When thinking of toys that have tested the fate of time, none are as prevalent as the yo-yo. It’s a simple toy that is two disks tied together with a string that people can perform increasingly difficult tricks with. The average person in the 21st century is aware of Duncan Toys Company and the various yo-yos they sell, but they don’t know who brought the modern concept to the United States.

What many people don’t realize is that the story of the first commercialized yo-yos is one of immigrant success during a time of hatred and nationalism. Despite the surplus of anti-Filipino riots throughout the United States and the eventual stock market crash, Pedro Flores created a product that lasted long after his death, and his name and story deserve to be acknowledged by the public sphere.

The Creator

Pedro Flores was born in 1896 in Vintar, a municipality in the Philippines. It’s very likely he did not have the best childhood growing up, as his home country was transitioning through a period of war and turmoil. They had been part of the Spanish–American War, with a naval battle happening in Manila bay, and many Filipinos fighting alongside the Americans.

When they were free from the chains of Spanish rule, the United States annexed them, and they soon found themselves in the Philippines-American War after revolting against their new colonial power, until the Philippines surrendered in 1901.

What he did gain from everything, despite his rough childhood, was the precursor to the modern yo-yo.

In 1915, at around 19 years old, Flores moved from the Philippines to the United States, landing himself in California in order to pursue an education at San Francisco’s High School of Commerce.¹ Afterwards, he studied law at the University of California’s law school, but dropped out and moved to Santa Barbra, working odd jobs in order to survive.²

While working as a bellboy, he decided to “[demonstrate] a toy that he had carved out of wood during his lunch break.”³ After reading of a man who made money off of a rubber ball attached to a string, he thought back to the yo-yo and figured it had market potential, stating “I do not expect to make a million dollars, I just want to be working for myself. I have been working for other people for practically all my life and I don’t like it.”⁴

From there, he set his pursuits on starting up a yo-yo company. He had no luck asking for assistance from wealthy Filipino countrymen, so Flores focused on receiving a certificate to conduct business, which he received on June 9th 1928. From there, he started the Yo-Yo Manufacturing Company in Santa Barbara, California.⁵

The Production

Although its modern iteration comes from Pedro Flores, the idea of the yo-yo has been around for centuries in Ancient Greece and China, showing up in pots and paintings respectively.⁶ In the 18th century, it was a popular toy among aristocrats and, in English, was referred to as a “bandalore” or “quiz.”⁷⁸ A popular theory states the yo-yo was used as a weapon in the Philippines, but there is no evidence to back up this claim.

Additionally, many people incorrectly claim that “yo-yo” is a word from Tagalog that translates to “come-come” or “to return” in English. In Tagalog, the word does not exist. “Halika dito” (come here) and “bumalik” (with a person, to return) are actual words in Tagalog, but not “yo-yo.”

Another theory is that the word comes from Ilocano, but I am not familiar enough with the language, nor do I know anyone who can speak it. This makes the question of where the word “yo-yo” comes from unanswered, but the simplest answer could be that Flores came up with something catchy that would help the toy sell. Unfortunately, no one can know for sure.

After the creation of the Yo-Yo Manufacturing Company, Flores created a dozen yo-yos that he sold to the neighboring children on June 23, 1928.⁹ Some quick math reveals that each yo-yo likely took a day to create. By November of that same year, 2,000 yo-yos were produced. This attracted financiers James Lewis and Daniel Stone, who helped him create a new company in Los Angeles that had machines.[] He finally didn’t have to carve yo-yos by hand. By November 1929, he also had Flores Yo-Yo Corporation in Hollywood, and was producing 300,000 yo-yos daily.

What helped propel the yo-yo’s popularity was the yo-yo contests held. The first contests happened in 1928, and were hosted by Pedro Flores himself in Santa Barbara. These original contests were a test to see “who could make the yo-yo go up and down the most times without stopping.”¹⁰

There were also contests to see “who could throw their yo-yo the farthest with a complete return to the hand, and who could perform the most perfect spins in five minutes.”¹¹ These fun tricks one could do with a yo-yo attracted the attention of various people, going as far out as interesting Donald F. Duncan, the man behind Duncan Toys Company.

After the success of the yo-yo, Flores sold the product to Duncan in 1930 for around $25,000 to $250,000—though many agree the price to be on the lower end of the spectrum.¹² He is quoted with saying “I am more interested in teaching children to use the yo-yos than I am in manufacturing of yo-yos,” and did promote the toy for Duncan after the fact.¹³ Flores continued to attach himself to the yo-yo, helping people such as Joe Radovan sell the Chico Yo-yo, and even started Flores Corp. of America in 1954, where he temporarily produced more of the toy.¹⁴ Unfortunately, many of these companies are gone, and Flores eventually passed in 1964, but Duncan still sells yo-yos of varying skill levels to this day.

Significance

Immigration and Racism

Pedro Flores was an immigrant from the Philippines. He isn’t unlike other immigrants who came to the United States; he likely traveled across the Pacific Ocean to seek a better life outside the Philippines. However, as a Filipino immigrant, his experience is more unique from other immigrants.

After the Spanish-American War and the Philippine-American War, the United States controlled the Philippines behind the scenes. This included Filipino education, where they taught the new generation English, and that all men are created equal. As a result, Filipinos did not see themselves as aliens when they immigrated to the United States and “existed, rather, in a midway zone between Filipino and American identity.”¹⁵

Filipino immigrants were also unaffected by the Immigration Act of 1917, which imposed literacy tests on Asian immigrants. This is likely due to the Philippines being controlled by the United States.

Numbers rose as more Filipinos immigrated to the United States, with a large population of them settling in California—it is the closest state to the Philippines, after all. However, as immigration rose throughout the United States, the Ku Klux Klan rose to fight for nativism. They were one of many groups to lobby for restrictions on immigration.¹⁶ Additionally, despite their focus being against black Americans and Catholics, they also targeted immigrants, such as Filipinos. The KKK stirred much anti-Asian sentiment within America, causing anti-Filipino riots to occur in America.

For example, in 1927, one of the biggest anti-Filipino riots happened in Yakima Valley, Washington. A mob of white people was demanding that Filipino farmworkers be driven out from the valley, believing that “since the Filipinos were brown-skinned and Asian, they should not be permitted to approach white women or compete with white men for jobs.”¹⁷ This is, obviously, not true and only serves to objectify Filipinos, but people believed it at the time, and these mobs eventually chased them out after threatening their deaths. The perpetrators were arrested, but only received ten days of jail time.

Something similar happened in Wenatchee Valley, Washington in 1928 and 1929, where Filipinos were chased out of the valley.¹⁸ What happened at these riots, and many other anti-Filipino riots throughout the decade, is disgusting. This isn’t even the worst of what I found, as more violent acts have been committed in different riots, but the fact that white people were willing to chase these Filipinos down because they looked different is a testament to the hatred of the decade, even with the pluralism of the time.

Despite this anti-Filipino sentiment along the West Coast, Pedro Flores still made a name for himself. This is an amazing accomplishment that should be celebrated alongside other famous figures of the decade. He made a noteworthy contribution to culture then and now, and his name deserves recognition as well.

Reflection of Culture

When reflecting upon consumer culture, the creation of the modern yo-yo for American audiences is an interesting case. Especially when compared to objects like the Form Model T.

Pedro Flores created a product based on the culture he knew, and managed to sell it through demonstration. According to Lynn Dumenil, blue-collar workers helped shape consumer culture, while white-collar workers were more susceptible to consumer culture through things such as advertising.¹⁹²⁰

As stated before with Filipino immigrants being the midway point of their Filipino and American identities, Flores’s yo-yos exist as him contributing his culture, that being a toy from the Philippines, while also successfully advertising it to the public.

The Modern Temper specifically discusses how advertisements in the 1920s utilized “the personal approach, the tendency to include “you” in the text.”²¹ He managed to encapsulate this perfectly with his yo-yo competitions. If a person wished to participate, they needed a yo-yo, and Flores Yo-yos were the only yo-yos available for a while. These competitions eventually spread outside Santa Barbara and outside California, furthering his product’s reach, and getting more people to buy his yo-yo.

On top of that, yo-yos were relatively cheap to make, meaning they could easily be produced and sold to the public. Even when the Great Depression hit, “[inexpensive] toys with high play value, such as the yo-yo and the Radio Flyer Wagon, were very lucrative investments. Whereas other American entrepreneurs lost fortunes, toy inventors such as Pedro Flores and Antonio Pasin acquired millions.”²² The yo-yo surviving the Great Depression is an incredible feat, but it’s thanks to the fact that it’s simply two wooden disks, a wooden axel, and a piece of string. Anyone could hypothetically create a yo-yo if they had the skill and patience.

What this meant for the 20s (and beyond?)

Ever since, the yo-yo has been a popular toy among children. In the late 90s, Yomega partnered with Bandai, causing a bunch of advertising of the yo-yo to spread like wildfire and reignite the craze for the toy.²³

The toy became so popular that National Yo-yo Day is celebrated on June 6th to commemorate Donald F. Duncan. While this is an amazing achievement for a toy to have, what about the man who brought the toy to the United States?

I’m not suggesting we change National Yo-yo Day to be on Pedro Flores’ birthday, but it is a shame that Duncan is celebrated before Flores.

The story behind the modern yo-yo is a story of Filipino success that should be celebrated. Considering the toy’s 100th year anniversary is coming up as of writing this blog post, Duncan Toys Company should commemorate the toy’s origin by retelling Pedro Flores’ story. That way, his name isn’t just a footnote in the toy’s history, as he had a huge role in bringing the toy over from the Philippines.

They also used to have a history page back in the early 2000s that mentioned Pedro Flores, but have since removed it as the years have gone by and website standards change. I personally believe they should bring their history page back, so that people curious about the origin of the yo-yo have a starting point and understand that Duncan shouldn’t be taking all the credit from Flores.

