“Streets of Paris” advertisement from the “Star Tribune,” 18 April 1907 page 7
In 1907, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “In April I went to St. Paul to put up the show ‘Streets of Paris’ in the Auditorium. It fitted alright and looked well.”
The show was given by the Junior Pioneers and held in the St. Paul Auditorium. The Auditorium, built by popular subscription, had been recently completed and turned over to the city only a few weeks prior to the event. 50,000 people attended “Streets of Paris” that spring. One of the display booths was a reproduction of the Eiffel Tower by an electric company. It was located in the center of the hall as part of an area arranged to replicate the streets of Paris. This type of project continued to offer opportunities to scenic studios as themed booths required creative construction methods and scenic art.
The “Streets of Paris” Eiffel Tower exhibit by the St. Paul Gas Light Company from the St. Paul Pioneer Dispatch, 1907.
Events such as the “Streets of Paris” became increasingly popular during the first decade of the twentieth century. They offered local companies an indirect method of securing business throughout their area and region. Food fairs, electric shows, advertising shows, automobile exhibits and other popular public events drew thousands of people together in metropolitan areas every years, providing visibility for a variety of products.
The National Electric Light Association Convention even included the presentation of a paper about noting the benefits of the “Streets of Paris” and a previous show at the St. Paul armory in 1907. Prior to the Streets of Paris, the St. Paul Lodge of Elks held a pure-food show and home industrial carnival at the armory. The event provided St. Paul Gas Light Company with an opportunity to present the many sanitary and other reasons to use electricity for cooking, heating, lighting and ventilating, showing the possibilities of improved electric appliances. For the “Streets of Paris” there were demonstration with electric coffee percolators and electric cooking appliances.
The 1905 electric exhibit by the St. Paul Gas Light Company at the armory.
As with the armory, the St. Paul Auditorium was well adapted to reach a large number of people at the same time. It was an ideal advertising opportunity for many local businesses. These grand scale events subsequently provided work for scenic studios throughout the region to supplement their income. There was more work than any one studio could handle, so studios outside of the area were brought in to create a variety of display booths and exhibits.
Part 570: Cleopatra at Kansas City’s Electric Park
In 1907, Thomas G. Moses wrote that he did one project “outside in the Electric Park.” He noted that it was a small Cleopatra production.
Main Entrance to Electric Park in Kansas City, Missouri
The Electric Park that Moses worked at was the second amusement park constructed by Joseph, Michael, and Ferdinand Jr. Heim, of Heim Brothers Brewery. It opened to the public May 19, 1907, and remained in operation until 1925 when it burned to the ground. The first Electric Park in Kansas City constructed by the Heim Brothers was built next to the Heim Brewery in 1899. At the time, Heim Brothers Brewery was the largest brewery in the world.
Heim Brewery in Kansas City, MissouriHeim Brewery with the first electric park in the distance.
The first Electric Park was open from 1899-1906. When the first park closed, some of the attractions were moved to the second Electric Park. Both parks were known for their illuminated buildings and considered trolley parks.
A scene from the first Electric Park in Kansas City, Missouri. The brewery in pictured in the distant right background.
Known as Kansas City’s Coney Island, the second Electric Park was served by the Troost Avenue, Woodland Avenue, and Rockhill lines of the Metropolitan Street Railway Company. The park featured band concerts, vaudeville theatre, a natatorium (outdoor swimming area), boat tours, soda fountains and ice cream shops. A variety of attractions included, an electric fountain, a ballroom, a German Village, and alligator farm, boat tours, and old mill ride, a scenic railway, a shooting gallery, ice cream shops, an air gun gallery, Chutes, Dips Coaster, Norton Slid, Hale’s Tour of the World, a Temple of Mirth, Flying Lady, Double Whirl, a carousel, pool room, penny parlors, Casino 5 Cent Theatre, fortune telling, palmistry, a covered promenade and horseless buggy garage.
A postcard of Electric Park in Kansas City, MissouriThe same scene at night. A postcard of Electric Park in Kansas City, Missouri
In 1911, one million people visited Electric park, averaging 8000 visitors a day during the season. It was the second Electric Park, however, that would prove inspirational to Walt Disney when he designed Disneyland.
