A Popular Silent Film at the Schade Theatre in 1924

The silent movie George Washington, Jr. played at the Schade Theatre in Sandusky in July of 1924. The movie was based on a well-known musical play written by George M. Cohan in 1906.  Wesley Barry played the lead character in this film version. Cohan wrote the popular song You’re a Grand Old Flag for this musical comedy. The Schade Theatre (pictured below in 1918) featured air conditioning by 1924. The theater, on West Market Street, was later known as the Ohio Theatre until it was razed in the 1980s.

Historical Pageant of Sandusky

The Historical Pageant of Sandusky was presented in Central Park, From July 26 to 29 in 1916. The production was staged by the John B. Rogers Producing Company, and was presented locally under the auspices of the City Federation of Women’s Clubs. George F. Anderson was the musical director, and Gladys Pusch and Ruth Lerman performed on piano. An advertisement in the July 24, 1916 issue of the Sandusky Star Journal stated that the Pageant of Sandusky would be the “greatest spectacle ever seen here.”

Tickets sold for twenty-five cents and fifty cents. There were six different committees that worked on the organization of the pageant.

Besides the cast of principal characters, over one thousand young people took part in the pageant. Several scenes portrayed various times throughout history, beginning with creation. “Father Time” was the first character to appear in the pageant. The first scenes included Native Americans, the War of 1812, and the laying out of the plat of Sandusky. Next were scenes that portrayed the Underground Railroad and the visit of General Harrison to Sandusky. Two ballets were performed with the themes of Civil War and Industries. The various industries represented were paper, quarries, fisheries, farming, wine and the crayon industry.

Throughout the Pageant of Sandusky,  James Ryan (pictured below at Cedar Point) played the role of the Pioneer Man, while the Pioneer Woman was played by Mrs. W.C. Scott.

The grand finale of the pageant included hundreds of youngsters dressed in red, white and blue, as the “Goddess of Liberty,” portrayed by Miss Lillian Wahnke made an entrance on a chariot, while holding the United States flag. An article in the July 27, 1916 issue of the Sandusky Star Journal reported that the grand finale was beautiful and dramatic. 

In August, several reels of film of the Pageant of Sandusky were shown at the Schade Theatre in downtown Sandusky. To our knowledge, these films were not preserved locally. How interesting it would be to see the filmed version of the Pageant of Sandusky from over one hundred years ago.

Popular Silent Film at the Schade Theatre in 1924

The silent movie “George Washington, Jr.” played at the Schade Theatre in Sandusky in July of 1924. The movie was based on a well-known musical play written by George M. Cohan in 1906.  Wesley Barry played the lead character in the silent film version of “George Washington, Jr.” The popular song You’re a Grand Old Flag was written by Cohan for this musical comedy. The Schade Theatre featured air conditioning in 1924. Pictured below is a picture of the Schade Theatre on West Market Street in 1918. The Schade Theatre was later known as the Ohio Theatre. (It is no longer in existence.)

The Schade Theatre and Ohio Theatre

The Schade Theatre in Sandusky opened in the 200 block of West Market Street in 1915 as the Alhambra Theatre. An article in the December 19, 1915 issue of the Star Journal reported that the “motion picture palace” cost a total of $100,000. George J. Schade (below) was the owner of the theatre.

H.C. Millot was the architect, and the building contractor was Feick and Company. According to the Star Journal, “It can be stated truthfully that not a city of Sandusky’s size in the country, and few of the larger ones can boast of so beautiful a movie play-house.” Seating capacity on the main floor was 700, with a balcony that seated 50 more individuals. Special attention was paid to the lighting and acoustics. By the fall of 1916, the theater was known as the Schade Theatre. Until the late 1920s, the films were all silent. Mr. Schade advertised heavily in the Star Journal. He wrote a column known as “Schad–E Tips” which promoted the films that were being shown in the theater. In the summer of 1916, a theater organ known as the Hope-Jones Unit Orchestra provided musical entertainment for the theater.

The theater organ could simulate the sounds of orchestra music with just one musician. By the fall of 1930, and continuing through the 1960s, the Schade Theatre became known as Warner’s Ohio Theatre, under the proprietorship of Warner Brothers.

