Month: March 2018

Part 363: Thomas G. Moses’ and “Old Kentucky”

Thomas G. Moses recorded that McVicker’s Theatre played a number of road attractions, leaving him with “little to do, excepting going over Litt’s road shows that played the theatre.” He repainted “all of the stock stuff in the theatre” between working on shows. One of the new productions that Moses painted the scenery for, however, was “Old Kentucky.” It was this four-act play that some credit as the vehicle for Litt’s fortune.

In 1898, Litt reported to the Chicago Inter Ocean, “I have just closed arrangements to produce “In Old Kentucky” in Germany. It has been translated and the Webb & Wachsner company will do it first in Milwaukee. In April I will take the whole company, Pickaninnies, horses, scenery, and all, to Berlin, and open there the 1^st of May” (27 August 1898, page 6).

The play had premiered five years earlier. Written by Charles Turner Dazey (1855-1938) “In Old Kentucky” was set in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Madge Brierly, a poor and illiterate young mountain girl whose father was murdered years ago, is the main character. Her neighbor (Holten) conspires to take away her family’s land. Fortunately, a well-to-do young Lexington man on vacation (Frank Layson) intervenes. Madge soon falls in love with the helpful Layson and later rescues his racehorse, Queen Bess, from a fire. Finally, when Layson plans to race Queen Bess in a desperate attempt to rescue his own fortune, she replaces his jockey at the last minute and rides the horse to victory.

Side note: “In Old Kentucky” was adapted into film four times during the early twentieth century: 1909, 1919, 1927 and 1935. “In Old Kentucky” was the last Will Rogers’ film to be released. It was filmed between April 12 and May 13 and was released in November of that year. Rodgers died in a plane crash on August 15, 1935.

Of this time working at McVicker’s during 1897-1898, Moses wrote, “I was always busy, but not as busy as I should have been.” In the evenings, he recorded, “I did some work at the studio nights as I never went to the theatre at night. All winter up until Christmas, I jogged along and longed for some real excitement.” In short, Moses was getting restless, and he was ready to move on – again. At the age of 42, he had been working as a scenic artist for 25 years. Moses was well known and successful, but he wanted more.

There was a gradual shift occurring in the theatre industry. My research suggests that the “theatrical center” of the United States was shifting back to the East Coast, New York in particular. This immediately followed a construction boom in both visual spectacle and popular entertainment throughout the region and there were opportunities galore. During the 1870s, the theatrical center had shifted to Chicago. After the great fire of 1871, the city attracted a variety of artisans as new buildings and performance venues took shape. Many new construction projects offered endless possibilities for experimentation and innovation. In many ways the 1893 Columbian Exposition became the pinnacle of possibilities for the future in Chicago.

A subtle shift began to occur as artists, such as Moses, started to migrate east, sometimes in droves to New York City. There were new and interesting projects offered not only in Broadway shows, but also in the amusements at Coney Island. There was work – lots of work – and the potential for huge profits.

Hundreds of scenic artists journeyed to New York at the tail end of the nineteenth century. In addition to Moses, their ranks included his future business partner Will Hamilton, John H. Young, Grace Wishaar, Walter Burridge, Ernest Albert and many more.

But would it remain as sweet as they imagined it to be? It makes me think of the 1962 song sung by Peter, Paul & Mary – “Lemon Tree.”

“Lemon tree, very pretty, and the lemon flower is sweet, but the fruit of the poor lemon is impossible to eat.”

New York was a lemon tree for many scenic artists and their experience would be a bitter one.

To be continued…

Here is a link to the song if you don’t know it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLhYghzNfII

Part 362: Thomas G. Moses’ and “Shenandoah” at McVicker’s Theatre

Thomas G. Moses was the scenic artist at McVicker’s Theatre in Chicago during the 1897-1898 season. McVicker’s Theater was built by James Hubert McVicker in 1857. It was remodeled by 1864, then destroyed by fire in 1871. McVicker rebuilt and reopened the following year. By 1883, the venue was remodeled, but again destroyed by fire in 1890. For a third time, McVicker’s Theatre was rebuilt, reopening in 1892. In 1898, McVicker’s widow sold the theater to Jacob Litt for a term of ten years. Litt had managed the venue prior to becoming its proprietor. He hired Moses for his first season after purchasing the venue.

