1956 Brooklyn, New York 1

Barry Essig
Born 1939
Brooklyn, New York
Interviewed on January 28, 2019
by Travis Alverio

My earliest recollection of watching films was in the late 50’s into the early 60’s back in my early teens, I’d go with friends or on a date, often during the summer when we were off from school and almost always certainly on a Saturday. Grandma and Cousin Vicky also both distinctly remember going to the theater on a Saturday and paying a quarter. Back then I lived in Brooklyn on Ocean Avenue and Avenue O. Kings Highway was the main street where two movie theaters were located, the Avalon and the Kingsway, in addition to plenty of restaurants, clothing stores, and groceries. My dad ran a vegetable shop about block away and my sister, Aunt Renee, worked in a clothing shop.

The first film I can remember seeing was The Ten Commandments, but it could have also been Bridge on the River Kwai. I always liked my movies to have some sort of historical context, but I also enjoyed comedies. To be honest, the films themselves were never really the draw for me, it was all about the air conditioning. That’s what I remember most about the theaters, the huge signs advertising air condition and my wanting to spend a Saturday afternoon watching something enjoyable and cooling off during the hot summer months. Technicolor and Cinemascope were also big draws, most of my friends had television but in black & white and much smaller. The sound was also significantly better, but you didn’t want to sit too close to the screen or you’d hurt your neck, I guess that is still relevant today though. So we walked to the theaters to spend a few hours, I’m fairly certain that buying a ticket allowed you to see two movies. We’d get there around noon, leave around 5pm, and walk home. Everyone lived within walking distance of the theater and of each other.

I don’t remember much about the seats, but there were ushers in the theater with flashlights that helped your group find seats. Before being seated we’d buy popcorn, cokes, raisinets, goobers, and bonbons. The only thing I didn’t particularly like about the theaters is that smoking was allowed, but that was par for the course back then so it didn’t bother me too much. I remember my dad used to smoke in the house all the time, you became accustomed to it even if you didn’t partake in it.

The films often started with a newsreel of events from across the U.S. and world. I recall my parents telling me about how the WWII newsreel covered the war effort. I can’t remember specifics about the newsreels when I saw movies. The news was followed by cartoons, Bugs Bunny was my favorite. Bugs Bunny saying… “That’s all folks!” is probably my most vivid memory, I can still clearly recall the screen and the sound to this day. It certainly helps that I have heard him utter the phrase since, but the memory from the Brooklyn theaters clearly remains.