Approximately 200 people gathered in a parking lot across the street from Tower Theater.
Most were locals from the Uptown District, who arrived by foot, bicycles and skateboards. […]
Marty Dillon, owner of the Tower, served as the master of ceremonies.
Marty Dillon
He introduced the project, and said the sign would be run by OEF wind power.
“We are keeping it on a few nights a week to create a buzz.” Dillion do not provide specific information about the restoration of the interior of the theater. […]
Ward 2 Councilman Sam Bowman, who remembered seeing “The Blob” there, said the sign will be “the hot spot on the strip,” referring to a recent streetscape improvement project to bring back 23rd Avenue. “It will be a corridor to proud of,” he continued. “And this sign is going to be an eye-stoppper.”
Dillon then received a NPS Route 66 silver shield award. […]
Dillon led the crowd with the chant of: “Give me a T; give me an O”… etc., and at exactly 7:01pm the Tower Theater sign came on.
Jim Ross (author of “Oklahoma Route 66” — ed.) called the restoration “significant.” “There is nothing that has been revitalized along the whole urban corridor in Oklahoma City. This is a draw,” he said.
Steve Burton
The event brought out people who gone to or worked at the theater. Steve Burton, 46, worked as a ticket taker between 1981 and 1989, when it closed. He remembered it specializing in the “martial arts, Kung Fu movies.”
(Many thanks to John Murphey for the photos and reporting)
