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Name: New York City Jazz
Brand: Elizabeth Dodd Brinkofski
SKU: 9780738599144
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New York City Jazz

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Southern California Surf Music, 1960-1966

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Theatres of San Francisco

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The University of Georgia Redcoat Band: 1905-2005

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New Orleans Jazz

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Theatres in Los Angeles

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The Chicago Music Scene

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Cincinnati Theaters

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Historic Movie Houses of Austin

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Delta Music and Film

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Casper's Troopers Drum & Bugle Corps

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Movie Studios of Culver City

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Ciro's

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Louisiana's Zydeco

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Movie Houses of Greater Newark

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Detroit

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Milwaukee Movie Theaters

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Theatres of the San Francisco Peninsula

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West Virginia's Traditional Country Music

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South Jersey Movie Houses

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Fox Theatre

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New York City Vaudeville

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The Birth of the Detroit Sound

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The Dallas Music Scene

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Honolulu Television

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Los Angeles's Central Avenue Jazz

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Detroit's Downtown Movie Palaces

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The Copacabana

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The Cincinnati Sound

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Cleveland's Playhouse Square

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Memphis Music

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Stand-Up Comedy in Chicago

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Theatres of Hawai'i

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Chicago Blues

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Pittsburgh Jazz

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Fort Worth's Rock and Roll Roots

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The Keswick Theatre

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Stepping out in Cincinnati

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Entertainment in Early Milwaukee

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Music Makers of the Blue Ridge Plateau

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Spanish Harlem's Musical Legacy

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Charleston Jazz

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Indianapolis Rhythm and Blues

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The Italian-American Immigrant Theatre of New York City

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San Francisco Jazz

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Historic Dallas Theatres

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Kentucky's Bluegrass Music

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Boston's Downtown Movie Palaces

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Music in Washington

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Seattle's Music Venues

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Movie Theaters of Washington, DC

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Oklahoma City

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Birmingham's Theater and Retail District

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Theatres of Oakland

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Beloit's Club Pop House

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Kearney's World Theatre

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The Oklahoma Cowboy Band

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Lakewood Theatre

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The Elks Opera House

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Milwaukee's Live Theater

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Entertainment in Augusta and the CSRA

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Nashville Music before Country

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Tacoma's Theater District

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Thalian Hall

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Madam Walker Theatre Center

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Walnut Street Theatre

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Columbus

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Canton Entertainment

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Memphis Movie Theatres

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Oklahoma City Music

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South Carolina Blues

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Greater Boston Community Theater

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The Music Hall, Portsmouth

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New York City Jazz

9780738599144

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New York City Jazz explores many of the haunts and hideaways that have played host to iconic jazz musicians and singers like Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bill Evans, Billie Holiday, Dizzy Gillespie, and Lester Young. Considered the jazz capital of the world, New York City is known for its flashy venues. The stages of the Latin Quarter, Apollo Theater, Minton's Playhouse, Onyx, Stork Club, Downbeat Club, Birdland, Roseland, and Copacabana came to life with the sounds of pianos, drums, horns, and gypsy guitars. This collection of images presents why Fifty-second Street was nicknamed Swing Street and how musicians made timeless names for themselves in the Empire City.

Southern California Surf Music, 1960-1966

9781467133203

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Dick Dale & the Del-Tones began holding weekend dances at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa, California, in the summer of 1960. Over the next year and a half, Dale developed the sound and style that came to be known as surf music. The result was the development of more powerful guitar amplifiers, a dramatic increase in the sales of Fender guitars and amplifiers, and a shift from New York to West Coast recording studios. More and more people were drawn to the sport of surfing, which became an important part of teen beach culture at the time. Even landlocked teenagers were captured by the moment, carrying surfboards atop their woodies in Phoenix or bleaching their hair blonde in St. Paul. For hundreds of thousands of kids, though, the attraction was not the connection to surfing; it was the connection to the music pioneered by Dick Dale.

Theatres of San Francisco

9780738530208

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You read the sad stories in the papers: another ornate, 1920s, single-screen theatre closes, to be demolished and replaced by a strip mall. That's progress, and in this 20-screen multiplex world, it's happening more and more. Only a handful of the 100 or so neighborhood theatres that once graced these streets are left in San Francisco, but they live on in the photographs featured in this book. The heyday of such venues as the Clay, Noe, Metro, New Mission, Alexandria, Coronet, Fox, Uptown, Coliseum, Surf, El Rey, and Royal was a time when San Franciscans thronged to the movies and vaudeville shows, dressed to the hilt, to see and be seen in majestic art deco palaces. Unfortunately, this era has passed into history despite the dedicated efforts of many neighborhood preservation groups.

The University of Georgia Redcoat Band: 1905-2005

9780738516844

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The University of Georgia Redcoat Marching Band has grown from 20 military cadets in 1905 to more than 350 musicians and auxiliary members performing complex and entertaining halftime shows all over the Southeast today. Throughout the past century the Redcoats have been invited to participate in every major bowl game in the country and in the inaugural parade of Jimmy Carter in 1977. The University of Georgia Redcoat Band: 1905-2005 covers the first 100 years of one of the finest musical organizations in America.

New Orleans Jazz

9781467111713

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Discover how Jazz shaped the history and enhanced the life of the citizens of New Orleans.

From the days when Buddy Bolden would blow his cornet to attract an audience from one New Orleans park to another, to the brass bands in clubs and on the streets today, jazz in New Orleans has been about simple things: getting people to snap their fingers, tap their toes, get up and clap their hands, and most importantly dance! From the 1890s to World War I, from uptown to Faubourg Treme and out to the lakefront, New Orleans embraced this uniquely American form of music. Local musicians nurtured jazz, matured it, and passed it on to others. Some left the city to make their names elsewhere, while others stayed, playing the clubs, marching in the parades, and sending loved ones home with jazz funerals. Older musicians mentored younger ones, preserving the traditions that give New Orleans such an exciting jazz scene today.

Theatres in Los Angeles

9780738555799

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Los Angeles and the movies grew up together, and a natural extension of the picture business was the premium presentation of the product--the biggest, best, and brightest theatres imaginable. The magnificent movie palaces along Broadway in downtown Los Angeles still represent the highest concentration of vintage theatres in the world. With Hollywood and the movies practically synonymous, the theatres in the studios' neighborhood were state-of-the-art for showbiz, whether they were designed for film, vaudeville, or stage productions. From the elegant Orpheum and the exotic Grauman's Chinese to the modest El Rey, this volume celebrates the architecture and social history of Los Angeles's unique collection of historic theatres past and present. The common threads that connect them all, from the grandest movie palace to the smallest neighborhood theatre, are stories and the ghosts of audiences past waiting in the dark for the show to begin.

The Chicago Music Scene

9780738577296

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This is the story of Chicago's vibrant music scene in the 1960s and 1970s.

The 1960s and 1970s was a time when jazz, rock and roll, country and western, folk, blues, and R & B flowed through the streets of Chicagoland. Much has been written about the national and international talent of that time, but not enough has been written regarding local music scenes. This story focuses on the city of Chicago (along with its suburban club scene) and the homegrown performers who made the 1960s and 1970s one of the most electrifying and memorable periods in music history. Some of those players went all the way to the big time, while others made their mark and disappeared. But they all made a difference in their own way, and for those who were there, it is a time they will never forget.

