Just a little video to hint at what is to come.  Oh, and no there wasn’t someone with breathing problems recording the video.  The ambient noise from the blower is making that “breathing sound”.  Normally, the door between the blower room and solo chamber is closed and you would not hear that.

CRATOS is pleased to be able to report that the Cedar Rapids City Council, on Feb 4, 2009, voted to restore the flood-damaged Paramount Theatre.  The restoration funding is inclusive of the theatre and the organ.  The Cedar Rapids Gazette provided the update on this monumental decision.

More updates will be provided as details are released.

Just over 6 months since sustaining flooding from the Cedar River, the Paramount Theatre has flooded once again.  This time a broken water pipe, apparently left unchecked, caused the building’s sub-basement, basement and orchestra pit to fill with water. 

Fortunately this time the water was clean, but still damaging to an already flooded and closed building.  The City of Cedar Rapids has not yet made any decision on restoration of the theatre and the Mighty Wurlitzer theatre organ.  The building remains closed and under minimal maintenance for the winter until a decision can be made regarding the future of this priceless landmark building.

On August 2, 2008, the strangest thing since the Great Flood of 2008 happened in Cedar Rapids, IA.  CRATOS members, assisted by the Rockwell Retiree Volunteers, and The History Center, moved the Wurlitzer and Barton consoles into the new organ restoration room.  For the first time in the history of Cedar Rapids, two completely unique theatre organ consoles sat face to face, sharing in the same fate.

The Paramount’s Balaban 1A Wurlitzer console, severely damaged by the June 2008 flooding, has been in temporary storage since June 18th, 2008.  Getting the remaining console pieces into a climate controlled environment was key in preserving the remaining portions for future restoration work.

The Iowa (TCR) Rhinestone Barton was moved to a warehouse section of The History Center several weeks ago, awaiting the completion of preparations on the organ restoration room.  With the major preparations completed it was time to move both consoles into the same room for the first time ever.

RCRV and The History Center have worked steadily to convert the former 1940s car dealership building into the new headquarters for the console restorations of both instruments.  With original tin ceilings still largerly intact, a full showroom front on 2nd Avenue and 6th Street SE, air conditioning, and plenty of space, CRATOS and CRBI (Cedar Rapids Barton Incorporated) have a new, temporary home from which to launch the next chapter in the lives of both organs.

CRATOS and CRBI are grateful to The History Center, RCRV, and Mike Wilson for their efforts in securing and converting the new, temporary home for the organ consoles.  The next chapter in the fate of these incredible, unique instruments is about to begin!

Just shy of 1 month following the dramatic removal of the Paramount’s 1928 Wurlitzer Balaban 1A theatre organ console, CRATOS and CRBI coordinated another rescue effort.  This time it was the 1928 Rhinestone Barton console from Theatre Cedar Rapids (formerly the Iowa Theatre).

The Barton console was damaged by the floodwaters, but the impact to the organ was not as visible and dramatic as the Paramount’s Wurlitzer.  The Barton console, hit with 4 feet of floodwater, remained standing on the 4-post Barton lift unlike it’s sister at the Paramount which was toppled over and tossed around, subjected to 8.5 feet of water and weakened significantly by the experience.

On Tuesday, July 15, 2008, CRATOS, CRBI, Theatre Cedar Rapids and Coonrod Crane Service staged a full blown rescue effort for the damaged console.   The console needed to come out in order for theatre repairs to continue.  With the stage already partially dismantled, the console was reinforced and secured in preparation for the removal.  Coonrod maneuvered a long-reaching crane through the stage door and lifted the organ into the air.  The volunteers onsite guided the console across the stage to a waiting platform.

With the console safely out of the theatre, it was lifted into the bed of a pickup truck and carefully taken to it’s new temporary home at The History Center.  CRATOS and CRBI are extremely thankful for the hard work of the volunteers and Coonrod.  Special thanks to  Jim White and The History Center for generously providing a space where evaluation and restoration activities can be undertaken, and to Mike Wilson and the Rockwell Retirees group for their encouragement and dedication to seeing the Barton console moved to it’s new home.

