Clay Theater closing

The box office at the Clay Theater.

Fillmore’s jewel-box cinema, the Clay Theater, is closing at the end of the month after 100 years.

The sad news came in a simple sign posted in the theater’s windows. The Clay was thought to have a more secure future than many neighborhood theaters because it was part of Landmark Theatres. Landmark gave no indication the Clay was endangered and has publicly said nothing about the closure.

One of the final films scheduled at the Clay is a midnight showing of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” on Saturday, August 28. The theater will close the next day.

UPDATE: Leah Garchik reports in the Chron: The San Francisco Film Society would love to take over the Clay and has been in negotiations for several months with the landlord, but so far no deal’s been struck. “We think we can bring enormous value to the theater,” said Graham Leggat. “We want to build our program around it as a beacon of culture for the Fillmore Street business district.”

Read more: “It’s a blow to the neighborhood”