After all, to quote Lucky’s Collectors Guide to 20th Century Yo-yos: History and Values, “Although Duncan is now the name most frequently associated with the popularity of the yo-yo, Pedro Flores fueled the original yo-yo fire.”²⁴

Citations

Footnotes

1. Naomi Hirahara, Distinguished Asian American Business Leaders (Bloomsbury Academic, 2003), 57. ︎
2. Hirahara, 57. ︎
3. Hirahara, 57. ︎
4. Lucky J. Meisenheimer, Lucky’s Collectors Guide to 20th Century Yo-Yos (Lucky J’s Swim & Surf, 1998), 99. ︎
5. Meisenheimer, 99. ︎
6. Mark Fischetti, “String Theory,” Scientific American 291, no. 3 (2004): 110. http://www.jstor.org/stable/26060692. ︎
7. Fischetti, 110. ︎
8. Meisenheimer, 34. ︎
9. Meisenheimer, 99. ︎
10. Meisenheimer, 36. ︎
11. Meisenheimer, 100. ︎
12. Meisenheimer, 61. ︎
13. Meisenheimer, 100 ︎
14. Meisenheimer, 100. ︎
15. Kevin Starr, Golden Dreams (Oxford University Press, 2011), 450. ︎
16. Lynn Dumenil, The Modern Temper : American Culture and Society in the 1920s (New York, Ny: Hill and Wang, 2007), 207. ︎
17. Steve Ross, “Ninety Years Ago in Washington, a Wave of Anti-Immigrant Sentiment Resulted in Horror for Filipinos,” Slate Magazine (Slate, August 4, 2017). https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2017/08/ninety-years-ago-in-washington-a-wave-of-anti-immigrant-sentiment-resulted-in-horror-for-filipinos.html?pay=1778139475174. ︎
18. Ross. ︎
19. Dumenil, 82. ︎
20. Dumenil, 86. ︎
21. Dumenil, 90. ︎
22. Sharon M. Scott, Toys and American Culture: An Encyclopedia (ABC-CLIO, 2009), xxiv. ︎
23. Dr. Yo-Yo’s Emporium of Wonderful Things, “AYYA: 10 Years and Throwing – the Unreleased Documentary,” YouTube, November 4, 2012, 30:36. https://youtu.be/EeYhGP92ESI?si=ufsyMmG1iAuFIyvR. ︎
24. Meisenheimer, 100. ︎

Bibliography

Dr. Yo-Yo’s Emporium of Wonderful Things. “AYYA: 10 Years and Throwing – the Unreleased Documentary.” YouTube, November 4, 2012. https://youtu.be/EeYhGP92ESI?si=ufsyMmG1iAuFIyvR.

Dumenil, Lynn. The Modern Temper : American Culture and Society in the 1920s. New York, Ny: Hill and Wang, 2007.

Fischetti, Mark. “String Theory.” Scientific American 291, no. 3 (2004): 110–11. http://www.jstor.org/stable/26060692.

Hirahara, Naomi. Distinguished Asian American Business Leaders. Bloomsbury Academic, 2003.

Meisenheimer, Lucky J. Lucky’s Collectors Guide to 20th Century Yo-Yos. Lucky J’s Swim & Surf, 1998.

Ross, Steve. “Ninety Years Ago in Washington, a Wave of Anti-Immigrant Sentiment Resulted in Horror for Filipinos.” Slate Magazine. Slate, August 4, 2017. https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2017/08/ninety-years-ago-in-washington-a-wave-of-anti-immigrant-sentiment-resulted-in-horror-for-filipinos.html?pay=1778139475174.

Scott, Sharon M. Toys and American Culture: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO, 2009.

Starr, Kevin. Golden Dreams. Oxford University Press, 2011.

Eryn Argonza

Eryn is a Ramapo College sophomore majoring in History and minoring in Museum Studies.

Entertainment involving performers was immensely popular in the 1920s, such as movies, theater, music, dancing, and sports. Perhaps the most famous performer was illusionist Harry Houdini. Houdini was a living legend, performing seemingly impossible death defying stunts and escape acts on a daily basis, leaving crowds speechless. Harry Houdini popularized escape acts and illusion as a form of entertainment that was distinct from magic shows, exposed frauds, and left behind a legacy many would do anything to achieve. Along with this legacy, he left behind a life of mysteries.  

Harry Houdini, born Erik Weisz in Hungary, moved to the United States when he was four years old in 1878.¹ His father was a rabbi and had accepted a job offering in Wisconsin and had moved there earlier than Houdini, his mother, and his 4 brothers.² The family moved to New York 9 years later, when Houdini’s father decided he was not making enough to support his family in Wisconsin.³ From an early age, Erik, nicknamed Harry, had an immense fascination with magic, especially with “French conjurer Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin”.⁴ Young Harry was so inspired by Houdin that he altered his last name to use as his own future stage name. He began his career at the age of nine in a local circus, alongside his brother, but he did not come into the public eye until his escape acts took off a few years later.⁵ When his father passed away in 1892, Houdini took it upon himself to provide for and support his family, and so he began touring.⁶ He worked his way up in the entertainment and stunt/illusion industry, and by the 1920s, Harry Houdini would have been a household name across the world.⁷ 

Houdini escaped death thousands of times, escaping from straight jackets, jail cells, and handcuffs, sometimes underwater. He made the impossible possible, embodied a new type of superhuman, and fascinated everyone who came to see him perform. There did not seem to be a single situation that he couldn’t overcome. That was, until late October 1926, when Harry Houdini finally met his match. He “so often had seemed to thousands to be cheating the very jaws of death” but this time, he was unsuccessful.⁸ The chain of events leading up to his death were perhaps more mysterious than his actual death. 

Prior to the main series of events leading up to his death, Houdini nearly severed his foot in his water torture cell trick in Albany on October 11, 1926, but emerged with just a fractured ankle.⁹ He visited the hospital several times, first to confirm it was fractured, then for treatments.¹⁰ He was advised to take time off from shows to allow his ankle  to heal and avoid making it worse or causing permanent damage.¹¹ Like many other instances, he ignored this advice, and continued his shows. The continuing of these performances didn’t allow his body to heal his ankle and left his body and immune system significantly weakened.¹² This lowered immunity made him highly susceptible to further infections and diseases. Even if he had been in good health, it was still not likely Houdini would have been able to survive the events that were to come. Contrary to popular belief, he did not actually die in his Chinese Water Torture Cell. This false cause of death was introduced in the 1953 movie titled Houdini, in which Houdini died within this cell.¹³ The truth about his death is much more complex than this Hollywood depiction of drowning. 

October 22: The Punch

Harry Houdini was scheduled to perform a show at the Princess Theater in Montreal on the evening of October 22, 1926. He was preparing and relaxing before the show in his dressing room, when a group of students came to visit him. One of the McGill University students, J. Gordon Whitehead, asked if it was true that he could “withstand hard blows without injury” to the abdomen.¹⁴ Houdini often boasted about the strength of his abdomen, and was very proud of it. Without warning, Whitehead punched Houdini as hard as he could in his stomach, reportedly multiple times, leaving him bent over in pain.¹⁵ Houdini tried to ignore the pain, as he had a show that evening, and one of the physically and mentally strongest men in the world could not show weakness to his fans. Houdini proceeded to perform the show in its entirety, despite suffering stomach cramps and pain throughout it. 

October 23 & 24: severe pain and show

The next morning, Houdini boarded a train from Montreal to Detroit, where he had a show on the night of the 24th. By the time he had arrived, the pain had significantly worsened. After he got settled in his dressing room, a local physician was called due to growing concern and declining condition. After laying his hand on Houdini’s stomach, he diagnosed him with appendicitis.¹⁶ At some point his appendix ruptured, releasing toxins into his abdominal cavity, requiring emergency surgery.¹⁷ Houdini decided to push  through the pain, despite needing emergency surgery, and gave his final performance of his life on October 24, 1926, at the Garrick Theater in Detroit, Michigan.¹⁸ Some spectators described this performance as “disappointing”, as Houdini had made several mistakes.¹⁹ After discovering that Houdini was performing with a ruptured appendix, fans “realized that Houdini had given his life to perform for his admirers right up to the last minute”.²⁰ After finishing the 2.5 hour long show, the pain became more severe and unbearable, but surgery would not be performed until the following afternoon.²¹ Apparently, instead of undergoing emergency surgery, Houdini decided to call his doctor back in New York to get a second opinion, a decision that would soon turn out to be deadly.²² 

October 25: 1st surgery, October 28: 2nd surgery

On October 25, Harry Houdini underwent an operation to remove his appendix at Grace Hospital.²³ When his abdomen was opened up, it was discovered that it was filled with pus and severely infected.²⁴ Because the surgery was so delayed to work around the show schedule, the toxins from his ruptured appendix had already seeped into his bloodstream, resulting in full body poisoning and sepsis.²⁵

Dr. Arnold Van de Laar, a surgeon in Amsterdam, explains “at first, the pus can be contained by the surrounding intestines, but in the next stage the appendix dies off locally and bursts. Feces and intestinal gases are then released into the abdominal cavity. The patient experiences a sudden increase in the pain in the lower right of the abdomen, which then spreads throughout the whole abdomen and becomes so severe that it is no longer possible to say exactly where it is coming from. This is the stage of life-threatening peritonitis”, which is exactly what Houdini experienced.²⁶ 

On October 28, Houdini had to undergo a second surgery to rinse out his abdomen from any remaining pus in an attempt to further remove and contain toxins, but the efforts to save his life came too late.²⁷ The toxins had already poisoned his entire body, which was essentially a death sentence. The next three days would have been filled with hopelessness knowing there was nothing else that could be done to save him, and it was only a matter of time until his body gave up.  

October 31: Houdini’s death

Harry Houdini met his unfortunate demise on the afternoon of October 31, 1926. After being in Grace Hospital for about a week, “Houdini whispered to his brother, Theo, ‘I’m tired of fighting…guess this is going to get me’”.²⁸ Aware that he had very little time left, he took one last look at his wife before closing his eyes and leaving this world at 1:26 pm.²⁹ Despite escaping every impossible situation, he could not escape his death. Houdini passed away alongside two people who had an immense impact on his life and career. His official cause of death was listed as “diffuse peritonitis streptococcal”, a severe abdominal infection caused by his ruptured appendix.³⁰ This would have been an agonizingly slow and painful way to go, especially knowing that there was nothing else anyone could do to save him. 

Even though the punch to Houdini’s stomach did occur a little over a week before his death, some doctors do not believe it had any correlation to his death, while others believe it directly caused it, so it became a topic of debate.³¹ It is unknown if he was suffering from appendicitis prior to the punch and it just made the pain more severe, if the punch ruptured an already inflamed appendix, or if it had caused the appendicitis. 

