Fox Theater

dallasmovietheaters on April 24, 2025 at 9:55 am

A.C. Austin built the post-War, 525-seat Fox Theatre likely using stimulus funds from the G.I. Bill. W.H. Currin was the architect of the $40,000 venue opening on July 10, 1947. Austin would add a drive-in in Ardmore operating the Fox seasonally.

Like many small town theaters, the Fox succumbed to pressures from free, over the air television. It was auctioned off in September of 1961. The venue continued briefly under new operators that December.

Rumblings about thirty minutes away in Huntsville changed the Fox’s course of history in the early 1970s. Under attack by the local Huntsville District Attorney, General Corp. - operators of the Fox Cinema in downtown Huntsville - decided to open a safer haven location of the Fox across the boarder in Ardmore. It launched on June 28, 1972 with unrated adult films.

The Fox in Huntsville was padlocked along with the two other porno chic era adult houses on January 10, 1973 in Huntsville. So folks had the chance to travel to Ardmore. Under Eastern Amusement Co. operation, “bumper to bumper” traffic was reported from Huntsville to Ardmore as “Deep Throat,” “The Devil in Miss Jones,” and “Behind the Green Door” proved to be huge hits. So a new Tennessee obscenity law was passed in March of 1974 within the milieu of the Supreme Court’s historic Miller v. California decisions.

George Echols, operator of the Fox, found the venue padlocked on July 8, 1974 - interestingly, at the same time that the folks doing the crackdown were running for office. Following a restraining order that reopened the venue, the Fox was padlocked during a double-feature of “Divorcee” and “Stag Maker” on July 17, 1974. The operator filed a $1 million lawsuit demanding return of both “Divorcee” and “Stag Maker,” and a request to reopen.

The theater prevailed and was set to reopen on August 18, 1974 but nobody could locate the keys used to open the lock. So the next day had to do. The Fox operated until end of lease on May 31, 1985 lasting into the video era and closing with three unrated adult features.

Allan on May 2, 2010 at 11:42 pm

Thanks for changing! This was a small town theatre that converted to adult movies in the early 70w and evidently made more money showing porn than family features.

TLSLOEWS on April 22, 2010 at 3:46 pm

Nice 1987 photo anymore info anybody?