Month: January 2020

Copyright © 2019 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In 1915, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “We had a pleasant Christmas with Mary and William, Rupert and Ula, and Ula’s mother from Ames, Iowa.” On Jan. 1, 1916, Moses wrote, “January 1^st, Ula and Rupert with the Kauffman family from the city took dinner with us.”

Before we enter 1916, I want to take a chance to review the year 1915.

It was the first full year of WWI, but the United States decided to take a neutral role. The same year of our stated neutrality, the RMS Lusitania was sunk on passage from New York to Britain by a German U-boat, killing 1,198 people. The United States remained on the sidelines, with the average citizen only reading of horrors occurring over seas.

In 1915, the United States House of Representatives rejected a proposal giving women the right to vote, and our country would remain in the hands of men for quite some time. Regardless of lacking any ability to participate in an election, women trudged on, establishing the Women’s Peace Party. The WPP, an American pacifist and feminist organization, was established in response to WWI. It later became the American section of the International Committee of Women for Permanent Peace (Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom).

The United States occupation of Haiti began that July, the same month that the steamer “Eastland” capsized in Chicago; 844 lives were lost. Hurricanes hit both Galveston and New Orleans, leaving 275 dead in the wake of their destruction. Lassen Peak, one of the Cascade Volcanoes in Northern California, erupted, sending an ash plume 30,000 feet in the air and devastating the nearby region. The Imperial Valley earthquake shook southern California and the Pleasant Valley Earthquake shook north-central Nevada. Although the world seemed to be crumbling, the Rocky Mountain National Park was established for future generations to enjoy.

In 1915, the world population was estimated at 1.8 billion; 100 million people lived in the United States and more than half were under 25 years old. The average life expectancy for men was 47 years old. Half of all US families lived on farms, and the number of horses and mules on farms reached a century high that year. There were approximately 2 million cars, and not many places that one could easily drive a vehicle.

About 85% of men over the age of 14 worked in the labor force. The average US worker made between $200 and $400 per year, with mechanical engineers earning $5,000/yr., dentists earning $2,500/yr. and veterinarians earning between $1,500 and $4,000 per year. A good accountant could earn $2,000/year. 18% of households had at least one full-time servant or domestic helper.

Two out of every ten adults could not read nor write.  Only 6% of all Americans had graduated from high school. 90% of medical doctors had no college education, having solely attended medical schools. 95% of all births took place at home. The five leading causes of death were diarrhea, heart disease, stroke, influenza, pneumonia and tuberculosis. After infecting dozens of people, Typhoid Mary was quarantined for the rest of her life.

Only 14% of homes had a bathtub. Most women only washed their hair once a month, using Borax or egg yolks for shampoo. Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen. Sugar was four cents a pound and coffee was fifteen cents a pound. Fuel for cars was only sold in drug stores. The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph, but most Americans walked everywhere. There was no easy way to communicate long distance, as only 8% of homes had phones. A postage stamp was two cents.

Onward and upward, tomorrow I start exploring the year 1916 in the life and times of Thomas G. Moses.

To be continued…

Copyright © 2019 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In 1915, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “Went to Lafayette, Indiana, to meet George Ade regarding a new show he is going to stage for the Purdue College.” Ades’s show was the “Eight Little Wives” and it featured an all-male cast; this was consistent with all previous Harlequin Club shows at Purdue. It was not until 1916 that women were first allowed to perform in Harlequin Club productions.

George Ade (1866-1944) was a well-known author, playwright, and newspaper columnist, born Kentland, Indiana. Ade’s focus while attending Purdue was science, but he became increasingly interested in the theater. After graduating in 1887, Ade became a newspaper journalist, working for the “Lafayette Call” in Indiana. He then moved to Chicago and worked for the “Chicago Daily News,” expanding the scope of subjects that he wrote about. Ade described the daily life of Chicago’s citizens, with first in his regular column being “The Chicago Record.” His writing incorporated street slang and a variety of encounters in the Windy City. Ade was well-known for his “Fables in Slang” (1899) and “More Fables” (1900), earning him the nickname, “Aesop of Indiana, “ He initially gained additional famed with his “Stories of the Streets of the Town.” Here is a link to some of his works online: https://americanliterature.com/author/george-ade

Ade’s work as a playwright began in earnest with the 1901 Broadway productions of “The Night of the Fourth” and “The Sultan of Sulu.” Other popular Broadway productions penned by Ade included “Peggy From Paris, ““The Country Chairman,” “Sho-Gun,” “The College Widow,” “The Bad Samaritan,” “Just Out of College,” “Artie,” “Father and the Boys,” “Mrs. Peckham’s Carouse,” “Mars Covington,” “The Pair Co-Ed,” “The Old Town,” “The Slim Princess,” and “Leave it to Jane.”   Ade also wrote several one-act plays, some of which became popular films, such as “Our Leading Citizen,” “Back Home” and “Woman-Proof.”

By 1909, Ade remembered his alma mater, becoming a member on the Board of Trustees at Purdue University. He would remain a Trustee until 1916, becoming active in many other alumni-supported activities. He was also a longtime member of the Purdue Alumni Association and former president of the Mark Twain Association of America. His financial continued contributions toward Purdue University supported the construction of Purdue’s Memorial Gymnasium, Memorial Union Building, and the Ross-Ade Stadium.

In regard to the play that Moses designed scenery for in 1915, newspapers reported, “LAFAYETTE, Ind., January 8.- The play to be produced by the Harlequin Club, of Purdue university, this year, will be written by George Ade, according to an announcement made by J. J. Johnston, manager of the club. Mr. Ade, who is a Purdue alumnus, has written several first by the Purdue Harlequin Club, among which were “The Fair Co-Ed,” “The Junior in Command” and “The County Chairman.” Mr. Ade is working on the play, but the name has not been announced” (Indianapolis Star, page 15).

