New York City Photo Archives - LIFE

When the Movies Got Smaller

Bill Syken — Mon, 15 Sep 2025 13:53:30 +0000

One of the most famous lines in the 1950 cinema classic Sunset Boulevard is uttered by actress Gloria Swanson, who starred as former silent film star Norma Desmond. When the male lead, played by William Holden, meets her and recognizes her as a former movie queen, he comments, “You used to be big.” She responds, “I am big. It’s the pictures that got small.”

So it was fitting that Swanson came by to pose for a photo when the Roxy movie theater was being demolished in 1960. The Roxy was the largest movie theater in the world when it opened in 1927, and it could seat about 6,000 people. With the Roxy being torn down, now the movie houses were getting smaller.

Beyond the poetic resonance, Swanson also had a direct connection to history of the Roxy. Her silent film The Love of Sunya was the first movie to play there, and she was in the audience for the film’s premiere, and had carved her name into the theater’s dome.

When Swanson returned for the demolition, she played to the drama of the moment for a photo by LIFE staff photographer Eliot Elisofon. The magazine’s story, headlined “Swan Song For a Famous Theater” was a short one but captured Swanson, then 61 years old, playing the role of movie star to the hilt:

The famous theater, its day done, is now being torn down, and last month Miss Swanson came back for a last look at the ruins. A wry and witty woman, she remarked, “Wherever I go I hear people saying `Is it” or “Isn’t it?’ and once I heard a man say, “It is. It is the original. ‘” When, gowned in a Jean Louis sheath, a feathery boa and $170,000 in jewels, she swept up to the Roxy in a Rolls Royce, crowds gathered and she could hear again, “Is it, or isn’t it.?” Perhaps she also heard the man who said loudly, “It is, and it’s looking better than ever.”

The Roxy, which cost about $12 million to build back in 1927—that’s more than $200 million in today’s dollars—was more than a movie theater. The space also hosted big stage shows, which meant that it had dressing rooms, rehearsal rooms, and a pipe organ. Also included was an infirmary and a menagerie to accommodate animal performers.

In addition to the photos that Elisofon took of Swanson, this collection also includes a couple photos of the Roxy’s demolition taken by another LIFE staff photographer, Ralph Morse. The Roxy may have had a special place in the hearts of people who worked at LIFE magazine because the theater was located at 153 W. 50th Street, which is just down the block from the old Time-Life building, where the magazine was headquartered. So it’s likely that LIFE staffers caught many shows there, perhaps even sneaking out of the office for an afternoon movie break.

The demolition meant goodbye to all that.

Actress Gloria Swanson posed on the site of old Roxy Theater in New York as it was being destroyed. Her silent movie The Love of Sunya was the first movie to play at the Roxy when it opened in 1927.

Eliot Elisofon/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

Gloria Swanson arrived to pose at the Roxy theater as it was being town down, 1960.

Eliot Elisofon/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

Gloria Swanson posed at the Roxy theater as it was being town down, New York City, 1960.

Eliot Elisofon/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

Gloria Swanson posed at the Roxy, once the largest movie theater in the world, as it was being town down, New York City, 1960.

Eliot Elisofon/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

The Roxy Theater, once the world’s largest movie theater, was torn down in 1960.

Eliot Elisofon/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

The Roxy Theater, once the world’s largest movie theater, was torn down in 1960, New York City.

Ralph Morse/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

The post When the Movies Got Smaller appeared first on LIFE.

Wild Manhattan Nights: A Peek Inside The Latin Quarter, 1949

Bill Syken — Fri, 07 Apr 2023 14:30:16 +0000

In its Nov. 21, 1949 issue LIFE gave big play to a story centered around a Manhattan nightspot called the Latin Quarter, and breathlessly announced a trend in nightclub entertainment of “pretty girls who display as much flesh and as little covering as the law allows.” LIFE was so scandalized that it ran pages of photos from inside the club, including shots of dancing girls backstage, wearing even less than they did onstage.

