The Center Theatre, at 1236 Sixth Avenue, was the only structure in the original Rockefeller Center to be demolished. Originally the "RKO Roxy Theatre", it was renamed after Fox Theatres sued Roxy Rothafel over the naming rights to the nearby Roxy Theatre, which Rothafel had originally managed. The 3,700-seat Center Theatre had a short massing (general shape) in place due to height restrictions at the time, which prohibited construction above theater auditoriums. The theater's stage was enlarged for musicals in 1936, and four years later, 380 seats were removed in order to make way for an ice rink for skating spectaculars. It showed film, musicals, ice-skating competitions, and television through its 21-year existence. Due to its duplication of the larger Radio City Music Hall's activities, it was deemed uneconomical almost from its opening, and was considered redundant by the 1950s. In 1954, it was replaced by the expansion of 1230 Avenue of the Americas.
The Center Theatre, at 1236 Sixth Avenue, was the only structure in the original Rockefeller Center to be demolished. Originally the "RKO Roxy Theatre", it was renamed after Fox Theatres sued Roxy Rothafel over the naming rights to the nearby Roxy Theatre, which Rothafel had originally managed. The 3,700-seat Center Theatre had a short massing (general shape) in place due to height restrictions at the time, which prohibited construction above theater auditoriums. The theater's sta,ge was enlarged for musicals in 1936, and four years later, 380 seats were removed in order to make way for an ice rink for skating spectaculars. It showed film, musicals ice-skating competitions, and television through its 21-year existence. Due to its duplication of the larger Radio City Music Hall's activities, it was deemed uneconomical almost from its opening, and was considered redundant by the 1950s. In 1954, it was replaced by the expansion of 1230 Avenue of the Americas.