midnight show of ReAnimator in 1985, when i was 15. i remember the audience was so rowdy. it was the most fun i think i've ever had in a theater... i remember, when they were trying to re-animate the dead cat, some guy yelled out "give it a cat scan" and the audience spent 5 minutes calling the guy a dick. it was great!
It closed with three screens. I believe the final films shown were Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, Night of the Creeps and Running Scared. A framed faded one sheet of the latter remained just outside the entrance for several years.
What a shame, it's enough to make you sick. Here in Rochester we had an RKO, slightly smaller I think but just as opulent and interestingly opened on the same day. They tore it down in the 60's to make way for a "modern" complex. I was around, but, living in the 'burbs, never got to see it. It's still an empty lot 45 years later! Thankfully, they saved the Wurlitzer organ, moved it to another nearby theater where's it's still played regularly.
So sad I remember my parents taking me here to see movies and then going to Adventurers Inn for dinner and rides and occasionally going to what was then Flushing airport run by Speed Hanslik.
I would love to see this theatre restored, did anyone think about the asbestos and lead paint in this building?....All of that, which is the detailed plater that was painted, is covered with lead paint.... I think its too far gone......rip
I saw Nightmare on Elm Street there, never forget the details of the interior. Wasted landmark. Places like this should never be sold to people that can't appreciate there history.
I saw Rocky IV here with my mom (or was it 3?). This place was a PALACE. It was so cool. Made me feel like i was sneaking into a wealthy family's house or something. What a dastardly shame.
...the RKO KEITHS was landmarked at the time that the notorious tommy huang purchased and knowingly inflicted irrepairable and permanent damage to this once glorious movie palace. it's despicable that he was never really held accountable for his actions.
I remember as a kid going to the Keiths. When it was a movie thearter. I remember the sparkling ceiling and all the statues and the fountain. I remember running up and down the grand staircase. The man that bought this place let it fall apart because he had to conform to landmark status regulations. The fire damage it was said, he tried to burn it down, but it the fire was foiled and it couldnt be proved he had a hand in it. But thats what all the flushing locals think
I really wish this theater will be restored so I, and my community, can see this majestic place that didn't exist when we were here. And please stop with the racist comments -_-
Sad. The interior looks in much worse shape than I would have thought. Restoration will be complicated by the fact that so much of the detail is simply missing ... not just damaged. Still in need of restoration, I suspect the Loew's King in Brooklyn has more intact for a restoration. Nonetheless, I have fond memories of the Keith's glorious interior from the time before it was turned into a triplex.
Would it be too much to ask to bring this building back as a Church? I think that would be an awesome tribute to those who worked so hard to build it. I say bring it back as a church and Honor not only the Keiths but God Almighty himself. He is capable of this miracle.
what a tragic thing to let this fall into such disrepair. hopefully it will be restored but financing the job, it isn't cost effective unless someone wealthy does it for the reasons of the art. business wise, it isn't hopeful. in italy, art in buildings, fortunately is regarded with more consideration. on the other hand, italy is not a very wealthy country when looking from business vs art. i don't think its racist because you said it was moorish spanish. this is art, lets restore it if we can
@devildoc225 You got the first part right. The 2nd part is simply a paranoid and racist rant. The decline of movie palaces has nothing to do with immigrants. It has to do with the economics of the movie theater business. And the fact is that most large theaters, most of which were built right before the depression, were never profitable. Most went into bankruptcy and were resold many times.
@bobszvetics1 OK, racist. What does the average Asian who lives in Flushing have to do with it? None of the great movie palaces in NYC are left, except for the partially restored Loews Paradise & that is rarely open. The reality is that this place was bought by a real-estate magnate, who happens to be Asian, who purposely made the place an environmental hazard so he could tear it down without worrying about any preservation issues, but the place has been taken away from him.
like....what type of stage. and what are they doing to it right now? like i mean where or are they planning on demolishing it? and what was the main reason it closed? thanxs(: and thanxs for the posting this talking about a lifesaver (:
I remember as a kid going to the Keiths. When it was a movie thearter. I remember the sparkling ceiling and all the statues and the fountain. I remember running up and down the grand staircase. The man that bought this place let it fall apart because he had to conform to landmark status regulations. The fire damage it was said, he tried to burn it down, but it the fire was foiled and it couldnt be proved he had a hand in it. But thats what all the flushing locals think
Wonderful photos! It is so sad that we have lost so many beautiful theatres!