Cincinnati Theaters

9781467115247

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Theaters have always been the places where memories are made. There, on Saturday afternoons, children could escape the pressures of growing up to live for two hours in a fantasy world of daring heroes, dastardly villains, and dazzling magic. They were the places where awkward teenage boys could nervously, and often clumsily, put their arms around equally nervous girls. In years past, every neighborhood had its own local theater. Downtown was home to the great movie palaces, ornate portals to a world of motion picture thrills. For a unique experience, nothing could beat a hot summer night at the drive-in. Today, in the era of the corporate multiplex, the great movie palaces are just memories. Some neighborhood cinemas are now churches or venues for meetings, wedding receptions, and small concerts. Images of America: Cincinnati Theaters looks back at these marvelous old theaters and the days when they were in their prime.

Historic Movie Houses of Austin

9781467117180

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Motion pictures came to Austin on October 10, 1896, debuting at the Hancock Opera House. Since then, movies have continued to enchant, entertain, and inform the citizens of the capital of Texas. And, the places—the movie houses and theaters—where people saw motion pictures played just as important a role in the moviegoing experience as the movies themselves. As the city's population grew and motion picture technology changed, so too did Austin's movie houses, from the first kinetoscope parlor on Congress Avenue to the city' s first four-plex, the Aquarius 4, in southeast Austin. While most of these places are long gone, some withstood the test of time and are still showing movies or have been repurposed for other uses. Through the rich archival collections of the Austin History Center, Historic Movie Houses of Austin explores the stories of these important historic spaces and of the lives of those who were connected with them.

Delta Music and Film

9781467113953

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The Delta Lowlands, a place of stunning innovation and creativity in music and film, has laid an incredible foundation for American entertainment. Talented singers, producers, and musicians from a narrow stretch of Arkansas Delta land--traversing U.S. Highway 65 south near England down to Pine Bluff and on through Lake Village/Eudora--have garnered every conceivable distinction, including Grammys as well as Country Music Association (CMA), Gospel Music Association (GMA), Stellar, Dove, Soul Train, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and other music awards. The mosaic of cotton blossoms, catfish farms, blues juke joints, foot-stomping churches, and rich Delta dirt has also served as the training ground for legends in blues, R&B/soul, country music, jazz, and gospel. In film and television, the Delta Lowlands has birthed the invention of sound in movies, the development of slow-motion footage, the creation of television's Neilson's ratings, the first western-genre movie star, a cadre of Emmy and Oscar award-winning personalities, and a television tower that was once the second tallest man-made structure in the world.

Casper's Troopers Drum & Bugle Corps

9781467129084

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The Troopers Drum & Bugle Corps was founded in Casper, Wyoming, in November 1957. It was the dream of one man, Jim Jones. He believed that any kid who wanted to march with the Troopers should be afforded the chance. In 10 years, Jones took kids from Casper who had never marched before and turned them into national champions. The Troopers have played for celebrities and presidents, performed at football games and Disneyland, and marched in parades from California to New York. Drum and bugle corps have changed dramatically in the last 60 years, and the Troopers have as well. Today, the Troopers are an elite group of young people from across the country and all over the world, and they compete in Drum Corps International's World Class division.

Movie Studios of Culver City

9780738582009

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After watching pioneer filmmaker Thomas Ince film one of his famous Westerns on Ballona Creek, city founder Harry Culver saw the economic base for his city. Culver announced plans for the city in 1913 and attracted three major movie studios to Culver City, along with smaller production companies. The Heart of Screenland is fittingly etched across the Culver City seal. These vintage images are a tour through the storied past of this company town on the legendary movie lots bearing the names of Thomas Ince, Hal Roach, Goldwyn, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Lorimar, MGM-UA, Columbia, Sony Pictures, DeMille, RKO-Pathe, Selznick, Desilu, Culver City Studios, Laird International, the Culver Studios, and such nearly forgotten mini-factories as the Willat Studios. On these premises, Gone With the Wind, The Wizard of Oz, Citizen Kane, E.T: The Extra-Terrestrial, and other classics were filmed, along with tens of thousands of television shows and commercials featuring Elvis Presley, the Beatles, Michael Jackson, and many others.

Ciro's

9781467133791

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Many entertainers launched their careers at Ciro's Nightclub, often referred as The Nightclub of the Stars. Ciro's was patronized by both famous and non-famous guests who enjoyed dancing, dining, and comedy routines featuring top-name entertainers such as Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin, Sophie Tucker, Judy Garland, Peggy Lee, Liberace, Nat King Cole, Joe E. Lewis, and Sammy Davis Jr.—just to name a few. The nightclub's house band was led by Dick Stabile, although bandleader Xavier Cugat, best known for popularizing the rumba in the United States, was a regular headliner at the club. The elite Hollywood regulars at Ciro's included some of the most popular names in entertainment at the time, such as Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra, Cary Grant, Humphrey Bogart, and many more.

Louisiana's Zydeco

9781467110051

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The bayou sings and the trees sway with the untold stories of many unsung heroes, including Louisiana's amazing Zydeco musicians. The music is an extraordinary blend of the accordion, the bass and electric guitars, the drums, the rub or scrub board, and other instruments. It tells stories about finding and losing love, life lessons, and other revelatory events that rise from the skillful hands of musicians playing the diatonic and piano accordions. The diverse population of Louisiana creates a rich culture with Zydeco festivals, Creole foods, and the unique music that fills the air with a foot-stomping beat like no other. Louisiana's Zydeco is a snapshot of some of the many musicians who live and play the homegrown music known as Zydeco.

Movie Houses of Greater Newark

9780738599335

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For decades, Newark and its environs have been lit up by the bright neon lights of grand movie palaces and theaters. In the early 20th century, stages that were originally built for vaudeville acts were turned over to silver screens and the flickering images from motion-picture projectors. This new technology ushered Hollywood movies to the East Coast and made cinema accessible for locals to enjoy. Movie houses and palaces provided moviegoers a new type of viewing experience. With ornate interiors and rich architecture, these institutions offered their patrons a beautiful setting to watch classic films. Over time, these establishments evolved and began hosting burlesque shows and rock concerts. Today, many of these downtown landmarks have been demolished, replaced, or adaptively renovated into the modern multiplexes of today. Images of the Paramount and the Mosque Theater help Movie Houses of Greater Newark tell the story of an era when going to the movies was an event.

Detroit

9780738561134

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Detroit has always been at the forefront of American popular music development, and the ragtime years and jazz age are no exception. The city's long history of diversity has served the region well, providing a fertile environment for creating and nurturing some of America's most distinctly indigenous music. With a focus on the people and places that made Detroit a major contributor to America's rich musical heritage, Detroit: Ragtime and the Jazz Age provides a unique photo journal of a period stretching from the Civil War to the diminishing years of the big bands in the early 1940s.

