Pipe Dreams and Pizza Crusts Documentary

Capturing the Color of Destruction As mentioned in our post about the Kenosha Theatre, the story of the Organ Grinder is also the story of the movie palace and the theatre pipe organ. We've previously been lucky to obtain and restor...

Capturing the Color of Destruction - Douglas Wick and the Venetian Theatre - www.pipedreamsfilm.com/blog/capturi...

Saving the Temples of Human Imagination Jeff Baas is a man on a mission. A mission to save one particular movie palace, and a broader mission to preserve the history of all of them - and one of their greatest proponents. You can't tell t...

Saving the Temples of Human Imagination - Jeff Baas and the @kenoshatheater.bsky.social Kenosha Theatre - www.pipedreamsfilm.com/blog/saving-...

YouTube video by Pipe Dreams and Pizza Crusts The Carmex Pipe Organ is For the Birds! Dave Wickerham Performance

The Carmex Pipe Organ is For the Birds! Dave Wickerham Performance youtu.be/1RoiHwLSemg

Do Go In the Basement! Last Wednesday, we spent the whole day with Fred Hermes, Jr. at the “Basement Bijou” - a private home in Racine, WI, which notably features a movie palace, complete with balcony, in the basement - it ...

Do Go in the Basement! Meet Fred Hermes, Jr. and the "Basement Bijou" - www.pipedreamsfilm.com/blog/do-go-i... #theatreorgan #organgrinder

A mechanical toy chimp is sitting on the edge of the balcony rail in what appears to be an ornate movie palace complete with chandeliers and plasterwork. A Wurlitzer pipe organ console is in the background, on the stage. Pipework, not in its chests, is arranged in crates on the lower level.

Spent a full day last Wednesday covering a truly unique and special place. #theatreorgan #organgrinder

In addition to theatre pipe organs and pizza parlors, Wisconsin offers many recreational activities. #organgrinder

A mechanical toy chimp is being held up into view of the camera by the photographer. In the background is the console of a theatre pipe organ inside a pizza restaurant. The organ is illuminated in shades of blue and teal. Glowing inflatable Halloween decorations are on the floor nearby and on top of the console. We see the back of the performer, Perry Petta.

When visiting the Milwaukee area, discriminating chimps know that you can always have an entertaining time at Organ Piper Pizza in Greenfield, WI. Organist Perry Petta is at the console. #theatreorgan #pizza #organgrinder

A bearded man sits on an organ bench in front of a large theatre pipe organ inside a warehouse. He is holding a Hollywood-style clapper board, and smiling at the camera. "Dean Rosko - Extras - Take 1" is written on the board.

Last Wednesday, organist Dean Rosko stopped by while we were filming at Carma Labs to perform on the instrument - just for fun! Dean also has experience performing in “pizza and pipe organ” restaurants like Organ Piper Pizza. We hope to have his video up on YouTube soon. #theatreorgan #organgrinder

A mechanical toy chimp sits on the bench of a large theatre pipe organ console - four keyboards and many colorful stop tabs are behind the chimp.

Greetings from Carma Labs! We returned to the magnificent pipe organ inside a warehouse in Wisconsin last week to pick up some additional shots for the documentary. #theatreorgan #organgrinder

A gigantic theatre pipe organ is inside a large, mostly-empty warehouse. A group of five workers who had previously been moving furniture from an event stop everything when the organ begins playing, and hold up their phones to record the music.

When people encounter a theatre pipe organ for the first time, they become enchanted with delight! The documentary returned to Carma Labs last week to pick up some additional shots. #theatreorgan #organgrinder

The Organ Grinder documentary was back in Wisconsin last week, starting off with a visit to the historic Kenosha Theatre. #theatreorgan #moviepalace #organgrinder #kenosha

YouTube video by Pipe Dreams and Pizza Crusts Jonas Nordwall is Headed to Sweden and is About to go Nuclear! - OrganSpace 2025 Promo

Jonas Nordwall is Headed to Sweden and is About to go Nuclear! - OrganSpace 2025 Promo - youtu.be/saK7qFwdhYs #theatreorgan #organgrinder

New! Official Organ Grinder T-Shirts Now Available for Preorder! When we surveyed the members of our Facebook Group as to their preference for the next crowdfunding perk, T-Shirts were the top choice! Through a special arrangement ...

New! Official Organ Grinder T-Shirts - by Special Arrangement - Now Available for Preorder! www.pipedreamsfilm.com/blog/officia... #organgrinder #theatreorgan

(Sorry 4 public post - Couldn't find way to msg you via Bluesky, YouTube, or Patreon.) Also, too, why does Firefox's default dictionary not know "electromechanical"? Are they trying to suppress the roots of modern computing? Shame! And yes, we know you're in Chicagoland - it's not too far away.

Reaching out to @techconnectify.bsky.social - This documentary project is headed back to Wisconsin. Based on your interest in electromechanical devices, and proximity to Organ Piper Pizza, the odds are good you might have info/anecdotes to share. Please get in touch! Visiting WI 9/13-9/20 2025.