Significance 

Aside from his career of performing  illusions and stunts, Houdini dedicated a major part of the last years of his life to debunking fraudulent spiritualists and mediums. Spiritualism, the practice of attempting to make contact with the dead, was at an all time high following the end of World War I, with distraught grieving family members attempting to contact deceased loved ones. Houdini reportedly “had little patience for anyone who claimed to be in possession of supernatural powers”, and denied claims that he had supernatural powers that assisted him and allowed him to perform these escape tricks.³² It was thought that towards the end of his life, Houdini “seemed to find more satisfaction in his successful exposure of imposture and fraud” than in his performances, supported by the fact that he “offered a $10,000 reward to any psychic who could present “physical phenomena” that could not be explained rationally”.³³ He even went as far as to testify “before Congress in support of legislation that would have criminalized fortune-telling for hire and ‘any person pretending to … unite the separated’ in the District of Columbia”, or in other words, make it illegal to profit off fortune telling in Washington, DC.³⁴ His whole thought process behind this was that he was keeping “mediums” and “spiritualists” from trying to make a profit off grieving people. There was even talk for a time where people were speculating that angry spiritualists had a role in his death, some of which took credit for killing him.³⁵ To these spiritualists, Houdini was a direct threat to their careers, so having a role in his demise would have been an accomplishment. While he believed it was fake, Houdini was not so much against people practicing these kinds of things as he was people claiming it was real and doing it for money. These practices targeted vulnerable people, which he felt was immoral. Houdini’s death allowed these spiritualists, whether or not they were fraudulent, to continue their practices for a personal profit. 

Ironically, for 10 years after his death, his wife attempted to contact him through a seance on the anniversary of his passing. He had apparently told her that if there was a way for the dead to communicate with the living, he would do all that he could to reach her after he had died.³⁶ His wife, Bess, hosted annual seances every single year for 10 years hoping that one time he would come through. After the 10th seance, Bess stated “‘Houdini did not come through. … I do not believe that Houdini can come back to me, or to anyone”, putting an end to the hosted seances.³⁷ Although Bess stopped, people still perform Halloween seances in an attempt to contact Harry Houdini from beyond to this day. 

Chapter 2 of The Modern Temper by Lynn Dumenil, titled “Work and Consumption”, discusses the aspects of society in the 1920s that allowed Houdini to become so popular. The 1920s was a decade that “embrace[d] leisure, consumption, and self expression”.³⁸ This rise in popularity of leisure activities expanded Houdini’s audience into both the upper and middle class of the United States. People had more extra money to spend on things that they enjoyed, which for many was going and watching performances.³⁹ Without this societal change, Houdini’s career would not have become nearly as successful as it did.

Harry Houdini was one of the most iconic and remembered performers of the 1920s. His role in the entertainment industry defined a new type of entertainment and performance. Additionally, his career showed the immense role that entertainment had in society, the grief that came after WWII, and the popularity of leisure activities during the 1920s. He had immense talent and ‘“a wondrous power that he never understood”, as well as a passion for debunking fraudulent spiritual practices.⁴⁰ Other people had done stunts and escape acts, but not to the level that he did. He was doing hundreds of shows a year, sometimes performing multiple times a day, all across the world. He gained immense fame from these impossible escapes and became a household name and an entertainment, illusionist, and escape icon for the next century. 

Citations

• Andrews, Evan. “10 Things You May Not Know About Harry Houdini.” History.com, May 27, 2025. https://www.history.com/articles/10-things-you-may-not-know-about-harry-houdini.
• Cox, John. The biggest myth, March 23, 2012. https://www.wildabouthoudini.com/2012/03/biggest-houdini-myth.html.
• “Did Houdini Really Die After Being Sucker Punched?” Yale University Press, October 21, 2025. https://yalebooks.yale.edu/2020/03/11/did-houdini-really-die-after-being-sucker-punched/
• Dumenil, Lynn. The modern temper: American culture and society in the 1920s. United States: Hill and Wang, 1995
• Greene, Bryan. “For Harry Houdini, Séances and Spiritualism Were Just an Illusion.” Smithsonian Magazine, October 28, 2021. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/for-harry-houdini-seances-and-spiritualism-were-just-an-illusion-180978944/.
• “Harry Houdini (1874-1926).” PBS. Accessed March 10, 2026. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/houdini-biography/.
• Featured Image: Harry Houdini (1874–1926), Stone walls and chains do not make a prison — for Houdini. n.d. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Harry_Houdini.jpg.
• “Harry Houdini: An Inventory of His Papers at the Harry Ransom Center.” Harry Ransom Center. Accessed March 10, 2026. https://norman.hrc.utexas.edu/fasearch/findingAid.cfm?eadID=01275.
• “Houdini in Detroit.” Michiganology, September 3, 2021. https://michiganology.org/stories/stories/.
• “Houdini’s Magic.” The Wilson Quarterly (1976-) 11, no. 1 (1987): 40–40. http://www.jstor.org/stable/45266473.
• “On This Day”, 2010. https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/bday/0324.html.
• Featured Image: Thurston, John H, photographer. Houdini jumps from Harvard Bridge, Boston, Massachusetts / John H. Thurston, stereopticons. Boston Massachusetts, 1908. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/2015650990/.
• Featured Image: Final Houdini seance in 1936. [from a Photo Taken in 1936] Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/2010646059/.
• Featured Image: Schmidt, George. Casket of Harry Houdini being carried to hearse. March 2, 2010. Getty Images. https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/casket-of-harry-houdini-being-carried-to-hearse-news-photo/97296027.
• “Our Point of View.” Scientific American 136, no. 1 (1927): 12–12. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24976961.
• Van de Laar, Arnold. “The Death of an Escape Artist: Harry Houdini – the History Reader.” The History Reader, May 29, 2025. https://www.thehistoryreader.com/historical-figures/death-escape-artist-harry-houdini-appendicitis-surgery/.
• Featured Image: Your appendix is a small, tube-shaped organ that sticks out from your cecum. It’s located in the lower right side of your abdomen. Cleveland Clinic. Accessed March 11, 2026. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/appendix.

1. Evan Andrews ︎
2. “Harry Houdini (1874-1926)” ︎
3. “Harry Houdini (1874-1926)” ︎
4. Evan Andrews ︎
5. “Harry Houdini (1874-1926)”, Evan Andrews ︎
6. “Harry Houdini (1874-1926)” ︎
7. Evan Andrews ︎
8. “On This Day” ︎
9. “On This Day” ︎
10. “On This Day” ︎
11. “On This Day” ︎
12. “On This Day” ︎
13. John Cox ︎
14. “On This Day”, “Did Houdini Really Die After Being Sucker Punched?” ︎
15. Evan Andrews ︎
16. Arnold Van de Laar ︎
17. Arnold Van de Laar ︎
18. “Harry Houdini: An Inventory of His Papers at the Harry Ransom Center.” ︎
19. Arnold Van de Laar ︎
20. Arnold Van de Laar ︎
21. “On This Day” ︎
22. “Did Houdini Really Die After Being Sucker Punched?” ︎
23. “On This Day”, “Houdini in Detroit.” ︎
24. Arnold Van de Laar ︎
25. “Houdini in Detroit.” ︎
26. Arnold Van de Laar ︎
27. Arnold Van de Laar ︎
28. “Houdini in Detroit.” ︎
29. “Houdini in Detroit.” ︎
30. “Houdini in Detroit.” ︎
31. “On This Day”, Arnold Van de Laar ︎
32. “Houdini’s Magic”, Evan Andrews ︎
33. “Our Point of View”, Evan Andrews ︎
34. Bryan Greene ︎
35. “Did Houdini Really Die After Being Sucker Punched?” ︎
36. Bryan Greene ︎
37. Bryan Greene ︎
38. Lynn Dumenil ︎
39. Lynn Dumenil ︎
40. “Houdini’s Magic” ︎

More Resources

Great Escapes By Joan Higbee https://www.loc.gov/loc/lcib/970224/houdini.html

Harry Houdini: An Inventory of His Papers at the Harry Ransom Center https://norman.hrc.utexas.edu/fasearch/pdf/01275.pdf

The Life and Afterlife of Harry Houdini by Joe Posnanski

The Life and Many Deaths of Harry Houdini by Ruth Brandon

kconley

Ramapo College sophomore majoring in History and minoring in Museum Studies + Music Industry

 

Atlantic City & 1920s Tourism

Atlantic City, one of New Jersey’s most famous coastal vacation spots, was established in 1854 when a track was created from Camden, NJ, crossing the Delaware River from Philadelphia to the shore. This resulted in a major increase in tourism. As tourism boomed, a town was built behind the beach and wooden hotels began to line up the area. This increase of tourism left many to see profitable business.

Atlantic City developed the reputation of being both a restful vacation destination and a lively spot for amusements. The city’s signature rolling chairs started off as mere wheelchairs for visitors to use from hotel to hotel. It gradually evolved into a rental business as others joined in. By 1892, rolling chairs had become a popular trend, and by the 1920s, they were widely used. The city officially became a place where middle class people could pretend to be rich, with show business attractions becoming their popular source of entertainment.² Business leaders began to build luxurious spots for middle class tourists, and by the 1920s, the middle class had come to dominate the new consumer culture. This new middle class, typically men, sought personal satisfaction in leisure and consumption.³ It was this very class that motivated local businessmen to create one of America’s most famous pageants, the “Miss America” pageant.

The Very First Miss America Pageant in 1921

The 1920s marked a decade when businessmen sought to rise into a more idealized position. Even small businessmen made an effort to present themselves as dedicated to civic life.⁴ In fact, it was local small businessmen who created the pageant. The “Miss America Pageant” owes its existence to a man named Conrad Eckholm, owner of a hotel named the Monticello. He proposed to have the Atlantic City Business Men’s League sponsor a week-long event that extended the Labor Day weekend. This proposal’s goal was to benefit smaller side hotels that were not on the boardwalk, including his own. They donated around $5,916 towards this event and named it the “Fall Frolic of 1920.”.⁵ It would not yet feature the beauty pageant until the following year. Instead, they hosted an hour-long “Rolling Chair Parade”. After the 1920 event, an Atlantic City newspaperman, Harry Finely, suggested a beauty contest to be added to the next Fall Frolic. When gathered in a meeting with the city’s managers, he proposed that newspapers throughout many cities should run the contest. This contest would choose the “most popular young woman” in their respective city. To create a more “appropriate” way to host a beauty contest for the middle class, newspapers helped by having people send in photos of contestants instead of letting contestants sign up themselves. Liking the idea, the President of the Chamber Commerce, Sam P. Leeds, presented Finley’s proposal to the Hotelsman Association. They agreed to have these women compete against other Inter-City contestants at the Frolic. Many East Coast newspapers ran this popularity contest, calling it the “Inter-City Beauties” contest. Cities like Pittsburgh, Washington D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, Jersey City, and Newark held summer events where women were judged on their beauty and impression. The winners from each city would then win a free trip to Atlantic City to attend the Fall Frolic. On July 24, 1921, The Washington Post announced the winners of their contest, with the first prize winner being sixteen year old Margaret Gorman.⁶ On September 2, 1921, the Camden Daily Courier announced Kathryne Gearson as the winner to represent South Jersey. She would later be given the title “Miss Camden” for the pageant.⁷ Other cities chose their own winners. The women to be sent to Atlantic City were Miss Philadelphia, Nellie Orr, Miss Ocean City, Hazel Harris, Miss Pittsburgh, Thelma Matthews, and Miss Harrisburg, Emma Pharo.