I grew up in Flushing and saw some of my all time favorite movies here. My brother and sister worked here at the theater. (My brother was a manager!) I saw GREASE, SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER and even BACK TO THE FUTURE here. It was a dark, beautiful, and a bit scary theater with an upstairs large auditorium screen and two theaters downstairs. Everything was ornate. Thanks for the memories. I saw countless movies and will always have amazing memories. (I'm 45 now and live in Washington DC!)
I remember this theater like it was yesterday. I can close my eyes right now and actually feel as if i am there as it was in the 70's and 80's. It's a haunting feeling and sad, very sad. Flushing used to be such a great place and now sadly has turned to complete and utter crap. I loved the RKO Keiths! I saw so many movies there, it was like family to me. How this could happen to this place is not only disgraceful but disgusting as well.
Thank you for posting this Tom. So many fond memories from my childhood, seeing movies there, staring up occasionally at the starlit ceiling. The history and grandeur of the place, with its beautiful lobby made you feel like a movie star yourself!
Saw 'Rodan' there back in the fifties. Freaked me out!!! Thought it was real.
Got my 2nd real job from the Personnel Agency just above the theater in the sixties.
Many great memories!!! It should of been a landmark!!!
RKO, Roosevelt, Prospect, Little Neck theater, what happened??? Sad!!!
Grew up in Bayside, Bayside HS, class of 1964. So many memories here. What a shame what has become of Flushing.
I was 14 years old when I saw "The Godfather" at the RKO Keith's. I saw dozens of movies there as a kid and took my younger brother with me on Saturdays. I continued going to the RKO Keith's seeing "Lady Sings The Blues", Taxi Driver", "Godfather Part II" and many more. It was an amazing place! The staircases were something out of "Sunset Boulevard". I hate all the multiplex theaters today. There was something magical, just as it should be, about film when you saw it in this environment.
Thank you. I was a kid in the 60's and went there often. That which made the lobby super special was the lighting. It was simlpy incredible.
Great video. I used to go to that theater in the late 1960's and early 1970's. It was a beautiful theater!' Thank you for the post!
I loved going to the RKO Keith's theatre in the 50's and early 60's. We had nothing like it in Corona with the Plaza Theatre. Its lobby was like entering a world of Moorish palaces, gardens, and harems with that great fountain in a place of prominence. The interior with its gilt, twisted columns, and beautiful expansive blue curved ceiling added to the excitement of seeing any movie. After the show, we would go to Jahn's for an ice cream soda or sundae. This building designed by a famous architect should have been preserved. Perhaps some of it can be restored?
My favorite Theatre as a kid, you had the Quartet, and the Prospect, but this was my favorite, i saw so may movies with my childhood best friend Hector, so may memories during the 70s and early 80s, i moved out of Flushing in 1982. Broke my heart they never restored this place, such a beautiful place lost.
I watched many a movie in the RKO Keiths growing up in Flushing in the 1940's and 50's. We even saw some live stage performances. During one double horror show they had Frankenstein live on stage during the intermission. He leaped off the stage toward the audience and then the lights were turned low and you could hear him walking up the aisle. I remember trying to crawl over my brother and friends to get from my aisle seat toward the center. We were a bunch of scared kids!
I grew up 3 blocks from there in the 50s It was so wonderful to see a show there. Sad to see what happened. like so many elements in my life it has passed on... Soon we will too. I lived 3 blocks from the beginning of Main street now I live 3 blocks from the end of Main ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Great video. Thank you for working on this project. I lived next to the Keith's for 18 years and have nothing but fond memories of it. Keep up the good work and let's bring back the Keith's to Flushing as one of our cultural icon's as it was. rbhood2468
Oh wow! Same here, I grew up in Flushing and as a kid I remember seeing Empire Strikes Back and Jewel of the Nile their. Back then I would either go to the UA Quartet further east down Northern Blvd, or RKO. I miss it, what a shame it's distruction.
I used to take dance lessons at Kayes dance studio and this is where we had our shows at the end of the yr I started dancing there when I was 4 until I was 14 it was a great place and made all the young dancers feel like stars. the lobby with the stair cases and fountain was beautiful its' a shame they let it go to this
“Nothing is as beautiful as what we see no more.”
