Fox Van Nuys

6417 Van Nuys Blvd. Van Nuys (Los Angeles), CA 91401 | map |

 

Opened: October 9, 1924 as the Van Nuys Theatre with Rin Tin Tin in "Find Your Man." It was on the west side of the street a half block north of Victory Blvd. Thanks to Ryan Khatam for sharing this version of this 60s postcard on Flickr. We're looking north. 

 

Earlier in Van Nuys: In 1917 a theatre called the Van Nuys opened using an an address of Sherman Way near E. St. In 1921 a theatre was built at 260 Sherman Way that was called the Van Nuys until they decided to call it the Rivoli. In 1926 the address became 6258 Van Nuys Blvd. In 1960 the Rivoli was rebranded as the Capri. See the page about the Rivoli/Capri Theatre for information on both the 1917 and 1921 theatres. 

Architect: Unknown

Seating: 814 is an early number. It was 690 after the 1958 renovations. 

Joe Vogel reports that it was built by Burnis R. Shacklett, owner of Shacklett’s Valley Furniture Store. Part of his furniture store became the lobby and the auditorium was constructed behind the existing shops. It had a mention in the Southwest Builder and Contractor issue of May 30th, 1924.

In the 1923 San Fernando Valley city directory the Valley Furniture Co. was listed with a 417 Sherman Way address. There's no listing for that address or anything nearby in the 1924 directory. 

A 1924 opening week ad. Thanks to Dallas Movie Theaters for locating it for a post on Cinema Treasures. All we get in the 1926 San Fernando Valley city directory is a listing for Lee Shacklett operating a confectionery at 6417 Van Nuys Blvd. -- what we would typically find adjacent to a movie theatre.   

By 1927 it was operated by N. Scheinberg and M.P. Horwitz. They also had the Madrid Theatre (later later called the Canoga and the Park) on Sherman Way in Canoga Park, a community then called Owensmouth. The pair also planned a theatre in Reseda, evidently never built. It's all mentioned in a July 3, 1927 L.A. Times item unearthed by Cinema Treasures contributor Jeff Bridges:

"Reseda To Get First Theater - Reseda, July 2 - Reseda is to have its first motion-picture theater-a building that is to cost $35,000. This is the announcement made by N. Scheinberg and M.P. Horwitz, owners and operators of the Van Nuys Theater, and the Madrid Theater at Owensmouth. The Reseda house will be erected on Reseda Boulevard, north of Sherman Way. 

 

"The Sloan Building Company of Los Angeles will have charge of construction. Plans will be by Roy Reeves, Van Nuys architect. Scheinberg and Horwitz are well-known Van Nuys men. Following their success at Van Nuys, they built the Owensmouth house a few months ago, with the promise that a similar playhouse would be erected in Reseda."

 

These listings appear in the 1928 Los Angeles city directory:

 

"Van Nuys Theatre (Van Nuys Theatre Co) mot pict 6419 Van Nuys Blvd"  

"Van Nuys Theatre Co (Rivoli and Van Nuys Theatres) Nathan Scheinberg genl mgr 6419 Van Nuys Blvd" 

 

Fox West Coast acquired the theatre in 1936 and it became the Fox Van Nuys. 

 

 

A 1939 Van Nuys News ad for a free cooking school at the theatre that was located by Ken McIntyre.  

 

A 1958 remodel resulted in a flat marquee and new vertical sign. The reopening was September 24.

 

An item about the renovated theatre that appeared in the September 23 issue of the Valley Times. Thanks to Mike Rivest for locating it. Visit his site: Movie-Theatre.org

 

The September 23 ad in the Valley Times.

 

 

The "Congratulations" ad in the September 23, 1958 Valley Times.  

 

The Fox was featured in the April 6, 1959 issue of Boxoffice:

Thanks to Mike Hume for locating the article. Two additional pages discussed work the circuit had done at the Chinese, the Fox Arlington, the Fox Pomona and the Loyola. Visit Mike's Historic Theatre Photography site for thousands of terrific photos of the theatres he's explored.

A 1960 Fox ad located by Ken McIntyre. At the time the circuit was branding itself as "NT&T," National Theatres and Television, Inc. The theatre was later operated by the circuit's successor companies National General and Mann Theatres. 

Mann dropped the house in January 1977 and it became an independent operation and had periods as both a Spanish language theatre and a bargain house.

Closing: Around 1991.

Status: After closing as a theatre, the building was used for retail. It was demolished in 2024. 

 

Interior views:

 

A 50s look at the Fox Van Nuys snackbar. The photo by Nate Singer is in the Tom B'Hend - Preston Kaufmann Collection, part of the AMPAS Margaret Herrick Library.