The official pageant began on September 7th, 1921. Hudson Maxim, popularly known as the inventor of smokeless powder, played a character named “King Neptune”. He arrived with a group of “mermaids”, the Inter-City contest winners. They all arrived at the Million Dollar Pier for the opening ceremony. King Neptune and the Inter-City women paraded on a seashell float on the boardwalk. The women later visited the Keith’s Theatre, where a crowd and a panel of judges examined and questioned them. The audience’s favorite was Washington D.C’s, Margaret Gorman, earning her the first trophy. In the evening, Neptune and the women watched a performance by “Dawson’s Dancing Dolls”. The public watched the show with the contestants in full view. At the end of the first day, Neptune and the women attended a costumed ballroom event called “The Frolique”. They sat on a throne display, watching the event take place.⁹

The next day of the pageant featured the Bathers’ Revue, a series of bathing suit contests. All participants and visitors were required to wear one-piece bathing suits. Around one thousand people showed up to watch the Rolling Chair Parade and beauty contests. The Bathers Revue beauty pageant had two sub-categories: “Amateur” and “Professional”.¹⁰ The professional category included professional actresses, dancers, models and swimmers. Across four contests, women competed for the titles of “Most Beautiful” and “Most Beautiful Bathing Beauty.” The overall winner would receive the ultimate prize, the “Golden Mermaid Trophy”, and be crowned the first “Miss America”. Miss Washington, Margaret Gorman, won both the Inter-City Beauty Amateur title and first place in the Inter-City Bather’s Revue, while Miss Philadelphia, Nellie Orr, came in second.

List of Finalists:

Gorman, Saunders, and Salisbury competed against each other for the ultimate title of “Most Beautiful Bathing Girl in America.” A panel of judges and the audience chose the winner. Since the audience favored Gorman the most, she won the “Golden Mermaid Trophy,” earning her title as the very first “Miss America.”. After her victory, reporters and photographers surrounded her as she attended parties held in her honor. The pageant became a huge success, motivating its organizers to host it again the following years.

The 1920s Pageants, Controversies, & the Women’s-Religious Protests

The pageant was so successful that the number of days, activities, attendees, and contestants increased each year. The number of contestants grew from just eight to eighty-three by 1924.¹³ In addition, new rules were added. In the early years, a winning Miss America could reenter the pageant in order to fight for her right to maintain her status. However, after Ruth Malcomson, Miss America 1924, criticized the fairness of allowing professional women to compete, new rules were introduced prohibiting any past winner from reentering. Another rule added was that married women could not become contestants in the pageant. The pageant never explicitly enforced this rule, assuming that this was something the public knew to follow. However, after the discovery of a married contestant, the rule was explicitly put in place. Another change was the audience’s power. Gorman won her place as Miss America with the overwhelming support of the audience. This changed in 1922 when the audience’s votes were eliminated. This granted judges the sole decision of crowning the winner. In addition, a new category, the “evening gown” competition, was introduced to the pageant. By 1923, the pageant gained national recognition, and newspapers all over the country covered its events. Not only did the pageant become more popular, its winners did as well. Mary Campbell, Miss America 1922 and 23, received offers to be in films, musicals, and vaudeville shows. However, she refused these offers to return to school. Miss America 1925, Fay Lanphier, was the first to be in a Hollywood movie and profit from her own tour. This demonstrates that as the pageant grew in popularity, it became more commercialized. It was so commercialized that by 1925, contestants were asked to sign an agreement to appear in a Hollywood film if they won. Contestants also began to promote products on their floats. Pageant promoters, however, did not look favorably upon this. Even so, the 1926 Miss America, Norma Smallwood, made around $100,000 in product endorsements. She would go on to earn a salary that surpassed that of President Coolidge himself.

Although the pageant gained massive popularity, it also sparked controversy amongst religious and women’s groups. In the 1920s, Americans struggled to adjust to modern life while also trying to keep their traditional beliefs and values. Religion was losing its influence on Americans, and Protestantism was no longer a dominant force shaping cultural norms.¹⁴ Religious leaders began to view the popular culture of the 1920s, shaped by materialism and the pursuit of wealth, as a decline in religious values. An example of the “moral decline” that religious groups were concerned with was the display of the female body, especially through bathing suits. They viewed bathing suits and uncovered knees as immoral and improper. By protesting, clergymen contributed to the creation of beach rules that banned or regulated bathing suits.¹⁵ Atlantic City was not an exception. The first year the pageant took place, there were restrictions on bare knees and skin-tight bathing suits. However, the competitions were temporarily exempt from these restrictions. This contributed to the protests against the pageant. In September of 1923, The Ocean City Camp Meeting Association held an annual reunion. A group of people, including a preacher, created a resolution condemning the bathers’ review of the pageant. The resolution stated “The danger lies in taking girls of tender years and robbing them in attire that transgresses the limit of morality”.¹⁶ Besides religious motivations, feminism also played a role. While many might assume that feminism would oppose restrictions on women’s choices of clothes, a more traditional form of feminism supported these restrictions. Feminists argued that the pageant reduced women to their physical appearance, encouraged rivalry, and exploited them for profit. On April 18, 1924, the New York Times reported that the Y.W.C.A created a resolution that condemned the pageant. They claimed it corrupted women of “pure womanhood” by encouraging vanity and envy.¹⁷ In October of 1924, the Pennsylvania Federation of Women’s Clubs presented a statement that denounced beauty pageants. They encouraged women’s educational and religious groups to do the same. The year of 1927 experienced greater opposition. On September 29, 1927, the National Council of Catholic Women presented a statement that stated the pageant “exploited the feminine beauty of young women for financial gain”.¹⁸ They accused parents of entering their daughters for money and urged other Catholics to oppose these pageants. In November of 1927, the Atlantic County Federation of Church Women protested the pageant and the commercialization of the boardwalk. They called it an immoral influence on women and a barrier to the public’s free use of the area. The pageant organizers tried to ignore these protests, however, they decided to temporarily discontinue the pageant in fear it could damage Atlantic City’s reputation.

Miss America & The Flapper

The “New Woman” of the 1920s symbolized the “modern woman” who entered positions that challenged traditional female roles. They entered the public sphere and exhibited changing sexual attitudes. Similar to the push-back from religious groups against a modern secular society, the modern “New Woman” also faced resistance. In addition to religious controversy, the “Miss America” pageant faced criticism for the commercialization that some of the women became involved in. In its later years, it opened opportunities for women to earn their own money in product endorsements, tours, and even Hollywood films. This being a part of the symbol of the “New Woman”, it led to controversy. Even in its beginnings in 1921, it faced similar criticisms. In August 13, 1921, The New York Times reported that an Oklahoma Congressman sought a beauty pageant ban, stating that “Modern women were thinking more of their looks than of their home”.¹⁹ Despite this, the Miss America pageant had actually served as a form of resistance to the “New Woman,” particularly the image of “The Flapper”. Flappers were young, single women who defied Victorian constraints by rejecting corsets, wearing bobbed hair, dressing in shorter, less shaped skirts, applying darker makeup, and smoking. To combat this image, pageant promoters were interested in promoting girls who resembled a more traditional “Victorian-like” kind of womanhood. These women were subservient, and demonstrated capability of being a good wife, homemaker, and mother. Contestants were expected to show no interest in pursuing public careers, instead valuing marriage. Pageant judges and audiences favored contestants who acted and dressed in a way that differed from flappers. Contestants were often accompanied by their mothers and acted surprised in their success in order to maintain an “innocent” image. Additionally, contestants with unbobbed, conservatively styled hair and no dark makeup were praised.²⁰

Despite the festive atmosphere of Atlantic City, contestants were portrayed as church-attending women who abstained from gambling, smoking, and drinking alcohol. Promoters were eager to present the pageant as “above” these vices. These portrayals were essential to the image of “Miss America”, representing the ideal of what they believed the American woman in the 1920s should look like. “Miss America” winners of the 1920s, who possessed these characteristics, were often reported in newspapers. First Miss America, Margaret Gorman, was praised for “possessing the basic virtues of American womanhood”.²¹ Similarly, the 1922-23 winner, Mary Campbell, was admired for her “innocent, wholesome, and traditional” demeanor. The 1924 winner, Ruth Malcomson, stood out for rarely wearing makeup and never having visited a hairdresser. The 1927 winner, Lois Delander, was recognized for her knowledge of Bible verses, along with her refusal to use makeup or tobacco. The Washington Post reported that she was an “Unbobbed high school student.”. The New Britain Herald reported that the 1925 winner, Fay Lanphier, had “blonde unbobbed hair and did not engage in smoking cigarettes,”. The New York Times reported that the 1926 winner, Norma Smallwood, was a “Western girl whose hair was unbobbed.”.²² Overall, pageant promoters wished for these women to represent traditional, Victorian-like ideals of femininity, hoping they would serve as models for other women.

