Alabama Theater
Theater Location: 2922 S. Shepherd Drive, Houston, TX
Theater Open Date: November 2, 1939
Theater Status: Closed December, 1983
Alabama Theater was one of The First 30 US Theaters to show The Rocky Horror Picture Show as a weekly, ongoing midnight-only movie on June 11, 1977.
The Alabama was a major hub of activity for the Rocky Horror community, and had a pre-release preview/premiere of Shock Treatment on August 22, 1981 featuring a visit from Richard O'Brien, who arrived in a 1963 Ford Thunderbird (like the one in the movie).
The theater closed in 1983, and in 1984, became a book store until 2009. The structure was intentionally saved in a way that it could be easily restored into a theatre, and theatre chain Alamo Draft House made an attempt, though it remained empty until it was designated a historical landmark. In 2012, it was meticulously restored by Trader Joes, who kept the theater theme and paid tribute to its Rocky Horror History with a poster for "The Broccoli Horror Picture Show."