Milwaukee Movie Theaters

9780738584454

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Prior to World War II, there were 90 single-screen movie theaters in Milwaukee. By 1960, that number had been reduced by half. With the arrival of television for the home market, the golden age of the movie theater in Milwaukee was dead. Yet their ghosts continue to haunt the old neighborhoods. Churches, warehouses, stores, nightspots, and other businesses now occupy the former Tivoli, Paris, Roosevelt, and Savoy Buildings. Others are simply vacant hulks, decaying from the inside out. The Elite, Regent, Lincoln, and Warner are but a few of the many silent sentinels from the days when Milwaukee was in love with the movies.

Theatres of the San Francisco Peninsula

9780738575780

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The San Francisco Peninsula serves as a geographic and transportation link between the cities of San Francisco, San Jose, and all points north and south. As commerce increased along its highways and railroad lines from the late 19th century onward, cities and towns flourished along that corridor. Wherever commerce went, entertainment followed. Beginning with early playhouses and storefront nickelodeons, continuing through the movie palace period, the golden age of the drive-in theatre, and into the days of the multiplex, this volume of vintage photographs captures the various eras as they applied to the peninsula.

West Virginia's Traditional Country Music

9781467123112

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West Virginia has been known for a century as a rich repository of traditional country music and musicians. Beginning in the mid-1920s, phonograph recordings and radios brought this music to a wider audience. With the passing of time and the influence of commercialization, this music developed into what became first known as hillbilly and then into the more refined country because of its long appeal to those of rural background. Although modernization has caused the traditional element to recede considerably, much still remains. Many folk still cling to the older sounds exemplified by the raw traditionalists and the neo-traditional bluegrass style that emerged in the 1940s. From the earliest recording artists, such as the Tweedy Brothers and David Miller, who was blind, to contemporary stars like Kathy Mattea and Brad Paisley, West Virginians and others have held their musicians in high esteem.

South Jersey Movie Houses

9780738544663

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Since the early 1900s, when the first moving images flickered on the screens of storefront nickelodeons, going to the movies has been an integral part of life across America. By the 1950s, there were over 230 theaters in southern New Jersey, ranging from lavish palaces like the 2,000-seat Stanley in Camden to modest venues like the 350-seat Little in Haddonfield. Today, sadly, less than a dozen remain standing, and most of those are now used for other commercial purposes. Only the Broadway in Pitman continues to operate as the last of the original motion-picture palaces. South Jersey Movie Houses is a pictorial tour of the theaters that once raised their curtains to audiences across the southern part of the state. It offers a nostalgic look at their neon marquees and silver screens, bringing back memories of Saturday matinees, 3-D glasses, and movie date nights.

Fox Theatre

9780738594491

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Even beyond Atlanta, this amazing, Moorish-style icon is known by most not by its legal name, the Fox Theatre, but as the Fabulous Fox.

Constructed in the late 1920s as a temple for the Yaarab Shrine, the imposing yellow-brick building was designed to out Baghdad Baghdad in its elaborate Middle Eastern appearance. But the onion-domed exterior with its faux prayer towers is nothing compared to the elaborate interior. Movie mogul William Fox leased the auditorium from the Shriners in 1929, transforming it into a movie palace like no other. The theater became a place of spectacular premieres and world-class performances until changing times threatened its very existence in the 1970s. The campaign to Save the Fox proved more dramatic than some of the performances that graced Fox's own stage. Today, the Fabulous Fox is one of Atlanta's best-known and most cherished landmarks.

New York City Vaudeville

9780738545622

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New York City Vaudeville provides a unique pictorial record of America's preeminent entertainment medium in the late 1800s through the early 1930s. New York's Palace Theatre
served as the flagship for vaudeville, on which stage every
vaudevillian aspired to perform. New York City Vaudeville
features photographs of some of the greatest names from
the Palace Theatre, including Jack Benny, George Burns
and Gracie Allen, Anna Held, the Marx Brothers, and Eva Tanguay, as well as legendary African American performers such as Bill Robinson, Ethel Waters, and Bert Williams. Through the photographs and the capsule biographies, the reader is transported back to a time when vaudeville was the people's entertainment, with a new bill of fare each week and an ever-changing number of performers with ever-changing styles of presentation.

The Birth of the Detroit Sound

9780738520339

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From the 1940s through the early 1960s, a new form of popular music was born in the United States-one that would take the world by storm. Detroit disc jockey Alan Freed, among the very first to play and promote new music, christened it "Rock 'n Roll" from an old blues lyric. Detroit, like New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Memphis, contributed its own distinctive regional character to the music and became a hub of industry activity. An epicenter of American music by the mid-1950s, Detroit built its reputation upon a wealth of talented singers and musicians, the vast amount of clubs and theaters available to them, and a multitude of enthusiastic industry professionals who helped bring their unique sound to the world. Many record labels, including Fortune and Fox, also thrived in the metro Detroit area in the days before Berry Gordy's Motown Records gained international recognition. This book documents the extraordinary style of music that took shape in Detroit well before Motown was a gleam in Gordy's eye. The Birth of the Detroit Sound chronicles great talents like John Lee Hooker, Hank Ballard & the Midnighters, Jackie Wilson, Jack Scott, Andre Williams, and Nolan Strong. Featuring a rare collection of vintage photographs, the book also spotlights record industry personalities, deejays, and long-forgotten venues where the giants of Detroit music once performed.

The Dallas Music Scene

9781467131513

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For much of the 20th century, Dallas was home to a wide range of vital popular music. By the 1920s, the streets, dance halls, and vaudeville houses of Deep Ellum rang with blues and jazz. Blind Lemon Jefferson was discovered singing the blues on the streets of Deep Ellum but never recorded in Dallas. Beginning in the 1930s, however, artists from Western swing pioneer Bob Wills to blues legend Robert Johnson recorded in a three-story zigzag moderne building at 508 Park Avenue. And from the late 1940s to the mid-1960s, a wrestling arena called the Sportatorium was home to a Saturday night country and rock-and-roll extravaganza called the Big D Jamboree.

Honolulu Television

9781467127585

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Honolulu Television celebrates 65 years of local broadcasting in the islands. Test patterns first appeared on local station KONA, and soon after, KGMB broadcast Carl "Kini Popo" Hebenstreit's first words on air on December 1, 1952. Honolulu has had a wealth of colorful personalities grace its airwaves. Sheriff Ken, Lucky Luck, Chubby Roland, Captain Honolulu, and Checkers & Pogo are just some of the names and shows that entertained island viewers back in the day, when there were few choices on the dial. Some Honolulu television personalities would get their start here and move on to national and network television stardom, like famed sports broadcaster Al Michaels; Ken Kashiwahara, the last journalist remaining on scene at the Fall of Saigon; and Doug Bruckner, a longtime correspondent for Hard Copy, A Current Affair, and Extra syndicated entertainment and television news magazine shows.

Los Angeles's Central Avenue Jazz

9781467131308

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From the late 1910s until the early 1950s, a series of aggressive segregation policies toward Los Angeles's rapidly expanding African American community inadvertently led to one of the most culturally rich avenues in the United States. From Downtown Los Angeles to the largely undeveloped city of Watts to the south, Central Avenue became the center of the West Coast jazz scene, nurturing homegrown talents like Charles Mingus, Dexter Gordon, and Buddy Collette while also hosting countless touring jazz legends such as Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Billie Holiday. Twenty-four hours a day, the sound of live jazz wafted out of nightclubs, restaurants, hotel lobbies, music schools, and anywhere else a jazz combo could squeeze in its instruments for nearly 50 years, helping to advance and define the sound of America's greatest musical contribution.

