For years, three powerful theater owners dominated Broadway.
The Shuberts got there first in 1900. The company owns 17 Broadway theaters as well as Shubert Alley, one of the only private thoroughfares in New York.
Jimmy Nederlander, who turns 93 this month, arrived in 1965 when he purchased the Palace from RKO for $1.6 million. Today he controls nine theaters in New York.
James Binger, once the top man at Honeywell, came on the scene in 1970 and formed Jujamcyn, which owns five theaters. (Producer Jordan Roth acquired the company in 2009.)
But now Broadway’s about to get a fourth landlord, a jolly fellow from England called Howard Panter.
Panter owns the London-based Ambassador Theatre Group, which controls the Lyric on 42nd Street. The company is also in negotiations to take over the Hudson Theatre in the Hudson Hotel on West 44th Street.
The Hudson is a conference center, so it’ll have to be redone. But it was once a famous playhouse whose tenants included “Arsenic and Old Lace” and “Toys in the Attic.”
I also hear Panter’s going to make a run at the Times Square Theater, the only 42nd Street theater yet to be renovated.
The theater, which is owned by the city, was supposed to house “Broadway 4D,” an ambitious film project about the history of Broadway that was supposed to feature such stars as Hugh Jackman, Christina Aguilera and Matthew Morrison.
But its creators couldn’t raise the money, so they abandoned it, after paying something like $80,000 to put up scaffolding for interior renovations. If Panter gets the lease on the theater, he’ll have to complete the renovations.
Unlike “Broadway 4D,” he’s got the money.
His company controls 40 theaters in England and Asia. And he’s a major backer of West End and Broadway shows, including “The Book of Mormon.”
“Howard wants to be a player in New York,” says a veteran Broadway producer. “The best way to become a player is to own theaters.”
Panter will be a colorful addition to the New York theater scene. I once met him for a drink, which turned out to be a few bottles of excellent Australian riesling over the course of six hours. He regaled me with tales of his early career in the movie business.
One time he was dispatched to deliver some bad news to Richard Burton, who was on a yacht with Elizabeth Taylor. A furious Burton chased Panter around the yacht, threatening to throw him overboard.
Panter hid in a lifeboat until Burton passed out and the crew could smuggle Panter back to shore.
Panter’s coming to town next week to do some more theater hunting.
I’m sure he has more tales to tell.