Moses and Litt had worked together on other projects over the decades, including the Academy of Music in Milwaukee during 1886. Litt leased numerous theatres across the country and many endeavors became lucrative successes. By 1898, Litt said, “I have a hard time keeping the different companies straightened out as I have over 250 actors and actresses on my salary lists just now. I am going to make McVicker’s a producing house as much as possible” (Chicago Inter Ocean, 27 August 1898, page 6).

At McVicker’s Theatre, Moses created the scenery for Litt’s grand revival of “Shenandoah.” The production was staged during the second half of the 1897-1898 season. Bronson Howard’s Military drama previously appeared at McVicker’s in 1890 and was reported to be “a phenomenal success” for this fort appearance. The Chicago Inter Ocean reported that with the second burning of McVicker’s Theatre in 1890, the “Shenandoah” scenery was “transferred to the Auditorium to complete its great run” (Chicago Inter Ocean, 28 Feb., 1897, page 37). The Chicago Tribune noted that “The play ‘Shenandoah’ did not suffer by the McVicker fire for, large as the audiences were during the 100 nights at the theater, they were almost as large again at the Auditorium” (31 August 1890, page 30). After the Auditorium, the show toured to St. Louis.

The 1898 “Shenandoah” production opened at McVickers during May and ran until the end of July. In June, the battle scene from the show was performed as part of the midsummer entertainment for a Chicago Press Club event. Smart idea. The Chicago Tribune reported that this entertainment was arranged “through the kindness of Manager Jacob Litt (5 June 1898, page 11).

In his typed manuscript, Moses described his painting of the “Shenandoah” settings in detail. He wrote, “For the production, Otis Skinner played the lead, supported by a full company with at least a dozen horses. We built up the stage for a big battlefield, and worked all other scenes inside of it. I couldn’t find an authentic picture of Shenandoah Valley, so I faked it. One night there was a crowd of old G.A.R. men and after the performance they asked my permission to go up on stage and look over the battlefield. Mr. Litt went with them and listened to their comments of the big cyclorama drop backing. They pointed out the very house where they all stopped for water, etc. Litt introduced me and afterwards said, ‘You made a big hit with those chaps with your accurate drop.’ I was pleased and told him it was a fake, that I just composed it. He could hardly believe it. Of course, I had some idea of the general character of the mountains and farmhouses.”

For me, it is fascinating to examine the personalities that Moses interacted with from year to year. His relationship with Jacob Litt is mentioned in installments #123, 216, and 255. He is a brief mention of Otis Skinner and where he was at in his career when he starred in “Shenandoah.”

Otis Skinner (1858-1942) was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts and raised in Hartford, Connecticut. His older brother Charles Montgomery Skinner became a noted New York theatre critic and journalist, while his younger brother William became an artist. Encouraged by P. T. Barnum, Skinner played various bit roles in stock companies during the 1870s until he built up his repertoire and began touring with Augustin Daly by the mid 1880s. In 1889 he was performing with the Edwin Booth and Helena Modjeska troupe. By the mid-1890s, Skinner became recognized as a star in his own right. It was during this period when Moses painted the settings for his show “Shenandoah.”

By November of 1898, “Shenandoah” began a return engagement at McVicker’s Theater. The Chicago Inter Ocean advertised that the production was “attracting an audience that crowded the house to its doors” (Chicago Inter Ocean 14 November, 1898, page 7). However the return engagement starred Maurice Barrymore in the leading role, not Skinner.

To be continued…

Part 361:Thomas G. Moses at McVicker’s Theatre in 1897

In 1897, Thomas G. Moses was listed in “Julius Cahn’s Official Theatrical Guide” as the scenic artist responsible for producing stock scenery collections at the Alhambra Theatre (Chicago, Illinois); Valentine Theatre (Toledo, Ohio); Loring Opera House (Riverside, California); Marengo Opera House (Marengo, Illinois); and Steinburg’s Grand Opera House (Traverse City, Michigan). Many of these venues were not mentioned in his typed manuscript, but the work occurred during the first half of the year. The second half of 1897 found Moses back in Chicago, painting for one of his favorite venues – McVicker’s Theatre.

