Missoula · See
The Roxy Theater
Art Deco neighborhood theater on Higgins, opened in 1937 and now run as Missoula's community cinema.
A 1937 Art Deco screen that Missoula refused to turn into a parking lot. Still showing movies on Higgins.
This place is still going.
The Roxy opened September 24, 1937, with Tex Ritter’s Arizona Days, according to the theater’s own history. It started as a family-run second-run house in the University District when Missoula still supported a surprising number of screens for a mountain town.
The building has not had a quiet life. The theater’s history page walks through dollar days, a 1994 arson fire that gutted the interior, a rebuild, years of dormancy, and a later chapter under the International Wildlife Film Festival that grew into year-round community programming. In 2017, for the 80th anniversary, the exterior and neon marquee were restored to a 1937 look.
It is on this list because the screen is still working and the building still sits on South Higgins. Continuity here includes gaps and rebuilds, which is worth saying out loud. Remember this place? Tell us what you remember from the dollar-theater years.
- Address
- 718 South Higgins Ave., Missoula, MT 59801
- Town
- Missoula
- Region
- Western Montana
- Established
- 1937
- Phone
- 406-728-9380
Remember this place? Tell us what you remember.
Know this place? Send a correction.
What do you say?
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