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Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Part 331 – Thomas G. Moses and the Valentine Theatre in Toledo, Ohio

Part 331: Thomas G. Moses and the Valentine Theatre in Toledo, Ohio

For the year 1895, Thomas G. Moses recorded that he secured $46,000.00 of scenic work. Of that amount, he paid himself only $3,500. Moses commented that the necessary expenses were “very heavy” that year, resulting in such poor profits. In addition to touring shows and productions at the Schiller, Moses produced several stock scenery collections for theaters and halls across the country. One of the stock scenery installations was for Toledo, Ohio.

Moses wrote, “I closed up with the Valentine Theatre of Toledo for $5,300.00. We all got in our good work on this job.” In today’s dollars, it was almost a $150,000 job and one of many that he was juggling that fall.

Vintage postcard of the Valentine Theatre in Toledo, Ohio with stock scenery created by Thomas G. Moses in 1895.

Here is a little information about his Toledo project to create a little context for his story. The Valentine Theatre replaced a previous opera house, called the Wheeler Opera House that burned to the ground in 1893. The Wheeler had boasted a stage that measured 47 x 80’ with 15 sets of scenery (Harry Miner’s American Dramatic Directory, 1884-1885). When a new venue was contemplated, one of Toledo’s businessmen entered the picture as he was already leasing a few other performance venues in the region – George H. Ketcham. The Democratic Northwest and Henry County News reported that the Valentine Theatre was “built at enormous expense and under the personal supervision of its owner Mr. George H. Ketcham” (26 Dec. 1895, page 1). The newspaper reported Ketcham to be “one of Toledo’s wealthiest and most progressive capitalists, and whose enterprise has been a prominent factor in the phenomenal growth of Toledo and the development of its commercial interests.” The Valentine Theater was named after Ketcham’s father, Valentine Hicks Ketcham. The estimated cost of the project $300,000. Ketcham made himself president of the Valentine Company in Toledo, but he was already controlling the Grand and Great Southern theaters in Columbus, the Victoria Theatre at Dayton, and the English Opera House in Indianapolis (The Piqua Daily Call, 17 March 1902, page 1). Ketcham selected Lee M. Boda to be his manager in Toledo.

Interior Photograph of the Valentine Theatre with some scenery by Thomas G. Moses. Image from “The Book of Ohio” (1912)

The Valentine Theater was located on the ground floor at the corner of St. Clair and Adams as part of the Valentine block. The building was four stories and contained 200 offices (of which were included all of the city governmental offices), 15 stores, a private law library the Elks lodge room and a theater. The theater was a separate building with an entrance on St. Clair Street. Designed by Edward Oscar Fallis (1851-1927) in the “Sulivanesque style.” E. O. Fallis was a well-known architect who was also responsible for the several courthouses, a few public buildings, churches and residential homes in the region. Construction of the Valentine building began in 1894 and was completed in 1895.

Fallis’ theater design included an unusual cantilevered balcony and increased the theatre seating by arranging the chairs in straight rows instead of semi-circles. Some sources report this to be the first of its kind in the country. Unfortunately, his seating design created some areas with obstructed views. However, it greatly increased the number of chairs that could be crammed into the venue and increase the profit margin. According to Julius Cahns Official Theatrical Guide the seating capacity was 1,904. There were also twenty exists from the space in case of fire.

The building was illuminated with electric light and equipped with large dynamos in the basement that sent direct current to the incandescent lights, numbering approximately 2500. One newspaper article noted that the Mayhofer system was used at the Valentine Theatre and the lights could be manipulated to transform scenes from dawn to dusk. This would be similar to the electric scenic theater that was on display at the Columbian Exposition, featuring “A Day in the Alps.” There were also calcium lights and a “chaser” to spotlight people on stage and “produce brilliant effects of light and shade on the actress’ costume as she moves about the stage” (Blade, No. 131, 26 Dec. 1895).

The proscenium opening measured 39’-0” wide by 37’-0” high and depth from the footlights to the back wall was 62 feet. The distance between the girders was recorded 50 feet, with the stage to the rigging loft measuring 85 feet. There were nine bridges above the stage, located in three rows.

Interior Photograph of the Valentine Theatre with some scenery by Thomas G. Moses. Note the painted Austrian drape partially scene above the stage. Detail of image from “The Book of Ohio” (1912).

The Valentine Theater opened on December 25, 1895 with Joseph Jefferson’s famous “Rip Van Winkle.” The article, “The Opening of the Valentine Theatre,” described the space in detail, especially the area behind the stage with scenery produced by the studio of Thomas G. Moses. Here is a section from the article published in the Blade from December 26 and posted online as part of Dr. Timothy Messer-Kruse’s essay on the Valentine Theatre.”