A postcard of Electric Park in Kansas City, MissouriA postcard of Electric Park in Kansas City, MissouriA postcard of Electric Park in Kansas City, MissouriA postcard of Electric Park in Kansas City, Missouri
When the park burned to the ground in 1925, a young Walter Cronkite witnessed the event. In his 1996 memoirs, “A Reporter’s Life” he wrote, “Our hill overlooked, a half dozen blocks away, Electric Park…One night after closing it burned in a spectacular fire. The Ferris wheel seemed to turn as the flames climbed up its sides. The grease caught fire on the two parallel tracks of the Greyhound Racer roller coaster, and twin blazes raced up and down with the speed of the cars that once toured the Disorderly conduct tumultuous circuit…”
In 1907, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “I made a big mountain set for Charles Forrester for “Lucky Jim.” It was a very effective set. Stage settings produced by Moses for the production included “a picturesque mountain scenery with Jim’s lovely cabin on the side of a ravine” (The Winnipeg Tribune, 3 1907, page 7). The description reminded my of the Hermitage composition that he painted for Masonic degree work produced at Sosman & Landis. I have attached some images of this York Rite setting.
One of the hermitage settings for the second, and smaller theatre, in the Milwaukee Scottish Rite. This is a York Rite setting.Painted detail from Sosman & Landis setting, ca. 1913.Painted detail from Sosman & Landis setting, ca. 1913.Painted detail from Sosman & Landis setting, ca. 1913.
“Lucky Jim” was a tabloid melodrama in two acts. Set in the Sierra Nevadas, Charles Forrester played the lead role of Jim Hamilton. Hamilton was featured in the production with his wife, Jane Courthope.
Of “Lucky Jim,” the “Winnipeg Tribune” described the show: “The locale is in the Sierra Nevadas and the opening scene shows Jim Hamilton and his dog Christmas Eve seated in his mountain cabin. Hamilton is about to put an end to his own and his dog’s existence, when a young boy comes in, starving and nearly frozen to death. Hamilton feeds the boy and in attempting to put him to bed, a neat line of comedy occurs. Finally the youngster tells of brutal treatment he received in a former camp, and they enter into a partnership to search for gold during the ensuing year.
“The second scene, a year later, shows a path leading to Jim’s camp, where Alice Staffard appears, telling a tale of her former marriage, of her husband stealing the child and leaving for parts unknown. Arriving at Hamilton’s camp, she discovers her boy, and during the talk between mother and son, Jim appears and in Jim she discovered an old lover whom she jilted years before. Old love is rekindled and a pretty comedy finish is made. Fifty pieces of special scenery are used in this act, and the electrical effects are said to be perfect” (30 Nov. 1907, page 14)
The “Morning Oregonian” reported, “The scenic effects are particularly worthy of mention” (15 Sept. 1908, page 9). Until 1900, it was common for the production reviews to list an artist by name, or even a specific studio. About 1905, there is a distinct shift where the scenery might receive mention in the newspaper, but detailed descriptions and the artists who created the scenery begin to diminish. As with “Lucky Jim,” the scenery is mentioned, but not Thomas G. Moses or Sosman & Landis. My stance is that this is point in time where the perception of scenery begins to be identified as simply “backings.” Of course there are exceptions, but there is a notable shift in public perception of stage scenery. The appreciation for scenic illusion and the reverence the public held for the scenic artist starts to fade; scenic artists begin their gradual disappearance behind the scenes.
Part 568: Chicago Industrial Exhibit at Brook’s Casino, 1907
In 1907, Thomas G. Moses recorded that one of his projects was “Brook’s Casino Exhibit of the sanitary and unsanitary workrooms in Chicago,” noting that it was “ some stunt.” He wrote, “I had to go among some awful places to get some sketches for the work and not far from the studio.” He was talking about the Chicago Industrial Exhibit held at Brooke’s Casino from March 11-17 in 1907.
In 1905, the Chicago Woman’s Club held a conference on Women in Modern Industry. Two years later they sponsored the Chicago Industrial Exhibit. This event was held to depict current industrial conditions, representing the labor that fed and clothed the “modern” world. There were many displays that contrasted sanitary shops with insanitary shops and unacceptable conditions. Moses helped create displays that revealed the hard and material side of life that occurred in factories and workshops. One of the objects of the overall exhibit was to influence legislation to investigate of the conditions of working women and children at the time.
There were “Process Exhibits in Modern Industry” that showed groups of young men and girls working in their trades, depicting shop conditions, the hours of work, how workers are paid by the piece and not the hour, the speed, the skill and the overall youth. There were booths that depicted, “A Night Scene in a Glass Factory in Pennsylvania,” “The Coal-breakers,” “Boy miners three miles from daylight,” “Stogie-making in Pittsburg,” “Rag-stripping,” “The Custom Tailor Shop,” and “Cash Girls and Delivery Boys.” Other areas depicted boot and shoe making, glove making, printing/bookbinding, candy wrapping, bakeshops, woodworking factories, laundry facilities, and much more.
