Iroquois Theatre Playbill (1903)

[NateO]

For my first post on this great new forum, I thought I'd share a scan of something rather special that's been lurking in my collection for a few years. This is a playbill from the brand new Iroquois Theatre in Chicago. I found it here in Buffalo, NY, at a used book sale for $2. Upon flipping through it, I had to have it! There is some nice earlier phonograph advertising mixed in among the playbill:
-The Vim Company advertising that they carry Columbia, Lambert Indestructible and Edison products

- The Columbia Phonograph Co, featuring what looks to me like a Columbia AK

-Lyon & Healy, Victor Dealers, with a nice full page ad with what looks to me like an MS

There are also ads for the Edison electric light and the Apollo player piano.

 

What makes this old playbill truly special is the history of the Iroquois Theatre, which I didn't learn until after I bought this. It opened on November 23, 1903, with a production named "Mr. Blue Beard". This playbill is for the week of December 28, 1903, the sixth week this production was running, and the sixth week the theatre itself was in operation.  The future was looking promising for the new theatre, but it wasn't to be- the Iroquois never made it through the end of the sixth week. At the matinee performance on December 30, 1903, an arc lamp ignited one of the curtains in the "absolutely fireproof" theatre, and it quickly raged out of control. By the time it was over, an estimated 580-600 people had been killed. I can't help but wonder if this playbill belonged to someone who was lucky enough to attend the Dec. 28th or 29th showings, or if it was leftover stock after the fire. Regardless, it is an interesting piece of history from a very tragic event.

 

I apologize that some of the scans aren't the greatest- the paper is quite fragile at this point. While it isn't 100% phonograph related, I thought this was a neat item worth sharing!

 

Enjoy!
 

Nate

Iroquois_Theatre_Playbill_12_28.1903.pdf

[melvind]

That is a great document. And great phonograph ads.

 

Did they rebuild the theater after the fire?

[NateO]

7 minutes ago, melvind said:

That is a great document. And great phonograph ads.

 

Did they rebuild the theater after the fire?

 

According to what I've read, it eventually reopened as the Colonial Theatre, and was torn down in 1925.

A number of people were charged with various crimes after the fire, but it appears most of the charges were eventually dismissed. I'm guessing the new threatre was run by new management.

[Fran604g]

That's wonderful Nate, thank you for contributing it to our collective! I wonder how it came to be that the theater caught fire from an arc lamp if they truly used Edison "electrical features"? Do I smell a cover up? ? 

[Neilvanstem]

Great to see this. I believe I know the spot where it was located and have walked passed it a few times. I see some wonderful stores selling phonographs on Wabash advertising. My Edison W-19 came from the Edison store there. I have a Victrola 90 that came from Lyon & Healy and lived on the north side at Belmont for many years and no doubt came from the Wabash location. It now resides on the southwest side of town 16 blocks from Midway. There is still an old faded ad for Lyon & Healy (Everything musical) on the old building that housed them on Wabash. Just great to see the whole thing here. Fantastic. Just reminds me of how I would have loved to walk down Wabash in 1903 and stare into all the windows. 

[NateO]

Thanks Fran and Neil! I'm glad you both enjoyed it. I'm always surprised this event is largely forgotten, considering it is estimated to have killed far more people than the great fire of 1871!

[Valecnik]

You piqued my curiosity so I had to google it and read a bit more about the fire.   

 

An accident waiting to happen.  Building inspectors bribed to expedite completing construction, touted as fireproof but there was no fire proofing at all,  more than 2,000 people packed into an area with 1600 seats, exit doors bolted shut to keep out gate crashers, locked accordion gates between the cheaper and more expensive seats, no fire alarms, no exit signs,  doors designed to open inward, fire escapes not constructed yet, asbestos "fire curtain" on the stage was not asbestos at all so burst into flames....

 

The whole thing became a flaming death trap within just a few minutes.  

[Neilvanstem]

21 hours ago, NateO said:

Thanks Fran and Neil! I'm glad you both enjoyed it. I'm always surprised this event is largely forgotten, considering it is estimated to have killed far more people than the great fire of 1871!

I have always heard of this fire here in Chicago. Did you say or someone else that Eddie Foy was on stage at the time of the fire? I thought I heard/read somewhere that he saved lives that day. Is that true? 

[NateO]

23 hours ago, Neilvanstem said:

I have always heard of this fire here in Chicago. Did you say or someone else that Eddie Foy was on stage at the time of the fire? I thought I heard/read somewhere that he saved lives that day. Is that true? 

 

It looks like you're right- Eddie Foy Sr. was on stage at the time of the fire, and apparently stayed there as long as possible, trying to keep the audience from panicking while burning debris fell around him. What I read said he escaped by crawling through a sewer!