|
 The
Loew's Jersey opened on September 28, 1929, with the movie "Madame
X." -- not exactly a Hollywood Legend. But the magnificent
building it premiered in was -- and still is -- a Movie Palace. (click
images to view artilce or larger image)
Remember that when the Loew's was built, luxury was even less
a part of ordinary life than it is today. The songs, dance numbers
and comedy routines that people enjoyed on the Loew's stage and
screen were for many of them the biggest luxuries in their lives.
But the builders of Movie Palaces like the Loew's wanted to make
sure that the uplifting power and glory of the performing arts
spilled past the proscenium arch to have an even bigger impact
on audiences. The idea was to make a theatre building so spectacular
that it became part of the show.
 The
designers of the Movie Palaces borrowed architectural forms from
the palaces of European royalty and the estates of America’s
most wealthy to create extravagant showplaces for the common man
-- and woman and child. “It is opulence unbound, but opulence
with a purpose,” said George Rapp,  architect
of the Loew's Jersey and dozens of other Movie Palaces. He went
on to explain that this purpose could be seen in the face of the
tired shop clerk who came to one of his theatres for relief after
a long day, or in the eyes of a father who had brought his children
to a show after working a double shift. “The rich rub elbows
with the poor here, and are better for it” he concluded.
From the moment a patron crossed the threshold, he
was supposed to be cut off from his ordinary world
and made to feel special because he was now in an extraordinarily
lavish setting where he was welcome. And from the grandeur
of the ornate walls and crystal chandeliers that now
surrounded him, he sensed the wonder of the performance
he was about to enjoy.
| So the Loew's Jersey, like all Movie
Palaces, isn't just a building; it's an experience.
You don't just come here, you participate in its
glory. But for those of you who cannot visit us,
we've designed a kind of “virtual tour” to
give you the chance, at least in part, to experience
the Loew's from afar. |
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