The photos by George Silk captured the whole boisterous scene, which included not just chorus girls but also singers and a comic named Frank Libuse, who pretended to be a waiter while delivering slapstick merriment to upscale patrons in the white tablecloth setting. The Latin Quarter was located in Times Square—just a couple blocks from the Time & Life Building, which may help explain how the club caught the attention of LIFE’s editors. But the club was undoubtedly a big deal, and in its heyday welcomed such legendary entertainers as Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and Milton Berle.

If the shows at the Latin Quarter sound like what you might expect to see in Las Vegas rather than in New York City, there may be a reason for that. LIFE’s story on the club ran in the days before Las Vegas had entered its major boom period in the 1950s. (And if you look at this LIFE story on Las Vegas from 1955, you can see that what sprouted in the desert bore strong resemblance to what the Latin Quarter was offering). While the LIFE piece on the Latin Quarter was intended to report on a trend of the moment, it also captured an element of New York culture that, like the Brooklyn Dodgers for example, was about to move west.

The Latin Quarter closed in 1969, and the space went through various incarnations as a theater and nightclub before it was torn down in 1989. On that location you can now find a hotel, perfectly situated for visitors who want to seek entertainment in the transformed and family-friendly Times Square.

Comic Frank Libuse, pretending to be a waiter, shot water at patrons seated at the Latin Quarter nightclub, New York City, 1949.

George Silk/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

Comic and fake waiter Frank Libuse would “accidentally” brush patrons with a potted palm, Latin Quarter, New York City, 1949.

George Silk/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

Frank Libuse, a comic who pretended to be a waiter, Latin Quarter, New York City, 1949.

George Silk/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

Ernestine Mercer, who sang Cole Porter at the Latin Quarter, New York City, 1949. LIFE’s description of her performance said “Added attraction is Miss Mercer’s neckline, which keeps receding as a partner (left) throws money at her.”

George Silk/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

Latin Quarter, New York City, 1949.

George Silk/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

The Latin Quarter, New York City, 1949.

George Silk/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

Latin Quarter, New York City, 1949.

George Silk/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

The Latin Quarter, New York City, 1949.

George Silk/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

Chorus girl-singer Linda Lombard rested her legs after a tough night on stage at the Latin Quarter, New York City, 1949.

George Silk/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

Singer Linda Lombard, originally from Ohio, backstage at the Latin Quarter, New York City, 1949.

George Silk/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

Singer Linda Lombard backstage at the Latin Quarter, New York City, 1949.

George Silk/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

Singer Linda Lombard, backstage at the Latin Quarter, New York City, 1949.

George Silk/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

Backstage at the Latin Quarter, New York City, 1949.

George Silk/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

Latin Quarter, New York City, 1949.

George Silk/Life Picture Collection/Shutterstock

The post Wild Manhattan Nights: A Peek Inside The Latin Quarter, 1949 appeared first on LIFE.

Notes from Underground: Subways of New York

resolute — Sat, 12 Oct 2019 23:38:22 +0000

In America’s most populous city, life teems not only on the streets, but below them as well. The New York City subway opened for business on October 27, 1904 and since then it has become more than a way to get around, but a place in which the city lives, standing clear of the closing doors, in chunks of a half-hour at a time (or longer, depending on delays).

It’s also a place where you can run into just about anyone—and not just the famous musicians who’ve been busking incognito with Jimmy Fallon. While the photos in this collection are heavy on famous faces and famous jewels, when pass through the turnstiles you are admittedly more likely to see commuters on the way to work, or school kids on the way to school, or a man with a parrot, or tourists on the way to one of the city’s unending list of attractions. A subway ride can contain its hardships (wi-fi is spotty at best, so bring a book), especially so if the machinery breaks down. But it’s also a way to beat the traffic, and as the photos show, noted New Yorkers such as John F. Kennedy Jr., Meryl Streep and Bernard F. Gimbel were not above going underground. They knew that this enduring monument to mass transit was a smart way to get where they were going.

Former police officer Paul Haase transporting the Hope Diamond in a wrapped box on the New York City subway, 1958. He is delivering it to the US Post Office to be mailed to the Smithsonian Institution.