I went to Keith's RKO only once. It was for my graduation from IS 61 in Corona in 1968.
I also was sickened when I first heard that this beautiful theatre was almost torn down. I remember seeing Jaws when I was just 8 years old in this place! Also, Star Wars a couple of years later. Whatever it takes to save this old beauty should be done. It should not and cannot be torn down. Thank you for this amazing footage. I know I used those telephone booths! My heart breaks a little to see the inside look like this.
I saw MANY movies here when I was little. I remember especially "Lady and the Tramp" and then my mother took me to visit relatives in College Point.
I saw Purple Rain there. The inside of the theater reminded me of a palace. I remember the curved stairs. I grew up in Flushing in the 80’s.
Thank you for posting,I remember this place very well,the movies were part of the experience but the place itself was just so awesome.Alot of good memories,I'm sorry you didn't get to see it in it's grandeur.Thanks again for posting this,it's good to know that others feel the same way I do about the place.
What a great job cartoonsonfilm putting this together. I have some of my best memories seeing movies their. It's heart breaking seeing what happened to it, and some of the beautiful old buildings and houses that where around when I was growing up
Hi, thanks for posting this and showing all that you could of the interior. So sad that it wasn't preserved, but would be fantastic if someone could now. I grew up in Tampa where there is another Lamb's designed theatre and it is a real treasure!!! If you get down there sometime be sure to check it out in downtown.
Now just the a small part of the R K O theater entrance is left. Where the theatre seats & screen were sits a huge aparment complex. Perfect, Just what no one ever needed. One look at the area makes you wonder what the decision makers were thinking.
Thank you for this video. I have seen the others. It's just so sad to see this beautiful theater deteriorate to the point of almost no return as the owners have it ties up in court and red tape
I used to attend Flushing High School,in the 1970's every weekend myself, my dad and my sisters used to come here to see the movies
I been to many movies at this theater. But one thing that sticks out is when while standing out front I see this car flying making the right turn from Main St on to Northern Blvd and over the bridge. Right behind that car were like 10 police cars chasing it. We jumped back into the car and follwed it to the Iron triangle. We stopped on the corner. We heard a gun shot. We see this black male running who turns out to be a member of the Blak panthers that robbed a bank. Cops shot him in the head.
I saw Star Wars and Quadrophenia there. It was an amazing theater.
Great video! I'd always wondered what had become of the interior of RKO.
@Fizz826 I was born in flushing and lived there the first 6 years of my life then came to FL. I lived with my Dad every summer in Flushing and I used to love that theater. Last movie I saw there was Return of the Jedi. It's such a shame that someone hasn't restored in.
This movie palace needs ti be restored and reused as a performing arts center.
Agreed
... place than where they came from but at the same time learn some values and respect the elderly. Great video! Thank you very much, after 22 years of living here I've finally met people who's been inside and appreciates what this building once was.
i spent my childhood and teens (60s/70s) in this theater. they were referred to as "movie palaces" the first one (the regent, new york city) built in 1913 and then about 4,000 more throughout the U.S. from 1914 -1922. the reason for the ornate fantasy like palaces (water fountains, mural ceilings of night skies filled with stars etc.) was to be used as an escape from the day-to-day life. they were magical. (continued)...
I use to go watch movies here when I was a kid. It was a beautiful place. I still live in the area and not very far from the theater. I pass it every now an then and now most of the building is gone.
My last memory of this majestic theatre is about 1968 seeing Romeo and Juliet and sitting on the balcony. Most of my movie memories were at another theatre down main St where they had double features on Saturdays and raffled bicycles. I remember velvet curtains- I think they were red. I wonder why I don't remember going after 11 years old...
H
My family moved to Flushing in 1966 and the RKO was still operable but signs of decline were evident throughout the seventies. I go back to visit friends and some family still in the area. It is sadly gone. All that beautiful architecture that will never be replaced. They have though, restored the Loew's Paradise in the Bronx, another theater we went to, where I lived as a child. Who knows? Maybe someday the RKO may rise from the ashes!
THIS is incredible ! Thanks for posting cartoonsonfilm, and more than that Thank You for recording this footage. Wow. It would turn Flushing around if this old theatre was to be restored. Have you seen the restored Paradise Theatre in the BX ? Beautiful.
