Spotlight on Lee Falk - The Theatre Years
Lee Falk had a passion for the theatre, and he wrote several plays including two musicals. During his lifetime he ran five theaters, produced about 300 plays and directed about 100 of them.
These summer theatres were resident equity company, supplemented by guest stars from theatre and film (and later television). The season started late in May and each play normally ran for one week. The actors received a "normal" payment to perform but the guest stars often had in their contracts a percentage of profit of the play. A common contract could be 10% of the gross with $750 per week guarantee. Since most of the plays made very little profit most of the guest stars worked for a fraction of what they would normally earn.
The Cambridge Summer Theatre (1940–1947)
at Brattle Hall (about 495 seats)
According to Phil Davis Louise Falk, acted in one of the summer stock companies at Connecticut in 1939. I assume that Lee Falk met John Huntington during the season. Anyhow, after reading Lee's play "Festival at Salzburg", John Huntington urged Lee Falk to join in producing summer stock at Brattle Hall in the 1940 season.
The 1940 season
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The 1941 season
Co-sponsored by John Huntington and Lee Falk. With Louise (acting name: Louise Kanaseriff) as an actress in the resident company.
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The 1942 season
The 1942 season was announced as co-sponsored by John Huntington and Lee Falk. But due to Lee Falk's WWII obligations this was changed to the co-sponsorship of Louise Falk and John Huntington.
The 1943 season
Presented by Louise Falk and John Huntington, with Louise Falk (acting name: Louise Valery) as an actress in the resident company
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The 1944 season
Presented by Louise Falk and John Huntington, with Louise Falk (acting name: Louise Valery) as an actress in the resident company.
| Week of | Title | by | Starring | Cast |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 6 | Tonight or Never | Ethel Barrymoore Colt | ||
| June 12 | Another Love Story | Madge Evans | Louise Valery, Richard Hard, .... | |
| June 19 | A Goose for a Gander | Harold J Kennedy | Gloria Swanson & Ralph Forbes | Ralph Forbes, Lynn Carter, Louise Valery, Harold J Kennedy, Gloria Swanson, Lee Nugent, Allan Tower, Miranda Swanson, David Tyrell |
| June 26 | Anna Christie | Claire Luce | ||
| July 3 | Guest in the House | Julie Haydon | Robert Perry, Louise Valery, Richard Hart, Marjorie Peggs, Kathryn Cameron | |
| July 10 | Dark Eyes | Lenore Ulric | Louise Valery, Richard Hard, .... | |
| July 17 | Oh Boy | Patti Pickens | ||
| July 24 | The Little Foxes | Mabel Acker | ||
| July 31 | Here's To Us | Shirland Quin | Jean Muir | Ada Roston, Muriel Pierce, Jean Muir, Richard Hart, Louise Valery, Roderich Winchell, Ruth Homond, Shirland Quin |
| August 7 | To Many Husbonds | Somerset Maugham | Nancy Carroll | |
| August 14 | Dark of the Moon | Carol Stone | Richard Hard, .... | |
| August 21 | Marriage is for Single People | Stanley Richards | Jeanne Cagney | Mathilda Calman, Jeanne Cagney, Kathryn Cameron, Roderich Winchell, Lynne Arlen, Louise Valery, Allan Tower, Dorothy Lambert, Richard Hart, Ronald Graham, James Lawlor, Myrtle Shaw |
| August 28 | Come Be My Love | Edward Caulfield & Pauline Jamerson | Walter Hampden | |
| September 4 | ? | |||
| September 11 | Winterkill | Jerry Emerson | Margaret Hayes | Dorothy Lambert, Richard Hart, Margaret Hayes, John Gerstad, William Jeffrey, Louise Valery, Allan Tower, Roderich Winchell |
The 1945 season
Presented by (Louise Falk and) John Huntington.
