Fox Theatre
1600 Market Street,
Philadelphia,
PA
19102
1600 Market Street,
Philadelphia,
PA
19102
19 people
favorited this theater
Showing 26 - 50 of 66 comments
If you google search exactly Boxoffice April 5, 1941
and type 142 in the page box
you will see a photo of Fox exterior including ticket booth for movie “International Forumâ€
Boxoffice July 19, 1941
type 179 in the page box
you will see photo of the auditorium rear/lobby of the Fox
Suffice it to say those particular curtains weren’t there anymore in the ‘70s. There were curtains in front of the screen just before the Fox was demolished, but not nearly as plentiful or dazzling. Never looked at curtains from a public-safety perspective, though. Always thought they were mere decor, but in that photo they looked fabulous as well as being functional.
Google search exactly
Boxoffice May 22,1948
punch page 136 in the box
for photo in ad of Fox auditorium with much fiberglass drapery
The auditorium was cavernous, especially if the crowd was small. Sitting in that theater really gave you a feeling for how the old days must have been.
Here is a 1939 photo from Life Magazine:
http://tinyurl.com/6ckxkd
What an awesome marquee
I too was there when they were selling contents of the theatre. I vividly recall a woman who either bought or was very close to buying the golden railing that lead to the balcony area. I purchased – and still own – my initials from the marquee at $2.50 each. Took a stroll around the balcony area and up to the projectionist’s booth because my mom never wanted to sit that high! Darn it — where were digital cameras in 1980?
Here is the new link for the 1963 photo:
http://tinyurl.com/6cyuz5
Here is a 1959 photo from phillyhistory.org. The Stanton can be seen next door:
http://tinyurl.com/5j4uht
Here is a photo, circa 1946:
http://tinyurl.com/2xt7e9
“The Exorcist” opened at The Stage Door Cinema, on Chirstmas Day. It was so successful, it eventually played both The Stage Door and The Milgrim, at the same time.
I loved The Fox Theater, and spent many hours there, over my lifetime in Philadelphia. The last film I saw there was “Suspriria”, in September of 1977.
It’s because those who hijacked the city of Philadelphia and wiped it clean of its once many great movie palaces wanted to do a thorough job of it.
why is it that most, if not all photo links on this site are dead ends?
The movie going experiences I remember the fondest were those where the theater itself added a dimension of reality to what was happening on screen. For instance, I saw DiPalma’s THE UNTOUCHABLES at the Strand Theatre in Ocean City, NJ in 1987 at a time when that town was crawling with mob figures. As a small child I saw MOBY DICK at some theater at the shore where you could actually hear and feel the vibrations of the ocean washing up under the theater’s floorboards. I saw BEN HUR at the Boyd, and for that movie it felt like being in an enormous Roman palace. And when I saw SUPERMAN at the Fox, it was the perfect setting to see a movie such as that, smack dab in the middle of the big city where all the tall skyscrapers are.
Meaning that when it comes to a movie like THE EXORCIST, isn’t this the very sort of movie where you want to feel somewhat annoyed and put off? I mean, I think of THE EXORCIST and what comes to mind is people behaving rudely and out of control. So it sounds like the audience you shared seeing that movie with was perfect for it, the “full movie-going experience,” as they say. And just think, you got all that for free atop the basic ticket price!
William e303
The Stage Door opened in 1971 with Carnal Knowledge which was also at the Milgram. The last film to play there was a film with Natalie Wood called The Last Married COuple In America.
The Exocrist opened there Dec 25 ,1973 not at the Milgram as posted earlier.
Well, I can’t argue with actual documentation from a newspaper. I searched the web for a long time and cannot anywhere find a date that the Stage Door opened. I thought it was later rather than earlier, but I may be wrong. I wonder when the last stage show at the Fox was. What I do know with certainty is that I saw The Exorist at the Milgram. I remember because it was an awful experience. It was clearly an audience who had not read the book, and was not well trained in the art of theatre etiquette. I remember that there was as much dialogue from the audience as there was on the screen. And people coming and going all the time. I hated the movie. I always called it “excerpts from The Exorcist.” But it was a hit. The Stage Door was smaller, so they probably moved it over to the Milgram to increase revenue. Personally, I’d like my money back. With interest.
Heck, I’d like a Cine-Miracle!
And a Godfather couldn’t hurt.
Er, speaking of which, this city could really use an exorcist right now, plus a Superman…
No, “The Exorcist” opened at the StageDoor. This theatre was carved out of the Fox' stage. The Milgram, formerly the Stanton, formerly the (first) Stanley, was just a few doors west of the Fox fronting on Market Street. The S tageDoor fronted around the corner on 16th Street. You may indeed have seen EX at the StageDoor at some time subsequent to its opening, but, go check the newspapers yourself, THE EXORCIST opened in Philadelphia downtown at the Stage Door.
The Philadelphia Fox was a gorgeous theatre. So sad that it’s gone. My best memory was when I saw a sneak preview of Peter Yate’s “The Hot Rock” in 1972. It was advertised on the Penn and Temple campuses and was shown at 9 in the morning. Yates himself was there and spoke to the audience after the screening. I believe this was a true preview in that he was still in the final editing stage.
Speaking of stages, I want to clear up what I firmly believe are inaccuracies in comments here. I am sure that “The Excorcist” did NOT premiere at the Stage Door. I clearly remember seeing it at the Milgram. I believe it’s quite possible, however, that “Exorcist II” was at the Stage Door in 1977.
I moved to Philly in 1970 and there were several years before the Stage Door was created. It was a nice little theatre, but it was built within the stage area of the Fox, which meant that the Fox could never again present stage shows.
When they tore down the Fox I couldn’t believe it! We called the structure that replaced it “The Darth Vader Building” because it was big, shiny black, and imposing.
I remebered seeing “The Godfather” there. It was a beautiful old theater!
This 1931 photo shows the Fox with the name spelled out on the office building above the theater. I ate at the Horn & Hardart on Broad Street many times when I was a kid. I don’t think they have any more of those in the city.
http://tinyurl.com/gtmfl
Here is a 1963 photo of the Fox from Temple University:
http://tinyurl.com/lny7j
Found this on eBay, but it appears that, before Milgram Theatres owned the Fox Theatre, and after Stanley Warner owned it, The Fox Theatre was owned by National Theatres Inc., who also owned Fox West Coast Theatres Corp. (today known as Mann Theatres), and The Fox Theatre in Detroit, and The Roxy Theatre in NYC
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