Detroit's Downtown Movie Palaces

9780738541020

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The spokelike grid of wide grand avenues radiating out from downtown Detroit allowed for a concentration of theaters initially along Monroe Street near Campus Martius and, after the second decade of the 20th century, clustered around Grand Circus Park, all easily accessible by a vast network of streetcars. In its heyday, Grand Circus Park boasted a dozen palatial movie palaces containing an astonishing total of 26,000 seats. Of these theaters, five remain today, fully restored and operational for live entertainment. Detroit, more so than any other North American city, illustrates how demographic and economic forces dramatically changed the landscape of film exhibition in an urban setting.

The Copacabana

9780738549194

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It has been years since New York has seen anything quite like the old Copacabana. The Copa, Manhattan's best-known night club, was also the most popular nightspot in America. From the moment it burst onto the scene in 1940, an aura of glamour and sophistication hovered over the Copa. It was a luminous glow that, over the course of five decades, served this illustrious establishment well, beckoning the people who made it famous-Hollywood stars, sports heroes, foreign dignitaries, and the town's leading families, including the Kennedys, the Roosevelts, and the Du Ponts. The Copa was a showcase for past, present, and future stars, including Joe E. Lewis, Sophie Tucker, Jimmy Durante, Julie Wilson, Tony Orlando, and Wayne Newton. Through vintage photographs and stories from performers, Copa Girls, and other people connected with the Copa's history, The Copacabana chronicles how this landmark institution became an American cultural icon.

The Cincinnati Sound

9780738550763

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From 1940 to 1970, Cincinnati overflowed with musical opportunities. Hank Williams recorded his hit "Lovesick Blues." Andy Williams, Rosemary and
Betty Clooney, and Doris Day appeared regularly on WLW Radio, which also broadcast Boone County Jamboree. Then came the network television show
Midwestern Hayride and stardom for Kenny Price. Meanwhile, King and Fraternity Records released hundreds of hits for James Brown, Hank Ballard and the Midnighters, Cowboy Copas, Lonnie Mack, and the Casinos. In the late 1960s, the Lemon Pipers sang "Green Tambourine," and rock bands ruled Coney Island's Moonlite Gardens. It was a wild, incredible ride while it lasted, and it left such an indelible impression that today Cincinnati is remembered as one of America's top music capitals.

Cleveland's Playhouse Square

9780738540139

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Cleveland's Playhouse Square documents the fascinating history of the five theatres which boomed, beginning in the 1920s.

In the early 1920s, five opulent theaters--the Allen, the Ohio, the State, the Palace, and the Hanna--opened on a stretch of Euclid Avenue in Cleveland. They offered legitimate theater, vaudeville, name bands and entertainers, and films for the affluent and hardworking citizens of this booming industrial city. Unfortunately, the introduction of television and the flight to the suburbs in the 1950s and 1960s turned the theaters into ghost palaces destined for the wrecking ball. In 1970, a bold group of planners led by Raymond K. Shepardson formed the Playhouse Square Association, a nonprofit group dedicated to saving the theaters. A 25-year restoration endeavor emerged that raised $53 million, culminating in the largest theater restoration project in the world. Today Playhouse Square Center ranks second only to New York's Lincoln Center as North America's largest performing arts complex.

Memphis Music

9780738544113

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Memphis means music. That relationship was solidified in 1909 when W. C. Handy wrote the song "Mr. Crump" and later published it as the "Memphis Blues." As Handy's songs were sung and played in streets and music halls, a spotlight began to shine on a new mecca for innovation in music--Memphis, Tennessee. Memphis Music: Before the Blues surveys the people, music, and events that contributed to the rich musical life that emerged against the backdrop of the Civil War and yellow fever in the 19th century. The story is not just one of the building blocks to what has been called America's greatest export--popular music--but rather it is a story of ongoing innovation and creativity that came from a convergence of people of different cultures.

Stand-Up Comedy in Chicago

9781467111843

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Ten years after Chicago saw its first full-time comedy club open, the landscape was decidedly different. "Stand-up comedy has exploded in the last couple of years," a club owner told the Chicago Tribune in 1985, "that's the only way to describe it: exploded." It was truly a comedy boom, with as many as 16 clubs operating at once, and it lasted nearly a decade before fading, taking with it some of Chicago's oldest comedy stages, including the Comedy Cottage, Comedy Womb, and Who's on First. Still, stalwarts like Barrel of Laughs (south) and Zanies (north) persevered. That part of the story is known; overlooked is the fact there was a comedy boom, period. To hear the story, it is as if stand-up comedy innately morphed from a dated nightclub scene to what one Chicago Sun-Times writer called "Chicago's atomic comedy blast."

Theatres of Hawai'i

9780738581606

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Famous for its lush beauty and inviting beaches, Hawai‘i also boasts a rich theatrical history dating back to the mid-19th century and spanning its years as a kingdom, U.S. territory, and a state. Its warm, tropical climate and social, cultural, and ethnic diversity contributed to the variety of theatres unique to the islands—from simple, rural plantation theatres on the neighbor islands, to neighborhood movie houses in exotic styles, to an incomparable tropical moderne jewel near the beach at Waikiki. Most of these theatres are now just a memory, except for those few saved by dedicated individuals and restored for another life. This book celebrates the rich history of these theatrical venues through rare archival photographs and little-known details.

Chicago Blues

9781467112208

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Blues was once described as the devil's music. It eventually became some of the most beloved American music that was embraced by a global audience. Originating in African American communities in the South in the late 1800s, it was inspired by gospel and spiritual music sung by field hands and sharecroppers who worked on plantations. During the Great Migration from the early 1900s to the mid-1970s, many African Americans moved north for a better quality of life. Chicago was one of America's leading industrialized cites, and manufacturing jobs were plentiful and provided better wages than sharecropping. Many blues musicians who worked as field hands and sharecroppers moved to Chicago not only for those jobs, but also to pursue their love of music. Greats such as Big Bill Broonzy, Tampa Red, Muddy Waters, Jimmy and Estelle Yancey, Robert Nighthawk, Elmore James, Willie Dixon, Earl Hooker, Koko Taylor, Sly Johnson, Buddy Guy, Howlin' Wolf, Eddie Burns, Zora Young, Junior Wells, and a host of others came with their own styles and gave birth to Chicago blues.

Pittsburgh Jazz

9780738549804

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Pittsburgh Jazz documents the almost forgotten magic created in the city of Pittsburgh by a host of artists, uptown inner city streets, and jazz joints that served patrons from a menu packed full of delightful music. The magical improvised songs, compositions, and unique styles of hundreds of those who were born, raised, or influenced by what occurred in the smoke filled clubs, bars, restaurants, and theaters is difficult to comprehend. And yet, every jazz artist in the world was attracted here to "stand the test" waiting in the Steel City. This book is committed to connecting Pittsburghstyle jazz as the synthesis that resulted in the art form called bebop. This photographic presentation was captured by Pittsburgh Courier photographers between the 1930s and 1980s.

