'Samuel Lionel "Roxy" Rothafel' (
9 July 1882,
Stillwater, Minnesota -
13 January 1936,
New York City) was a showman of the
1920s silent film era and the
impresario for many of the great
movie palaces that he managed such as the Capitol, the Strand, and his eponymous
Roxy Theatre in
New York City (opened March 11, 1927, demolished October 1960). He also opened
Radio City Music Hall in 1932, which featured the "Roxyettes", later renamed the
Rockettes.
Rothafel has been credited with many movie presentation innovations including syncing
orchestral music to movies (in the silent screen era) and having multiple projectors to effect seamless reel changes. The book ''
The Best Remaining Seats'' by Ben Hall (1961), gives a good overview of the grand movie palaces of the 1920s and, specifically, of Roxy himself.