The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1894-10-07
LITTLE MAC"
The Veteran Theatrical Manager
and His Salt Lake Plans.

Jim McDanielS, better known as Lit
tie Mac, the Barnum of the West is in
town and is about to buy, build lease,
hire or rent some suitable building or
piece of property and introduce success
sion of dramas, comedies and burlesques
| in our city.
Readers of The Herald will remember
hearing his name in our columns before
as man full of energy, with over thirty
five years experience in the theatrical
business: He it was who IN the early
days followed the Union Pacific railroad
across the plains, building and managing
theatres and leaving a wake of generoS-
ity, good will and liberality wherever ne
went. 1t would be difficult indeed to find
a man of more varied experience; he was
with Barnum in the days of that mans
great success; he has spent two years in
the West Indies, two years on the island
of Cuba and is known throughout the
United States
He has gone through all of the success
SeS and reyerseS of fortune and is today
as original and active as ever. But few
men in the country have gone through
the vlcissitudes Jim McDaniels has
Three times he has been up in. the world
financially. At one time he owned three
of the most valuable business half blocks
of Cheyenne and had an extensive show
and museum structure here but there
fires and big interest on borrowed money
cleaned him out. He introduced the first
company of players in LeadviIle, Colo
made money and spent it like water
The episodes of his life while in Dead
WOOD, twenty years ago, would fill col
umnS of interesting reading and would
produce fortune could they be publish
ed in the yellow-cover sensational
novels. He has been in every state of
the Union but two. and knows some
Dody IN every town and city from coast
to coast. In old times when Denver was
but frontier city, when Cheyenne was
not known and Omaha was but strag-
Cling one-horse town, with that territory
Missouri a har
land, McDanielS made his way to the
town of Julesburg, Colo, with a variety
show and hired an old livery stable where
ne presented it to the deniZens the first
play they had ever witnessed there The
Union Pacific railway had just reached
Julesburg, which was fast obtaining a
large noat1ng population who, infiamed by
the desire of gain from the expected de-
ve!opment of the country following the
building of the first transcontinental rail-
way, mad gone ahead by every sort of con-
Yeyance imaginable, and here it was Nc
Daniels set his foot and made money al
most as fast as United States mint turns
II II, out. Mr.. McDaniels has lost sight OF
all the members of this company of adj
venturous players, but warns into en-
thusiasm at the thought of those old days.
The scenes in his early variety theatre
We're without doubt Strikingly picturesque
by the side of men clothed in the rough
est garb were to be observed ladies and
gentlemen of eminently respectable char
acters SO interested in the performance as
to utterly. ignore surroundings. Although
in those days there were no Booths, Bar
retts, PATHS, or Gersters to charm, yet
not few dramatic performances and con-
certs of rare merit were given and were
as thoroughly enjoyed, perhaps, as those
which are now being produced in the
palatial theatres erected to meet the de-
:nands of the advanced civilization of the
many populous cities and towns which
now spot the maps of western America.
The reputation. which Jnlesburg gained
during those few months of violent
scenes and "scrimmages" enforced extra
ordinary precaution upon the part of the
performers as well as the manager. In
variably full-fedged arsenal was placed
behind the scenes, and men employed for
this specific purpose, were stationed in
the audience to quell disturbances which
were likely to arise at any time.
At one time in Deadwood, during
performance a disturb ance arose and
while trying to eject a turbulent rough.
McDaniels was pitched from a gallery 80
feet below, and as a result he wears
scar on his forehead today.
Tt is limited that McDaniels will soon
present before the Salt Lake public
play written by r. y. Moffat, of this city:
The manager regards. the play as one of
exceptional merit and the result of the
production will be awaited with interest.