Shore Theater (Loews Theater)

As you exit the Stillwell Avenue subway station, take note of the Shore Theater.  It is one of the few original buildings left from the old days.  Originally the Loews Theater, this 1925 building housed vaudeville acts when Coney Island was known as the "Nickel Empire" because that's how much it cost to ride the newly-constructed subway there... or to eat a hot dog at Nathan's.

Sadly in disrepair and not open to the public, it is owned by the descendants of Horace Bullard.  Bullard was a visionary who spent much of his life trying to get the New York City government to revitalize Coney Island following its slow demise at the hands of city planner Robert Moses.  Moses also is fondly remembered for opposing Shakespeare in the Park and for paving a playground in Central Park in the middle of the night to create a parking lot for Tavern on the Green.

Website: http://www.saveconeyisland.net/?page_id=692

---

Return to Tourist Info