The April 27, 1940, edition of Boxoffice magazine proclaimed Houston’s River Oaks Theatre as,“the real answer to one of the most pressing problems now facing theater operators. This answer has always attracted patronage and it always will, regardless of product, booking dates and exploitation. It’s a balancing influence—and it is habit-forming in the lives of moving picture theatre patrons.” As the saying goes, old habits die hard. Over eight decades later, the River Oaks Theatre returns to the pages of Boxoffice PRO with a new and exciting chapter that may prove to be the answer once again—this time for historic theater operators.
Built in 1939, the River Oaks Theatre has been a Houston mainstay for nearly 85 years. When the city’s last art house theater faced closure and potential demolition, artists, filmmakers, historians, and cinema enthusiasts rallied to create the nonprofit organization Friends of the River Oaks Theatre. The community-based group subsequently began working to save and maintain the architectural and cultural landmark for the Houston arts community. In 2022, the hospitality group Culinary Khancepts, an affiliate of Star Cinema Grill, took over the lease and announced plans last May to extensively renovate the historic theater, while continuing to celebrate its history and origins, including preserving the art deco design and the venue’s iconic name.
Among the co-founders of the Friends of River Oaks is Maureen McNamara, a former River Oaks Theatre manager who was directly involved in overseeing the theater for some 23 years. She began popping popcorn there in high school after begging the manager for the job. After learning every corner and quirk of River Oaks, she eventually rose through the ranks, managing the theater in college and beyond. In the mid-‘70s, River Oaks was operated by Movie Inc, which later merged with Paul Richardson and Bert Manzari to form Landmark Theatres. Though Landmark subsequently held the lease at River Oaks for 45 years, this isn’t the first time the historic venue faced closure. When the home video craze of the ‘80s hit, McNamara says they began looking into ways to save the theater. “I saw an ad in the back of Boxoffice magazine for a contractor who had started twinning single screens, and they were located in Conroe, Texas. In 1986 they triplexed their first historic movie house for Landmark, saving the theater and then many others all over the US.”
During her time with Landmark, McNamara helped open and oversee more than 50 theaters as the director of operations and new business development, including renovations and reopenings of historic buildings such as Denver’s Mayan Theatre, along with new multiplexes. McNamara says River Oaks has been saved at least four times throughout its history, with the most recent threats due to previous landlords seeking to redevelop and level the historic property. “We formed Friends of River Oaks when Landmark’s lease was still in place, but at risk. We worked with them directly to build awareness and sound the alarm to the community and the mayor’s office,” says McNamara. “We have been working to keep the theater in the public (and press’) eye for three and a half years with an all-volunteer team.”
With the future of River Oaks once again on the line, Friends of River Oaks got to work launching an extensive outreach campaign, including protests, screenings, performances, and workshops. Press releases, TV and radio interviews, and a short film contest followed, along with a Halloween blood drive and a live poetry reading for Valentine’s Day. Thanks to the results of an online survey with over 3,000 responses from 166 zip codes, Friends of River Oaks hosted a birthday screening for the theater and the community during the pandemic. The “bring her back” event consisted of 76 curated trailers of films that played at the theater over the years. The event was projected onto the back wall of the locked-down theater. Hundreds of people showed up with blankets and camp chairs. Abbie Kamen, a Houston City Council member, read a proclamation from the mayor. A local. bakery provided boxes of treats and the neighboring bar Marfreless served drinks while Friends of River Oaks popped the free popcorn.
Houston has gained something of a reputation for being quick to let go of historic spaces. When Star Cinema Grill learned about the River Oaks Theatre closing, they reached out with a pitch, detailing their vision for the business and how to sustain the art house theater in the long term. Much of that plan focused on retaining the soul and history of the theater while elevating the overall experience. Culinary Khancepts navigated local, state, and federal historical preservation and restoration requirements, keeping all of the original art deco architecture and restoring many of the venue’s original elements while making some modern additions.
The flexibility afforded to the main auditorium is one of many new improvements. A retractable screen above the restored original stage, as well as a new sound system, stage lighting, and rigging, allows the venue to become a multipurpose space for a variety of cultural events. “As a standalone art house theater, in today’s world, it would have been very challenging to make economic sense of the theater on its own. We had to think outside the box on how to make the economics of a situation like this work. Our creativity in how to put together a deal in a way that made sense for us, and the landlord, was what got the deal done,” says Jason Ostrow, Culinary Khancepts and Star Cinema Grill’s vice president of development.
As the only locally owned and operated cinema chain in Houston, Star Cinema Grill has deep roots in the region. In addition to 11 Star Cinema Grill locations, the company operates several different brands under their affiliate Culinary Khancepts. Last year, Culinary Khancepts opened the boutique dine-in location Reel Luxury Cinemas, complete with a neighboring restaurant, The Audrey. Two separate businesses under one roof with a shared kitchen was a winning combination. “That has proven to be a highly successful venture. We took a similar approach at River Oaks Theatre. Next door we are also building a high-end contemporary American restaurant that suits the River Oaks district of Houston. When you take the overall square footage leased for both businesses, with both revenue streams, the theater, restaurant, and overall project make a lot of sense,” explains Ostrow.
