Tag Archives: Byron Company

The curious case of the Carolyn Capers

Posted on April 16, 2013 by | Leave a comment

In the normal course of my day as Theater Archivist for the Museum of the City of New York, I can count on encountering objects that impress, interest, inform, or even surprise me. Rarer is the object that utterly confounds me, such as the following image, discovered while doing some routine research.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). Amatuer Productions, "Carolyn Capers of 1935, " 1935. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.20075

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). Amateur Productions, “Carolyn Capers of 1935.” Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.20075

Who were these people and what could they possibly be doing?

Information in the record linked the “Carolyn” of the capers to the  Carolyn Laundry in Harlem. Located around 111 East 128th Street, the Carolyn Laundry was a large wash and delivery service that operated in the early decades of the 20th century.  There’s evidence to suggest a branch or garage space in the Bronx in addition to the Harlem building. The company was concerned with maintaining a clean workplace. As early as 1915, workers from various departments participated in monthly meetings that addressed safety concerns.  I wasn’t able to dig up much else on the history of the organization or its fate. The Byron Company, however, documented just enough aspects of life at the laundry to pique the curiosity.  Below is the building’s exterior.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). Carolyn Laundry, 111 East 128th St., Building, With Auto Trucks, 1929. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.6829

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). Carolyn Laundry, 111 East 128th St., Building, With Auto Trucks, 1929. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.6829

The delivery men all stand at attention next to their trucks, the very picture of a formal and professional work environment.  A photograph of the “Capers” is perhaps a bit less formal.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). Amateur Productions, "Carolyn Capers," 1930. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.20067

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). Amateur Productions, “Carolyn Capers,” 1930. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.20067

I still don’t know how exactly the “Carolyn Capers” emerged from the laundry. My best guess is that the “Capers” consisted of employees putting on amateur entertainments, presumably for each other. I found no evidence that the performers pictured were, in fact, employees, but it was not unheard of for companies to provide an entertainment outlet for their employees as a way to boost morale. It is possible that the office parties of yesteryear involved costumes, props, and a few solid musical numbers.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.) Carolyn Laundry, 111 East 128th St., Weighing Bags of Laundry, 1928. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.6819

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.) Carolyn Laundry, 111 East 128th St., Weighing Bags of Laundry, 1928. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.6819

Workers, like the ones pictured above, might have been able to kick up their heels with an original dance routine.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). Amateur Productions, "Carolyn Capers," 1930. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.20065

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). Amateur Productions, “Carolyn Capers,” 1930. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.20065

The “Capers” appear to follow a variety show format. The Byron Company captured a few years of productions. It’s possible the “Capers” was an annual event in the follies tradition of Ziegfeld, Grand Street, and Greenwich Village.  I haven’t noticed a particular holiday theme, but the footwear and lack of set pieces seem to imply dance numbers, songs, and comedic sketches.  These are not the dramatic poses of a straight play.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.) Amateur Productions, "Carolyn Capers," 1930. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.2069

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.) Amateur Productions, “Carolyn Capers,” 1930. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.20069

At the very least, performers showed more leg than work uniforms allowed.

Bryon Company (New York, N.Y.) Amateur Productions, "Carolyn Capers, 1934," 1934. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.20071

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.) Amateur Productions, “Carolyn Capers, 1934.” Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.20071

Though I found no information specifically about the “Capers,” amateur productions were experiencing a significant boom in Harlem at the time they were performed. Playwright and teacher Randolph Edmonds wrote in 1949 about the “Negro Little Theatre Movement,” describing a huge influx of  amateur performances in predominately African-American neighborhoods. The Little Theatre Movement sprang out of communities forming small groups to perform non-commercial works for each other. Throughout the 1920s and 30s, several amateur groups emerged in Harlem as a way to give outlet and find audiences for African-Americans excluded from the Broadway stage. The world famous Apollo Theatre began its amateur night in 1934. The “Capers” may seem to us a curious anomaly, but they were very much a product of their time.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). Amateur Productions, "Carolyn Capers of 1935," 1935. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.20074

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). Amateur Productions, “Carolyn Capers of 1935.” Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.20074

Visit the Museum’s Collections Portal to view more images of the Carolyn Laundry and the company’s capers.