“Back of the footlights, everything is as complete as human ingenuity and unstinted expense could make it. The dimensions of the stage are as follows: L Proscenium opening, 39 feet; depth of stage, 72 feet; width, 80 feet; height to rigging left, 84 feet. The scenery is all from the studio of Thomas G. Moses, of Chicago, and is complete in every detail. An asbestos curtain, absolutely fire proof, decorated, in the general style of the carpets of the house, with a peculiar green tint and golden fleur de lis, divides the auditorium from the stage. The act curtain, which was dropped for public inspection, the first time, last night, is a revelation of beauty. It is entitled “A Spanish Flower Festival,” and is a symphony in color. There is a freedom and grace about each fixture and a wealth of historic detail in the scene which makes it almost perfect as a work of art.” Here is another example where a front drop curtain replicates a well-known artwork.

Interior Photograph of the Valentine Theatre with some scenery by Thomas G. Moses. Note the interior box set and tormentors that would have been part of the stock scenery collection. Detail of image from “The Book of Ohio” (1912).

The same article also mentioned the stage machinery: “The stage, which is equipped with every essential in the scenic and mechanical line, is under the supervision of Robert H. Minis, than whom, Mr. Boda says there is no better stage carpenter in the country.”

By 1918, the venue was transformed into a cinema, effectively ending live theatre performances after a $50,000 renovation as it was transformed into a movie palace. In August of 1983, a task force was established by Mayor DeGood, who recommended the demolition of the Valentine Theatre at a cost of $217,000. Luckily, a group called “Friends of the Valentine” began a campaign to save the theater from the wrecking ball.

To be continued…

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Part 310: Thomas G. Moses and Frank Cox

In 1894, Thomas G. Moses recorded getting the contract for the New Lyceum Theatre in Memphis, Tennessee. Located at the corner of Third and Union Streets, the old Lyceum Theatre had burned to the ground during November 1893. The theater was on the lower floor of an athletic society building and the total loss was $360,000. Only three years old at the time of the fire, construction immediately began to build another theater on the same site.

*The original Lyceum Theatre in Memphis, Tennessee, 1890. The building burned to the ground in 1893.*

Opened by H.L. Brinkley, the New Lyceum Theatre cost $235,000 and had a seating capacity of 2,010. It included an oblong proscenium that was illuminated with exposed light bulbs, similar to the electric scenic theater on top of the Masonic Temple Roof Garden that same year. This was a feature was called a luxauleator, or “a curtain of light” invented by Steel MacKaye for the Spectatorium in Chicago (see past installment #265). The New Lyceum was credited as being the first theatre in Memphis to have electric lighting.

The auditorium included open metalwork railings for each of the three balconies and boxes. Ironically, it was this decorative aspect that would ultimately postpone the opening as there was a delay in the arrival of the iron work (Montgomery Advisor 7 Oct 1894, page 9). The final dedication occurred on Monday, December 3, 1894, with Otis Skinner opening the venue. His productions were “His Grace de Grammont” and “The King’s Jester.”

*The New Lyceum theatre designed by Frank Cox with scenery by Thomas G. Moses, 1894.*

Moses wrote, “The firm wanted this badly, but the architect insisted on my work.” “The firm” was Sosman & Landis and the architect was fellow scenic artist Frank Cox. Tignal Franklin “Frank” Cox (1854–1940) was also the theatrical architect who was designing several other opera houses that same year.

*Tignal Franklin “Frank” Cox (1854–1940), scenic artist, decorator and theatre architect.*

His projects in Texas alone included remodeling the opera house in Sherman, a new ground-floor theater in Galveston, the Stanger Theater in Waco, the Peterson Theater in Paris, and the opera house in Gainesville (The Times-Picayune, 8 April 1894, page 27).

Newspaper articles would note Cox as the “well-known scenic artist and architect of theatres.” Cox worked as a scenic artist, architect, decorator, builder, and developer throughout the course of his career. During the time that he the theater in Memphis, he was still running Cox Bros. and working with his brothers and Clark (1861-1936) and Eugene (1869-1943). Their ages at the time were 40 (Frank), 33 (Clark) and 25 (Clark). The three men had five other siblings with a father who had started work as a Boston painter in 1871. Eugene Cox had a son named after him, Eugene Jr. (1889-1967), who was also a scenic artist, so it gets a bit confusing.

