Egyptian Theatre (DeKalb, Illinois)  The Egyptian Theatre in DeKalb, Illinois, United States, is an Egyptian Revival theatre that is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. The theatre was built in 1928 and 1929 as part of a much larger wave of national fascination with Ancient Egypt throughout the United States, due, in large part, to the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb in 1922. The theatre was added to the National Register in 1978 and its 1,430-seat auditorium is currently DeKalb County's largest. The building was designed by architect Elmer F. Behrns, who had an interest in Egyptology. The interior and exterior architecture reflect Egyptian cultural symbols. Stained glass work exhibits designs such as Ra, the Egyptian sun god and the scarab, a sacred Egyptian symbol. The building was nearly demolished in the 1970s but a restoration effort led by Preservation of the Egyptian Theatre (PET) saved the structure. Rumors have long surrounded the DeKalb Egyptian about secret messages allegedly hidden in the architecture and as well as ghost hauntings. While the theater maintains there are no hidden messages in the building the ghost stories have persisted throughout the years. The Egyptian Theatre operates a 42-week season with up to 125 events annually. When the theatre opened in , it was one of many so-called Egyptian Theatres across the United States. Of those Egyptian theatres, the DeKalb theatre is one of a handful still standing as of 2019. In the original design, additional buildings were supposed to be attached to the existing building, but they were never built due to the stock market crash in late 1929. For instance, there was to be a hotel attached to the north side of the building. In its earliest days, the theatre specialized in silent films and live vaudevillian performances. As decades passed, the theatre became more focused on film presentations and remained so throughout the 1940s, '50s and '60s. By the 1970s the theatre was in disrepair, and its plaster walls were crumbling. The owner handed the theatre over to the city of DeKalb. In 1978 a group of citizens banded together to restore and save the Egyptian. When the Egyptian was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, the group, Preservation of the Egyptian Theatre (PET), qualified for a $2.3 million grant from the state of Illinois. This money allowed the restoration of the theatre to begin. It was estimated at that time that $3.5 million was needed to completely restore the theatre.