Here is the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907. It included many photographs of the displays. Here is the link: https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=wu.89058507294%3Bview%3D1up%3Bseq%3D9
There was a handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit including many photographs of the displays. Here is the link: https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=wu.89058507294;view=1up;seq=9 It is a very insightful publication that depicted the “sweated industries” of the time, women in industry, protected machinery and occupational diseases.
Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.Photograph from the handbook that accompanied the Chicago Industrial Exhibit in 1907.
During the conference, presentations discussions “The Child in Industry,” “Risks in Industry,” “The Power of the Consumer Over Industrial Conditions,” “The Immigrant in Industry,” “Women’s Fitness For Industrial Life,” “Women in Industry – Special Problems,” “Industrial Education,” “Women in Industry – Remedies,” and “Demonstrations in the Evolution of Textile Processes.”
In the “Sweated Industries” area a group of typical Chicago tenement houses were constructed so that the contents of several rooms were clearly seen from without. The purpose of the exhibit was to promote remedial legislation covering sweating in food and clothes products, and to improve conditions tending to lower the health and morals of the workers in the sweated trades, by attracting the attention of the public to the conditions as they existed.
There was also an exhibit of an “Insanitary Tenement Sweatshop- old-fashioned foot-power shop.” The handbook noted, “In a room such as this a child with scarlet fever was recently found sleeping in a pile of sweatshop clothing. Several members of the family were finishing pants in this room when discovered. In this particular case the place was closed by a Factory Inspector, and the clothing disinfected by the Health Department. How largely the recent epidemic of scarlet fever in Chicago was due to the fact that the clothing is manufactured in tenement houses under such conditions as these is a matter of conjecture. This shop is shown in opposition to the sanitary clothing shop with mechanical power.”
In this brochure there were some interesting statistics that provides a little peak into the history of working women:
-Of married women, 5.6% were gainfully employed
-Of gainfully employed women, 14.5% were married.
-There was a noted lack of occupation opportunity for women. In 1840, there were 140 employments open to women. By 1907, women were employed in 295 occupations, but over 86% were found in only 18 of these occupations.
The handbook stated, “Men seem to be crowding women out.”
Similarly, we remember why child labor laws were instituted. In 1907, the National Child Labor Committee called attention to the fact that there were no less than 450,000 children under 16 years of age at work in manufacturing and mechanical pursuits in the United States. This number did not include the thousands of children under ten years of age who sold newspapers and merchandise in the streets, nor the children classed as agricultural workers. The handbook included the statement, “The vast army of children, deprived of educational opportunities, stunted in growth, subjected too often to immoral influences, is a constantly increasing menace to our civilization.” In the history of the United States, that is really not that long ago.
Part 567: Thomas G. Moses and the McAlester Masonic Job, 1907
In 1907, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “South McAlister Oklahoma was a good Masonic job.” He was referring to the second scenery installation delivered to the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma by Sosman & Landis. Moses was also involved with the delivery of the first and third installation to the McAlester Scottish Rite. For me, everything gets exciting at this point in Moses’ diary as many of the Scottish Rite installations that he worked on are still hanging in theaters across the country.
The scenery created for the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma, now hangs in Salina, Kansas.The scenery created for the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma, now hangs in Salina, Kansas.Looking up into the flies above the Salina Scottish Rite stage. This is the original scenery and stage machinery created for the McAlester Scottish Rite in 1907, as recorded by Thomas G. Moses.
The used McAlester Scottish Rite scenery collection from 1907 is now used in Salina, Kansas. The drops are clearly marked with the original delivery location of “So. McAlister,” or sometimes, “McAllister;” the same misspelling that Moses used in his diary. Other charcoal notations on the scenery note the original size of 18 feet high by 36 feet wide.
The scenery in Salina, Kansas, will have the original shipping notes for McAlester, Oklahoma.
Here is the story of the three scenery installations for McAlester – 1901, 1907 and 1929. In 1901, Sosman & Landis delivered the first scenery installation to “South McAllister.” By 1907, there was the construction of a second theater that necessitated the purchase of a new scenery collection for McAlester, Oklahoma. As with many first-generation Scottish Rite scenery collections, it was returned to the studio for credit on a new purchase to be refurbished and sold to another venue.
The first Scottish Rite theater in McAlester, Oklahoma. Scenery for this stage was purchased by the Scottish Rite in Santa Fe, New Mexico, to practice with while building their own theatre.
