Month: August 2018

Part 475: Brown’s Special Counterweighted System

 M. C. Lilley’s western sales representative, Bestor G. Brown, subcontracted Sosman & Landis for the painted scenery, props, and stage machinery for their large Scottish Rite Theatre contracts. By 1912, many of the counterweight rigging systems installed in Scottish Rite theaters by Sosman & Landis were referred to as “Brown’s Special Counterweighted,” such as the one at the Santa Fe Scottish Rite.

So what do we know of the system referred to as “Brown’s Special Counterweighted” style of installation and how many are left? There are still examples of Brown’s Special Counterweighted System, however, some are slowly being removed and replaced with other rigging system. I first came across the designation in a series of letters between Bestor G. Brown, and the Austin Scottish Rite representative of Austin William G. Bell. Brown used the Dallas Scottish Rite as one example.

Let me provide a little context for why the counterweight system came up in their discussion. Brown was trying to explain the intricacies of the installation process to a client who was completely unfamiliar with theatre. The Austin Scottish Rite was in the process of purchasing some of the Guthrie Scottish Rite’s old drops. Guthrie had been returned the old drops for credit on the purchase of new scenery when their stage was enlarged in the first building. M. C. Lilley had approximately 70 used Guthrie drops on hand to sell to another venue; they measured 15 feet high by 30 feet wide. A $1400.00 credit was given for the return of their 1901 scenery. The scenery collection was originally purchased for $8,000; today’s monetary equivalent is approximately $250,000, a significant purchase at the time.

On January 23, 1913, Brown also reported, “The [used] scenery is in very good shape – infinitely better that the average theatrical scenery used on the road. The writer personally went over the scenery at the studio last week. While our contract does not contemplate it, we are touching up some of the scenery and if it be properly lighted, you will have a handsome set of scenery that we would not undertake to paint and install for less than, at least, $8,000.00.”

The Austin Scottish Rite was initially interested in purchasing fourteen of the used drops, but wanted a definitive price for installation before determining the final number. Reading several letters of correspondence between Brown and Bell, it is obvious that Brown’s patience was wearing very thin as he had to repeatedly explain the final installation cost was based on the number of drops purchased. The continued correspondence, however, provides a wealth of information pertaining to the manufacture and installation of Scottish Rite scenery.

As Brown negotiated, the Valley of Austin was purchasing and renovating the old 1821 Turner Hall. Brown mailed a scene plat to the Austin Scottish Rite. This was to reference while determining the final arrangement of scenes. Of this process, Brown wrote, “The arrangement of drops is one of the most difficult things.” Brown further explained that they would arrange the used scenery so that it could be “properly adapted to the different Degrees and the sequence of Degrees.” However, he warned that even after careful preparation, some modifications would still need to occur once the scenery was hanging. This was all an art of the haggling between the Austin Scottish Rite and M. C. Lilley. Bell, representing Austin wanted to pay as little as possible for the used scenery. The process was taking longer than expected and Brown was trying to get the Austin Scottish Rite to contractually commit so that the project could be scheduled. Finally, the Austin Scottish Rite committed to the purchase, but wanted an unrealistic timeframe. At this time, a much larger project was driving M. C. Lilley’s installation schedule – the Santa Fe Scottish Rite. Santa Fe’s new building, stage and scenery were delaying all other installations, such as the Austin Scottish Rite

Part of the initial delay was caused by the Austin Scottish Rite, not M. C. Lilley; this concerned the ongoing negotiation pertaining to the estimated expenses of the final installation. The Austin Scottish Rite wanted M. C. Lilley to provide a firm number for the installation cost without specifying the number of drops that they were purchasing from M. C. Lilley. Brown explained that the final expense was directly tied to the number of drops purchased to be installed. The carpenter’s expense of transportation and maintenance were figured from the time he left home until he returned. So, if he were to install only fourteen drops, that part of the expense would be proportionately greater than if he were to install twice that number of drops. Brown also explained that there was a difference in transportation charges directly relating to number of drops purchased and installed, either a full carload of scenery or less than a carload lot.   Brown also explained that M. C. Lilley could also furnish the hardware, such as pulley blocks and counterweight frames if the Scottish Rite wanted the installation done locally; this was the salesman trying to be accommodating.

There was another complication; Brown noted that they had only one specific carpenter who was sent to direct a Scottish Rite installation which was why multiple installations could not simultaneously occur; this individual was actually a Sosman & Landis employee as they installed their scenery. Brown commented that the one who would be “superintending the installation” for the Austin project was currently occupied in Santa Fe at the Scottish Rite, installing an entirely new stage there. This necessitated that their expert stay on site for approximately three weeks. Shortly after Brown’s correspondence with Bell, Brown wrote that their superintendent and installation expert had died from an accident, causing another delay. Brown explained that this employee was the “only one thoroughly familiar with the special method of installing Scottish Rite scenery.” Brown wrote, “We do not mean that it is impossible to follow the same methods as heretofore, but it will take a longer time to do it because of a lack of familiarity with the work.” Thomas G. Moses also mentions the death of their head stage carpenter, writing, “Mr. Brown, our foreman carpenter” died very suddenly.

 

As Brown later explained, M.C. Lilley used only one employee who specialized in Scottish Rite scenery installation. I believe that this individual was the stage carpenter who Thomas G. Moses referred to in his memoirs – Brown. In 1892, the “Carlisle Weekly” reported that a “Stage Carpenter Brown” worked for the Metropolitan Opera House at the time it burned (Carlisle, Pennsylvania, 1 Sept. 1892, page 4). This may have been the same individual before he became associated with Sosman & Landis, as this is the same time when additional staff was added to Sosman & Landis’ studio for Columbian Exposition and other large projects.

