Empire Theatre, 42nd Street in Manhattan, New York City.
 
Part of my series entitled: "My Manhattan in the Eighties"
 
"Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting" 
 
Originally opened as the Eltinge 42nd Street Theatre, in 1912. During the depression it became a burlesque theatre; and then in 1954, it changed its name to the Empire and became a movie theater. 

At the genre’s peak in the late '70s and early '80s hundreds of kung fu movies were hitting 42nd Street, West of Broadway; which is often refered to as "The Deuce."
 
The whole kung fu look became a fashion statement, with karate robes, “Ninja” T-shirts, and China-bowl hats becoming frequent sights around the Deuce—it wasn’t unusual to see a dude decked out in an entire black belt’s outfit, holding lethal silver balls and nunchaks. As you walked down 42nd Street, you could often hear Carl Douglas’s one-hit wonder song “Kung Fu Fighting” booming from ghetto blasters.