Looking back in photos: The Fox Theater

The art deco theater opened in 1931 as a first-run movie house, but with its stage, it also served as a venue for live performances that frequently attracted Hollywood celebrities. William Fox of Fox West Coast Studios, later to become 20th Century Fox, presided over construction of nearly 280 Fox theaters around the country, using teams of designers and artisans in each city. Fox theaters in Atlanta, St. Louis and Stockton, Calif., are among those that have been restored. The Spokane Fox was among the most elegant of the new theaters, and opened even as the Great Depression was taking down the national economy.

Section:Gallery

Wed., Oct. 25, 2017

The historic Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash., in 1931 photographed by Libby Studio.

Courtesy Northwest Museum Arts And Culture Eastern Washington State Historical Society
This photo was taken just a few days before the grand opening of the Fox Theater in Spokane on Sept. 3, 1931. The Fox Theater was built where Louie Adams' old beer parlor had been located. The theater cost $1 million to build, and many improvements also were made in the early 1950s. Fow plated some of the top films, including "Snow White", "Oklahoma", "Gone with the Wind" and "Stage Door Canteen."

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The Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash., September 1931.

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The Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash., September 1931.

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The historic Fox Theater prior to completion in Spokane, Wash., photographed in 1931 by Libby Studio.

Courtesy Northwest Museum Arts And Culture Eastern Washington State Historical Society
The Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash., September 1931.

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Jean Fowler, 6, and her brother Mark, 4, remember going to the Fox Theater in the 1930's.

Jean Fowler
The historic Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash., in 1931 photographed by Libby Studio.

Courtesy Northwest Museum Arts And Culture Eastern Washington State Historical Society
A Buick auto display at The Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash., photographed by Libby Studio.

Courtesy Northwest Museum Arts And Culture Eastern Washington State Historical Society
The historic Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash., in 1932 photographed by Libby Studio.

Courtesy Northwest Museum Arts And Culture Eastern Washington State Historical Society
The Fox Theater lobby in Spokane, Wash., January 1936.

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The Fox Theater lobby in Spokane, Wash., January 1936.

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The Fox Theater lobby in Spokane, Wash., January 1936.

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The Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash.

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The historic Fox Theater lobby in Spokane, Wash., photographed by Lacey.

Courtesy Northwest Museum Arts And Culture Eastern Washington State Historical Society
The original Fox Theater Usherettes lined up for a photo during the grand opening in July 1937. Each weekend the girls wore pastel organdy dresses with a fresh corsage and earned around $15 a week. From left, Marjorie Wester, Peggy Eggbers, Helen Altebury, Pauline Ler, Dorthy Hammock, Magie Shinkoski, Mildred Bryant, Gertrude Weston and Gladys Malmoe.

Gladys M. Mooers
In 1945 the staff and some of their family members posed for this photo in front of the George House cafe. The cafe was located in the Fox Theater building at that time, before losing their lease in 1946 and moving to 3rd and Walnut.

John George, Cafe Owner
The Fox Theater in 1950.

Courtesy Northwest Museum Arts And Culture Eastern Washington State Historical Society
The Fox Theater in 1945 in Spokane, Wash.

Courtesy Northwest Museum Arts And Culture Eastern Washington State Historical Society
A souvenir program from The Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash., 1951.

Courtesy Northwest Museum Arts And Culture Eastern Washington State Historical Society
A souvenir program from The Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash., 1951.

Courtesy Northwest Museum Arts And Culture Eastern Washington State Historical Society
Roberta Croase submitted this photo from 1952. "I was an usherette at the Fox in 1952," said Croase, "and I saw South Pacific 11 times."

Roberta Croase
The Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash.

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The Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash.

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The snack bar as the historic Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash., photographed in 1961 by Libby Studio.

Courtesy Northwest Museum Arts And Culture Eastern Washington State Historical Society
The historic Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash., photographed by Libby Studio.

Courtesy Northwest Museum Arts And Culture Eastern Washington State Historical Society
The Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash.

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The Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash.

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Alison Schuster submitted this photograph of the WSU Glee Club in a performance at The Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash., with opera star Paul Robeson. "I can't remember what we sang," said Schuster, "but I remember what a great time we had."

Alison Schuster
The Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash.

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Earl Atkinson, left, head of maintenance, and M. Fay Mills, theater manager, on the mezzanine of the Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash., November 1975.

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The Fox Theater in Spokane, Wash.

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