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Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In February 1920, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “Went to St. Louis and closed the deal for $3,000.00 for the boardwalk show.” Upon his return to Chicago, he wrote, “I started a model for the board-walk show for a St. Louis party.  They want to put it up at the St. Louis Coliseum.” At the time Moses was working at the Chicago Studios and had painted scenery for a similarly themed event in Chicago. The St. Louis project was planned for the week of April 5 to 14.

On January 21, 1920, the “St. Louis Star and Times” announced, “For the first time since the world has been free of war and rumors of war St. Louis society women and girls are planning a great bazaar to be given at the Coliseum Easter Week…The entertainment will be in the form of an ‘Atlantic City Board Walk,’ something on the order of a recent bazaar given in Chicago. It will resemble the fashion show given at the Coliseum a year or so before America entered the war in 1917 and will be the first large affair disassociated from war charities of our own on other nations since 1915” (page 11). 

Of the Coliseum decorations, the article continued, “The interior of the great edifice will be draped to represent Atlantic City – with seas on one side, the boardwalk in the center and the booths and shops on the other side. There will be every sort of amusement afforded in the booths. Visitors may stroll in the fashionable parade up and down the bard walk or may ride in the chairs, which will be imported for the occasion from Atlantic City.”

The show was for the benefit of the teachers’ endowment funds at Washington University and Smith and Bryn Mawr Colleges.  The “St. Louis Post-Dispatch” noted, “An effort is being made through various means in all parts if the country to raise $4,000,000 for Smith College and $2,000,000 each for Bryn Mawr and Washington University. In the interest of this movement the ‘Board Walk’ entertainment has been given in a number of large cities. It is said to have netted more than $90,000 for the fund in Chicago recently” (20 April 1920, page 3).

Moses was intimately involved with the Chicago board walk, having also painted a large panorama for the event. Of his board walk design for St. Louis, the article continued, “Everything which can be accomplished with artificial scenery has been done to transform the interior of the Coliseum into a duplication of Atlantic City’s famous Board Walk. A canvas curtain of blue, representing the sky has been suspended all around the hall so as to cut off the view of tiers of seats and in front of the boxes there will be a setting representing the ocean. The board walk extending from one end of the arena to the other will be 42 feet wide, with sand on either side to simulate a beach.”

One week before the event, the “St. Louis Post-Dispatch” reported the arrival of scenic decorations for the Coliseum: “Three carloads of scenery will be required for the boardwalk spectacle to be given at the Coliseum next week for the benefit of the salary endowment fund for Washington University, Smith and Bryn Mawr College. The scenery, which represents the board walk at Atlantic City, arrived yesterday from Chicago. Fifteen carloads of sand will be used for the ‘beach.’ A number of pretty girls in bathing costumes will decorate the beach” (28 March 1920, page 56).

The event began on April 5 with a large Atlantic City board walk parade, consisting of thirty-five autos and floats that traveled through business streets. The “St. Louis Star” reported, “The walk itself is 42 feet long, and is flanked on each side with sand, to represent a beach. There will be a restaurant, amusement featured and a dance pavilion in addition to the shops” (page 3). The “St Louis Post-Dispatch” announced, “Carnival Crowd Fills Shops at Board Walk. Even most out-of-way booths at Coliseum do rushing business and record for one night’s receipts is apparently broken” (11 April, page 3). The newspaper article described, “Those who attended for the first time were surprised at the beauty of the show as a spectacle. The scores of girls in quaint and fetching costumes, the gay coloring of the shops and the artistic displays in some of them, the very largeness of the show, were impressive to many who saw it for the first time.

The largest source of revenue was from the advanced ticket sales of 28,000 tickets totaling $12,000. Program advertisement space bringing in an additional $9,200. On April 18, 1920, the “St. Louis Post-Dispatch” reported “Board Walk Receipts Count Passes $74,000.” It was the candy shop that ended up taking in the most money, $3,602.0” (page 3).

In the end it was successful, but quite a noisy affair. One reporter wrote, “But one thing that was everywhere – pervasive, baffling, unescapable- was noise. A band at each end of the place and an orchestra in the basement; the megaphone bellowing of amateur ballyhoo men; the constant querulous chorus of girls selling ice cream, flowers, face powder, toy balloons and chances on every kind of character of commodity form pearl necklace to a prize heifer, combined to make a veritable babel” (St. Louis Star, April 18, 1920).

To be continued…

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In 1920, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “Binghamton, New York, work came in during February and proved to be a good contract.”  He was referring to the Strand Theatre on Chenago street in Binghamton, New York. When the theater opened that spring, the “Press and Sun-Bulletin” reported, “In the decorations some of some of the best artists in the country have been employed…The asbestos curtain is decorated to harmonize with the rest of the house. The drop curtain, of blue, is hand-painted to correspond in tone with the draperies. The scenery is all of the newest and latest design” (6 March 1920, page 12). A picture of the asbestos curtain was pictured alongside the article about the new theater.