The first 1901 collection was sold to the Scottish Rite in Santa Fe, New Mexico during the planning phase for their 1912 building. The purchase of the used scenery was requested by the SGIG (Sovereign Grand Inspector General) of New Mexico, Harper S. Cunningham. Cunningham was previously the SGIG to Oklahoma and instrumental in integrating theatrical productions as part of Scottish Rite degree work. He was known as the “Temple Builder.” When Cunningham requested that the Santa Fe Scottish Rite Bodies purchase the used McAlester scenery collection, he intended that the purchase old McAlester scenes would prepare the members for their new theatre; they would understand the logistics of theatrically staging degree productions.
At the time of the used scenery purchase, the Santa Fe Scottish Rite Masons met in a standard lodge room – the Masonic Hall on Water Street near the center of town. Like many Masonic meeting rooms, it was located in an upper-level space and was rectangular in format. In 1908, the hall was renovated to include a small stage for the McAlester, Scottish Rite scenery – this was also common practice at the time.
Scottish Rite drop curtain in McAlester, Oklahoma, that was purchased by the Scottish Rite in Santa Fe, New Mexico.Same drop curtain from McAlester, Oklahoma, pictured at the Masonic Hall in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
I made this discovery while doing research for the book “The Santa Fe Scottish Rite Temple: Freemasonry, Architecture and Theatre” (Museum of New Mexico Press, 2018). I recognized the drop curtain in a few historic photographs that were being used in another chapter. The drop matched images that I took of a historic McAlester Scottish Rite photograph. I compared the two sets of historic photographs and realized that they matched! The first-generation scenery is no longer in existence, with the exception of a possible grand drape piece that was rolled up and stored in wardrobe.
Notice grand drape pictured in the first-generation Scottish Rite theatre in McAlester, Oklahoma.Detail of the grand drape pictured in the first-generation Scottish Rite theatre in McAlester, Oklahoma.Detail of the same grand drape in the Masonic Hall in Santa Fe, New Mexico.Masonic Hall in Santa Fe with stage that housed the used first-generation McAlester Scottish Rite scenery.
As with McAlester, both the first-generation and second-generation scenery collections for the Santa Fe Scottish Rite were produced by Sosman & Landis, a subcontracted project from M. C. Lilley & Co. Bestor G. Brown, western sales manager for M. C. Lilley, would contract all of the theatre work for a Scottish Rite theater and then subcontract portions of it, such as the scenery to Sosman & Landis and the lighting to Frank Adam electric.
When the third McAlester Scottish Rite stage was planned, their second scenery collection was sold to the Scottish Rite in Salina, Kansas, for their new building during 1927.
Painted detail of a scene created for the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma, now hanging in Salina, Kansas.Painted detail of a scene created for the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma, now hanging in Salina, Kansas.Painted detail of a scene created for the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma, now hanging in Salina, Kansas.Painted detail of a scene created for the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma, now hanging in Salina, Kansas.Painted detail of a scene created for the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma, now hanging in Salina, Kansas.Painted detail of a scene created for the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma, now hanging in Salina, Kansas.Painted detail of a scene created for the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma, now hanging in Salina, Kansas.Painted detail of a scene created for the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma, now hanging in Salina, Kansas.Painted detail of a scene created for the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma, now hanging in Salina, Kansas.Painted detail of a scene created for the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma, now hanging in Salina, Kansas.Painted detail of a scene created for the Scottish Rite in McAlester, Oklahoma, now hanging in Salina, Kansas.
In Moses’ scrapbook, he pasted a newspaper clipping about the used McAlester Scottish Rite scenery collection that was purchased by the Salina Scottish Rite in 1927. The article reported, ”The one hundred and seventeen drops of scenery that has been in use on the old stage for twenty-five years, has been sold to the Scottish Rite Bodies of Salina, Kansas, and it has been shipped to them. There was nearly a carload of it. Brother John T. Leibrand, 33°, Wise Master of South McAlester Chapter of Rose Croix, negotiated the sale to the Salina brethren who came to McAlester to inspect it. The scenery was painted by Brother Tom Moses under the direction of that great Scottish Rite Mason and student Bestor G. Brown, and was said to be the finest in the Southern Jurisdiction at the time. Brother Tom Moses is painting the scenery for our new stage settings. He is also building stage properties, and all will be the last thing in that line. The brother that does not see this great stage and these wonderful properties at our Fall Reunion will miss something. The Salina brethren are negotiating with Brother John G. Redpath, who had charge of the old stage for years, to superintend the hanging of the drops in their temple.”
After visiting the Jamestown Exposition in 1907, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “We finished the trip by going to West Virginia on a sketching trip.” His first sketching trip to West Virginia was in 1885 with fellow scenic artists Henry C. Tryon and John H. Young. The three men had drifted from place to place, capturing picturesque scenes of the region. Finding lodging for three itinerant artists was far easier than a middle-aged married couple.
