We witnessed the demolition process of the old Bunny Theater last year and recently walked by the old cinema to see its current post-demolition state. The owner of the building, which is on Broadway and 147th Street, decided to make it more modern and take away the top section of the facade which was designed to honor silent film star John Bunny. The old Nova theater presided in the space in more recent decades but shut down in 2002 and was converted to the dollar store. See the other images of the Bunny Theater in our past post:
LINK. Current photo by Ulysses
We witnessed the demolition process of the old Bunny Theater last year and recently walked by the old cinema to see its current post-demolition state. The owner of the building, which is on Broadway and 147th Street, decided to make it more modern and take away the top section of the facade which was designed to honor silent film star John Bunny. The old Nova theater presided in the space in more recent decades but shut down in 2002 and was converted to the dollar store. See the other images of the Bunny Theater in our past post: LINK. Current photo by Ulysses
The Nova Theatre had sentimental value to me. Just hours before I was born my father took my mother to the movies there. They walked there and back and 30 minutes after they got home my mothers water broke.
ReplyDeleteColumbia bought this entire stretch of Broadway between 147th and 148th Street for the relocation of residents and a church that are being displaced from the expansion zone in Manhattanville. They have already built the church- and the Bunny Theater facade was demolished during the construction process. Eventually, a Co-op will be built on this block for those residents and retail will be on the ground floor (I imagine Domino's and the 99 cent store will need to vacate for this to happen).
ReplyDeletewhy did they go through the trouble of a partial demo when the end goal is to build a new building?
ReplyDeletethe Domino's is indeed moving and they are already renovating the new space on Broadway and 149th, right next to Tonalli. At this point that block is such an eyesore, anything would be better than what is there now!!!
ReplyDeletedid the new building ever get reviewed by the community board?
ReplyDeleteOMG I remeber this as the Tapia theater where they used to show Spanish language movies. Many times the neighborhood kids would go to the RKO on W.146 st and the Spanish speaking parents would go to the Tapia.
ReplyDeleteUs kids thought the movies they showed at the Tapia was corny old melodramas. Us hipper kids wouldnt be caught dead there, we would rather go to the RKO and watch a a first double feature for 50 cents!
I hear that the RKO may be restored. Is this true?
I dont r
This site is prime for redevelopment. The crap that's their now is worthless.
ReplyDelete