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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…

Part 465: Patrick J. Toomey’s Electrical Pageant for the Wichita Carnival and Fall Festival, 1900

In 1900, the “Street Railway Journal” reported, “The possibilities in the way of electrical decoration and illumination in street parades afforded by the overhead wires of a trolley road have been proved in several cities, particularly New Orleans, and views of the floats use din the Mardi Gras processions in that city last winter were published in the Street Railway Journal” (August 4, 1900, page 705). The article continued, “The unlimited current available for lighting and power to propel the flats makes it possible to secure finer spectacular effects than would otherwise be possible. This was shown during the special carnival, held June 28 in Milwaukee, in which trolley current was used for this purpose to a greater extent probably than ever before, and which was generally regarded as one of the most successful night pageants ever held on this continent.”

Toomey was involved with the electric floats in Milwaukee since 1898, when he received the news of Noxon’s death. By 1900, the Milwaukee Carnival consisted of twenty parade floats, placed on electric trucks, and lighted with 6000 lights of different colors. A variety of subjects, they were “presented without any aim at continuity of idea, but solely for their picturesque beauty and scope for fantastic display of form, color, and effulgent light.” By 1915, San Francisco’s electric parades would boast, “the first electrical pageant to be staged in the city independent of street car current;” the currents for the parade float lights were supplied by automobiles and storage batteries (San Francisco Chronicle, 5 Dec. 1915, page 61).

Toomey’s production of parade floats started in 1878 for the Veiled Prophets procession. His unique floats became a staple for Mardi Gras in New Orleans, the Veiled Prophets in St. Louis, and Carnivals across the country. Illuminated parades emerged appeared all over the country, including Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Springfield, Illinois; El Paso, Texas; and Wichita, Kansas. The Wichita Beacon provided detailed accounts of the electric pageant in that city, giving us great insight into the design and construction of Toomey’s floats.

In 1900, the “Wichita Beacon” included an article concerning the City’s contracting P. J. Toomey to design and manufacture the electric pageant for the upcoming Wichita Carnival and Fall Festival (14 July 1900, page 5).

Here is the wonderful description of Toomey’s artistic contribution to the upcoming Wichita Carnival and Fall Festival in 1900; the event was scheduled for October 1-6.

“Contract Closed.

Electrical Pageant Will Be Given Carnival Week.

Attractions for Midway About Secured.

The Wichita Carnival and Fall Festival association yesterday closed a contract with P. J. Toomey of St. Louis for the production of his electrical pageant in this city on Friday night during street fair week. The floats, twelve in number, will be built at once by the Noxon-Toomey Scenic Art Company of St. Louis.

Sixty-five costumed characters will be required on the floats, besides 120 attendants on foot. The floats will be lighted by incandescent lamps, 150 being placed on each float. The floats will be mounted on street car trucks and run over the lines of the street railway company. The parade will be seen on Douglas and Main streets and will counter march to the starting place.

Outside of the regular scenic floats, four floats will be provided for bands. The parade will be brilliantly lighted by colored lights and the costuming of the attendants will be elaborate. The floats will be run about 200 feet apart.”

The carnival association also contracted three searchlights to be used to illuminate the streets at night, besides the other electrical decorations. A Carnival queen was be crowned with a very elaborate ceremony. “The Anthony Bulletin,” reported that colored calcium flashes would be thrown on the scenic effects and upon a chorus of one hundred female voices, dressed in white and arranged to show a red, white and blue scene” (The Anthony Bulletin, Anthony, Kansas, 6 Sept, 1900, page 4). The state of Kansas was billed as the “Italy of America,” and Wichita “the Peerless Princess of the Plains” (The Kingman Journal, Kingman, Kansas, 21 September 1900, page 5).

On October 5, 1900, the “Wichita Beacon” credited Toomey with designing and constructing the floats in St. Louis, working on them “with great care and painstaking for several months” (5 Oct. 1900, page 5). Their cost for the twelve floats and their transportation over the Missouri Pacific railroad was reported to be several thousand dollars. Each float, because of its size, occupied a special flat car. The article continued, “The street car company has arranged four cars to accommodate the various bands that will furnish the music for the occasion and these also will be trimmed and will be a feature of the grand pageant. The latter will form on Douglas, just east of the Rock Island track and at eight o’clock sharp will move west on Douglas to Main, north to Oak street and, returning over the same route, will end at the starting point.

The electricity will be supplied by the street car trolley wires. The various persons who will participate in the affair will be tastefully costumed to represent the characters they assume for the occasion in the great variety of subjects.”

Tomorrow, I will include an article that described each individual float designed by Toomey during 1900. There are amazing!