“The Indianapolis News” reviewed the production on 20 April, 1915 (page 2):

“Harlequin Club Presents George Ade’s Play Before Large Audience at Lafayette. ‘Eight Little Wives,’ the ninth annual production of the Harlequin Club of Purdue university, was presented for the first time yesterday at the Victoria Theater before a capacity audience. The play proved a great success, receiving more praise than ever was bestowed on previous first night performances of the Harlequins. There are eighty-five students in the production and the costumes and scenery are unusually elaborate. George Ade. Purdue 1887 is the author, and the music is by Alfred G. Wathall, with interpolated numbers by George Ade Davis [George Ade Davis was George Ade’s nephew who wrote music for his uncle]. The play is an adaptation of Mr. Ade’s musical comedy success, ‘The Sultan of Sulu.’

“George Herbert, the veteran coach of the Harlequin Club directed the production, and J. J. Johnson, manager of the club assisted. The leading role in the musical comedy is taken by R. H. Dwiggens, a freshmen at Purdue, who proved himself the cleverest comedian ever seen in a Harlequin Club production. As Ki-Ram, the sultan of Sulu, he was on the stage most of the time, the part being that played by Frank Moulan in the professional production. G. H. Smith, as Major Jefferson Rice, had another important role, as did H. J. Rosenthal as Lieutenant William Hardy. H. S. O’Brien, captain of the Purdue football team last fall, appeared in the role of Hadji, private secretary to the sultan. M. S. McNay was the Datto Mandi of Parang. J. A. Pierce, as Wakeful Jones, salesman, and K. W. Hurst as Dingbat, captain of the guards, were good in minor roles. F. Ledder and R. J. Mitchell as the Nubian slaves injected a large share of the best comedy. As usual in Purdue Harlequin plays, the male students essayed the roles of the women. D. J. Bellinger, as Henrietta, the major’s daughter, was well made up, as was B. L. McCullom, as Chiquita, the sultan’s favorite wife. They sang and danced and their gowns were visions of loveliness. L. R. McKnight had the role of Pamela Jackson, the woman judge advocate, and presented a realistic picture of the suffragette type. W. K. Dodd, as Galula, the ugly wife of Ki-Ram, had the leading woman comedy part. Other students appeared as the eight wives of Ki-Ram, then there were the school ma’ams, the United States soldiers, marines, American girls, slaves, natives and attendants.

The scene is laid on the Island of Sulu in the Philippines. The first act setting shows the exterior of the sultan’s palace and the second set shows the hanging gardens of the palace. In the background of each act is a view of the land and water scenery of the Philippines. The leading song numbers are Ki-Rams’s ‘Remorse’; ‘Soldiers of the U.S.A.,’ one of George Ade Davis’ contributions; ‘The Smiing Isle,’ by Ki-Ram; ‘The Filipino Cabaret,’ and ‘If You Say That You Love Me.’

“The play will be repeated this evening and Wednesday night in Ft. Wayne, under the auspices of the Purdue Alumni Association in that city. Next Saturday night it will be given again at the Victoria theater in this city for the benefit of the visitors at junior prom parties.”

To be continued…

Copyright © 2019 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In 1915, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “We did another society stunt, ‘The Spanish Ball.’  I think we made about $20,000.00 for one evenings entertainment.” In addition to producing stock scenery for various theaters and special scenery for touring productions, these themed events netted the studio thousands of dollars in profit each year.  I am curious if the $20,000 amount mentioned by Moses was what the studio netted for the project or his estimation on the charitable donations. Reports indicate that Chicago’s Spanish Ball raised $25,000 for charity.

On Monday Dec. 13, 1915, the “Day Book” included the article “Women in Red Socks and Red Sashes at Spanish Ball.” The article reported, “No charity ball this winter. Instead, the Spanish ball. By calling it Spanish ball, everybody on it is saved the smell that goes with the word ‘charity’ these days.”

The upper echelon of Chicago society gathered on Dec. 17, 1915 to raise funds for the Chicago Lying-In hospital. It opened new building at 51^st Street and Vincennes, and money was needed for plumbing and running expenses. After the funds were raised at the ball, it was anticipated that the water pipe installation would begin.

Of the Lying-In hospital cause, two dispensaries were run with hospital. The previous year 24,764 mothers received medicine, lint and doctor’s advice. The “Day Book” article reported, “Though many mothers are lucky enough to get a bed to lie in at the Lying-in hospital, statement of women at head of it is that ‘hundreds are turned away every year.’ What sort of shacks and shanties the mothers go to when turned away is not stated in any survey taken. Red colors, laughter and a big hoorah are the moors of the Spanish ball. It would be thought a crime and an indecency if somebody should print slips to be stuck onto the dance program giving the statistics of the baby death rate around the Armour, Swift and Morris slaughter houses. University of Chicago survey presented in testimony to U. S. industrial relations commission showed baby death rate in the stockyards district is seven times as high as over on the lake shore in the district where Spanish ball dancers will come from.”

For the Spanish Ball, the First Regiment Armory building was transformed into a replica of the famous streets of Madrid. Arches and pillars of flaming orange and red, relieved by bars of black concealed the walls and formed sort of a continuous façade about the drill fall behind which the spectators sat. According to the “Chicago Examiner” “The pageant will represent all phases of Spanish history, beginning with the Moorish invasion in 800 A.D., which is to include those fascinating and illustrious personages of long ago period, Ferdinand and Isabella. DeSoto, Balboa, Cortez and everybody else connected with the history of those stirring times will be impersonated. There will be an Inquisition group too” (Nov. 7, 1915, Vol. 16, part 4, page 6).

The “Day Book” article anticipated the event; “Next Friday night they pull this Spanish ball in First Regiment armory. Ladies in red sox and red moccasins, topped off with red fabric and ribbons, all a regular chile con carne red pepper red, will be on parade. Spanish music, old fashioned rum-tum-toddles played in Madrid and Barcelona centuries ago, have been searched out by Roy McWilliams.”

