Fireplaces, Heating Stoves, Flues and Chimneys - Options for restoring a painted fireplace

I have a 70 year old brick fireplace that was recently painted by the previous owner. Ideally, I would like to get back to the original brick, but I don't think it's possible due the age and porous qualities of the brick. Is it possible to strip the existing paint from the brick? I may try to refinish the brick with concrete or stucco to achieve an exposed brick finish. If this is not an option, can I use am interior latex paint or do I need to use a fireproof paint?

Your job can easily be done using the PEEL AWAY 7 -product. It will not damage the brick and will remove all of the paint.

Hello
I have used the PEEL Away 7 and it is great stuff but on very rough brick it will not always get all the paint out, but it will give you a great place to foux paint a nice finish on the brick that you would realy like to have...Good Luck

Thanks for the responses. I have stripped off four layers of paint from my brick fireplace. The keys were to give the stripper time to work into the existing paint and to use lots of mineral spirits to wash away the paint residue. The project took about 15 hours, but it looks fantastic.