The recovery effort was made possible through a generous grant from the National Endowment of the Humanties (NEH).

With the permission of the City of Cedar Rapids, the Wurlitzer console’s remaining parts will be relocated to The History Center to join the Barton.  There the two will stay while fundraising, evaluation, restoration and recovery efforts are undertaken.

Members of the CRATOS Board of Directors made the journey to Indianapolis over the July 4th weekend to help raise worldwide awareness to the impact of the June 2008 flooding in Cedar Rapids, IA.

Ferreter, Kelzenberg and Marple attended the July 6, 2008 annual membership meeting at the request of Ken Double, ATOS President and CEO.  At the start of the meeting, attended by an estimated 200 members of ATOS from around the world, Ken Double asked CRATOS to speak to the membership on the condition of the Mighty Wurlitzer and Rhinestone Barton organs of Cedar Rapids.

Mr. Ferreter expressed that “many of the arts and entertainment venues of Cedar Rapids were devastated by the flood.  The Paramount Theatre sustained damage from 8 1/2 feet of water at stage level”.  He went on to say that CRATOS will need the help of the international theatre organ community to bring the Wurlitzer and Barton organs back to the public.

Colonel Jack Moelmann, a long-time friend of CRATOS and a performer at the Paramount Theatre’s Wurlitzer as recently as 2001, joined Mr. Ferreter and presented a donation of $1,000 to CRATOS in support of the organs and the chapter.

Prior to the annual meeting, Darren Ferreter (President), David Kelzenberg (Vice President) and Neal Marple (Secretary) attended a July 5 concert by Walt Strony, another long-time friend of CRATOS, which featured the world premiere of the new Allen Organ Company STR-4 Four-Manual Walt Strony Signature Quantum™ Organ.  The concert was held in the Indiana Theatre, Terre Haute, where over 100 local residents joined the mass of ATOS convention attendees in hearing a theatre organ in this beautiful theatre for the first time in many years.

In the midst of all of the activity over the past many days, we have been fortunate to have a significant amount of media interest in the story of the Paramount, and our Mighty Wurlitzer.

Local, state and national news organizations were onsite to spread the word of the danger the organ was in due to the flooding, and the efforts to pull the console from the theatre at the last minute as the stage became increasingly unstable.

Here are some of the many reports submitted:

June 17: CNN iReport by CRATOS

June 18: The Gazette (Cedar Rapids) and KCRG (Cedar Rapids) send reporters, photographers, and video crews onsite to document the incredible efforts underway by CRATOS, Paramount theatre management, Coonrod and Altorfer to save the console.

June 18: CNN follow-up on iReport with a live on-scene interview (wait for it).

June 19: The Gazette’s Adam Bell’s report for the print edition of the paper, with some positive updates to the story.

These reports, and the follow-up reports that will document and publicize the activities CRATOS, Paramount management, and the City of Cedar Rapids now undertakes in saving or reconstructing the console, and the efforts still needed in the pipe chambers, will help keep this magnificent organ and theatre in the spotlight.

Please send any links to other related reports you’ve found to: cratos.info@gmail.com

If you have stories of the Paramount, the Wurlitzer, and the former Iowa Theatre and the Rhinestone Barton, please send them along and we’ll publish them in a special section on our site.

CRATOS members were summoned to the Paramount Theatre at 11:30am, Wednesday, June 18th at the behest of theatre management.  Of concern was, and still is, the stability of the heavily damaged main stage.  Based on the June 17th photos by The Gazette, the condition of the console was documented, but the condition of the pipe chambers was as-yet unkown.

We are deeply saddened to report that the console did not survive the flood intact.  Altorfer and Coonrod Crane Service volunteers rushed to the aid of the CRATOS team to help pull the console free from the edge of the stage and organ lift.  The strain of movement, water, time, and exposure to extreme conditions was simply too much.  Our beautiful Balaban 1A console, a fixture of the Paramount Theatre since 1928 made it into the sunlight for the first time in 80 years, holding together until the very end.