*Eugene Cox (1869-1943), scenic artist and decorator, was part of the New Orlean scenic studio, Cox. Bros.*

*Clark Cox (1861-1936), scenic artist and decorator who worked for Cox Bros. scenic studio at the New Orleans Opera House.*

Here is a little background to place Frank Cox in context of nineteenth-century scenic art. Harry Miner’s American Drama Directory (1882-3) credited Frank Cox with the scenery for the Opera House in Batavia, New York and Smith’s Opera House in Tarrytown, New York. By 1890, Cox was working as a scenic artist, decorator and architect in the New Orleans area. He continued to work as a scenic artist throughout the decade, being credited with scenery for Temple Theatre in Alton, Illinois (1899) and Klein’s Opera House in Seguin, Texas (1903-1904). Like Moses, Cox also worked in oil and exhibited his fine art. In 1894, he participated in an art exhibition with his brother Clark. Both were members of the Artists’ Association in New Orleans (The Times-Picayune, 13 Dec. 1894, page 3). This was one of many art shows where the Cox brothers exhibited their work.

This brings us to another interesting aspect of the Cox family – the family feud. Frank, Eugene, and Clark operated a scenic and fresco business known as Cox Bros. in New Orleans. However, it was referred to as “Frank Cox’s Studio at New Orleans,” him being the eldest and most experienced. They had quite a large staff by 1891 that included the scenic artist Emile Nippert and stage machinist James A. Kee (Fort Worth Daily Gazette 11 August 1891, page 2). The Cox Bros. studio was located in the Grand Opera House of New Orleans. Frank withdrew from the partnership in 1896, but the partnership continued to operate under the same name of Cox Bros., despite Frank’s public declamation that the firm was dissolved. Eugene and Clark published a rebuttal, wanting to make it “thoroughly understood” that they would continue to operate the scenic and fresco business under the name Cox Bros. By the way, there appears to be no immediate familial ties to the Jesse Cox Scenic Studio of Estherville.

There is something interesting to ponder when thinking about the Cox family. Frank understood painted illusion for both the stage and auditorium. He would have been the perfect theater architect as he understood the aesthetic and mechanical demands of the venue. A variety of historical sources explain that architects would often hand over the stage design to a scenic studio. The studio would identify the layout and materials for the space, thus securing work from the architectural firm. I wonder if after guiding architects, Cox decided to work directly with the client and avoid working with a middle man -the architectural firm. Cox’s position as the architect would also secure work for his company Cox Bros., in the form of both scenic and decorative art. His position could have provided an endless stream of projects, as apparent in 1894. Maybe he was expecting too much of his younger brothers and swamping them with work, too much for them to handle without his help in the studio. Maybe that was why Cox reached out and specified other artists for his multiple projects – like Moses.

The big picture is that there was history and friendship between Cox and Moses, plus they were only two years apart in age. He was a friend of Moses and greatly respected his art. When you look at the front curtain for the Lyceum Theater, it is understandable why Cox wanted Moses in charge of the scenery for the New Lyceum . Moses and his crew painted a beautiful exterior landscape with his signature “babbling brook.” Decades later in 1931, Cox would again request that Moses paint some Fiesta floats in California, although Moses would decline.

*Interior if the New Lyceum Theatre (Memphis, TN) with drop curtain painted by Thomas G. Moses in 1894.*

*Detail of Thomas G. Moses’ drop curtain for the New Lyceum Theatre in Memphis, Tennessee, 1894.*

Regardless of the reason, Cox’s selection of Moses over Sosman & Landis in 1894 had to have been quite a blow to the scenic studio as the project would not be supervised by their company as planned. That was their ultimate goal after opening the annex studio -controlling all of Moses’ subcontracted work and keeping him on a leash. By doing this they maintained a position of control and ultimately determined which contracts they would pass down to Moses, yet benefited by his name. The New Lyceum Theatre was one in a series of projects where architects and clients specified that the work solely go to Moses. This was the beginning of his second departure from the studio of Sosman & Landis.

To be continued…

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Part 304 – Sosman, Landis & Hunt

The past few installments have concerned an article about the Pike Theater’s scenic artist, Fred McGreer (15 April 1900, page 12). He was interviewed just prior to his departure for New York while he was working on “Quo Vadis” in Cincinnati. McGreer was going heading to New York to paint scenery for another production of “Quo Vadis” with Gates & Morange. The artists for that production included Thomas G. Moses, Will Hamilton, John H. Young, Fred McGreer, and Gates & Morange. Of the production, Moses wrote, “It was not a success, as another company with the same play got in a week ahead of this production at a better theatre, which naturally killed the Herald Square Show.”

An image from one of the many “Quo Vadis” productions, 1901.