In 1907, Tom and Ella encountered a problem securing lodging in the area. Moses wrote that they visited “first Schell, no hotel, then to Blaire, W. Virginia, no hotel, then Kitzmillerville, Md. Across the river from Blaine, no hotel. Only a coal miner’s boarding house. Finally got the landlady to keep us overnight. Some come-down after our fine hotel at Norfolk.”
Map of Kitzmiller and Blaine, the area where Thomas G. Moses stayed with Ella Moses on a sketching trip during 1907.The North Branch of the Potomoc River near Kitzmiller, Maryland
The river that Moses referred to is the North Branch of the Potomac River. Located on the wide and winding river was the Kitzmillerville. In 1907, the town derived its economic livelihood from the mining and transport of coal; it was the single most important industry in the town for 75 years. The town now has a Coal Mining Museum, celebrating its heritage and a designated historic district. The historic district is composed of approximately 175 buildings within the town of Kitzmillerville, a coal and lumber town. The town is now known as Kitzmiller.
Kitzmiller, MarylandLandscape near Kitzmiller, Maryland
The area supported a variety of industries. In 1853 Ebeneezer Kitzmiller established a woolen mill and shirt factory. The first trains of the West Virginia Central and Pittsburg Railroad arrived in the early 1880s, ushering in a new era of cutting and shipping lumber. By the late 1890s, coal companies made an appearance in the area. Among these were the Blaine Coal Co., the Garrett County Coal Co., the Potomac Valley Coal Co. and the Hamill Coal and Coke Company. Unlike may mining towns, Kitzmillerville was not a company town, the majority of houses owned by residents instead of coal or railway companies. The town prospered during the early twentieth century, reaching a peak population of 1500 during the late 1920s and supporting a range of business and entertainment, including an opera house. A series of unfortunate events contributed to Kitzmillerville’s decline, including repeated floods, the first significant one in 1924. In terms of economic devastation, strikes, the Depression, and a decrease in coal demand added to the shrinking of the town. Today, many of Kitzmillerville’s homes stand empty. The bustling town once visited by Tom and Ella Moses has been reduced to a population of 321. There are now only 126 households at the time.
Abandoned home in Kitzmiller, Maryland.Picture of Kitzmiller home submitted with eligibility form for the Maryland Historical Trust. Here is the ink: https://mht.maryland.gov/secure/medusa/PDF/Garrett/G-IV-C-176.pdfPicture of Kitzmiller home submitted with eligibility form for the Maryland Historical Trust. Here is the ink: https://mht.maryland.gov/secure/medusa/PDF/Garrett/G-IV-C-176.pdfPicture of building in Kitzmiller submitted with eligibility form for the Maryland Historical Trust. Here is the ink: https://mht.maryland.gov/secure/medusa/PDF/Garrett/G-IV-C-176.pdf
Across the river form Kitzmillerville is the small settlement of Blaine. Blaine remains a small unincorporated community in Mineral County, West Virginia. It is located near the intersection of West Virginia Route 42 and the North Branch of the Potomac River. Like Kitzmillerville, the community was named after businessman, James G. Blaine. Kitzmillerville.
Map showing Kitzmiller and Blaine, the area visited by Thomas G. Moses in 1907Where Kitzmiller is located in relation to other eastern cities
Of their stay in the area during 1907, Moses wrote, “Got some good sketches and had a fine time. We remained at the boarding house. I have written this trip in detail.” Unfortunately, I have not located Moses’ travelogues about any of his sketching trips beyond what was published in the Palette & Chisel Club newsletter.
At the beginning of 1907, Thomas G. Moses wrote, “I started right by painting all of New Years day on several oil paintings. My new studio on the third floor is certainly the right thing. I have more than made the cost from work done in the studio.”
Thomas G. Moses in his third floor studio. Oak Park, Illinois.
Moses’ third-floor studio was in the same house that he and Ella purchased on May 1, 1893. This coincided with the opening of the Columbian Exposition; projects leading up to the world fair funded the Moses’ ability to look for a home in the Oak Park area. In 1892, Moses’ work turned a $5,000 profit, today’s equivalent of $130,000. The couple eventually selected a one-year-old house in Oak Park, Illinois. Moses recorded that their new home had “very fine wood-work, a large stable, driveway, and a 60 x 178 foot lot.” They bought the house for $8,575.00, today’s equivalent of $222,238.22. Moses also had a perfect spot for a home studio with plenty of light and away tucked away on the third floor.