 

Stage carpenter Brown was likely the individual who developed the counterweight system, and that the salesman Brown was mistaken for the namesake of the design. Newspapers would therefore erroneously refer to Bestor G. Brown as a “Masonic stage Carpenter.” In 1903 one article noted that Brown “created and developed the application of modern scenic properties to the dramatic presentation of all Masonic degrees and in this work is almost invariably consulted everywhere throughout the United States.” My findings suggest that “Brown’s Special Counterweighted” was credited to the salesman of the product and not the actual designer; this is understandable if they both shared the same last name.

 

In the end, the Austin Scottish Rite Bodies purchased 64 drops, not 14, on February 25, 1913, from M. C. Lilley. Thomas G. Moses would list the Austin scenery as one of the collections that he supervised while working at Sosman & Landis. The price for these used drops and their later installation was $1,650. The contract specified that a third of the amount was due upon installation (cash), a third due the following year, and the final third due in two years. Surprisingly, this financing was standard for Scottish Rite Theaters. Brown wrote, “In fact, if we had not been able to carry the Bodies in the Southern Jurisdiction as we have, we believe that fully one half of the development of the past ten years would not have been possible.” This is big as it presents how Scottish Rites were able to purchase state-of-the-art scenery, props, lighting and costumes – they were buying everything on credit and only had to pay a third upon receipt of goods. To pay off the rest meant increasing membership numbers that would generate even more income.

Brown died in 1917 at the Battle Creek Sanitorium after a relapse following an operation for kidney complications. At the time Brown was 56 years old and survived by his daughter, Mrs. Dana L. Davis of Topeka. It is sad to think, that a mere 14 years earlier he was a soaring star in both the Fraternity and fraternal supply business. Change can come so quickly.

To be continued…

Part 473: Staging the Third Degree

Yesterday I began exploring the increased sales of Masonic regalia and paraphernalia across the country at the beginning of the twentieth century. Part of the development of theatrically staged Masonic degrees was establishing a need for elaborate stages, complete with painted settings, props, costumes and lighting systems. As the western sales representative for M. C. Lilley and Co., Brown increased the visibility of the fraternal supply company by not only joining numerous Masonic orders and fraternal organizations, but also by ascending to high offices in each order.

A key period becomes 1903 to 1904. By this time, M. C. Lilley had secured the theater contracts for several Southern Jurisdiction Scottish Rite stages, including Little Rock, Arkansas; Oakland, California; Wichita, Kansas; Salina, Kansas; McAlester, Oklahoma; Guthrie, Oklahoma; Portland, Oregon; Duluth, Minnesota and Fort Scott, Kansas. I am sure that there are more, but these are the ones that I have positively identified.

In 1903, Bestor G. Brown became Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Kansas, placing him in a regional spotlight. He was provided with a unique opportunity to market his vision, especially pertaining to the staging of degree work. This included staging the first three degrees of Freemasonry (Blue Lodge). The Topeka Daily Capital reported, “Good Program is Arranged. Masons will have great meeting tomorrow” (14 February 1904, page 6). Masons from all over Kansas gathered in Topeka for “the forty-eight annual communication of the most worshipful grand lodge of the A.F. and A.M., the thirty-ninth annual convocation of the most exalted grand chapter of the Royal Arch Masons and the thirty-sixth annual assembly of the most illustrious grand council of the Royal and Select Masters.” What this means is that 600 to 700 of the top Masons in Kansas, as well as other visiting dignitaries, would be gathered both for both public and Private meetings; many would be exposed to the theatrical interpretation of degree work for the first time.

If one were to pitch a new idea, this is the time and place to promote it. Here is what Brown did, he promoted his company and staged the third degree of Masonry in full costume. The “Topeka Daily Capital” reported that the Grand Officers, together with a team selected from the local lodges, would stage the third degree of Masonry “in full costume” in the Representative Hall. This space was fitted up to function like the early stages in Masonic Halls. Masonic Halls were the precursor to a formal Scottish Rite stage. A rectangular room, similar to a banquet hall, was slightly altered to include an elevated stage on one end of the room; sometimes the stages were temporality constructed for a specific event. Some even included a proscenium arch, front curtain, and a few roll drops to establish the appropriate environment. In cases were roll drops were not rigged for the performance, wings, shutters, book flats, or profile pieces were temporarily positioned to provide the painted backings for early degree productions.

Interestingly, at the end of this event, the Scottish Rite Masons of Topeka hosted a banquet and musical program for all visiting Masons in the Masonic Hall. There is something to be said about the visual impact of a staged scene. During the same event, a special assembly was held in the Masonic Hall to confer the high degrees of Royal, Select, and Super-Excellent Master. The article reported, “This council has not only a state, but a national reputation, and will present the beautiful degrees of Cryptic Masonry with its complete equipment and paraphernalia.”

To be continued…

Part 472: Back to Bestor G. Brown in 1903

In 1903 Thomas G. Moses was living in Mount Vernon, New York, and maintaining a studio in New York City. His firm, Moses & Hamilton, employed a small staff, using the paint frames at the American Theatre. While Moses was busy creating a variety of settings for Broadway, touring productions, and outdoors amusements, the Masonic scenery market started to surge.

This brings us to the point of the theatrical manufacturers and suppliers who were outfitting Masonic theaters. Business alliances start to form, including that between M. C. Lilley & Sosman & Landis in Chicago. At this same time that Masonic business increases, Landis retires from the company due to poor health. This leaves Sosman overwhelmed with the combined duties of running both the shops and completing all necessary administrative duties. Landis was in charge of sales and marketing, whereas Sosman controlled the manufacturing end of the business.

Enter, Bestor G. Brown, Mason and salesman for M. C. Lilley. Bestor G. Brown (1861-1917) was a key individual in the development of Masonic stages during the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries; an instrumental figure in the promotion of Scottish Rite degree productions across the country. Brown entered Masonic regalia and paraphernalia sales in 1892, working as a traveling salesman with his home residence in Chicago from 1892 to 1898. The potential for future sales offered during the Columbian Exposition was a major incentive for Brown to leave Kansas and head to Illinois. In 1899, Brown moved to Topeka, Kansas, and then Kansas City in 1904, relocating to this central hub as the western sales manager of M. C. Lilley Company. The need for a regional office in 1904 was a direct result of sales skyrocketing in the western region. Brown was in the right place at the right time. For more information about Brown, see past installments #351-353.

