Loft Cinema

I was the manager of of the original Loft Theatre at 6th & Fremont between 1964 and 1966. I also lived above the theatre.

Here is an 11/15/2002 article about the purchase of the Loft Cinema by the Tucson Cinema Foundation.


"Tucson, Ariz., Movie Theater Is Sold to Nonprofit Group.

By Tom Beal, The Arizona Daily Star

Nov. 15--The Loft Cinema, Tucson's only independent movie theater, sold Thursday to the Tucson Cinema Foundation, a nonprofit group that promises to keep the theater's "art-house" offerings and expand its role as a center for the appreciation of film as art form.

Peggy Johnson, the foundation's executive director, said the group "just squeaked by" in raising the $200,000 it needed as down payment on the $800,000 sale price set by owner Joseph Esposito. Esposito bought The Loft in 1986 and moved it to its current location at 3233 E. Speedway in 1989 when the University of Arizona took possession of what was called "The New Loft" on Fremont Avenue, just north of East Sixth Street.

No immediate changes will be made to the theater's staffing or its mix of movies. The midnight Saturday showings of "Rocky Horror Picture Show" and the annual "Spike & Mike's Twisted Festival of Animation" will continue, Johnson said.

Bob Schlesinger, a member of the foundation's board and owner of Bookman's, volunteered to take over as interim manager. "It's just about the coolest thing anybody has offered to do," Johnson said.

"I know how to do it," said Schlesinger, who said he's looking forward to "getting in there with a hammer and ripping some shelves out." His 30-day plan for the theater is to get new paint and carpet in, then work on getting a new popcorn maker and coffee machine.

He said he's been "hanging out" at The Loft for a couple of weeks, learning the ropes from the employees who remind him of the kind of people who run his used-book stores. "They're esoteric and interested and very passionate about what they do," he said.

Sande Zeig, a film distributor and director, has been hired as The Loft's director, selecting the films shown. Zeig said she will initially divide her time between Tucson and New York, where her distribution company, Artistic License Films, operates.

Zeig said she's excited by the foundation's plans to include the community in discussions of its fare, holding talks with directors and discussions of the films with experts from the University of Arizona.

The Loft already has good programming, she said. "I have a huge admiration for Joe Esposito. For me, he's a legendary person in this business."

The foundation eventually wants to give the theater a face lift and expand its lobby area, but those things will have to wait for a capital fund-raising campaign, Johnson said".

Here is a photo of the Loft Cinema.

This is a December 2008 photo.

And here is a 2009 photo.

February 2009 photo

This is a better link for the Loft Cinema website.

Here is a May 2009 photo.