Local headlines announced, “Theater Built in Record Time Despite Delays. Contractor Badgley Erects Strand in About Seven Months of Actual Work. Best Materials Are Used. Binghamton’s New Playhouse Is Absolutely Fireproof, Declares Builder” (“Press and Sun-Bulletin,” 6 March 1920, page 13). The article continued, “Work on the Strand Theater, Binghamton’s new playhouse, which will be opened on Monday, was begun on May 20, 1919, under the direction of A. E. Badgley, who has since had full charge of its construction.

“Inasmuch as the [work] was interrupted entirely for a month and partially for two weeks more by the contractor’s inability to get deliveries of steel, the theater was actually completed in approximately seven months’ working time. This constitutes a record of which both Mr. Badgley and the members of the company are rather proud.

“The celerity with which the work was done becomes even more surprising when it is realized that a large part of it had to be performed in the face of the most severe weather conditions in many years. Cold wave followed cold wave, but the builders early got the building enclosed and thereafter work proceeded almost as fast as it would have in Summer.

“The long wait occasioned by the none delivery of steel came in September and October and was due to conditions prevalent throughout the country. The contractor obtained his steel rather than more quickly than he had first expected, and the work thereafter went with a rush. But for the unavoidable delay the theater could have been opened by Christmas.

“Mr. Badgley said today that none but the best materials, steel, brick and concrete, were used in the building, and that it is absolutely fireproof.

An unusual feature is that no posts have been used anywhere in the auditorium. The balcony is supported by steel girders weighing18 and 20 tons, leaving a clear space everywhere in the auditorium.

“The seating capacity is given by the management as approximately 1,600.

“The ground dimensions of the theater are 134 by 60 feet and the height from the floor to the dome is 50 feet. The stage opening is 32 feet and the height to the top of the proscenium arch, 26 feet. The stage is ample in size for the most elaborate vaudeville offerings.

“In the construction of the building there was an unusual freedom from delays sometimes caused by error in the plans and the things overlooked. Aside from the delay arising from the difficulty in obtaining steel, everything went with great smoothness.

“Names of Builders. The following men and concerns furnished materials and workmanship for the theater: Contractor in charge of construction, A. E. Badgkey, Stone Opera House building; plumbing, Robert J. Malane, State Street; heating plant, Runyan & Ogden, Commericial Avenue; cement, J. W. Ballard company, Jarvis Street; draperies, Sisson Brothers-Welden company, Court Street.”

I am pausing to comment on the draperies credited to the Sisson Brother-Welden Company. The draperies mentioned were for the rest of the building and not the stage. Sisson Brother-Welden company was a local dry goods and supply store, not a theatrical manufacturing firm.

The article continued: “carpets and furniture, Sanitary Bedding and Furniture company, Chenago Street; roofing, Binghamton Slag Roofing company, State Street; signs, Georger F. Ullman company, State Street; hardware, Crocker & Ogden, Court Street; tinning, Sullivan & Brothers, State Street’ plaster work, Maltby & company, Corning; X-Ray Reflector company, 31 West 46^th street, New York City; automatic ticket sellers and cash registers. Automatic Ticket Selling and Cash Resgister company, 1737 Broadway, New York City; organ, Kimball Organ Company, Chicago; decorating, Gustave Brandt company, Chicago.”

Interesting that there is no individual note for the scenery and stage machinery, especially as the asbestos curtain my Moses was pictured alongside the article. However, the Strand primarily featured photoplays. The article concluded with, “The photoplays will be supplied by the following companies, Goldwyn Distributing Company, 200 Peral Street, Buffalo; Famous players-Laskey Corporation, 215 Franklin Street, Buffalo; Select Pictures Corporation, Franklin street, Buffalo; United Artists, 29 Seventh Avenue, New York City; First National Exhibitors, Inc., Franklin Street, Buffalo.”

Of particular interest to me was the X-Ray lighting system. On March 6, the “Binghamton Press” reported, “The lighting effect are obtained by means of the latest X-Ray system, used at present in only a few theaters in the United States. All the lights are concealed in ‘coves’ and are controlled by a dimming system so that they cannot only be dimmed or made to blaze brilliantly at will, but also to shed light of any color desired…On the ceiling are panels shaded in light fine delicate colors, and reaching entirely across the theater, above the proscenium arch, is a striking mural painting. This, like the other paintings, is lighted with battery of X-Ray lights in front of the balcony rail, making it stand out prominently. The dome, also beautifully decorated, is lighted with X-Ray lights which many be manipulated to create any color effect desired.” 

For future film features, the article continued, “The projection room is the back of the balcony and entirely out of the way. It is equipped with two of the latest Simplex projecting machines. These will be operated with direct current, which assures steady and flickerless pictures.”

To be continued…

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In 1920, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “The first of February we closed with Gatts for a $2,000.00 Katzenjammer Kids production.”