At the beginning of 1897 Moses wrote, “The New Year found me grinding out the weekly production. Business continued good. Sosman and Landis would drop down occasionally and always seemed pleased with my productions. Jacob Litt happened to be in Cincinnati and saw the last performance of “Held by the Enemy” and the 1^st performance of “The Banker’s Daughter.” Both complete in every detail – he was so highly pleased that he inquired of [David] Hunt who his artist was.”

On Litt’s return to Chicago he wrote Moses, asking his terms to be the scenic artist for a year at McVickers. Moses was engaged for one year, starting June 1, 1897 and was compensated $3,500 for that year. Today’s equivalent is a scenic art salary of $100,000. Remember that Moses would continue to take outside projects, as was his practice. Before he began at McVicker’s, however, Moses had to complete his work at the Pike Theatre in Cincinnati. Fred McGreer, his assistant, remained at the Pike and became their official scenic artist. McGreer would remain there for the next few years, gaining popularity as one of the country’s top scenic artists. Loitz would remain with Moses, loyal as ever, also returning to Chicago.

Of the McVicker’s venue, Moses wrote, “This theatre I had always admired, and when [Lou] Malmsha was the artist I never missed seeing all his big shows, and had many times dreamed of the day that I could hold a position like it. And here I was after all those years, the artist of the theatre, where my first instructor Malmsha had made so many hits.”

There is something poetic about Moses’ position at McVicker’s theatre in 1897, over two decades after beginning his career as a scenic artist in Chicago. There is something even more wonderful that I would become the owner of a 1909 McVicker’s Theatre program while attending USITT, as one was tucked away in a book that I purchased auction and estate sale this year. Tomorrow, I will start examining the shows that Moses was responsible for while at McVicker’s Theatre.

To be continued…

I am taking a break from the current storyline while attending USITT (United States Institute for Theatre Technology) in Fort Lauderdale Florida. The life and times of Thomas G. Moses will resume on Monday, March 19, 2018.

Part 360: Thomas G. Moses at the Pike Theatre, 1897

During the Pike Theatre’s forty-week season during 1897 and into 1898, Thomas G. Moses supervised the creation of settings for David Belasco’s society drama “The Charity Ball.” Moses, Ed Loitz and Fred McGreer also painted settings for “The Wife,” “Capt. Swift,” “Shenandoah,” “The Banker’s Daughter,” “Lottery of Love,” “Charlie’s Aunt,” “The Amazon,” “Trilby,” “Held by the Enemy,” and a few more shows. Moses recorded that it was a very successful season overall, writing, “The different newspapers gave our work splendid notice every week.”

Mid-season at the Pike, newspapers announced that the venue was no longer going to solely remain a vaudeville house (The Cincinnati Enquirer, 16 Dec., 1897, page 8). The house closed for the stock company to conduct rehearsals and “perfect all arrangements for its successful launching upon the field of comedy and melodrama that is to ensue at the theater.” David Hunt was the theatre manager who engaged James Neil as his stock company’s leading man and Edythe Chapman as the leading lady.

The Cincinnati Enquirer reported, “For a holiday week and mid-season period the Pike presented a peculiar appearance yesterday. With the doors closed and not a light burning except a side reflector on the stage, the house was as dark and chilly as the day, when the new policy of the Pike goes into effect with the initial appearance of the Neil Stock Company in “The Charity Ball.” New scenery will be painted exclusively for the play and for all others that follow. For that purpose scenic artists will arrive from Chicago to-day. Thomas G. Moses, of the firm Sosman & Landis, one of the best scenic artists in the country, will be in charge of the work. In addition to the list of players in the stock company, as published in The Enquirer yesterday, the management of the Pike has engaged Miss Angela Dolores, formerly with the Girard Avenue Theater, Philadelphia, and a well-known actress in light comedy” (20 Dec., 1897, page 2).

Thomas G. Moses led a crew that included Fred McGreer and Ed Loitz. Moses recorded that he thoroughly enjoyed working at the Pike Theatre. Part as his reason was that he could return home every three weeks to spend a few days with his family. Of the project, he wrote, “I was anxious to do good work. It naturally meant long hours and hard steady work.”

