Copyright © 2022 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett
Sosman & Landis employee, J. C. Johnson, was listed as guest at a Chicago Commerce event in 1914.
That same year, the Chicago Directory listed Jos. C. Johnson as Secretary for the firm, indicating that Johnson’s first name was Joseph. In 1914, Johnson was living at 730 Waveland av. He was again listed as the secretary for the firm in 1915.
I have put off posting about Johnson for quite some time, despite jotting his name down a few years ago. Trying to locate Johnson is like looking for a needle in a haystack.
What I do know is that Johnson was already working at Sosman & Landis in 1913. On July 21 of that year, he placed the following want ad in the “Chicago Tribune”:
“For sale – or rent – Twelfth-st. Theatre, located on Twelfth-st., near Halsted-st. Seats 600. J. C. Johnson, 417 S. Clinton-st.” (page 17). 417 S. Clinton Street was the address for the main studio at Sosman & Landis. This suggests that Johnson was working in an administrative capacity at the studio that year. For context, in 1913, Sosman & Landis listed two business offices: 417 S. Clinton and 17 W 20th. Johnson was working in the main studio building.
Although Johnson was listed as the firm’s secretary in 1914 and 1915, there is little else to go on. Did he solely work in an administrative capacity, or did he enter the theatre industry though a trade? If I were to assume that Johnson was a painter, he was one of several working in Chicago around the same time.
I have spent countless hours trying to track down the lives and careers of several Chicago-based J. C. Johnsons; each one a viable candidate who may have been employed at Sosman & Landis. The names include Joseph C. Johnson, James C. Johnson, and John C. Johnson – all working in the same region at the same time. This means that articles mentioning “scenic artist Johnson” or “J. C. Johnson, scenic artist,” could be any one of the them. To further complicate matters, if I look beyond Chicago, there are many, many more J. C. Johnsons working as scene painters on a variety of projects.
Although Johnson was secretary of a scenic studio firm it doesn’t mean he could paint. Such was the case with his predecessor at Sosman & Landis, David H. Hunt, a consummate salesman and theatrical manager.
Finally, it is extremely difficult to track down any individual without knowing an approximate age. I really am at a loss here and have to end my search for now, unless more information comes to light.
To be continued…