 

 

A fuzzy auditorium view from the article in the April 6, 1959 issue of Boxoffice.

More exterior views:

 

1945 - A photo from the April 6, 1959 issue of Boxoffice.

 

c.1950 - A view north toward the theatre with the marquee over on the left. Many thanks to Sean Ault for sharing the photo from his collection. 

 

c.1950 - A detail from Sean's photo. The theatre marquee is seen in the center of the image. The horizontal signage is for McMahan's Furniture, just this side of the theatre. On the right that's Red Car 5027 on a "Special" run. Thanks, Sean!

 

1955 - Looking north across Victory Blvd. The Fox is in the upper center, just to the left of that light pole. It's a Valley Times photo in the Los Angeles Public Library collection. It appeared September 23 with this caption: "Special left turn only lanes, known as shadow lanes, are being used in Van Nuys on Van Nuys boulevard from Oxnard to Vanowen streets. This view is looking north on Van Nuys at Victory boulevard. Left turn lane is immediately to the left of normal center line. This is first time in Los Angeles such lanes have been painted on rather than constructed of raised concrete or bars."

1958 - The look after the remodel with the theatre's reopening bill on the marquee. The photo appeared in the April 6, 1959 issue of Boxoffice. The caption:

c.1959 - Thanks to the Valley Relics Museum for this postcard, one that once appeared on their Facebook page. It's also been seen as a post for the Photos of Los Angeles private Facebook group. 

c.1960 - Thanks to Sean Ault for this parade shot looking toward the Fox.

1972 - A photo by Rick McCloskey, one of 17 in his portfolio "Cruising Van Nuys Boulevard in 1972" that appears in the Style section of the CNN website. 

c.1973 - A view north from Victory Blvd. It's a photo on Cinema Treasures taken by the site's contributor Gary Rabbit.

 

 

1980s? - A shot taken during the theatre's time as a Spanish language house. It was shared, without credits or any data, on Cinema Treasures by that site's contributor Senorsock.

2011 - The former theatre on the right as retail space. Photo: Google Maps

2019 - The building in use for Cricket wireless, a 99 cent store and a taco establishment. Photo: Google Maps.  

 

 

2024 - All that was left was the terrazzo after the building's demolition. Thanks to Ben Woythaler for sharing this photo and the three below in a May post on Facebook in the private Valley Relics Group. And thanks to Jason Vega for spotting the post. 

 

 

2024 - Another sidewalk view. Photo: Ben Woythaler

 

 

2024 - Looking in from Van Nuys Blvd. Photo: Ben Woythaler

 

2024 - The view from the back of the lot. Photo: Ben Woythaler

 

 

The Fox in the Movies: 

 

The Jerry Lewis film "The Family Jewels" (Paramount, 1965) starts with an armored car getting loaded up in Van Nuys. When it drives north on Van Nuys Blvd. we get a quick look at the Fox. In addition to Jerry in multiple roles, the film features Donna Butterworth, Sebastian Cabot, Neil Hamilton, Jay Adler and Robert Strauss. The cinematography was by W. Wallace Kelley. Thanks to David Aswad for noting the appearance of the theatre. In a post on Cinema Treasures he commented: "I remember what a kick it was watching it at the Fox and seeing the theatre I was in on the screen."

More Information: See the Cinema Treasures page on the Fox Van Nuys for lots of fine research and many comments.

There are some Van Nuys photos on a Water and Power Associates Museum page of early San Fernando Valley views. 

The Beach Boys supposedly played a gig in Van Nuys on December 1, 1962 that some writers assert was at the Fox Van Nuys. Others just say it was just the "Van Nuys Theatre." It was a benefit for the Pacific Lodge Boys' Home. Also on the bill were Dorsey Burnett, the Lively Ones, Annette Funicello, Andy Williams, Eddie Cano, Lou Monte, Billy Storm, The Christy Minstrels, Dee Dee Sharp, Dobie Gray, the Crystallets, Cyndy Malone, the Mixtures, Dick Michals, the Pastel 6 and Jimmy Haskell. Quite a show for a theatre without a stage.

This version of the photo that has been circulating comes from a review of the 2024 book "The Beach Boys by the Beach Boys" on the site On The Records. Also see the data on the site Beach Boys Gigs, the blog Beach Boys Venues and on the Valley Relics Museum Facebook page. The ad for the Fox on December 1 made no mention of a benefit. They were running "Poor White Trash" and "Unwed Mothers." Over at the Capri it was "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?" and "Guns of Darkness."  

Nearby: See our page about the Rivoli / Capri Theatre at 6258 Van Nuys Blvd. 

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