cinelog.org

There are some theatres which fail to leave a notable mark on history due to a lack of long term financial success and/or poor location. Others quickly fade from the collective memory as a result of the sub par offerings they once provided. Then, there stands the unavoidable veil of time, which grows ever more thick with each passing year. In the case of the Fountain Valley Family Four Cinema, we find a theatre which may have disappeared from record and memory as the result of all these factors.

 

At best, I’ve been able to determine this location ran as a cinema from roughly 1974 through the early 90’s (possibly a bit earlier and longer). Originally a twin plex, the complex was expanded to four auditoriums sometime in the 1980’s. Located down the street from both the, comparatively luxurious, Fountain Valley Twin and, higher profile, Fountain Valley Drive-In, the Family Twin/Four looks to have operated as a lower end value cinema throughout much of it’s run. A one time Edwards venue, the theatre likely operated under a different banner during it’s early years, and later fell under the management of Orange Coast Cinemas.

 

This apparent final operator being the only significant point of formal record, as Orange Coast Cinemas was created as a starting point and educational endeavor for James Edwards’ daughter; the original goal being to prepare her for work in the family business (or so a lone newspaper article inferred). She would eventually move in to an executive position with Edwards Theatres, so the intention appears to have been a success, but the same couldn’t be said of the cinema itself.

 

After closing in the 90’s, the theatre sat vacant for a number of years, before being leveled and replaced by a Wal-Mart. Today, little evidence remains that this venue ever existed and the Fountain Valley Family Four remains one of Orange County’s forgotten cinemas.