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Fox Theater or Martin Woldson Theater At The Fox
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The theater after restoration.
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| Location: | 1001 W. Sprague Ave. Spokane, Washington |
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| Governing body: | Spokane Symphony |
| MPS: | Movie Theaters in Washington State MPS |
| NRHP Reference#: | 01001287 |
| Added to NRHP: | November 30, 2001 |
The Fox Theater in Spokane, Washington is a 1931 Art Deco movie theater. It was designed by architect Robert C. Reamer, notable for his design of the Old Faithful Inn in Yellowstone Park. It was part of the Fox Film Corporation Empire founded by studio mogul William Fox.[1] The theater opened September 3, 1931 and showed films continuously until it closed September 21, 2000 after an engagement of the movie Gladiator starring Russell Crowe.[2] The adjacent Spokane Club sought to purchase and demolish the building to build a parking garage.[3] The theater was saved when the Spokane Symphony purchased it and began an extensive fund raising campaign to provide funds needed for restoration.
Restorers cleaned and painted, recreated lost architectural details and lighting fixtures. They also removed partitions installed in 1975 which converted the theatre into a multiplex. They reduced the original 2,300 seats to 1,700.[1] The Wurlitzer 3-manual, 13-rank theatre organ installed when the building was constructed in 1931 was removed in 1961.[3]
The total cost of the renovations was $31 million and were completed in November 2007. The theatre was renamed Martin Woldson Theater at The Fox in honor of the father of a donor who contributed $3 million towards the renovations. It re-opened as the home of the Spokane Symphony on November 17, 2007. The re-opening included a special celebration featuring a performance by Tony Bennett on November 19, 2007.[4]
Notable performances at the theatre include: Katharine Hepburn, in As You Like It, as well as Marian Anderson, Bing Crosby, and Frank Sinatra.[4] Michelle Obama, wife of the 2008 Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama held a rally campaigning for her husband's presidential campaign on February 8, 2008.[5]
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