Moses described, “Held by the Enemy” in detail. He wrote, “James Neill was a leading man, and Edythe Chapman leading lady. I worked out some color schemes by harmonizing my interior color decorations with Miss Chapman’s best costumes. There was one interior that I didn’t and here is the reason.   Mr. [David] Hunt found fault with my neutral coloring and said one day, “Why don’t you make some positive color decoration like pink or green?” I had the first act of “Held by the Enemy” on the frame – a southern interior. I said, “Alright, I will make this a pink wall and cream colored woodwork.” “Fine,” said he. I did so. I did not consult Miss Chapman as usual. The scene was set. I was in front as usual during the performance. Miss Chapman entered. I saw her look up the scene and almost fall back. She had on a shell pink, deep flounced and a very full hoop skirt. I nearly fainted. I was sick. I rushed back at the close of the act and found her in tears. As soon as she saw me she said, “Oh, why did you do it – didn’t you know I was going the limit on my dress?” She had forgotten that I did not consult her, as I usually did. I pointed to Mr. Hunt. “There is the one I tried to please.” Hunt then realized he was wrong and I had been right all season. I painted out the wall color the next morning, for it simply killed Miss Chapman’s dress, as there was so much of it.”

To be continued…

Part 359: Thomas G. Moses and “In Mizzoura”

David Hunt, of the theatrical management firm Sosman, Landis & Hunt occasionally found fault with Thomas G. Moses. Throughout Moses’ typed manuscript, he recounts several stories about his various interactions with Hunt. Here is one such tale where Hunt chastised Moses for inserting a comic bit when it wasn’t requested as part of the stage design.

Moses mentions a painted detail from the play “Mizzowa.’” It took a little detective work to realize that he was referring to the Augustus Thomas play “In Mizzoura,” and the setting for Act IV. Moses saw a chance for a little comedy. He painted a sign on the farm fence reading “No shooting aloud.” Moses wrote, “One of the papers took it up and said scenic artists ought to go to high school and learn how “allowed” should have been used, instead of “aloud.” Of course, David Hunt also found fault. Moses had painted the “N” and “S” turned around. Moses continued, “I found that my comedy was not appreciated and that very few had even been very far in the country, where a sign of that description actually could be found. When I found I couldn’t convince them that I was right, I went back and said I meant it just as it read, not “allowed.” I was told the company had a salaried comedian and I needn’t “butt in.”

Here is some information about the 1897 touring production of “In Mizzoura.” The four-act play was advertised as “the story of the love affairs of the simple and generous sheriff, Jim Radburn” (Chicago Tribune, 4 January, 1897, page 3). Advertised as a rural comedy, it premiered at Hooley’s theatre during 1893. The title was based on the regional pronunciation of “Missouri.” A line from Act II provides an example: “…why, Kate, I care more for how you feel about anything than I do for anybody in the State of Mizzoura—that’s just how it is.”

The play premiered in Chicago on August 7, 1893 during the venue’s twenty-third season. Under the direction of George J. Appleton, the show starred Nat C. Goodwin and other famous personalities such as Francis Carlyle and William C. Beach. The production went on to appear at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on September 4, 1893.

The stage settings for the production’s 1893 premiere were “painted from sketches made of the exact locality” by Ernest Albert and Walter Burridge, two good friends of Moses.

The touring production that Moses created scenery for was at McVicker’s Theatre in Chicago. The show starred Frank C. Hamilton, Charles G. Hall, and Jean Evelyn. The company of Hamilton’s Players numbered eighteen in all. The Evening Star reported, “All scenery, furniture and property used in this production are carried by the company, so that the most elaborate presentation will be given” (Washington D.C., 27 March 1897, page 24).

Here is a synopsis of the scenic requirements:

ACT I.—Living room of Jo Vernon’s house. Bowling Green, Pike County, Missouri. Time—Evening in June. The script detailed a setting that consisted of a dining-room, living-room and kitchen combined. A line of broken plaster and unmatched wall-papers marks the ceiling and back flat a little left of center. Doors right and left in 3. Door in right flat. Old-fashioned table. Dresser, low window with many panes, window-sash sliding horizontally—outside of door is pan of leaves burning to smoke off mosquitoes.

ACT II.—Blacksmith shop of Jo Vernon adjoining his residence. Time—Morning of the second day. The script detailed a setting that depicted the blacksmith shop, adjoining Vernon’s living-room. Forge. Door to living-room above forge. Bellows down stage below forge. Bench with vise at left. Big double doors. Trusses. Tub of water back of anvil.

