MovieChat Forums > Across 110th Street (1973) Discussion > filming locations

filming locations

posted 16 years ago by JaneDanton
7 replies | jump to latest

I haven't been to Harlem but would love to know if the streets where this was shot have changed a lot, especially Lenox Avenue, where Paul Benjamin was hold up on the fifth floor at 637. Anyone know?

[–] GunHillTrain 15 years ago

First of all, those scenes must have been filmed on a side street; Lenox Avenue is a very wide north-south boulevard (I think you can see it briefly in the opening credits.)

There has been some gentrification in Harlem during the last ten years, especially in the southern section (yes, around 110th Street-Central Park North). Any abandoned buildings from the 1970s have since been renovated or torn down.

Yet, if you went there today, you would still recognize many of the streets shown in the movie.

[–] thatsmydesire 15 years ago

I haven' been back home since I was a young girl in my father's law office
@ 101 W. 125th St./Lenox Ave

[–] GunHillTrain 15 years ago

Wow, when was that? I went to City College on Convent Avenue, 1973-77.

[–] Prismark10 8 years ago

I went to Harlem a few years ago and a few of the locations were still recognisable.

It's that man again!!

[–] thecrux-1 8 years ago

Another scene had me curious to location: The area where in the first few minutes of the movie where they were just beginning to make the getaway after robbing/shooting the mob's gang.

It was in a hilly area of Manhattan and one scene you could see a freight train moving slowly in the background. The train was on Manhattan itself as you can see the river behind it. Can't figure out which river: It looks to narrow to be the Hudson. Also the old west-side freight line ( today's Amtrak west side empire connector ) ran under and "overbuild" for much of its length down to its termination at the 60th street yards.

[–] eldontyrrell 8 years ago

thecrux-1,

I watched the movie a few days ago, and while I don't have time right now to look again and try to nail the *exact* location, I recall that my immediate thought was that it was around the CUNY area, maybe looking east towards or from St. Nicholas Avenue. Seems like you know what you're talking about, so I'm sure you know that it is tightly-packed and hilly, and that Manhattan Island really starts to narrow around there.

This would suggest that it was the Harlem River we were looking down at, itself very narrow and close by, just down the hill, which would give us the Bronx just on the other side. Thing is, while I don't recall having noticed the train, its appearance there would sorta throw a wrench into my read of the location...now, because I love picking out stuff like this and because I wanna get it right, I'll check again and be back soon!

[–] GunHillTrain 7 years ago

I've been to the location. It's on West 160th Street between St. Nicholas and Edgecomb Avenues.

When the Cadillac drives up, the scene is facing west - I think some tall buildings in New Jersey are visible. When the robbers flee in the black Checker, they are driving east, downhill, and turn into Edgecomb. (Some people are standing on the sidewalk watching the scene.)

The little side street where Jim Harris uses his submachine gun to kill the police officer is Jumel Terrace.

The freight train is running on the Penn Central (now Metro North) tracks on the far side of the Harlem River in the Bronx. There is a big white building visible which is the Bronx County courthouse on 161st Street.