To be continued…

Part 464: Patrick J. Toomey and the Majestic Theatre in Austin

P. J. Toomey’s only son wrote a book about his maternal genealogy and German heritage titled, “The Vogts von Berg in Düsseldorf and American” (200 copies printed for private distribution, St. Louis, Missouri, 1921). He dedicated the book to his mother Mrs. Mary Vogt Toomey.

Mary Anna Vogt was born in Iowa City on December 20, 1859. She was one of seven children born to Dr. William Vogt and Mary O’Connor. Her father was born in Düsseldorf in 1816, studying medicine in Heidelberg before working as a ship’s surgeon. He later practiced among the German intellectuals in Belleville, Illinois before being invited by the Governor of Iowa to visit Iowa City, where he later married Mary O’Connor of that city in 1849. The couple had seven children: Carl Albert (b. 1852), Catherine Hannora (b. 1853), William Julius, Mary Anna (b. 1854), Augustine (b. 1855), James Francis (b. 1858), Caroline (b. 1861), and Edith (b. 1887).

P. J. Toomey’s wife, Mary graduated from St. Agatha’s Seminary in 1874 and from Mount St. Joseph’s College in 1878. She taught English at Iowa City High School between 1880 and 1884. On October 5, 1886, Marry married Patrick Joseph Toomey. Although the couple had two children, Thomas Noxon (b. 1893) and Mary Wilhelmina (1903-1904), only their son survived infancy. For many years, Mary was the Corresponding Secretary, General Council, for the Daughters of the Queen of Heaven. From 1908-1909, she studied in Paris. It was during this time, that her husband sent postcards to Thomas Moses at Sosman & Landis. Mary was presented to Pope Leo XIII, and to Pope Pius X. She was extremely active in charitable and civic work since shortly after her marriage to Toomey.

There are several connections between the Toomey family and the Moses family, possibly having contributed to their continued friendship over the decades. First of all, P. J. Toomey and Mary Vogt were approximately the same age as Thomas G. Moses and Ella Robbins. Thomas and Ella married in 1878, whereas P. J. and Mary married in 1886. In some ways they shared similar family circumstances; Thomas Moses’ father was once a ship’s captain while Mary Vogt’s father was once a ship’s surgeon. Both Toomey and Moses came to the United States as infants, with Toomey born in Limerick, Ireland, and Moses born in port at Liverpool. Each entered scene painting at approximately the same age as an apprentice. Whereas Toomey was apprenticed to Thomas C. Noxon, Moses was apprenticed to Lou Malmsha at McVickers and worked his way up the ranks at Sosman & Landis; both studied with mid-nineteenth-century immigrants. Their artistic mentors passed along a similar approach to scenic art, using opaque colors common to European and Scandinavian immigrants, versus the English tradition of glazing (see past installments 387 and 411).

Mary Vogt’s sister Caroline married a lawyer, George Benjamin Hufford, on April 20, 1905 in Leavenworth, Kansas; the couple moved to Austin, Texas where Hufford was a U. S. Commissioner. They lived in Evergreen Heights in Austin. There is a reason why I am telling this backstory as it has to do with the Majestic Theatre in Austin, Texas.

When I was in Austin this month for the League of Historic American Theaters conference, the closing party was held at the Paramount Theatre, originally established as the Majestic Theatre. During the welcome and brief presentation by the staff, the fire curtain was lowered. It was original to Majestic Theatre when it was built in 1915. As I looked at the painted curtain, complete with blue draperies, ornate frame, woodland stream, and tassels at the bottom, something looked familiar.

It was the tassel painting that made me think of a Noxon & Toomey drop design that I encountered in 2016. The unique tassels at the bottom of the composition jogged my memory.

Sure enough, the fire curtain composition was signed “Toomey & Volland” of St. Louis. I had started to explore the stylistic tendencies of each artist a few years ago, and I believed that this curtain was by Toomey, not Volland. It is possible that it could have been done by any of the studio artists at the time, but it had a much older feel about it – a throwback, one could say.

Sadly, it was lit with oversaturated colors and some of the painting techniques were difficult to discern, as overly saturated lighting flattens the dimension of the scenic illusion and skews the entire composition. Regardless, it was obvious that this composition was painted by an artist from an earlier generation – the generation of Thomas G. Moses. I believe that this is the work of the senior partner in the painting firm at the time – Toomey. Toomey has entered my blog on occasion, as he was a good friend of Moses.

But here is where it gets interesting and loops back to the Paramount theatre. As I was researching Toomey & Volland, I came across the reference that Toomey’s sister-in-law who settled in Austin, Texas.

