With its gorgeous vintage neon sign, the Fox casts a spell on Uptown Oakland, especially on rainy nights. Originally opened as a 1920s movie palace, complete with a Wurlitzer organ, the theater is an Art Deco vision of an Indian palace with terra-cotta tiles and golden statues. These days, it’s one of the coolest concert venues in the Bay Area. The line-up...

It’s not every day that you get to watch a blockbuster Hollywood movie inside an art-deco movie palace. The landmark Grand Lake Theater opened in 1926 as a place to see silent films accompanied by the musical strains of a grand Wurlitzer organ, which still plays in the main auditorium. If your movie is screening in one of the side auditoriums, be sure...

Even in its original incarnation, the Parkway was primarily about watching indie movies with 75 of your closest friends in comfy chairs while eating, boozing, and having a good time. The New Parkway still does that, and with an expanded menu that includes anything from veggie burgers to ricotta toast and big glasses of sweet sangria. But it’s not just movies...

With a blinking neon sign, this National Historic Landmark has lit up Oakland’s Broadway since 1931, when it first opened as a grand movie palace. Glitteringly restored in the early 1970s, the Paramount Theatre impresses right away with its high-ceilinged lobby and idiosyncratic interior design that is neither entirely art deco nor moderne. Look up at the intricate ceiling panels and at...

On friendly Piedmont Ave., this neighborhood movie house shows a surprising variety of independent films, all new releases. The upstairs theaters are on the small side, but the cozy atmosphere only adds to most moviegoers’ enjoyment. On Saturday night, show up early for a chance at winning one of the prizes from Piedmont Ave. merchants or a movie memorabilia giveaway. Directions: From Oakland’s 12th...