Fort Worth's Rock and Roll Roots

9780738584997

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On the evening of February 9, 1964, Ed Sullivan introduced the Beatles to America. Across the country, teens were glued to their TV sets and witnessed a turning point in rock and roll history. Vibrant and creative teen scenes sprang up all across the country. The scene in Fort Worth, Texas, produced an exceptional burst of creativity in songwriting and musicianship. Weekend concerts and battles of the bands drew thousands of fans. Primitive teen recordings were pressed into 45s and received radio airplay in rotation with national acts. Local television shows featured live bands; fashions changed with go-go girls' skirts growing shorter; long hair became the style for women and men; and the seeds of the counterculture were planted and flourished. The music of this generation birthed every rock subgenre for the next 40 years (acid rock, heavy metal, punk, new wave, grunge), and today's musicians still reach back to these recordings for inspiration.

The Keswick Theatre

9780738535616

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The Keswick Theatre, located just outside Philadelphia, opened in 1928 in an era when four thousand similar structures were in various stages of design and construction across the country. Vaudeville was in its final days and film was just being born. Designed by acclaimed architect Horace Trumbauer, the theater evolved into the area's premier movie house. When the theater was threatened with demolition in the early 1980s, the Glenside Landmarks Society was formed with the hopes of restoring the building to its former grandeur. Today, operating as a commercial venture, it is one of the most acclaimed concert halls in the Philadelphia area. The Keswick Theatre celebrates this historic landmark through vintage images and recognizes the dedicated community members who have kept its doors open.

Stepping out in Cincinnati

9780738534329

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Long before folks had a television set and radio in every room, they sought entertainment by stepping out for a night on the town. The choices around Cincinnati were nearly limitless: live theater at the Cox; spectacular musicals at the Shubert; hotels featuring fine dining and dance orchestras; talking pictures at everyone's favorite movie palace--the Albee; burlesque and vaudeville shows at the Empress Theater on Vine Street; and gambling casinos were just a short drive across the river in Newport. All of the major entertainment venues in the Queen City during the first half of the 20th century are explored in Stepping out in Cincinnati. From saloons to ornate movie palaces and from the Cotton Club to the Capitol, you join those pleasure seekers, getting a real sense of what they saw: wonderful events and their countless images--the things of which fond memories were made. Today, those memories have faded and virtually all of the once-glittering showplaces have been bulldozed into history. But within these pages, we get to experience first hand what it was like to be there. Unique among the many photographs featuring unforgettable movie houses and nightclub orchestras are never-before-published images of actual live vaudeville performances onstage at the Shubert, plus rare, clandestine pictures snapped inside the casinos in Newport. Also revealed are the locations of the better-known speakeasies during Prohibition; where the best halls to dance to live orchestras were; what the earliest movie houses were like; and what black Cincinnatians did for entertainment.

Entertainment in Early Milwaukee

9780738550992

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What did early Milwaukeeans do to have fun and relax? This book answers that question, covering pop culture from the mid-1800s up to 1950, from the earliest tavern stages hosting traditional German plays and musicals, to the large traveling circus acts that arrived via the railroad, to the beer gardens, nickelodeons, and old grand cinemas that dominated the city's landscape during the first half of the 20th century. In its heyday, Milwaukee had several classic amusement parks with roller coasters, fun houses, water rides, and more. The first movie was shown in Milwaukee in 1896, and by 1920, there were nearly 100 buildings dedicated to motion pictures. And it was two Milwaukee businessmen who discovered the great Charlie Chaplin and also produced the 1915 epic Birth of a Nation.

Music Makers of the Blue Ridge Plateau

9780738554105

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During the late 1920s, Ralph Peer and the Victor Recording Company visited the city of Bristol to look for new talent. They stumbled upon Jimmie Rodgers and the Carter Family, two future legends of country music; however, other amazing musicians were unable to make the trip to Bristol for the auditions because of work and family obligations. For the locals, music was more than a way to earn fame and fortune; the music was part of the fabric of life in this rural environment. Some individuals did become famous, including the Stoneman Family, who recorded "The Ship That Didn't Return/ The Titanic," and Henry Whitter, who recorded "The Wreck of Old 97," but that was never the focus. The songs they played and created accompanied an entire generation through the Great Depression and World War II and into the vigorous growth of the 1950s and 1960s. All of these musicians influenced the birth, growth, and continued development of the Galax Fiddlers Convention, which is known around the world by old-time mountain music fans.

Spanish Harlem's Musical Legacy

9780738550060

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Spanish Harlem's musical development thrived between the 1930s and 1980s in New York City. This area was called El Barrio by its inhabitants and Spanish Harlem by all others. It was a neighborhood where musicians from the Caribbean or their descendants organized musical groups, thereby adding to the diaspora that began in Africa and Spain. The music now called salsa had its roots in Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Santo Domingo, and it continued developing on
another island: Manhattan.

Charleston Jazz

9780738543505

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Charleston Jazz sets out to reveal the rich, untold story of the evolution of American jazz in one of its major cradles: Charleston, South Carolina. The text and images show that what happened on the Gullah coast of South Carolina in terms of history, culture, and entertainment had a huge impact on jazz as we know it today. By all accounts, jazz is America's classical music. It now stands at the dawn of its second century and is poised to take its place as one of the more meaningful cultural phenomena ever to come along. Since Charleston was the gateway for enslaved Africans into the United States, it is no wonder that this uniquely beautiful place produced key creators of what many believe to be this country's most important influence on world culture. An international Charleston diaspora of jazz musicians attests to the fact that the likes of Freddie Green, William "Cat" Anderson, and Edmund Thornton Jenkins spread the Charleston style everywhere. Charleston jazz is one of the last great unknown stories in American history.

Indianapolis Rhythm and Blues

9781467129473

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Indiana Avenue was traditionally the host to some of America's premier, world-renown entertainment icons in various genres. Along this winding, brightly lit thoroughfare were nightclubs, lounges, supper clubs, taverns, juke joints, and holes-in-the-wall that celebrated the best of the best in entertainment that America had to offer, from the 1920s on into the 1970s. On the bandstand at Denver Ferguson's Sunset Terrace Ballroom, the elegantly attired crooner Nat King Cole, in a sparkling blue silk suit, delivered his signature song Mona Lisa. Nearby, B.B. King sang his 1973 down-home blues classic To Know You is to Love You. At Tuffy Mitchell's Pink Poodle nightclub, Moms Mabley made the audience roar with laughter during her sidesplitting comedy routine. Indiana Avenue truly was the place to be for the best in entertainment.

The Italian-American Immigrant Theatre of New York City

9780738500973

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Italian-American theatre sprang to life in New York City shortly after waves of Italian immigrants poured into this country in the 1870's. The mass migration brought both the performers and the audiences necessary for theatrical entertainment. Hungry for recognition, support, and social exchange, the men and women from Italy formed amateur theatrical clubs as one way of satisfying emotional needs. By 1900, the community had produced the major forces that created the Italian-American theatre of the ensuing decades. In The Italian-American Immigrant Theatre of New York City, author Emelise Aleandri regenerates the excitement of the stage through striking photographs, programs, and other memorabilia generously loaned by families of the theatre community. She follows the fortunes of the earliest nineteenth-century companies and introduces those that arose in the twentieth-century. Within these pages are scenes of comedy, tragedy, vaudeville, and radio, featuring stars such as Mimi Cecchini, Guglielmo Ricciardi, Concetta Arcamone, Antonio Maiori, Rita Berti, Farfariello, and Olga Barbato.

