Fox Theatre
1350 Market Street,
San Francisco,
CA
94102
1350 Market Street,
San Francisco,
CA
94102
38 people
favorited this theater
Showing 1 - 25 of 168 comments found
This theater’s Wurlitzer “Crawford” (or Fox) special is based on the one which was installed in the N.Y. Paramount. That instrument proved so popular that Fox ordered one for the S.F., St. Louis, and Detroit theaters. The one from this theater survives intact at Disney’s El Capitan theater, in Hollywood, Ca. It is played frequently, and receives very good care. ==== Remember the S.F Fox! ====
I have seen Bill Swain’s photos online- nice work. They really give you a feel for the grand palace that was, and sadly, was lost. The S.F. Fox is my favorite of all the big movie palaces. It’s loss is on a par with that of the St.Louis Ambassador in the mid 90’s. It’s nice that the Fox’s Wurlitzer is alive and well under the loving care of Disney in southern California. If Donald Trump wanted something to pattern a new casino or hotel lobby from, this theater would be fantastic!
HI EVERY ONE I AM JEFF HERSHEL THE GUY THAT TRULY WANTED TO SAVE THE FOX THEATHER I WROTE THE ORIGNAL BOOK ON THE FOX THEATHER. THE FOLLISH AND FABULOUS FOX. I SPEAR HEADED THE ENTIRE FOX CAMPAGAIN. WITH ALL TYPES OF EVENTS. I HAVE A GREAT COLLECTION OF PICTURES POSTERS FROM THE ORIGNAL SAVE THE FOX THEATHER. YOU CAN REACH ME ON
This was my favorite Movie Theater in the whole World!!! It was like a Palace! It was soooo beautiful!!! It had 24K Gold Plated Faucets and Italian Marble floors in the Ladies Room!
I was there the day that the wrecking ball struck. I cried so hard and cried all the way home.My Dad was so cool! He got me some souvenirs and the Book “The Fabulous And Foolish Fox”. That book is worth a fortune now.
I think it was “NOW” or “NOW in” CinemaScope on the sign.
I love that incredible CINEMASCOPE sign from 1963. Is there another word in neon on the same sign also that maybe it flashed from one to the other?
Excellent photo posted by Bill Swain.Very Nice.
My husband who is an avid collector and dealer,recently came across 3 sets of seats from The Fabulous Fox Theatre. They were well maintained by a collector who recently passed away. They will be placed in The Antique Society in Sebastopol,Ca. for anyone wanting to take a peek at a piece of history or to perhaps purchase them for their own collection. As someone who grew up in San Francisco it was a tragedy when the Fox was demolished. Still painful after all these years! Thanks for all the great postings and photos on this site!
Lisa
“Display CinemaScope 55 Changeover Equipment"
Small photo in Boxoffice magazine, April 7, 1956:
View link
Thanks to all of you. I stumbled across this site this morning and have been enlightened, delighted, and even moved to tears by your heartfelt reminiscences. This grand lady was born, lived, and died before I was even a gleam in my daddy’s eye, but I somehow feel connected to this beautiful theatre and those of you who rekindle and celebrate its memory.
Ziggy,
I took persons that seemed to be appropriate from other photos that I didn’t use. I placed them in places where they might enhance the picture. PhotoShop was used to do this and to color them.
I am still working on a couple more photos that will be published later this year.
Bill Swain
Mr. Swain,
I noticed that, in a couple of the photos, there are people posing in the colorized versions that aren’t there in the black and white photos. How did you do that?
Mr. Swain
Your pictures are truly amazing. Incredible work!
Mr. Swain…
If you have been unable to find any customers for the Fox artifacts, you might consider donating them to JOSEPH MUSIL’s non-profit AMERICAN MUSEUM OF THEATRICAL DESIGN in Santa Ana. 714-667-6959 207 N. Broadway, in the 1925 Santora Arts Building.
I donated some SF Fox items to Joe of which we created a lovely window display with my Cherub (from above the original candy counter) basking in a full spotlight!
Thank you. Simon Overton in Oregon.
Richard Apple has kindly added some more of my pictures of the S.F. Fox, as it looked in 1929. It has been a labor of love to work on the original black and white negatives that were loaned to me. I hope anyone interested in the long lost Fox will enjoy looking at them. I am still working on two more that will be finished next year.
View link
Bill Swain San Francisco, December, 2009
Is anyone familiar with a series of high-style Art Deco bas relief plaster panels that were in the Fox? Evidently a set of these panels was purchased by Phil Lehr, a local restauranteur, in 1963 before the theater was demolished. The one I have depicts an Apollo-like figure playing the lyre, accompanied by a female figure with stylized hair, and a young boy, all in a tropical-cum-Deco setting. Does this sound familiar to anyone?