Moses had always kept a studio in their previous homes, justified by the income he brought in from any extra work. In 1885 he wrote, “I had the front room nicely decorated by Mitchell and Halbach and I more than enjoyed the little studio. With the extra work from the outside, it paid me to keep the room for a studio.” Similarly in 1907 he wrote, “My new studio on he third floor is certainly the right thing. I have more than made the cost from work done in the studio.” By 1913, he commented, “I had over three hundred pictures in the studio.”
The third floor studio in his Oak Park home was his escape. It was located high above the bustle of daily household activities, offering a peaceful space to work hone his artistic skills, remember past sketching trips and plan for the future. The house was always full of people; first there were the children, and then later grandchildren. Their youngest Thomas “Rupert” Moses followed his father into the theatrical trade, with his family lodging with them in both Chicago and California. While Rupert, his wife, and their three daughters lived with Tom and Ella, there was the rule to not disturb grandfather while he was painting in his studio.
Granddaughter Marilyn fondly remembered her grandfather’s studio in a an article “My Grandfather: Artist Thomas G. Moses.” Her reminisces were shared with me by a great-grandson in 2017. Marilyn wrote, “Grandfather had a studio on the third floor of his house. He spent most of his time up there painting…Grandmother tried to ‘protect’ Grandfather from his grandchildren or maybe it was his working time which was important. I didn’t realize the reasons behind the rules. I would go up to the studio to watch. It was quite exciting to see the sets develop. Grandfather taught me how to make furniture out of cardboard and put me to work. I made tables, chairs and lounges.”
Part 562: Thomas G. Moses and “The Reward” by Otis Colburn, 1906
Here is one project that Thomas G. Moses did not record in his memoirs during 1906. He designed and painted scenery for a new play called “The Reward,” written by Otis Colburn and produced by Mr. and Mrs. Arling Alcine. This is an example of the projects completed after hours at Sosman & Landis. One of the ways that the studio retained Moses was by offering him supplies and a space for freelance projects. As I have previously mentioned, this was a fine line to walk as you gave valued staff members freedom and the opportunity for additional income, but you didn’t want to foster a competitive firm that would late steal business. In 1906, work was plentiful and the competition jovial, without the cut throat dealings that began to emerge in the 1902s.
From the Inter Ocean (Chicago, Illinois) 1 July 1906, page 27.
There was an article about the “The Reward” and Moses’ scenic contributions, published in the “Inter Ocean” during July 1906. Here is the article in its entirety:
“Colburn Breaks In.
A new American play in one act entitled “The Reward,” by Otis Colburn, a Chicago newspaper man, was produced in the Coliseum theater last week as a curtain raiser. The playet gives a glimpse of life in Colorado. The scene is in a cabin in the Rocky Mountains. An Eastern man, dying of consumption, his patient young wife, and a hearty young man driven in by a storm are the characters, and a secret concerning all three comes out. Leon McReynolds played the sick man with realism, dying across a couch with a newspaper clutched across his face. His wife tears the paper away, revealing the dead face with a little blood oozing form the corner of his mouth. Arling Alcine played the visitor in a manly, hearty manner, and Grace Hamilton brought out the sweetness and devotion of the wife. The little play was staged with a cabin interior prepared and painted especially for the production by Thomas Moses” (Chicago, 1 July 1906, page 27).
In regard to his newspaper career, in 1887, Otis Colburn was reported to be the editor of the South Minneapolis News. He was credited with giving a theatre party at the People’s Theatre for thirty of his closest friends. (The Saint Paul Globe, 16 Dec. 1887, page 3). In 1896, Colburn was part of the Milwaukee Press Club (The Buffalo Enquirer, 23 June 1896, page 1. That year, he was also associated with the daily paper, the Evening Penny Press, of Minneapolis, Minnesota (Julius Cahn’s Official Theatrical Guide 1896-1897). By 1911, Colburn was the correspondent for the Dramatic Mirror (Salina Daily Union, 15 Nov 1911, page 1).
As a playwright and poet, in 1890, Coburn published an entertaining soliloquy in “The Theatre” magazine (24 Jan. 1890, Vol. 7, No. 14,page 242). Here it is, enjoy:
In 1907, Thomas G. Moses wrote, ““We opened our annex studio at 19 W. 20th Street in July, and Ansel Cook went there as a manager.” Moses commented on Cook as a scenic artist, “He did some very good work but was a long time doing it, which, of course, didn’t pay us.” Moses divided his time between Sosman & Landis’ main and annex studios that year, in addition to being on the road a lot. After one extended absence from the annex studio, he wrote, “Took charge of the 20th Street Studio on my return weeks. Cook did $750.00 of work in three weeks. My first three amounted to $3,500.00, some difference. I hustled while he talked art and what the firm ought to do to get business.” This is a pretty interesting observation made by Moses about Cook, as Moses was known for his speed. Anyone that dawdled or didn’t pull his weight was criticized by Moses.
