- Collection:
- Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation Presentation Slide Collection, 1968-2000
- Title:
- Fox Theatre
- Creator:
- Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation
- Contributor to Resource:
- Marye, P. Thornton (Philip Thornton), 1872-1935
Alger, Barrett
Vinour, Ollivier J.
Crane, C. Howard (Charles Howard), 1885-1952
Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine for North America. Yaarab Temple (Atlanta, Ga.) - Date of Original:
- 1998
- Subject:
- Architecture
Historic sites--Georgia--Fulton County
Historic buildings--Georgia--Fulton County
Commercial buildings--Georgia--Fulton County
Historic theaters
Cultural property--Protection
Historic preservation--Georgia
Historic buildings--Conservation and restoration - Location:
- United States, Georgia, Fulton County, Atlanta, 33.749, -84.38798
- Medium:
- color slides
eclectic style (general style)
islamic (culture or style)
theaters (buildings)
theaters (institutions)
historic preservation
historic buildings - Type:
- Still Image
- Format:
- image/jp2
- Description:
- The Fox Theater, located on Peachtree Street in downtown Atlanta, was designed in its Neo-Mideastern style by the Atlanta architectural firm of Marye, Alger and Vinour in 1927. This “Fabulous Fox" was indeed a dreamworld capsule contained on a city block with its rhinestone curtains, labyrinths of dressing rooms, plush furnishings, plaster and gold leafed intricacies of design, as well as its grandiose use of space. The Fox Theater is one of the most prodigious 20th century structures in Georgia–not only as a theater example, but also as an architectural stylistic example. This movie palace, the size of a city block, was designed in a Neo-Mideastern Eclectic Style and was one of the largest theaters even at the time of its opening on December 25, 1929, during the height of the golden age of the movie palace. The Fox was originally planned by the Yaarab Temple Building Company as a Shriner's mosque for use by the approximately 5,000 members of the Yaarab Temple of the Mystic Shrine. However, apparently, at the suggestion of the movie industry magnate, William Fox, the temple was expanded into a plan that included several stores surrounding the periphery of the building and a theater auditorium all of which were to be leased. (In these leased areas the Shriners could maintain offices in the building and use the main auditorium for ceremonial and initiation purposes six times a year.) The original portion of the building had its entrance on Ponce de Leon with the great onion dome above; but, when the theater and shop additions to the plans were made, the Peachtree Street side became the primary entrance. Revenue collected from the leased auditorium and stores was used to pay for the increased one and a half million dollar building expense. According to some sources, William Fox was to pay a rental fee of approximately three million dollars over a twenty-year period. (The final building and furnishing costs have been placed from $2 1/2 million-$5 million.)The design for the Fox was chosen from a group of six competing Atlanta architectural firms; the Muslim-inspired aesthetics of the winning theater design was achieved by the Atlanta firm of Marye, Alger, and Vinour, while the physical layout and the theatrical details were envisioned and managed by consulting engineer C. Howard Crane. Crane had been the primary architect of the chain of Fox Theaters built in Brooklyn, Detroit and St. Louis; project architect Ollivier Vinour worked together in Crane’s Detroit office. The building was constructed within less than three years from 1927 to 1929. It was a grand success, opening with a live, on-stage performance of "Beach Night" by Fanchon and Marco and their Sunkist Beauties. Sadly, the Depression forced many of the shops to give up their leases as well as the Fox's theater operations; by 1932 the Fox was closed due to unpaid taxes. The New Georgia Encyclopedia states that "By 1932 the Shriners were defaulting on their pledges, and William Fox was bankrupt. Late that year, the mortgage was foreclosed, and the theater was forced to shut down, after less than three years in operation." In 1935, Mosque, Inc. was formed and bought the Fox. Its owners have changed over the years, as have the building's functions. During World War II (1941-45) the Fox remained open prospered as one of Atlanta’s finest movie houses from the 1940s through the 1960s, but as the movie industry transitioned, the Fox resorted to showing second-rate films. In the mid-1970s, Southern Bell/AT&T wanted the Fox’s corner lot for its world headquarters. Atlanta politicians didn't want these companies to move and take their employees and lucrative tax base away with them. It looked as if the Fox would be sold and demolished to make way for Southern Bell’s new corporate headquarters. The Fox was rescued through the efforts of Atlanta Landmarks, Inc., a nonprofit organization of committed Atlantans who purchased the property in 1975. The mortgage was paid off in 1978 after a successful four-year “Save the Fox” fund-raising campaign. Since 1975 the Fox Theatre has operated as a multipurpose performing arts center. Variant names include: Fox Theatre. See ref # 74002230 (Fox Theatre) and #82000953 (Fox Theatre Historic District), https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nationalregister/upload/national-register-listed-20240710.xlsx
- External Identifiers:
- Metadata URL:
- https://dlg.usg.edu/record/gthp_gthp-slides_448
- Digital Object URL:
- https://dlg.usg.edu/record/gthp_gthp-slides_448#item
- IIIF manifest:
- https://dlg.usg.edu/record/gthp_gthp-slides_448/presentation/manifest.json
- Language:
- eng
- Additional Rights Information:
- Please contact holding institution for information regarding use and copyright status.
- Holding Institution:
- Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation
- Rights:
-
