Nixon Theater sign will be relit during Lions Club Fall Concert

It has been 50 years since the old art deco Nixon Theater sign last cast its neon glow in downtown Nixon. All that remains of the former theatre building at 219 N. Nixon Ave. is the mural-laden southern wall of the structure, which stands guard like a sentinel over what is now the Gladyne Finch Pocket Park, across the street from the Nixon Police Station.

The sign is now owned by the Box family and sits prominently stage left at the Camp House Concerts venue at 926 Farm-to-Market Road 1681. The wiring has been redone and new neon lighting installed and now it is time to flip the switch and let there be light!

The sign will be lit for the first time since 1974 during the first-ever Nixon Lions Club Fall Concert & BBQ on Saturday, Oct. 12. Texas rockabilly and country icons Two Tons of Steel will headline the event.

In a Facebook post, Jesse Box said his family did extensive research to determine the last time the sign was lit after deciding to combine the sign relighting with the Nixon Lions Club fundraiser.

“We asked on Facebook, searched old school annuals, talked to folks in the theater business and searched records everywhere,” Box wrote. “And a special thanks to all the good folks in Nixon who remembered and attended movies at the theater for helping us figure out the date.

“It seems as it was last ‘lit up’ in 1974. We thought it would be appropriate to celebrate the old sign that 50 years later! Although the sign is in private hands, it is our pledge that the sign will never leave the Nixon area.”

Tickets will be from $50 to $150 each and gates will open at 5 p.m. for this event, which will also feature Lacy Brinson, Alex Coba and Kristen Foreman. The event will be held rain or shine. Only 150 tickets will be sold. A full brisket dinner is included with the ticket price.

There will also be a silent auction featuring old Nixon memorabilia, including yearbooks, cookbooks and more. The event is BYOB and there will be $20 tickets for a drawing with only 300 tickets sold.

Box said certain ticket packages will allow purchasers to “receive a small piece of the glass, clips, wiring, neon tubes from the removed lighting system.”

“Small parts indeed, but part of the original sign and part of history,” Box wrote. “Some ticket packages also allow for time throughout the year to come out, with your photographer, to take pictures for invitations, family gatherings, etc.”

He said plans are also being made to have bidding to the person or group that will actually “flip the switch” to light the sign.

Box said credit for saving the sign some 40 years ago belongs to the late Richard Wagener and W.E. “Buck” Butler after the building was torn down.

“It could have easily ended up in the dump, but it was saved so we could all enjoy it today,” Box said. “Also a special shout out to (Nixon City Council member) Jack Rogers, whose help with this sign project was invaluable!”