Saturdays at the Palace Theater

[Cathy]

Do any of you remember Saturdays at the Palace, in the late 50's and early 60's? I'm not sure how much it cost, but we would see a double-feature as well as a newsreel and a serial. It would be an all day kind of thing. Of course we would pick up our candy at the candy store a few doors down...don't remember the name of that store. There would also be a drawing at the end of the shows for silver dollars. Remember seeing a few scary classics there...Rodan, The Fly, The Blob.

OK, so now...a question... One of the serials presented was that of a female Zorro type. Anybody out there remember the name of that serial which is also the main character's name?

Cathy Merendino

[Pat (Jacob) Abbamonte]

Hi Cathy: Yes, I remember the palace theatre (you forgot if you were very lucky - a free cartoon too). I also remember seeing another movie there (With Vincent Price) called " The Tingler". If you saw this at an evening show they would throw this rubbery tingler into the audience. Guess the couldn't do it for the kids because they would get too scared. LOL

I just don't remember the woman Zorro - I do recall they started to play some cliffhangers there with the Lone Ranger. I also remember Sat. at the old RKO Theatre on Castle Hill Ave. - They had all the Vincent Price movies there (I was now a lot older at least l3 or l4) lol I specifically remember l3 Ghosts and Ten Little Indians - Oh! and House on Haunted Hill and probably no one else will remember this one " The Day of the Triffords" that one was a real old one. I know you all thought I was crazy when I gave that one in charades at the picnic. No one remembered it - Let's see if any one else remembers that movie besides me. That is my trivia question for any one who wants to join in. Tell me a little about it if you remember it... Talk to you all soon - Best Always Patsy Abbamonte

[lisa luciano]

hi pat,
i remember that movie well, to this day sunflowers scare the crap out of me because they remind me of the movie. i remember how it turned out regular salt could destroy them ( the last scene in the lighthouse, i think). probably this is why i love salt on everything. i also loved "the tingler". no one else remembers that movie but me, glad someone else out there is an old horror movie fan.
lisa

[Julie (Luciano)]

well, Lisa, maybe it's just because I'm your sister so we saw most movies together - but I do remember the Tingler as well. I still love all those old horror movies.

I don't remember seeing too many cartoons at the movies but I do recall those "educational" short films on things like how to forge steel and thimngs like that that every 10-11 year old is dying to know!

I don't remember the female Zoro either.

[Pat (Jacob) Abbamonte]

Hi Lisa and Julie: Glad to know there were some other "scary movie fans" - this was the term I recall using before " horror movie fans"... LOL Yes Lisa you are correct they killed the Triffids (I think that is the correct spelling now - I'm not sure) LOL with regular old salt. Which was found out because the ocean water. I am trying to remember the name of another old SCARY movie. This one came out around the time we were racing to send something up in space that wouldn't decay in orbit and hit our atmoshphere & burn up like all else we were sending up there. Any way I believe Tom Tryon was in it and it was called "The Spaceman" I think - I just cannot remember the name of it. Anyway the astronaut goes into space (he's engaged to a gorgeous brunette) his ship breaks in half and gets covered in space dirt and crashes but he doesn't die he just can't talk, see or be killed because of his protected coating of space dust (looks like he is coated in sparkly shake n bake lol). Any how the space dirt is slowly killing him and he is mindlessly trying to reach his fiancee who is petrified of the shake n bake stalker LOL O.K. girls now it is your turn to come up with a really old one no one has thought about in years. Doesn't have to be a movie theatre movie - could be an old T.V. movie but try and stay in the year range of these movies... Let me know if anyone can think of the name of that old spaceman movie and any other questions from old movies and shows. I was one of the original horror movie fans ( Do either of you remember Saturday Nite T.V. and "Chiller Theatre" ???)
The hand would come up out of the swampy water.... Great to talk to you both - All are welcome to join our conversation. By the way Lisa and Julie where did you girls grow up ?
My sister and I lived in 1803 Archer Street the apartment right above the cleaners... I will say I was born l949 and Theresa in 52 - so it may not be a distance thing where we aren't familiar with one another but probably and time frame difference. Fun to talk to you hope to hear from you soon Patsy

[Pat (Jacob) Abbamonte]

Hi Lisa : It is me again - meant to reply to the fear of Sunflowers you expressed - Yes - I agree with that one too ! We now live in Virginia and we can take some country back roads to get to the Stores here sometimes. There is one road that I get the chills from because if you recall those things would move around at night and walk in the dark and there are a few really scary scenes at night there in the country when the people are trying to escape..
We have one road here a dirt road where the trees on either side bend over the top of the road and meet one another and I always tell my daughter this road reminds me of a scene from an old movie I loved as a kid. It scares me every time. Stay away from Sunflowers and Talk to you soon Patsy

[Julie (Luciano)]

Hi Patsy,
I don't recall the spaceman movie you mentioned but we both loved Chiller Theater (with the 6 fingered hand!) and then there was also Creature Features and Night Gallery which came later.

