Organ Stop Pizza

We were invited to ride with Mike, Madeline, Virgil and Linda to Organ Stop Pizza in Mesa today.  The huge organ is quite beautiful work of art.

During the early silent film era, motion picture theatres throughout the country engaged pit orchestras and pianists to provide the background music for their stage shows and silent movies.  With the escalating costs of musician labor, not every performance could afford the expense of an orchestra.  This monetary constraint was the inspiration for the concept of a "unit orchestra," where one musician could do the work of many.

The unit orchestra, later known as the theatre pipe organ, was designed with imitative orchestral tones in mind, rather than the customary liturgical sounds found in church instruments.  The theatre organ has been described as part military band, part symphony orchestra and part theatrical sound effects.

During the late teens and early twenties, nearly every theatre, large and small installed theatre pipe organs.  Though they were manufactured by many companies, the Wurlitzer product was considered by far the best.  The "Mighty Wurlitzer" enjoyed familiarity with such names as Frigidaire, Victrola, and Kodak.

Organ Stop's Wurlitzer theatre organ was built for the Denver Theatre and was installed in 1927.

Our organist is not listed on the website, but she is very talented and plays a vast variety of music.

Oh, yes, and the pizza is very good, also!  They also served Blue Bell ice cream of which Don and I enjoyed.

Yum, yum, yum!  A DQ ice cream cone in the Arizona sunshine.

Madeline is listening wondering if I am really going to take her picture this close?  Silly Madeline.  She really should know me better than that by now.

Here Linda, have a bite of ice cream!

Virgil has finished his ice cream.

This shy little lady joined us and started asking questions.  A very social little butterfly.

Don and I did not eat ice cream at the Dairy Queen!

Today was a wonderful day of fellowship and fun.  Thanks to the Gang for letting us ride with them and enjoy their company.  (And for tolerating my camera.)