Miss America & The Suffragette

While the “Miss America” pageant openly defied the image of the “modern” flapper, it also subtly defied another kind of “New Woman” of the 1920s, the woman in politics. The concept of a “pageant” has ties to women’s groups of the 19th century, including reform groups, church groups, and schoolteachers. These groups practiced “pageantry” as a form of public entertainment to promote their movements and goals. As early as 1848, the first Women’s Rights convention in Seneca Falls featured elements of pageantry to showcase women’s unity within the movement.²⁵ One of the primary goals of Women’s Rights advocates was the right to vote, known as suffrage. These “suffragettes” were inspired during their travels to England by the pageants hosted by British suffragists. The National American Woman’s Suffrage Association began hosting their own pageants in 1908 with the largest being held in 1913. The National Woman Suffrage Parade & Pageant in Washington D.C. was hosted the day before Woodrow Wilson’s inauguration. The pageant celebrated women’s contributions to democracy and society by dressing up as figures that represented “Lady Columbia”, “Liberty”, “Justice”, and “Peace”.²⁶ These suffragettes sought to raise awareness of their goals, celebrate their unity, and demonstrate their belief in women’s moral value to the vote. Many of these suffragettes would remain politically active in the 1920s, contributing to the presence of women in politics and reforms. They continued the practice of political pageantry through the “Equal Rights” pageants hosted by the Woman’s Party. The Miss America pageant incorporated elements that resembled these suffrage pageants. Not only was it also labeled a “pageant”, the Miss America pageant followed the suffrage tradition of holding parades. Contestants even wore sashes with the names of their states or cities, closely resembling those worn by suffragettes.²⁷ However, instead of promoting social progress and intellectualism, the “Miss America” pageant was based on beauty as defined by the male and public population. Rather than women’s unity under a shared movement, it encouraged competition. Lastly, instead of raising funds for a cause, it focused on commercialization and entertainment. The pageant acted as a reaction to, or alternative version of, the more political pageants, instead promoting a “less threatening” subservient image of women.

Significance

I chose the first Miss America pageant because I was unaware that its origins trace back to the 1920s. After its success in 1921, it quickly evolved from a small, city-based competition into a nationally recognized event attracting participants from across the country. Newspapers, and later radios, covered the pageants. While it became an anticipated event, it received backlash.

At first, the “Miss America” pageant seems like a trivial event. However, it can enhance our understanding of the decade. The first pageants of the 1920s embodied both the stereotypical image of the decade as one of entertainment, fun, and consumerism and as a response to, or even a challenge against, the changing cultural norms of the era. The pageant ironically included elements that strayed from the Victorian image while also reinforcing it. Religious-Women’s groups viewed the display of the female body for competition as immoral. To the perspective of many, it encouraged women to prioritize their beauty over other aspects of their life. It also served as a gateway to wealth, (an image often associated with the decade today) which was seen as immoral by religious groups. It reinforced older values by rejecting one of the most recognizable symbols of the decade, “The Flapper”. The pageant attempted to reject this “new modern woman” by rewarding contestants who resembled her as little as possible. It also provided a version of pageantry that did not showcase women and their social-political interests. 

The controversies that it experienced still remain relevant today, as the backlash seen in the 1920s resurfaced in the late 1960s and beyond. Women’s Liberation feminists argued that the pageant focused on “problematic beauty standards” and reduced women to their physical appearance.

Bibliography

Simon, Bryant. Boardwalk of Dreams: Atlantic City and the Fate of Urban America. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004.

Watson, E., ed. “There She Is, Miss America”: The Politics of Sex, Beauty, and Race in America’s Most Famous Pageant. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004.

Riverol, Armando. Live from Atlantic City: The History of the Miss America Pageant Before, After, and in Spite of Television. “Chapter 2: The Frolicking ’20s,” 10-26.

Watson, Elwood, and Darcy Martin. “The Miss America Pageant: Pluralism, Femininity, and Cinderella All in One.” Journal of Popular Culture 34, no. 1 (June 1, 2000): 105–26. doi:10.1111/j.0022-3840.2000.3401_105.x. 

“History.” Miss America. Accessed March 20, 2025. https://missamerica.org/history/.

 Latham, Angela J. 1995. “Packaging Woman: The Concurrent Rise of Beauty Pageants, Public Bathing, and Other Performances of Female ‘Nudity.’” Journal of Popular Culture 29 (3): 149–67. doi:10.1111/j.0022-3840.1995.00149.x. 

Chapman, Mary. 1999. “Women and Masquerade in the 1913 Suffrage Demonstration in Washington.” Amerikastudien 44 (3): 343–55. https://research-ebsco-com.library2.ramapo.edu:2443/linkprocessor/plink?id=755f8783-eb91-350f-b634-02d97c8d0cb5. 

Moore, Sarah J. 1997. “Making a Spectacle of Suffrage: The National Women Suffrage..” Journal of American Culture (01911813) 20 (1): 89. doi:10.1111/j.1542-734x.1997.00089.x.https://research-ebsco-com.library2.ramapo.edu:2443/c/7frumr/viewer/pdf/ve7e6ydlxr 

Jones, Jennifer. 1998. “The Beauty Queen as Deified Sacrificial Victim.” Theatre History Studies 18 (June): 99–106. https://research-ebsco-com.library2.ramapo.edu:2443/linkprocessor/plink?id=3696314d-a08a-3a3a-9756-878c3fa4a653.

Dumenil, Lynn. The Modern Temper: American Culture and Society in the 1920s. New York: Hill and Wang, 1995. 

“Here Are the Winners in the Beauty Contest.” The Washington Post (1877–1922), July 24, 1921. ProQuest Historical Newspapers: New Jersey Collection, pg. 5. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Library of Congress.

“Camden Girl Is Chosen as Miss South Jersey for Pa. Geanta T Shore.” Camden Daily Courier, September 2, 1921. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Library of Congress.

“Seeks Beauty Contest Ban: Oklahoma Congressman Says Women Like Looks More Than Men.” New York Times, August 13, 1921, 13. ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times.

“ATTACKS BATHING REVIEW.: PREACHER SAYS ATLANTIC CITY EVENT ENDANGERS YOUTHFUL MORALS.” New York Times (1923–), September 11, 1923. http://library.ramapo.edu:2048/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/historical-newspapers/attacks-bathing-review/docview/103107222/se-2.

“Y.W.C.A. Opens War on Beauty Contest; Calls Atlantic City Parade Peril to Girls.” New York Times (1923–), April 18, 1924. http://library.ramapo.edu:2048/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/historical-newspapers/y-w-c-opens-war-on-beauty-contest-calls-atlantic/docview/103426053/se-2.

“New Queen of Beauty Has Not Bobbed Hair.” New Britain Herald, New Britain, CT, September 12, 1925. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Library of Congress. https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn82014519/1925-09-12/ed-1/seq-1/

“Western Girl Wins Miss America Title: Miss Norma Smallwood of Tulsa.” Special to The New York Times. New York Times (1923–), September 11, 1926. ProQuest Historical Newspapers: New Jersey Collection, p. 15.

“CATHOLIC WOMEN’S RESOLUTION BANS BEAUTY CONTESTS: PROPOSALS THAT ATTACK EXHIBITION OF GIRLS BACKED BY 100. DELINQUENCY CITED; PARENTS BLAMED LEADERS IN WELFARE WORK SAY THEY FIND MENACE IN PULCHRITUDE SHOWS. CATHOLIC WOMEN HIT BEAUTY CONTESTS.” The Washington Post (1923–1954), September 27, 1927. http://library.ramapo.edu:2048/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/newspapers/catholic-womens-resolution-bans-beauty-contests/docview/149667923/se-2.

“Catholic Women Adopt Ban on Beauty Contests: Exploitation of ‘Feminine Pulchritude’ for ‘Commercial Purposes’ is Denounced in Resolution Approved Unanimously by National Council Convention. CATHOLIC WOMEN BAN BEAUTY COMPETITIONS.” The Washington Post (1923–1954), September 29, 1927. http://library.ramapo.edu:2048/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/newspapers/catholic-women-adopt-ban-on-beauty-contests/docview/149693598/se-2.

“Miss Illinois, Blonde, Wins Beauty West Contest: 16-Year-Old Unbobbed …” The Washington Post (1923–1954), September 10, 1927. ProQuest Historical Newspapers: New Jersey Collection.

Paul Thompson. Literary Suffragettes. [ca. 1913]. Topical Press Agency, Hulton Archive, Getty Images. Photograph.

L & M Ottenheimer, publisher. Liberty and Her Attendants – (Suffragette’s Tableau) in Front of Treasury Bldg. March 3, 1913 – Washington, D.C. National Woman’s Party Records. Library of Congress.

R.C. Maxwell Company. BOARDWALK. [CROWD LOOKING AT CAMERA], EASTER, MARCH 27, 1921. Maxwell No. 1555. R.C. Maxwell Company Records. David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University.

Bettmann Archive. Contestants at the 1921 Pageant; Miss Atlantic City (Florence Burke), Miss Philadelphia, and Miss Washington, DC. [1921]. Photograph.

Bettmann Archive. Miss America 1927 Lois Delander of Joliet, Illinois. Photograph. 1927.

Bettmann Archive. Large Crowd During Street Parade. Original Caption: Atlantic City: Neptune and Miss America in the parade. Photograph.

Bettmann Archive. Pageant Attendees Posing Outdoors. Mr. & Mrs. Howard Chandler Christie & Miss Gorman at the Atlantic City Pageant. Photograph.

Bettmann Archive. Beauty Pageant Winner and Mythological Accomplice. Original Caption: Atlantic City, N. J.: Miss Margaret Gorman (Miss America) with Hudson Maxim as “Neptune” at the Atlantic City Beauty Pageant. Photograph.

Bettmann Archive. “Miss America Contestants Pose for Photograph.” Photograph.

Featured Image: Bettmann Archive. “American Beauty Pageants Winners. Far left Miss Mary Katherine Campbell (retained title); far right, Miss Margaret Gorman, Miss America in 1921 in gowns.” Photograph. Circa 1922. Bettmann Collection via Getty Images.

Additional Sources

“1920s.” Maxwell Did It!: Photographing the Atlantic City Boardwalk, 1920s-1950s. Duke University Libraries. Accessed March 20, 2025. https://exhibits.library.duke.edu/exhibits/show/maxwell/1920s.

“Beauty Pageant Origins and Culture.” American Experience. PBS. Accessed March 20, 2025. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/missamerica-beauty-pageant-origins-and-culture/.”

“Woman Suffrage Pageants.” National Park Service. Accessed March 20, 2025. https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/suffrage-pageants.htm

PBS. “Miss America Timeline.” American Experience. Last modified March 3, 2025. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/miss-america-timeline/.

“History.” Miss America. Accessed March 20, 2025. https://missamerica.org/history/.

Ware, Susan. “Sashes and Suffrage.” New York Times, August 15, 2020. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/15/opinion/sashes-suffrage-19th-amendment.html.