The “Evening Star” reported “The managers of the Spanish ball held on Friday night at the 1^st Regiment armory have cause for great satisfaction, for the affair was by all odds the most comprehensive historical pageant as well as the greatest financial success ever staged for charity in Chicago, says the Chicago herald. The setting was effective, with the curving yellow and orange walls of the bullfight ring hung with rich fabrics and rugs, and opposite to the entrance of the picturesque Café del Torero, with its yellow walls and black balconies, against which the various groups seated themselves in a semi-circle as the pageant wound itself about the hall. The pageant was somewhat late in beginning, and it was well after 12 o’clock before the last group had fled past the queen in the person of Mrs. Robert Leatherbee, who sat in a gorgeous palanquin, and alluring picture in Moorish costume of silver cloth, many barbaric jewels and a gorgeous headdress of fan and peacock feathers, After the pageant there was dancing and the gay scenes that began with the blowing of the bugles for the entrance of the bullfight cortege at 11 o’clock did not end until almost dawn”  (Washington, D.C., December 26, 1915, page 8).

The Charity ball raised $25,000. Over 4,000 donned their best costumes and emptied their pockets for the event intended to replenish the coffers of those in need. The majority of visitors were simply spectators as gazed from a balcony at the events below. The “Chicago Tribune” reported, “While the majority looked on from the boxes and balconies 300 men and women staged the long-a-waited Spanish ball, which compromised a pageant rich, in color, a series of performance by professional dancers and singers, and a mock bullfight which was greeted with shouts of laughter. Then everybody danced” (18 Dec. 1915, page 17).

The “Lincoln Journal Star,” reported “Chicago’s ‘400’ yawned sleepily today and voted the Spanish ball a weird success. Dowagers, cotillion leader, debutants and just ordinary folk who make one splurge a year decked themselves in a collection of disguises that added $100,000 to the bank rolls of modistes and tailors. Some of them rode donkeys to enhance the illusion of a Moorish scene. The ball, the annual charity event of Chicago, netted about $25,000 for the Chicago lying-in hospital. Mrs. Potter Palmer, the ‘400’s’ leader had as her guests former Ambassador and Mrs. Myron T. Herrick”  (18 Dec., 1915, page 1).

To be continued…

From February 3 – 7, 2020, I am cataloguing one of two historic scenery collections at the Tabor Opera House in Leadville, Colorado. Horace Tabor’s 1879 opera house was purchased and renovated by the Benevolent and Protected Order of Elks in 1901, with new scenery being delivered in 1902. The venue’s original scenery was then placed into storage. My previous visit to the Tabor Opera House was posted on June 19 and June 21 of 2018 (just keyword search “Leadville”). I examine the 1902 scenery collection next week.

Here is an article recently published about the upcoming event in the “Leadville Herald” on January 20, 2020.

From February 3 to February 10, I will resume “Travels of a Scenic Artists and Scholar,” sharing my experience in Leadville at the Tabor Opera House.

On February 10, I will return to the life and times of Thomas G. Moses in “Tales of a Scenic Artist and Scholar.”

Copyright © 2019 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

Sosman & Landis delivered scenery to Detroit’s Temple Theatre in 1908 and 1915. The Temple Theatre was not a Masonic structure, but a performance space constructed by the Benevolent and Protected Order of Elks for both public and private performances (BPOE).

The Elks Temple and Temple Theatre opened on Dec. 23, 1901. The entertainment complex originally hosted the Wonderland Theatre Company and curiosity museum of oddities. John Scott designed he building, with Col. J. M. Wood designing the 1500-seat theater. It was located next door to the Detroit Opera House, on the north side of Monroe Street in the Campus Martius area.

In 1908, the Temple Theatre closed for three weeks during July to complete the renovation of the theater space. The “Detroit Free Press” described the imminent renovation plans in an article in July 2 (page 7):

“The Temple theater will close at the end of the week to permit decorators to transform the interior. The work will take three weeks, artists working in two shifts, night and day. When the theater is thrown open to the public, Monday afternoon, July 27, the many patrons will marvel at the transformation.  It is said that the decorations, with carpets, tapestries, drop curtain and incidentals will cost in the neighborhood of $20,000. The entire decorations will be in the Italian Renaissance period, and William Wright company has guaranteed Manager J. H. Moore the richest vaudeville theater interior in this country. The ceilings and cornice work will be in light Italian blue and ivory, this scheme being carried throughout. The proscenium boxes will be draped with rich brocatelle hangings of light blue, with heavy cords and tassels, and fine old Roman gold chairs will replace the mahogany ones now in use. Artists and designers have been at work on the preliminary plans for the last three months, and all that is left now is to complete the actual work. The carpets have been made from a special design by the decorators, and Sosman & Landis, the scene painters of Chicago, are in consultation with the William Wright artists carry out in the new drop curtain, to cost $1,000, the color scheme of the auditorium. The double baize doors, leading from the foyer to the right proscenium boxes will be replaced with Roman gilt and gold plate glass doors, with gold columns. New and beautiful electrical effects will be seen in the ceiling of the foyer. On account of the reopening of the Temple falling the revival of the famous Blue Ribbon meeting in Detroit, the bill of vaudeville for that week will be designated the “Blue Ribbon” bill. It will contain the names of artists, not the least of whom will be Loie Fuller, the celebrated fire dancer. The Temple Theater has not been closed, summer or winter, since it was thrown open to the pubic eight years ago.  The many hundreds of patrons who have reserved their seats throughout the seasons will call for them during the week preceding the opening when the regular sale will go into effect.”

The “Detroit Free Press” described the 1908 drop curtain by Sosman & Landis in detail: “Beyond all this the proscenium arch a mass of burnished gold and set within like a picture in its frame is the new drop curtain – a splendid thing the product of Sosman & Landis scenic studios in Chicago.  It pictures an old Italian garden, the spirit of the joy-seeking Renaissance caught here in every other part of the theater.  Here too the predominating note is blue with only the suggestion of green in the foliage and a hint of old rose in the costumes of the grand dames, which lend the desired touch of life to the stately old garden.  It’s all brightly beautiful and happy thought and ideal as a playhouse should be, and proves with subtle insistence that those responsible for it are artists in a very substantial and satisfying sense” (July 26, 1908, page 7).