Photo by Donald Uhrbrock/The LIFE Images Collection via Shutterstock

Harry Winston Jewelers exhibiting the Hope Diamond before donating to the Smithsonian, 1958.

Photo by Donald Uhrbrock/The LIFE Images Collection via Shutterstock

Chess champion Bobby Fischer studied up on his game, 1962.

Photo by Carl MydansThe LIFE Picture Collection © Meredith Corporation.

Department store magnate Bernard F. Gimbel stood among the straphangers in 1950.

Photo by Eliot Elisofon/The LIFE Picture Collection © Meredith Corporation.

Actress Meryl Streep rode a graffiti-scribbled subway in 1981.

Photo by Ted Thai/The LIFE Picture Collection © Meredith Corporation.

In 1959 LIFE followed Chicago’s Henry and Ottilie King and their 12 children on a New York vacation and saw them fill up a subway bench.

Photo by Stan Wayman/The LIFE Picture Collection © Meredith Corporation.

The roll of the rails lulled some members of the King family to sleep.

Photo by Stan Wayman/The LIFE Picture Collection © Meredith Corporation.

This subway worker’s lantern sent a signal to a train conductor in 1949.

Photo by Jerry Cooke/The LIFE Images Collection via Shutterstock.

Penny chocolate vending machines offered commuters sweet relief in 1953.

Photo by Nina Leen/The LIFE Picture Collection © Meredith Corporation.

Commuters read the news of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in 1963.

Photo by Ralph Morse/The LIFE Picture Collection © Meredith Corporation.

A 1958 newspaper strike left commuters with no papers to read.

Photo by Walter Sanders/The LIFE Picture Collection © Meredith Corporation.

Woody Guthrie took his tunes to the tunnels in 1943.

Photo by Eric Schaal/The LIFE Picture Collection © Meredith Corporation.

The post Notes from Underground: Subways of New York appeared first on LIFE.

On Tour With the First Miss Alaska

resolute — Wed, 02 Oct 2019 14:20:44 +0000

In 1958, with her home state about to be admitted to the Union (which it was, on Jan. 3, 1959) a 19-year-old woman, Stuart Johnson, from the Juneau area was named the first Miss Alaska and earned a spot in the Miss America pageant. In this bit of history a publicity agent saw an opportunity. He lined up a sponsor, Alaska Oil and Gas, and soon Johnson was on the way to New York to hit the media circuit before the pageant. With all the travel costs underwritten, her tour feels like a rough draft of what today’s aspiring social media influencers pursue on Instagram. Her ride certainly hit the heights. She stayed in a swanky hotel, wore beautiful clothes, made guest appearances on big TV shows and visited Yankee Stadium, and all the while LIFE photographer Peter Stackpole documented her adventures. Johnson, who’s name is now Stuart Sliter and who has been married for nearly six decades is 80 and lives in Juneau—her daughter, Beth Weldon, is the mayor. She recalls the New York trip as the adventure of a lifetime.

Photo by Peter Stackpole

Photo by Peter Stackpole

Johnson came from Douglas, a small community near Juneau, and she recalls the wonder of walking Manhattan’s streets surrounded by luminous buildings, and not being able to see the sky. She stayed in a room on the 23^rd floor of the Hotel St. Moritz on Central Park South, where the above photos were taken. The shots may look like pageant preparation or part of a fitness routine, but Sliter says she was just playing for the camera. The other woman in the photos is Bea Albertson, who came along from Alaska to be her chaperone.

Photo by Peter Stackpole

Photo by Peter Stackpole

One of her favorite parts of the trip was going to a tailor’s shop to be fitted for her pageant gowns. “Just having a tailor work on your wardrobe was an amazing experience for any young girl,” she says. After the trip, Johnson receiving a note from Stackpole, praising how photogenic she was.

