 "Photo: Daily Texan file photo")
When the Alamo Drafthouse opened in 1997, built on a simple yet inescapably awesome premise (drink beer, eat food and watch movies) few could have predicted the little-theater-that-could's eventual rise to the top. Far from simply ascending to the upper echelons of beloved local businesses, the Alamo's downtown location became the de facto first thing to check out when one was confronted with any dull, boring evening. Precisely how did a legion of film-loving locals spend their Monday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings in the days before bargain screenings of obscure classics?
Unfortunately, that's a question many will have to ask themselves after the downtown Alamo locks its doors for the last time tonight. Driven out of its original space by the soaring costs of doing business in the now-trendy Warehouse District, the Alamo will leave behind its old building for the shiny new digs of the renovated Ritz on Sixth Street, smack-dab in the center of the city's night life. While the new location will offer a few improvements over the old standby (notably two screens), the original location will always have a place in our hearts as where the Alamo built its legacy.
Originally launched as a second-run theater, the downtown Alamo was freed up to offer more eclectic fare by the opening of other first-run locations, like the Village and Lake Creek theaters. And screening by screening, the Drafthouse acquired too many cinematic quirks to list: Harry Knowles' Butt-Numb-A-Thon, comedy act Mister Sinus Theater (now Master Pancake Theater), the Quentin Tarantino Film Festival, Open Screen Night, countless multi-course feasts to complement Hollywood epics, screenings of "The Big Lebowski" with free bowling and White Russians, or grown men wrestling in a kiddie pool full of blood "purchased at Fiesta."
At the end of the day, the originial Alamo has faithfully served as the epicenter for Austin's film community for 10 years, hosting more daring, oddball and off-the-wall thrills than even its most devoted fans can recall. (Has any other theater in America boasted more live directors and actors in person, let alone anywhere near as many live snakes?) While the new location at the Ritz will step up to the plate, it's appropriate to spare a moment of mourning for the original space, where so many memories, beers, and exploitation films were enjoyed. Downtown, you will be missed.
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