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Phantom of the Fox

by merrie | September 20, 2007 at 07:42 pm

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The Phantom of the Fox has a passion for restoring keyboard instruments. Patten worked as an X-ray
technician for Westinghouse, but in his free time nurtured his
fascination with organs — a love that began when he was a child
attending church in Lakeland, Fla. Whenever the organ repairman was scheduled to work, he would walk to
the church to watch him. At 12, Patten was tapped as a substitute
repairman. Being a lifelong bachelor, Patten spends much of his
time working on his collector cars, including a rare Gullwing Mercedes
and Rolls-Royce Phantom III, stored in a warehouse. At 80, he is as passionate as ever about the 1929

theater, as he was instrumental in saving it form the wrecking ball.
Today the Fox Theater is listed on the National Historic Landmark.

It was Patten's love for the pipe organ in particular that led to his one-of-a-kind housing arrangement. He lives rent-free in a stately 3,640-square-foot apartment under the onion domes, with 20-foot ceilings, leaded glass windows and balconies overlooking Ponce de Leon Avenue.

Atlanta Landmarks owns the apartment, where Patten has the right to live the rest of his life."I can't think of any other
place in Atlanta I'd rather live," Patten said. "There is one other
place — the Biltmore House in Asheville. I could handle that, I think.
It has a pipe organ in it."