Keene, Sullivan, among those who played Little Falls

By Mat Rapacz

Circuses were not the only traveling shows to play in Little Falls and vicinity. Many famous entertainment acts of the late 19th century played dates in Little Falls, as performing companies made their way east and west across the state. Two of the famous people who performed in plays in Little Falls were the noted actress Laura Keene, and John L. Sullivan, the heavyweight boxing champion.

The Little Falls Journal and Courier of October 8, 1868 noted the upcoming performance of Keene (born Mary Moss circa 1826, died 1873) as follows.

Laura Keene Coming — The lovers of the drama will be excited to learn that Miss Laura Keene, the eminent tragedienne, with an excellent troupe of actors, will appear at Keller Hall on Monday evening next. The play is one of her favorites, Our American Cousin, and we shall be mistaken if the Hall is not crowded to its utmost capacity on that occasion. Reserved seat tickets may be obtained at Knapp & Arnold’s Book Store where a diagram of the hall can be seen. Those purchasing these tickets can rely upon having their seats retained for them.

The review of her performance appeared in the October 15 edition.

“The appearance of Miss Keene at Keller Hall on Monday evening was greeted with the best audience we have ever seen in this town at a theatrical performance. We believe no one was disappointed in either the star actor or the company by which she is supported, which is the highest praise we can give in a short newspaper squib.”

The play, Our American Cousin, was the very same one Keene was performing at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C. on the night of April 14, 1865. That performance was interrupted when John Wilkes Booth shot President Abraham Lincoln. Keene was offstage when Booth fired his gun and brushed past the assassin as he made his way out of the theater. Keene held the president’s head in her lap in the box where he was shot. Lincoln was then moved to the nearby home of William Peterson, a tailor, where he died the next morning. A grief-stricken Keene was one of those at or near Lincoln’s bedside until the president expired.

Sullivan (1858-1918) the last bare-knuckles boxing champion, lost the heavyweight title (with gloves) to James J. Corbett on September 7, 1892 at age 33. He was used to performing in traveling exhibitions as a boxer so, after he lost to Corbett, Sullivan continued to travel and perform, cashing in on his fame by acting. He didn’t officially retire from boxing for a number of years, though he never fought seriously after losing to Corbett.

The Evening Times, in its January 4, 1893 edition, noted that Sullivan and company of players would play in a “sensational and romantic drama in four acts” by Edmund E. Price titled The Man From Boston. The review of Sullivan’s performance is as follows.

Sullivan as a Thespian – He is not a shining light, but his company is good and gives a fair entertainment. It is but fair to say that John L. Sullivan was a disappointment to Little Falls peoples in two ways. In the first place, he was no such tough looking creature as many people expected to see, and in the next place the show he gives is not lacking in merit by any means. The Cronkhite opera house was well filled to greet the company. It was a thoroughly cosmopolitan audience, comprising as it did, men occupying the highest and lowest stations in life. There was quite a number of the gentler sex present, and they enjoyed the play, especially the finale, as much as the men did. The play is constructed for the purpose of showing the star as a little saint; a man who is constantly doing good deeds, but is despised and maligned if he “drinks a glass of whiskey with a friend,” or “pats a man on the back.” The play accomplishes its objective with people who have weak minds that can be easily swayed by such proof. Just as soon as the curtain goes up the audience awaits the appearance of the star with baited breath. Two villains, one of whom bears some resemblance to Sullivan, appears first, and last night’s audience actually cheered them, thinking of course that one of them was the “only.” When Sullivan did appear the gallery gods went into ecstatics with enthusiasm. The lithograph pictures of Sullivan are good representations of him as he appears on the stage. The big fellow acted easy and was fairly graceful in his movements, but his voice was husky and his inflection and pronunciation were not of that standard which a school boy should attempt to emulate. The company contains two or three splendid features. The Boston quartet was repeatedly encored and the soubrette was better than the usual run of such actresses. As there were no programs her identity was not disclosed to the audience. When she rendered “Push Those Clouds Away,” and tried to make love to “Georgie” Fallis, the audience was delighted. “Push Those Clouds Away” will be remembered as Jimmie Fox’s old song, and it has seldom been heard here since Little Falls’ favorite comedian passed.

Sullivan made a fortune as an actor, but then was broke again and his weight ballooned to 300 pounds. Going against his previous lifestyle, he became a temperance advocate in 1905. At age 52 he settled down on a Massachusetts farm.