Timmerman Theater
5441 8th Street,
Fort Dix,
NJ
08641
5441 8th Street,
Fort Dix,
NJ
08641
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I’ve tried, unsuccessfully, to get an actual seating count but it is apparent from the comparison of the interior images as a Post theater and as a convention center auditorium that everything is the same except the color scheme. I don’t really remember much about the interiors of the old “military style” theaters (an example of which is in the photos section) except that at, what we called, Theater 2 the wainscoting in the men’s room was identical to the Formica on my kitchen table at home.
At the Joint Base theater which now services McGuire AFB- Dix – Lakehurst (on the McGuire property) the Adult admission is $6.00 for adults, $3.00 for children and more for 3D. Theater is obviously closed because of the pandemic.
Uploaded a photo when the auditorium sported the original color scheme from the Army days.
By means of contrast uploaded a picture of a generic War Department theater. When I was at Ft. Dix in the early 1960s there were also two operating in addition to the Timmerman. A former one was being used for other activities.
Army buddy of mine said there was a concession stand. He thought admission was a buck.
I remember the pylon once advertised a movie featuring Sabina Sesselmann. Who you ask? Didn’t see the movie. Just looked her up on Wikipedia. She was a German actress who also appeared in the British film Information Received. That must be the one I saw advertised since it was a 1961 release.
I have some specific remembrances of the theater:
Saw Sweet Bird of Youth opening night. Long line. Not everyone got in.
Although one could wear civvies, there was a dress code. I was turned away one night because I was wearing a sweater with no observable shirt underneath. A buddy loaned a fresh one he had in his car.
They could contact you in an emergency by projecting a message to the left of the proscenium.
Can’t remember if there was a concession stand or whether admission was 50 cents or a dollar. I think the latter.
From the style of the theater I believe it was erected in the 1950s. It was not new when I was there in the early 1960s. At that time there were two other post theaters, Numbers 2 and 3. They were your typical military base type structures. Timmerman was sometimes referred to as Theater 1.
Uploaded a current picture of the interior. When I was there in the 1960s the walls were a tan/beige. Also uploaded an exterior photo showing most of the theater. The box office was on the left.