I have found no information about Ansel Cook beyond his scenic art. Moses records that he was primarily a drapery painter who began working at Sosman & Landis studio during 1904. Prior to his time at Sosman & Landis, Cook worked as a scenic artist with stage mechanic Ben W. Craig for the Castle Square Theatre Company. Together they designed and built many shows from 1896 to 1902. Some of their projects included “The Ensign,” “Captain Swift,” “Rosedale,” “The Heart of Maryland,” “The New South,” “The Prisoner of Zenda,” “Caste,” “Men and Women,” “Mignon,” “Tannhäuser,” “The Prodigal Daughter,” “Darkest Russia,” “A Social Highwayman,” Cumberland 61,” “Col George of Mt. Vernon,” “Nell Gwyn,” “Cyrano de Bergerac,” “The Little Minister,” “Jim the Penman,” and “Quo Vadis.”
Castle Square Theatre production of Erminie with scenery by Ansel Cook. From the “Boston Post,” 6 Sept 1896, page 10Castle Square Theatre production of Erminie with scenery by Ansel Cook. From the “Boston Post,” 6 Sept 1896, page 10
By 1905, Cook was working in Chicago, establishing Ansel Cook studios. In addition to painting under his own name, he was also working in the Sosman & Landis studio. This is similar to what Moses did at Sosman & Landis, taking many projects after hours. It also explains his advertisement in White City Magazine where he includes, “All the scenery in beautiful Canals of Venice at White City painted my me.”
Ansel Cook advertisement in White City Magazine, 1905
The Ansel Cook studio was mentioned in “Minneapolis Journal” as producing the accompanying painted backings for the first formal American production of Lorenzo Perosi’s La Risurrezione di Cristo, the Resurrection of Christ, at the Minneapolis Auditorium in 1905 (2 Sept. 1905, page 14). Perosi’s oratorio was part of the Banda Rossa program performed at the Auditorium during State Fair week, and included Gina Ciaparelli (soprano), Bessie Bonsall (contralto), Albert Quesnel (tenor) and Salvatore Nunziato (baritone) for the solo parts.
30×40 paintings for the American premiere of Pelosi’s oratorio were created by Ansel Cook. From the “Star Tribune,” 3 Sept 1905, page 31
Cook’s compositions included “Mary at the Tomb, the meeting between the Savior and Mary Magdalene, the meeting of the Saviour and the Disciples on the Road to Emmaus, the Savior in the Multitude and the Ascension Scene” (Minneapolis Journal, 2 Sept. 1905, page 14). The “Minneapolis Journal” article described, “As the music progresses, these views, each 30×40 feet, with the wonderful electric lighting effects, are dissolved one into another. The effect is intensely interesting, and the mind, acted upon alike by the music and the pictures, is almost overwhelmed by the reality, the beauty and the solemnity of the scenes thus depicted by tone and brush.” The “Star Tribune” added, “These are exquisite works of art and when lighted by the different electrical devices used in their presentation are wonderful, beautiful, and fantastic, illuminating the music as it progresses” (Star Tribune, 3 Sept 1905, page 31). In 1905 Cook’s office was in room 60 of the Grand Opera House Building in Chicago. He was listed as a scenic artist, designer, originator and constructor in The White City Magazine. The Banda Rossa had also performed for four weeks at White City Amusement Park where Cook had painted the scenery for the attraction, “Venice.” The water ride included 90,000 square feet of painted panoramas depicting the sites of the city.
Banda Rossa featured as entertainment for four weeks at White City Amusement park, 1905
There is little mention of Cook again until 1908 when he is working in California. The “Los Angeles Times” reported, “Ansel Cook, late scenic artist for Henry Miller, has just been engaged for the same position at the Belasco Theatre here. ‘The Great Divide’ settings were made by Mr. Cook. He was for six years with the Castle Square company of Boston” (27 July 1908, page 7). Also that summer, Cook was mentioned as providing new scenery for the Weyerson & Clifford’s Southern Thorne and Orange Blossoms Company (Billboard, Vol. 20, 8 August 1908, page 25).
By fall 1908, the “Los Angeles Times” announced, “Belasco Theatre has a new scene painter, Ansel Cook. He has the reputation of being one of the country. His “Exterior of the Black Snake Ranch,” in Acts II and III, is a Texas landscape, beautiful in color, and one of the most effective backgrounds ever seen on the Belasco stage” (Los Angeles Times, 30 Sept. 1908, page 17). By winter, Cook was also credited with also decorating the green room of Belasco Theatre in Los Angeles (Los Angeles Herald, 13 Dec. 1908, page 32).