San Francisco Jazz

9781467132879

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San Francisco is probably best known for its hills, ubiquitous fog, dungeness crab and the Golden Gate Bridge. But jazz music's threads are similarly woven into the fabric of the city and its environs. Whether performed in renowned clubs like So Different, Jimbo's Bop City, Black Hawk, and the Jazz Workshop or in halls like the Primalon Ballroom and Great American Music Hall, jazz has infused the city from the Barbary Coast to the Fillmore, thrilling audiences for over a century. San Franciscans have grooved to and incubated scores of jazz acts, hot and cool, raucous and contemplative.

Historic Dallas Theatres

9781467131285

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Dallas was the show business capital of Texas and much of the South throughout the 20th century. More than 100 theatres served the city's neighborhoods, and Elm Street once boasted more than 15 vaudeville and movie theatres—second in number to Broadway. The quality of the show houses in Dallas were surpassed by few cities and all major, and most minor, Hollywood studios maintained Dallas offices. Notable names figuring in this history include Margo Jones, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Karl Hoblitzelle, Baruch Lumet, Bob Hope, Greer Garson, Linda Darnell, Howard Hughes, Clyde Barrow, Gene Autry, Oliver Stone, Pappy Dolson, Jack Ruby, Lee Harvey Oswald, Nicola Rescigno, Don Henley, and Frank Lloyd Wright.

Kentucky's Bluegrass Music

9780738585611

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It is likely that most fans of bluegrass music would concede that no state should be more associated with bluegrass music than Kentucky--and rightly so. Bluegrass music draws its name from the band that Kentuckian Bill Monroe formed during the late 1930s and 1940s. Bill named his band Bill Monroe and The Blue Grass Boys to honor his home state. Eventually, the music these bands and others like them were playing came to be known as bluegrass music. Later, another Kentuckian, Ebo Walker, while playing with the Bowling Green-based bluegrass band, New Grass Revival, coined the phrase "newgrass" to describe the band's progressive style of music. Other Kentuckians such as Bobby and Sonny Osborne, J. D. Crowe, Ricky Skaggs, and Dale Ann Bradley have become bluegrass stars. Some of the musicians from Kentucky covered in this book are quite famous--some are not. Famous or not, all of them have a deep-rooted passion for the music they play.

Boston's Downtown Movie Palaces

9780738576312

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Since the late 1800s, Boston has been a trendsetter in the development of the movie business. It was here that many of the earliest public showings of moving images took place and the name nickelodeon first appeared on a storefront theater. In 1896, B.F. Keith added film to his Washington Street theater, then throughout his national chain of vaudeville houses. In 1914, Boston's Modern became the country's first theater with an installed sound projection system. Several years later, the city had its first movie palace: Marcus Loew's Orpheum. A magnet for theater architects, Boston became a center for elegant movie houses, including the Metropolitan, Keith Memorial, and Paramount. Thanks to civic leaders and academic institutions, many of Boston's theaters have been preserved and restored and are alive and well today.

Music in Washington

9780738548180

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For more than 100 years, the Pacific Northwest has been making music history. In this new retrospective, rare photographs evoke the musical memories of days gone by, from the earliest 19th-century brass bands to Roaring Twenties jazz combos, 1940s hillbilly twangers, 1950s rhythm-and-blues singers, and generations of rock 'n' rollers, including the original 1950s rockabillies, 1960s "Louie Louie"-era garage bands and psychedelic acid-rock acts, 1970s punks, and 1980s new-wave artistes and heavy metal headbangers. Readers will discover how a scrappy backwoods region struggled to build the necessary infrastructure to eventually create a viable music industry and an underground scene that would ultimately earn global recognition as the home base of the 1990s grunge movement.

Seattle's Music Venues

9780738599984

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The varieties of music venues in Seattle have been as vital and vibrant for the people of the Emerald City as the genres that have graced these famous halls. These houses of music have nurtured the entertainment legacy of this region. Each holds a beautiful, haunting, and unique history that has helped shape the Pacific Northwest's musical culture, which, in turn, has helped shape our community. Out of the ashes of the Great Seattle Fire of 1889, the vaudeville age took Seattle by storm. The cultural and community centers harmonized with operas and symphonies. From the 1962 World's Fair to world-famous street musicians, Seattle's Music Venues will take the reader on a pictorial journey through 100 years of images compiled from the photographic collections of the Seattle Public Library, Seattle Municipal Archives, Library of Congress, and the author's personal collection.

Movie Theaters of Washington, DC

9781467129480

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Movie Theaters of Washington, DC charts the storied history of motion picture exhibition in the nation's capital. In 1894, entertainment venues were repurposed to show newfangled moving images and continued to do so through the downtown heyday of such 1920s baroque movie palaces as the 3,400-seat Fox. In the late 20th century, shoebox theaters dotted the nearby suburbs. In a landscape that has transformed over the decades, majestic landmarks, such as the Uptown, which opened in 1936, remain and are still going strong, and theaters like the Warner survived the dark days of downtown's commercial decline to be repurposed as thriving stage venues. While certain favorites have fallen to the wrecking ball, the Washington area has seen, along with a rejuvenated downtown, a vibrant movie scene for both mainstream blockbusters and art house fare with the Regal Gallery Place multiplex and more new theaters to come.

Oklahoma City

9780738583815

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Located in downtown Oklahoma City, Film Row once flourished as a sales hub for theater owners needing films, posters, and concessions for their Midwest venues. The film exchange offices along this three-square-block area and across the cityscape housed major film production studios like Paramount Pictures, MGM, Universal, Fox, and Warner Brothers from 1907 until the 1980s. But changes in demographics, economy, and technology nearly wiped their memory from the city landscape. Now these decades-old structures and their nearly forgotten history are being rediscovered and utilized once again for business. This book tells their story through rare images discovered in shoeboxes, back rooms, and the Oklahoma Historical Society's archives. Most of the images within these pages are shared here for the very first time.

Birmingham's Theater and Retail District

9780738517773

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From the 1890s to the 1970s, the thriving area of Birmingham between Eighteenth and Twenty-first Streets along First, Second, and Third Avenues was the bustling heart of this quickly growing city. Before the age of the shopping mall, the downtown was the center of retail and entertainment in Birmingham. Along these streets, entrepreneurial immigrants built department stores--including Pizitz and Loveman, Joseph, and Loeb--while the marquees of the Alabama, Ritz, and Lyric theaters, among others, shined over the busy downtown sidewalks.

