Restorations

  • May 4, 2016

    Baltimore, MD - The Parkway’s Return Gets Help

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    From The Baltimore Sun: The first block of West North Avenue lost one of its longest-tenured commercial presences this week. A place my family long called Dr. Fouch’s drugstore disappeared during an eight-hour demolition.

    The razed structure at the southwest corner of Charles and North avenue put in decades of hard work. It seems to have been a neighborhood drugstore from the 1880s through World War II.

    William Fouch, recalled as a tall man with a black mustache, got his pharmacist’s diploma in 1886. He died in 1946.

    The building later served as a Peoples drugstore, then changed careers — a White Tower hamburger shop, then a White Coffee Pot restaurant and finally the Chicken Box, where a neon sign famously described a dish as “mec and cheese.”

    The building’s last act was home to the Station North Arts and Entertainment offices, as well as the Annex Theater.

    Yet as the heavy equipment plowed into its bricks, the spot is giving way to help another landmark. The building will be replaced by architects Ziger/Snead’s addition to the 1915 Parkway Theatre.

  • January 13, 2016

    Non-profit formed to rebuild Historic State Theatre of Boyertown, PA

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    Here’s some great news from our friends in Boyertown! A group of Boyertown residents with a common interest in re-opening the State Theatre has banded together to form The State Theatre Preservation Society, a non-profit organization whose goal is to purchase, preserve and reopen the historic building.

  • January 11, 2016

    Charlottesville’s Paramount Theatre Installs a Restored Blade

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    The Paramount Theater celebrated the conclusion of the 10th Anniversary of its restoration in a big way. On Tuesday, December 15 at approximately 5:45PM the Theater lit the newly-installed, reconstructed 33 foot historic vertical blade sign for the first time since the 1960s.

  • November 17, 2015
  • November 3, 2015

    Homestead, Florida’s Historic Seminole Theatre Restored

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    Homestead residents celebrate the reopening of the historic Seminole Theatre with a marquee lighting. The theater opened to the public for the first time in nearly 40 years on Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2015.

  • October 22, 2015

    October is National Archives Month!

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    Do you have material that you have been collecting and producing, documenting your favorite theatres? Have you ever been curious on how to best preserve it to ensure it’s long life and ongoing appreciation? October is National Archives month and the perfect time to learn some easy tips on how to safeguard your important records. Contact Archives Director Pat Seymour for some quick and easy steps for preserving your materials today. archivedir@ historictheatres.org

  • July 16, 2015

    Friends of Wilmington, California’s Granada Theatre Seeks Support for Purchase & Revitalization Plan

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    San Pedro’s fabulous and historic Warner Grand Theatre has undergone significant renovations and updates, screens movies, and hosts special events, but not too far away, the similarly handsome Granada Theatre in Wilmington, CA has not had the same good fortune. Yet…

  • July 1, 2015

    Gary Martinez of Martinez + Johnson Architecture on Historic Theatre Restoration

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    From the Preservation Nation Blog: In the upcoming Summer 2015 issue of Preservation, we take a peek behind the curtain at the newly renovated Kings Theatre in Flatbush, Brooklyn. Seized during the 1970s in lieu of back taxes, the historic venue idled vacant until the New York City Economic Development Corporation issued a Request for Proposals to restore it in 2008.

    A consortium of groups participated in the project, spearheaded by ACE Theatrical Group and Martinez+Johnson Architecture. Here are some excerpts from the national Trusts' wide-ranging conversation with Gary Martinez, president and principal at Martinez+Johnson and a link to the full article.

  • May 30, 2015

    Restoration of Orange County CA’s Fox Fullerton Theatre

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    Fox Theatre Fullerton celebrated its 90th birthday! The theatre will opened to the public for a special two-day 1920s themed event, Speakeasy Days, on May 22 and 23.

    The special event included the unveiling and lighting of the restored Fox Theatre rooftop sign on Friday, May 22.

    Speakeasy Days showcased the 14-month effort by EverGreene Architectural Arts to restore the theatre’s beautiful coffered ceiling. The restoration process was uniquely demanding, with skilled professionals bringing artistic talent along with detailed scientific knowledge of finishes.

  • January 18, 2015

    “Unveiling Brooklyn’s magnificently restored Kings Theatre” From Brooklyn, NY.

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    Brooklyn legend has it that a teenage Barbra Streisand pointed to the marquee of the Loew’s Kings movie palace and said, “Someday, my name is going to be up there.”

    Indeed it was for 1973’s “The Way We Were,” but the grand old theater was shuttered four years later. Now the Kings is reopening its doors to the public, reborn as a performing arts center worthy of someday hosting a Streisand concert.

    After neglect, water damage, looting and threats of demolition, the Kings has undergone a spectacular $95 million restoration. A ribbon-cutting ceremony Friday will be followed by a free performance by community groups on Jan. 27, an inaugural concert by Diana Ross on Feb. 3 and an open house on Feb. 7.

    “After almost four decades of heartbreak, this is next to a miracle and a very big deal for Brooklyn residents,” says borough historian Ron Schweiger. “We’re going to have a beautiful new performing arts venue right in the heart of Brooklyn that will draw people from all over and revitalize the commercial strip along Flatbush Avenue.”

    Read the entire article online at nypost.com