villagesidewalk

Everyone has heard of Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, where generations of film stars have signed their names and imprinted their hands in wet concrete. It turns out we have our very own mini-version of Grauman's Chinese right here in the East Village!

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Theatre 80, at 80 St. Marks Place near First Avenue, used to be the kind of place where they ran movies from the golden era of Hollywood, the 30s to the 50s, and served you coffee in china coffee cups and cake on real porcelain.

Former actor/singer Howard Otway bought the former speakeasy and decided to turn it into a revivail house in 1971. His dream was realized in August of that year when he threw an old-fashioned Hollywood premiere party to celebrate the opening. He invited several old-time Hollywood stars, and had them make their marks on the new sidewalk outside the theatre. By the end of 1971 several stars had visited, and managed to leave mementoes.

Joan Crawford, who in 1971 was starring in her last picture, Trog (a sci-fi vehicle concerning a caveman) left two handprints.

Joan Blondell left two shoe prints.

Allan Jones, a Broadway and Hollywood star who had a big hit record in 1938 with "The Donkey Serenade." That same year, Jones had a son named Jack, who went on to have several easy-listening hits in the sixties and sang the Love Boat theme.

Shoe prints from Ruby Keeler

Gloria Swanson, who started in the silents and made a big comeback in Sunset Boulevard in 1950, and then The Killer Bees in 1974 and Airport 75.

Myrna Loy of the beloved Thin Man series. Many people forget that she made dozens of silents and often appeared as Asian femme fatales!

In the 1980s, a couple of stars also dropped by Theatre 80.

Kitty Carlisle, who starred in the 1935 Marx Brothers movie A Night At The Opera when she was 21, and later appeared in dozens of television game shows.

Finally, Dom DeLuise was at Theatre 80 in 1983.

The state of the sidewalk is in doubt. There is an ongoing sidewalk reconstruction program in the East Village, and this sidewalk is on the hit list. Owner Florence Otway (Howard's widow) is trying to work something out with the city.

Presently, the theatre is rented to the Pearl Theater Company.

Source: The Curious New Yorker, Times Books 1999

E-me at erpietri@earthlink.net.