One of the most iconic american television shows of the 2000’s was “The Office”. The office was a workplace comedy based on the hit British comedy of the same name. The comedy revolved around the fictional paper company Dunder-Mifflin which was headquartered in New York City but had a branch office in Scranton, Pennslyvania.
Over the course of its nine seasons, the show made reference to several local businesses and locations within the city. Those of us who were superfans of the show remember hearing about all these places and on a trip out to visit a friend near Allentown PA, I decided to make the trip to Scranton and check the place out. Here are several of the locations that were mentioned on the show.
One of the disappointing things I learned was that while they did make mention of Scranton landmarks most of the exterior shots weren’t actually shot here but in a mock-up location in LA. So many of the locations appear much different than they did on the show.
This is the Pennsylvania Paper Company which served as the basis for Dunder-Mifflin. This building appears in the first shot of the opening credits.This is the same sign used in the opening credits. If you visit Scranton today, you may be disappointed to know they are now using a different welcome sign today. this sign has been relegated to the Steamtown Mall where it is available for photo-ops.In one episode Dwight and Michael do a wrap about Scranton. They mentioned that Scranton is known as the “Electric City”. Scranton acquired that name by being the first city to have an electric trolley back in 1886.Scranton is proud of their monikerOne of the favorite after-hours hangouts for the Dunder Mifflin crew. The real Poor Richard’s Pub is in a bowling alley and looks nothing like its television counterpart.The gang often got Pizza from AlfredosMichael Scott took Holly on a date here. I didn’t get to eat here but it looks like a fun place. I definitely hope to try it on a return trip.Coopers is known for its very eclectic interior design.References to the mall abound in “The Office”. Michael took all the female employees here for a girl’s day out. They spent a lot of time at the food court. Although the mall does have a food court. it becomes very apparent that the sequence was shot a location in LA, as the mall interior is very different.The mall has suffered the same fate as many malls throughout the US. While there are some businesses that operate there, the mall is largely empty.
If you are a fan of the show and you happen to be in eastern Pennsylvania, Scranton is worth a visit. While sometimes the show and some of the locations didn’t match up with the real Scranton, overall much of the city enjoyed their time in the spotlight. And Dunder Mifflin is a survivor company. Despite all the hardships, mergers and near-bankruptcies, the office lived on and so does Scranton.