The New York Times reported that Manager David H. Hunt was one of the gentlemen interested in the production of the Jeanette Gilder’s version of “Quo Vadis” (6 April 1900, page 2). Hunt was listed as the manager of the Pike Theater in Cincinnati where McGreer worked from 1898-1900. In New York, “Sosman, Landis & Hunt” would produce “Quo Vadis.”

Later, the New York Times article “Miss Gilder Goes to Law” reported a court case against Sosman, Landis & Hunt (Oct 19, 1902, page 1). The company failed to produce Gilder’s version of ” Quo Vadis ” for five weeks each in two years at their various theatres, including the Pike Theatre Opera House. This is about the same time when Sosman, Landis & Hunt disappears from print. The firm started in 1894. So what happened?

Sosman, Landis & Hunt also managed the Grand Stock Company and produced “Sapho.”

Sosman, Landis & Hunt also managed the Grand Stock Company and produced “Sapho.” Here is an image of the scenery and company from the production.

Hunt was also mentioned in the typed manuscript of Thomas G. Moses. Nothing in Moses’ records was ever complimentary about David Hunt. My impression from his writing is that Hunt was a “wheeler and dealer” who didn’t necessarily value his employees, or listen to them. Hunt was one of the reasons that good artists left Moses’ crew at the studio when he was working for Sosman & Landis. The tone of Moses’ writing about Hunt conveyed his distrust and dislike for the man.

Heretofor, I believed that Hunt worked in a marketing or management position as an employee of Sosman & Landis who moved to New York and founded New York Studios. His studio was the eastern affiliate of Sosman & Landis. Similarly, Sosman & Landis Studio was the western representative of New York Studios. I had always wondered where Hunt came from and why he was connected with Sosman & Landis. What did he have to offer? The answer was theatre management. Hunt was a manger and theatrical producer who entered the picture in 1894. He was also part of a Cincinnati-based company called Sosman, Landis & Hunt.

Sosman, Landis & Hunt managed the Pike Opera House in Cincinnati, starting in 1894. 1894 was a time of transition for Soman & Landis; they were expanding and diversifying. As Chicago theatrical scenic outfitters, they were also the lessees of the Masonic Temple Roof Theater. This was their first management opportunity. It is possible that with the sharp decline in scenic contracts at the end of the Columbian Exposition, they decided to diversify to ensure their success. They not only were involved with the manufacture of painted scenery, stage machinery, and rigging at their scenic studio, Landis was also one of the three founders for the American Reflector & Lighting Company. Producing and managing the two electric scenic theatres on the rooftop of the Masonic Temple diversified their interests even further. Sosman, Landis & Hunt expanded their company to manage venues in other cities too.

By 1897, Hunt was in the process of remodeling and redecorating the Pike Theater in Cincinnati, hiring the Chicago theatrical architect Sidney R. Lovell. At this point the style of shows that Hunt managed primarily included the big vaudeville theaters. This would change to stock company management. Hunt was also looking after four summer theaters that they controlled in Atlantic City and Asbury Park. By 1899, the Chicago Inter Ocean reported “David H. Hunt of Cincinnati, a member of the firm of Sosman, Landis & Hunt, the well-known theatrical managers, says: ‘Chicago can’t compare with New York as a theatrical town” (16 July 1899, page 14).

An 1899 article in the Los Angeles Herald provided a little more insight into Hunt’s roll in the Sosman, Landis & Hunt theatrical management venture. It was an interview with Hunt titled “How the Stock System Pays” that made me think of all “get rich quick schemes.” Here is the article in its entirety:

“The growth of the stock company idea in the west would surprise you easterners,” said David H. Hunt, of Sosman, Landis & Hunt, the other day. “I have charge of the Pike opera house In Cincinnati, and we are making more money with a stock company than we did when the house was given over to vaudeville and variety was the society fad. A haphazard stock venture will not succeed, but properly managed the scheme is a huge success, and the companies are now so plentiful that it has become a matter of difficulty to obtain players who are not only willing but capable of doing leading stock work. The lesser people are not hard to get hold of, for there will always be an excess of players, but to get good names to head the company is constantly becoming more difficult because of the advance of the idea. We have a big company, and not only get good plays, but we try to give for seventy-five cents as good a production as is provided by a visiting company for double the money. We have two scene painters and two assistants always at work, and we never use a rag of scenery for more than one play. [The scenic artists in Cincinnati at the Pike Theater for Sosman, Landis & Hunt were Thomas G. Moses and Fred McGreer. McGreer is covered in installments #301-304.].”

