Are You Old Enough To Remember The Fox Theatre In Missoula?

I'm somebody who's really into movies, and I'm especially fascinated by the history of movie theaters. How they developed and turned into some of the bigger chains we see today, sure - but also the history of those independent cinemas that become a staple of whatever community they're in. There's a lot of local history tied into them, and unfortunately, we have a lot less of those old-school movie palaces than we did back in the day.

So when former Buzzfeed writer Anne Helen Peterson tweeted about the old Fox Theatre in Missoula, I was immediately intrigued.

As someone who came to town just a few years ago, I had never heard of the Fox Theatre. But reading through some of the responses, it seems like the place held a lot of memories for a lot of local people.

Cinema Treasures has a little bit of the history of the theater, and the Missoula Current had a nice write-up of it a few years back, too. From 1949 to 1984, it seems like it was THE place to see movies in Missoula... but alas, time marches on - it and the original location for Mustard Seed were razed and replaced with a parking lot. And man, that's just depressing (though at least Mustard Seed is still around, and is about to move its location again).

Thankfully, Missoula does still have The Roxy Theater acting as a community hub for movie lovers. And if you miss the Fox Theatre, it may be worth heading out to Marshall Mountain - according to a few of the replies on Twitter, the original Fox Theatre sign has been sitting in the parking lot there for a long time.

Do you have any fond memories of seeing movies at the Fox Theatre?