Brown’s involvement with Freemasonry extended to the Scottish Rite, York Rite, Midian Shrine, and Order of the Eastern Star. This brings us to 1903, when Brown became the Grand Master of Kansas. He was also the Past High Priest of the Grand Chapter, Royal Arch Masons of Kansas; Past Master (and one of the first members initiated) of Siloam lodge, No. 225, A.F. and A.M.; Past Grand Master of the Grand Council; Past Grand Commander of Knights Templar in Kansas; General Grand Scribe of the General Grand Chapter of Royal Arch Masons; a Past Grand Sovereign of the Grand Imperial Council of the Red Cross of Constantine; and an officer in the national Grand Council. Brown also had the distinction of having sat at the Royal Lodge in London when King Edward presided (Fort Scott Daily Tribune, 12 July 1917, page 2). Other fraternities that Brown joined included the Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias and the Psi Upsillon Fraternity, of which he organized several chapters.

Here is the section titled “Masonic” that appeared in“The Portsmouth Herald” on June 12th 1893 (page 3). I am posting the section in its entirety, as it is a wonderful snapshot into Masonic activity and Brown’s level of fraternal involvement.

 

“Masonic.

 

The new grand master of Kansas, Bestor G. Brown, has been unusually active in lodge, chapter and council work since his admission to the fraternity in 1884 and is noted for his devotion to Masonry. Mr. Brown is called the only Masonic stage carpenter in the country. He created and developed the application of modern scenic properties to the dramatic presentation of all Masonic degrees and in this work is almost invariably consulted everywhere throughout the United States. He was grand high priest of the grand chapter of Kansas in 1893, grand master of the grand council in 1891 and has held many other high offices. Mr. Brown was born in 1861 and is one of the best ritualists in the United States.

 

There are 110 lodges in Connecticut with a membership of 18,500, an increase of 784 for the past year.

 

At the recent session of the grand lodge of New York all of the officers of last year were unanimously re-elected.

 

Mecca temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, of New York city now has a membership of 4,925.

At the last session of the grand lodge of New Mexico the grand secretary reported membership in that jurisdiction of 1,146.

 

A magnificent new Masonic temple will be erected in Phillipsburg, Kan.

 

There is talk of erecting a new Masonic temple in Schnectady, N.Y., to cost $100,000.

 

Membership reports read at the fiftieth annual conclave of the grand commandery of Pennsylvania showed good gains for the year. There are about 15,000 Knights Templar in the jurisdiction now, an increase of nearly 1,000 since the last conclave.

 

An application has been received from American Masons in Tientsin, China, for the establishment of a lodge there.

 

The Masonic home of Manchester, N. H., was recently dedicated by Grand Master Harry M. Cheney.”

 

Masonic activities abounded and Brown would be the perfect person to market the theatrical interpretation of degree work. He would subcontract Sosman & Landis for the scenery; Sosman would need help and this is where Moses would factor in again. Sosman needed Moses back in Chicago to supervise the shop.

 

To be continued…

Part 471: Stage Hands – “Theatre People You Don’t See “

Today’s installment is a little lengthy, but I have seldom encountered descriptions about the backstage process. It is easy to find information about the performers or artists, however, insight into the activities of a stagehand during a turn-of-the-twentieth century show is rare. Months ago I encountered an article about “Stage Hands” in “The Chicago Tribune” (11 June 1902, Page 4). It was republished across the country in 1902, including “The Boston Sunday Globe (22 June 1902, page 51).

Once again, I was astounded at the sheer number of individuals employed working in the backstage area; moving lines, lights and scenery, all at the stage manager’s cue. It’s the highly organized process from start to finish. I think that sometimes we forget that the complexity of the backstage activities over a century ago. Here is “The Chicago Tribune” article in its entirety:

“Stage Hands.

Behold now how many and what different results a little thing will accomplish. A fat man in soiled white shirt sleeves, standing just beyond the right edge of the curtain, presses three electric buttons, one after the other, with his pudgy forefinger.

One of the buttons rings a bell up above in the electrician’s gallery. The electrician, whose blue shirt is open at the neck — it is hot behind the scenes — throws three or four switches and all at once the auditorium lights flame out, the footlights blaze up, strip lights hanging in the scenery are lit, and bright spot lights, at each of which a man is stationed, begin to make circles of especial brilliancy in various places on the stage.

The second button pressed by the stage manager rings a bell down in the musicians’ room under the stage and a dozen hot and perspiring men stop their games of pinochle, put on their coats, and climb up the stairs which lead to the orchestra pit. For answer a red electric bulb glows on the little shelf before the stage manager and he knows that order has been obeyed.

The third signal summons all the stage carpenters to stand by the pieces of scenery to which they are assigned in readiness for the quick change at the end of the first scene.

Meanwhile, a tall youth in an evening coat that is far too long for him goes running down into the deep basements, where the supers dress, and up three or four or five flights of stairs by the dressing-rooms of the principals, wailing, “Overture! Overture!” He is the call-boy, and it is his duty to sound the warning to every actor half an hour and fifteen minutes before the performance begins and also when the orchestra begins to play the overture.  Meanwhile the actors and actresses in fashionable clothes and lacy summer costumes begin to gather in a crowd on the stage. Mingled with them are property men, clearers, grips, and carpenters, giving the last touch to some detail of the stage setting. The stage manager gives a final glance at the big clock. He notes the exact time on the blank schedule hanging on the wall before him, claps his hands, calls, “Clear the stage” and all the people you don’t see vanish into the wings.

