Yes. The DVD is available at www.thebazaarofallnations.com and contains the entire 1 hour and 44 minute theatrical release of the film, as well as over an hour of bonus features.
The producers had to whittle down the number of stores, as 100s of stores moved in an out of the Bazaar over its 33-year history. Selected stores had to do with a combination of the availability of photos/video and original owners' availability. Every effort was made to at least mention or display something from as many stores as possible.
The Bazaar of All Nations in Horsham PA was an offshoot of the Bazaar in Upper Darby/Clifton Heights. In total, there were 4 Bazaars at one time or another (Upper Darby (the original), North Philadelphia, Horsham, and Bristol). These other Bazaars are shown and mentioned briefly in the film though not extensively covered as many of the shops had the same owners from the Upper Darby Bazaar and they lasted only a few years.
The Bazaar of All Nations opened in November 1960 and was located on the south side of Baltimore Pike between Oak Avenue and Bishop Avenue, in Upper Darby Township, Pennsylvania. The Bazaar site was bounded on the east and to the north by the Borough of Clifton Heights, but the Bazaar was not within Clifton Heights Borough limits. In nearly all print advertising, the Bazaars location was listed as Clifton Heights. This is most likely because listing the location as such made it easier for people to locate the Bazaar. Upper Darby Township is large and not as specific as saying Clifton Heights. In a similar manner, today many people refer to the Granite Run Mall as being in Media, when in fact it is located in Middletown Township, outside the boundaries of Media Borough. Due to Granite Run Malls proximity to Media Borough, it is often identified as being in Media.
The origins of the Sputnik sign, and its official name, are explained in the film. The sign stood along Baltimore Pike from 1960 until about 1989-1990, when it was removed entirely and replaced by a flashing neon sign dubbed by many people in the area as the lollipop due to its circular lighting feature. No one contacted during or since production of the film has been able to account for the location of the Sputnik after its removal. In all likelihood it was sold for scrap or sent to a landfill.
Before the Bazaar was built, the site was open pasture upon which two branches of the Muckinipattis (or Muckinpates) Creek converged and flowed southward. Upon construction of the Bazaar, the branch that flowed north across Baltimore Pike was encased in concrete drainage piping and covered by the Bazaars parking lot. The east/west branch was left uncovered and this flowed behind the Bazaar. Around the time of the Home Depot and Acme construction in 1995/1996, this banks of this branch were shored up with concrete retaining walls to prevent further erosion. From the convergence of the two branches, the Muckinipattis flows south through Secane and Glenolden, flows under Chester Pike, then joins the Darby Creek just before the Darby empties into the Delaware River.
Children who grew up in the 1970s and 1980s, and who visited the Bazaar with their parents, may have memories of an old house located on a lot behind Burlington Coat Factory. This house was the home of the family (and descendants) who ran Burn Brae Hospital. Burn Brae was founded as a Sanitarium in 1859 by Doctor Robert Given. The entire Bazaar property was part of the Burn Brae estate until the family sold most of their land to developers around 1949. Burn Brae operated as a nursing home until the late 1960s, and was demolished in the early 1970s. Of the original buildings on the estate, only the family house remained. The family sold the home in 1998 and it was demolished around 2007.
A popular rumor is that John F. Kennedy visited the Bazaar and/or was present at the ribbon-cutting ceremony. John F. Kennedy did not ever visit the Bazaar, though his brothers Ted Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy both visited the Bazaar in 1966 and 1968, respectively. This is covered in the film with some never-before-seen photographs of their visits, as well as a visit from Richard Nixon. John F. Kennedy was in the area just prior to the Bazaar's Grand Opening in 1960, and stopped at Lawrence Park Shopping Center in Broomall, PA (owned by the Bazaar's management company). The close timing of these two events may lead to some of the confusion.
The Bazaar was not the first enclosed mall in the United States. However, it was very historically significant in the development of malls in the Greater Philadelphia area. This is largely discussed in the film.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content