End of an Era: Loews State Closes

The closing of the Loews State movieplex, located underneath the Virgin Megastore in Times Square, is sad for two reasons. One, Manhattan has lost its largest screen for Bollywood features. (Maybe not so sad for you, but for India? Devastating.)

But far more important to New York history, the closure of the State Theater means that the last remaining movie screen in Times Square has finally closed. Fifty years ago, the neighborhood was the world's largest showcase for cinema -- the area housed over a dozen grand movie palaces, including the Paramount, Roxy, Capitol, Strand, Warner, Rivoli and the National. In late 2004, the Loews Astor Place closed on 44th Street (it is now a concert venue, the Nokia Theatre), and a few years before, the area lost the Embassy two-plex and the Criterion Center. Much of the blame can be laid at the feet of increased rents for commercial space, the recent AMC-Loews merger, and the flourishing new multiplexes on 42nd Street near Port Authority, the AMC Empire 25 and the Loews E-Walk.

Previously on ModFab:
End of an Era: McHale's, End of an Era: 46th and Broadway