Photo by Peter Stackpole

On her media tour, Johnson played the role of ambassador for the 49^th state. She visited the Today Show and met host Dave Garroway (right) and also Charles van Doren (far left), who is now most remembered for his role in the quiz show scandals. She also appeared on the Tonight Show with Jack Paar, American Bandstand with Dick Clark and on The Ed Sullivan Show, where she hobnobbed backstage with Walter Cronkite and Pearl Bailey. During her appearances she carried with her ta small totem pole, a prop given to her by her publicity team. She describes her TV appearances as “cameos” which often involved answering silly Alaska-themed questions. More than once she was asked, “Do you live in an igloo?” Her main memory from the Today Show appearance: “The dress, they couldn’t zip up the back, so they told me, don’t turn your back to the camera, just sit there and smile.”

Photo by Peter Stackpole

Johnson’s tour included a visit to Yankee Stadium, where manager Casey Stengel and outfielder Mickey Mantle signed her totem. A third pinstriped Hall of Famer, Yogi Berra, was supposed to meet her as well, but Johnson was ten minutes late to the park and Berra, tired of waiting, saw a fork in the road and took it. Other stops on her tour included the Statue of Liberty and a show with the Rockettes, and also night spots such as Toots Shor’s and the Copacabana. After the pageant—won by Miss Mississippi (and future actress) Mary Ann Mobley—Johnson completed a degree in education from Mills College in Oakland, and she became a teacher and also a mother of three children, including Mayor Weldon. The autographed totem from that trip is displayed on the mantel in her living room. (Yes, she has Mantle on her mantel). Of that trip to New York, Sliter says, “It’s my Cinderella story.”

The post On Tour With the First Miss Alaska appeared first on LIFE.

Vintage Blizzard Photos: New York City, 1956

Tue, 14 Mar 2017 08:30:13 +0000

On March 18, 1956, a storm hit the East Coast, blanketing the northeast corridor with snow. LIFE photographer Alfred Eisenstaedt captured these images of New Yorkers coping with the onslaught of winter weather. Though the images did not run in the magazine, the storm did make news with the tale of one New Yorker who had more trouble than most with the snow.

Al Asnis of LIFE’s photo lab happened to be waiting for the train on an El platform when he saw a man “writhing on the sidewalk below,” the magazine reported.

As LIFE described in the April 2, 1956 issue:

While preoccupied passers-by went their way, Asnis took a picture then rushed to offer his assistance just as other help arrived. The man was a 48-year-old letter carrier named Max Urkowitz who, on the way home after his rounds, had fallen, twisting his leg. He said he had heard a sharp-snap and thought the leg was broken. One man, doing a job that no novice should attempt, expertly fashioned a makeshift splint for a broken leg. Arriving after a 90 minute delay caused by the snow, an ambulance attendant admired the splint but had to remove it en route to the hospital so the patient could be examined. Instead of a fracture, it turned out, Urkowitz suffered only a bad sprain.

Blizzard in New York City, Mar. 18-19, 1956.

Alfred Eisenstaedt The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock

The post Vintage Blizzard Photos: New York City, 1956 appeared first on LIFE.

New Yorkers Beat the Heat in the Sizzling Summer of ’53

Mon, 01 Aug 2016 08:00:13 +0000

The summer of 1953 in New York City was torturous. The temperature was in the 90s (or higher) every day between July 15 and 21, and again between Aug. 24 and Sept. 4 a record-setting 12 days in a row. And that’s not even accounting for other 90-plus days in between.

Keep in mind that air-conditioning was far from widespread. Though the technology has been around since the early 20th century, it was then used primarily in movie theaters and other public spaces.

That meant that, as these Peter Stackpole images show, New Yorkers had to resort to some other, time-tested means of staying cool during those long days of oppressive heat. It meant keeping windows wide open, jumping in the water, keeping a steady supply of icy-cold treats available and of course relying on that most recognizable method of urban cooling: the fire hydrant. When opened, those gushers turn into a city kid’s sprinkler.

Except, of course, that it’s illegal to open a fire hydrant on your own. Today’s city residents can find relief just like their forebears, however: the Fire Department allows citizens to request to have hydrants opened with a proper sprinkler cap, which means residents can cool down without wasting extra water.

New York City heat wave, 1953.

Peter Stackpole The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock

The post New Yorkers Beat the Heat in the Sizzling Summer of ’53 appeared first on LIFE.