But they work behind quite as hard as the actors are working before the scenes. A property man sets down a bottle of beer and two glasses in the wings, just where it can be found by the stage waiter, who will need it in five minutes. Nine stage carpenters are standing, each with a firm grasp on a certain piece of scenery. Other property men are placing a lot of furniture and made pieces in an orderly row behind the last set at the back of the stage so that they may move it all forward when the time comes without an instant’s delay. High up in the fly gallery, fifty feet above the stage, nine husky men in overalls and shirt sleeves are pulling away at a long series of big ropes that run up as high as the rigging loft and down again over pulleys to the corners of various heavy pieces of scenery. Something like the ringing loft of a big church belfry is this fly loft, with its orderly rows of huge ropes and its men pulling and straining as they raise and lower heavy canvas ceilings, walls and flies into position.

Presently an actor speaks the last line of the first scene. At the cue the stage manager presses some more electric buttons. Every light in the house, back and front, goes out for a moment and a light auxiliary curtain drops down and cuts off the stage. Behind this curtain some dim lights are turned on. But even while it is still dark the fifty men who help to make the show a success, though they are never seen or heard, have jumped into their proper places and are hard at work. One gang pulls the old scenery out of the way and piles it up against the walls of the stage in certain defined places. Others rush forward, each man carrying a certain piece of new scenery to exactly its proper spot. The clearers carry away the old properties and the property men set in place everything that is needed for the second scene. The flymen have hauled up the old stuff out of sight and let down the new, and the electrician has rearranged his spot and strip lights.

The stage manager claps his hands again, cries, “Clear the stage!” presses the buttons that turn on the lights and raises the curtain, and the second scene is on.

“We’re a little slow today,” he says, as he writes down the exact minute on his schedule — which is like a railroad time table. “It took us a minute and a half to make that change.”

Now there are some fifteen minutes to pass before either property men or stage hands will have anything to do, and they scatter to spend the leisure time in different ways.

Altogether, for the handling of an elaborate product, like “The Suburban,” fifty-five stage hands and property men are required. The stage hands are under the direct command of the stage carpenter and his assistant. They are divided into carpenters and grips and flymen, there being eleven of the first class and nine of the second. There are two property men and ten clearers, the duty of the latter being to clear away in a hurry what the property men have placed with care. Then there are an even dozen electricians who have to look after all the many different electric and calcium lights, which are used in various scenes. Add the call boy, the stage door man, and half a dozen minor positions and it is easy to count up the company of fifty-five which the stage manager has under his command.

When there comes a wait which gives stage hands a little leisure a crowd of them are likely to get together in the carpenter’s room under the stage, where a game of lotto, a first cousin of keno, or some other game is in operation. They pack the little room to suffocation and the excitement sometimes runs high, but the instant the stage manager’s warning bell sounds everything is dropped and each man gets into position without delay, for delay is the one thing which can never be forgiven in a stage hand.

On hot afternoons and nights others of the stage workmen go out into the alley about the stage door when they get a minute’s rest and get a breath of fresh air and other cooling refreshments. But always they are in sound of that warning bell.

Some rivalry exists between the property men and the stage carpenters, or at least the line between them is closely drawn.

Not for his life would a stage carpenter or grip lay his hand on any of the properties, even in an emergency, nor would a property man or clearer touch a piece of scenery, though it never were moved into place. The union rules and the pride of the profession both forbid such intermingling of functions.

Severe and unsparing critics of the speaking actors are these dumb and invisible “artists” of the stage. Let a new star go on for the first night and there will be enough biting and uncomplimentary things said about him and his work by the critics in dirty shirt sleeves who look down from the flies or stand in the entrances to make anything the newspaper may say the next morning sound like the sweetest flattery. They spare nobody. A great reputation will not cover faults to them. And as that many of them rarely if ever see a play from the front of the house. They look at bits of a thousand plays from between the wings and form their opinion from what they see.

Most of the responsibility for the stage effects rests upon the head carpenter and the property man. Every morning the stage carpenter has to make what is called a “pack” of all the different pieces of scenery. That is, he has to arrange it all in its regular order in a great pile leaning against the wall, so that the next piece wanted will always be next in the pile. On the outside of the pile stands the first piece needed in making the first change. On it in big letters are printed the words, “Keep alive,” which is stage talk for, “Don’t bury this piece under anything else.”

If there is a matinee the stage carpenter has to make a second “pack” between the afternoon and evening performances. The property man is charged with seeing that every little thing that is needed during the play is on hand and ready for instant use. Over them all reigns the stage manager. After each scene is set he casts a rapid and critical eye over it to see that everything is in exactly the right place and that carelessness has not marred any of the effects.

To be continued…

Part 470: Noxon, Halley & Toomey

Thomas C. Noxon established another scenic studio after Noxon & Strauss. He took on two other partners – the Englishman Richard H. Halley and Noxon’s apprentice Patrick C. Toomey during 1880. “The Chicago Tribune” mentioned that Noxon, Halley & Toomey of St. Louis painted nineteen sets of scenery for the Greene’s New Opera House in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, during 1880. The newspaper mentioned that the studio was well-known and had completed “considerable scenic work in the State” (The Chicago Tribune, 23 Dec. 1880, page 11). Noxon, Halley & Toomey lasted for approximately four years, ending in 1884.

 

I have mentioned Halley in previous posts, but not examined this scenic artist in depth. By 1892, Halley was mentioned in the “Chicago Sunday Tribune” article titled “Paint Mimic Scenes, Men Who Have Found Fame in the Wing and Drop Curtains” (Dec, 18, 1892, page 41). The article noted, “Richard Halley, at present winning laurels as a painter in Europe, was the scenic artist for Kelly and Leon in the halcyon days of minstrelsy and painted marbles in distemper almost as well as Kilpatrick does them at present in oil” (see past installment 248). Halley was working as the scenic artist for the Princess and Adelphi Theatres during 1892. Prior to his departure he worked with Lou Malmsha at McVicker’s Theatre during 1889 in Chicago.

