Best Vintage Movie Theaters
The Astor Theater
St. Kilda, Australia
Original Debut: Though local residents complained to the press that the new movie theater would be built “too close to churches” and that “such a noisy, showy place of entertainment would detract from the dignity and charm” of the area, the Astor Theater first lifted its curtain to a packed house on April 3, 1936. Its Art Deco interior, with a stepped ceiling and steel chevron-patterned friezes, survives as homage to a glamorous bygone era.
Now Showing: Double features, both new and old, regularly take the stage here—you might catch both The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and a sanguine Grace Kelly in Rear Window for less than a ticket to the multiplex. Patrons with a sweet tooth swear by the Astor Choc Ice, a coconut and pecan–topped dark chocolate ice cream made on the premises since 1983.
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