I recently discovered another article pertaining Sosman & Landis scenery delivered to Detroit’s Temple Theatre in 1915. The new scenery was for the reopening of the redecorated theater on July 19.  My fourth-grade German classes and Google translate helped me understand the gist of the German article in “Detroiter Abend-Post.” However, I still needed help and turned to my friend Art de Hoyos. Below is the translation of what was published in “Detroiter Abend-Post” on July 11, 1915 (page 12):

 “English stage. Temple Theatre. This popular Vaudeville house will remain closed this week, but next week it will be reopened with new outfitting, and a few years will pass before the theater has to be temporarily closed again. Certain repairs and improvements were urgently needed in the theater room, but they will be completed later this week, so that nothing will stand in the way of reopening on July 19. The American Seating Co. was entrusted with the contract for the delivery and laying of new carpets in the parquet and the so-called ‘mezzanine floor.’ New scenery for the stage will be supplied by the well-known theater company Sosman & Landis Co. Chicago. The Temple Theater will reopen with an exceptionally rich, good program.”

I also found a newspaper advertisement pertaining to the old chairs being removed from the Temple Theater in 1915.  The opera chairs were listed for sale in the “Detroit Free Press” on June 6, 1915 (page 30). The listing announced, “Attention, Theatre Managers. THEATRE CHAIRS FOR SALE CHEAP. All parquet and balcony seats now in use in Temple Theatre must be sold to make room for new seats to be installed soon. CHANCE OF A LIFETIME. Inquire Temple Theatre Offices.”

To be continued…

Copyright © 2019 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

Thomas G. Moses worked with Chas. H. Miles from 1908 to 1917, designing and delivering scenery to many of his theaters across the country. We know for certain that in 1910, 1913 and 1915, Sosman & Landis delivered scenery to the Miles Theater in Detroit. During 1917 Moses wrote, “Went to Cleveland June 21^st [1917) to see Miles regarding a picture set for the Miles Theatre.” By August, Moses met with Miles in Detroit, receiving a contract for the Regent Theatre. Two weeks after the Regent contract, Moses was back to Cleveland to meet with Miles concerning more scenery for the Grand Theatre. Each of these projects was a sizable contract, ranging between $2,800 and $2,90. That’s today’s equivalent of $58,000 per project.

Later in 1911 Moses recorded, “Inspected the New Grand and it is very good indeed.  Miles is very proud of it, and I don’t blame him.” Miles’ was a mover and shaker, opening one theater after another during the early twentieth century. For quite a while, Thomas G. Moses of Sosman & Landis Studio, was the preferred source for theater scenery in venues owned and operated by Charles H. Miles.

Newspapers reported that Miles’ success was based on “Planning for everybody,” in other words, constructing combination houses with continuous vaudeville presenting both live theatre and movies.  The “Pittsburgh Press” reported, “And this is how Mr. Miles went about his unique policy. First he planned for the business of boy and girl downtown who had contracted the ‘movie’ habit, and all of whom dearly love to patronize picture houses during their ‘hour-off’ at noon. Then he took into consideration the housewife on her almost daily shopping and marketing tour – the woman who has time to see a film or two, or perhaps, two or there acts of vaudeville. Then came the children on their way home from school, who have their nickels and dimes for a little fun. And finally, the grown-up people who have some special vaudeville favorite they wish to see, and those who come to witness the entire bill. Here we, indeed, have all sorts and conditions of pleasure-seekers. To adequately provide for each and all of them was not a very easy task. Mr. Miles’ solution of the problem resulted in the invention of a schedule that straightway revolutionized vaudeville. Here is an outline of the workings of this schedule, which will be put into effect in the new Miles Theater in Pittsburgh tomorrow evening. All daily performances commence with a continuous matinee from 12:30 to 5:30 p.m. This matinee consists of pictures from 12:30 to 2:30 with an admission price of 10 cents, and of vaudeville and pictures from 2:30 to 5:30, for admission of 10 and 20 cents. The house extends an invitation to those who wish to come at 12:30 to sit through the entire matinee until 5:30p.m. – a five hour show for 10 cents and 20 cents! In the evening there will be two complete vaudeville and picture shows, from 6:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., with an admission price of 10, 20 and 30 cents” (18 Oct. 1914 page 39). Today’s equivalent of 10 to 30 cents prices are $2.54 to $7.63, a very affordable entertainment, much more so than seeing a movie today. They were making money based on volume of sales.

In 1914, newspapers across the country featured Miles and his new Pittsburgh theater “The Pittsburgh Press” reported, “Mr. Miles is first, last and all the time, a man of action. Discommoded beyond endurance during one of his visits to Hibbing, he acquired a hotel site, appointed a manager and straightway made all arrangements for a comfortable hotel before he left town. To increase the patronage of this hotel, when was named for him, Mr. Miles started a small vaudeville house next to it. The little theater first revealed to him the possibilities of the show business, since it earned between $200 and $500 weekly. Unfortunately, the combined venture ended disastrously after a few years, the entire structure – hotel and theater – being gutted by fire. By this time, Mr. Miles had learned what profit was in the theatrical business, and 13 years ago [1901] he took over the Majestic Theater in St. Paul – one of the original vaudeville houses in that city –a show in connection with a beer garden. He turned it into a first-class vaudeville house, catering especially to women and children, a policy, which is especially characteristic of all the Mile houses. This venture in St. Paul gave birth to he present-day circuit of Miles theaters throughout the west. Mr. Miles now owns theaters in almost every city in the west. Among the most celebrated houses I his chain are the Miles theater in Detroit, the Hippodrome in Minneapolis, the Crystal theater in Milwaukee, the Hippodrome in St. Louis, the Garden in Kansas City and the Miles theater in Cleveland. “ Of the Miles theatre circuit, the article noted, “It goes without saying that the vaudeville acts that will be put on at the Miles Theater this winter are all of the highest class. They will be booked through the largest agency in New York and Chicago, and branches, agents and managers all over the world who are trained to be on the lookout day and night for acts that are considerably out of the ordinary. Thus Miles representatives are enabled to secure absolutely the best and most expensive acts, since Mr. Miles and his affiliations control over 100 houses, and can assure performers steady work for an almost indefinite length of time. For that matter, Mr. Miles is today recognized as the most expert vaudeville connoisseur in America; and it is his personal selection of most acts that he books that has lifted his entertainment far ways and above the average run of variety” (Pittsburgh Press, 18 Oct. 1914 page 39).

