The Fox was the local theatre of my childhood days in the seventies. It may have just been my youthful perspective, but I remember her as huge, impressive, and beautiful, though she was already well past her prime.
The place was massive, her already cavernous first floor supplemented with a large balcony area from which half-chewed Milk Duds were regularly jettisonned with glee. I recall the huge pillars that lined the aisles; a truly gigantic screen with its equally enormous curtain; even the carpet was classic, all garish colors, curlicues and flourishes. The Fox really gave you the sensation of what going to see a movie must have been like during Hollywood’s heydey. By the time I came on the scene, of course, she was lucky to fill a tenth of her seats at a showing.
Some time around 1982, the balcony was removed and converted into two smaller-screened theatres. I remember even then feeling that something important had been lost. Around 1988, she closed her doors, seemingly permanently. The marquee is still there to this day, and whenver I’m in town I like to drive past it and soak in the nostalgia.
It has always baffled me that nobody has yet restored this theatre. There are clearly enough moviegoers to support it — Krikorian recently opened a huge multiplex half a mile away — and given the size of the screen and the nostalgic appeal, you’d think it would be a sure thing. No doubt the huge price tag is what has kept investors away, as well as the amount of work that would have to go into restoration. The place has gone completely unused for nearly two decades, and must be in pretty nasty shape.
The Fox was the local theatre of my childhood days in the seventies. It may have just been my youthful perspective, but I remember her as huge, impressive, and beautiful, though she was already well past her prime.
The place was massive, her already cavernous first floor supplemented with a large balcony area from which half-chewed Milk Duds were regularly jettisonned with glee. I recall the huge pillars that lined the aisles; a truly gigantic screen with its equally enormous curtain; even the carpet was classic, all garish colors, curlicues and flourishes. The Fox really gave you the sensation of what going to see a movie must have been like during Hollywood’s heydey. By the time I came on the scene, of course, she was lucky to fill a tenth of her seats at a showing.
Some time around 1982, the balcony was removed and converted into two smaller-screened theatres. I remember even then feeling that something important had been lost. Around 1988, she closed her doors, seemingly permanently. The marquee is still there to this day, and whenver I’m in town I like to drive past it and soak in the nostalgia.
It has always baffled me that nobody has yet restored this theatre. There are clearly enough moviegoers to support it — Krikorian recently opened a huge multiplex half a mile away — and given the size of the screen and the nostalgic appeal, you’d think it would be a sure thing. No doubt the huge price tag is what has kept investors away, as well as the amount of work that would have to go into restoration. The place has gone completely unused for nearly two decades, and must be in pretty nasty shape.