Theatres of Oakland

9780738546810

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Oakland has a rich theatre history, from the amusements of a gas-lit downtown light opera and vaudeville stage in the 1870s to the ornate cinematic escape portals of the Great Depression. Dozens of neighborhood theatres, once the site of family outings and first dates, remain cherished memories in the lives of Oaklanders. The city can still boast three fabulous movie palaces from the golden age of cinema: the incomparable art deco Paramount, which now offers live performances and films; the stately Grand Lake gracing the sinuous shores of Lake Merritt; and the magnificently eccentric Fox Oakland, with its imposing Hindu gods flanking the stage. The Paramount and Grand Lake still stir the heartstrings of patrons with showings preceded by interludes on their mighty Wurlitzer organs.

Beloit's Club Pop House

9780738552095

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For baby boomers who grew up in and around Beloit, memories of that era would not be complete without the Pop House. To high school students, this teen nightclub was a weekend music mecca. Friday and Saturday nights were reserved for dancing and listening to live music provided by countless bands and solo acts. Owner George Stankewitz, born and raised in Beloit, became friend, father figure, and even boss to hundreds of area teenagers. From swing to pop to rock, notable acts to take the stage at the Pop House between 1946 and 1973 include such jukebox staples as Bobby Vinton, Johnny Tillotson, and Del Shannon, along with a tidal wave of Beatles-inspired local favorites. Summer softball leagues and championship basketball teams are recalled as well as the annual Turkey Bowl that continues to this day. And who can forget the annual chili festival with the crowning of a chili queen or a menu famous for its specialty sandwiches like the Snead and the Smiley?

Kearney's World Theatre

9780738583259

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The World Theatre in Kearney, Nebraska, opened in 1927 and was welcomed by an excited public. Much more than just a movie house, it soon proved to be a social center, where people of all professions, ages, and income levels would frequently gather, because it was modern and new and there were considered few equally attractive alternatives. Some went because it was a sanctuary or where they earned a living, while others nurtured the seeds of attachments there or sought out temporary distractions such as bits of humor, drama, mystery, or adventure. For still more, it was an important venue for staying informed or even escaping the heat of the day. Slowly over time, the entertainment and economic landscapes in the country changed, affecting The World's profitability as well as others like it.

The Oklahoma Cowboy Band

9780738552453

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The Oklahoma Cowboy Band was the first western string band in the nation to broadcast over the radio and appear on vaudeville, drawing large audiences throughout the Midwest and Northeast. The band began in Ripley as Billy McGinty's Cowboy Band and first played over radio station KFRU in Bristow in May 1925. Billy McGinty was a Rough Rider with Theodore Roosevelt and performed in Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. The public responded to the broadcast of his band with a steady stream of telegrams, telephone calls, and letters asking for more of that old-time cowboy music. Soon Otto Gray and his wife, Mommie, of Stillwater joined the band, with both performing rope tricks, Mommie singing sad songs, and their son, Owen, performing comedy routines as "the Uke Buster." Renamed Otto Gray and His Oklahoma Cowboys, the band traveled for a decade to such cities as St. Louis, Chicago, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Pittsburgh, and Syracuse. Its custom-built Cadillacs drew crowds wherever the band went. By the early 1930s, other acts were copying the band's cowboy themes and songs, and Otto Gray's lawyers threatened legal action. The lawyers met with only limited success, though, and today the cowboy image is firmly established in country music, thanks in large part to the early success of Billy McGinty, Otto Gray, and the Oklahoma Cowboy Band.

Lakewood Theatre

9781467125949

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Beginning as a humble vaudeville hall in the Skowhegan-Madison trolley park, Lakewood Theatre has graced the southwestern shore of Lake Wesserunsett in Madison, Maine, since the turn of the 20th century. Under the masterful guidance of Herbert L. Swett, a Bangor native and Bowdoin graduate, Lakewood eventually developed into a nationally renowned playhouse that was called the Broadway in Maine by the New York Times in its heyday, from 1925 until World War II. In the years following the war, Lakewood was operated by Swett's heirs and became a virtual who's who of both Broadway and Hollywood, until it nearly went dark in the early 1980s. Operating today as a nonprofit community theater, Lakewood is the official state theater of Maine and the oldest continually running summer theater in the country.

The Elks Opera House

9780738585420

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For over 100 years, the Elks Opera House has been a landmark of the cultural scene in Prescott, Arizona, and the western United States. In 1904, the people of Prescott raised $15,000 toward a performance hall to be included in the Elks Building. The original structure featured opera boxes that were later removed to adapt to the demands of motion pictures, and the entire proscenium arch was covered with wood paneling. In 2010, the Elks Opera House Foundation completed major renovations to restore the original 1905 grandeur of the theater and the 1928 marquee, which was paid for by grants from local charitable foundations, Arizona historic preservation funds, and generous participation by businesses and individuals. The Elks Building was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.

Milwaukee's Live Theater

9780738560595

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Milwaukee's live theater scene is the sum of several exciting parts. For many, Milwaukee live theater means world-class productions done by resident actors at one of the nation's leading regional theaters. For others, it has been defined by the machinations of a respected experimental theater troupe that traveled throughout Europe in the 1980s and was once honored with an Obie Award. There was a time when Milwaukee live theater meant a big top arena where some of the biggest stars of American musical theater frolicked and played for local audiences. Audiences in Milwaukee have enjoyed the classics, new plays, and contemporary hits performed by never-say-die producers who boast personalities larger than the stages their companies play upon. The Milwaukee theater style is not fussy or overblown. It is informed by a thrilling past, buoyant future, unsurpassed community support, and unfailing devotion to solid midwestern work ethics channeled into artistic innovation. Simply put, Milwaukee's live theater scene is the best-kept artistic secret in the United States.

Entertainment in Augusta and the CSRA

9780738516219

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Augusta, Georgia, and the surrounding towns in the Central Savannah River Area boast more than 200 years of entertainment history, including performances by late 18th-century musicians and many of the nation's first superstars. Some of the most memorable moments in the history of the Garden City are captured in the pages of this unique volume. Entertainment in Augusta and the CSRA reveals many famous faces that have made appearances-either for a short time or for life-in the CSRA. Captured in striking vintage images, most of which were culled from the archives of The Augusta Chronicle, are unforgettable visitors ranging from Charlie Chaplin to Elvis Presley. In addition to nationally recognized celebrities-such as Amy Grant, Jayne Mansfield, Hulk Hogan, Jessye Norman, Butterfly McQueen, and The Godfather of Soul, James Brown-this collection pays tribute to local and regional talents, from singers and dancers to athletes and politicians.

Nashville Music before Country

9780738553986

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Nashville is a name synonymous with music. Years before the first radio broadcast of country music from Nashville's Grand Ole Opry, music and publishing were central to Nashville's self-identity. Thousands of songs flooded into the Cumberland and Tennessee River valleys from Southern Appalachia, sung by folk performers. These songs became the foundation for the folk-hymn traditions that grew throughout Tennessee. Into this stream flowed a body of African American spirituals, gospel, and minstrel songs. The arrival of trained German musicians brought classical styles to this gathering stream of musical confluences. These musicians found a home in the academies and businesses of Nashville. Nashville Music before Country is the story of how music merged with education, publication, entertainment, and distribution to set the stage for a unique musical metropolis. The images for Nashville Music before Country come from private collections as well as public libraries and archives.

