Motion Pictures Fireworks Circus and Dare-Devil Acts

Turn-of-the-century vaudeville performances – even the “clean and moral” shows – commonly relied on ethnic and racial humor that contemporary readers might find offensive. The Oaks performances featured whites performing in blackface, jokes about immigrants, and exotic depictions of non-European cultures.

Adelphia Musical Company, 1920. Performances included, "The Wrong Mr. Right" and "Hogan in Egypt."

Aloha Symphony Serenaders, 1925. This group, starring Mille Dore and Helen Jones, presented "Bits of Hawaii," which included a segment that featured a “negro fancy skater.”

Armstrong Baby Dolls' Revue, 1922. Advertisements touted, “Girls and more girls and lots of comedy!” Performances included, "Bits of Broadway," "The Flapper," and "The Frolics of 1922." Comedians Ed Armstrong, Dan Friendly, and Dixie Heyder performed along with the girls. According to the Oregonian, the storyline of “The Flapper,” was as follows: “A.B. Cohn wins and marries a 1922 flapper, believing her to be wealthy. He, at the time, is hard pressed for funds and upon learning that his bride is merely a bird of brilliant plumage, he enlists a lot of trouble by calling on his wealthy uncle for financial help.”

The Armstrong Folly Company, 1919. Three shows included, "Paqueta," a melodious bit of Spanish operatic comedy, "Scenes from a San Francisco Cabaret," and "Dreamy Eyes.”

Blackfeet Indians, 1913. These vaudeville performers had fictitious - and disrespectful - names such as, “Lazy Boy,” “John Kicking Woman,” “Long Time Sleeper,” “Mrs. Dog Ears,” and “Stab by Mistake.”

The Boston Troubadours, 1915. Performances included, “The Suffragettes,” and "An American Consel."

Catherine Collier and De Walde, 1913. Miss Collier was billed as "the most perfect woman in vaudeville."

Claiborne and Trombley, 1914. One was a “Hebrew messenger” and the other a “soubrette.”

Allen Curtis Musical Comedy Company, 1907. Marguerite La Ponte sang the hit number of the show entitled, “The Merry Jolly Widow,” accompanied by a chorus of 14 girls. Other performances included “A Night in Venice,” and “The Headwaters.” According to a review, “Allen Curtis is one of the foremost Hebrew Impersonators in the country.” He was accompanied by Arthur Curtis, the “Dutch comedian.”

Edwards’ Tennessee Troubadours, 1906. Two performances included, “The Plantation Theatre,” and Shakespeare’s “As You Like It.”

Miss Marguerite Favar and Her Dainty Dancing Dolls, 1913. During one performance, a moving picture of the breaking sea at Atlantic City played in the background as the “dainty dolls” pretended to plunge into the surf.

Gregory’s Extravaganza Company, 1921. This company performed, “Parisian Follies,” "The Follies of Today," and "The Winter Garden Girl.”

The Hawaiian Troubadours, 1914. These eight "Kanakas" sang native songs.

The Neapolitans, Trio of Italian Street Singers and Troubadours, 1912. According to a reviewer, “Their genial bonhomie and catchy little songs and airs provoke laughter from the audience every time.”

La Serrinta, the Young Argentinean Dancer, 1914. Together with partner, Huntington Freeman, she performed “ultra-modern dances.”

Markee Brothers, 1913. According to reviews in the newspapers, these performers were a “hit” as blackface comedians.

Montana Indian Stars, 1924. These American Indians gave a demonstration of their culture from “primitive times to modern times.”

Monsieur Marcel and his Fifty Maidens, 1917. These French performers presented the Ballet de Ruse, “The Birth of the Rose.”

Montana Bill, the Cowboy Singer, 1914.

G. Harvey Norton Musical Company, 1911. This group featured Oscar Welch and Elvira Rand and presented a tabloid comedy called, "The Girl from Our Town," and "Professor Bull the Aviator."

Elma May Novak’s Vaudette Orchestra, 1924. These young women put on a show called, "Sailor Burt on Leave."

Philip Pelz and the Metropolitan Opera Company, 1911. A few of their musical selections included, "Sweetest Girl in Paris," "Uncle Tom's Cabin," "Brazilian Dance," "Chocolate Soldier," "Dreamy Italian Waltz," and "Love's Dream After the Ball."

Princess Corena, 1905. She and her coterie of vaudeville performers put on "The Girl from Mars.”

Progressive Business Men's Quartet, 1918.

Punch and Judy, 1912-1925. This puppet show was a staple attraction at The Oaks, and was a favorite with children and adults alike.

The Oaks Hawaiians, 1913. They perform "Kanaka" music.

Oaks Minstrel Show, 1915. Advertisements promised that there would be “jokes and 'gags' on prominent and near-prominent people.”

Oaks Park Minstrels, 1925. According to newspaper reviews, two of the most popular numbers were, "Carry Me Back to Old Virginny," and "Watermelon Girl."

The Original Memphis Minstrels, 1919.

Owens & Owens, 1913. These comedians performed in blackface and whiteface. According to an article, they had a reputation on the leading vaudeville circuits.

Owens & Pine, 1913. These two young female comedians sang, danced, and played the violin.

Raymond and Richards, 1913. One of these performers was a yodeler and the other a “Dutch professor.”

Royal Hawaiian Orchestra, 1916, 1925.

Frank Rich Musical Comedy Company, 1912, 1914. A review of “The Butler’s Dream” read, "There is a large number of pretty girls and clever performers among the members of the company.” In 1914 Rich’s “Sunshine Girls” returned and performed, “The Girl from Panama,” and “Variety Isle.”