Lisa and I both loved (& still do) watching scary movies. Do you remember House Of Wax and Masque of the Red Death (I can't think of Vincent Price without thinking of him as scary!). Of course the Blob and Invasion of the Body Snatchers are classics. Do you remember a move called the Innocents about the governess looking after 2 small kids. That one scared me silly! I think the b&w ones seemed to scare me the most.

Lisa and I lived on Beach Ave- although when we were very young we did live at 1809 Archer Street for a while (our Mom and our grandparents lived there) I was born in 1960 and Lisa in 1958. I now live in CT and Lisa's in NJ.

Julie

[Pat (Jacob) Abbamonte]

Hi Julie: Yep! I sure do remember those old really scary movies - I have yet to find someone who remembers that "Spaceman" movie. I have wanted to rewatch that one and have not been able to find it because I may be mistaken about the title AND yes that too was in black and white and scared the heck out of me. Not for the normal reasons but for reasons similar to the original "Night of the Living Dead" - the spaceman could not be stopped no matter what they did to him - he was driven with the desire to see his girl again and was going to NO MATTER WHAT THEY DID TO HIM ! Both of these movies were sooo scary because all other scary movies you could fall asleep thinking I can wear garlic around my neck so the vampires won't get me, or a cross on my neck AND a silver bullet will stop the werewolves (and there we sooo many silver bullets just lying in the street on Archer Street LOL ) But you could always rest your mind to sleep because there was always a way to neutralize the villians UNTIL DUNN DUNN DUNNNNN "Night of the Living Dead and "The Spaceman".. These bothered me the most because there wasn't a neutralizer you could use if they came into your bedroom while you were sleeping LOL Even the Tingler was stoppable with a scream EXCEPT for the poor mute Lady who could see it coming but couldn't stop it because she couldn't speak.... Yes I do remember all the Saturday Nite fright shows.... I think I have seen them all I am surprised you and your sister watched all these as you must have been really young. This was fun and hope to talk to you again soon. Oh Yeah! I do remember the Mask of the Red Death too - How about The House of Usher - House on Haunted Hill - Ten Little Indians - Rosemary's Baby (that was a new one in color ), the original "Phsycho" also in black and white....
Yes I do recall "The Innocents" they have really remade that one changing it a million times and still none were as good as the original. Well, Julie let me know if you come up with any more and if anyone out there remembers the movie Spaceman let me know. Love Ya, Patsy

[Joe Anastasio]

I remember always watching Creeeeeaturrrrre Feeeeeaturrrrrres, Chilllllllllllller Theatre and especially loved Night Gallery. Now those are series that would be great on re-runs instead of most of the junk on tv now.

Hello Cathy:
I did the Palace Theatre Saturday afternoon movie deal a few times. By the time I was going though (early 70's), it was simply a double feature - no serials or news reels (or cartoons, darn, I missed out!).

I especially remember one Saturday, Patrick Pontillo (RIP) and I decided to see the current double feature. It was billed as the goriest movies ever. They were truly forgettable (so much so that I can't possibly remember the names of the movies) but that didn't stop us from seeing both of them - TWICE (we made sure we got our dollar's worth, or was it $1.25?). By the time we got out all our neighbors were telling us our parents were looking for us all day and asking "WHERE WERE YOU TWO???" Of course we were wondering what all the fuss was about because we only went to the movies... for about 7 HOURS!

Does anyone remember when the Palace Theatre closed? I believe it was 1973.

[nick drewes]

Hi.
I remember the Palace well. Opening the side doors on Saturdays letting in friends.
I remember seeing "The Thing".
Do you remember when they had Hopalong Casitey there giving out small Wonder breads?
Nick Drewes

[Pat (Jacob) Abbamonte]

Hi Joe and Nick and Cathy:

Yup! I sure do remember the little breads they gave out "Wonder Bread" and then the old competitor "Silvercup" also started doing the same. My Uncle used to work for them so lots of times we would get the "Silvercup" mini loaves from him too. Still think Wonder Bread was better though..