Moses had worked with Gatts on a few Katzenjammer Kids productions prior to 1920. In 1917, Moses wrote, “Closed a contract for two scenes with Gatts and Company, $825.00 for ‘Katzenjammer Kids.’  We hustled it out.” Later in 1917, Moses added, “Another order for Gatts and Company.”

This was actually Gazzolo, Gatts, and Clifford Inc., a production company that formed in the fall of 1916, filing corporation papers in Chicago, Illinois. The company copyrighted the Katzenjammer Kids by 1917 when the Katzenjammer show went on the road. By 1920 the Katzenjammer Kids, Hans and Fritz, were played by Henry and Pau Washer and noted as “miniature men of considerable ability” (Greenville News, 7 March 1920, page 6). Mrs. Ludwina Katzenjammer played the mother of “mama’s angel children” and William J. Hoyt portrayed the Captain. The scenery and costumeds were also highlighted in newspaper reviews.

The Katzenjammer Kids was a comic strip concerning two mischievous little German fellows, Hans and Fritz, first appearing in 1897. This comic strip was first turned into a stage play in 1903. In 1917, the Katzenjammer Kids was advertised as a “cartoon musical comedy” produced by Gazzolo, Gatts and Clifford. Hans, Fritz, Ma Katzenjammer, Der Professor, Der Captain and the other characters were featured in the production. Donald M. Bestor composed the music and Virgil M. Bennee choreographed the musical numbers. The play was staged in three acts, the first showing a hotel, the second a dock scene and the third the Hawaiian Islands. Of the 1917 production, “The Indianapolis Star” reported, “Particular care has been taken with the staging and costuming of the Katzenjammer Kids. The fashion plate chorus is gowned in various fetching evening gowns, all of which match harmoniously with the beautiful stage pictures and novel electrical effects” (15 March 1917, page 3).

Only the name was changed during the war years, when all things German were suspect. By 1920, the “Albany Democrat” commented, “How soon we forget. Already the name Katzenjammer Kids appears again. On account of prejudice, during the war, it was changed to the Shenanigan Kids” (6 Aug. 1920, page 4). On March 31, 1920, “The News and Observer” reported, “Hans and Fritz of cartoon fame and with whom every man, woman and child are acquainted either as ‘The Katzenjammer Kids,’ ‘The Katzies” or ‘The Shenanigan Kids,’ will present the latest edition of ‘The Katzenjammer Kids’ at the Academy  of Music this afternoon matinee and tonight. The offering is a delightful musical comedy with book and lyrics by John P, Mulgrew, and music by Donald H. Hester. Tunes of mellow deliciousness abound in this appealing comedy, and will rock with laughter at the mirth-provoking doings of ‘Hans and Fritz,’ the Captain and Mrs. Katzenjammer. Clean, healthful comedy, free from salacious and indecent, is a feature of the performance. A 99-year guarantee is handed out with every ticket that the performance will turn a sober, staid citizen into a twin cousin of St. Vitus or a Charley Chaplain” (Raleigh, North Carolina, page 7).

On August 30, 1920, the “Albany Democrat” reported, “The Katzenjammer Kids is a rapid-fire comedy of mirth and laughter. The beauty of feminine members of the company is enhanced by costumes and the latest designs. Twenty-three musical numbers are rendered during the action of the comedy High-class specialties and original novelties are agreeable features of the performance. It is the most enjoyable cartoon musical comedy of the season, and if you have a laugh left in your system, go and see ‘Hans and Fritz’ and their friends and be sure to take the kiddies for they know how to laugh” (page 4). By Nov. 15, 1920, “The Pantagraph,” announced, “Katzenjammer Kids is the most massively and magnificently mounted and costumed cartoon play ever produced. One of its features is the big fashion parade. The beauties of the chorus in the ensemble number are gowned in the latest feminine fashions that are up to the minutes, which will surely prove an interesting feature for the ladies” (Bloomington, Illinois, page 5). In Lancaster, Pennsylvania, the “News-Journal,” noted, “The beautiful scenic pictures” of the Katzenjammer show (9 Dec. 1920, page 2).

To be continued…

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In 1920, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “A big ball at the North Side Armory, given by Mrs. Howard Linn gave us a hard job to put up, and we just did that and nothing else.”

This was another Chicago Studios project supervised by Moses before his return to Sosman & Landis in April 2020.

Mrs. Howard Linn was a well-known Chicago socialite, residing at 55 Cedar Street. Linn was involved with many public charity endeavors, social pageants, and social organizations. In 1920 Linn was the chairman of the committee in charge of the Junior League ball held on January 30, 1920, at the Second Field Artillery armory on Chicago avenue and the lake.  The feature of the ball was a pageant, announced in the “Chicago tribune” on January 3, 1920 (page 15). This was the event that Moses was referring to in his memoirs.

