Rialto Theatre, York
From BeatlesWiki
Fishergate, York, Yorkshire, UK.
General History
| This section was taken shamelessly from CinemaTreasures.org [1]. Although it's a good start, it should be reworked ASAP. |
A replacement for an earlier cinema destroyed by fire, the Rialto opened on November 25, 1935 with "Gold Diggers of 1935". It had 1800 seats, was designed by Frederick Dyer and had a proscenium 45ft wide.
This came in handy when cinemascope was installed in 1955 when the opening accommodated a massive 42ft by 20ft screen.
Originally there were four tall narrow fins running up the facade and above the parapet between the windows in the central block. These have been removed to the detriment of the building.
There was a shallow stage which was used infrequently. The last film was shown in October 1961 following which the Rialto went over to bingo which it continued to be used for until its closure in 2002. In 2003, the former Rialto was demolished to make way for a car park for a new casino nearby.
References
What a joy to find someone else who tihnks this way.