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Dollar Princesses, or how the American heiress saved Downton Abbey and other estates like it

Posted on March 26, 2013 by | 5 Comments

Perhaps it goes without saying that among the Collections crew here at the Museum there are a number of huge fans of the Masterpiece Classic series Downton Abbey.   In the weeks since season three drew to a close, we’ve been attempting to placate our sense of loss over the absence of the Crawleys from our Sunday nights by hypothesizing about various plot lines for the rumored Downton prequel.   Julian Fellowes, creator of Downton, has spoken to the press about what he wants to do next: a series for American network television called The Gilded Age, set in 1880′s New York City.  One of the main storylines of the new series would revolve around the meeting of Lord Robert Crawley, Earl of Grantham, and the future Countess of Grantham, the American Cora Levinson.  As referred to several times throughout multiple episodes, Downton Abbey would have been lost if it weren’t for Cora’s inheritance.  In exchange, Cora obtained a royal title.

Reception of the Prince of Wales, 1860, in the Society Collection. Museum of the City of New York. 34.241.8.

Reception of the Prince of Wales, 1860, in the Society Collection. Museum of the City of New York. 34.241.8.

While the marriage of Robert and Cora may sound calculating, crass, and even downright cold to us today, it is steeped in historical fact.   The growth of United States industrialism following the Civil War created a whole new set of exceedingly wealthy American families.  Meanwhile, the British aristocracy was faced with centuries-old, crumbling estates, and minimal funds to maintain their properties.  Edward, Prince of Wales, made his celebrated visit to the United States in 1860, and New York’s wealthiest families sponsored and hosted numerous events such as the dinner listed in the menu above, in his honor.  These events founded relationships between the Prince and wealthy New Yorkers that continued to develop over the ensuing decades.

By the late 19th century, the practice of seeking noble matches for American heiresses  was commonplace enough that the term “Dollar Princess” was coined to describe these young women.  One of the most well-known matches was that of Consuelo Vanderbilt to Charles Spencer-Churchill, the 9th Duke of Marlborough.

Invitation to the marriage of Consuelo Vanderbilt to the Duke of Marlborogh, 1895, in the Society Collection. Museum of the City of New York. 36.177.116.

Invitation to the marriage of Consuelo Vanderbilt to the Duke of Marlborough, 1895, in the Society Collection. Museum of the City of New York. 36.177.116.

The marriage was orchestrated by Alva Vanderbilt, a prominent socialite of the Gilded Age, who sought to assure the social position of the Vanderbilt family through the union.   Hundreds of police were called out to restrain curious onlookers the day of the wedding.  The image below briefly catches the bride as she climbs into her carriage.  Click here to see more photos of the event.

Byron Company. Weddings, Vanderbilt-Marlborough, 1895. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.16376.

Byron Company. Weddings, Vanderbilt-Marlborough, 1895. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.16376.

Sadly, unlike Lord and Lady Grantham, who take every opportunity to remind us that they did “grow to love each other,” while Consuelo gained a royal title, and the Duke was said to have obtained $2.5 million in railroad stock as the marriage settlement (roughly $68 million today), the 9th Duke and Duchess of Marlborough were reputed to have a rather unhappy marriage.   The couple separated in 1906,  divorced in 1921 (an event referred to in the season three finale of Downton), and in 1926 the marriage was annulled.

