Tower Theatre
19 S. 69th Street,
Upper Darby,
PA
19082
19 S. 69th Street,
Upper Darby,
PA
19082
13 people
favorited this theater
Showing 76 - 100 of 128 comments
I read the message above about camera’s.
Does that include being able to take digital camera’s? I am assuming no flash is allowed or am I wrong?
Any help would be appreciated.
Going to see Radiohead on 6/1/2006.
Will be a great show! My tickets are 4th row dead center from the stage.
Terri
Hi Beth – Yes, you’ll find cameras galore at the Tower. Only time there might be a problem is if the performing artist prohibits them. If you want to see some great photos of the Tower as well as the St. Patrick’s Day James Blunt concert there you might look at: http://dbh.smugmug.com/gallery/1297813.
I didn’t take these photos but was at this concert…my first at the Tower. It will be far from my last…I’ve never been in such a wonderful concert venue. If you go, the seats in the first row of the Loge are magical. Enjoy!
does anyone know if they allow cameras? Thanks.
Has the ceiling been exposed yet? Is the theatre going to be fully rebuilt?
Does anybody have a hotel to recommend in Philly that is relatively close to this theatre?
Many thanks
EJM
Thank you ever so much, George Quirk, for the enlightening tour of the venerable Tower Theatre. Your contribution is greatly appreciated!
In my youth , growing up in West Philly, my sisters and our friends would think nothing of heading out to 69th Street to one of the three theatres—the Bermuda Triangle of Fun—within walking distance of the Frankford Elevated terminal.
I always remember the Tower Theatre to be the best for event movies. I saw Ben-Hur, The Ten Commandments and PT 109, memorable for the cinematography of the open sea vistas and horrific scene of the Japanese ship coming at the 109. It was my first time seeing Robert Blake in a movie. He played “Buckeyâ€. When the 109 was rammed, he along with everyone else who survived were scrambling in the water and I can hear to this day Robert Blake screaming out, “I can’t die I want to live, I have to live, otherwise, how am I going to kill my wife, Bonnie!” At least that’s what I think I remember. I don’t know, I could be wrong.
theatres but it had the lowest ticket price of any theatre at the time in the early 60’s at 20 cents. The going ticket price, as I recall, was 25 cents for kids and 35 cents for adults. These were matinee prices, I never went at night. I do remember going to the Terminal with my mother, aunt and cousin to see a double bill of Palm Springs Weekend ( Troy Donahue ) and the unforgettable Lilies Of The Field ( Sidney Poitier ).
Interesting personal note about Lilies Of The Field. It is one of my all time favorite movies. I own it and watched it recently and it still holds up. I live in Phoenix, Arizona now and Lilies was shot in Tucson
Anywayyyy, my memory of the Terminal Theatre was that it was not as nice as the other two , about 120 miles south of Phoenix. A couple years ago, I was doing business in Tucson consulting for a cell phone company who needed a cell antenna in a specific area. I drove around and spotted a chapel with a bell tower. After making my acquaintance I walked the property with a couple of the nuns and mentioned that it reminded me of the location for the Sidney Poitier movie. “Oh, yes!” exclaimed Sister “Part of that movie was, indeed, shot right here. In fact, a couple of the sisters who are here were here when the movie was being shot.” The nuns she spoke of were too infirm to speak with but that is not why I was there to begin with. It just felt great to be on the same property that the movie was filmed. I felt a connection and it felt strange for a kid from West Philly who was so impressed with this movie as a kid in 1963 to be on that very ground almost 40 years later.
God, I love movies and the theatres of yesteryear. I consider myself fortunate to have experienced seeing movies in the old palaces. And, to think that places like the Tower and the downtown Philly theatres were considered the norm in movie venues when I was a kid. I lived through the heartbreaking “slice and dice” period of seeing the big theatres close or get twinned. My God, what was happening. My theatres were turning into bowling alleys, shoe stores and smaller twin theatres. Theatres being built from the ground up were nothing but boxes with seats. The decor was gone.The “useless” “functionless” facades disappeared. All the class showplaces were disappearing. At least we can join here and revel in the old days. I feel like I’m in a twelve step program of sorts. When musing over the old theatres, I consider a visit to Cinema Treasures as my therapy session.