Citations

1. R.C. Maxwell Company, BOARDWALK. [CROWD LOOKING AT CAMERA], EASTER, MARCH 27, 1921, Maxwell No. 1555, R.C. Maxwell Company Records, David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University. ︎
2. Bryant Simon, Boardwalk of Dreams: Atlantic City and the Fate of Urban America (New York: Oxford University Press, 2004), 19-24. ︎
3. Lynn Dumenil, The Modern Temper: American Culture and Society in the 1920s (New York: Hill and Wang, 1995), 85-86. ︎
4. Dumenil, The Modern Temper, 32. ︎
5. Armando Riverol, Live from Atlantic City: The History of the Miss America Pageant Before, After, and in Spite of Television (Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 1992), 12. ︎
6. “Here Are the Winners in the Beauty Contest.” The Washington Post (1877-1922), July 24, 1921. ProQuest Historical Newspapers: New Jersey Collection, pg. 5. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Library of Congress. ︎
7. “Camden Girl Is Chosen as Miss South Jersey for Pa. Geanta T Shore.” Camden Daily Courier, September 2, 1921. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Library of Congress. ︎
8. Bettmann Archive, Pageant Attendees Posing Outdoors. Mr. & Mrs. Howard Chandler Christie & Miss Gorman at the Atlantic City Pageant; and Beauty Pageant Winner and Mythological Accomplice. Original Caption: Atlantic City, N. J.: Miss Margaret Gorman (Miss America) with Hudson Maxim as “Neptune” at the Atlantic City Beauty Pageant, Photographs. ︎
9. Riverol, Live from Atlantic City, 12-16. ︎
10. Riverol, Live from Atlantic City, 17-18. ︎
11. Bettmann Archive, Large Crowd During Street Parade. Original Caption: Atlantic City: Neptune and Miss America in the parade, Photograph. ︎
12. Bettmann Archive, Miss America 1927 Lois Delander of Joliet, Illinois, Photograph, 1927. ︎
13. Riverol, Live from Atlantic City, 22. ︎
14. Dumenil, The Modern Temper, 169-171. ︎
15. Angela J. Latham, “Packaging Woman: The Concurrent Rise of Beauty Pageants, Public Bathing, and Other Performances of Female ‘Nudity,’” Journal of Popular Culture 29, no. 3 (1995): 158. ︎
16. “ATTACKS BATHING REVIEW.: PREACHER SAYS ATLANTIC CITY EVENT ENDANGERS YOUTHFUL MORALS.” New York Times (1923-), Sep 11, 1923. http://library.ramapo.edu:2048/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/historical-newspapers/attacks-bathing-review/docview/103107222/se-2. ︎
17. “Y.W.C.A. Opens War on Beauty Contest; Calls Atlantic City Parade Peril to Girls.” New York Times (1923-), Apr 18, 1924. http://library.ramapo.edu:2048/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/historical-newspapers/y-w-c-opens-war-on-beauty-contest-calls-atlantic/docview/103426053/se-2. ︎
18. “Catholic Women Adopt Ban on Beauty Contests: Exploitation of “Feminine Pulchritude” for “Commercial Purposes” is Denounced in Resolution Approved Unanimously by National Council Convention. CATHOLIC WOMEN BAN BEAUTY COMPETITIONS.” The Washington Post (1923-1954), Sep 29, 1927. http://library.ramapo.edu:2048/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/newspapers/catholic-women-adopt-ban-on-beauty-contests/docview/149693598/se-2 ︎
19. “Seeks Beauty Contest Ban: Oklahoma Congressman Says Women Like Looks More Than Men.” New York Times, August 13, 1921, 13. ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times. ︎
20. Elwood Watson, ed., There She Is, Miss America: The Politics of Sex, Beauty, and Race in America’s Most Famous Pageant (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004), 36-38. ︎
21. Elwood Watson and Darcy Martin, “The Miss America Pageant: Pluralism, Femininity, and Cinderella All in One,” Journal of Popular Culture 34, no. 1 (June 1, 2000): 107. ︎
22. “Miss Illinois, Blonde, Wins Beauty West Contest: 16-Year-Old Unbobbed …,” The Washington Post (1923–1954), September 10, 1927, ProQuest Historical Newspapers: New Jersey Collection; “New Queen of Beauty Has Not Bobbed Hair,” New Britain Herald (New Britain, CT), September 12, 1925, Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers, Library of Congress, https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn82014519/1925-09-12/ed-1/seq-1/; “Western Girl Wins Miss America Title: Miss Norma Smallwood of Tulsa,” special to The New York Times, New York Times (1923–), September 11, 1926, p. 15, ProQuest Historical Newspapers: New Jersey Collection. ︎
23. L & M Ottenheimer, publisher, Liberty and Her Attendants – (Suffragette’s Tableau) in Front of Treasury Bldg. March 3, 1913 – Washington, D.C., National Woman’s Party Records, Library of Congress. ︎
24. Paul Thompson, Literary Suffragettes, ca. 1913, Topical Press Agency, Hulton Archive, Getty Images; and Bettmann Archive, Contestants at the 1921 Pageant; Miss Atlantic City (Florence Burke), Miss Philadelphia, and Miss Washington, DC, 1921, Photographs. ︎
25. Jennifer Jones, “The Beauty Queen as Deified Sacrificial Victim,” Theatre History Studies 18 (June 1998): 102. ︎
26. Mary Chapman, “Women and Masquerade in the 1913 Suffrage Demonstration in Washington,” Amerikastudien 44, no. 3 (1999): 344-345. ︎
27. Jones, “The Beauty Queen as Deified Sacrificial Victim,” 102. ︎

grlynn

Grlynn is a Ramapo College senior majoring in history

In the 1920s, American culture was increasingly becoming more secularized, creating tensions between modernity and traditional religious values. The first “Miss America” pageants embodied these conflicts, as it became both a target of religious resistance and a reflection of a callback to older ideas. Americans struggled to balance adapting to modernity while preserving their traditional beliefs and values. Religion was losing its influence on Americans with many standards straying away from the strictness of Victorian attitudes. Religion and Protestantism was no longer a dominant force in cultural norms and in efforts to maintain religion, urban churches started programs that created places of worship alongside spaces for social, recreational, and educational purposes. However, many religious leaders, including Protestant ministers and Jewish leaders, faced declining attendance and decreasing support for missionary efforts. These leaders viewed the popular culture of the 1920s, dominated by materialism and the pursuit of wealth, as a decline in religious values. Religious fundamentalists and Evangelical Christians also feared that the country was experiencing a moral and spiritual decline.¹ The first “Miss America” pageants of the 1920s serve as an example of an event that religious groups sought to oppose through protests, aiming to dismantle what they considered a moral decline. The “Miss America” pageant included a bathing suit competition, which many religious groups opposed. They sought to combat the rise of swimwear in the 1920s, particularly for women, viewing it as immoral and immodest. Moral outrage from clergymen contributed to the censorship of physical appearances on public beaches, as they insisted that women cover their knees.² This influenced the “Miss America” pageant because of its emphasis on “bathing beauties”. The pageant was met with further resistance with religious groups claiming it damaged the good choices, reputation, and morals of young women. Groups like Southern Baptists and the “Atlantic County Federation of Church Women”, joined in resistance and protest. Not only did they believe it damaged women’s morals, but they also viewed it as the exploitation of women for financial gain and corrupting them by encouraging rivalry among themselves.³ These protests are credited as having an important role in why the pageant was temporarily paused in 1928 through the early 30s.

Ironically, while traditional religious groups opposed the pageant for being “immoral”, it was an event that eagerly promoted a “traditional” and “conservative” idea of femininity. The “Miss America” pageant aimed to uphold the image of a more traditional woman, distancing itself from  the “New Woman,” represented by women in politics and flappers. Before the “Miss America” pageant was established in 1921, suffragettes held suffrage pageants. They dressed up as influential women in history, seeking to raise public awareness and funds for their political efforts.⁴ However, the “Miss America” pageant focused only on beauty, based on what men and the audience viewed as beautiful. In addition, the pageant strived to distance itself from the flapper image. Flappers were young, single women who strayed away from Victorian constraints by wearing bobbed hair, shorter and less shaped skirts, darker makeup, and smoked. In contrast, the “Miss America” pageant praised “non threatening” women who had conservative hairstyles such as longer hair, were more subservient, viewed beauty as an important goal, and demonstrated capability of being a good wife, homemaker, and mother.⁵ Contestants who had longer hair were more often praised than those with bobbed or bobbed-like hair. It was an important characteristic for “Miss America” to have, especially in the earlier competitions. Pageant organizers also tried to portray the event as “above alcohol” or other habits such as smoking. Overall, the pageant wished to portray its winners as symbols of what a 1920s American woman “should be and look like”. While religious traditionalists viewed it as immoral, the pageant still sought to revive a more traditional ideal of Victorian-like femininity and virtue.

Bibliography

Dumenil, Lynn. The Modern Temper: American Culture and Society in the 1920s. New York: Hill and Wang, 1995.

Riverol, Armando. Live from Atlantic City: The History of the Miss America Pageant Before, After, and in Spite of Television. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 1992.

Latham, Angela J. “Packaging Woman: The Concurrent Rise of Beauty Pageants, Public Bathing, and Other Performances of Female ‘Nudity.'” Journal of Popular Culture 29, no. 3 (1995): 149–67. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0022-3840.1995.00149.x.

Watson, Elwood, and Darcy Martin. “The Miss America Pageant: Pluralism, Femininity, and Cinderella All in One.” Journal of Popular Culture 34, no. 1 (June 1, 2000): 105–26. doi:10.1111/j.0022-3840.2000.3401_105.x.  

Watson, E., ed. “There She Is, Miss America”: The Politics of Sex, Beauty, and Race in America’s Most Famous Pageant. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004.

Bettmann Archive. Policewomen Checking Length Violations. Chicago, Illinois, 1921.

Bettmann Archive. 1924 Miss America from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Ruth Malcomson. 1924.

Thomas, Bob. Cinema Personalities, 1923, American Actress Colleen Moore. Popperfoto/Getty Images, 1923.

Featured Photo: Atlantic Foto Service. Contestants of the 1925 Miss America Pageant. Atlantic City, New Jersey, 1925.