Invitation to the marriage of Cornelia Bradley-Martin tot he Earl of Craven, 1893, in the Society Collection. Museum of the City of New York. 33.213.3

Invitation to the marriage of Cornelia Bradley-Martin tot he Earl of Craven, 1893, in the Society Collection. Museum of the City of New York. 33.213.3

The Museum also holds an invitation to the marriage of Cornelia Martin, or Cornelia Bradley-Martin, as her mother preferred to refer to the family’s last name, to the 4th Earl of Craven, in 1893.   The Bradley-Martins, equally socially mobile as the Vanderbilts, may be best known for the lavish Bradley-Martin Ball held at the Waldorf Astoria in 1897.  According to the World, which reported on the event, of the 40 men present, less than half a dozen were not millionaires.  The series of renovations at Coombe Abbey, the ancestral home of the Earl of Craven, begun the year of his marriage to Cornelia, suggests that without the influx of American money, Coombe Abbey, like Downton Abbey, would have been lost.

So as we wonder what comes next, or in this case, what came before, for the Crawleys and the Granthams, stay tuned for more highlights from our collections as we prepare for this fall’s exhibition on the Gilded Age in New York.  Now I think I hear the dressing gong – time to pick out a gown for dinner!

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Forbidden Broadway circa 1900: a look back at lampooning.

Posted on October 2, 2012 by | 2 Comments

Forbidden Broadway is back again this Fall with a new “Alive and Kicking” addition gleefully lampooning the current offerings of the Great White Way.  A revue show first conceived in the early 1980s, Forbidden Broadway harks back to an earlier tradition: American burlesque shows at the turn of the century.

Unknown. [Weber and Fields], ca. 1905. Museum of the City of New York, 36.440.1282

One of the most successful burlesquing teams was the duo of Joe Weber and Lew Fields who opened their Music Hall in 1896 to perform musical revues and burlesques of their own devising. (At the time the term “burlesque” described over-the-top parodies of popular theatrical productions and had less to do with the art of striptease.) One of Weber and Fields‘s most popular targets was the work of Clyde Fitch. Though his work hasn’t been performed on Broadway in decades, Fitch was one of the most prolific playwrights of early twentieth century.

Sarony. [Clyde Fitch], 1899. Museum of the City of New York, 43.430.533.

In 1909, the year he died, Fitch had four productions in Broadway theatres, three of which were new works.   He  saw over 60 productions of his work open on Broadway, often staged by him, and there have been over 30 feature film adaptations of his plays. (For more on Fitch’s life, check out the thoughtful bio at the The Clyde Fitch Report.)

Thanks to the efforts of the equitable photographers at Byron Company (and the Museum’s Digital Team), the Collections Portal contains images illustrating Fitch’s original intentions and the fun Weber and Fields had subverting them.

Fitch’s controversial play Sapho about a French seductress became the ridiculous Sapolio.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). [Olga Nethersole in "Sapho"], 1900. Museum of the City of New York, 93.1.1.19676.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). [Plays, "Sapolio"], 1900. Museum of the City of New York, 93.1.1.19684.

The very next year, in 1901, Weber and Fields took on Fitch’s The Girl and the Judge about the drama that ensues when a young woman faces her parents’ separation.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). [Annie Russell in "The Girl and the Judge"], 1901. Museum of the City of New York, 34.271.806D.

The Curl and the Judge was perhaps a more jovial look at parent/child relations.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). [Lew Fields and Fay Templeton in "The Curl and the Judge"], ca. 1901. Museum of the City of New York, 93.1.1.18806.

The ship deck setting in Fitch’s 1902 dramatic work The Stubbornness of Geraldine morphed in to the S.S. Pneumonia set for The Stickiness of Gelatine which opened at Weber and Fields’s Broadway Music Hall less than 2 months after Fitch’s opening.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). [Marry Mannering as Geraldine Lang in "The Stubbornness of Geraldine"], 1902. Museum of the City of New York, 93.1.1.19813.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). [Joe Weber and Lew Fields in "The Stickiness of Gelatine"], 1902. Museum of the City of New York, 48.210.1515.


