One last curtain call: Base movie theater closing April 13 Published April 2, 2013 By Staff Sgt. Jordan Pollock 92nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE Wash. -- Fairchild's base theater is set to close after showing one last movie "Oz the Great and Powerful" April 13. According to Exchange General Manager Mark Boyer, one of the main reasons for closing is the costly upgrade to digital equipment, which would cost an estimated $125,000, and the availability of off-base venues. "With the film industry releasing the majority of new movies in digital format we are limited in what we can show because fewer and fewer movies are being converted to traditional film that is compatible with our projector," said Boyer. Theaters nationwide have been digital since the beginning of 2013. Hollywood converted from film to electronic means of distribution and the base does not generate enough revenue to maintain and pay for the costly upgrade. "Our theater has been a historic part of this base for a number of years. Strategic Air Command crews on alert and their families enjoyed movies at this same theater in the 1960s. While the Army and Air Force Exchange Service needs to move on due to the projector upgrade, we are exploring if any other movie opportunities exist to substitute the loss of the weekend movie," said Col Brian Newberry, 92nd Air Refueling Wing commander. The base theater building will continue to be available for gatherings such as all-calls, wing-wide promotion ceremonies, and other events. "Another on-base movie alternative is the Instaflix kiosk." said Boyer, an entertainment vending machine at the Express, offers a selection of 600-800 discs per kiosk and lets patrons rent DVDs overnight for $1 and Blu-ray discs for $1.49.