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- May 15, 1920, Aug 22, 1918 1906), p.72-77; "New York's Gigantic Toy," p.257-258 ; IMAGES: The New google_color_link = "00CCCC";
Image 17 of [Hippodrome program for the season 1917-1918]. and "The enormous crowds that will naturally be - Soon, the Hippodrome's elephantssymbols of its grand beginningswere moved uptown to the Bronx's Royal Theater. It was called the world's largest theatre by its builders and had a seating capacity of 5,300,[6] with a 100x200ft (30x61m) stage. In 1933, it was re-opened as the New York Hippodrome cinema, and became the stage for Billy Rose's Jumbo in 1935. Aug 01, 1907, Dec 13, 1905
overall decline in theatre ticket prices, and the Theatre Syndicate Image 21 of [Hippodrome program for the season 1917-1918]. The second act was Andersonville, about the notorious Confederate military prison where many Union soldiers were maltreated. Image 5 of [Hippodrome program for the season 1917-1918]. Broadway Veterans to Star in Berkeley Reps World Premiere of, New Musical About Mexican Icon Frida Kahlo in the Works, Sixth Ave. bet. humblest walked the same aisles even if they could not buy the same The Hippodrome Theatres scale wouldnt be replicated until the construction of the Roxy Theatre in 1927. How long did it last ? Image 14 of [Hippodrome program for the season 1917-1918]. Thompson imagined a vast "amusement resort" that would cater to the masses, offering them a brief respite from their tiresome lives of toil. The Library of Congress is not aware of any U.S. copyright or any other restrictions in the documents in this collection. Note the Hotel Algonquin in the background. heated their glue with electricity; chefs used electric ovens and and 27th streets in Manhattan. activity.
The "Vanishing Elephant" became one of Houdini's famous tricks, elevating his reputation as a master magician and illusionist. http://tinyurl.com/5b54dq. Electricity was used in every conceivable way in the Hippodrome, from the Times Square. even Barnum's 8000-seat circus paled in comparison with the proposal Leyendecker, Frank X., Illustrator, et al. google_ad_width = 120; Today, if you park your car in the lower level garage of the Hippodrome, you still see evidence of the building's rich history.
Or see some of
visit the costly legitimate Broadway theatres. The shows A Yankee Circus on Mars New York City's Hippodrome Closed Its The show ran for 233 performances (six months), then the theatre went dark forever. Speaking to a reporter from the NY Tribune the day after the Hippodrome opened, Thompson described his creation as a "gigantic toy" for the masses that "democratizes theatre-going in the same way that department stores had democratized shopping.
Thompson designed the theater's ingenious mechanical workings, which included complicated hydraulic elevators, counterweights, and hoists and traps. Dillingham stepped down and B.F. Albee, president of the B.F. Keith Vaudeville Circuit, took over the theater's management. Ask a In this registered letter typed on his engraved letterhead in Hull, England, on February 1, 1913, Houdini announces and describes his new Water Torture Cell escape trick, and warns British theatrical managers McManus-Young Collection (Library of Congress) - Watson, C. Howard - Houdini, Harry - Teale, Oscar S. (Oscar Schutte).
On August 30, 1926 the Hippodrome Theatre began a policy playing first-run movies with stage shows, the first film to play was Bessie Love in Young April. The ring is a horse hitch.
Apr 30, 1921, Aug 23, 1919 -
The Hippodrome Theatre opened on April 12, 1905 with A Yankee Circus on Mars. Together, they were able to convince a Image 19 of [Hippodrome program for the season 1917-1918]. Image 23 of [Hippodrome program for the season 1917-1918]. Built and operated by Fred Thompson & Skip Dundy, it was a massive 5,697-seat theatre presenting spectacular shows. The theater was enormous, with a seating capacity of 5,200 and a stage ten times the size of the average Broadway stagelarge enough to accommodate 1,000 performers and crew members or a full circus with elephants and horses. Opened in 1905, the Hippodrome on Sixth Avenue between 43rd and 44th Streets was billed as the largest theater in the world, seating 5,200 with a stage twelve times larger than any Broadway counterpart. April 13, 1905); "New York's Gigantic Toy," p.257 15. Others predicted an Macay's ideals closely resembled those of Frederic "New York's Gigantic Toy," p.251 14. untitled article by Alan Dale (ca. After it closed its doors in 1939, the Hippodrome To create the theater's inaugural show, Thompson and Dundy brought in the greatest talents in choreography and in stage and costume design.
When
Image 24 of [Hippodrome program for the season 1917-1918]. The entire block-long facade was itself an
, The New York Hippodrome
Retrieved from the Library of Congress,
fantastic shows at the Hippodrome would temporarily offer an escape for Morgan, architect. http://www.shorpy.com/node/8145?size=_original. the Panic of 1893. prices were aimed at the middle class, who had thus far been unable to
1917. The idea of building a hippodrome in New York City was not entirely new. electrical billboard, that "threw a fire and glare of electric Films were added to the Hippodrome's repertoire to attract new customers, but by that point, there were already newer and grander movie palaces in the Theater District. Electricity small step and a giant leap towards Manhattan. Image 10 of [Hippodrome program for the season 1917-1918]. construction company was owned by one of the financial backers. It became a location for vaudeville productions in 1923 before being leased for budget opera performances, then finally becoming a sports arena. Back in the 1920s, you could have seen all this at New York -
It was called the world's largest theatre Thompson; he dreamt of "subsidizing the genius of the whole world, for site of a what is now a large modern office building known as "The the department stores, the wealthy and the humble were able to J.H. B.F. Keith's Hippodrome, RKO Hippodrome Theatre. its visitors away from their grim world. a hippodrome. Under the direction of Charles Dillingham, the Hippodrome was the largest and most successful theater in New York. the education and inspiration of the masses, while affording them, at Thompson and Dundy hired the architect Jay Morgan to design the building, a Beaux-Arts masterpiece inflected with elements of Moorish Revival. When I worked in this dreary, non-descript building in the 1980s, the address was 1120 Avenue of the Americas (in case anyone goes searching for the site). artist, make an elephant disappear right in front of your eyes?
The interior was decorated in the Roman style, with deep reds and structural accents of gold, silver, and ivory. Daring dive! A successful 1935 run of the circus musical "Jumbo" briefly revitalized the Hippodrome and for several years thereafter, it booked late-run movies, boxing, wrestling, and Jai Lai matches. the same way that department stores had democratized shopping. [Image] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/2018682506/. (The original hippodromes of Ancient Greece were open stadiums where crowds gathered to watch chariot or horse races.) girls; wardrobes used electric irons to press costumes; carpenters Edison bought it from Mass Mutual in 1978 and later renovated it, adding the glass curtain wall and a new lobby. Tourists making their pilgrimages to Bryant Park or the New York Public Library or Times Square may pass by the building, which stands between 43rd and 44th Streets, but they don't stop. The theatre closed in August 1939 for demolition,[7] and in 1952 a large modern office building known as "The Hippodrome Center" (1120 Avenue of the Americas), opened on the site.