One of Fitch’s most popular works (it launched the career of Ethel Barrymore) was Captain Jinks of the Horse Marines, a title Weber and Fields felt no need adjust for their skit.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). [Ethel Barrymore in Act III of "Captain Jinks of the Horse Marines"], 1901. Museum of the City of New York, 34.271.804Q.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). [DeWolf Hopper, Fay Templeton and David Warfield in burlesque of "Captain Jinks of the Horse Marines"], ca. 1900. Museum of the City of New York, 93.1.1.18681.

Fitch’s plays weren’t the only ones parodied by Weber and Fields, and just as certainly, Weber and Fields weren’t the only company doing the lampooning. Both enjoyed popular acclaim in their day, the best influenced by the best.  Fitch received the compliment of caricature, and both may have benefited in box office receipts. After all, a parody is always funnier when you’re familiar with the original.

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New York Streetside

Posted on January 3, 2012 by | 3 Comments

New York has seen its share of interesting, humorous, or just plain odd signs. In addition to being entertaining, the signs tell us a lot about how the city has changed over the years.

Around 1895, a dubious claim made by Painless Parker, a Brooklyn dentist:

Byron Company. Dentist: Painless Parker about 1895 124 Flatbush Ave. Brooklyn. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.18393

In 1910, a fireworks company within city limits:

Wurts Bros. Woolworth Building, lower section of 12 Park Place showing Pain's Fireworks. Museum of the City of New York. X2010.7.1.3705

Purchasing a gun was much easier in 1937 than it is today:

Berenice Abbott. Federal Art Project. Gunsmith (Variant). 6 Centre Market Place between Broome and Grand Streets. Museum of the City of New York. 43.131.1.356

Berenice Abbott. Federal Art Project. Gunsmith and Police Department Headquarters. 6 Centre Market Place and 240 Centre Street. Museum of the City of New York. 43.131.1.357

Around 1940, the James Slip Gospel Mission did not gloss over its message to the world:

Roy Perry. "Your Sin Will Find You Out," James Slip. Museum of the City of New York. 80.102.123

A 1954 Planters Peanuts advertisement in Long Island City, Queens:

Wurts Bros. 32nd Street and Hunters Point Avenue. Planters Peanut warehouse and garage, front elevation to garage on Hunters Point Avenue. Museum of the City of New York. X2010.7.1.9988

Taken in 1979, when tobacco advertisements were much less controversial:

Andreas Feininger. Winston Lights, 6th Ave. in the 30s. Museum of the City of New York. 90.40.53

This photograph of an advertisement for Budweiser was taken in 1981:

Andreas Feininger. Times Square. Museum of the City of New York. 90.40.13

A message from the Lyric Theatre in 1995:

Andrea Sperling. The Lyric Theatre - Marquee with Jenny Holzer Aphorism. Museum of the City of New York. 96.172.5

No need to wonder what lies behind these doors:

Edwin Martin. Butcher and Cow (10th Ave.), 1997, New York. Museum of the City of New York. 01.63.1

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Christmas in New York City

Posted on December 20, 2011 by | 2 Comments

New York has been the setting for many Christmas stories, fables, and traditions. In 1897, eight-year-old Virginia Hanson of 115 West 95th Street wrote to the editor of The Sun, asking if Santa Claus was real. The movie Miracle on 34th Street featured a man named Kris Kringle who began working as Santa Claus during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Department stores such as Bergdorf Goodman, Lord & Taylor, Barneys New York, Bloomingdales, Macy’s, and Saks Fifth Avenue attract countless New Yorkers and visitors with their engaging holiday window displays. Here we take a look back at some of the many ways New York has celebrated Christmas.

This picture shows teachers and students gathered around a Christmas tree in a tenement house run by a chapter of the International Order of The King’s Daughters and Sons. Margaret Bottome founded this charitable organization in her New York City home in 1886. The photo was taken around 1897.

Chicago Albumen Works. Jacob A. Riis. King's Daughters Tenement Chapter, Christmas tree in Gotham Court. Museum of the City of New York. 90.13.4.228

Jacob Riis took this photo around 1900. Riis, a first generation immigrant from Denmark, sought to improve the living conditions of impoverished New Yorkers by photographing their living conditions.