| Week of | Title | by | Starring | Cast |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 11 | Blithe Spirit | Noel Coward | Elissa Landi | |
| June 18 | Her Cardboard Lover | Jacques Deval | Diana Barrymore | |
| June 25 | The Passionate Congressman | Lee Harrison Falk | Neil Hamilton | Kurt Richards, Gertrude Flynn, Nick Harris, Edmon Ryan, George MacQuarrie, Bruce Adams, Ruth Homond, John McKee, Louise Valery, Frank McNellis, William Becker, Philip Wheaton, Roderich Winchell, Eliot Duvey, William Otis, Donald Josephs, Carter Jefferson. |
| July 2 | My Sister Eileen | Libby Holman | Constance Moorehead | |
| July 9 | Winterset | Vera Zorina | ||
| July 16 | Alice In Wonderland | Edythe Ward | Margareth Speaks, Jerry Ross, Marian Seldes, Joanne Palmer, Robert Foster, Elisabeth Bradlee, Peggy Stuart, Kai Strozzi, Dorothy Lambert, Ray Hinkley, Bruce Adams, Philip Wheaton, Gertrude Woodard, Eliot Duvey, Kurt Richards, Ruth Homond, Roderich Winchell, Emile Renan, Constance Moorehead, Norma Kellar, Hibbard James | |
| Three's a Family |
The 1946 season
Returning in 1946 Lee Falk and John Huntington found that they could manage to operate one more summer theatre, if they could produce a play a week at the new Boston Summer Theatre and then move it to Cambridge the next week.
One more thing was that television was beginning to compete with theatre and movies. One way to attract audiences was to bring in complete travelling shows from New York. These shows could easily be booked to play two theatres in two weeks.
The 1947 season
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The season of 1947 was the last with John Huntington, and Lee Falk decided to drop the Cambridge Summer Theatre.
The Boston Summer Theatre (1946–1958)
at New England Mutual Hall (about 914 seats)
Lee Falk had divorced in 1945 and when he returned in 1946 he fell in love with an actress of the summer stock, Constance J M Lilienthal. They were married in August 1946.
When returning in 1946 Lee started seriously directing and during this and the next seasons he directed a play every week. However, after the 1947 season he found that he could not operate his new summer theatre all by himself and the cartoonist Al Capp became his new silent partner in 1948.
The Boston Summer Theatre was doing well for many years until 1957 when Lee Falk started to lose money. Al Capp had dropped out in 1956 and John Huntington came back for the 1958 season. But sadly, they still lost money and Lee Falk decided to throw in the towel.
The County Playhouse (1952–1953)
at Framingham Cinema (about 2500 seats)
Framingham Cinema was part of "Shopper’s World", the world’s biggest shopping centre located in Framingham. Lee Falk and Al Capp rented the Cinema for the years 1952–1954 to put up "the second week" of the plays from the Boston Summer theatre. The Framingham Cinema cancelled the last year of their contract and the County Playhouse operated only for the seasons of 1952 and 1953. Marlon Brando, Billy Burke and Ezio Pinza were some of the guest stars playing at the playhouse.
The 1952 season
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The 1953 season
- Week of July 27: Arms And The Man by George Bernard Shaw, starring Marlon Brando as Sergius. (note: week of 6 July at the Theatre by-the-sea, Matunuck)
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The Marblehead Theatre (1954?–1956?)
In 1952 Lee Falk said he had rented the North Shore Music Tent in Beverly, not far away from Marblehead. This might have been the Marblehead Theatre or some other project that wasn't realized.
Very little information can be found about the Marblehead Theatre except for the place it operated from. My guess is that when Lee Falk lost the County Playhouse for the 1954 season he rented a new place in Marblehead for his "second week" of the Boston Summer Theatre. It is a bit uncertain if the theatre was still operating in 1956.
The British Colonial Playhouse (1953–1958?)
at Bahama Playhouse (about 40 seats)
Lee and his wife Connie used to spend parts of the winters in Nassau Bahamas. During February and March there was a small theatre operating at Bahama Playhouse. The British Colonial Playhouse had been operated by Lawrence Langner, Martin Manulis and Charles Bowden for two years without any financial success.
They asked Lee Falk if he would like to operate the theatre, he accepted and in the season of 1953 Lee found himself as the managing director for a small winter theatre. Charles Heston acted in one play in 1957, but if the theatre still was operated by Lee Falk after this season is uncertain.
Other theatres
Lee Falk was the producer and director for the play Winkelberg by Ben Hecht at Renata Theater in 1958.
Sources
- Billboard magazines
- Newspapers