Citations

1. Lynn Dumenil, The Modern Temper: American Culture and Society in the 1920s (New York: Hill and Wang, 1995), 169-186. ︎
2. Angela J. Latham, “Packaging Woman: The Concurrent Rise of Beauty Pageants, Public Bathing, and Other Performances of Female ‘Nudity,’” Journal of Popular Culture 29, no. 3 (1995): 158, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0022-3840.1995.00149.x. ︎
3. Armando Riverol, Live from Atlantic City: The History of the Miss America Pageant Before, After, and in Spite of Television (Bowling Green, OH: Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 1992), 24. ︎
4. Elwood Watson, ed., “There She Is, Miss America”: The Politics of Sex, Beauty, and Race in America’s Most Famous Pageant (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004), 28-29. ︎
5. Watson, “There She Is, Miss America”, 32. ︎

grlynn

Grlynn is a Ramapo College senior majoring in history

Kansas City

While most people associate the beginnings of Disney with cartoons such as Steamboat Willie, the journey of the studio actually began over 5 years prior to the creation of Mickey Mouse in 1928. It is well known of the founding date of the Disney Brothers Studio on October 16, 1923, but if any person were asked about it, the details of it event and what occurred would be lost. Not only that, but this event’s relation to the entertainment industry in the 1920s plays an important role in the growth of the Disney company far into the future. From technological advancements by combining cartoons and live-action film, the optimism and drive to follow any opportunity that came about, and social details regarding who would be working in the industry at the time, the founding of the Disney company gives more insight into the 1920s than many are aware. Starting in 1923, the road to Disney’s success was just beginning. In the midst of the 1920s with increased production and growth in the entertainment industry, it was almost too perfect of a time for Walt and Roy Disney to start their own studio that would become beloved for years to come. 

Twenty-one year old Walt and four-year old Virginia Davis in a scene from Alice’s Wonderland in 1923.

“We have just discovered something new and clever in animated cartoons! The first subject of this distinctly different series is now in production, and will require a few more weeks more for completion. It is a new idea that will appeal to all classes, and is bound to be a winner, because it is a clever combination of live characters and cartoons, not like “Out of the Inkwell” or Earl Hurd’s, but of an entirely different nature, using a cast of live child actors who carry on their action on cartoon scenes with cartoon characters. These new subjects will be a full reel in length, and can be released in regular intervals of two weeks or a month. However, before you go any further into the matter, we desire that you see some of our former work, so you may appreciate the quality the same. We ask that you get in touch with Mr. W.R. Kelly, of Pictorial Clubs Inc., 350 Madison Ave., New York City, and he will gladly screen several of our [Laugh-O-gram fairy tale] subjects for you. We will not try to explain to tell you any more about this new idea; instead, we will send you a print upon completion of the first one, if you so desire.” (Letter from Walt Disney to M.J. Winkler, from Walt Before Mickey, Disney’s Early Years 1919-1928, Timothy S. Susanin)

Margaret J. Winkler, played a key role in the foundation of the Disney company. She started her own company at 26, becoming established in the animation industry and one of very few female film distributors. Winkler handled press releases, promotional campaigns, advertising, and distributing animations. She was an important figure in animation history as the first woman to produce and distribute films. 

Despite her initial interest in the animation, Walt pulled back, having not completed the series to send out, and his company struggled even further until it was eventually bankrupt. Nonetheless, the film was completed and ran for twelve minutes and twenty-five seconds. 

However, even after completing the film with Virginia Davis, many of the deals and work he was getting kept falling through. It seemed to prove that all the opportunities in Kansas City were exhausted. Even his brother Roy suggested that he move to Los Angeles, and in the summer of 1923, Disney decided to go to Hollywood when he was just twenty-two years old.

Los Angeles

Walt was satisfied with his decision to move to Los Angeles stating that “the pull toward Hollywood became strong. Animation was big there, and if [he] couldn’t be successful at that, [he] wanted to be a director or a writer.”¹ L.A. was an obvious choice for opportunities in film and animation as it quickly became the film capital in the United States. After arriving in L.A., Walt did not have his own place to stay and work on his animations. He instead moved in with his uncle, Robert Disney. 

“In the past, all cartoons combining live characters have been produced in an amateur manner with cartoonists doing the acting, photographing, etc. It is my intention to employ only trained and experienced people for my casts and staff that I may inject quality humor, photography, and detail into these comedies. I would appreciate an interview with your representative here that I may screen several comedies and explain my new idea.” (Letter from Walt Disney to M.J. Winkler, from Walt Before Mickey, Disney’s Early Years 1919-1928, Timothy S. Susanin)

The Staff of Disney Brothers Studio, taken outside the Kingswell Avenue location.

Walt almost immediately accepted this deal, even reaching out to Margaret Davis, the mother of Virginia Davis, to star her in the series and that it would be an opportunity for her to work in Hollywood. He offered her a one-year contract, one in which she accepted very promptly as she planned to go to Hollywood in the first place for more opportunities for Virginia. The first short produced in Los Angeles was Alice’s Day at Sea in November, shortly after Virginia Davis and her parents made the move to California in 1923. 

The Alice Comedies after being distributed by Winkler.

Significance in the 1920s

The period of the 1920s had a significant impact on Disney’s studio being established. Around the 1920s animation had many issues with being distributed. Movie theaters were mostly focused on showing live-action films and did not want to spend money on preliminary animations that would be shown before the featured film. The entire film industry in the U.S. was very quickly changing and growing, not just the animation industry. Animation studios primarily stayed in the New York area, but meanwhile the rest of the film industry was moving west towards California, especially Hollywood. Many studios made the move in the early 1900s due to good weather conditions, good natural light, and inexpensive costs. By the 1920s the Hollywood area became the capital of the U.S. film industry. Animation did become a part of the Hollywood film business shortly after though. Walt Disney was not immune to the urge to go to Hollywood with this quick rise in business in California. Especially since at the time, the rise of popularity in leisure and watching movies grew within American culture. 

The 1920s show the emergence of America as a consumer culture. It highlights the way in which people turned to leisure and consumption to find satisfaction in life, which included going to see movies in theaters. This turn towards leisure activity is what Walt Disney was also able to capitalize on at the time with starting his business in animation. Hollywood also rapidly turned into a cultural symbol along with being the center of entertainment. It was considered glamorous, exciting, and with new emerging technological advancements in film and animation, was considered the place to go for aspiring directors, writers, and actors. The Alice Comedies series, as a part of Disney’s work at the time, shows not only the progression of technology and entertainment by combining live-action and animation, but also the appeal of said entertainment to the public as it grew in popularity. 

Many movies were made to appeal to the general public as an audience, this included animated cartoons and films. Audiences were often made up of both adults and children, and the themes shown in films were aimed at both older and younger viewers. Especially as changes in the film and animation industry shifted as social attitudes, context, and events occurred in the U.S. With societal changes that film themes followed, the workers and distributors behind these films were relevant for the 1920s and Disney’s start. Margaret Winkler, as previously stated, was one of few female distributors and even went on to start her own company. Even after her involvement in her company declined after getting married, she still made important decisions that impacted the development of many animated series. Acceptance of women in this industry was not common and that they were a threat to their positions. As stated by The Boston Traveler, “one of the few remaining fields in which you have not had to face feminine competition is being invaded… by a woman distributor!”⁴ However Winkler considered the ambitions a woman may have to be in the film industry, the opportunities presented from these ambitions, and that “there is no reason why she shouldn’t be able to conduct business as well as the men.”⁵ At the time, while women were starting to make up more of the workforce slowly, they still only made up about 20%. Most of the opportunities that women did work were often “feminine”, had lower wages, and less opportunities to grow to a higher position of work. So Margaret Winkler playing such a key role by proposing the contract to Disney to distribute his work as an initial chance in Hollywood, sheds light on one of the women that was part of societal shifts in regards to gender inequality, specifically in the film industry.

Citations

Footnotes

1. Walt Before Mickey, Disney’s Early Years 1919-1928, Timothy S. Susanin ︎
2. Letter from M.J. Winkler to Walt Disney, from Walt Before Mickey, Disney’s Early Years 1919-1928, Timothy S. Susanin ︎
3. Walt Before Mickey, Disney’s Early Years 1919-1928, Timothy S. Susanin
   ︎
4. Margaret J. Winkler – Women Film Pioneers Project. ︎
5. Margaret J. Winkler – Women Film Pioneers Project. ︎

Bibliography

1. Arnold, Gordon B. 2017. Animation and the American Imagination : A Brief History. Santa Barbara, California: Praeger.
2. J Michael Barrier. 2008. The Animated Man : A Life of Walt Disney. Berkeley ; London: University Of California Press.
3. Susanin, Timothy S. 2014. Walt before Mickey : Disney’s Early Years, 1919-1928. Jackson: University Press Of Mississippi.
4. Walt Disney Archives. n.d. “Disney History.” D23. Disney. https://d23.com/disney-history/.
5. Magazine, Smithsonian, and Kat Eschner. n.d. “Walt Disney’s First ‘Princess’ Was a Spunky Four-Year-Old.” Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/walt-disneys-first-princess-was-spunky-four-year-old-1-180967392/.
6. Dumenil, Lynn. 1995. The Modern Temper : American Culture and Society in the 1920s. New York: Hill And Wang.
7. “Margaret Winkler: First Female Film Distributor | the Walt Disney Family Museum.” Www.waltdisney.org, www.waltdisney.org/blog/margaret-winkler-first-female-film-distributor.
8. “Margaret J. Winkler – Women Film Pioneers Project.” Wfpp.columbia.edu, wfpp.columbia.edu/pioneer/margaret-j-winkler/.
9. Sohrab. 2023. “Here’s How a Four-Page Contract Started the Walt Disney Company – D23.” D23. October 16, 2023. https://d23.com/heres-how-a-four-page-contract-started-the-walt-disney-company/.
10. Featured Image: “Take a Look Back at Disney in the Year 1923.” 2014. D23. March 6, 2014. https://d23.com/a-walk-with-walt-disney-1923/.

jbaham

Jordyn Baham is a senior at Ramapo College studying Photography with a minor in Museum and Exhibition Studies. She takes the Discovering Digital History class in Spring 2025.

Image from The Crowd

This is a new idea and at the same time calls back to older ideas where a worker was valued for what they could contribute. The individual accountant was replaced by rows of bookkeepers who did not need to have the knowledge or qualifications to do the work. The assembly line was devised around this time. Hugh Grant Adams, an Australian visiting America noted that “the miracle of mass production, was appalled at the dehumanization of what he called the chain gang.” (Dumenil 39) This mass production also transferred into the office workers’ life and the monotony that comes along with it. This assembly line created greater productivity and more goods which brought about larger, national companies. More productivity and more available goods meant that there is also the converse which is more leisure time. This assembly line type of work also transferred into the office workers life and the monotony along with it. It was late in the 1920s that the term “rat race” was coined.

