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Dec 12, 2023

Friends of River Oaks Theatre selling original theater seats

People gather at River Oaks Theatre on the final day of showing films Thursday,

People gather at River Oaks Theatre on the final day of showing films Thursday, March 25, 2021, in Houston.

Friends of the River Oaks Theatre, the non-profit organization formed to save the Houston movie theater from the wrecking ball after its closure in 2021, announced Monday that it is now selling off parts of the theater, namely the seats.

Yes, you can now own one or more of those (admittedly not particularly comfortable) chairs where you saw "The Rocky Horror Picture Show," "Ladybird," "The Killer," "Nomadland" or any number of indie, foreign or art house films that played at the theater over the years.

According to the group's web site, saveriveroakstheatre.org, you can sign up for pre-sale with prices at $50 per seat, with a two-seat minimum. With fees, the total is $53.59 per seat. Pickup date is yet to be announced.

RIVER OAKS SAVED: Star Cinema Grill to reopen River Oaks Theatre as showcase for indie films

The River Oaks Theatre, built in 1939 at 2009 W. Gray and the city's last vintage movie theater still in use as a theater, was shuttered two years ago when then landlord, Weingarten Realty, and California-based theater-chain operator Landmark couldn't come to a lease agreement. Subsequently, Weingarten was bought out by Jericho, NY-based Kimco who then leased the space to Star Cinema Grill, a Sugar Land-based movie theater chain with locations throughout the Houston suburbs.

Star Cinema Grill promised a complete renovation and overhaul (including the seats) but said the programming would remain focused on specialty and independent films while adding some live events into the mix.

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"Star Cinema Grill is a Top 10 blockbuster movie chain. We’re playing top 10 product, and that's our business, and there's not a lot of programming creativity that goes into that," Star Cinema Grill's Jason Ostrow told the Chronicle in 2022. "(The River Oaks) is going to be much more of what it was before, finding that specialty content, specialty events and live theater events in a mixed-use venue."

While no date has been set for the theater's re-opening, the Friends of the River Oaks Theatre -- whose membership includes Bun B and directors Richard Linklater and Wes Anderson -- has been hosting specialty screenings outside and across the street from the theater and other spots around the city.

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