On Jan. 25, 1920, the “Chicago Tribune” reported, “The ‘Bal Surprise’ to be given on Friday evening by the Junior League will be a sort of grand finale to the most brilliant social season Chicago has had in many a year. Mrs. Howard Linn is in charge of the arrangements for the ball, which gives promise of being one of the most interesting affairs ever given here. The feature of the evening will be ‘tableau vivants,’ in which a number of well-known matrons and maids will take part. Herman Rosee, Randal Davey, Allan Philbrick, and Mr. Norton of the Art Institute are assisting Mrs. Linn with the tableaux, the costumes, and the decorations of the First Artillery armory, where the ball is to be held. Mrs. J. Andrews King is co-chairman with Mrs. Linn, and the chairmen of the subcommittees are as follows: Ushers, Miss Edith Cummings; tickets, Miss Caryl Dunham; refreshments, Mrs. Frederick C. Letts; program, Mrs. Lowel Chapin; music, Miss Emily Bisell; decorations, Mrs. Barney Goodspeed; costumes, Mr. Thorne Donnelley, and boxes, Mrs. Frank Hibbard.”

On the day after the ball, the “Chicago Tribune” reported, “’Bal Surprise’ Nets $12,000 for Charity” (Jan. 31, 1920, page 3). The article continued, “If it had not been for the modern dress of the guests at the Junior League ‘Bal Surprise’ last night, one would have imagined one’s self at a ball in a medieval castle. The first artillery armory, the scene of last night’s revel, is of medieval architecture and the members of the league, who acted as hostess, were gowned in the picturesque modes of those days long ago. In long trained gowns with basques and tall pointed square headdresses, they looked as if they had stepped out of the frames of old paintings of the fourteenth and fifteenth century. They were divided into two groups, the ushers, whose duty it was to see that everyone present enjoyed the party to the utmost, and the cushion bearers, who between dances flung gaily colored cushions on the floor so that the guests might be seated during the ‘tableaux vivants,’ which were the ‘piece de resistance’ of the affair.

“The tableaux, seven in number, were shown in a larger gilt frame which was hung at the end of the ballroom behind curtains of star dotted midnight blue. Mrs. Howard Linn, chairman of the ball, was assisted in arranging the tableaux by Abram Poole and by several artists from the Art Institute, Randall Davey, Harman Rossé, Allan C. Philbrick and John W. Norton. The backgrounds, which were particularly attractive were painted by these artists and they also assisted Mrs. Thorne Donnelley in designing the costumes. In the first tableau Mrs. John Andrews King and Mrs. Morris L. Johnston, dressed in pastel shaded Grecian robes, posed as figures on a Grecian vase. They were followed by Mrs. Rufus J. Zogbaum, Jr., who, with her lovely auburn hair hanging loose, made a perfect Giorgione Madonna. Preceding the next tableau, in which Miss Polly Carpenter, who is as dainty as a bit of Dresden china, with a figure in an Arras tapestry. James L. Breeze, dressed as a bird vendor with a big hoop on which his wares were perched around his hips, danced a sort of clog dance. He was assisted by Miss Sylvia Shaw and Miss Elizabeth Farwell, dressed as court ladies.

“Mrs. and Mrs. John R. Winterbotham Jr., danced a gavotte as a prelude to the fourth tableaux, in which Mrs. David Adler, attended by an Ethiopian slave, posed as a Van Dyck portrait. Preceding the fifth tableaux, a Chinese screen, Mrs. Mitchell Hoyt sang a Chinese lullaby, accompanied by Miss Louise Thorne on the mandolin. Miss Lucretia Green and Miss Alice Bradely also were in this group. The figure son the screen, which was one of the most interesting of the tableaux, were Miss Mary Rend, Miss Mabel Linn and Mrs. Joseph T. Bowen Jr.

“Mrs. John Root as a figure in a Persian print was next, and last was a Wedgwood plaque in which Mrs. Charles Edward Brown, Mrs. Philip D. Armour III., Miss Gladys High, Miss Lois Kellogg, and Miss Adelaide Pierce posed. Dressed in White robes, with their faces, necks, and arms as white as plaster and their hair covered with white wigs, the group made a base relief against a background of that wonderful Wedgwood blue, one of the most effective and attractive of the pictures.

“The cardroom, or aviary, so-called because it resembles a monstrous bird cage, was decorated with tropical birds, vines and flowers, bright colored lights and awnings. Mrs. Charles Barney Goodspeed was chairman of the committee in charge of decorating the building.

“Miss Edith Cummings, Miss Elizabeth Martin, and Miss Betty Quick were dressed as heralds and carried horns, with which they summoned the guests to the ballroom of the tableaux…a buffet supper was served during the evening in the lounge.

“The proceeds amounted to about $12,000, and will be devoted to charities to which the league annually contributes, including St. Luke’s hospital, the Visiting Nurse association, the Juvenile Protection association, the Infant Welfare society, Practical Housekeeping centers, the Mary Bartlme club, the Mental Hygiene society, the Legal Aid Society, the United Charities, the Park Ridge Home for Girls, the Fort Sheridan beach fund, and the Fort Sheridan Christmas fund.”

