It's been almost two months since the troubles started at Old Original Bookbinder's, and each new piece of bad news was another step toward doom, from losing power due to unpaid bills to terminating many employees. Yesterday, a three-year-old petition for bankruptcy was dismissed. Below, a time line of the march to likely closure:
• 1893: Samuel Bookbinder opens an oyster house on 5th near South.
• 1898: Bookbinder's moves to 2nd and Walnut.
• 1945: John M. Taxin buys the restaurant and, a few years later, tacks on "Old Original" to the name. He also spins the myth that the restaurant opened in 1865, to give it caché (was 1893 really so nouveau?).
• January 2002: Bookbinder's closes...
• February 2005:
• June, 2006: Bookbinder's owes roughly $1.8 million to creditors and files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
• March 9, 2009: Electricity is shut off because of an outstanding balance of $70,000
• March 23, 2009: The restaurant closes because of "mechanical emergencies". At this point, the Taxins say it will reopen in a few weeks.
• March 25, 2009: It comes out that on top of those unpaid utilities, Bookbinder's owes lots of rent money.
• March 26, 2009: Employees are fired via text message!
• April 1, 2009: A public plea for (financial) assistance shows up in the window.
• April 23, 2009: Nevermind that over 15 employees are still waiting for back wages: the Daily News reports that John Taxin $16,000 for four Phillies season tickets.
• April 29, 2009: The bankruptcy petition is dismissed, and there will be no bailout for Old Original Bookbinder's — at least not while the Taxins own it.
It's not necessarily the end for Old Original Bookbinder's as an institution: the name is up for sale, and the Taxins are seeking a new tenant.
Bookbinder's bankruptcy petition dismissed [Inquirer]
[Photo: via jblyberg/Flickr]