ACT III.—Living room of Jo Vernon. Time—Evening of the second day (same as ACT I, but tidy. The script detailed a stage setting with doors closed and lamp lighted. Song in blacksmith shop before rise of curtain.

ACT IV.—Home and door yard of Jim Radburn. Time—The next Morning. Exterior of Radburn’s cabin-front, stoop and steps showing. The script detailed a setting with rail-fence partly broken down is across the stage at right and continues in painting on the panorama back-drop of rough country with stacks of cord wood. Many stumps showing. A mud road winds into the distance, a stile crosses fence.

“In Mizzoura” later became a 1919 silent film, directed by Hugh Ford and starring Robert Warwick.

To be continued…

You can also read “In Mizzoula” online as free eBook. Here is the link: https://books.google.com/books?id=0eAVAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA11&lpg=PA11&dq=%22In+Mizzoura%22&source=bl&ots=h93WIvSfXx&sig=QgO6X9E7uzIw2-gLFHFD2bWbsv8&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjyoOnHwuTZAhWm54MKHTbpABkQ6AEISjAG#v=onepage&q=%22In%20Mizzoura%22&f=false

 Part 358: Thomas G. Moses and the English Opera House in Indianapolis

In 1897 Thomas G. Moses briefly left the Sosman & Landis annex studio. He journeyed to Indianapolis where he painted “a complete outfit” for a Valentine Theatre Company production at the English Opera House. Two years earlier, Moses painted a set of stock scenery for the company’s home, the new Valentine Theatre in Toledo, Ohio. For more information about his previous work at the Valentine Theatre, see installment #331.

The English Hotel and Opera House in Indianapolis was expanded during 1896. The new venue was dedicated on October 26, 1897, and advertised as a “first-class theatre.” The price tag for the new theatre was $110,000, with the theatre block costing over $750,000. The New York Times reported, “The house, scenery, and curtain were painted by Thomas G. Moses of Chicago” (New York Times, 27 Oct. 1897, page 1). The venue’s stage was 35’ wide by 43’-6” deep. The proscenium was a series of receding arches, in ivory and gold. The stage was cut off from the auditorium with an asbestos curtain.

The English Opera House was another renovation project by J. B. McElfatrick & Sons during their prolific thirty-year period from 1880 to 1910. The firm designed, built, and renovated theaters across the country. McElfatrick also worked with George H. Ketcham for many of his venues that included the English Theatre, the Grand Opera House (Columbus) and the Valentine Theatre (Toledo). These three theaters all used stock scenery collections painted by Moses and his crew. At the English Theatre Moses painted the new scenery with his assistants Fred McGreer and Ed Loitz; he wrote, “I think we did some good work.”

While Moses was in Indianapolis, projects began rapidly coming into the Sosman & Landis shops; his absence was acutely felt in the studio. Of this time, Moses wrote, “Early fall found Mr. Landis and Mr. Hunt camped on my trail; offering me the Pike Theatre Stock Company work at Cincinnati for the season. They agreed to send down enough drops from the studio to complete my contract. I accepted $75.00 per week and went, taking McGreer and Loitz.” This was during the same time when David Hunt joined Joseph Sosman and Abraham “Perry” Landis to form Sosman, Landis & Hunt, a theatrical management firm. One of their venues was the Pike Theater.

Moses’ typed manuscript indicates that he never really got along with Hunt. In Indianapolis, Hunt took credit for a series of articles and illustrations that appeared about their shows at the Pike. In fact, Moses was submitting the illustrations and struck up a friendship with the well-known theatre critic Montgomery Phister (1853-1917). He wrote, “Hunt never knew that I did it – he flattered himself the paper was doing it.” Hunt was a big talker and disliked by many of the scenic artists.

James Montgomery Phister was engaged in newspaper work for more than 40 years as a writer, cartoonist, and dramatic critic. He was well known for a reputation of fairness and accuracy in his criticism. Born in Maysville, Kentucky, Phister graduated from Woodward High School and continued his education at Yale University. During the Spanish-American war he served as a war correspondent. Of his many tours through Europe he was the guest of the noted English actor Irving. When he passed away on July 9, 1917, The Cincinnati Enquirer reported, “Every doorman and every stagehand knew him and respected him. He enjoyed the friendship of such great figures of the stage as Sir Henry Irving, the Sotherns, Bernhardt, Duse, Alexander Herrmann, Dixey and all of the best in the profession of that in the mimic world. He was a thirty-second degree Mason and a life member of N. C. Harmony Blue Lodge of Cincinnati” (“Twenty Years Ago in Cincinnati,” 9 July 1937, page 4).

