Where Patio Gardens Got Its Name

Old-timers will laugh that the Q never knew, but I always assumed "Patio Gardens" was a reference to little outdoor patios on each unit. Yes I thought the word "patio" was odd, since they seem to be primarily outdoor mud rooms and storage spaces, but in fact there was a Patio Theater there before it was torn down to make room for the current building. People are quick to knock it for its sub-par architecture, but I've always found it quite easy on the eyes, which shows you why I.M. Pei hasn't called me for advice for some time. It's odd all right, at least in that location, but I know folks that live there and dig it. I have it on good authority that the management company is playing fast and loose with the rules on rent stabilization, but that's par for the course these days. It's an old trick - one rent on the lease ($2,500 perhaps?) and another in reality, say $1,500 (a little rebate let's call it).

But never mind that for now. Take a look at this gem of a photo from the late '40s early '50s of the Patio Theater, then the Q's Google screen shot of the same scene 60 years later. And I did all that without even having to get out of bed!

The same eagle-eyed reader sent the below picture from 1922 of 590 and 582 Flatbush, across from Midwood, John J. Vanderbilt's house (on the left) and another of the Vanderbilt clan on the right. And where might 590 and 582 Flatbush sit? You guessed it. On the site of the Patio Theater and Patio Gardens. My how time flies...