Jacob A. (Jacob Augustus) Riis. Christmas gifts at 48 Henry Street. Museum of the City of New York. 90.13.1.386

Although this photo was taken about 100 years ago, the hustle and bustle of New York’s streets during the holiday shopping season remains the same.

Thomas H. McAllister. Christmas shoppers. Museum of the City of New York Photo Archives. X2010.11.8795

The Salvation Army began using red kettles in 1891 to collect money during the holiday season. In 1901, contributions to the red kettles in New York City provided the poor with a massive sit-down dinner in Madison Square Garden.  This 1906 photo shows a scene familiar to New Yorkers even today.

Byron Company. Charities, Salvation Army Christmas Dinner Kettle. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.17268

The Union Settlement House was founded in 1895 to serve the people of East Harlem. By 1900, more than 3,000 people relied on its services. This photo of caroling children was taken around 1940.

Roy Perry. Union Settlement House, Neighborhood Children Rehearsing Christmas Carols. Museum of the City of New York. 80.102.73

The Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center is lit every year after Thanksgiving. This tradition began in 1933.

New York times. Christmas tree, Radio City. Museum of the City of New York. X2010.11.8800

Edward Ratcliff. Rockefeller Center at Christmas. Museum of the City of New York Photo Archives. X2010.11.8801

The Manhattan Savings Bank took a particularly festive approach to Christmas. These photos show the bank’s holiday spirit during the 1960s.

Wurts Bros. 45th Street and Vanderbilt Avenue. Manhattan Savings Bank, new branch, front view from east showing Christmas decorations. Museum of the City of New York. X2010.7.1.10288

Wurts Bros. 47th Street. Manhattan Savings Bank, Christmas show, ice skaters in. Museum of the City of New York. X2010.7.1.10208

Wurts Bros. 47th Street. Manhattan Savings Bank, general view of lobby looking N.E. Museum of the City of New York. X2010.7.1.10210

Wurts Bros. 45th Street and Vanderbilt Avenue. Manhattan Savings Bank, Christmas carolers. Museum of the City of New York. X2010.7.1.13752

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Fitness Crazes of Yesteryear

Posted on November 29, 2011 by | 8 Comments

Fitness crazes are nothing new to Americans, and the 19th century had its own fair share of extreme exercise routines.  As lifestyles became more sedentary and health issues more numerous, 19th century doctors promoted a variety of exercises that would help keep people fit and healthy.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). Gymnasium, Girls, 1899. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.4375.

Gymnastics, running, and jumping were popular forms of exercise; but other, more unusual routines also became  trendy.  The exercise appropriately named “stepping through your own fingers” instructs one to hold a small piece of wood between his or her forefingers and leap over the wood; if practiced enough, one may even forgo the wood and perform this exercise using only the fingers.  Along a similar line, The Smithsonian Institute’s Conner Prairie quotes William Clarke’s The Boys Own Book’s description of the “Palm Spring” exercise:

[It ] is performed by standing with your face toward a wall and throwing yourself forward, until you support yourself from falling, by the palm of one of the hands being placed with the fingers upwards, against the wall; when in this position, you must recover your former erect station by springing from your hand, without bringing your feet forward.

Endicott & Co. (New York, N.Y.). Dr. Rich's Institute for Physical Education, ca. 1850. Museum of the City of New York. 29.100.2583

Some of what became popular in the mid 19th century is still routinely accepted today.  Many of the stretches and gymnastics equipment depicted in the above print are now run-of-the mill. Some exercises in this print, however, may warrant a double take, particularly the man in the middle of the print who appears to be scaling the rafters.  It’s unclear what exactly he’s doing, but it is likely some kind of high-stakes rope climbing.  Readers, if you have any information about this particular form of exercise, please share!