Hunt continued, “We give the property man money enough to hire really good furniture and we have as good a stage manager as we can get, for we very early awoke to the fact that we could save money on this department of the work. A competent man will get all there is that is good in an actor, while an incompetent one will spoil a good player. Then we have found that we must spend a little money in royalties. It is a nice thing to have the old plays to fall back on, but a season which lists a succession of ‘East Lynne’ and ‘A Celebrated Case,’ with ‘Leah’ and similar plays to follow, will not be a remunerative one in the west, and we find that by laying out four or five hundred dollars for the use for one week of a play like ‘The Prisoner of Zenda,’ we cannot only get back the money we pay out, but enough more to make it worth our while to get the best. Of course, there is the constant study to be urged against the stock system, but to offset this, there is the avoidance of the discomforts of travel and to be able to settle down in a flat for a season instead of alternating between the one night stands and the sleeping cars, is a sufficient attraction to many to offset the fact that they will have to get up a new play each week instead of one or two for the season.”

Hunt will be the subject of the next few posts as he remains in the background for many of Thomas G. Moses’ activities during the late 1890s.

To be continued…

Here are a few images from “The Prisoner of Zenda” that Hunt refers to in the 1899 “How the Stock System Pays” article. Enjoy!

Anthony Hope’s novel “The Prisoner of Zenda” was illustrated by Charles Dana Gibson.

Illustration by Charles Dana Gibson for Anthony Hope’s “Prisoner of Zenda.”

Who would have thought that there would be a “Prisoner of Zenda” board game created in 1896?!? Here is the version by Parker Brothers.

Instructions for the 1896 “Prisoner of Zenda” board game created by Parker Brothers.

The early film based on Edward Rose’s stage play and Anthony Hope’s novel. 1913.

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar Part 267 – Thomas G. Moses and the Columbian Exposition’s “A Street in Cairo”

Souvenir program for “A Street in Cairo” attraction at the Midway Plaisance of the 1893 Columbian Exposition. Thomas G. Moses painted scenery for this World Fair attraction.

Thomas G. Moses painted scenery for “A Street of Cairo” at the 1893 Columbian Exposition. It was directly across from the Moorish Palace and Turkish Village. The attraction included 26 buildings that presented an idealized view of Egypt and was never intended as an exact replica of any particular street. World Fair guidebooks note that some of the structures were stylistic imitations of well-known monuments, but that is where historical accuracy ended. Dozens of stands sold “authentic” Egyptian items to passersby as they wandered through the fair. Everything on display was placed to turn a profit, unlike the official fair exhibits from foreign countries.

Bird’s eye view of the Midway Plaisance at the Columbian Exposition in 1893. Note the onion dome of the Moorish Palace on the right. ” A Street in Cairo” is partially depicted on the left.

Historical records suggest that Egypt was not in any financial position to participate as an official exhibit at the Columbian Exposition. However, many from the country recognized the potential for positive propaganda and tourism if the country was included in the fair. Privately funded, “A Street in Cairo” was managed by Georges Pangalo. Pangalo was born in Smyna, Turkey, to a Greek father and English mother. Over the years, he worked in various fields, from railroad service and journalism to banking and financial management.

George Pangalo, producer of “A Street in Cairo” for the 1893 Midway Plaisance.

For the Columbian Exposition, Pangalo worked with Max Herz, the chief architect to the Comité de Conservation des Monuments de l’Art Arabe. This was the official state agency responsible for the preservation of Arab-Islamic monuments in Egypt. The intention was for Herz’s official position to give credibility to Pangalo’s endeavor.

Traveling to Cairo, Herz employed the Austrian architect Eduard Matasek to assist him in the preparation of the necessary plans for the attraction. Most components for the buildings were produced in Cairo and shipped to America. The buildings were then assembled on site under the supervision of a Chicago architect. Herz later arrived to supervise the final stages of the construction.

Photograph of “A Street in Cairo” at the Columbian Exposition.

In addition to the architectural accuracy, costumed participants, camels, and donkeys provided an air of authenticity. The Chicago attraction was modeled after the 1889 Paris Exposition’s “Rue de Caire.” In Chicago, performance venues complimented the street vendors and foreign structures. The Turkish Theatre, the Algerian Theatre and the Persian Theatre all advertised stage shows, complete with scenery depicting the appropriate locales. Many of the stage scenery was painted by Chicago artists, such as Moses. In these theaters, popular dancers such a “Little Egypt” (Fahreda Mahzar) performed their routines. A variety of musical entertainments from the Ottoman Empire were on display for the inquisitive public.

Wedding procession staged at the Midway Plaisance in the “Street of Cairo” attraction during 1893.

Other performances that appeared outside of the theatre and on the street were staged processionals or small vignettes. One example was Achmet, the celebrated “donkey boy of Cairo.” This young man arrived in Chicago on April 13, 1893 and began work the next day. He wandered through the fairgrounds with his donkey named “Yankee Doodle.” All summer, little children rode up and down the “Street in Cairo,” from café to the “Temple of Luksor” (Luxor) and back for a fee.