The monetary equivalent of $12,000 in 1920 is $153,836.40 today.

The tableaux backings were produced under the supervision of artists from the Art Institute, including Poole, Davey, Rossé, Philbrick and Norton. Moses and many scenic artists were also members of the Art Institute. My research suggests that the tableaux were produced at Chicago scenic studios, as the scenic artists had paint frames large enough to produce scenery for the event, unlike most fine artists.

To be continued…

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

I return to the life and times of Thomas G. Moses after a two-week break. The research, writing, and painting didn’t stop during the past fourteen days, just all of my online activities. This was my first significant pause since my blog in September 2016; I was overdue.

In 1920, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “The Kramer Theatre of Detroit gave us quite a good-sized order which came in very handy.” The Kramer Theatre was a sizeable venue, boasting 1,732 seats.

At the time, Moses was working for Chicago Studios and work was only trickling into the shop.  Although WWI had ended, a recession had also started at the beginning of 1920.   This slowed many theater projects but did not stop them all; the Kramer included.

The Kramer Theatre was located at 5741 Michigan Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, and named after a very successful Detroit businessman – Herman Kramer, Sr.

In 1922, Herman Kramer was included in “The City of Detroit, Michigan, 1701-1922.” Compiled by Clarence Monroe Burton, Kramer was one of many individuals recognized for their contribution to the city (City of Detroit, 1922, page 386). Of Kramer, Burton wrote, “Herman Kramer is the president of the firm Herman Kramer & Sons, furniture dealers of Detroit, and owners of the Kramer Theatre, which has recently been completed and constitutes one of the most attractive and modern amusement houses of the city.”

Kramer was born on February 11, 1868, to parents Edward and Frederica (Heinman) Kramer. The couple arrived in America during the 1880s and settled in Detroit. Edward was in the lumber business. Herman began in the wallpaper hanging trade. He continued in that line and established his own business by 1893. Burton described, “His patronage steadily grew, and success attended his efforts. This constituted the initial step towards his present line, for after a time he added to his establishment a stock of furniture and has developed his business into one of the most successful furniture houses in the city. He has at times been most progressive and enterprising in his methods, the attractive line of furniture which he carried enabled him to meet every demand of the trade and he has outfitted many of the attractive homes of Detroit. He has also completed a fine structure known as the Kramer building, containing tea stores and offices with apartments above. The building is one of the valuable pieces of business property in that part of the city an occupies an entire block front on the southwest corner of Michigan avenue and Greusel street, and contains the Kramer Theatre, the second largest playhouse in Detroit. The theater, which is conducted as a vaudeville house for high-class theatrical performances and the better clean motion pictures, is thoroughly modern in all its appointments, seating over two-thousand people.”

Kramer passed away the same year as Thomas G. Moses, in 1934. Kramer’s obituary reported, “Herman Kramer, founder of the Kramer Furniture Co., and widely known in business and Masonic circles here for almost half a century, died Friday at his home, 5711 Michigan Ave. Born in Magdeburg, Germany, 68 years ago he came to Detroit when he was 16 years old. Forty-two years ago, he founded the furniture company bearing his name, located at the same building with his home. Later another store at 7665 Gratoit Ave. was opened. The Michigan Ave. store was discontinued about a year ago. He was also the owner of the Kramer Theater, 5731 Michigan Ave., and the entire block in which his home and theater are located. Mr. Kramer was a member of Union Lodge, No. 3, F.&A.M.; Peninsular Chapter, R.A.M.; the Michigan Sovereign Consistory, and Moslem Temple of the Shrine. He is survived by his wife Elenore and two sons, Walter and Herman, Jr.” Detroit Free Press, 27 April 1934, page 20).

Kramer was remembered as “one of the pioneer businessmen in the Junction-Michigan Aves. Section and was in the furniture business there for more than 30 years” (Detroit Free Press, 27 Nov. 1935, page 24). Herman Kramer & Sons had a store on the east side at 1697 Gratoit Ave. and on the west side at 1609 Michigan Ave. (“Detroit Free Press,” 21 Nov. 1920, page 15).

To be continued…

I am taking a break from posting online for the next two weeks. On July 20, 2020, I will resume sharing historic scenery photos again at Facebook page Dry Pigment. I will also return to the life and times of scenic artist Thomas G. Moses (1856-1934) in “Tales of a Scenic Artist and Scholar” Stay safe.

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In 1920, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “Early in January I started on a model for the big Elk’s Show, which we did in July.”

It is almost impossible to pinpoint the specific Elks Show that Moses was talking about by 1920. First of all, it is unclear where Moses was working at this time. In 1918 Moses Left Sosman & Landis to work for New York Studios. Within a year, he left New York Studios to work for Chicago Studios. He then returned to Sosman & Landis by April 2020. However, he also completed a lot of work under his own name. Without a specific reference to a producer or location, it is difficult to track down the specific Elks Show.