Tacoma's Theater District

9781467134026

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The history of Tacoma's Theater District is nearly as long as that of the city of Tacoma itself, spanning from the opening of the Tacoma Theater in 1890 to the present day, with restored historical facilities anchoring a renewed cultural district. This telling of the district's history reflects a range of engaging topics, including the boundless enthusiasm of the initial residents of Tacoma (the City of Destiny), the changing ways in which culture was shared and experienced over the decades of the 20th century, and a community working together through difficult times to save and restore historical buildings as gathering spaces for the benefit of future generations. The story is told through historical photographs of the theater venues themselves, as well as images capturing a myriad of cultural and community events taking place in those facilities and in the surrounding district.

Thalian Hall

9781467121224

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Thalian Hall is one of the oldest and most beautiful theaters in America. Forming the east wing of Wilmington's iconic city hall, this dual-purpose building has been at the center of the community's cultural and political life since it first opened in 1858. Thalian Hall is the only surviving theater designed by John Montague Trimble, one of America's foremost 19th-century theater architects. It was built at a time when Wilmington was the largest city in North Carolina. Thalian Hall is the embodiment of a tradition of performance that stretches back for over two centuries. It has hosted Shakespearean tragedies, musical concerts, and even boxing and wrestling events. For generations, Wilmington audiences have witnessed touring stars, local actors, musicians, dancers, and movies in a parade of performances and celebratory events. The story of Thalian Hall is an embroidered tapestry reflecting the history of the American theater and the community that built it.

Madam Walker Theatre Center

9781467110877

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As they watched construction of the block-long flatiron building brick by brick throughout 1927, African American residents of Indianapolis could scarcely contain their pride. This new headquarters of the Madam C.J. Walker Manufacturing Company, with its terra-cotta trimmed facade, was to be more than corporate offices and a factory for what then was one of America's most successful black businesses. In fact, it was designed as a city within a city, with an African Art Deco theater, ballroom, restaurant, drugstore, beauty salon, beauty school, and medical offices. Generations of African American families met for Sunday dinner at the Coffee Pot, enjoyed first-run movies and live performances in the Walker Theatre, and hosted dances in the Casino. Today, this National Historic Landmark is an arts center anchoring the Indiana Avenue Cultural District.

Walnut Street Theatre

9780738557700

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The Walnut Street Theatre, located at the corner of Ninth and Walnut Streets, is America's oldest theater, a national historic landmark, and the state theater of Pennsylvania. Since its opening in 1809, world-famous stars, such as Henry Fonda, Katharine Hepburn, and Marlon Brando, have performed on its stage. Many of the greatest works in American theater premiered there, including A Streetcar Named Desire, A Raisin in the Sun, and Neil Simon's first Broadway play, Come Blow Your Horn. In 1982, under the direction of Bernard Havard, the Walnut became a not-for-profit producing theater company. Today, with over 56,000 subscribers annually, it is the most subscribed theater company in the world. Through vintage images from the theater's archives and the Free Library of Philadelphia's Theatre Collection, Walnut Street Theatre rediscovers the Walnut's rich past.

Columbus

9780738561530

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Columbus has long been known for its musicians. Unlike New York, San Francisco, Kansas City, Nashville, or even Cincinnati, however, it has never had a definable scene. Still, some truly remarkable music has been made in this musical crossroads by the many outstanding musicians who have called it home. Since 1900, Columbus has grown from the 28th- to the 15th-largest city in the United States. During this period, it has developed into a musically vibrant community that has nurtured the talents of such artists as Elsie Janis, Ted Lewis, Nancy Wilson, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Dwight Yoakam, Bow Wow, and Rascal Flatts. But, in many instances, those who chose to remain at home were as good and, perhaps, even better.

Canton Entertainment

9781467110846

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Everyone loves to have fun! Over the years, Cantonians have enjoyed a wide variety of amusements, from traveling theatrical shows to community-wide celebrations. Louis Schaefer opened the town's first opera house in 1868, attracting some of the 19th century's biggest stars to Canton. The tradition of first-rate entertainment continued in the 20th century, with stars like Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, and Guy Lombardo gracing the stage of the Moonlight Ballroom. During the Great Depression in the 1930s, Canton enjoyed a cultural renaissance with the development of many arts organizations still cherished today, including the Players' Guild, Canton Symphony Orchestra, and Canton Museum of Art. In 1955, the city celebrated its sesquicentennial with the biggest parade in Canton's history.

Memphis Movie Theatres

9781467110419

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Memphis has always been a theatrical town—a crossroads in the center of America for entertainment as well as commerce. Movies are among the many things that travel through the city, both for distribution and exhibition. Thousands of people who have lived here or just passed through, especially during and after World War II, found their way to the movie theatres. From the vaudeville palaces on Main Street to the nickelodeons on Beale Street, these theatres helped shape the culture of the city. Kemmons Wilson operated movie houses before he built the first Holiday Inn. Several movie theatres played roles in the life of Elvis Presley. W.C. Handy attended the opening of a theatre named for him. Local censorship practices influenced decisions in Hollywood, and the first multiplex in the region was built in Memphis.

Oklahoma City Music

9780738584270

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Oklahoma City's rich music history traces back to Deep Deuce, the heart of the African American community that became an important resource for national jazz and blues bands seeking talented musicians who were often classically trained. Two icons and many legends are among the famous sons and daughters who lived in this cultural Mecca. Oklahoma City's Music: Deep Deuce and Beyond details the birth and growth of music in Oklahoma City's African American community from the 1920s until the late 1990s. Musical influences of families and individuals, venues, dance, and fashion blend with new-era traditions such as parades, jam sessions, and street parties to create a culture that became well known. This book explores how the seeds of music so deeply planted in the early days continue to produce great musicians and how the influences of those icons will vibrate throughout future international generations.

South Carolina Blues

9781467114721

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The history of South Carolina blues is a long, deep—and sometimes painful—story. However, it is a narrative with aspects as compelling as the music itself. Geographical differences in America led to variations in the styles of music that developed from African rhythms. The wet, marshy landscape and hot, muggy weather of the Carolina Lowcountry combined to cultivate not only rice, but a Gullah-based style of South Carolina blues. In drier climates, toward the Midlands and the Upstate, the combination of European influences led to the emergence of Piedmont blues, which in turn spawned country music as well as bluegrass. Those same Gullah roots resulted in four major dance crazes, starting with the Charleston.

The Music Hall, Portsmouth

9780738512495

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On Christmas Eve 1876, Portsmouth citizens watched flames reduce their largest meetinghouse and entertainment hall to ashes. During the following year, local families, businessmen, and craftsmen combined their resources to build a new auditorium with state-of-the-art lighting, rigging, staging, and seating-a comfortable venue for public addresses, charity functions, and international entertainment. The Music Hall, Portsmouth, was born.

Twain spoke from her stage, Sousa's brass echoed from her walls, and Edison's films brought her silver screen to life. Enduring war, depression, and multiple threats of destruction, this grand hall today stands as New Hampshire's oldest operating theater. Showcasing the world's finest stage and screen talent, offering artistic education to young and old, and hosting fundraisers and private events, the Music Hall is a testament to the necessity of arts in local culture and the strength of a community's resolve.