Some of the donkey boys at “A Street in Cairo” Midway Plaisance attraction in 1893.

These shows and street scenes transported visitors to a foreign land in settings that specifically catered to the American public. The types of entertainment produced for the Midway Plaisance were a mixture from many cultural traditions. For the fair, Pangalo imported a diverse array of individuals and groups from different locations throughout the Ottoman Empire. Not all of the performers returned to their native lands after the fair, however, some remained in the area and established new homes. America became an even larger melting pot.

Illustration by Charles Graham depicting costumed participants at the Midway Plaisance during the 1893 Columbian Exposition. Graham worked as an illustrator and scenic artist for the theatre.

Illustration by Charles Graham depicting a scene from the Midway Plaisance during the 1893 Columbian Exposition. Graham worked as an illustrator and scenic artist for the theatre.

The nineteenth-century fascination with the exotic permeated many other areas of society beyond the commercial theatre. Masonic halls, Scottish Rite stages, Shrine auditoriums and other fraternal spaces enthusiastically incorporated elements from the East into their buildings and ceremonials. The Columbian Exposition did not usher in this movement, but it certainly promoted what was possible and visually appealing. The theatrical manufacturers and suppliers that decorated the fairgrounds were well versed in this exotic aesthetic.

In addition to midway amusements, Moorish revival style buildings appeared across the country in other public spaces. Scenes from the Orient dominated periodical illustrations, stereoscopic cards, themed rooms and other popular amusements. Horseshoe arches, window tracery, onion domes, minarets, decorative brickwork and stucco exteriors rapidly appeared in many metropolitan cities. The architectural ornamentation and painted decorations for “A Street in Cairo” were replicated hundreds of times over for one particular performance venue – the Scottish Rite.

The manufacturers of Scottish Rite degree productions enthusiastically embraced the exotic. Palatial scenes, landscapes, and temple interiors all included visual elements from well-known illustrations of nineteenth-century artists. Traveling artists both captured and popularized the foreign monuments, people and traditions. David Roberts and John Frederick Lewis were just two examples of those who recorded archeological discoveries and the culture of the Egypt and the Middle East. Their scenes would reappear through hundreds of commercial and fraternal performance venues. In turn, Charles Graham who was once a scenic artist, created dozens of illustrations that memorialized “A Street in Cairo.”

To be continued…

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Part 238 – Thomas G. Moses in Duluth, Minnesota

I return to the life and work of Thomas G. Moses in 1891. This was more than three decades before Moses would design and paint the Scottish Rite scenery for Fort Scott, Kansas.

In 1891, Thomas G. Moses and Perry Landis went to Duluth, Minnesota. They were in town to close an $8.954.00 contract with A. M. Miller, owner of the Lyceum Theater. Moses commented that this northern Minnesota project was “a very good price and a good sized job.” Today’s equivalent of $8,954.00 is $232,060.70, a substantial contract indeed! On March 24, 1891, Moses arrived in Duluth and commenced his work for this ”very fine” building.

The Lyceum Theatre in Duluth, Minnesota. Sosman & Landis Studio received the contract to provide scenery for this venue in 1891.

The theater was located at 423-431 West Superior Street and advertised as “the finest place of amusement in the Northwest.” The architectural firm of Traphagen and Fitzpatrick designed this brick and brownstone building with its massive corner towers.

Advertisement for the architectural firm of Traphagen & Fitzpatrick. They designed the Lyceum theater in Duluth. Sosman & Landis produced the rigging and scenery for the building during 1891.

The main entrance included a triple arch with bronze doors and “Lyceum” carved above the entry.

Main entrance to the Lyceum Theater in Duluth, Minnesota.

Theatre masques, lions, and floral motifs further decorated the exterior of the building. The seating capacity was 1,664 and electric light illuminated both the stage and auditorium.

Julius Cahn’s Theatrical Guide notes that the Lyceum’s proscenium opening was 39 feet high by 39 feet wide. The depth of the stage from footlights to the back wall was 45 feet, while the distance between the front curtain and footlights was 5 feet. The backstage width between the sidewalls 75 feet. The distance from the stage to the rigging loft was 75 feet with two bridges. The theatre had one set of grooves for painted wing possibilities that accommodated a height up to 20 feet. Furthermore, the grooves could be taken up flush with the fly gallery. The depth under the Lyceum stage measured 15 feet and included 6 traps. The stage carpenter for the venue was William Longstreet and the electrician O. Hutchenson.