Her husband was a City Commissioner. Furthermore, for the opening of the Majestic (later Paramount), members of the City Commission and their families were invited as guests for one of the first box parties. The Majestic was managed by Austin F. Gale Wallace, and before the fire curtain rose for the first time, Wallace gave “a curtain speech,” introducing the Mayor and members of the City Commission and then acknowledging those who had been instrumental in “giving Austin this large, modern, up-to-date amusement house – ‘the last word in theater architecture,’ said Mayor Woolridge” (The Austin American, 12 Oct. 1915, page 3). I have yet to find any credit being given to Toomey & Volland, or any other contractors beyond the architectural firm for their contributions.

To be continued…

Here is the link to Thomas Noxon Toomey’s book: https://books.google.com/books?id=RudFAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA18&lpg=PA18&dq=Mary+Vogt+Hufford&source=bl&ots=bf1krOTCqC&sig=oyd3beloyo3kZsFMvXnhVhP2ajo&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiP35WT_cTcAhWMx4MKHaHGA1wQ6AEwAHoECAEQAQ#v=onepage&q&f=false

Part 463: Patrick J. Toomey of Noxon & Toomey

In 1896, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch featured Patrick J. Toomey, including a brief biography and illustration. The article reported, “Patrick J. Toomey was born in Limerick, Ireland in 1854 and came to St. Louis with his parents as an infant. He received his education at the Christian Brothers’ College and in the public schools. His first employment was in the retail grocery trade. After a few years he found this work uncongenial and apprenticed himself to scenic art under Mr. Thomas C. Noxon at Deagle’s Varieties. With his tutor, four years later, he formed the partnership of Noxon & Toomey, continuing in the same line ever since. In connection with Mr. Noxon, Mr. Toomey has been the scenic artist at the Olympic Theater and Grand Opera House for over twenty years. In 1886, he married Miss May Vogt, a daughter of Dr. Wm. Vogt of Iowa City, Iowa” (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 2 April, 1896). The couple’s only child was named Noxon Toomey, who grew up to become a doctor.

I was curious about the venue where Toomey apprenticed himself to Noxon – Deagle’s Variety Theater. George Deagle’s Varieties Theater introduced musical comedy to St. Louis with “The Black Crook” in 1867 and briefly took the lead as one of St. Louis’ five theaters at that time. Various documents placed the location of the venue at Sixth Street near Locust. Little is known of Deagle’s Varieties Theater, and there are only a handful of advertisements for shows from 1876. Interestingly, an article from 1882 mentions that Deagle managed the only variety and spectacular house in pre-Civil War St Louis “then located where the present Grand Opera House now stands” (St. Louis Post-Dispatchm 20 March 1882, page 5). It appears that Deagle managed the St. Louis Opera House from 1865 until 1872, when he set his sites on another venue. In 1872 he rented the Olympic Theatre of St. Louis for a production of “Uncle Tom’s Cabin.”

The Buffalo Courier reported that George Deagle (1822-1908) was “the oldest theatrical manager in the country, who many years ago owned the Deagle Varieties Theater” (Buffalo Courier 14 Oct. 1900, page 17). Deagle later managed the People’s Theatre in Chicago too.

As an interesting side note, his granddaughter Ann Murdock took to the stage in 1908 at the age of 17, making her debut in “The Offenders.” She noted that her grandfather, George Deagle, was the manager of Deagles Varieties in St. Louis fifty years ago (New York Times 29 Oct. 1908, page 9), placing the establishment’s origin in the 1850s. Ann Murdock’s mother, Terese Deagle was also an actress, and one of the first leading women employed by Charles Frohman. Her father was a manager for many years at the American Theatrical Exchange (The St. Louis Post-Dispatch 12 June 1921, page 3). I became fascinated with this theatre family, but back to Toomey.

In 1922, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch placed Toomey’s birthdate in 1851 and reported that Toomey was “considered one of the pioneer scenic painters of St. Louis” (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 13 March 1922, page 14). Toomey was best known, however, for his creation of the first floats for the Veiled Prophet’s parade and continued this sort of work for 25 years, only giving it up shortly before his death. Toomey was famed as an “electrical float builder” known also for his work at the Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans and the Milwaukee Carnival (Wichita Daily Eagle, 13 July 1900, page 6). He did most of the scene painting for the old theatres in St. Louis, including Pope’s the Olympic and the Century. At one time, he also painted for the Knickerbocker Theatre in New York City.

To be continued…

Part 462: Thomas C. Noxon of Noxon & Toomey

 The founding dates for Noxon and Toomey seem to vary when one looks at a variety of printed material and public records. Some sources place the firm starting in 1867, while others place the establishment around 1869. The firm lasted until Noxon’s passing in 1898.