The marquee of the Ohio Theatre is visible in this picture of Market Street from the 1930s.

In March of 1940, the movie Young Tom Edison, starring Mickey Rooney, played for ten days at the Ohio Theatre. This was of particular interest to area residents, since Thomas Edison was born in nearby Milan, Ohio. Love Story played in Sandusky exclusively at the Ohio Theatre in Feburary of 1971.  By the late 1970s, the Ohio Theatre was operating as an adult theatre. The Ohio Theatre closed  in 1979, and eventually the building was razed.

For more information about local theaters, see the Sandusky Register column “Market Street Was Movie House Mecca” by Ron Davidson, or visit the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center. Several archival boxes are devoted to the history of arts and entertainment in Sandusky.

Views of Market Street Looking East from Jackson

                 

This postcard of Market Street, looking east from Jackson Street, was created in the 1920s. E.B. Ackley’s billiard parlor is on the north side of West Market Street, adjacent to Jackson. You can see the marquee of the Schade Theatre, which later became the Ohio Theatre. In the distance, the Cooke building is visible at the northeast corner of Columbus Avenue and Market Street. The Hotel Rieger building (which recently opened as an apartment building, the Rieger Lofts) is on the south side of West Market Street, just opposite the Star Journal building, which now is home to the Sandusky Register. Going east down Market Street, the Third National Bank is next to the Hotel Rieger. A sign advertising an auto supply store is visible, just west of the old city building, with its two towers. In the distance you can see the Feick building, a tall structure on the south side of East Market Street. A variety of offices and small businesses are found all along Market Street, on the street level as well as on upper floors. The Hotel Rieger featured some businesses which were below street level. Below is a view of Market Street in a picture that was taken between 1890 and 1910.

The Manhattan clothing store is located where Mr. Ackley later had his billiards parlor. Dr. Nicholson had his dental office above the Manhattan store. The Hotel Rieger and Star Journal buildings had not yet been constructed, but the Cooke building and former city hall can still be seen. Street cars and horse drawn vehicles were the mode of transportation at this time, instead of the autmobiles seen in the postcard above. You can see several other images of Market Street at the Sandusky History blog by clicking on this link.

Remaking of a Nation

On February 27 and February 28, 1918 the film entitled “Remaking of a Nation” was shown at the Schade Theater in downtown Sandusky. The movie was six reels long, and featured army life at Camp Sherman in Chillicothe, Ohio. The film followed the daily lives of enlisted men from the moment they arrived at camp and followed them throughout their military training.

The theater was crowded at its afternoon and evening showings. School children were admitted to a morning showing of the movie for the price of ten cents a ticket. Boxing champion Johnny Kilbane was at the theater during both days that the film was shown. Money raised through the sale of tickets to “Remaking of a Nation” was used for the needs of World War I soldiers serving in the 83rd Division. You can read about the showing of the “Remaking of a Nation” in downtown Sandusky in the February 27, 1918 issue of the Sandusky Register, available of microfilm in the Sandusky Library Archives Center.

A Regular Girl Plays in Sandusky

On May 17 and 18, 1920, the film A Regular Girl, starring Elsie Janis, played at the Schade Theatre, on West Market Street in Sandusky. The American Legion promoted the movie with a large banner. (The building being constructed, seen at the left in the photo below, is the Sandusky Star Journal building, now home to the Sandusky Register.)

Elsie Janis, born Elsie Jane Bierbower in 1889, was an actress of stage and screen. During World War One, she entertained troops in France and England. In 1919, Elsie starred in A Regular Girl, a film for which she wrote the screenplay and co-wrote the title song. The movie was loosely based on her experiences entertaining the troops during the War.

In conjunction with A Regular Girl appearing in Sandusky, a marching band and a woman dressed up as the title character appeared in front of the Schade Theatre. Members of the American Legion also conducted a membership drive.

Elsie Janis appeared on Broadway in 1939, and her final film was “Women in War” in 1940. She moved to California, and led a relatively quiet life. She died in California on February 27, 1956. To read about the life and career of Elise Janis, see the Elsie Janis Exhibition hosted at Ohio State University’s Libraries.