CRATOS members onsite worked to salvage any major components from the console.  The keydesk, top, stoprail, all stop tabs, pedal board, and bench were all retrieved along with several pieces of ornate woodwork and the original Wurlitzer faceplates.  The remaining portions of the console are in temporary storage while decisions can be made and funding secured to rebuild or replace the console.

Following the efforts to save the console, the CRATOS members onsite entered the upper levels of the Paramount to inspect the Main pipe chamber.  We were very encouraged to see that no water had entered this chamber – which we have to assume for the time being is the same as in the Solo chamber which is not easily accessible at this time.  The temperature was a cool 70 degress, and much lower humidity than expected.  The water line is approximately 1 ft under the floor of the chamber.

Despite the damage to the console, the condition of the pipe chambers is very encouraging, and gives us renewed hope that the organ will once again play in its original home.  I will take time, talent, and the generosity of the community to bring this priceless instrument back to life.
Updated photos are in our gallery. 

We’re keeping this update brief as it’s been a long day.  We gained entry into both theatres late today and took detailed photos of both the Paramount’s Wurlitzer and Iowa (TCR’s) Barton.

The Paramount is difficult to look at, the organ console off the lift and on its back and heavily damaged.  We’re holding out for good news from the two pipe chambers once the building is a bit safer to get around it.  The theatre was hit very hard by the flood waters  After we get further clearance to enter and evaluate the condition of the Wurlitzer we’ll provide further updates.

The Cedar Rapids Gazette published an article, complete with a photo of the console and video including the interior of the theatre.

We had KCCI in Des Moines and KCRG in Cedar Rapids with us in the Iowa (TCR) theatre today to document the condition of the Rhinstone Barton.  This organ and console escaped the same level of damage over at the Paramount.  There is still considerable work here to get the Barton back to playable condition.

A note from CRATOS President, Darren Ferreter:

I would like to begin by thanking everyone who has taken a moment to send notes of support to CRATOS after the flooding and organ damage that occurred in Cedar Rapids.

Although the water level is dropping, the Cedar River is not anywhere near being within its banks. The water current is swift and very enraged.  CRATOS is days from accessing either theatre. The National Guard has been on hand to (thankfully) prevent looting of the downtown area.  It has been an interesting study as you learn much about a person during a crisis period.

As an update, here is what I know to this point …

The water level in the Paramount theatre with its original 3/12 Wurlitzer was believed to have peaked at about 9 foot above stage level which will have completely destroyed the console, blower, and lift.  We have been studying some very incomplete plans of the theatre cross section but have begun to have some serious question about water in the chambers. Nine feet is very close to being at least at floor level of both the main and solo chambers.� We trying to decide if the chambers may have taken murky water that could have created damage to regulators, tremulants, and possibly offset chests. Again, we have not had access, but we are considering the worst as the CRATOS organ crew begin to develop our plan for protecting the remaining components of the instrument. We do not expect access into the Paramount for another 4-5 days.

At the Iowa theatre, it is believed that water had entered the theatre but we are speculating the Wangerin built 3/14 Rhinestone Barton will have survived much better than the Wurlitzer. We are seeing photos of the exterior of the theatre that showed about 8-12 inches of water surrounding the building but most of us believe the stage level is a bit higher than the street. We do not expect access into the Iowa theatre for a few more days.

I would assume over time we will be looking for a new blower, blower motor, and seeing what our options would be in acquiring a three-manual Wurlitzer console.

Again, we appreciate hearing from people. I’ve not been able to take time to respond to each note as I am very busy trying to help my employer Mercy Medical Center back on its feet after we had to evacuate patients and staff because of water that was never expected anywhere near the hospital.

We are doing our best to keep the CRATOS website www.cr-atos.com updated. More updates to follow.