 

The earliest mention of Halley that I have located in print was from 1872. That year, R. H. Halley painted a grand allegorical picture of “Progress” for Charles Walters Minstrels (Chicago Tribune 28 April 1872, page 7). By 1875, Halley was still painting solo. One of his projects included the scene “Venice by Moonlight” for “The Crimson Scarf” at the Grand Opera House in Chicago (Chicago Tribune, 31 January 1875, page 16).

 

In 1876, “The Tennessean” reported that “Mr. R. H. Halley, of Drury Lane Theatre, London,” was “an artist of high merit.” The article continued “Halley will at once enter the work of painting full sets of new scenery for the Grand Opera House, now being remodeled on the most expensive scale” (27 July 1876, page 4). A few month later, “The Tennessean” noted, “The scenery appointments for the plays to be produced by this company have been designed and painted by the celebrated artist R. H. Halley, and are equal to those found in any theater in America” (The Tennessean, 4 Oct, 1876, page 4).

 

By 1877, “The Tennessean” noted Halley’s departure from Nashville for England, reporting, “Mr. R. H. Halley, the scenic artist of the Grand Opera-house, departs this morning for New York, whence he will sail in a few days for his native England. The high standard of work done by Mr. Halley in Nashville is fully recognized by an appreciative public. In all the details of his art he displays a taste and skill that make the stage decorations of the Grand Opera-house hardly inferior to those of the best metropolitan theatres – a fact admitted by the leading managers who has visited our city. During his stay here, Mr. Halley has won many friends to whom his future career will matter of deep interest” (The Tennessean, 20 March 1887, page 4).

 

The next we learn of Halley is that he was painting for the Queen’s Theatre in 1878. He was producing the painted setting and scenic effects for the “Robinson Crusoe” pantomime. “The Era” reported there were “spectacular effects, the chief of which must be considered the Transformation Scene” (6 Jan. 1878, page 5). His sojourn in England, however, was not meant to last. Halley returned to the United States by 1879 and was painting the drop curtain for Pope’s Theatre in St. Louis. “The St. Louis Post-Dispatch” noted that Halley had “acquired quite a reputation as a scenic artist” by that time (20 Sept. 1879, page 3). It was at this point that he would meet Thomas C. Noxon, of the same city, and form Noxon, Halley & Toomey.

 

By 1881, the scenic studio of Noxon, Halley & Toomey journeyed from St. Louis, Missouri, to Memphis, Tennessee, painting the scenery for “Der Freischutz.” Halley’s previous theatre connections in Tennessee could have secured this particular contract. “The Public Ledger” published, “Messrs. Noxon, Halley & Toomey are here from St. Louis to paint the scenery for the opera, which will be presented a few days hence”(Memphis, Tennessee, 20 April 1881, page 4). “The Memphis Daily Appeal” reported, “The incantation scene will be especially artistic and attractive” (20 April 1881, page 4).

 

Noxon, Halley & Toomey also created scenery for “Fresh, the American” (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 21 Nov. 1881, page 7). This scenery was a combined effort, as many productions, with painted contribution also by P. W. Goatcher and H. E. Hoyt. At this same time, Noxon, Halley & Toomey painted the scenery for “The Danites” at the Grand Opera House in St. Louis (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 2 April 1881, page 7).

 

By the next year, Noxon, Halley & Toomey were mentioned in regard to the opening of the new opera house in Lawrence, Kansas. The Fay Templeton Combination Co. opened the house with “The Lawrence Gazette” reporting, “The scenic painting elicited many compliments for Mr. Toomey, of the firm of Noxon, Halley & Toomey, of St. Louis, a most estimable gentleman, and in our humble opinion beyond criticism as regards to taste and ability as an artist” (Lawrence, Kansas, 21 Sept. 1882, page 3). That same year, the firm painted a roll drop for the opera house in St. Joseph, Missouri. “The Atchison Daily Patriot” commented that the opera house “unrolled a new drop painted by Noxon, Halley & Toomey of St. Louis” (3 Oct. 1882, page 1). The composition depicted a view of Castle Gleno in the Bay of Callao.” This was the toehold that the company needed in the region, as they would later paint the drop curtain and scenery for the new opera house in Springfield, Missouri (The Cincinnati Enquirer, 18 February 1883, page 12).

 

In 1883, we learn that R. H. Halley went by the more informal “Dick Halley.” The firm was engaged to provide the scenery for the Olympic Theatre and Grand Opera House in St. Louis. “The St. Louis Post-Dispatch” provided little more information about Halley: “Dick’s full name is Richard H. Halley. He came to St. Louis several years ago, going first to the Grand Opera-house, and then Pope’s Theater when it opened and he remained there until two years ago when he became a member of the scenic firm of Noxon, Halley & Toomey, engaged to do the work of the Olympic Theater and Grand Opera-house. His first introduction to our public was when a private view was given of the drop curtain of the new theater. This curtain was the first of a combination satin surface and medallion center effects St. Louis had then seen. Since that time the city abounds in them. The work was highly praised by the art critics and lavishly commented by the public. There was a suggestion of originality in the achievement, and the beauty of the conception and the vigor and art of its execution won instant attention to the young painter. His scenic work the same season was found to bear out promise the curtain gave, and throughout his whole engagement at Pope’s he continued to win great commendation for his skill with the brush. Since his attachment to the forces of the down-town theaters he has kept himself at the front, and goes away with laurels bright and fresh as the first ever accorded him here” (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 13 April 1883, page 4).

