When Sandusky was a Stop on the Vaudeville Circuit

Before motion pictures dominated our culture and everyone had a record player in the house, Vaudeville was the main source of entertainment, particularly for the working classes. Performers of many types traveled together on "the circuit" from city to city, presenting their acts as part of a variety program in local theaters. For as little as ten cents, people could spend an afternoon or an evening (sometimes there were two shows a day) watching singers, dancers, jugglers, magicians, comedians, and who knows what other type of performers -- and perhaps even get to see a movie with the price of admission. Sandusky had the good fortune of being along the railroad lines between major cities such as Chicago, Cleveland, and Buffalo, so many big stars of the time stopped in Sandusky for a performance.

The Sandusky Theater, built as an opera house in 1877, was the major venue for vaudeville performance in Sandusky, but many smaller theaters in towns offered vaudeville shows -- including, in the early days (19th century, after the Civil War), Norman Hall, Fisher's Hall, and Link's Hall; and in the 20th century, the Majestic Theater and the State Theater.

As mentioned above, many famous performers stopped in Sandusky to do their acts; many are forgotten today (like John Bunny), but were huge stars at the time; others are remembered to this day, at least by fans of show business history.

But by the 1930s, with the advent of the "talkies" (sound motion pictures), the poverty of the Great Depression, and, later, World War II and television, Vaudeville faded in popularity until it was just a memory. Its spirit lived on in television, on programs like the Ed Sullivan show, and even to this day with Leno and Letterman, and other variety shows.

To view original vaudeville programs from Sandusky theaters and to learn more about entertainment in early Sandusky, visit the Archives Research Center at the Sandusky Library.

Kate Castleton in “Crazy Patch”

 

Kate Castleton was considered the “idol of the fun loving public.” She starred in the play “Crazy Patch” which played in Sandusky on December 13, 1887 at Biemiller’s Opera House. 

The December 12, 1887 issue of the Sandusky Register featured an article from the Cleveland Leader about the play:

“Crazy Patch,” as seen here three years ago, did not give the promise of becoming the remarkable success it has certainly achieved.  This is its third year, and it is today one of the best paying attractions on the road. “Crazy Patch: is the combined work of the star and the various comedians she had around her from time to time, not of is success being due to the author. It is a dramatic conundrum – comedy, parody, burlesque, pantomime and opera being all jumbled together to from a crazy patch of fun. According to reports it keeps the audience in a perpetual roar. Miss Castleton’s song, “Excuse me, I’ll tell you no more” is said to be the happiest of her recent creations. Mr. .Eddy Foy is spoken of as irresistibly funny in his personation of the lunatic.”

Images of the actress Kate Castleton are found in several online collections, including the New York Public Library Digital Gallery and the Kentuckiana Digital Gallery.

W. H. Dilger, Vaudeville Entertainer

William H. Dilger was born on July 23, 1880 in Sandusky, Ohio. His father, also named William H. Dilger, was a landscape gardener and florist in Sandusky in the 1880’s and 1890’s. The book Sandusky of Today credits William H. Dilger, Sr. with beautifying the city parks of Sandusky. By 1900 William H. Dilger, Sr. had moved to Michigan, where he continued work as a landscape gardener.

The younger William H. Dilger was in show business for many years. He lived for a time in New York, but then moved to Sarasota, Florida, and later to Miami, Florida. In correspondence with former Follett House curator, Helen Hansen, Mr. Dilger wrote that he had appeared in illusion shows at Cedar Point, and performed an original illusion entitled “The Moth and the Flame” at the Biemiller Opera House in Sandusky in 1910. He claims to have originated many magic tricks and illusions for professional magicians when Vaudeville was at its height. W. H. Dilger performed in Vaudeville from about 1908 through 1913.

The following article, from the April 1909 issue of Popular Mechanics, illustrates the remarkable “Safe Escape Act” of W.H. Dilger.

According to the Social Security Death Index, William H. Dilger passed away in Florida in June, 1968. You can read an article written by W. H. Dilger in the February 21, 1963 issue of the Sandusky Register, in which W. H. Dilger details his father’s career as a florist, landscape gardener, and consultant.