The history of Virginia’s Grand Motion Picture Palace, the Byrd Theatre, belongs to every movie goer who has graced her gilt doors and sat on the edge of a springy seat awaiting the rise of the mighty Wurlitzer. Seeing a show at the Byrd is now cemented in the Richmond experience, a beloved piece of the city’s authentic soul. It’s a tradition that nearly didn’t survive.

The Byrd: Miracle on Cary Street is Duane K. Nelson’s behind-the-scenes account of restoring the Byrd in the 1980s to her original 1928 luster with the help of Richmond A-listers, theater front-liners, and a host of movie aficionados. Thanks to their hard work, vision, and sweat equity, seeing a show at the Byrd, and paying only a few dollars to do so, has been a treasured experience since the Byrd reopened her doors in 1984.

Read the who and the how of saving the Byrd and walk down memory lane through the movies and reviews of your own Richmond experience.

Nelson managed and operated the Byrd Theatre until 2007 when her future was entrusted to the Byrd Theatre Foundation. A portion of proceeds from the sale of this book will benefit their mission.

Every so often God chooses an individual, gives them a purpose, and gives them a mission to perform in life. Sometimes that person is the most unqualified and undeserving person in the world. Duane K. Nelson felt that way about being, somehow, chosen to perform the mission of saving the Byrd Theatre in Richmond, Virginia. Nelson managed the Byrd Theatre from 1982 to 1989 and then owned the management operation of the Byrd Theatre for close to eighteen years. This is the story of the redevelopment, restoration, and operation of the Byrd Theatre during his twenty-five-year tenure. It is also the story of the vision and means of making that vision possible for the

continuous operation and salvation of the Byrd Theatre for many years and generations to come. This story is true and includes many names of the people who contributed so much to the Byrd Theatre.