Phister had also worked as a scenic artist early in his career and developed a fondness for Moses. One day, Moses and Phister decided to play a small joke on Hunt to put him in his place. Hunt insisted that he was an expert on everything, especially if he didn’t know what he was talking about. Phister told Hunt, “I think Moses uses too much raw umber.” Hunt later repeated this to Moses as his own idea. Moses responded, “Raw umber! What kind of color is that? I don’t use it at all.” Hunt was stumped and reported back to Phister. Moses wrote, “We had a hearty laugh over it.”

To be continued…

Part 357: Thomas G. Moses und “Das Deutsche Haus” in Indianapolis, 1897

 Thomas G. Moses started the year 1897 still painting for Sosman & Landis at the Alhambra Theatre space. This was another of the company’s annex studios for their subcontracted work. When the Alhambra opened its doors for the season, the Chicago Tribune noted that Thomas G. Moses painted two “beautiful new curtains” for the theatre (15 August 1897, page 29). Moses recorded that his other projects at the Alhambra only consisted of “a lot of small time stunts” and nothing that would ever appear on Broadway. The studio was located in a rough neighborhood on State Street and Archer Avenue. The theatre had been dedicated on September 1, 1890. H. R. Jacobs retained management until April, 1897. His replacement for the next season was the one who requested that Moses paint the two new backdrops.

By May, Moses wrote, “I again got that awful wanderlust, and as I was sub-contractor I had a perfect right to make any contracts I chose, as long as I gave Sosman and Landis their ‘bits.’” Moses continued, “I felt that I was an expensive piece of humanity to the firm as they had promised to give me all I could do – even if they had to rob the Clinton Street Studio to do it, so I felt my going would release them from worry.” Scenic artists received a weekly salary at Sosman & Landis only if there was work. Moses recognized that if Sosman & Landis had to “rob the Clinton Street Studio” to provide him with work, it really meant that he would be taking work away from his fellow artists. For the summer, Moses again left the employ of Sosman & Landis and Chicago. He ventured to Indianapolis where Fred McGreer and Ed Loitz joined him for few projects there.

Moses wrote that one of their Indianapolis projects was for the “German House.” Das Deutsche Haus was later christened the Athenæum. The venue was affiliated with the German-American community of the city who had raised the funds to create a large complex. The building was located at 401 E. Michigan, the fifth and largest hall constructed in Indianapolis by the German-American community.

Many German immigrants relocated to the United States following the failed Revolutions of 1848. They arrived to the city in large waves between 1848 and 1860. The immigrants formed a variety of singing and theatrical societies, as well as political groups and social clubs. As with other immigrant communities, these associations and clubs were specifically intended to preserve memories of their homeland and continue many of their familiar traditions. In Indianapolis during 1892 several German groups joined to form an association that would finance a home dedicated to preserving German culture and heritage. Two lots were purchased at the corner of Michigan and New Jersey Streets in an area of the city known as Germantown, or Lockerbie Square. The building was designed by Bernard Vonnegut of Vonnegut & Bohn. Vonnegut was a second-generation German-American living in Indianapolis at the time.

His building design included an auditorium, gymnasium, restaurant, beer garden, and meeting rooms. The massive complex was constructed in phases between 1892 and 1898. The restaurant, the Rathskeller, is still open and remains one of the oldest restaurants in Indianapolis.

Construction for the East Wing of the complex began immediately in 1892 and was finished by 1894. Construction for the West Wing began in 1897 on the corner of Michigan and New Jersey Street; the directors of the organization secured a lot south of the existing building that was 202 feet square. The price tag for the proposed West Wing expansion was $80,000 and included a performance space. The second floor music hall featured a stage area that measured 98 feet by 59 feet (Indianapolis Journal, 19 April 1896, page 20). The proscenium opening was 33 feet wide by 27 feet deep. Moses’ mention of a painting project at the German House was likely the creation of scenery for the music hall stage in the West Wing expansion.

