Omaha daily bee., 1916-07-09


1 ceivng letter from Milton Mobiles long
we'll known stage celebrity and now writ
ing and lccturlng, with Brooklyn as his home.
asking me TO verify some material gong back to
his theatrical career here in the early days OF
Omaha have another letter from him now
calling attention to his Omaha "reminiscences
which appear in the current Theater Magazine
and which are 50 readable that feel justified in
making liberal quotations.
Omaha in 1913 was not exactly western
metropolis, but it warm member
What It lacked in art it made up in atmosphere
There were some board sidewalks but no street
pavcments We had lots of mud when it rained
and lots of dust when it didn't. Most people
wore their pants inside their boot legs When
it was dry we BACKED the boots for full dress
we BACKED legs and all. The Academy of Music
and a wild aud wooy variety show were the
only places OF entertainment. Possibly amuse-
ment would be a better word, but that should be
qualified The academy was upstairs in a two
story building. The thcatcr occupied side
and a licensed faro game was directly across the
hall. Oil lamps supplied the foot and side lights
The stage was twenty feet deep with an opening
Of about the same size. There was gallery
across the end OF the hall, with wooden benches.
while the first floor was seated with split bot
TOM chairs. D. 7. CORR was the manager and
the stock company was good one, including.
among others. Virginia Cunningham Gernon,
Annie Ward. Mrs, De Bar, Jessie Howard Sci
den Irwin. Harry Jordan. J, B. Ashton, Mrs,
Ashton. Hattie Price, w. r Harris, Harry Rain
forth, Frank Weston, John Germon OF this
company, beside the writer. Frank Weston and
Harry Ranforth are still in evidence The latter
was for many years one of the managers of the
Grand Opera House in Cincinnati.
MANY famous stars visited us, including John
E. Owens. Edwin Adams, Lucille Western, John
Mccullough, c. w. Couldock and Charlotte
Champion The latter was one OF those phenome-
nal creatures who force US to recognize the cx-
istencc of that mysterious something vaguely
called genius. She was then, probably, So She
had been the leading support OF Forrest, the
elder Booth and Macready. On cold January
morning she wandered into town from no one
knew where, penniless and half clothed She
carried two pieces of excess baggage, a big dissi-
pated son of perhaps 80 and a husband some
years younger. The only piece of real baggage
among them was banjo carried by the son. He
got job around the corner at the variety house
They registered at the Hamilton house, adjoin-
ing the academy The woman was sight
dumpy little figure, not more than five feet She
wore an old waterproof coat which covered her
from chin to ankles: an old straw hat with the
remnants OF a dilapdated stage plume. She car
ried small bag about equal to brush and comb
and possibly night gown. The two men were
without overcoats. They hadn't trunk, Just that
little old handbag and the banjo In the group
about the dingy little Office at the time was the
afterward famous Henry NJ. Stanley"
Mobiles goes on to describe the wonderful
work Of this actress and proceeds:
Henry NJ Stanley was at this time western
correspondent of the New York Herald His
letters were supposedly written from frontier
camps and military posts Some of them were
no doubt; great many more were written in
dingy little room in the Hamilton hotel In Omaha
There was reason 1t was Annie Ward, the
pretty soubrette Of the Academy Stock company
This romance is matter of early Omaha history
He wanted to marry her, too. He gave her
beautiful gold watch-there was also a pretty
story OF a diamond ring which Annie didn't get
because she declined to let Stanley place it on
certain finger Dainty Annie had lost her heart
to good Hooking young clerk in book store
They married at the end of the season. She sup
ported him in idleness for two or three years and
one day in St. Louis-she was a member Of De
Bars stock at the time-she made her final exit
by the poison route.
AT the time of which write, the late Edward
Rosewater, founder Of The Omaha Bee, was
telegraph operator in charge of the Western IN
ion office in Omaha He was also correspondent
OF newspapers in Chicago, Cleveland, Cincinnati
and New York. Many years afterwards passed
pleasant afternoon with Mr.. Rosewater at the
Ponce de Leon, in St. Augustine We talked of
old days in Omaha and he told me- among other
things how he came to start The Bee. In 1871
he was a member of the Nebraska legislature
He had secured the passage OF law recognizing
the public schools OF Omaha as a metropolitan
district He started The Bee to arouse public
interest in school matters 1t was folio about
the size OF theater program, circulated free 1t
carried the theater announcement and was used
as the regular house program. Then he recalled the
Stanley incidents The discoverer of Living
ston was at the time in this country, delivering
his lecture on his African explorations He was
accompanied by his beautiful and gifted wife
While in Omaha they had been the guests of Mr.
and Mrs. Rosewater
The morning after the lecture said Mr.
Rosewater, we took Mr.. and Mrs Stanley for
drive. landing them at the station where thew
were to take the Overland for Denver. I had
instructed the driver to pass the old academy
which is now being used as Salvation Army
barracks. | watched Stanley's face as VIC passed
the building He scanned it carefully in dreamy
kind OF way and fancied sort OF sigh escaped
him. | must have smiled unconsciously, for his
manner changed quickly. and he said: That's
where the old theater used to be-" Yes" re-
Piled and few doors above was the old Ham
ilton house. where you wrote those wonderful
frontier letters for the Herald" He laughed
heartily.
Stanley had, of course, been nettled when
so many American newspapers showed disposi
ton to question his discovery OF Livingston. He
said to Rosewater, as they were waiting for the
train:
You were among the doubters too Ed
ward
II had my reasons laughed his host i re-
membered those frontier, har-rasing on the spot
experiences you used to write at my desk in the
Western Union Office and which | put on the
wires
And so the newspaper founder and the con-
tnent finder parted, merrily. Let US hope they
have renewed youth and friendship on the other
side