I have written quite a bit about the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks in past posts.  The fraternal group had roots in the theatre and was originally known as the Jolly Corkers. For an overview of the organization’s history see past post 539. Here is the link: https://drypigment.net2018/10/19/tales-from-a-scenic-artist-and-scholar-part-539-origins-of-the-jolly-corks-and-benevolent-and-protective-order-of-elks-b-p-o-e/

Like the Masons, some Elks used stage settings for their degree work; degree work otherwise conducted in a standard lodge room. Historic photographs of the Elks Opera House in Prescott, Arizona, show an early-twentieth century ceremonial scenery with a set piece containing the words Charity, Justice, Brotherly Love and Fidelity on a step unit (past post 538, https://drypigment.net2018/10/17/tales-from-a-scenic-artist-and-scholar-part-538-w-h-clifton-and-the-elks-opera-house/). Unlike many private fraternal theaters (like Scottish Rite Theatres), Elks Opera Houses were often options for touring productions and public performances.  They were more akin to the early-nineteenth century and mid-nineteenth century Masonic Opera Houses. The performance venue houses financially supported the ongoing maintenance of the fraternal building. This approach was similar to large Masonic buildings with retail spaces on the ground floors and lodge rooms above. For the Elks, the opera house was used by both the membership and various entertainment rentals, a win-win.

Elks Opera Houses dotted the landscape during the first few decades of the twentieth century, signifying another lucrative clientele for scenic studios. Elks Opera House postcard collections included everything from small social halls to large metropolitan venues. In each case, their entertainment venues demanded stage machinery, scenery, and lighting equipment. This signified a substantial investment, even for the smaller venues; big business for theatrical manufacturers. Early twentieth century newspaper article describe stage mechanics traveling the country, installing scenery collections, and putting on a presentation of scenic effects prior to their departure for another venue.

An Elks stage with new scenery meant new opportunities for social events and fundraising. Popular plays and minstrel shows became the vehicle for fundraisers, combining professional production staffs and leading performers with some local performers to function as a chorus. Like other firms, Sosman & Landis provided painted settings for “Elks Shows” and “Elks Follies” marketed by the Joe Bren Company (past post 941, https://drypigment.net2020/03/24/tales-from-a-scenic-artist-and-scholar-part-941-the-joe-bren-company-and-minstrel-shows-1916/). Other popular shows created specifically for Elks venues included “The Elks Tooth” (past post 864, https://drypigment.net2019/12/05/tales-from-a-scenic-artist-and-scholar-part-864-the-elks-tooth-1913/) and “Let’s Go Peggy” (past post 1031, https://drypigment.net2020/06/24/tales-from-a-scenic-artist-and-scholar-part-1031-lets-go-peggy-the-elks-big-show-of-1919/).

The survival of an early twentieth century scenic studio depended on diversification in projects. A firm could not solely survive on the production of painted illusion and stage settings for live theatre.  They needed a diverse clientele that could weather economic down turns and unexpected events.  Sosman & Landis cast their nets wide for clients and landed projects for fraternities, circus spectacles, trade shows, silent films, charity events, public pageants, electrical parades, private parties and other social gatherings. They also branched into the production of stage machinery, lighting equipment, fabric draperies, and projection screens. It was really all about survival.

To be continued…

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

At the beginning of 1920, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “A one night stunt for Mrs. Ryerson at the Congress Hotel Gold Room caused considerable trouble.” Moses was referring to Mrs. Martin Ryerson and the Congress Plaza hotel. The Gold Room hosted many interesting events during 1920. On January 20, there was an opportunity to meet an socialize with performers from the Chicago Grand Opera Company. This is possibly the “one-night stunt” that Moses was referring to in January.

The Congress Hotel was originally called the Auditorium Annex and built in 1893, hosting many visitors attending the World Fair that year. The current website for the venue states, “The original conception was an annex with a façade designed to complement Louis Sullivan’s Auditorium Building across the street, at the time housing a remarkable hotel, theater and office complex. The Auditorium Annex was built by famous hotel developer R.H. Southgate. The first section, or north tower, was designed by Clinton Warren, with Louis Sullivan and Dankmar Adler serving as consultants. “Peacock Alley,” a celebrated feature of the new hotel, was an underground marble passageway that connected the new annex with the Auditorium Hotel. The south tower, constructed between 1902 and 1907, was designed by renowned architectural firm Holabird and Roche. The South Tower construction included a magnificent banquet hall, now known as the Gold Room, which would become the first hotel ballroom in America to use air-conditioning. Another ballroom, called the Florentine Room, was added to the North Tower in 1909. These two famous public rooms combined with the Elizabethan Room and the Pompeian Room to host Chicago’s elite social events of the day.” Here is the link to this historic Chicago Hotel: https://www.congressplazahotel.com/history

