The Al Hirschfeld Theatre

The Hirschfeld Theatre is the only Broadway theatre on the west side of 8th Avenue. This theatre, built in 1924, gave Harry Houdini, the illusionist, his big break. It was renamed in 2003 to honor the NY Times illustrator Al Hirschfeld. His black pen and ink caricatures of Broadway shows and their stars were a mainstay of the Arts and Leisure section of the New York Times for 75 years. He was a familiar figure at first nights and at rehearsals, where he managed to capture the essence of the shows and the people in them without malice. He was 99 years old when he died, still driving and still contributing to the Times.