The owner of the Lyceum was A. M. Miller, a Duluth lumber baron with humble beginnings as a railroad section boss. Moses noted that Miller “saved and invested years ago. He is now worth over $12,000,000.00 which all came from Timber Land. He is also the President of the Duluth Bank.” Moses recalled that Miller was fine man who enjoyed his company. Miller financed the Lyceum that was initially home to operas, plays, and vaudeville. Live theater reined until 1921 when it transitioned into a movie house.

The Spalding Hotel in Duluth, Minnesota, where Thomas G. Moses stayed while painting the scenery for the Lyceum Theater.

When Moses arrived in Duluth, he checked into the Spalding Hotel and soon got started on the list of scenes. Ed Loitz and Joe Hart assisted Moses with the painting. Loitz first joined the Sosman & Landis Studio in 1883 and would continue to paint with Moses until 1900, even after Moses left the studio for a second time to form another partnership in New York City. Moses wrote, “we had every convenience that enabled us to do good work in a short time.”

Superior Street in Duluth with Lyceum Theater depicted in left foreground of composition.

Moses recalled that although the weather was “bitterly cold” in Duluth, they all enjoyed it. He wrote, “We worked nearly every night. We had a big list of scenes and everything had to be done well! Nothing pleased us better than to know that our work would be mentioned years after.” He would continue on to describe that the scenery installation was “One of the most complete outfits of any theatre” to date.

Moses, Loitz and Hart completed their work at the Lyceum on June 1.^. Moses was surprised when he received a check in full upon the immediate completion of the project. He commented that the prompt payment was “something unusual.”

To be continued…

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Part 233 – Thomas G. Moses and the Browning Brothers in Ogden, Utah

In Ogden, Utah, Thomas G. Moses came into contact with the Browning Brothers. Moses wrote, “the chief owners of the theatre were the Browning brothers, the famous gun makers and Mormons. We were treated mighty fine.”

Jonathan Browning (1805-1879), Sr. had moved from Quincy, Illinois to Nauvoo, Illinois in 1843 where he established a gunsmith business. In 1852, Browning migrated with Mormon Pioneers to Ogden, Utah, where his son John Moses Browning and his brothers founded the Browning Arms Company. Jonathan Browning is recognized is credited with being the inventor of the automatic rifle, pistol, shot gun and machine gun. He registered 128 patents for more than eighty separate and distinct firearms. Browning’s designs were the basis for many models manufactured by Winchester, Colt, and Remington. There is a John M. Browning Firearms Museum in Ogden, Utah. The site recounts the Browning got his start while working in his father’s gun shop.

J. M. Browning and Bro. shop in Ogden, Utah.

In 1878, a man brought a rifle in for repair and after studying it, the young Brown declared the he could build a better gun himself. His father had responded, “I know you could John Moses, And I wish you’d get at it. I’d like to live to see you do it!” It took him a little more than a year before he received a patent for his first design – a single shot rifle. He used this as the basis for his first gun designed for Winchester (Model 1885). Browning and his brothers soon were selling as many single shot rifles as their small shop could produce. Here is a link to the museum site: http://theunionstation.org/john-m-browning-firearms-museum/

Image from the J. M. Browning Firearms Museum. Here is a link to the museum site: http://theunionstation.org/john-m-browning-firearms-museum/

In May 1890, J.M. Browning, M.S. Browning, D. Eccles, and Jos. Clark, suggested that they were all in a position to supply Ogden with an opera house. No sooner was it conceived when operations began in June 1890.

There was a full-page review about Ogden’s new Grand Opera House in the December 30, 1890 newspaper, “The Standard” (No. 308, Vol. 3, front page). The article noted some figures pertaining to the construction of the building, including 40,000 cubic feet of sand and stone being quarried; 2,200,000 bricks to use in the main walls; 693,946 linear feet of timber used for the roof, floors, galleries, bridges, and trusses; 1,500 incandescent lights installed; and 16,500 feet of piping to supply steam heating and water supply.

Grand Opera House in Ogden, Utah, partially funded by the Browning Brothers.

The architect and superintendent of the endeavor was S. T. Whitaker. The article praised Whitaker who “through this one structure erected a monument to prosperity, which will stand as long a rock, bricks and mortar hold together.” Well, only until 1982 when it was demolished to provide parking spaces. The article continued to describe Whitaker as a comparatively a young man who had now established a reputation that would last his life; “By this one effort he has laid the foundation for a fortune.” The interior decorator for the complex was T. C. Morris. The scenic artists Sosman & Landis, Thomas G. Moses and Ed Loitz. John Wikoff, a stage machinist from Sosman & Landis, did all of the “stage work.”

