Quad Cinema

The Quad Cinema is New York City's first small four-screen multiplex theater. Located at 34 West 13th Street in Greenwich Village, it was opened by entrepreneur Maurice Kanbar, along with his younger brother Elliott S. Kanbar in October 1972. It has been described as "one of the oldest independent cinemas in the city" and "a vibrant center for art house films."HistoryIn the late 1960s, Maurice Kanbar, an inventor and real estate investor, purchased a six-story loft in Manhattan with plans to create an off-Broadway theater. After those plans fell through, he found himself with a large block of unused ground floor space. Kanbar believed a movie theater with multiple small auditoriums rather than a few larger ones could be profitable even with smaller audiences at most screenings. In October 1972, he and his younger brother, Elliott S. Kanbar, opened the Quad, New York City's first four-screen movie theater, and what Kanbar has called "the East Coast's first multiplex".From 1972 to 1988 the theater was operated by Bernard Goldberg, executive vice-president of Golden Theatre Management, operator of the Quad and six other New York City houses. The theater exhibited Hollywood films, independent films, and revivals of older films, but had difficulty obtaining the most attractive releases due to the exclusive licensing practices then followed by film distributors. Legal action led to substantial monetary settlements.

The Quad holds an important place in Manhattan moviegoing history: when it opened October 18, 1972, it was the first theater in the city to have multiple screens under one roof.