AMC Westroads 2
10245 W. Dodge Road,
Omaha,
NE
68114
10245 W. Dodge Road,
Omaha,
NE
68114
4 people
favorited this theater
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The Fox Westroads was located in the Boston Mall section of the Westroads Mall. The original floor plan of the Westroads was on a single level. The new plan - a second floor section on the northeast mall called “Boston Mall” - encompassed two neighboring theaters - an oddity - with the Fox Westroads and the forthcoming Six West Theatre. The Fox Westroads had an external entry while the Six West had an internal entry within the Westroads Mall with steps to the box office.
The Fox Westroads Theatre started was a project mired in the court system as challengers said Fox Midwest was operating in an anti-competitive manner. National General technically would operate the Westroads primarily with Fox Midwest as the secondary operator to get past the legal challenges. The luxury suburban cinema opened as a 750-seat single screen auditorium on November 16, 1967 with “Tony Rome” starring Frank Sinatra. Durwood / American Royal then announced in 1967 that they would build a six-plex next door to the Fox to open in 1968 (though delayed to January 22, 1969).
On April 3, 1973, Mann Theatres acquired National General’s 240 locations and, effective on June 29, 1973, Mann operated it under the Mann Fox Westroads banner. Mann closed the venue temporarily in 1977 to twin the venue. It became the Mann Fox Twin on May 27, 1977 with “Mikey & Nicky” and “Ruby.” Dickinson Theatres took on the Fox Twin on February 2, 1980 running it as the Fox Westroads Theatres.
AMC took over the Fox Westroads from Dickinson officially on December 8, 1983 as the AMC Westroads 2 with “Sudden Impact” and “Scarface.” AMC then linked its AMC Six West 6 into a single 8-screen facility called the AMC Westroads 8. As a result, AMC retired both monikers of the AMC Westroads 2 on February 16, 1984 with “The Big Chill” and “Nightstalker” and the AMC Six West 6 with a handful of films becoming the AMC Westroads 8 on February 17, 1984.
In the mid-1990s, megaplexes were replacing aging multiplexes all over the country. AMC Westroads 8 was targeted for replacement by a 24-screen facility about five miles ways. The circuit closed theWestroads permanently at the end of its 30-year leasing agreement on December 11, 1997. AMC opened its AMC Oak View 24 the next day.
November 16th, 1967, grand opening
The same theatre was built in Calgary, Alberta. Chill Wills opened both these theatres
I Might have a Photo for ya Modanco.I have to scan it first.
My wife worked at the Fox Westroads when it first opened. She worked on Opening Night. Does anyone out there have any kind of ads (in addition to the ones shown on this site) or memorabilia that they could copy and forward to me? Respond here and I’ll contact you. Thanks.
@tinseltoes. Omg what a find. thanks for posting!!
Well it looks like Dick’s Sporting goods took up the area where the Fox and Six West were. Thanks for the info.
Theater Houses ‘Round Town Omaha World-Herald (NE) – Sunday, June 16, 1985
“Westroads 8
245 and 264 Boston Mall, Westroads shopping center, 102nd Street and West Dodge Road, 397 – 6666. Eight screens, with six in one cluster with indoor entrances and two in another cluster with outdoor entrances. Tickets are $2 for showings that start before 6 p.m., otherwise $3.75 except $3.25 for students with an AMC Theaters discount card, $2 for those younger than 14 or older than 54. Matinees daily. Midnight movies on Friday and Saturday nights."
The Fox theaters were just north of JCPenney’s, where Dick’s Sporting Goods is now located. The Fox entrance was outside, and screens exited to the parking lot to the east, just north of Penney’s. To the west of Fox was the mall entrance, Boston Mall, which led to the Six West box office. Later, a small store was built north of AMC, housing a magic store and later selling t-shirts.
The Boston Mall hallway was AMC on the west, Fox and Penney’s on the east, and thus had nothing to see until you turned the corner, where Read All About It and Waldenbooks were located.
I saw the first Midnight premiere, Batman, there, as well as my first R-rated movie (The Fly). I also trekked through a snowstorm to see Disney’s Beauty and the Beast early Saturday morning. It had a newsreel!
Mann operated lots of theaters throughout Omaha, most of them a bit worn… I think most became 99-cent theaters before the discount chains moved in. (At one point, half of the screens in Omaha were discounted.)
Found some info on the Fox Theater.
Fox AKA: Westroads 2 Westroads shopping centre November 16th, 1967-December 1983 Owners:1969-1973 Fox Intermountain 1973-1980 Mann Twinned on May 27th, 1977 (AMC built the world’s first 6-screencinema in the mall 15 months later)
Interesting. thanks for the info. I have been trying to find More pics. I can not find any of the Fox. I had someone try to Show me where the Sixwest Entrance was inside the mall. But She sorta got confused with the changes the mall has done. She said something about a hallway along JC penny and Sixwest was basiclly a hole in the wall.
They were in the same building. In fact they were butted up against each other. The six screen theater had an inside entrance about 50 feet inside. The twin had its own separate outside entrance about 20 feet to the right of the mall entrance to the other.
Found this info today. Fox Midwest theater 264 Boston mall in a 1970 Phone book.
So amc and Fox was in the same building? I was told you could get into Amc from inside the mall and Fox from only outside.
Thanks Rioeffler for the info.
Yes, Rave is in the mall, on the north exterior side where Younkers used to be. The Fox theater used to be on the northwest corner,just north of where J. C. Penny is (and has been all these years). It (and AMC) was torn down around 2003, and a Dick’s Sporting Goods Store is in its place.
Westroads.
Joelweide. Rave is where Younkers use to be. It is on the mall Property, But you can only get in from Outside. Rave is on the north side of the mall. Dicks Sporting goods is right next to it.
Where was the Fox theater in Westroads? Someone told me right next to the Now Food court. Another told me next to Younkers. When was the Fox theater torn down?
rivest226 do you know where Rave’s Westroads 14 is located at? Is in on the mall property or in an adjacent location? What about AMC as well? Thanks!!!
Also it was twinned on May 27th, 1977. The price they had to pay is they didn’t get Star Wars.
Interesting! The plot thickens! Thanks for the information! Mann must have sold the Fox directly to AMC and was not apart of the Dickinson deal. Thanks again!!!
Had a look, AMC took it over in December 1983 and renamed it Westroads 2. Later on, the Six West was renamed Westroads 6. Dickinson never placed its name in the newspaper ads for the Fox.
Thanks for that information ‘rivest266’. I knew that Dickinson did not operate the theatre for any length of time, probably under 8 months if that long.
Around 1984 this theatre was taken over by AMC and renamed Westroads 2 and the Six West renamed Westroads 6
Grand opening ad from November 12th, 1967 has been posted here.
I worked in the district office for Mann which included this theatre. The theatre was located in the Westroads shopping center. Unfortunately someone in the Los Angeles office did not sign an exclusive lease at the time this theatre was built and AMC later went in the mall, literally around the corner and opened a six screen complex. When Dickinson purchased Manns' interests in the midwest they operated the Fox Westroads only for a short time before selling it to AMC.