Egyptian Theatre, Movie theater in downtown Coos Bay, United States

The Egyptian Theatre is a movie theater in downtown Coos Bay, Oregon, designed by Lee Arden Thomas and Albert Mercier in the Egyptian Revival style and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Its main auditorium seats 770, and the former balcony was converted in 1976 to hold two smaller screens, bringing capacity to 1,000. Piers decorated with papyrus blossoms, wrought-iron ceiling lights shaped like hooded cobras and stairways with 8-foot pharaoh statues line the interior.

Charles Noble, a descendant of one of the area's first settlers, built the structure in 1922 and spent $200,000 converting the garage into a theater in 1925. Architects Lee Arden Thomas and Albert Mercier gave it Egyptian Revival detailing, a style popular in the U.S. after the 1922 discovery of King Tut's tomb. The balcony was converted to hold two screens in 1976, raising seating to 1,000.

The theatre's Egyptian name and decor follow the Egyptian Revival fashion that spread in the U.S. after the 1922 discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb. Visitors can pick out papyrus-blossom piers, wrought-iron ceiling lights shaped as hooded cobras and stairways flanked by 8-foot pharaoh statues. Since 2010 the building has also been opened to the community for meetings, concerts and plays.

The Egyptian Theatre stands in downtown Coos Bay, a short walk from nearby streets. The main auditorium seats 770, while the two screens carved out of the former balcony in 1976 bring capacity to 1,000. The building reopened in June 2014 after structural restoration, so check current opening arrangements before a visit.

The Egyptian Theatre is home to the only theater organ in Oregon that has never been moved from its original location. This Mighty Wurlitzer pipe organ was installed when the building was first converted in the 1920s and still plays today.