Fox Theatre
4127 Elysian Fields Avenue,
New Orleans,
LA
70122
4127 Elysian Fields Avenue,
New Orleans,
LA
70122
No one has favorited this theater yet
Showing 7 comments
June 19th, 1945 grand opening ad has been uploaded in the photo section with a picture.
Good luck on your book,Mardi Gras Man.
One thing I didn’t like about this theatre were its scratchy seats. I used to bring a light jacket to cover the seat even in hot weather because I was allergic to the seats!
It was the smallest of the three neighborhood theatres I frequented. It was also built on a angle to the street, now squared off like the others. Plus, there was no parking lot. Firehouse was next door where they issued driver’s licenses, and there were cemeteries across the street, as well as small shopping centers. I remember seeing “Bambi” and “Song of Bernadette” there.
Announcing a book about New Orleans Movie Theaters
THEREâ€\S ONE IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD
The History of the Neighborhood Theaters in New Orleans
is being written by 89-year-old Rene Brunet, the dean of the motion picture industry in Louisiana, and New Orleans historian and preservationist Jack Stewart. The 160-page,coffee table book will be released in November and is being published by Arthur Hardy Enterprises, Inc. Attention will be focused on 50 major neighborhood and downtown theaters, culled from a list of nearly 250 that have dotted the cityâ€\s landscape since the first “nickelodeon†opened in 1896 at 626 Canal Street. The book will be divided by neighborhoods and will open with a map and a narrative about each area. Each major theater will feature “then and now†photographs, historic information, and a short series of quotes from famous New Orleanians and from regular citizens who will share their recollections.
YOUR HELP IS NEEDED
We are trying to acquire memorabilia and additional photos of this theater for this publication. (deadline July 1.) You will be credited in the book and receive a free autographed copy if we publish the picture that you supply. Please contact Arthur Hardy at or call 504-913-1563 if you can help.
The Fox Theatre opened in 1945 by Charles Gulotta (sp?). He operated the Fox until his passing in 1953, when it was obtained by the owners of the Lakeview Theatre, Sammy Wright, Frank Lias and Louis Dugas, who also had the Algiers Drive-In at this time.
I remember going to the Fox as a youngster. A small lobby, concession stand with a Manley popcorn machine on the right side. There was a small balcony, which was closed by the time I attended, but I asked the owner if I could see the projection booth, and he brought me up one night.
The Fox was one of the only theatres in New Orleans that had ‘wall to wall carpeting’ in the auditorium, the Cinerama being the other. It closed in 1971, the last movie was Billy Jack.
I remember Saturday Matinee’s at the Fox on Elysian Fields, right off Gentilly Blvd. The theatre was next to the Fire Station. The place was packed on Saturdays in the 50’s and 60’s.
It’s now the site of a Chase Bank.