Thomas C. Noxon was an extremely well-known scenic artist during the nineteenth century. Born in Montreal, Canada, during 1829, he came to the United States as a child. Initially living in Zanesville and in Millerburg, Ohio, Noxon attended public schools. For a time he lived in Detroit, and that was where he entered the theatrical profession. At the age of sixteen in 1845, he moved to St. Louis and studied art.

Noxon was married twice. He married his first wife, Ann Hazzard, on April 14, 1853 when he was twenty-four years old. The couple had three daughters, but only two were living at the time of his death, Mrs. Samuel Wilson and Mrs. Harry Belden, both of whom acted on the stage. The daughter that predeceased Noxon, Libbie, was also an actress, performing as Blosson in Ben Maginely’s “Square Man” during 1882. She passed away in 1894 after a long illness (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 27 May 1894, page 31). A “Miss Noxon, the daughter of Thomas C. Noxon,” also performed with the Olympic stock company and reported to be married to the comedian Harry Harwood in 1883; this may have been Libbie (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 1 Sept. 1883, page 8). In 1885, Noxon married for a second time to a “Mrs. Selvers.”

There are a few interesting tidbits that I uncovered about this somewhat evasive artist. In 1880, Noxon was working with the stage machinist Mr. S. I. Gates to create the scenery for “Cymbeline” at the Olympic (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 5 Jan. 1880, page 8). In 1882, he was mentioned as the scenic artist of the Grand Opera House. In 1884, Noxon was credited as being both the scenic artist for the Grand Opera House and Olympic Theaters in St. Louis (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 21 Jan. 1884, page 8).

Later, Noxon’s business partner P. J. Toomey would remain at the Olympic, using the studio room for Toomey & Volland. This space was destroyed by fire in 1922. In 1884, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported, “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” (St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 21 Jan. 1884, page 8). At the time of his passing in 1898, the “Dramatic Mirror” reported, “His name appears on the corner of theatrical curtains in almost every large city in the country, and is also seen in the theatres of Europe” (2 July 1898, page 6).

Noxon worked as both a scenic artist and a decorative painter, heading four theatrical painting firms during his life: Noxon & Strauss, Noxon, Halley & Toomey, Noxon, Albert & Toomey, and finally Noxon & Toomey.

My research suggests that Noxon joined forces with Patrick Joseph Toomey to establish the Noxon & Toomey Painting Studio of St. Louis between 1867 and 1869. Noxon was the senior partner and is reported to have managed the studio from its inception until his illness in 1896. This is where history gets a bit fuzzy around the edges. The business remained opened after Albert left Noxon & Toomey in 1891, but Toomey also established the Knox & Toomey Scenic Art Company at that same time. Knox & Toomey also specialized in float construction and electric pageant wagons, the same kind that Noxon & Toomey specialized in since 1878. Their creations dominated the pageant market all over the country.

Like many men of his generation, Noxon joined a variety of social clubs and fraternal organization. In addition to being a prominent member of several Masonic orders, he was also a charter member for the Benevolent and Protected Order of Elks. The Elks were an American fraternal order founded during 1868 in New York City. It was initially a social club for minstrel show performers, called the “Jolly Corks.” Some historical records suggest that the group was formed as a private club to elude laws governing the restrictive hours for public taverns. After a member’s death that left his wife and children without funds, the organization took on a more charitable mission.

Noxon passed away from nephritis, on June 20, 1898, after a long illness. His remains are interred in “Elks Rest,” the Elks section of Bellfontaine Cemetery in St. Louis (block 70, lot 1043). At the time of his death, Noxon was living at 2010 Rutger Street. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported, “Mr. Noxon for years had been considered one of the foremost scenic painters in the country and his work can be seen in almost every prominent theater in the United States” (21 June 1898, page 7). When he passed away, Toomey was in Wisconsin, superintending Milwaukee Carnival Floats. The “Weekly Wisconsin” reported, “Mr. Toomey received a telegram this morning announcing his partner’s death, and at once arranged to leave for St. Louis to attend the funeral. ‘Mr. Noxon was the greatest scenic artist this country has produced,’ said Mr. Toomey. ‘He was 69 years of age and had done work for the leading theaters of the country, besides what he did in way of pageantry. He leaves a wife and two daughters, one of whom is on the stage. Mr. Noxon had been ill for a year and a half, and had been confined to his bed for the last six months” (The Weekly Wisconsin, 25 June 1898, page 4).

Toomey’s only child was named Noxon Toomey.

To be continued…