Saw 'Airport' there , LIKE YESTERDAY :(
I saw the Empire Strikes Back there.
Same here. Still remember that day. Great film, great theater!
Me too, twice. I was nine. Great memory!
@Kateb411
I wish you were right, but it would probably take $20 million or more to restore the theatre. There's a great book on the restoration of the New Amsterdam theatre by Disney. You might want to check it out.
As for the RKO Keith's, there have been a number of plans for the place, some of which have promised to keep the lobby, which apparently, isn't in too bad a shape.
It's a shame how they trashed this awesome theater. Return of the Jedi was the last movie I saw there in 1983. Downtown Flushing needs a good movie theater and this was a great one. They should definitely restore it, but they probably won't
the keiths, man, what a theater.. best part were the rowdy crowds for the midnight shows. I'll never forget seeing ReAnimator at a midnight show at the keiths in 1985. everytime someone eyes exploded or head got chopped off the place went nuts. the rowdiest crowd i ever saw a movie with. I remember, during the scene where they are trying to revive the cat, some guy in the back yelled out, "hey give it a cat scan". and the entire audience spent the next five minutes calling him a dick.
@campirella Hi, I used to go to the Keiths during the late 50's and early 60's with my brother. Mom would drop us off on a rainy day and we would spend the whole day there watching Marx brothers and three stooges and Jerry lewis movies for about a quarter! We lived on 61st. rd. in front of Queens college. I went to elementary school at P.S. 201 off Kissens blvd. Let me know if you get this please, thank you........Doug
This is very upsetting. Many memories there-High School Graduation, etc
I ill always love the RKO my fondest memories were of star wars must have see it 10 times that day ,my uncle Marc worked there and also met his first wife there my aunt Marie id say back in the late 40s early 50s .There was also a fountain in the square out front on northern blvd my father played in as a kid the picture has rko in the back ground . my grand parents lived on 41st rd a few blocks away and we went there often ,They don't build them like that any more .
This theatre should be saved and restored to its former glory!
@bobszvetics1
Your brilliance and intellect speaks for itself. Not that it should matter, but I'm not asian and my family has been in this country for 114 years.
I saw 'Airport' there in '70 , took the 7 from 40st.
I'm currently 35 years old, came to Flushing in 1989 with my grandparents from Taipei, Taiwan. Ever since I've been here the RKO has been closed. I'd love to see this theater restored, even though i've only been here for 22 years I'm disliking what Flushing has become.. Land developers knows nothing about the past and just want to put up apartment complexes and malls. The people living here now just care about giving birth to their next generation on this land. I understand this is a better pla
Sad. But thank you for sharing.
The Men's Room caught my eye.
ah, my beloved keiths.. my favorite theater of all time... the last movie i saw there was a midnight show of ReAnimator in 1985, when i was 15. i remember the audience was so rowdy. it was the most fun i think i've ever had in a theater...
i remember, when they were trying to re-animate the dead cat, some guy yelled out "give it a cat scan" and the audience spent 5 minutes calling the guy a dick. it was great!
So it only had 3 big screens? Anyone know how many screens it had by the time it closed in ‘86?
It closed with three screens. I believe the final films shown were Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, Night of the Creeps and Running Scared. A framed faded one sheet of the latter remained just outside the entrance for several years.
@@NYPRBLUE cool. Thx.
What a shame, it's enough to make you sick. Here in Rochester we had an RKO, slightly smaller I think but just as opulent and interestingly opened on the same day. They tore it down in the 60's to make way for a "modern" complex. I was around, but, living in the 'burbs, never got to see it. It's still an empty lot 45 years later! Thankfully, they saved the Wurlitzer organ, moved it to another nearby theater where's it's still played regularly.
@Fizz826 SO beautifully said!
So sad I remember my parents taking me here to see movies and then going to Adventurers Inn for dinner and rides and occasionally going to what was then Flushing airport run by Speed Hanslik.
I would love to see this theatre restored, did anyone think about the asbestos and lead paint in this building?....All of that, which is the detailed plater that was painted, is covered with lead paint....
I think its too far gone......rip
My parents had their first date there in 1966
i saw saterday night fever there missing in action n both goast busters in rko
What kind of info are you looking for?
I saw Nightmare on Elm Street there, never forget the details of the interior.
