by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
Tonight on Forsyth Street, the marquee at the Florida Theatre will sparkle just as brightly as it did on the first day of October 25 years ago when the restored theatre reopened its doors after being shuttered for more than three years. “Long Live the Florida Theatre” was on the marquee that night and after a quarter of a century of live entertainment, films and special events, that longevity has come to pass.
When it opened on April 8, 1927, the Florida Theatre was Jacksonville’s 15th movie house as well as the city’s largest. Designed with many characteristics of Mediterranean Revival architecture, during the 1920s, patrons danced under the stars in the building’s rooftop garden. The facility was quite a bit ahead of its time for the early 20th century with a central heating and air-conditioning system.
The Florida Theatre made the transition from silent films to “talkies” and Vaudeville went through its decline on the stage, but the theatre remained a popular destination for Jacksonville’s citizens looking for entertainment.
One of the most memorable events in the theatre’s history occurred in 1956. The City and the Florida Theatre were featured in Life magazine when Juvenile Court Judge Marion Gooding observed the first indoor concert performance by a newcomer named Elvis Presley. His honor was on hand to make sure the singer’s notorious on-stage gyrations didn’t become too suggestive for the Jacksonville audience.
The Florida Theatre entered another of its eras in the 1960s when civic groups and local opera, theatre and dance companies used the venue for performances as well as trade shows, fashion shows and meetings.
In the ‘70s, the growth of suburban shopping centers and the multi-screen theatres that went along with them plus the decline of Downtown caused a decline in ticket sales at the Florida Theatre. Soon the only films shown were of the B-grade action genre and on May 8, 1980, the Florida Theatre closed its doors. Many people thought the next chapter in the theatre’s history might also be its last and that it might begin and end with a wrecking ball.
“After it closed in 1980, it looked like it might be demolished. My administration wanted to try to save the Florida Theatre, but we knew it would take millions of dollars,” recalled former Mayor Jake Godbold of the effort to save the building and the theatre it had housed for more than 50 years.
Godbold sought the advice of a friend, attorney Charlie Towers, who told him what he had to do first to get the fundraising underway.
“Charlie told me he knew a man who would take on the project and raise the money, a fellow named Bill Nash who had just come to Jacksonville to run the Prudential Insurance Company. I went over to talk to him and he agreed,” recalled Godbold.
Nash said he remembers the meeting and what it taught him about Jacksonville’s mayor.
“I just got to town when Jake proposed my getting involved with the project. He told me it would be a great chance for me to get acquainted with the city. He’s quite a salesman and we became good friends,” said Nash.
Between 1981-83 the City contributed a bond issue and Godbold led delegations to Washington, D.C. and Tallahassee to secure federal and state arts funding for the theatre project. Led by Nash, the business community matched the City’s contribution and, two years later, the grand reopening was on the schedule for Oct. 1, 1983.
“We knew it was what we wanted to do but we also knew the community needed to understand the project,” recalled Trinita Petersen Leob, executive director of the Arts Assembly of Jacksonville when the Florida Theatre’s revival became reality.
“We felt the arts in Jacksonville needed something big and the Florida Theatre was just sitting there dark. The Arts Assembly was in the fortunate position to be able to buy the theatre and that’s when the fundraising began,” she said.
The entire community got involved from the highest levels of government and business to a grassroots effort on the part of a group of young thespians. Years ago the Arts Assembly changed its name to the Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville. Its Executive Director, Robert Arleigh White, remembers vividly his part in the effort to revive the Florida Theatre 25 years ago.
“I was teaching drama at Wolfson High School at the time and the Florida Theatre project so inspired my students that they wanted to raise money to contribute to the restoration. I can’t tell you how many cars we washed on weekends,” said White.
Attorney Jeff Dunn was president of the Arts Assembly and he recalled that not everyone thought the project would get off the ground.
“It was the largest arts project ever undertaken in Jacksonville. Many people said it would not succeed but we finished the Florida Theatre on time and under budget,” he said, and then added, “It’s hard to believe it has been 25 years. Time has proven restoring the theatre would do what he hoped it would do. It has provided a venue for local non-profits and so many things have grown out of the restoration.”
Nash believes the Florida Theatre project was a defining moment for Jacksonville as a city.
“It was the project that gave the mayor’s office and the business community the reputation for being able to get things done,” he said.
Godbold added, “When we were putting the restoration project together, we knew having the Florida Theatre back to its glory would be a great thing for Jacksonville.”
The Florida Theatre’s 25th anniversary will be celebrated tonight as part of the First Wednesday Art Walk and also at a private party Thursday for the theatre’s board of directors and many of the original fundraisers and benefactors.
“I enjoyed being on the stage at the Florida Theatre 25 years ago and I’ll enjoy being back on that stage Thursday night,” said Dunn.
Photos by Max Marbut
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