I have been unable to locate any information of Ansel Cook beyond 1908, only brief mention of Mrs. Ansel Cook’s attendance at social gatherings. Interestingly, however, a Vaudeville palace drop sketch by Cook sketch was donated to the Morgan Library & Museum by Mr. and Mrs. Donald M. Oenslager in 1982. As with many designs, notes were scribbled all over the back of this painting the Scollay Square Theatre in Boston in 1900. There is a New York Studios stamp on the back: “THE NEW YORK STUDIOS / 1004 TIMES B’LDG, – NEW YORK.” New York Studios was the eastern affiliate of Sosman & Landis managed by David Hunt. This would have been the initial connection between Cook and Sosman & Landis. Moses was also working in New York from 1900-1904. The design also includes a note in pencil, along top edge: “Palace Drop Ansel Cook, Scollay Squ. Theater. Died aft 1915.”
This notation suggests that Cook passed away by 1915, however, I have been unsuccessful in locating any obituary for him during that year.
In 1906, Thomas G. Moses wrote that he worked on “Knight for a Day at the Whitney.” Moses was referring to the new musical comedy produced by B. C. Whitney. The Act I setting depicted Fairview Villa at Mme. Woodbury’s Seminary for Ladies in Evanston, Illinois. The Act II depicted an old estate upon the Isle of Corsica. Robt. R. Smith wrote this two-act show with music by Raymond Hubbel.
Advertisement for “A Knight for a Day” from the “Elkhart Daily Review,” 26 Feb 1909, page 2Programs for “A Knight for a Day” from 1906
Bert Cecil Whitney was a well-known producer in New York and Detroit. Known to his friends as “B.C.” He was a second-generation theatre producer, following in his father’s footsteps. It was the elder Whitney, a longtime leader in the merchandising of musical instruments, who erected the Whitney building in Detroit, Michigan. Bert’s childhood was spent around the Whitney Grand Opera House where his father Clark J. Whitney (1832-1903) was the proprietor, ushering, selling tickets, and learning the rudiments of the business.
B. C. Whitney. Image published in the “Detroit Free Press,” 27 Oct 1929, page 1
In 1898, Bert took charge of his father’s affairs, becoming manager of the Detroit Opera House. Whitney operated theatres in Detroit, Chicago, Toronto, Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, Owosso and Battle Creek. He also produced musical comedies for the road. His 1929 obituary in the “Detroit Free Press” remembered that Whitney sent forth, “some of the most pretentious organizations of that time. Among them were ‘A Knight for a Day,’ ‘The Isle of Spice,’ ‘The Isle of Bong Bong,’ ‘Piff, Paff, Pouff,’ The Show Girl,’ ‘The Broken Idol,’ The Loved a Lassie,’ ‘Captain Careless,’ ‘The Head Waiters,’ and ‘The Convict’s Stripes,’”(27 Oct. 1929, page 2). The article continues and adds in some interesting side information, “Bert St. John, now manager of the Detroit Consistory [Scottish Rite], was manager for the Whitney during the most active years as a producer, and recalls that in “The Convict’s Stripes” there were four girls destined to win fame in the movies. They were Mary and Lottie Pickford and Lillian and Dorothy Gish. The play, under the title of ‘The Little Rd Schoolhouse,” had been produced in stock in Toronto, where Fred C. Whitney saw it, and purchased the road rights. Later he assigned these to his brother in Detroit. The Pickfords (they went under their true name of Smith at the time) and the Gish sisters had appeared in stock production. Instead of training new children for the parts, Whitney persuaded Mrs. Smith to take the four on tour. St. John was manager of the company, and relates that Jack Pickford, then a baby, slept in bureau drawers over most of the United States during the next two years.”
May Vokes and George Mack in “A Knight for a Day,”from the “Elkhart Daily Review,” 26 Feb 1909, page 2
After a successful run at Wallack’s theatre in 1908,”A Knight for a Day “toured to Shaftsbury Theatre in London, the venue managed by his brother. Whitney’s little brother, Fred C. Whitney (1861-1930), was also a producer. In 1908, Fred became a lessee of the Shaftbury theatre. (Anaconda, Standard, Anaconda, Montana, 13 Jan. 1908).
In 1907, Moses again worked for Whitney in B. C. Detroit, writing, “A big five act show of “Captain Careless” for Bert Whitney. Was produced in Detroit. The first act was laid at the base of the great Rock of Gibraltar and made a very effective scene.”
