History & local legend
Gatsby’s nightclub occupied the former balcony area of the Cathaum Theatre on West College Avenue in State College. The space became a nightclub in 1976, but staff believed a man from its movie-theater years had remained behind.
Manager Paul Davis told The Daily Collegian in October 1988 that he had seen the figure twice. He said the previous bar manager had seen him three times. Employees called the apparition George, although that was a nickname rather than an established identity.
According to the staff tradition, the man had worked at the Cathaum for years before dying in the 1950s. Gatsby’s itself closed in 1989, and Penn State subsequently converted the upstairs space into English-department offices.