To be continued…

Copyright © 2019 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In 1915, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “Dropped in on Miles at Detroit and got $815.00 for some new work.” Chas. H. Miles was listed in the Detroit City Directory as the manager of the Orpheum Theatre, and lodging at the Statler hotel. Miles’ was a mover and shaker, opening one theater after another, and from 1910 to 1917 Sosman & Landis was the preferred scenic studio for Miles.

Miles’ Detroit theatre had a frontage of 152 feet on Griswold Street between State Street and Grand River Avenue. Once built, his theater’s policy included three shows a day, with extra matinees on Saturday and Sunday. On May 30, 1911, the “Detroit Press” included an advertisement to buy stock for the Miles Theatre, promising “You will be paid dividends every three months” (page 3). The advertisement commented, “It is the largest, most handsome, update and complete theatre in Detroit – the Miles Theatre has been in operation over one year and is earning money every day.” It continued to explain that the theatre was ideally located and convenient to every carline in the city, and near one of the busiest marts. Miles and Mr. C. W. Porter, local manager, personally looked after the sale of stocks in the Miles theatre building daily.

Miles had been in the theater business for quite some time. Already in 1910, Moses recorded that the studio sold $3,800.00 worth of scenery to Miles for his new theater at 1220 Griswold St., Detroit, Michigan. Three years later 1913, they provided an asbestos curtain for Miles, painted by Moses. The relationship between Sosman & Landis and the Miles was ongoing. The theater magnate also established the Miles Detroit Theatre Co. He was the president of the firm, operating many theaters across the country. By 1915, there were Miles theaters in Detroit, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Scranton and Minneapolis.

The success of Miles’ theater in Detroit was noted on March 16, 1913. The “Detroit Free Press published, “People soon found that they could go down-town after supper, see an entire performance and get back home in time to retire at the usual house. Or, if they were detained down-town by business or a dinner party, they found it convenient to drop in for the second show and still get home at a reasonable hour. Thus, very shortly, going to the Miles came to be a regular habit and the Miles clientele steadily grew larger. In the meantime, stores and offices erected by Miles as part of the general structure were leased by various concerns and Griswold Street, north of State, began to take a commercial look. Property values around Capitol Park began to soar. Men of large means began to take an interest in the development of Griswold Street. Car lines were re-routed, old brick pavements were supplanted by the more modern creosote block…That is the story of the rejuvenation of Griswold street, and to Mr. Miles, as the man who took the initiative, is due a large share of the credit. It is just another illustration of how much can be accomplished through that happy combination of courage, determination and far-sightedness” (page 83).

The last show at the Miles Theatre was on Nov. 28, 1927. By May 1928 the theater was demolished to make way for the Griswold Building, designed by Albert Kahn, a structure that still exists today.

To be continued…

Copyright © 2019 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

On September 1, 1915, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “I went to Pittsburg to set up ‘Fall of Antwerp.’  We were behind with our work and I had to allow them for two performances.  I settled for $1,300.00.” 

I have never understood the public’s fascination with horrific events.  It is even difficult for me to read about natural or man-made disasters, because I feel as if my entire being absorbs the sorrow, and I feel utterly helpless.  This post was especially difficult write, as we know the duration of WWI, and how long it took for the United States to help. America stood on the sidelines, watching in fascination. We even created a scenic spectacle about the Antwerp’s destruction. Only a few years prior to Antwerp’s fall, my grandfather left to city to sail to America, hoping to start a new life. The city streets that he walked would soon fall victim to heavy shellfire. He had left Europe trying to escape what many saw coming.

The final siege of Antwerp began on October 9, 1914, as German artillery weakened the city’s fortifications and the city fell. Here are two links for more information about the historical event for context of the stage spectacle: https://www.britannica.com/event/Siege-of-Antwerp-1914 and https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/59426/wwi-centennial-fall-antwerp

By Oct. 11, 1914, American newspapers reported, “Press Bureau issued the following at 12:10 p.m. yesterday: – The War Office announces that Antwerp was evacuated by the Belgian forces yesterday.” The London “Observer” stated, “Antwerp has fallen. The Belgian Army has succeeded in slipping out, and the town is now practically undefended. Great damage has been done to the city by shellfire and incendiary bombs. Many public buildings are badly injured, among them, is said, is the Cathedral. There is much rejoicing in Germany. German official news, received by wireless, states that many German vessels, including a number of large liners and some Rhine streamers, were blown up before the Belgians evacuated Antwerp. This followed the Dutch Governments refusal to allow the refugees to escape in them by Scheldt waters. We publish several stories told by refugees from Antwerp, including one by a lady doctor who had charge of a hospital there. On the battle line in France the Allies are holding their own, and north of the Oise they have gained considerable advantages” ” (11 October, 1914, page 7).