 

To be continued…

Part 469: Myer’s Opera House

While researching Noxon & Strauss (later Noxon & Toomey), I came across mention about a drop curtain they painted for Hooley’s Theatre during 1872. Two theaters were mentioned in the article titled “Rebuilding and Real Estate” (Inter Ocean, Chicago, Illinois, 14 Sept. 1872, page 4). The article described the construction of Hooley’s and Myer’s. Interestingly, Noxon’s next business partner, Halley, would be painting the scenery for Myer’s while Noxon painted the scenery with Strauss for Hooley’s. At the time, Halley was partnered with Lou Malmsha. Malmsha became the scenic artist for McVicker’s and was well-known across the country (see past installments 123, 124, 165 and 198 for more information about Malmsha). Thomas G. Moses started his theater career as an assistant to Malmsha in 1874, just two years after this article was written. It provides a little insight into the fitting up of a theater during the 1870s.

Samuel Myers, formerly connected with McVickers Theatre, opened his opera house on September 23, 1872. It was a venue primarily devoted to minstrelsy. Here is the article:

“Myers Opera House

Work on Myer’s theater is being rapidly brought to a close, and Monday the 23rd. Is announced as the opening night. Located on Monroe street, just west of State, the establishment is easy to access from each of the more densely populated divisions of the city, and bids fair to gain its full share of theatrical patronage. Following is a brief description of the interior as it will appear on opening night:

The entrance from Monroe Street leads through a long hall, thirteen feet wide, finely frescoed and lighted by a number of large chandeliers, to the door of the auditorium. On the left of the hall, and just without the door is the stairway leading to the upper circles. The auditorium consists of a parquetted, dress circle, balcony circle and gallery. The extreme dimensions are 55 by 102 feet. The parquetted, and dress and balcony circles are furnished with black and walnut sofas, elegantly upholstered by Messrs. J. V. Farwell & co., forming an amphitheater. The walls and ceilings are handsomely frescoed in panels on a light buff ground, by Messrs. Schubert & Koenig, the firm that had charge of the decorations in Crosby’s Opera House before the fire. The center of the ceiling over the parquetted rises in a dome, from which hangs and elegant glass chandelier with 125 lights. The seating capacity is about 1,100. Three large doors can be thrown open in case of fire or accident.

The stage opening is 27 feet 4 inches wide, flanked on either side by a proscenium box, ornaments with satin damask curtains corresponding in color with the upholstery of the parquetted and balcony circles. The stage is thirty-five feet in depth and provided with “all modern improvements.” The scenery has been painted by Messrs. Malmasha and Hally, and is so extensive as to forbid more than a partial description here. The drop curtain fills the entire stage opening. At the top a false valance of amber and gold reaches down for several feet, below which hangs the drapery – red lined with white satin, bordered with purple and gold – parted in the center and revealing a medallion landscape; a view of a water mill with mountains in the distance. The drapery falls loosely on a platform with steps approaching the curtain in perspective. The first part set scene is also worthy of mention as something novel. Unlike the ordinary chamber scenes used on such occasions, it is ornamented purple and gold, and displays considerable knowledge of architecture in its design. A large, square opening at the back, looking out on a tropical landscape, will afford an opportunity for the presentation of panoramic views, should it be desired.

Altogether, the theater, while not expensive, is attractive and elegant. Messrs. Tilley & Longhurst claim credit as architects; Mr. Daly Moore as contractor for the brickwork; Messrs. Cowdery & Cleveland as carpenters, and the United States Reflector Company, of New York, and Mr. E. Baggott of this city for gas-fitters. The furnaces are furnished by Messrs. Bangs Bros.”

To be continued…

 

 

 

 

Part 468: Noxon & Strauss

Thomas C. Noxon established other scenic art firms before founding Noxon and Toomey. One was a business venture was Noxon & Strauss. I came across two articles during the four-year life of this company; one from 1868 and one from 1872. I have yet to identify Strauss beyond his last name and work as a scenic artist with Thomas Noxon and Charles Witham.

In 1868, Noxon & Strauss painted a setting for “Seven Sisters” at the Olympic Theatre. The New York Clipper reported that one scene for the show represented the Southern Hotel Rotunda, it was “gotten up in grand style and reflects credit on the scenic artists, Messrs. Noxon and Strauss” (25 April 1868, page 6).

In 1872, an “Inter Ocean article” that mentioned Noxon & Strauss verified that they were working in Chicago. Many scenic artists sought work in the city after the great fire of 1871. Theaters were among many of the new buildings proposed or rebuilt during this period. Hooley’s and Myers were two theaters mentioned the article, “Rebuilding and Real Estate” (Inter Ocean, Chicago, Illinois, 14 Sept. 1872, page 4). Noxon & Strauss painted the new scenery at Hooley’s, including the drop curtain. The drop curtain design depicted a scene from Heidelberg surrounded with painted drapery. The picturesque castle and town suggesting European origins was common for the time, as many compositions harkened to the old world. The Inter Ocean reported, “every convenience desirable for the production of the spectacular drama has been provided.”

Hooley’s Theatre was located at 124 W. Randolph Street, between Clark and LaSalle, and was dedicated on October 21, 1872. The building was four stories with lodge-rooms on the upper floors and a basement below the theater. The seating capacity was at a sizable 1,500. “The Chicago Tribune” reported, “They have reached the extreme height of perfection for stage mountings. The drawing-room scene, with its genuine marble mantels, real oil paintings, and rich furniture was a gem of scenic taste and effect. This is the direction in which Hooley’s is sure to become famous”   (10 Dec. 1872, page 8).

I am going to post the article about Hooley’s in its entirety, as it provides a lot of information about this well-know venue, including that the fresco work was by another artist who I have examined – Peter M. Almini. Thomas G. Moses worked for Almini when he first ventured to Chicago and began his career as an artist in the mid-1870s.