Its not bad.(unlike the 70’s) Just don’t be wandering around drunk after the show…or your night out will cost a little more. It is across\up from the 69th St. Terminal. It is a shopping district with some ‘interesting’ stores. There is free parking in a multi-level garage 1 block up.(for those who arrive early)
No place to sit outside and down beers…but “The Waterford”, across from the main entrance, has a bar and limited restaurant seating. For God’s sake…eat and drink before you enter the theater… the food is true “movie” theater fare… and beers are $7.25+ served in Dixie cups. “Smoking” in seating areas is discouraged…but allowed in Lobby.
Visit ‘http://www.ticketmaster.com’ to view your event and Tower seating chart. Orchestra (lower level) seats are great (first ¾’s)… Lodge (upper level) ok & Balcony is a tight fit.(no long legs). It is still warm(after all these years), so light clothing/layers are more comfortable. Hint: 63rd & Market St. intersection was closed (9pm-5:30am M-F) the last time I was there(work zone?)… just follow the traffic after the show… if still in effect.
A special thanks to G. Quirk for his (D. Leyden) History posting.
I recently bought tickets to Jim Norton on New Years Eve. I had heard of the Tower Theater before, but when I told My friend about it she said it was in a really bad area. How bad it it? Any recommendations on parking, How bad is it??
This was taken from the Electric Factory website a few years ago
$1,250,000 Price tag for Tower Theater
One and a quarter million dollars may not sound like a King’s ransom these days, but in 1928 that was a heck of a lot of money. William Friehofer had been building theaters for decades before taking on 69th street. This was the largest theater he would build.
Just one year before the Great Depression, the Tower went up in record time. The 3500 seats were installed in five days, a fact the Stone Company (the manufacturer) was very proud of.
At the time of the grand opening the builder, George Kessler Co. had been a leader in theater construction for 50 years. The Tower Theater in Upper Darby has been a welcome sight on 69th Street for almost 70 years. The design of the theater was as a Movie Playhouse
This format included Burlesque and Vaudeville on the stage, and the latest Movies on the screen. In the 1930’s and 40’s with Vaudeville on the way out, movies slowly became the main attraction on 69th Street, and in the 50’s and 60’s the Tower presented first run movies
and live events with a class and style unequaled by other theaters.
The 5000 people who crowded into the opening night ceremonies were
wowed by the beautiful lobbies and the state of the art lighting. A grand piano graced the foyer with a tuxedo-clad player taking requests. Out in the house,150 stars glowed in the ceiling as clouds floated by. The theater had its own orchestra, and an electric lift with a turntable brought a Wurlitzer Organ on to the stage. The sides of the main room looked like English Garden walls with trellises, flower boxes with vines, shrubbery and trees.
The lobby, with its 25 foot marble style ceiling, had the largest Oriental rug in the area covering the marble and Caen stone floor. The foyer was lavishly furnished with couches and chaise lounges. In the basement were smoking lounges for both men and women done in an Italian style with wood beams overhead. The lighting in the foyer and lobbies was constantly changing colors. 135 miles of wire ran through the building to the largest dimmer board in the country (at the time), With a capacity of 3500 seats, the Tower Theater was, and still is, one of the largest theaters in the region.
The 70’s ushered in a new era to Upper Darby… the Rock Concert. In 1972 Philadelphia music fans discovered the near perfect acoustics of the stately 69th Street movie house. Dave Mason was the first to headline. The support act on opening night was Buzzy Linhart. Buzzy said it all when he stopped in the middle of his set and told the crowd this place has more class than the Fillmore ever had! Since then the Tower has played host to the best of the best in live entertainment.