This historic event soon became a stage spectacle that toured American theatres. Unlike the WWII newsreels, this was more like the Johnstown Flood attraction at amusement parks across the country. Baltimore’s Garden Theatre advertisements announced “The Fall of Antwerp” as a new vaudeville spectacle. The production promised, “An unusually good vaudeville bill with a scenic production depicting ‘The Fall of Antwerp’ as the top liner and many other excellent numbers” (23 March 1915, page 4). Within six months of Antwerp’s devastation, Americans were watching a “realistic electrical reproduction of ‘The Fall of Antwerp’ (The Times-Tribune, Scranton, Pennsylvania, 20 April 1915, page 15). The vaudeville spectacle was advertised as “the greatest electrical scenic war spectacle of modern history” (Tribune, Scranton, Pennsylvania, 19 April 1915, page 14). The “Times-Tribune” described, “Raymond O’Malley and George M. Cohan, scored unusually big at the opening day performances. The act is staged in splendid style and is one of the season’s best. ‘The Fall of Antwerp’ is a marvelously well presented novelty. The scene represents the Belgian city by day. When night comes, the attack of the Germans is shown. Houses are fired and the town is soon reduced to smoldering piles of debris.”

“The Bridgeport Times and Evening farmer” reported, “Realism in stagecraft attains its perfection in the mammoth production of the Fall of Antwerp which is featured in the big bill at Poli’s the first half of this week. Not a motion picture, but a most realistic spectacle requiring a carload of scenic and electrical effects, the Fall of Antwerp, is an absolute novelty in stagedom. The beautiful city is pictured in trueness of detail as it stood before the siege. Beautiful electrical effects show twilight fade into dusk as the moon and stars appear. There comes a roar of a distant cannon. A whirr of Zeppelins forewarns the aerial attack. The sky becomes afire and airships drop bombs and the aerial batteries answer the attack from above. A bomb hits the oil tanks and they blow up with a thunderous report, scattering fires to all parts of the neighborhood. The climax is reached as fire sweeps the city, razing the buildings left intact throughout the fusillade of shells. An interesting lecture by Miss Margaret May Lester, who recently returned from the stricken city, accompanies the spectacle and adds much to its interest. In addition, there is a big bill of vaudeville and photoplay features.”

While reading about this particular spectacle, I could not help thinking about other spectacles that depicted tragic events, such as the Flood of Jamestown and the Eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Both of these disasters had been popular attractions at Coney Island, as well as featuring the scenic art and illusion. For the Eruption of Mount Vesuvius, the audience was transported across the sea to the shores of the doomed town, as they waited at dawn for the destruction that would soon rain down on the sleepy town and into the sea. The Fall of Antwerp combined both water and fire effects for the war spectacle, using tried and true illusions. The scenic art and stage machinery was a fine-tuned product manufactured at the Sosman & Landis studio by this time.

To be continued…

Copyright © 2019 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In 1915, Moses wrote, “The new theatre we did at Baraboo for Al Ringling was a good contract at $2,600.00.  I went up to open and found a beautiful theatre, very unique in design, fifty years ahead of the town.” Al Ringling hired the architectural firm of Rapp and Rapp to design a theater based on the Orpheum Theatre built in Champaign, Illinois in 1914. The “Janesville Daily Gazette” announced, “Theatrical men, scenic painters, canvas makers and many prominent citizens from Chicago and other towns, all of whom were bound for Baraboo to do honor to a man who had the courage to build in that city one of the finest, if not the finest, playhouse in America, Mr. Al Ringling. (20 Nov. 1915, page 20). There were 844 seats, with seventeen boxes, each containing six seats. The stage was 33’-6” deep, 60’ wide and 46’ high. The massive fire curtain of asbestos measured 24’ high by 40’ wide, weighing 750 pounds.

The Ringling Theatre opened its doors in November 17, 1915.

D. W. Watt wrote a lovely article about the theater’s opening. Published in the “Janesville Daily Gazette” on Nov. 20, 1915, Watts described meeting with Ringing and attending the event (page 6). It is a long, but touching, article that describes the man and his project from the perspective of a friend. Here is the article in its entirety:

“Side Lights on the Circus Business.

On Wednesday of this week, I took the 11:35 train over the Northern road for Baraboo, Wis., where I had been invited to be the guest of Mr. and Mrs. Al Ringling at the opening of their beautiful new theatre. On entering the train at Janesville, I was soon greeted by many old friends, among them Mr. and Mrs. Chas. Ringling and their son, Robert, who make their home at Evanston, Illinois; Alf T. Ringling and son, Richard, of New York City, and many other prominent circus people, who for many years have been with the Ringling and Barnum shows. Theatrical men, scenic painters, canvas makers and many prominent citizens from Chicago and other towns, all of whom were bound for Baraboo to do honor to a man who had the courage to build in that city one of the finest, if not the finest playhouse in America, Mr. Al Ringling.

“At Madison, many prominent people joined the party, among who were the son-in-law and daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Ringling, and by the time the train reached Baraboo, it was crowded like an excursion train bound for the big Ringling circus. On our arrival in Baraboo, Henry Ringling was there with a big touring car to meet his brother, Charles, and family, and the crowd soon left the depot in differing directions, everybody in a hurry, and seeming to know just where they wanted to go.

“Many of the old employees visited the winter quarters, and others the homes of old friends. As soon as I had brushed off a little of the dust I was on my way to the home of Mr. and Mrs. Al Ringling. As it was information that I was looking after, I made up my mind there was only one place to go, and that was headquarters. In a few minutes I was at the palatial home, which is only a short distance around the corner from the theatre.

“The massive home with its many entrances, it was difficult for me, as they would say in the circus, “to pick out the main entrance,” but I finally pushed the button and a male servant appeared at the door, and asked me for my card, but I politely told him that I only had one deck in my pocket and I did not care to break that, but I was an old friend of Mr. Ringling and was there to make an informal call.

He ushered me into a large room which Mr. Ringling has used much of the time through his sickness, as kind of a business office, and I found him busy dictating telegrams and letters to his secretary, and I was soon seated in a big easy leather chair, and Al said to his secretary, “Young man, there will be nothing more doing for a time, for I have many questions to ask Mr. Watt, and we will make a visit here while you run up town and attend to some other business.

I so told Mr. Ringling the business part of my visit was to find out as much of the particulars as possible about the beautiful new playhouse and how he came to build so fine and beautiful a theater in a city the size of Baraboo.

