ANNALS OF THE BROOKLYN STAGE (1898-1908): OCTOBER 1902

Amelia Bingham in A Modern Magdalen.

This blog is dedicated to preserving a curated record of theatre-related images drawn from the digitized pages of the four chief Brooklyn newspapers and one weekly magazine of 1898-1908. The sources, as they were called during these years: Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Brooklyn Citizen, Brooklyn Standard Union, and Brooklyn Daily Times. At first, only Brooklyn Life provided photos, but as time passed the newspapers, beginning with the Citizen, abandoned their photo-based etchings and line drawings for photos. Each entry is devoted to one or two months during the decade. A list of the month’s offerings precedes the illustrations, most of which are identified within the original image. The performers include not only leading players but lesser ones, most of whose names are entirely forgotten today. Many depict burlesque and vaudeville acts who are often listed on the ads that begin each weekly group of images. The production lists designate titles of shows at the legitimate theatres only; burlesque and vaudeville theatres are listed only by name to show that they were active. If a theatre is missing it was either permanently or temporarily closed.

It is hoped that this blog will be a useful adjunct to a two-volume book I’m preparing for publication, ACROSS THE RIVER FROM BROADWAY: ANNALS OF THE BROOKLYN STAGE (1898-1908); Vol. I (1898-1903), Vol. II (1903-1908).

Samuel L. Leiter

Author: BROOKLYN TAKES THE STAGE: NINETEENTH-CENTURY THEATER IN THE CITY OF CHURCHES (McFarland: 2024).

OCTOBER 1902

O October 6-11: Amphion: Florodora; Bijou: (Spooner Stock Company) Dr. Bill; Blaney’s: (Blaney’s All-Star Stock Company) A Mormon Wife; Columbia: (Greenwall Stock Company) A Texas Steer; Folly: The Doings of Mrs. Dooley, with George W. Monroe; Gotham: (Elite Stock Company) Tracy, the Outlaw; Grand Opera House: In Dahomey, with Williams and Walker; Montauk: The Wild Rose, with Evelyn Florence Nesbit; Park: A Fight for Millions; Payton’s Lee Avenue: (Payton Stock Company) Faust; Phillips’ Lyceum (Lyceum Stock Company) The Heart of the Storm; Vaudeville/burlesque: Hyde & Behman’s, Star, Gayety, Unique, Orpheum; October 13-18: Amphion: The Auctioneer, with David Warfield; Bijou: (Spooner Stock Company) The Man o’ War’s Man; Blaney’s: (Blaney’s All-Star Stock Company) Tennessee’s Pardner; Columbia: (Greenwall Stock Company) The Great Diamond Robbery; Folly: In Dahomey, with Williams and Walker; Gotham: (Elite Stock Company) For Home and Honor; Grand Opera House: Happy Hooligan; Montauk: A Gentleman of France, with Kyrle Bellew; Park: Kidnapped in New York, with Barney Gilmore; Payton’s Lee Avenue: (Payton Stock Company) Our Boys; Phillips’ Lyceum (Lyceum Stock Company) The Tide of Life; Vaudeville/burlesque: Hyde & Behman’s, Star, Gayety, Unique, Orpheum; October 20-25: Amphion: The Wild Rose; Bijou: (Spooner Stock Company) Magda; Blaney’s: (Blaney’s All-Star Stock Company) The Pledge of Honor; Columbia: (Greenwall Stock Company) Jim, the Penman Folly: Happy Hooligan; Gotham: (Elite Stock Company) Niobe; Grand Opera House: Lovers’ Lane; Montauk: A Modern Magdalen, with Amelia Bingham; Park: Winchester; Payton’s Lee Avenue: (Payton Stock Company) Dangers of a Great City; Phillips’ Lyceum (Lyceum Stock Company) In the Hands of the Enemy; Vaudeville/burlesque: Hyde & Behman’s, Star, Gayety, Unique, Orpheum; October 27-November 1: Amphion: The Show Girl; Bijou: (Spooner Stock Company) A Contented Woman; Blaney’s: (Blaney’s All-Star Stock Company) Slaves of Gold Columbia: (Greenwall Stock Company) The Stranglers of Paris; Folly: Lover’s Lane; Gotham: (Elite Stock Company) Uncle Tom’s Cabin; Grand Opera House: The White Slave Montauk: The Girl and the Judge, with Annie Russell; Park: Man to Man; Payton’s Lee Avenue: (Payton Stock Company) The Nominee; Phillips’ Lyceum (Lyceum Stock Company) On the Trail; Vaudeville/burlesque: Hyde & Behman’s, Star, Gayety, Unique, Orpheum