{"nrhp_refnum":"82001187","name":"Beacon Theater and Hotel","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"2124 Broadway","address_restricted":false,"city":"New York","county":"Manhattan","state":"NY","lat":40.78052176400007,"lon":-73.98065685899996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-11-04","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Entertainment/Recreation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A combined movie palace and hotel at 2124 Broadway on Manhattan's Upper West Side, built 1927-28 to designs by architect Walter W. Ahlschlager. It is a brick and stone complex of a 24-story hotel block, a 15-story block and a three-story theater auditorium.","why_significant":"The complex is a rare combination of a grand movie palace with a hotel, which saved construction and operating costs and let hotel income help support the theater. It is one of the last surviving movie palaces in Manhattan and is tied to theater manager Samuel L. Rothafel (Roxy), the Chanin Construction Co. and Ahlschlager. Its technical innovations and lavish interior let it keep working as a performing arts center.","narrative":"Rising on Broadway between 74th and 75th Streets, this brick and stone complex joins a 24-story hotel, a 15-story hotel wing and a three-story theater auditorium. The plain exterior hides an ornate interior, with a Rococo-inspired rotunda, gilded statues flanking the proscenium, a tent-like painted ceiling and large murals by Valdemar Kjoldgaard. Architect Walter W. Ahlschlager designed it in 1927-28 for Samuel L. Rothafel, known as Roxy, and the Chanin Construction Co., borrowing ideas from his earlier Roxy Theater. Pairing a theater with a hotel let the two share building services and let hotel revenue offset theater costs. Roxy never managed the house; Warner Bros. leased it, and it opened on December 24, 1929. It showed films until 1974 and later became a multi-purpose performing arts center, while the hotel has operated continuously. It is valued as one of Manhattan's last surviving movie palaces.","period_of_significance":"1900- (specific dates 1927-28)","architect_builder":"Walter W. Ahlschlager (architect); Chanin Construction Co. (builders and consulting engineers)","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"The theater operates as a multi-purpose performing arts center and the hotel continues in its original use. The form lists the property as occupied, in excellent condition and altered.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:42.993579-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/82001187.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001187/c9c31790cf-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82001187/c9c31790cf-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 3.0","author":"Photo: Andreas Praefcke","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Beacon_Theater_NYC_2003.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Photo: Andreas Praefcke</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Beacon_Theater_NYC_2003.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75319287","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beacon_Theatre_(New_York_City)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q264186"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/manhattan/beacon-theater-and-hotel-82001187/"}