South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1921-08-28

between 500 500 persons desiring tickets and sell
their places bounty they would zou
tickets they had been fortunate enough 20 purchase
charging the new purchaser a handsome premium.
Billy Patterson could not be cassed as an Idle young
He seemed be busy enough but be- always
found time 10 be accommodating. He made his head
quarters in the lobby OF the theater DAYS when there
prominent citizen by getting into line and procuring the
prominent citizen tickets for the performance.
became known that Billy was accommodating thts
way and those he served became more numerous until
he had quite clientele.
AND THEN ONE NIGHT
Then night unusually large number OF prom
inent citizens had commissioned Billy get their uck-
them. They always paid Billy suitable. and
apparently satisfactory COMM sson for getting tho
tickets On this particular night however. he OF the
many commissions found wanting. or. oe
accurate he found all. The money entrust-
ed to him for theater tickets looked better 20 Billy In
his pocket than In the eXchequer theaer.
put II his pocket and disappeared.
Many persons. owing the sudden Disappearance o.
the mulatto. did not see the show that night The
house had sold out. By's disappearance provided the
newspapers the day with interesting piece OF
news and for a long time afterwards Where is Billy
Patterson ?" a by-phrase among citizens generally
and local newspaper column conductors.
Among the well known theatrical stars and sttrac-
appeared the Oliver during its early days
were: Minnie Madden. Mrs. Minnie Madden
Flske. ROLAND Reed. James O'Ne. Joseph Jefferson.
Fannie Davenport Nat Goodwin Stuart Robson,
A Hearne, Edwin Booth. Lawrence Barrett. Maggie
Mitchell. Mojeska and the Bostonans course these
all the leading that graced the oliver
stage but their enumeration goes TO show the class Of
attractions that appeared there during its early history
For Is years, from 1885 TO 1898 the Oliver was the
theater OF the city. The OF the Audi
torium in 1895 and the booking OF high % high
grade attractions IN single month took
from the Oliver its excusveness The year following.
Harry G. Sommers, manager OF the Auditorium. took
the Oliver and it IN conjunction with the
Auditorium The Oliver. however. again became the
exclusive legitimate theater OF the city with the pass
ing out OF that field by the Auditorium.
With the taking OF the Oliver by Mr.. Sommers
IN 1899 Mrs. Samuel Pickering became resident
managers Of the thester and still in this capacity
under the management recently assumed by J.
Until the Palace theater Colfax av and Michigan
only legitimate playhouse It has recently been
with a 1I-reel picture, The Four Horsemen OF the
Apocalypse Following this picture will four
performances of Aphrodite. Then following Aphro-
dite will come the Ralph Dunbar opera Co. for a four
weeks engagement
SOME WILL REMEMBER BILLY.
And among those who form the audiences at the
coming attractions there Will surely be who win
remember the early days Of the oliver And there
may who stood in line before the office 80
years ago. and II IS possible that there
may be two who may have reason 10 remember
Billy Patterson.
OF course the interior OF the heater viii not the
II IS more years The boxes and
the old family circle have gone The theater has been
remodeled times since the days when Jimmy
oliver sat in box and enjoyed the attractions ne him
booked for his playhouse They say old things
pass away. that a order things prevail.
Yet memory still lives, and there many who Still
recall wildly the early days Of the oliver theater.