The most recent addition to the theater is Robert Saucedo, who was appointed artistic director. Saucedo spent over a decade working for Alamo Drafthous as the programming director for local franchise operator Triple Tap Ventures and as a senior film buyer for the company’s national programming and events team. As artistic director of the River Oaks Theatre, Saucedo will oversee the daily film and programming schedule. In addition to art house films and independent cinema from around the world, the theater’s three auditoriums will offer repertory screenings of classic and cult favorite movies, live events, and filmmaker appearances. No stranger to offering diverse and unique programming to the Houston community, Saucedo’s career highlights include a Q&A screening of Rushmore with Jason Schwarzman in conjunction with the Houston Film Commission and arranging for live alligators to appear at a screening of the 1980 cult favorite Alligator. “During the thirteen years I spent with the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, I had the opportunity to meet film fans from around the entire city—and Houston is a big city! I’ve learned that Houston film fans are passionate about the stuff they love and even more passionate about feeling represented and not forgotten about in the shadow of cities like Austin or Dallas,” notes Saucedo. “Houston audiences are adventurous and willing to take chances—and I will make sure that River Oaks Theatre’s programming reflects that.”
Saucedo plans to curate and host events that reflect the diverse tastes of the fourth-largest city in the United States. Under Saucedo’s leadership, the centrally located theater aims to function as both an independent art house venue and a resource to help expand the city’s cultural and artistic community. Saucedo says his overall dream is for River Oaks Theatre’s programming to help build the next generation of film fans in Houston—and perhaps produce a future River Oaks artistic director. “I am a passionate movie fan and have personally had my life changed by movies I’ve watched,” adds Saucedo. “I want to make sure there’s something on the screen every day of the year that can impact audiences in the way I’d like to be affected. That means working with a diverse slate of guest curators and programmers to ensure the city’s diverse audiences are represented on the big screen. Houston has a lot of amazing theaters—both inside the city’s center and in its suburbs. I want River Oaks Theatre to become a community hub that complements the already great programming happening in the city and help unite the community.”
In addition to screening films and offering curated programming, River Oaks Theatre will also become a home for local and national theater companies, musicians, stand-up comedians, podcasters, and cultural organizations seeking a space to host a presentation or lecture. “I want our live programming to reflect our film programming—adventurous, diverse, and impactful. I hope to work with both local and national artists to bring in live events that complement the films we’re screening —whether it’s a musical performance before a film screening, an artist showcasing their work, and then screening a movie that inspired it, or just showcasing a performer who blends the lines between cinema and the performing arts,” said Saucedo
Working alongside the theater to ensure the newly renovated space thrives, Friends of River Oaks will continue to support the theater’s efforts through outreach and community building. Native Houstonians Richard Linklater and Wes Anderson are among the nonprofit’s list of supporters. The April gala, A Saturday with Richard Linklater, saw the launch of the nonprofit’s “Name a Seat” campaign, which is an effort to build an ongoing restoration and renovation fund for the River Oaks Theatre. McNamara says that many think Linklater went to film school in Austin, but that wasn’t the case. “His formative years were spent in the dark at the River Oaks Theatre, sucking up the knowledge of his craft and connecting with his artistic spirit at 24 frames a second, day after day.”
As the theater enters a new era, McNamara is also honoring the past with a documentary, Cinema Revival, which details the theater’s history and the community’s rally to save Houston’s last historic art house movie theater. “My parents first took me to the River Oaks as a teen to see Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?,” recalls McNamara. “My best friend and I worked at the River Oaks, and I loved being there, it felt like a safe and dynamic home.” During her time overseeing the River Oaks, Maureen shares that her favorite memories revolved around “caring for the theater, introducing films, hosting students, and blowing their minds about the larger world through film at this special place. Painting murals. Being a hub for the Houston film community for so many years. Engaging creative staff who went on to become prize-winning authors, theater directors, musicians, a poet laureate, filmmakers, ballet dancers and creatives. That was my favorite thing—facilitating the art of film in this special place.”
Robert Saucedo shares McNamara’s reverence for the River Oaks. “The River Oaks Theatre is too beautiful of a building, too important of a landmark to disappear. I’m very excited that Culinary Khancepts is investing in the theater’s future. I remember experiencing a midnight screening of The Room at the theater in 2008,” he said. “To hear a theater absolutely packed—there was not an empty seat in the house— celebrating this movie as a single living organism, united by their love of the movie, was something I had never experienced before. I look forward to spending the next chapter of my life with River Oaks Theatre continuing that mission.”
As Culinary Khancepts prepares to bring this cultural touchstone back to the Houston community, Jason Ostrow stressed the importance of maintaining moviegoing heritage. “As society evolves, and there are so many new ways to experience content, we feel it’s important to keep venues like this around to help ensure people old and young have a chance to experience great independent cinema in the nation’s fourth-largest city. This theater means so much to so many people, and it’s our honor to keep this gem alive and make memories for years to come.”
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