San Francisco's O'Farrell Theatre Might Be Reopened

SAN FRANCISCO—The O'Farrell Theatre, a historic adult entertainment venue in San Francisco's Tenderloin district, might reopen after being closed for over four years, reports the San Francisco Chronicle. On June 25, a consultant working on behalf of the property's current owners submitted a conditional use application to the city with the intent of reopening "an adult entertainment venue in a former adult entertainment venue."  David Villa-Lobos, the consultant, explained that reopening the venue would create new employment opportunities and "increase tax revenue for the city through liquor, food sales, and city business taxes.” According to the application, the prospective cost to renovate the 12,000-square-foot building at 895 O’Farrell Street would be at least $2.5 million. Renovations would focus on bringing the dilapidated building back to the city's safety standards. “The only thing I can tell you is the building has fallen into disrepair,” Villa-Lobos said in an interview with Chronicle housing and real estate reporter J.K. Dineen. “We are fixing it up and cleaning it up.” Reopening the venue would revitalize the tradition of groundbreaking pornography producers Artie and Jim Mitchell (aka the Mitchell Brothers), who were the original owners of the O'Farrell Theatre. The two cultivated the theatre into a legendary sex venue. Hunter S. Thompson, a gonzo journalist and friend of the brothers, referred to the theatre as "the Carnegie Hall of public sex in America." The O'Farrell Theatre earned further acclaim after the brothers directed the Golden Age smash hit Behind the Green Door, which starred ingénue Marilyn Chambers. With such iconic lore and history, O'Farrell also became a tourist attraction and operated until late 2020. AVN reported on the venue's closure at the time, relaying AVN Hall of Fame star Nina Hartley's recollections of her experiences working at the O'Farrell. "The Mitchell Brothers theater was the first place I ever became aware of that had live sex shows," Hartley told AVN's Mark Kernes. "I found it to be a great place to work." The application argues that reopening the theatre "re-establishes a venue created by the Mitchell Brothers, famed pornography producers." It would also increase pedestrian movement and revenue for businesses in the neighborhood.