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Loew’s 72nd Street Theatre was designed by noted architects Thomas W. Lamb and John Eberson, and was the last great movie palace to be built in New York. The design is said to have been based upon the Great Tower of the Pagoda Wat Ching at Bangkok and the Temple of Nakhon Wat in Siam.
The theatre opened in mid-February 1932 with Emma (1932) starring Marie Dressler.
Loew’s 72nd St Theatre survived for just 29 years, closing at the end of 1960 with a screening of The World of Suzie Wong (1960) starring William Holden and Nancy Kwan. The following year, the theatre was demolished to make way for an apartment building.
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