“Hooley’s Opera House

This place is also approaching completion. Work on the interior has kept pace with the laying of the walls, so that now, although the rook has not been placed in position, the auditorium is far enough along to give a visitor a very correct idea of what it is to be. The front on Randolph Street is four stories (seventy-two feet) high, and built of very heavy Columbia stone, with elaborately carved trimmings. Two very large brackets over the first story will be ornamented with the figures of Comedy and Tragedy. Those who have seen the stonework in the yards of McKeon & Co., where it is being prepared, pronounce it as fine as any in the country. The hall leading to Randolph street to the theater is 20 wide and 70 feet in length, and it will be frescoed in oil by Almini and lighted by a number of large chandeliers. The hall opens into the west end of the auditorium, which is 65×68 feet. The extreme height of the interior, from the floor of the parquetted to the center of the dome, is 66 feet. The parquetted, parquetted circle, balcony and dress circles, are arranged in the form of an amphitheater. The parquetted and parquetted circle will be furnished with iron opera chairs of the Pike Opera House pattern – the same that was used in Hooley’s Clark Street Opera House. Above these, in the balcony circle, black walnut sofas will provide the seating accommodations. The chairs and sofas will be upholstered in first quality crimson plush. The walls and ceilings will be elaborately frescoed in oil by Almini.

From the center of the dome will hang a massive chandelier of 200 lights, of a new pattern, made expressly for Mr. Hooley by the United States Reflector Company of New York.

The proscenium boxes, four in number, will be ornamented in blue and gold, by Mr. Mela, the gentleman who did that’s service for Mr. McVicker.

The stage opening is thirty feet wide by thirty-four feet high. The depth of the stage is forty-five feet. Every convenience desirable for the production of the spectacular drama has been provided.

The drop curtain will fill the entire stage opening, and is being painted by Noxon & Strauss. The design will be the castle and town of Heidelberg, surrounded by drapery.

Four exits, two from the galleries and two from the parquetted circle, will empty the house rapidly as could be wished under any circumstances.

It is almost too early to pronounce upon the general effect of the theatre, but it is safe to say, considering the men who have the work in charge, that it will be no mean rival of the other places of amusement. Mr. Hawks is the architect, Mr. Graham the contractor for woodwork, and Messrs. Agnew & McDermott the builders.

Despite the present unpromising appearance of the place, Mr. Hooley seams perfectly at ease, and confidently assures visitors that “the gas will be turned on and the play commence promptly at 8 o’clock on the evening of the 9^th of October [1872].”

By 1878, Strauss was no longer working with Noxon. He was now painting with Charles Witham as they provided scenery for “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” at the Grand Opera House in San Francisco, California. The new season was inaugurated with a “reconstructed version” of “Uncle Tom’s Cabin.” “The Clipper” reported, “The scenic effects by Witham and Strauss were beautiful and realistic pictures.” (23 Feb. 1878, Vol. 25, page 383).

After this final mention, the scenic artist “Strauss” disappears from print.

 

 

To be continued…

 

 

 

Part 467: Curtain and Scene Painting

While researching scenic art projects by Thomas C. Noxon and Patrick J. Toomey, I came across an interesting article about curtain and scene painting from 1884. It was published in the “St. Louis Post-Dispatch” (21 Jan. 1884, page 8). Here it is in its entirety as there is a wealth of information about the scenic artists of the time who specialized in drop curtains:

“Curtain and Scene Painting

The Leading Artists of the Country and the Prices Paid for Their Work.

“The return to drapery in drop curtains,” said Mr. Thomas C. Noxon of the art firm of Noxon, Albert and Toomey, employed at the Grand Opera House and Olympic, is a return to the old style. Drapery was very common twenty-five or thirty years ago. Now very few curtains are painting any other way; and while some artists adhere to simple combinations of rich materials, without any suggestion of life in the composition, the most popular and the prettiest curtains are those which present views or figures in which there is a suggestion of animation.

The new curtain at the Grand Opera House which was painted by Messrs. Noxon, Albert & Toomey is an example of the latter work. It is a composition presenting a profusion of rich drapery, warm in color, and minutely perfect in technique, drawn back and looped at the side, so as to reveal a bright Florentine picture with a pair of lovers in the foreground, moving toward the polished marble steps that fill the lower portion of the view. No handsomer curtain hangs in any theater in this country.

“What does a new drop curtain cost?” the Post-Dispatch reporter asked.

“About $500 or $600,” was Mr. Noxon’s reply. [The equivalent purchasing power in 2018 is approximately $12,000-$15,000]

“And how long does it take to paint one?”

“All the way from two to three days to five to six weeks. I painted a drop for Tootle’s Opera House, Sedallia, some years ago, in one-half days and got $500 for it, but an artist now seldom turns out a piece of work of this kind in less than three weeks. He can put that much time on it with a great deal of profit.”

“What will it cost to stock a new theatre with scenery?”

“From $2,000-$3,500.”

“And that will include how many sets?”

“Thirty-five. Enough for putting on any legitimate piece.”

“How long does it take to get up special scenery, say for a play like ‘The Silver King’?”

“That piece could be gotten up in two weeks. A fortnight’s notice is all we require to paint the scenery for any piece requiring sets that the theater has not in stock. In all such cases small models are complete reproductions in miniature of the original scenes.”

“There isn’t much work of this kind required of the artist nowadays?”

“No, not much; because many companies are now carrying their own scenery. Those playing melodrama invariably bring their own scenes with them.”

Mr. Noxon stands in front rank of curtain and scene painters, and for special features like Mardi Gras and Veiled Prophet pageants, is recognized throughout the Mississippi Valley as the most competent man in the profession.

Mr. Ernest Albert is a finished artist in the painting of interiors, and has displayed great originality in designing and executing curtains. He is particularly happy in reproducing draperies with a faultlessness of technique that challenges wonder and admiriation.

The other first-class curtain painters of the country do not number more than half-dozen. All enjoy national reputations, and their services are in demand to the other.

Russell Smith, formerly of the Academy of Music, Philadelphia, makes a specialty of landscapes.

Voegtlin, who went from New York to California where he was recently located, also takes to landscapes, but is an admirable figure painter, and will be at the top of the heap again should there be a revival of this style of curtains.

