Bob Markworth is a retired Union Pacific environmental and mechanical engineer. While working there, he supported facilities for all terminals and ran the tie treating plants. His love of tinkering and building has also translated into his hobby of rebuilding pipe organs.
Growing up, Markworth’s parents would take him to the Oriental Theatre in Portland, Oregon, where he loved to hear the organists play the Wurlitzer. “I really liked the sound,” he said. When he was younger, he learned to play the organ and his parents got him a small electric one for entertainment. As time went on, they got him a larger one, and then a larger one.
“I find that the music that’s played on the organ is very inspiring and makes your spine tingle. It makes you feel like you’ve become part of the music. It’s a big sound. It really grows on you,” Markworth said.
Theater organs were at the height of their popularity during the time of silent movies, helping the story unfold for the audience with elaborate sound effects and songs by using windblown pipes to imitate the sounds of an entire orchestra. The intricate electrical controls allowed a single musician to fill a theater with sound.
As the era of silent movies ended, many pipe organs were boarded up and were no longer used. According to Markworth, people were then able to buy them for a small amount of money. Some of these organs ended up across the country in pizza restaurants. In the 1970s and 1980s, there were over 100 pizza and pipes restaurants in the U.S., but there are just a few remaining today. Markworth recommends Organ Stop Pizza in Mesa, Arizona.
Markworth decided in the 1970s that he wanted to buy a large pipe organ to put in his home. Eventually, he found a 9 Rank Kimball in Pennsylvania. The 3/24 organ has all Kimball and Wurlitzer parts. With the help of The River City Theatre Organ Society, it took three years to rebuild. “Six to eight guys would come over on Saturdays and we would work all day, and my wife, Joyce, would make lunch. They worked for food,” Markworth quipped.
According to their website, “The River City Theatre Organ Society (RCTOS) is dedicated to the preservation of the theatre pipe organ, its music, and art form. While we welcome members from all walks of life, and organists of all skill levels, the vast majority of our members are simply music lovers, those who appreciate the sound of the mighty theatre organ. A few of our members enjoy in the upkeep and work necessary to keep these large instruments properly operating.”
Joyce was a pianist and fan of the organ as well. “You have to have a very understanding wife to put up with the hobby, and she was,” Markworth said of the love his life, who passed away in 2014.
As far as his pipe organ, “building the system took a while,” he said. “It was originally built for a theater in 1927. A lot of it had to be repaired. The valves had to be re-leathered. Things in the chest of the organ had deteriorated and had to be rebuilt. It was a labor of love—a lot of camaraderie amongst the members. The guys became good at this.”
The organ sits inside of a large theater in his basement that seats about 150. Behind the organ are two large rooms that house all the elements of the pipe organ. The pipes emulate every musical instrument in a full orchestra. This is where the real mechanics and tinkering take place. As the organist plays the music, the swell shades open and close, controlling the volume via the organist’s right foot pedal.
“I enjoy the mechanics of the organ. I enjoy working on it and fixing it and adding additional features. That’s the engineer in me,” Markworth said.
The RCTOS meets at Markworth’s home a few times a year. They have potlucks and have organists play. Sometimes, they have so many guests over to listen that they need to open the patio doors and seat some people outside.
The RCTOS was instrumental in finding and installing the 3/21 Wurlitzer from California that resides in the Rose Theater. The organ pieces were heavy, and it took a lot of work to get it put together and working. Every August, the society comes back to maintain and repair it, after which they have a public concert. In August 2024, the featured musician was Pop Theatre Pipe Organist Dave Wickerham.
“The event at the Rose Theatre is a fundraiser for the club,” Markworth explained. “We bring in a good organist and show a silent movie that the organist plays showtunes to. It’s a great event for a good cause and it’s open to the public. After the concert, we have an afterglow where guests can meet the artists at my house. We have a light dinner, and the event is casual and fun.”
Jerry Pawlak, secretary and treasurer of RCTOS, has been friends with Markworth for over 20 years. The two met at a club meeting and both worked for the railroad. “Organ playing is an art. Our club is trying to perpetuate the instrument; our mission is to show and promote and keep the music alive,” Pawlak said.
He continued, “Bob is an engineer, and he knows how to put together the organs to get them to work. He is a great person and he’s been a great friend for 20 years. He’s very knowledgeable, and all-around good guy.”
Markworth wants to keep this art form alive. “It’s still an enjoyment for a lot of people. Many people don’t know this art form exists, and they are amazed when they see it and hear that organs can produce popular music,” he said.
Markworth often plays tunes from the “Star Wars” soundtrack and songs such as Whitney Houston’s “The Greatest Love of All,” and “The Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy.” It’s a marvel to see the organ with its pipes, bells, and whistles move about while it plays.
It can be challenging to get people to learn about organ music as an art form, but this is the goal for Markworth and the RCOTS. “We would love to have as many people join as we could. We want to increase our membership. You just must appreciate music,” Markworth said. “Our work crew has diminished; many members are no longer with us.
“You don’t need to know how to play the organ or work the organs,” he continued, noting “We need more young people to carry the torch.”
For more information, visit rctos.com.
This article originally appeared in the January/February 2025 issue of Omaha Magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.