Also in 1897, the Musikverein (Music Society) was founded at Das Deutsche Haus. Their performances were featured in the music hall of the West Wing. The Musikverein included a variety if groups, such as their all-male choir, mixed choir and sixty-piece orchestra. The Wets Wing was decorated in the German Renaissance Revival style, incorporating a steep-pitched hip roof and a three-story brick tower with a curved mansard and spire.

During World War I, anti-German sentiment prompted the curtailment of many German social activities in the building. Furthermore, the old name of the Das Deutsche Haus was erased over the main entrance and the new name “Athenæum” inscribed in its place. The name change for the complex was celebrated on Washington’s birthday “at which Governor Goodrich assured the 700 members of his confidence and their loyalty (Logansport Pharos-Tribune, 23 Feb. 1918, page 12).

To be continued…

Part 356: The Little Rock Scottish Rite Scenery from  1896, 1899, 1902 and 1923

Today, we return to the story of the Scottish Rite scenery collection that was produced by Sosman & Landis for Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1896. Some of his collection was expanded in 1899. When the new building was planned in 1901, a new scenery collection was purchased from Sosman & Landis to fit the larger stage. Scenery from the old building (1896-1899) was gifted to the New Orleans Scottish Rite in 1906.

In Little Rock, membership continued to increase, again necessitating a larger space. In 1923, this second collection (the 1902 scenery) was returned to Thomas G. Moses, president of the Sosman & Landis Studio, for credit on the purchase of a new scenery collection in 1923. The new scenery was for the massive Albert Pike Memorial Temple in Little Rock. Original backdrops from the 1902 Little Rock scenery collection were resold to the Pasadena Scottish Rite during 1925 for their new building. That same year, Thomas G. Moses joined the Scottish Rite in Pasadena; he was a member of their first class in the new building.

I was contacted by a Little Rock Mason for many years about the 1923 scenery collection. He worked at the Scottish Rite and would periodically call to get advice, enquiring about everything from backdrop repair to mural restoration. This gentleman had no theatre experience, artistic training, nor rigging knowledge. During every conversation, we would talk about the history of their collection. We would discuss the significance of the backdrops, and I would place them within the context of both Masonic history and theatre history. Each time during a conversation he would say, “Wow. I just wish that I could convince my boss to bring you down and talk to the membership about what we have here.”

In every telephone conversation, my Little Rock Mason would consistently explain that his superiors had no intention of hiring anyone to help fix the scenery; he was going to have to figure out how to do it by himself if they wanted to use a damaged one for the next reunion. So we would game plan for what was possible on his end, as he would be working alone. “They really don’t understand the stage or what needs to be done here,” he repeatedly explained to me over the years.

He acquired my name and number from the “boys in McAlester.” It was one of the many times that he was desperately reaching out for help and seeking advice after a backdrop ripped. Through the grapevine, he discovered that the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma, had hired a “little gal from the north” to “fix” their scenery. They passed along my number and he gave me a call.

Each time I picked up the phone, I planned to be occupied for an hour or so, hearing about his scenery problems and all of the administrative obstacles. I envisioned a white-haired gentleman who still was full of “piss and vinegar.” He was skeptical of the “higher-ups” and wanted to do his best, as he loved their scenery collection and the backstage area. I learned a lot about the administration in Little Rock from his unique point of view. Over the years, I passed along as much information as possible to do adequate job, especially as he would be working alone without any additional sets of hands. The work was going to happen anyway, so he might as well have some guidance, albeit was from a few states away.

They were only a few things that ever made me cringe when chatting on the phone. The most memorable was his describing how he could remove a backdrop from the lines all by himself. He put large eye screws in the stage floor and secured the lines to them, as he slowly unhooked each of the three pick points and removed the backdrop. Eek. I envisioned what the Little Rock stage floor must look like – large holes from the eye screws everywhere. He explained that it was a less than an ideal situation, but there was no one else to help and his employers refused to hire anyone to help with the repair. Once again, his situation depicted that those who understand the significance of historic scenery collections are often not in charge. In fact, these Masonic historians, or stewards of the backdrops, are devoid of any type of support or financial assistance when a backdrop is damaged.

I know that the current 1923 collection has been extensively patched and handled over the years. Their collection won’t last forever and my friend has since retired. Hopefully, his replacement cares as much about their historic scenery collection as his predecessor.

To be continued…