In the heart of Reading, Pennsylvania, the Astor Theater once stood as a beacon of architectural grandeur and cultural significance. Though the theater met its unfortunate demise years ago, pieces of its storied past have found their way into unexpected places, telling the [...]
John D. Mishler was a prominent figure in theater, business, civic leadership, philanthropy, and journalism, with his influence extending across multiple fields that shaped both the cultural and social landscape of Reading and Berks County. He was born on April 28, 1847, in [...]
In 1969, a $165,000 bond was put in place for the building of the Eric Theater near Allentown Pike and Elizabeth Avenue in Muhlenberg Township as part of the Madeira Mall tract. At first, it was a project of the Peach Development Co. [...]
The Colonial Theatre, built by Carr and Schad in 1916 on the Breneiser property at 651–667 Penn Street between Ellis Mills and Hotel Allen, was the first premium movie house built "uptown." The film “Sleeping Fires,” starring Pauline Frederick, opened on April 15, [...]
In 1891, the Keystone Market House at 734 Penn Street was transformed into the Eden Musee (a curio hall and museum) and the Bijou Theatre. The property underwent various name changes over the next twenty-five years, including Gilder’s Auditorium, Becker’s Lyceum, the “New [...]
In the summer of 1939, the Wilmer and Vincent theatre chain, purchased the Ruth estate at Sixth and Penn Avenues in West Reading for the purpose of building a theatre on the site. According to an article which ran in the Reading Eagle on [...]
On November 10, 1939, Eugene Deeter bought a ticket to the show in the newly-opened Wilmer and Vincent theatre at 23rd and Filbert Streets in Mount Penn. That theatre was the Majestic. Sixteen years later, Mr. Deeter would take over its management Below: [...]
The Strand Theatre was located at the Northeast corner of at 9th and Spring Streets in Reading. The city's largest neighborhood theater was constructed by C.H. Schlegel and Son and opened on February 21, 1920. As the Reading Eagle ad of that day [...]
In 1871 the West Reading Market House was erected on the south side of Penn below Fourth Street, extending in the rear to Cherry Street. The directors of the Market House Company, headed by John Kissinger, president, and George M. Ermentrout, secretary and [...]
In 1910, Theodore Auman, J. George Kuersten, J. George Rick and Frank D. Hill built the "Lyric" theatre at 808-810 Penn Street. The theatre, seating 950, opened October 3, 1910, with a vaudeville policy, but after two years it presented a combination of [...]