There was an extensive description of the scenic artists’ contribution to the endeavor and the painting of the front curtain.

To be continued…

Tales from a Scenic Artist and Scholar. Part 230 – Thomas G. Moses and Spokane’s Auditorium

In Spokane Falls, Thomas G. Moses, Howard Tuttle and Ed Loitz likely painted for the newly constructed Auditorium Theatre. Construction of the building began in 1889, just prior to the great fire that left the downtown area in ruins. It was left relatively unscathed. The theatre was designed by Herman Preusse, a German immigrant who had settled in Spokane just the year before. Preusse’s extensive work incorporated a number of styles from medieval to Romanesque and Renaissance Revival.

Spokane’s Auditorium Theatre that opened in September of 1890.

John Browne and Anthony Cannon funded the construction of the seven-story red brick building with seating for 1,750 people. The Theatre boasted an impressive exterior, oversized stage, three balconies and deluxe loge seating. Located on the ground floor of the building, the theatre’s proscenium opening was 34 ft. wide by 33 ft. high. The depth from the footlights to the back wall was 40 ft., with the distance between the footlights and front curtain at 3 ft. The stage to rigging loft was 68 ft. and there were four grooves. The height from grooves to the stage was 20 ft., but they could be taken up if necessary. The depth under the stage was 11 ft. with three traps (located prompt, center and off prompt). There were also two bridge and a scene room. Electric lights illuminated the auditorium and stage. (Information taken from Julius Cahn’s Theatrical Guide, 1897).

Businessmen Browne and Cannon initially arrived in Spokane during 1878. They were looking for possible investment opportunities. The two opened banks and developed land. They focused on the creation of new offices for the various businesses that continued to appear in the small town. Browne and Cannon quickly became two of the area’s first millionaires. Then they set their sites on an impressive performance venue that would surpass all other theatres in the country. Prior to their theater’s construction, Browne and Cannon visited Chicago’s auditorium and instructed their builders to go “one foot wider and one foot higher” (http://spokanehistorical.org/items/show/625).

From 1890 until 1914, Spokane’s Auditorium was the largest theatre in America until the Hippodrome was built in New York. I was surprised that with this title, there is nothing available online or in newspapers that depicts the theater’s interior, stage or auditorium. There are only a few exterior pictures too. This was perplexing as I am often able to locate interior images of small venues in unknown town. Here was a large venue that rivaled Chicago’s Auditorium and the interior remains unknown. I wonder if there are any remaining plans that Rick Boychuk could examine as he is now extremely familiar Chicago’s Auditorium and its innovative rigging system.

An article by Tara Justine, “The World’s Largest Stage,” examines the planning and construction of this massive endeavor in Spokane. Justine wrote, “No expense was spared in the construction. Granite was taken from the base of Mt. Spokane to complete the foundation. Inside, were 17 dressing rooms and a “box office vestibule (lit) by stained glass windows.” Atop the building stood a large gold-plated statue of Thalia, Goddess of Music.

The Salt Lake Tribune published that the Carleton Opera Company staged the first production at to the Auditorium’s grand opening on Tuesday, September 16 (September 21, 1890 (page 6). Moses, Tuttle and Loitz had worked in Spokane Falls until April 16, 1890

Justine wrote, “The Auditorium drew acts from all over the world. Sarah Bernhardt, Alma Gluck, Anna Held and Al Jolson, performed on the stage. Jolson appeared in 1917 while a young Bing Crosby watched from his seat” (http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2012/may/14/then-and-now-auditorium/#/0). In fact, Bing had landed a part-time job in the props department at Spokane’s Auditorium Theatre in his early teens. An article from Oct. 16, 1977, in the “Democrat and Chronicle (Rochester, NY, page 3) published that Spokane’s Auditorium Theatre was “a grease paint Mecca on the great American vaudeville circuit which brought to town such giants of the day as Gallagher and Shean, Eddie Cantor and Al Jolson, as well as traveling shows from Broadway such as George White’s Scandals.” Sadly, the theater was demolished in 1934.

When Moses left Portland to secure the contract for the Auditorium, he would have had a leg up on the competition. He was from Chicago and working for the largest scenic studio in the city. A studio with ties to Chicago’s Auditorium. Moses’ nationwide reputation and following would have been a notable asset to the two businessmen; they were looking for the best.

After this theater job was completed, the three scenic artists disbanded once more. Tuttle and Moses went East while Loitz offered to stay in Spokane and finish one more painting project for the theatre. Loitz agreed to paint the asbestos curtain that had not been part of the original contract. Moses noted that Loitz was happy to take on the additional work.

To be continued…