The ground on which the theater is built and which has been owned by Mr. Ringling for some time is eighty-eight feet frontage on the corner, almost directly opposite the old stone court house, and 132 feet deep, but after Mr. Ringling had his plans for the building all completed, and just the size that he wanted it, he found that he was short four feet of ground in the rear of the building, which he would have to have in order to get just the size auditorium and stage that he had figured on. This land fortunately belonged to the city, and he was not long in getting a deed of the extra four feet. In a few days the work was commenced, which was early in the spring.

It was about four o’clock in the afternoon on Wednesday, when everything was completed and up in shape, ready to be occupied in the evening. The building is as near fireproof as it is possible to build one, the entire front being two shades of granite and white marble, and the entire building re-enforced steel and cement. There are two lobbies at the main entrance of the theatre, a beautiful marble trimmed office being the first lobby and the second entrance there are six swinging doors and on entering the second lobby, there is a beautiful fountain, and opposite on the right was what they called an Italian rest bench. From this you enter the main floor, which contains 844 seats raised from the stage so that every seat gives a good view of the stage, as does the front row. There are seventeen boxes, which contain six seats each.

“Beautiful dark red velvet carpets cover the cement floors on the inside, as they also do down the main aisles. The curtains and draperies in the boxes are in keeping with the carpets and of the same color. The huge marble columns on the inside, with their brass trimming, presented a most beautiful sight. As the tickets were all sold in advance, the lights were kept well turned down until the entire audience was seated, and it was almost time for the curtain to go up when the lighting plant in the second was turned on, and the cheers that went up from the people at their first sight of the playhouse was deafening and lasted for some minutes.

“In the private boxes were many prominent people from different parts of the state, Gov. Phillip and a party of friends being in one box; Mr. and Mrs. Charles Ringling and family in another, and Mr. and Mrs. Henry Ringling and friends, and Al Ringling and his wife with some friends in another. As a large party of the audience came in full dress, it was certainly a wonderful sight to behold.

“After Mr. Ringling had given me as many particulars as possible about the building, I asked him what I should say about the cost, or the approximate cost of the entire investment, and he simply smiled and shook his head and said: ‘Nothing doing. That Dave,’ said he, ‘has never entered into the game. My object from the start to finish was to give the people as fine a playhouse for the size of it as there was anywhere, and the architects and finishers and many theatrical men have said that I accomplished my undertaking. And is so, then I am satisfied, for I have had so much pleasure in all the years that I have been in business, and although at times it seemed hard, it was a pleasure for me to make the money, and now is I have done something with a part of it that will bring pleasure to my friends and neighbors, I have accomplished something.’

“And if the warm welcome that Al Ringling and his esteemed wife received in their private box at the close of the show goes for anything, their friends are legion.

“Mr. and Mrs. Harry North and friends occupied a box next to Mr. and Mrs. Al Ringling. Mrs. North is the only sister of the Ringling brothers.

“Sosman & Landis company of Chicago did the scenic painting in the new theatre; Gustave Brand of New York and Chicago were the decorators; The Ornamental Plaster & Carving Company did the plaster work; the Wiley Bros. of Chicago were the general contractors; Charles Kleckner, of Baraboo, the general painting; the Mandel Bros. of Chicago furnished the draperies, carets and seat coverings; Victor S. Pearlman Company installed the lighting fixtures of which there are 2,500.

The stage is 33 ½ x 60 feet wide and 46 feet high, and the beautiful marquetry awning reaches out to the edge of the sidewalk, and all is metal and glass and underneath is a mass of electric lights. A massive fire curtain of asbestos, which is 24 x 40 feet and weights 750 pounds, serves as a protection between the stage and the main floor.

“An organ, which cost $5,000 was furnished by a local music house of Baraboo, and is said to be one of the finest of its kind in the country.

“The dressing rooms, of which there are many, are furnished with the latest of everything; in fact, nothing has been overlooked to make it the most complete theater of its size in all appointments, that there is in the country.

“The ushers were all in uniform and all seemed to work as though they had been at it for years.

“Long before the arrival of Mr. and Mrs. Al Ringling, their box was simply a bower of roses and beautiful flowers of all descriptions, among which was apiece over four feet high given them by the Commercial Club of Baraboo.

“And after the fall of the curtain on the first act, Governor Phillip was called upon for a speech, in which he said in part that he was there with other friends and neighbors to do honor to a man who had honored Baraboo and its people for so many years. He paid the Ringling brothers a glowing tribute for the way in which they had always conducted their business and said without any question, they had done more to build up the models of the circus people than any who had ever been in business. He congratulated the people of Baraboo and the surrounding country on their being so fortunate as to have a man in their community who would build such a beautiful playhouse, where they could go for years to come, and always be proud to point it out to their friends as the theatre beautiful, which will always be known as the Al Ringling Theatre.

“And for myself with the many old friends surrounding me, I almost fancied that I backed up thirty years of more and was again in the business, for I thought that I could smell the sawdust and menagerie, but the dream pipe soon went out, and I had to bid my old friends adieu and take the train back home. But Wednesday, November 17^th put another bright day in my life, all through the kindness of an old friend whom I met in the circus business more than thirty years ago – Al Ringling.”

To be continued…

Copyright © 2019 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In 1915, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “The new theatre we did at Baraboo for Al Ringling was a good contract at $2,600.00.  I went up to open and found a beautiful theatre, very unique in design, fifty years ahead of the town.  Poor Al Ringling died soon after this.”

Moses designed and supervised the painting of six grand circus spectacles for Al Ringling.  These were events for the big top and attached to the opening parade of the circus, spectacles solely accompanied by movement and music. Al Ringling both liked and trusted Moses, so it was Sosman & Landis who would deliver the scenery to Al’s new theatre in 1915.

Before his theatre opened in 1915, Ringling was involved in a car accident. On October 18, 1915, the “Muscatine Journal” reported, “Well Known Circus Figure Meets With Mishap. Lafayette, Ind., Oct. 18 – Al Ringling, one of the owners of Ringling Brothers’ circus, was confined to his bed at a hotel here today, suffering from injuries resulting from an automobile accident.

