Author Archives: familyhometheater

Updike house interior restoration nearly complete

Posted on October 14, 2017

With only a kitchen slate sink left to install and a Tiffany-style light fixture in the dining room—work that will be done when the pieces can be located—the interior restoration of The John Updike Childhood Home at 117 Philadelphia Ave. … Continue reading →

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Miranda Updike visits house, brings family treasures

Posted on October 13, 2017

John Updike’s children—Elizabeth, David, Michael, and Miranda—have been supportive of The John Updike Society from the beginning, even to the extent of participating in the society’s conferences. And they’re supportive of the society’s efforts to restore The John Updike Childhood … Continue reading →

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Alvernia professor Susan Guay named John Updike Childhood Home director

Posted on October 13, 2017

The John Updike Society board of directors unanimously approved Alvernia University professor Susan Guay to serve as director of The John Updike Childhood Home in Shillington, Pa.  Her appointment is effective immediately. Society president James Plath made the announcement on … Continue reading →

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Reading Eagle lauds Updike home restoration

Posted on August 22, 2017

In their Tuesday, August 15, 2017 “Editorial: A terrific way to honor a Berks native’s literary legacy,” the Reading Eagle, where young Updike worked as a teenager, approved of The John Updike Society’s progress in turning the house at 117 … Continue reading →

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Updike house restoration story goes international

Posted on August 2, 2017

From tiny seeds . . . . Earlier this week a Reading Eagle reporter contacted John Updike Society president James Plath asking for help updating the story of The John Updike Childhood Home restoration. Plath passed along his email response … Continue reading →

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Restoration progress: Corbels up!

Posted on July 29, 2017

John Updike Society member Carole Sherr, who was a friend of Linda Updike’s, recently visited the house at 117 Philadelphia Ave. to check on the progress. R. J. Doerr has been reinstalling decorative corbels at the top of the building—decorative … Continue reading →

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Restoration progress: the John Updike Childhood Home kitchen

Posted on June 13, 2017

All that remains of the interior restoration of The John Updike Childhood Home are two rooms:  the upstairs bathroom and the kitchen, and the kitchen cabinetry has been re-done in the exact “footprints” of the original cabinets.

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Roemer and Constance McPhee honored for John Updike Childhood Home support

Posted on May 28, 2017

Roemer and Constance McPhee, whose support helped The John Updike Society to go all out and hire a historic restoration specialist to bring The John Updike Childhood Home in Shillington, Pa. back to the way it was when Updike lived … Continue reading →

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Work on the Updike house is moving along

Posted on February 14, 2017

Thanks to a $380,000 donation from The Robert and Adele Schiff Family Foundation and $10,000 from the PECO Foundation, work has resumed on The John Updike Childhood Home restoration. Bob Doerr and his crew are now able to finish up the two remaining … Continue reading →

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New photos of John Updike Childhood Home restoration

Posted on August 16, 2016

Dave Silcox recently toured The John Updike Childhood Home and took a few pictures of the restoration-in-progress. Below are shots of the dining room, upstairs hallway (with newly extended wall, as described by Updike), and Updike’s bedroom showing the original … Continue reading →

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