Also Do remember "The Thing" (James Arness). I remember he was probably one of the tallest actors around in that genre. Now 6 Feet tall is no biggy. LOL

I also remember Hopalong Cassidy - Gene Autry - .....

Does anyone remember some of the really popular westerns that were on T.V. all the time.
The Rifleman - Cheyenne - Sugarfoot - Laramie - Yes, Big Valley (which came a little later than these others ), WagonTrain, The Cisco Kid, Paladin (Have Gun Will Travel),
Danielle Boone, Davey Crocket, The Swamp Fox (was that Leslie Neilson in the title role?? Correct me if I am wrong)..

Where I live now in Virginia (Richmond area) our cable channel (Sci-fi) puts all the old reruns of Night Gallery - Twilight Zone etc. on in the mornings lots of times. It is so much fun watching some of these oldies. Just saw one of the first times William Shatner was on T.V. (a twilight zone episode) He must have been only about 20 years old or so I also remember on Saturdays RKO had a lot of matinees for kids (now I am really going to date myself here 50Cents on saturdays and you got to see two features 1 or 2 Cartoons, coming attractions and sometimes a newsreel ....
RKO Seemed to play a lot of the swashbucklers with Errol Flynn and John Wayne and Douglas Fairbanks... ALSO I remember seeing for the first time "Godzilla" - "King Kong" and "The Giant Behemoth", "Mothra" , "It Came From Beneathe The Sea", "The Day of the Triffids". A lot of the Abbott and Costello ones to - as Cathy mentioned too.
I remember "Hold That Ghost" - "Dracula and the Wolfman Meet Frankenstein" . I remember the first time I saw " The Island of Dr. Moreau", "Mask of the Red Death, "The House of Usher", "Fall of the House of Usher" . Well, great stroll down memory lane. As always wishing you all well - Patsy

[nick drewes]

Hi Cathy Joe & Pat.

You forgot the mention. Going across the street to J.J. Newberry's for Candy.
How about the first time they showed Bonaza in color?
How about going across Westchester Ave. To Eddy Ciders for hambergers or pizza next store.
The St Helena dances for 25 cents on Friday nites?
Talk about dating yourself.
Sometimes I miss the old days.

[Pat (Jacob) Abbamonte]

Hi Nick,

Yes sometimes I miss them too (the good ole days) especially when I try to get out of bed in the mornings without hurting something I didn't know had a name but when I think about starting all over again - I don't know about that LOL I don't think I would want to do it in the world of today for sure though.... J.J. Newberry's I bet that was the store Cathy could not remember the name of.... I remember Carl's Pizzeria and the Chinese Restaurant there and on the Tremont corner there was a luncheonette place.... Used to love Carl's pizza...
Many friday nites after being out we would run there before he closed to get a slice and a coke... Wishing you the best and glad to stroll down memory lane again if you can think of anything else we forgot "bring it on" wakes up some of the dead brain cells Not that I have that many Dead cells I mean... Best to you and yours

Patsy

[Pat (Jacob) Abbamonte]

Hi Nick,

Yes sometimes I miss them too (the good ole days) especially when I try to get out of bed in the mornings without hurting something I didn't know had a name but when I think about starting all over again - I don't know about that LOL I don't think I would want to do it in the world of today for sure though.... J.J. Newberry's I bet that was the store Cathy could not remember the name of.... I remember Carl's Pizzeria and the Chinese Restaurant there and on the Tremont corner there was a luncheonette place.... Used to love Carl's pizza...
Many friday nites after being out we would run there before he closed to get a slice and a coke... Wishing you the best and glad to stroll down memory lane again if you can think of anything else we forgot "bring it on" wakes up some of the dead brain cells Not that I have that many Dead cells I mean... Best to you and yours

Patsy

[nick drewes]

Hi Patsy and All.
Back in 1960-62 I used to work at Carls Pizza and Lowes Movie in Parckcester while in school. Back then my father said "you want stuff get a job". So ayt 13 he took to Fulton St. in the Bronx for working paper. So if I was not playing baseball or football or school stuff you worked. Now a days kids are spolied and get what ever they want. I see it all the time up here.
Do you remember the time they closed the Chinees Rest. after someone claimed they were not using chicken but birds from under the train station?
How about Ocar's Deli next to Playdrome (bowling alley) We used to get hotdogs with potato salad on them?
You and I might know some of the same people.

Have a great Momorial weekend
Nick