Wasted landmark.
Places like this should never be sold to people that can't appreciate there history.
I WACHED MISSING IN ACTION ONE THERE I WACHED GAOST BUSTER 2 AND SATERDAYNIGHT FEVER AND 007 FOR YOUR EYES ONLY
Gday luv
Saw Saturday Night Fever
Adventure Land
I saw Rocky IV here with my mom (or was it 3?). This place was a PALACE. It was so cool. Made me feel like i was sneaking into a wealthy family's house or something. What a dastardly shame.
It was IV. III played at the nearby Prospect theater.
Right on!
When you got spiffy to go to a Sunday matinee with the folks. I usually wore what I wore to ten o clock Mass
I wonder if they ever had people living in there. It’s been vacant there for years.
...the RKO KEITHS was landmarked at the time that the notorious tommy huang purchased and knowingly inflicted irrepairable and permanent damage to this once glorious movie palace. it's despicable that he was never really held accountable for his actions.
I remember as a kid going to the Keiths. When it was a movie thearter. I remember the sparkling ceiling and all the statues and the fountain. I remember running up and down the grand staircase. The man that bought this place let it fall apart because he had to conform to landmark status regulations. The fire damage it was said, he tried to burn it down, but it the fire was foiled and it couldnt be proved he had a hand in it. But thats what all the flushing locals think
I really wish this theater will be restored so I, and my community, can see this majestic place that didn't exist when we were here.
And please stop with the racist comments -_-
Its completely gone now.thats why im here to look at the photos..😥
The word definitely needs to be spead
Sad. The interior looks in much worse shape than I would have thought. Restoration will be complicated by the fact that so much of the detail is simply missing ... not just damaged. Still in need of restoration, I suspect the Loew's King in Brooklyn has more intact for a restoration. Nonetheless, I have fond memories of the Keith's glorious interior from the time before it was turned into a triplex.
Would it be too much to ask to bring this building back as a Church? I think that would be an awesome tribute to those who worked so hard to build it. I say bring it back as a church and Honor not only the Keiths but God Almighty himself. He is capable of this miracle.
Nothing's being restored
It's gone !!!!!
Officially demolished, July 2021.
what a tragic thing to let this fall into such disrepair. hopefully it will be restored but financing the job, it isn't cost effective unless someone wealthy does it for the reasons of the art. business wise, it isn't hopeful. in italy, art in buildings, fortunately is regarded with more consideration. on the other hand, italy is not a very wealthy country when looking from business vs art. i don't think its racist because you said it was moorish spanish. this is art, lets restore it if we can
Sad to see this. I saw The Godfather here in 72.
Thats when flushing was american, not asians,
Asians can't be american? Idiot....
@devildoc225
You got the first part right. The 2nd part is simply a paranoid and racist rant. The decline of movie palaces has nothing to do with immigrants. It has to do with the economics of the movie theater business. And the fact is that most large theaters, most of which were built right before the depression, were never profitable. Most went into bankruptcy and were resold many times.
They really destroyed this place very sad.
check out (youtube) TCM Fanatic: Movie Palaces
This is depressing.
Owners should be thrown in prison for allowing the decay of this land marked building. Sixty years ago, it was my childhood fantasy world.
Well robbed and vandalised, looks like you weren`t the first in there mate.
@bobszvetics1
OK, racist. What does the average Asian who lives in Flushing have to do with it? None of the great movie palaces in NYC are left, except for the partially restored Loews Paradise & that is rarely open.
The reality is that this place was bought by a real-estate magnate, who happens to be Asian, who purposely made the place an environmental hazard so he could tear it down without worrying about any preservation issues, but the place has been taken away from him.
like....what type of stage. and what are they doing to it right now? like i mean where or are they planning on demolishing it? and what was the main reason it closed? thanxs(: and thanxs for the posting this talking about a lifesaver (:
ok can someone tell me the info about this theater im doing this report about it!! :DD
I remember as a kid going to the Keiths. When it was a movie thearter. I remember the sparkling ceiling and all the statues and the fountain. I remember running up and down the grand staircase. The man that bought this place let it fall apart because he had to conform to landmark status regulations. The fire damage it was said, he tried to burn it down, but it the fire was foiled and it couldnt be proved he had a hand in it. But thats what all the flushing locals think