The Southern Movie Palace

by Jones, Janna

• ISBN13: 9780813026053
• ISBN10: 0813026059
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2003-03-01
• Publisher: Univ Pr of Florida

Summary

Focusing on the restoration of movie theaters in Atlanta, Biloxi, Birmingham, Durham, Memphis, and Tampa, Janna Jones provides a record of the architectural history and preservation of the opulent urban picture palace. Reflecting our fascination with the past, she recreates the magic of the early years of theaters throughout the southern United States, their demise in the mid-20th century, and their renaissance in the 1970s as the preservation movement swept across the country. From the 1920s through the 1950s, the magnificent movie theaters of the South beckoned to millions of urban patrons. By the 1960s, however, many downtown districts had experienced profound cultural and economic crises and the wrecking ball destroyed scores of the grand old structures. Others barely survived by showing pornographic or racially exploitative movies. Those remaining today are often a critical component of downtown revitalization. Jones discusses attempts to save, restore, and reuse the movie houses. She explores how and why people attempt to resurrect the past and reveals th

Author Biography

Janna Jones is assistant professor of interdisciplinary studies at the University of South Florida, Tampa.

Table of Contents

List of Figures	ix
Acknowledgments	xi
Introduction	1	(12)
From Glory to Ruins: The Early Years of the Movie Palace	13	(27)
The Decline of the Southern Downtown Movie Palace	40	(40)
Rescuing the Past from the Wrecking Ball	80	(39)
Creating the Illusion of a Material Past	119	(69)
The Discursive Past	188	(44)
The Transformation of the Downtown Movie Palace	232	(43)
Notes	275	(10)
Photo Credits	285	(2)
Index	287