Ridglea Theater
6025 Camp Bowie Boulevard,
Fort Worth,
TX
76116
6025 Camp Bowie Boulevard,
Fort Worth,
TX
76116
10 people
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Reopened as an dine-in on August 12th, 1994. Ad in photo section.
3 screens on December 18th, 1987. Grand opening ad in the photo section.
The theater is reopening after renovations with a celebration ball and a sing-a-long showing of “The Sound of Music”. View article
The vertical sign was recently featured on an episode of “House Hunters” on HGTV.
I am SO glad that we have GOOD news on this wonderful theatre! Kudos to every soul that has made this miracle possible!!
Great News! The Ridglea Theatre is set to open in early 2012! http://ridgleatheater.com/press.asp .. Good luck to the “Historical” Ridglea Theatre!! A 2006 photo I took of the Ridglea Theatre. Enjoy!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/racphotography/4845539196
RAC Photography
September 2011 cloudy day views:
Photo 1
Photo 2
Photo 3
Photo 4
Photo 5
May/June 2011 magazine of National Trust for Historic Preservation reported Bank of America backed asway from plan to buy & demolish portion, allowing local entrepreneur Jerry Shluts to buy it December. “Working with Historic Forth Worth, Shults plans to restore the balcony, stage, murals, and terrazzo tile floor and reopen the theater later this year.” Here’s link to a site re saving it http://www.ridgleatheater.com/press.asp
The new owner of the Ridglea Theater Jerry Shults is looking for your Ridglea Theater memories! Email us with your memories and photos to
To view memories of the Historic Ridglea Theater, visit: http://www.ridgleatheater.com/memories
Thanks in advance for sending your memories to us!!
Any questions yall have about the new Theater and our ongoing restoration, please send us an email to
@Chuck1231 above:
Wonder what happened to the prow of the marquee.
I saw so many movies at the Ridglea, even though I lived in nearby Arlington. Eventually, as an adult, I moved to Fort Worth. I saw movies such as Disney’s FOLLOW ME BOYS, ROSEMARY’S BABY, THE GODFATHER, STAR WARS: THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, ALIEN, THE THING, and SUPERMAN. I think the last couple of movies I saw there were the James Bond movie LICENCE TO KILL and BABETTE’S FEAST.
As a founder of the Fort Worth Film Festival I was involved with the Ridglea during the days that Wesley and Richard were running movies in one of the upstairs auditoriums. Me, a friend and one of the other founders took turns running movies on the weekend there utilizing video projection.
While exploring some of the non-public areas I discovered what amounted to a couple of rows of seats that were being held as replacements for damaged seats. Boy, would I have loved to have gotten five or six of those!
The days of the beautiful Ridglea Theater may be “numbered”. Please see this link:
View link
Local residents and the “Historic Ft Worth” organization are sounding the alarm for the possible demise of this treasure! Having been a concert venue for several years, the concert company apparently declared bankruptcy and now someone else holds the paper. There is talk about demolishing it for a Bank of America!!!
PLEASE —– PLEASE help these folks save this theater. So far, they have organized a tour of the theater to help save it. Although this is very heartfelt and noble effort, I fear they will need far more to pull this off. Here is the news link regarding the tour:
ttp://www.dfw.com/2010/07/25/310341/historic-fort-worth-offering-tour.html
It looks like this great lady is in trouble again: www.dfw.com/2010/06/20/295133/ridglea-theater-running-out-of.html
I have written to the theater’s council rep urging him to explore saving and restoring this great venue. It is currently in use as a performance space and has great potential. I suggested that he explore how cultural centers can be economic engines and that I hope this theater doesn’t become a bank! It’s time for FW to come together and save this wonderful theater.
This theatres website is still advertising concerts.
Nice looking tower.
As per the Ft Worth Star Telegram, 10/30/09, a deal has been made for the Ridglea to be returned to lender without going through bankruptcy, but this still leaves it’s future in question.
Don…
This theatre look like it is still active. http://www.ridgleatheater.com/index.php
A view of the Ridglea, which is currently in bankruptcy proceedings, here, here and here.
Ridglea Theater has been known to show a few movies here and there today but its primary purpose is a concert venue. And its actually a really nice concert venue too, intimate, strong. Saw Mudvayne, Ministry, Black Flag (w/ Keith Morris and Henry Rollins), and a few local shows.
My dad actually saw Monty Python And The Holy Grail back in the 70s.
The official web site
http://www.ridgleatheater.com/index.html
Here is a 1984 photo. Click on the photo to enlarge:
http://web.ics.purdue.edu/~cirillo/fwsights.htm
I saw a lot of movies here but I remember only a few. I recall seeing Superman back in 1978. My elementary school had a field trip to the Ridglea to see the movie Scrooge which was probably a re-release in late 70s/early 80s. My complaint was that the teachers wouldn’t allow us to buy any refreshments. I can’t sit in a movie without eating & drinking so I was miserable. I was even more distraught when I turned around to see the meanest teacher eating M&Ms.
I did go to the Ridglea in 1992 after one of their first renovations to see Casablanca. They had a ‘baby room’ so mothers could take their crying baby into a soundproof room and still watch the movie. I didn’t go back to the theater again as it had changed to an art house, a restaurant/movie theater and now a concert place.
http://web.ics.purdue.edu/~cirillo/ridglea.jpg
photo probably from the 70s.
Prior to the destruction of the auditorium (translation: cutting it in half to make two theaters), this was a terrific movie palace. It was here, in 1977, I saw the first version of Close Encounters of the Third Kind. The screen was huge. I moved away from Ft. Worth in 1980, but have returned from time to time, on vacation. The last time I stopped by this theater, it was being converted to a bar. The seats had been removed. It would be nice if the theater aspect of this place is still intact. That fabulous marquee was always a sight to see on Camp Bowie Boulevard!