In regard to the Ryersons, they of elite society with money to burn and some good deeds to do. On January 8, 1920, the “Chicago Tribune” reported a donation to the Field Museum by Mr. Ryerson (page 1). The donation of 222 stone blocks, comprising Unasankh’s tomb, was described in detail: “36×16 feet, with walls three feet thick…The excavation was performed by Arabs under the supervision of British officials – and 222 stone blocks were crated and shipped to Chicago.” Headlines announced, “Egypt, 2650 B. C., to Chicago, 1920; Story of Tombs.” Museum director, Dr. Frederick J. V. Skiff announced the gifts from Martin A. Ryerson and Edward A, Ayer. The article reported, “Mr. Ayer, the first president of the museum and the chief benefactor of its Egyptology department, learned of the possibility of acquiring the sarcophagi of these ancient dwellers of the Nile, and recently he conferred with Mr. Ryerson. That’s how Messrs. Uter-Neter and Unsankh happened to lose their tombs. Six hundred carloads of exhibits now at the old museum in Jackson park, about 80 per cent of them packed, are now being prepared for transportation to Grant Park.” Mrs. Ryerson was also involved with a series of guest lectures that spring, including Museum talks on Russian Art and Literature.

It is important to understand that scenic studios delivered far more than painted settings for commercial theater. They were also an artistic resource for high society, collaborating with wealthy women to produce elaborate and exotic themed social events for various charities. Scenic artists were visionaries for many public spectacles.

To be considered…

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In 1920, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “The Madam and I saw Margaret Anglin in ‘The Woman of Bronze’ and it was very good.” “The Madam” was Moses’ wife, Susan “Ella” Robbins Moses. Both turned 64 in 1920. Moses would live for another fourteen years after that.

“The Woman of Bronze” was written by Henry Kistemaeker and Eugene Delard, adapted for the stage by Paul Kester. The show premiered at the Powers’ Theatre in Chicago, starring Margaret Anglin and went on tour. By the end of January, the show was featured at the Grand in Topeka, Kansas, and by February was playing in Sacramento, California. By the fall the show was featured at the at the Frazee Theatre, Forty-second street, Manhattan. By the time is appeared in New York, Margaret Anglin, John Halliday and Mary Fowler were featured as the leads from Sept. 7, 1920-April 1921.

The plot involves a husband’s infidelity with his artistic model.

Percy Husband wrote a review for the “Chicago Tribune” on January 9, 1920 (page 13):

“When Miss Anglin and the emotions are effectively in confluence, as they are in ‘The Woman of Bronze,’ you may expect to experience all the rapid and sympathetic heart-beats common to the theater. She knows her way about the ‘situations.’ Her voice is attuned to words of passion and distress; her individuality has great and friendly resources, her intelligence is one of the finest of the American stage, and her knowledge of ways and means is not excelled among the actors of the day. Her luck in the choice of plays, is not always good, but she makes the best of it.

“Miss Anglin’s present implement is a bounteous exploitation of the whilom triangle. She, as the adoring wife of a successful sculptor, loses her artist to a youthful kinswoman, enduring the bereavement now with controlled and quiet forbearance and again battling against it in temptuous rebellion. The circumstances permit her to exercise the full of her art and her splendid tricks and devices.

“You see her first, happy and carefree, with her husband and her friends at their summer home (the time is the present, the place twenty miles from New York), discussing his great work, The Woman of Bronze, a statue commemorative of the victory of the allies and their associate in the war. There you have Miss Anglin in her light and delicate mood, the smart and humorous woman of the world, saying and doing with possibly too much precision the right thing. You admire her so much that when, a little later, her husband and her cousin embrace in the gloaming and utter the wild and broken phrases of guilty amour, you wish that she might not steal in a catch them at it. But she does, and you regard her highly as, with her world tumbling about her white shoulders, she tells them that it is time for dinner.

“Then again, when it is teatime in the second act, and there is sift music, chatter, and sex-epigrams, she and the raisonneur sit upon the divan in the middle of the stage, close to the footlights, and she tells him of her miseries. Of how she has followed her husband and his sweetheart to their rendezvous, and standing in the rain, has watched the light in their chamber go up and go out. A lady of the streets saw her thus, she says, and pitying her, as one unhappy woman does another, pressed money into her hand and put her in a cab. This recital, which is heard only by the audience, is disguised. The others in the party think that Miss Anglin is whispering merely a funny story, because she laughs to drown the noise of her breaking heart.

“If one could be critical about a drama, he might suspect that the language in ‘The Woman of Bronze’ is perhaps superhuman in a rich, dank, tropical way. ‘Take your hands off his heart,’ says Miss Anglin to her successor in ‘A Woman of Bronze,’ just before she draws a dagger and threatens to kill her, and the speech which Mr. Fred Eric, as sculptor husband, addresses to his statue, just before he shatters it to bits, is that of a critic rather than a human being. He says that it is carnal and soulless, and that its bronze eyes are sightless, rather than gleaming with the spirit of sacrifice and victory.