Rozita and Bingham, 1916. Their vaudeville act, "Tony Spagghetti" was called, “a delightful hodge-podge of humor, parodies, and excerpts from grand opera.”

The Spanish Imperial Singers and Dancers, 1905.

“Spray of Life,” 1907. This synchronized swimming show featured the “beautiful maids of the phosphorescent fountain” and was “clean, moral and mysterious.”

Tiny Snyder and Tom Stockton, 1914. This “Ethiopian comedian” played the banjo while his partner sang.

The Teuton Two, German Comedians, 1912.

Motion Pictures Fireworks Circus and Dare-Devil Acts Top of Page

The Disastrous San Francisco Fire, 1906.

Spanish-American War: Pictured Scenes from American War History, 1907.

How Bessie Saw the Rose Festival, 1914. Advertisements promised patrons that everyone who marched in the children’s parade of the annual civic event was filmed closely enough to be recognized.

Oaks Park Films, 1914 & 1918. Cordray hired a photographer to film his patrons enjoying the park. The moving pictures were the feature attraction of the following weeks.

Civilization, 1917. This pacifist war drama was advertised as the “greatest motion picture ever produced.”

Charlie Chaplin Films, 1918.

Vaudeville & Variety Fireworks Circus and Dare-Devil Acts Top of Page

Pain's “Last Days of Pompeii,” 1905. Henry J. Pain was one of the most famous names in the fireworks business. Along with the destruction of the city of Pompeii by a volcano, this show included vaudeville and acrobatic performances.

“Salvo of Daylight Bombs,” 1907.

Henry J. Pain's "The Battle of the Clouds," 1909.

"Aerial Warfare, 1911. This typical fireworks performance depicted the profile of a city. An airship and a balloon hovered overhead and dropped shells into the city with “dire effects.” Then, automobiles on the ground shot and destroyed the airborne menaces.

“Battle of the Dardanelles,” 1915. This fireworks show took place early during World War I. Perhaps reflecting the optimism of the reviewer regarding America’s future involvement in the fighting, one review read, “For a miniature battle on land and sea it was perhaps the most realistic that spectators would ever see.”

“Wheel of Allies,” 1919.

Vaudeville & Variety Motion Pictures Circus and Dare-Devil Acts Top of Page

Ali Zada, the Oriental Wonder-Worker, 1913. Advertisements describe the show as the “Hindu equivalent of ‘making medicine’."

The Amazing Man-Fish, 1911. “He eats, sleeps and lives under water!”

Oscar Babcock’s "Death Trap Loop," 1915.

Philip M. Bowen’s Fiery Plunge, 1912. A gasoline-soaked diver climbed to a 100-foot platform, set himself on fire, and dove into a tank of flames.

Dr. D. B. Boyd and King Pharaoh, 1912. “A plain, spotty horse, but he seems to have the brain equipment that could shame almost a high school freshman," described the Oregonian, "for there is scarcely any simple mathematical problem that he cannot solve.”

Boyd and Ogle’s One Ring Circus, 1912.

Don Carlo's Miniature Circus, 1924. This circus consisted of 15 ponies, 20 “uncannily human” monkeys, 20 talented little dogs, and a goat. Don Carlo made it a point to stress that he was gentle with the animals. “Patience and kindness are my tools,” noted the trainer. To this a woman in the audience remarked, "I have always thought that animals had to be trained to perform through brute force, but I see that no cruelty has ever been used with these animals. The way they act around you is lovely to see."

Silas G. Christofferson, Portland Aviator, 1912. Christofferson selected a member of the public, Mrs. Edna Becker, to accompany him on one of his flights from the Oaks boardwalk. A newspaper article covering the event called Becker the “first woman ever to fly at any altitude in the West.”

Cortillius’ Dog Circus, 1922.

The Great Davenports’ High Wire and Trapeze Act, 1907.

Don Fulano, Film Horse, 1924. This “educated horse” starred in motion pictures such as "Black Beauty," "The Color Sargeant," and "Bradford's Claim."

Miss Alice Gregg’s "Autos that Pass in the Air," 1913.

James E. Hardy's Sensational High-Wire Act, 1911.

The Jumping Fitzgeralds, 1923.

La Belle and "Dare Devil" Hurley, 1912. A "Leap-The-Gap" attraction in which La Belle is hurled into the air and caught by her partner.

Lady Livingstone, Roller Skating Bear, 1912. One day the bear’s trainer and Manager Cordray decided to take the bear for a ride on the Blue Streak roller coaster. According to the Oregonian, "During the whole distance the bear literally screamed with apparent delight, if the sound a black bear makes can be distinguished between a roar and a scream."

Marian Lil’ Jens and Frank Comar, 1906. This “human comet” and partner did a “High Fire Dive" and a “Dip of Death.”

Prince Karl, the "Horse with the Human Brain," 1906. The horse counted, added, subtracted, told the time of day, and could pick out the prettiest lady in the audience.

Professor Coleman's Marvelous and Daring Balloon Ascensions, 1906. Coleman leaped from a cannon and falls from the sky with the help of a balloon.

Professor Wilhelm Frackes' Circus of 300 Fleas, 1910.

Professor Le Strange, Balloonist, 1921, 1923.

Mme. Schell and Her Trained Lions, 1909.

Miss Viola’s Animal Circus, 1913. A newspaper reviewer had this to say about Miss Viola's 60 birds and beasts: “Her roster of performers reads like the catalogue of a zoo.” An especially attractive feature was her mind-reading cockatoo.

Vaudeville & Variety Motion Pictures Fireworks Top of Page

Back to "The People's Park"

Forward to "Management"

Forward to next "People's Park" topic