 He came out of retirement to run the theater at the urging of Spyros Skouras, the head of the Roxy's parent company National Theatres, as well as 20th Century-Fox Studios.Balaban restored the theater to profitability with access to first-run Fox films, as well as the production and presentation of first-class live shows.Among his innovations were building an ice rink on the Roxy stage, and engaging many noted performers of the era, such as the Nicholas Brothers, Carmen Cavallaro, and The Harmonicats to appear on the Roxy stage.