“At any rate, ‘The Woman of Bronze’ is deliberate, premeditated and according to order. Paul Kester, who adapted it from the collaboration of Henry Kistemaecker and Eugene Delard, deprives it of none of its routine possibilities, and it is by no means a botch. The acting is very good, and it includes that of Fred Eric as the sculptor, Walter Connolly as the honest friend, Miss Marion Barney as a merry widow, Sydney Mather as a semi-villain, and others, among them Miss Ethel Remy, who is rather fugitive and fawn-like as the ingenue who spilled the beans.”

Three years later, “The Woman in Bronze” became a silent movie. Moses and his wife also attended the movies quite frequently. In 1920 he wrote, “We still keep up with the movie attendance. We do not always strike a good picture.” I wonder if they ever saw the movie version of “The Woman in Bronze.”

To be continued…

Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett

In 1920, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “Our new addition at home is nearly completed.  It has certainly hung along with the cold weather.”

The new addition was to the back of the house, extending the kitchen.  On Jul 19, 2019, I sat in that addition, enjoying a cup of tea with the current homeowners. My unanticipated stop was on a return trip from Philadelphia that month. I had a little extra time on my drive that day and decided to visit the Oak Park neighborhood.

Although I have written about Moses’ Oak Park home before, here is a brief recap.

Thomas and Ella Moses began house hunting in Chicago at the beginning of 1893, soon selecting a home in the western suburb of Oak Park. Located on S. Euclid Ave, the structure was only a year old and spacious enough to accommodate four children, ranging in age from four to fourteen. Of their new home, Moses commented, “very fine wood-work, a large stable, driveway, and a 60 x 178 feet lot.”  They purchased the house for $8,575.00, today’s equivalent of approximately $230,000.  Although the amount was much more than the couple wanted to pay, Moses wrote that it appealed to them as no other one had. He had a perfect spot for a home studio with plenty of light. His studio was located in the attic with a high ceiling and ample room to hang pictures.  Years later, his grandchildren would recall being told not to bother their grandpa when he was painting, yet they still managed to escape to the third floor.  Opening the attic door and venturing up steep steps, they were never reprimanded, just given a small project to keep them busy.

The Moses family moved into their new home on May 1, 1893 – the same day that the Columbian Exposition opened in Chicago.  He recalled that their new home provided plenty of room to entertain World Fair visitors.

I wanted to visit Moses’ Oak Park home since I first read about it as an undergraduate student.  The Oak Park and Forest Park area, suburbs located immediately west of Chicago, were home to many Chicago artists who commuted to the city. Never dreaming that it was still standing, I was surprised when the address popped up in google maps and I zoomed in from the satellite view. From 1893-1934 Oak Park was home for the Moses family. Only from 1900-1904 did the couple rent the house out when they temporarily moved to New York, where Moses established the short-lived scenic studio Moses & Hamilton. Although they also spent a few winters in Oakland, California, Oak Park remained their primary residence.

On the morning of July 19, 2019, I pondered whether to drive to Moses’ Oak Park home or venture north to Fox Lake where the Palette & Chisel Club built a summer camp.  I decided on Oak Park, as I could also stop by a nearby cemetery to document some scenic artist graves. It was ridiculously hot that day and darting out of my car to look at gravestones seemed preferable. Moses’ one-time business partner, Walter Burridge, was buried in Forest Home Cemetery. On my drive I contemplated if I should venture up to the front door and make contact with the current owners. As I was traveling alone and the home was in an unknown area, I remained undecided until I pulled up in front of the house. In the end, I summoned up enough courage to knock on the door.

As I walked up the front steps, it was hard not to think of the many artists who ascended these same steps throughout the duration of Moses’ life, his close friends who stopped by to chat or discuss an upcoming project. I recalled one particular instance when a few Palette & Chisel Club friends came over to examine the 300+ paintings in his attic studio, convincing him to do a one-man show.

When I reached the front door, I noticed the sign “All are Welcome” and heaved a sigh of relief. My knock triggered a chorus of dogs, and I began to wonder if someone was actually home.  As I began to ponder my decision, the door slowly opened. I was greeted by a smiling woman about my age. I was there for almost two hours.  My grand tour ended with a cup of tea in the 1920-addition off the kitchen and a gift – a music CD; one of the daughters has a band.

After visiting Moses’ home, I stopped by Forest Lake cemetery and the drove southwest toward Moses’ hometown of Sterling, Illinois. The part of my visit that continued to play in the back of my mind was my ascent to the attic space that was once Moses’ studio. Standing in the same space where he painted hundreds of artworks, some of which I own, was absolutely magical. Sometimes, you experience a brief moment that verifies you’re traveling on the right path.  It’s like getting a thumb’s up from the universe. Stopping by Moses’ Oak Park home and studio brought closure to one road on my journey, a respite from what often seems to be an insurmountable mountain of research.

There was still an abundance of artwork in Moses’ old home. Sharing stories and laughter with the current residents brought a moment of peace.

To be continued…