“Ringling and a party of friends were en route to Baraboo, Wis., to attend the Purdue-Wisconsin football game when the crankshaft of the machine broke a few miles north of this city. The car plunged into a ditch. Throwing Ringling out of the machine. He was injured about the head” (page 7).

He never really recovered from his injuries and also suffered from Bright’s disease. In modern medical terms, this kidney disease would be described as acute, or chronic nephritis, characterized by swelling and the presence of albumin in the urine, and often accompanied by high blood pressure and heart disease. Regardless of his physical suffering, Ringling continued to direct the completion of his new theatre during the fall of 1915 until it’s opening. After the opening of his theatre, Ringling’s health began to fail in earnest. On Jan. 1, 1916, Ringling passed away. The following day, newspapers announced, “Al Ringling is Dead.”  The “New York Times” reported:

“Famous Show Man, Oldest of Circus Family, Succumbs at Home. Baraboo, Wis. Jan. 1. – Al Ringling, sixty-six years old, died here to-day of Bright’s disease. He had been ill about a year. Mr. Ringling was the oldest of the Ringling brothers, circus owners, who have their winter head quarters here. Mr. Ringling is survived by his widow.

“It was Al Ringling’s success in the show business that influenced his four brothers to join hi in the circus venture. Although he had given up the active management of the shows some time before he died, his was always the guiding spirit. More than any of his brothers he was beloved of his associates and friends the world over.

“Mr. Ringling entered the show business in 1874 with Yankee Robinson, whom he soon afterward left, to start out on his own hook. By 1884, he was conducting a show wagon around the country. That was the beginning of the Ringling Brothers’ shows, for the five brothers were soon aligned.  The shows increased so rapidly that the Ringling brothers gradually absorbed the Jack Robinson circus, the Forepaugh-Sells show and finally the Barnum & Bailey outfit in 1907.

“Mr. Ringling did much in his lifetime for Baraboo, where he lived and which he never forgot. It is estimated that he made more than a million dollars in the circus business. He is survived by a widow, his brothers and a sister” (2 Jan. 1916, page 13).

On January 4, 1916, “the Portage Daily” reported, “Funeral of Famous Showman Tuesday. Services for Al Ringling Held at Lutheran Church. The Rev. Mueller Officiated. All Baraboo Does Honor to their Respected Citizen.

“The funeral of Al Ringling was held at Baraboo Tuesday afternoon. The remains laid in state at the palatial home of Mr. Ringling, which marks the site of the first residence of his parents in the early 70s, after his death.

“The funeral services were conducted by Rev. H. Mueller at St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church of which the Ringling Bros. contributed $5,000 toward the erection of the edifice. Pastor Mueller was assisted in the service by Rev. H. Gold of Madison.

“Al Ringling was the leading citizen of Baraboo and its greatest benefactor. He had recently established the Al Ringling theater, which cost $125,000. Its dedication on Nov. 17 was a notable event in the history of Baraboo. Mr. Ringling had provided for the permanence of this theater, contemplating that an opera house so pretentious might not be self-sustaining in a city of this size.

“Death prevented the fulfillment of a plan which Mr. Ringling had, to build a fine hotel here.

“The Ringling Circus enterprise will be continued by the remaining four of the original seven brothers. First to die was August G. Ringling. He was not connected with the circus. In 1911 Otto, operating boss, called “the king” of the circus, died. Remaining are Chas. R., Evanston, Ill. Henry, who has residences in Baraboo and Florida; John, who resides in Ringling, Mont., and Alf who passes his time chiefly in new York and Chicago. A sister, Mrs. Ida Ringling North, resides in Baraboo.

“Al Ringling some months ago began the construction of a great mausoleum in the cemetery at Baraboo, which still is in course of construction. Until this is finished, the body will be placed in a vault.

Albert Ringling was the son of Mr. and Mrs. August Ringling, Chicago, of Hugenot ancestry, pious folks that were opposed to the desire of their boys to go into the circus business, but, like wise parents, entered no serious objections, the father advising the boys when they were tired tramping around to come back and sew tugs in his harness shop. [Thomas G. Moses’ father left a life on the sea to establish a tannery and harness shop in Sterling, Wisconsin].

“The Ringling family moved to Baraboo in the early 70’s. In 1882 Ringling Brothers’ Circus made its first real start when the first performance was held in the jail yard in Baraboo. The seats fell down and almost broke the show. Previously the brothers, and especially Albert, were always trying tricks and would amuse the children with juggling and the like circus spirit seemed insistent in Al, whose passing now removes the veteran of the sawdust ring, his fame being even greater than that of Barnum or Forpaugh [sic.]”

On January 23, 1916, the “Sioux City Journal” reported, “Latest to hear the final summons of the ‘equestrian director’ – the ‘call boy’ of the circus – was Al. Ringling, oldest brother of the famous family which put Baraboo, Wisconsin, on the map. His death occurred the first day of the new year. Otto and Gus Ringling died some time ago. Four brothers survive and they are the so-called ‘circus kings’ of today – Alfred T. John, Charlie and Henry, the latter coming into the firm at the death of Otto” (Page 27).

There are those moments that the term “passing of an era” is very visible.  The loss of Ringling was such a great one.  What would life had been like if he had lived another ten or twenty years? The same can be said of Joseph S. Sosman and Perry Landis. Creative men, living before their time, whose vision change and entire industry.

Of the Al Ringling Theatre, it also wept for Al’s passing, as the the theatre soon flooded. On Feb. 8, 1916, the “Wisconsin State Journal” reported, “Some one unfortunately left a window open in the Al Ringling theater which caused a pipe to freeze and burst thereby flooding the balcony to some extent. The carpets and mattings were soaked. They were removed and there was no interference with the pay announced for the evening” (Madison, page 4).

To be continued…