Bob Jaeger
Here is a drawing by Thomas Lamb, as seen in Ben Hall’s book “The Best Remaining Seats”:
http://tinyurl.com/qttd5a
Here are two 1963 photos:
Photo1
Photo2
The Fox marquee still looked spectacular in 1962:
View link
View link
This is from Boxoffice magazine in October 1961:
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF.-The huge Fox Theater here will be replaced whether or not the city purchases the 5,000-seat house. Eugene V. Klein, president of National Theaters & Television, which owns the Fox, said the new theater will have no more than 1,500 seats and will be equipped with a ground-level parking lot for patrons. Construction will start “practically immediately”.
The 1961 photo must have been taken in January or February of that year, since Disney’s “Swiss Family Robinson” is displayed on the marquee. “Family” opened in the third week of January and held over into February, playing at the Fox for a total of five weeks, according to Preston Kaufmann’s book. The first week’s gross was $21,861; second week, $16,256; third week, $10,093; fourth week, $12,566; fifth week, $8,051. All but the third and fifth week were above the Fox’s weekly average gross for 1961, which was $10,490.
I don’t know if you’ve seen this one before but this link has a photo of the Fox. Year given for photo is 1961.
Here’s a new link to an aerial view. The Fox is in the lower left portion:
View link
Several years ago I bought a 2CD set of George Wright on the SF Fox organ issued by BANDA records, which were originally recorded in Feb 1958 and mastered from ½ tapes that had been “recently re-discovered”. The audio quality on these is oustanding. I beleive they are still available in the BANDA catalog. About a month ago I found and bought a 2 disk (33rpm LP) set of the “Farewell To The Fox” concerts on e-bay. These were pressed by Fantasy Records in 1964. I don’t beleive these have ever been issued on CD. Both disks were in excellent shape. I have one of those direct-to-digital turntables so I made digital copies for myself to protect the originals. The LP’s were in such good shape that I decided not to use any additional noise reduction or EQ when digitizing them, other than the standard RIAA curve.
Dear Mr. Swain:
Those photos you did are fantastic!!!!
Also, I met you a couple of times. You won’t remember me because there were so many people in line.
In the San Francisco Bay area, there are 4 magnificant installations you did (you were still active with your company then):
First Presbyterian Church – Richmond CA 1965
First Presbyterian Church – Concord CA 1977-78 (I met you at that meeting when the church approved the renovation of the organ)
First Presbyterian Church – Lafayette-Orinda (???) magnificant sounding organ!
The Mormon Tabernacle in Oakland
First Presbyterian Church in Walnut Creek (1992) I again shook your hand and told you I really liked that organ better than the previous Cassavant-Feres which, unfortunatly, burned down with the building.
I am very happy with your interst in both theaters and of your magnificant organs. I am a professional organist myself, holding a Master’s Degree in organ.
My passions are (1) trains, (2) organs) (3) theaters….hence my name “Trainmaster.
I assume you are interested in the latter two – I’d love to communicate with you via e-mail. Just send a message to me
Warren – I will write you privately since you gave your e-mail address. I DO appreciate very much your comments and information!
I also enjoy haering from the rest of you on theater topics.
And, thanks to you, Mr. Apple, for responding. Yes, I did meet your father a couple times as well at the Paramount. A fantastic gentleman! I can only imageine (from up above he is looking down) he is very pleased that the Paramount now has a 4/33 rank WurliTzer instead of that Rodgers and that the S.F. Fox organ he loved so very much is playing again for the public at the El Captain. Too bad they couldn’t bring it up to Oakland and install it in the Fox for their October 2008 debut! That organ WAS from the Bay Area, and really belongs there! However, it is still great to be able to see and hear it again. A celeste rank was added to make it a 4/37. Kudos to the Disney Company to restoring the appearance of the organ to comply with the original appearance. George Wright and Everett Nourse would have been pleased.
Has anyone heard of the possibility of the “Farewell To The Fox” records being available on CD? I know the Gothic label (which specializes in classical recordings) has the rights and is re-issuing the George Wright theater organ recordings. How odd for a label like Gothic, but with their top-notch quality, how fortunte!
I was shocked when I received the Gothic Catalog and saw the George Wright CD’s available.
Kindest Regards to all. Please excuse my spelling errors – I can’t see that well and this print is SO small!! Guess I am getting old (aren’t we all?)
Old organists never die – they just lose their wind!
Trainmaster