The Tower Theater remains a world class venue, and with the ongoing renovations it can only get better. For 69 years the marble palace has brought the world to 69th Street
The lobby will soon have its 25 foot high dome again. A drop ceiling will be removed to reveal once again this magnificent feature of the Tower Theater. Of all the venues in the Philadelphia area the Tower stands out with its rich history, lavish lobbies, and versatile facilities. with Electric Factory Concerts commitment to excellence and it’s commitment to the Tower, Upper Darby will be on the itineraries of world class performers of all kinds for years to come.
Historical research & compiling by Daniel Leyden
Does anyone have any historical information on the Tower?
Hi! I’m going to see INXS in Feb. here and was wondering if seats in the Loge section were good or bad? Having never been to the Tower before I had to buy tix on a guess. Thanks for any help you can give me!
Do they allow cameras at the Tower Theatre?
Hi. I haven’t been to the Tower since the “Balcony” shop was up the street…miss the ole' place…but going back soon.
I remember the seat-row letting…but does someone know the seat numbering scheme (begin/end #’s – stage left –> right – odd/even)
Please include the Orchestra (L, LC, RC, R) and the Lodge (L, LC, C, RC, R) seat numbering…if you can remember…
Thanks for any help…and thanks to RobertR for Tower pictures link …brings back memories …including the drunks and smashed car windows…
Pics here
View link
Blah…I can see where at one time this must have been quite the showplace, what with the marble staircase, the nice outer lobbies and the wonderful marquee. However, the auditorium left much to be desired. The painted floor…uncomfortable seats…the ceiling with the too-bright stars and water damage…everything looked dirty. This place could really shine if Clear Channel would clean it up a bit. They do have a nice line up of concerts, though. And as for Robert Plant…why oh why did you ignore the past 15 years of your solo material, Robert? Mighty re-arranger, indeed! And lose the opening act, too. A very dissapointing show.
I’m in the balcony for Robert Plant on Tuesday night…and I just can’t wait! I worked at the Louisville Palace Theater (formerly Lowes) which is an Eberson Atmospheric that was saved and is now a performance venue…I hope the Tower is ¼ the venue that the Palace is…I’ll be 1000% in heaven if it is!
how are the tix for springsteen being handled. since all tix are at will call, is it assigned seating or do you have to pickup your tix early to beassured a good seat? any info would help…
Does anyone know a manager at the Tower Theatre? Or, do you know the proceedure for transferring a will-call ticket to another’s name?
Thanks,
Scott
I tried to look up the Waterford restaurant, but got no number. Is it still there?
I just read the last post about the pit area. I have first row for Kelly Clarkson next week. Does this mean there will be a pit area with people sitting in front of us?
Hi. I’m going to see Robert Plant both nights, but I’m not too excited about my seats. Row F the first night, row U the second night. My dad says that there isn’t a bad seat in the house, though. Is this true? Will I be able to see pretty decently?
For the few people who have been asking…
There are 3 resturants within walking distance (a block or two) from the Tower. The first is the Aquairius Diner on Market street across from the train terminal. then there is Sabor Latino located on Garret Road, it is a Mexican, Cuban, Equidor style resturant,also right across from the terninal. Then there is The Waterford, this is located right next to Tower on Ludlow street, it’s a Bar & Resturant, not a bad place to go before a show and have a drink and get a bite to eat, I highly reccomend it. All these places are within a SAFE distance of the theater. If you are not sure about the area you can always ask someone in the Tower box office if it is open when you get there.
As for fast food near the theater. There are a few places on 69th street to eat. There is a McDonalds, Wendy’s, Popeys, Quizno’s and a few good pizza/cheesesteak places. all right on 69th street and within quick safe walking distance of the theater.
As for the Pit area. It is located front and center by the stage. There are usualy chairs set up for a show.
Could someone recommend some good and quick places to eat before a show? I’m thinking pizza or burgers….but only within a few blocks from the theater. Thanks so much!!!!!!
I am trying to find the “pit” section on the theatre seating map, but cannot. I assume they are right in front of the stage. Anyone know more about this? Please help! Cheers!
I am going to the Bruce concert at the Tower Theater on May 17th but I am not familiar with the theater and the surrounding area. Can someone let me know if there are any decent restaurants in SAFE walking distance to the theater? Thanks