Embassy Theatre

The Embassy Theatre opened on May 14, 1928 in Fort Wayne, Indiana as the Emboyd Theatre, built as a movie palace and vaudeville house with a Grande Page theatre pipe organ. It was commissioned by theater operator Clyde Quimby and designed by A.M. Strauss and John Eberson, and included the seven-story, 250-room Indiana Hotel. In 1952 the Emboyd Theatre and Indiana Hotel were sold to the Alliance Amusement Corporation and the name changed to the Embassy Theatre. The Indiana Hotel closed in 1971, and in 1972, facing demolition, community leaders led by Robert Goldstine formed the nonprofit Embassy Theatre Foundation, which ran a successful "Save the Embassy" campaign. The theatre continues to host live shows and maintains an archive of posters, playbills, photographs and artifacts.

On May 14, 1928, the doors of the magnificent Emboyd Theatre opened in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Built as a movie palace and vaudeville house, the Emboyd provided a majestic backdrop for the entertainment of the day, complete with a Grande Page theatre pipe organ. The Emboyd came complete with a seven-story, 250-room Indiana Hotel wrapped around the north and west sides of the theatre. Clyde Quimby, theater operator, had commissioned A.M. Strauss and John Eberson to design the Emboyd and the Indiana Hotel. Vaudeville was at its height of popularity and the Emboyd featured acrobats, comedians, magicians and musicians. For nearly 25 years the biggest and brightest stars of stage and screen graced the Emboyd stage. Over time, television and "talkies" slowly eroded the popularity of silent films and vaudeville acts, the mainstay of the Emboyd. In 1952, the Emboyd Theatre and Indiana Hotel were sold to the Alliance Amusement Corporation. The name changed to the Embassy Theatre. After the sale, the Embassy continued to operate as a movie palace. A small group of organ enthusiasts came together to become the unofficial guardians of the organ and its home, the Embassy Theatre. During this time, the Embassy Theatre and the Grande Page held on while other theatres in downtown Fort Wayne succumbed to destruction. Times were changing and the Indiana Hotel was closed in 1971. Faced with the wrecking ball in 1972, a handful of community leaders and volunteers, led by Robert Goldstine, banded together to form the nonprofit Embassy Theatre Foundation. Their goal was to protect the building for the good of the community and preserve the home of the Grande Page. Through the efforts of these volunteers and the support of a caring community, the successful "Save the Embassy" campaign was launched. As the Embassy reached its 90th anniversary, there were new efforts to preserve and commemorate the theater's history in a formal archive. This includes more than 250 posters and playbills signed by the stars and casts of shows that have played at the theater over the years, historic documents and artifacts, and 600 photographs of performers who appeared at the theater and its sister, the Palace Theater, from the 1930s through the early 50s.

Historic movie palace and vaudeville house operating as a nonprofit performing arts venue.

Product categories. Live shows · Concerts · Film screenings · Theatre pipe organ performances

1. 1Welcome to the Show | The Embassy Theatrefwembassytheatre.org
2. 2Our History | The Embassy Theatrefwembassytheatre.org
3. 3Archive | The Embassy Theatrefwembassytheatre.org
4. 4Grande Page Pipe Organ | The Embassy Theatrefwembassytheatre.org