Phil Goatcher, formerly of Cincinnati, but now in New York, paints very pretty satin drops with medallion centers.

Henry E. Hoyt of Colvill’es, Fourteenth street, New York City, has lately started a boom in the direction of drapery without either figures or landscape views. His last curtain, which was of this character, was painted for the Euclid Avenue Opera House, Cleveland. He finished it is three weeks, and got $600.

Messrs. Noxon, Albert & Toomey painted a beautiful curtain and an entire stock of scenery for the new Park Theatre, in the same city, which was destroyed by fire a few weeks ago.

Last but not least is the prominent curtain and scene painters is Richard H. Halley, who came here at the opening of Pope’s Theater, then went to the Grand, and at the beginning of the present season began work at McKee Rankin’s Third Avenue Theater, New York. His silk curtain at Pope’s obtained instant recognition for its artistic abilities, and his later work, although lacking strength and color, has been marked by unusual merit. The curtain in the new Olympic is from his brush. As a painter of exteriors he holds high rank in the profession, and he is acknowledged to be without a peer in the reproduction of foliage.”

To be continued…

 

Part 466: Patrick J. Toomey’s Allegorical Float Designs for the Wichita Carnival and Fall Festival, 1900

The “Wichita Beacon” described the allegorical nature of each float in the Wichita Carnival manufactured by P. J. Toomey (5 Oct. 1900, page 5). Here is conclusion of the article introduced yesterday:

“The ‘Artist’s Dream’ float is the original painting by A. E. Begas. Reclining low upon a couch is a sleeping figure upon who groups of cupids shower roses and encircle rounds of graceful glee. The absorbing vision of ‘The Artist’s Dream’ is the incarnate spirit of motion poised upon a pedestal of light and executing a serpentine dance.

The ‘Vitality of Mother Earth’ float was painted by M. A. Wagen. The beautifully designed group symbolizes Mother Earth making her yearly triumphal round in a jeweled chariot drawn by two prancing steeds at whose touch nature yields the bounties of life.

The ‘Policco Verso’ float is by that well known painter J. L. Gerome. The Roman emperor and his attendant courtiers watch from the imperial balcony of the Roman Colosseum a contest of arms and strength between a group of gladiators and the arena below. One of the gladiators has vanquished two of his opponents who raise their hands to the mighty arbiters of their fate, begging mercy upon their lives. It pleases the cruelty and pomp of the court best to see the vanquished suffer the extreme penalty for the lack of prowess, and the verdict is ‘Policco Verso’ – or ‘thumbs down’ meaning no mercy for the fallen and the victor is thus compelled to extinguish the life of his adversaries and thus help “to make a Roman holiday.”

The float ‘Rock of Ages,” is by J. A. Oertel. This picture has become a familiar and favorite one in many of the humble as well as the sumptuous houses of the Christian land. It impersonates the hope for a glorified mortality. It is the Christian race clinging to the cross through every tempest of fate and struggling souls stretch out to reach it through the whirlpools of temptation.

‘Fairies Chariot,’ the float by Mme. Madeline Lemaire, is a fanciful conception which shows the occult power and subtle influence in the fairy folks at they speed by in their golden chariot drawn by beautiful large tigers which the magical spell has changed from ferocious beasts of the desert into the docile animals charmed to do the fairies bidding.

The float ‘Lucretia Borgia’ gives a fine scene from the life of that personage and was painted by that well known artist, H Raulbach. Lucretia Borgia, who was of noble Italian birth, and had many near relatives in high ecclesiastical offices is entertaining a prince cardinal andhis suite by displaying her accomplishments in dancing.

The float, ‘Gulliver in Broadbingnag,’ by R. Redgrave. The famous Dean Swift in his account of ‘Gulliver’s Travels Into Several Remote Nations of the World,’ gives vent to his fondness for satire by bringing the people of his day and his country to compare themselves in wisdom and strength to the primitive and sometimes untaught races of whom he is supposed to have discovered and visited. In Mr. Gulliver’s accidental storm-tossed journey’s to Broadbingnag in the South Seas, he finds himself among a race of giants averaging about sixty feet tall in whose country everything in nature and art is the same gigantic proportions as themselves. Gullliver, though a typical Englishman of the eighteenth century is a mere pigmy in their sight, and is placed upon a table thirty feet high to be viewed as a curiosity. The giants come from far and wide to see him but some find him so diminished that it is necessary for them to use spectacles to see him in any degree of perfection. They decide that he is just like a human being, though infinitely smaller than is usual.

In ‘The Garden of Love,’ is another float by C. Schienigle. It represents a garden terrace, where Dan Cupid has secreted himself and is about to aim his relentless darts at several of the young people gathered in this ideal retreat to enjoy the pleasures of music and conversation. Cupid’s aim will be true and decisive and there will be some joyous awakenings.

‘Evening,’ by C. Gleyre, is a graceful barque gliding in a smooth stream where music and song accord with the ripple of clear waters, the gentle evening breeze bags the sail and the oarsman languidly plies his car. The pleasure seekers in the boat are quietly absorbing the quiet and beauty that abound upon the breast of nature.

The ‘Apothesis of Louis XIV.’ is another resplendent float showing a chariot drawn by winged horses and heralded through time and space by royal trumpeters. The insignia of divinity is about to be placed upon his brow by the hand of Fate. Luxury and profusion follow in his wake.

‘Shakespeare’s Reciting Before Queen Elizabeth,” is a float by H. H. Slimarski, which depicts a scene of regal splendor. Elizabeth sitting upon her throne chair attended by ladies and gentlemen of the court is listening spellbound to the Bard of Avon recite passages from his plays which he then realized were to become immortal and would be read by future generations and be admired as long as the English language endured.

The ‘Bull Chariot’ is a handsome design by M. A. Waagens. This from a marble group and represents a scene from the ancient heathen rites of the Romans, when processions in honor of the gods and goddesses were frequent and always imposing.”

To be continued…