Organ Stop Pizza is a restaurant located in Mesa, Arizona. Its primary attraction is as the home of what it says is the largest

Wurlitzer The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, usually referred to as simply Wurlitzer, is an American company started in Cincinnati in 1853 by German immigrant (Franz) Rudolph Wurlitzer. The company initially imported stringed, woodwind and brass instruments ...

theater organ A theatre organ (also known as a theater organ, or, especially in the United Kingdom, a cinema organ) is a type of pipe organ developed to accompany silent films, from the 1900s to the 1920s. Theatre organs have horseshoe-shaped arrangements o ...

in the world. Powered by three turbine blowers (with a fourth as a standby) it has more than 7,000 pipes. The original organ was built for the Denver Theater and was installed in 1927. It saw service there until the 1930s. Rebuilt in 1975, including pieces from other Wurlitzers, its current spec is a 4/82 (4 Manual 82

rank Rank is the relative position, value, worth, complexity, power, importance, authority, level, etc. of a person or object within a ranking, such as: Level or position in a hierarchical organization * Academic rank * Diplomatic rank * Hierarchy * ...

organ) It is a frequent recipient of ''

Phoenix New Times ''Phoenix New Times'' is a free digital and print media company based in Phoenix, Arizona. ''New Times'' publishes daily online coverage of local news, restaurants, music and arts, as well as longform narrative journalism. A weekly print issue ...

'' annual "Best of Phoenix" awards.

History

The first Organ Stop Pizza location opened in 1972 at the corner of 7th St and Missouri Ave in

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. A second location opened in Mesa near Southern Ave and Dobson Rd in 1975. There was also a location in Tucson for a short time. In 1984, the original owners of the restaurant sold the Phoenix location to a local real estate developer who subsequently closed it. The original Mesa location was sold to an employee of the restaurant the same year. In 1995, the original Mesa location was closed and replaced by a new, larger facility near Southern Ave and Stapley Dr.

References

External links

Official website

Index of Phoenix New Times articles
{Dead link, date=March 2023 , bot=InternetArchiveBot , fix-attempted=yes Companies based in Mesa, Arizona Pizzerias in the United States Restaurants established in 1972 Public venues with a theatre organ 1972 establishments in Arizona