A Colorful Cast of Characters* (*Or, "Nerding Out about Credits" Part II) It takes a lot of people to make a movie - including a documentary. This film may be very lean on the crew side (often it's just me doing the shoots), but...

A Colorful Cast of Characters (*or, "Nerding Out about Credits" Part II) - This film is getting BIG! www.pipedreamsfilm.com/blog/a-color... #organgrinder

The Denver-to-Hollywood Connection What do you do when you're interviewing folks in Denver about the Organ Grinder, but one person you'd really like to talk to doesn't live there anymore? Well - if you're lucky - you just wait a bit an...

The Denver-to-Hollywood Connection - John West Interview www.pipedreamsfilm.com/blog/the-den... #organgrinder

By chance, just bumped into Jordan Drake from @petapixel.bsky.social at a Burgerville restaurant here in Portland, along with a colleague (sorry, didn't catch the name, sorry for being rude!) Can't wait to see what they've been shooting in Portland when it comes out on their channel.

Would the Last Person to Play Please Turn Off the Pipe Organ? DeLoy Goeglein was about ten years old when his musical journey began, learning to play both piano and organ. He would play in church and go on to play at venues all around the Denver area. During ...

Would the Last Person to Play Please Turn Off the Pipe Organ? - DeLoy Goeglein Interview - www.pipedreamsfilm.com/blog/would-t... #organgrinder

Behind-the-scenes photo of from yesterday's interview shoot with David Lee. David was the youngest staff performer at Organ Grinder Portland, starting at age 14. #organgrinder

'Chuck E. Cheese' handcuffed and arrested in Florida on charges of using a stolen credit card Customers watched in disbelief as Jermel Jones, while in costume as the pizza-hawking rodent, was taken into custody in Tallahassee.

It is sad that the Organ Grinder restaurants are no longer around, but things aren't going so great for the competition, either: www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...

Rebel Without A Tibia Clausa (*Editor's note: The title of this piece is a poorly-constructed pipe organ joke. Explanation at end.) You wouldn't guess from his tough, tattooed, motorcycle-riding aesthetic today, but Frank Perk...

Rebel Without A Tibia Clausa - Frank Perko III Interview - www.pipedreamsfilm.com/blog/rebel-w... #organgrinder

In a high-desert setting with some trees and vegetation, a low-mounted camera at the back of a motorcycle captures a tall black leather harness boot on the footrest, centered in the frame. The bike is on a brown dirt and gravel path. The sun is low in the sky, casting long shadows and a golden hue onto the scenery. The surrounding area reflects off the chrome of the bike. In the background, a man (presumably the director) wearing a T-shirt featuring a unicorn in a gas mask, claps his hands to sync the cameras and audio recorder.

Did someone say Golden Hour? Yes, this setup is part of the Organ Grinder documentary (truly!) - soon you will learn more. #organgrinder

From Star Wars to Rising Star Justin Adams had an early and indelible introduction to the Organ Grinder Restaurant in Denver: "My earliest memory of being at the organ grinder was when I was five years old. This was around 1977...

From Star Wars to Rising Star - Justin Adams Interview www.pipedreamsfilm.com/blog/from-st... #organgrinder

"As the crowds wandered about the theater, pausing here and there to drink in the marvelous beauty of the ensemble, or stopping to examine more closely some intricate detail, a small realization of the time, effort, and expense expended in the creation of the theater began to steal over them..."

Organ Grinder Time Capsule! (Post updated 2025-07-13 with technical info.) In this newly-acquired footage from the 1970s, organist Jonas Nordwall performs a full set at the Organ Grinder restaurant in Portland, Oregon. ht...

Update: For the curious, the Organ Grinder Time Capsule article has been expanded with information about how the restoration and enhancement of the footage was accomplished. www.pipedreamsfilm.com/blog/organ-g...

Childhood Memories
I love that there is old Organ Grinder footage coming up now especially as it was an era before cell phone videos. Here is Jonas Nordwall playing a "set" in the 70's at the Organ Grinder in Portland, OR. (1/2)

YouTube video by Pipe Dreams and Pizza Crusts Organ Grinder Time Capsule - Jonas Nordwall Performing - 1970s

Organ Grinder Time Capsule! Amazing, newly-unearthed footage of Jonas Nordwall performing at the Portland Organ Grinder restaurant in the 1970s. youtu.be/5BulrFZl07Y #organgrinder

The Calm Before the End During our Denver Road Trip, we interviewed organist Jim Calm about his experiences at the Organ Grinder. Jim comes from a musical family. He started taking piano lessons as a child - his parents b...

The Calm Before the End - Jim Calm Interview - www.pipedreamsfilm.com/blog/the-cal... #organgrinder

YouTube video by Pipe Dreams and Pizza Crusts The Washington Post March at the Organ Grinder - July 4 - Jonas Nordwall

The Washington Post March at the Organ Grinder - July 4 - Jonas Nordwall youtu.be/qDYF3ZXSZa0