Other early exercises look more like torture to modern eyes.  The Byron Company photographed the Zander Institute’s exercise equipment around the turn of the last century.  Zander’s equipment served two populations: those needing some form of physical therapy and those who found more traditional forms of gymnastics or calisthenics too challenging, but still wanted physical activity.  Women, the elderly, and “frail” people of either sex were ideal candidates for the latter category.  That being said, Zander’s apparatuses appear anything but gentle.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). Zander Inst. N.Y., 1908. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.5284.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). Zander Inst. N.Y., 1908. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.5292.

And though 19th century exercises range from the commonplace to the obscure to the strange,  some are just the plain-old cute. Witness the adorable calisthenics of the children below.

Byron Company (New York, N.Y.). N.Y. Foundling Hospital, 68th St., Exercises, ca. 1899. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.5012.

- Anne DiFabio

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Belasco’s Ghost

Posted on November 8, 2011 by | 6 Comments

New York is haunted by nature of its constant transformation.  Neighborhoods change, leaving only small or hidden remnants of what they were; once thriving communities are slowly eclipsed by others.  But, New York may be haunted in more traditional ways as well.

Byron Company. Portrait, David Belasco, 1902. Museum of the City of New York. 93.1.1.8606.

During his long career in theater, David Belasco produced, wrote, and directed over 100 plays, including the original 1900 adaptation of Madame Butterfly, starring Mary Barker as Suzuki and Frank Worthing as Lieutenant Pinkerton.  He was one of the most powerful figures on Broadway, spending nearly every waking hour either in his theater, the Belasco (formerly the Stuyvesant Theatre), or in his study and apartment directly above.  But as rumor has it, even after his 1931 death, Belasco thought he had more to contribute to Broadway.

Byron Company. Stuyvesant (later renamed Belasco Theatre), ca. 1909. Museum of the City of New York. 41.420.395.

Immediately following his death, actors and staff reported sights and sounds they could not explain.  Hardly a shy ghost, he is said to appear almost solid and even speak to actors.  Although he’s commonly spotted as a lone figure, dressed in priestly garb watching rehearsals from the balcony, he is also said to offer praise to the actors, shaking their hands and even pinching the bottoms of several young actresses.   A perfectionist in life, Belasco’s ghost isn’t afraid to show his disapproval.  Over the years, actors claim to have heard moans in the theater’s wings and had their dressing rooms upturned after a particularly bad performance.

Of course, he manifests himself in more traditional ghostly ways as well: unexplained footsteps, doors mysteriously opening in unison, and a supposedly non-functioning elevator, which makes trips to Belasco’s apartment.

Byron Company. The David Belasco All Star Company in Green Room, Stuyvesant Theatre (later renamed the Belasco Theatre, New York, 1909. Museum of the City of New York, 93.1.1.15660.

A social man in life, Belasco’s ghost is rumored to have incorporeal guests.  Shortly after his death there were reports of raucous parties in his apartment, but he seems to keep quieter company these days.  A lover of women in life, Belasco continues to carry on affairs in the afterlife.  Several sightings of the “Blue Lady,” the ghost of a showgirl who died after falling down an elevator shaft, have been reported in the theater.

One television and film actress who prefers to remain unnamed told Playbill that she heard her locked dressing room door open while she was taking a shower.   Upon investigating, she found the door still locked, but the bathroom steeped in a blue glow.   The Blue Lady may not be the lone female ghost Belasco is entertaining; the disconnected elevator is rumored to carry phantom visitors directly to his private apartment.

Visitors to the Belasco Theatre need not be anxious though.  One rumor says that Belasco’s spirit stopped appearing after Oh! Calcutta!  was performed on the stage; perhaps he was taken aback by the full-frontal nudity in the production.  If he is still roaming the halls of his theater, however, at least he seems to be a friendly ghost.

Anthony F. Dumas. Belasco's Theatre, 1934. Museum of the City of New York. 75.200.66.Byron Company. Stuyvesant (later renamed Belasco Theatre), ca. 1909. Museum of the City of New York. 41.420.393.

- Anne DiFabio

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