The architectural firm of Hodgson & McClenahan, notable for many important Wasatch Front landmarks, was hired for the task.

They took cues from many of the most famous western theaters, including Grauman's Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood, and settled upon an Egyptian-themed showhouse.

Construction began in 1923 on the cleared area left from the Arlington Hotel, and incidentally, the location of the Peerys' first Ogden home.

This "natural color" silent film was accompanied by the Mighty Wurlitzer, the Egyptian's famous pipe organ.

A renovation of the theater's entrance increased the marquee size fourfold and added new box office and a new ceiling to the lobby.

The format of CinemaScope, of more than two-to-one ratio in width versus height, necessitated the removal of two of the inner-proscenium columns.

Major donations and contributions from Dr. Louis S. and Jan Peery, the George S. and Delores Dore Eccles Foundation, and the Utah State Legislature were received among hundreds of other smaller gifts.

The adjoining David Eccles Conference Center and the Weber County government office, located in a renovated department store, were built and completed during this period.

This measure was meant to increase the safety of the occupants, and resist fire, which has been a historically efficient killer of theaters and their patrons.

The Egyptian is one of a few theaters to incorporate an "atmospheric" ceiling, where a daytime or dusk ambiance can be smoothly changed into one of a star-filled nighttime sky.

The terra cotta facade, with its intricate colors and details intact, remains in excellent condition after over 80 years.

The seating area comprises one level, steeply raked for a nearly ideal viewing angle without resorting to steps.