This event explains a lot about the lifestyle that represented the way life was portrayed in the 20s. People were not happy with their careers, but there was enough money being paid to the workers to enjoy their time and forget about what they had to endure five days a week. This additional time and money for entertainment was coupled with the drive to escape everyday life. Walt Disney and his brother Roy, as shown in the photo below, knew how to deliver this to the public. They produced shows like “Alice’s Wild West Show” which combined cartoons with live action. The photo below shows how the two were seen side by side in a short comedy allowing people to take a moment to laugh and leave reality. The entire series was called The Alice Comedies, combining live action with animation. This series, as a part of Disney’s work at the time, shows not only the progression of technology and entertainment, but also the appeal of said entertainment to the public as it grew in popularity. 

Walt (right) and his brother Roy in front of their first Hollywood Studio

Image from ‘Alice’s Wild West Show’ from the the Comedies played by Virgina Davis

Bibliography

Dumenil, Lynn. The Modern Temper. Hill and Wang, 30 June 1995.

jbaham

Jordyn Baham is a senior at Ramapo College studying Photography with a minor in Museum and Exhibition Studies. She takes the Discovering Digital History class in Spring 2025.

The Cotton Club was the most popular nightclub in Harlem during the 1920s, emerging at the height of the Jazz Age and the Harlem Renaissance. Established in September 1923 by white American gangster Owen Madden after being released from jail, the Cotton Club remained a staple of Harlem’s nightlife until it changed locations in 1936.¹ Madden saw the club primarily as a place to distribute bootleg beer, but it held far more cultural significance than he could have anticipated. While it remained in Harlem, the Cotton Club  proved to be the most significant venue for jazz during the Harlem Renaissance, hosting iconic musicians like Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Ethel Waters, and providing the stage by which artists could innovate, achieve fame and continue redefining the genre.² 

Opening of the Cotton Club

It all began with heavyweight boxing champion Jack Johnson, who opened a supper club named Club Deluxe on 142 Street and Lenox Avenue in 1920. After only a few years of being open, Johnson handed over operations to famous white gangster Owen “Owney” Madden in 1923, although Johnson remained the manager of the club.⁴ Madden designed and ran the club from his jail cell in Sing Sing, where he was held for manslaughter, eventually transforming Club Deluxe into the Cotton Club. The Cotton Club quickly became an exclusive and popular jazz venue.⁵ Madden used the Club to sell his “#1 Beer” at the time of prohibition, and the Cotton Club’s illicit alcohol activities resulted in a brief closure in 1925. The Club soon reopened and continued to sell alcohol without interference from the police or other authorities.⁶ This is believed to be because of the political connections that the Club’s leadership possessed.⁷

Madden executed a particular vision for the Club centered around elegance and class, with waiters dressed in red tuxedos meant to emulate the typical look of butlers. The menu included such expensive and exotice dishes as Venison Steak and Chop Suey, which would be served to the patrons sitting in one of the two tiers of tables, organized in the shape of a horseshoe. Opening at 9:00PM and closing at 3:00AM, the Cotton Club was the premier place for the elite to take part in Harlem’s booming nightlife. However, Madden’s vision of class also involved segregation, as only white individuals were allowed to enter the Club. At the same time, he wanted talented African American jazz artists to supply the entertainment. The bandstand was located in front of a painted background of weeping willows and slave quarters, with tall white pillars on the stage to make it appear as if the African American artists were performing on the veranda of a plantation mansion.⁸ Despite the clearly racist undertones of the Club, many black artists took advantage of the platform offered them at the Cotton Club, achieving fame along the way.  

Duke Ellington and Other Legendary Performers

Duke Ellington is undoubtedly the most important musician to have received his start in the Cotton Club, where he had a residency from 1927 to 1931.⁹ Before bringing his talent to the Cotton Club, Ellington began his career in Washington, D.C., which had been the hub for “American Negro civilization” until around the 1920s. The band he formed in D.C., the Washingtonians, moved to Harlem and, by the mid 1920s, the band’s jazz performances made it so they were already gaining local popularity. Upon becoming the Cotton Club’s primary band, Ellington’s 10-piece ensemble became an integral part of the Club’s success, and vice versa, as they gained popularity for their ability to sound like an “African Jungle.” Amongst the antebellum plantation decor of the Cotton Club, Ellington’s band performed songs such as “Jungle Nights in Harlem,” where famous trumpet players like Cootie Williams and Bubber Miley mimicked growling and other animal sounds with their instruments. Ellington struggled to come to terms with his accommodation of harmful stereotypes of African-Americans for many years, but he was able to take advantage of the “jungle” sound to experiment with dissonant harmonies and “speaking” brass. Furthermore, his popularity allowed him to perform at venues that welcomed black audiences in the 1930s, like the Savoy Ballroom and Apollo Theater.¹⁰ 

The radio exposure afforded to Duke Ellington and his ensemble supported the popularity of Duke Ellington, and jazz as a whole. In the 1920s, the radio was a modern marvel, particularly amongst teenagers after World War I. It was through this medium that nightly Cotton Club broadcasts of Ellington’s “jungle music” reached the ears of many listeners all across the United States.¹¹ This provided significant exposure for Ellington and jazz music on a national level, as well as increased popularity of the Club itself.¹² He used his growing platform to advocate for the significance of black music, writing in the British magazine Rhythm that “The music of my race is something more than the American idiom. It is the result of our transplantation to American soil, and was our reaction in the plantation days to the tyranny we endured. What we could not say openly, we expressed in music.¹³” In this way, Ellington countered the commodification of jazz music and brought to light its connections with black resistance to oppression.

Duke Ellington was not the only musician to perform at the Cotton Club. Indeed, throughout its time based in Harlem, the Cotton Club attracted the skills of many different talented jazz musicians. One such example is Johnny Hodges, a saxophonist who performed in Ellington’s ensemble during the 1920s. An influx of soloists into his band in 1929, such as Cootie Williams and Juan Tizol, showcased their improvisation skills in the Club’s musical scene. This was particularly important, as solos were and continue to be a staple of the genre. After the 1920s, Cab Calloway replaced Ellington as band leader, and he became famous for his scat-jive vocals, bringing a new element to the music of the Club.¹⁴ The Jimmie Lunceford Band also performed at the Cotton Club.¹⁵

Despite the many groundbreaking black musicians that performed and gained fame through performing at the Cotton Club, they were not actually able to enjoy the music as an audience member. Indeed, the Cotton Club only permitted white patrons to enter. This made the Club a great moral contradiction for black artists who played their uniquely African-American music at the Club.

The Cotton Club as Segregated Leisure

As leisure proliferated as a common pastime in the United States in the 1920s, Harlem became known as the “great playground,” known for its proliferation of amusing activities, with much of this being tied to its importance as a hub for jazz music and artists. The image of Harlem as “thrilling, bizarre [and] sensuous” that was cultivated during this era frequently brushing aside the more wretched aspects of Harlem’s cultural explosion. Despite being home to primarily African American cultural innovations, white subversion of African American communities was pervasive. In fact, the Cotton Club was one of a number of nightclubs in Harlem that only allowed for white patrons, while having predominantly African American performers. This occurred in conjunction with the phenomenon of “white slummers,” in which wealthier white individuals took part in Harlem’s vibrant nightlife, doing dances like the Charleston and listening to jazz, both of which were originated by the African American community. It is thus no coincidence that there was a racial divide between the white audience and African American entertainers.¹⁷ In the problematically named Cotton Club, the existence of African American individuals and blackness became a performance, and created a socially acceptable platform for white patrons to reaffirm the subservience of African American performers. That is to say, the fact that the African American artists were performing and entertaining for white spectators ensured that racial inequalities were maintained in the leisure sphere.¹⁸ Even the advertising products distributed by the Cotton Club reinforced these divisions by featuring caricatured African American performers alongside the more elegantly depicted white patrons.¹⁹ The Cotton Club was, therefore, a product of and proponent of the racism of the 1920s. 

Despite this, many did not accept this segregation without putting up a fight. In fact, The Afro-American, a Baltimore-based newspaper, reported on July 16, 1927, that a Mrs. Geraldine Dismond sued the Cotton Club for denying her and James G. Cotter entrance into the Cotton Club. Dismond and Cotter were elites, she was the wife of a “prominent local physician” and he was an assistant district U.S. Attorney. The act of suing the club itself was defiant as they rejected the tradition of segregation. The authors of this news clipping also took part in resisting the racist policies of the Cotton Club, as they clearly wished to emphasize the hypocrisy of the Cotton Club having “race bands” for all white audiences. The title of the clipping is particularly biting, as the club is referred to as a “Jim Crow Cabaret,” drawing attention to how, although northern states like New York did not have official segregation policies like the South, segregation was still customary. 

The Sexualization of Women and Colorism in the Cotton Club

With the new approach to entertainment that came with the 1920’s new consumer culture also came significant implications for the African American women by creating new forms of labor. One is the ‘commercial model,’ which includes such models who took part in entertainment performances. Such a job, which had employed African-American individuals in the Cotton Club, was part of a new movement to commodify aesthetics and the creation of a particular ‘feel.’ At the Cotton Club, those working in this capacity were meant to model their African American identity as a particular cultural type for their all-white audiences.²¹ The costumes presented both racial and sexual stereotypes, using “exotic” designs that presented the women in an exposing manner. 

Those employed in this position at the Cotton Club, and other nightclubs, were mainly women of color. Such a ‘model showgirl’ did not have to truly perform through song or dance, but would pose on stage in costume.²³ This is deeply tied to the new emphasis on women’s sexuality in the 1920s, which proved to be greatly problematic for African American women. African American women reformers found the sexualization of African American to be a form of dangerous exploitation. In fact, women writers in the Harlem Renaissance steered away from the emphasis on “primitivism” that their male counterparts took part in. This was because, when tied to sexuality, such a philosophy could contribute to undesirable stereotypes about African American women, which were at least in part shaped by white societal expectations.²⁴ The Cotton Club’s presentation of African American chorus line women as visual and sexual ‘objects’ contributed to these stereotypes.

Being viewed and used as primarily “sexual objects,” the black women that performed for elite white New Yorkers in the Cotton Club were measured up to strict physical standards that demonstrate the intersectionality of gender and race during the 1920s. The Cotton Club Girls, otherwise known as the Copper Colored Gals, had to be at least 5 feet and 6 inches tall, under 21 years of age, and pass what was known as the “paper bag” tests. According to this test, the performer had to be lighter than a brown paper bag. This test was not unique to the Cotton Club at all; it was used to determine the acceptance of black individuals, inside and outside their community, to elite institutions such as fraternities, universities, and even churches.²⁶ The practice is typically associated with institutions based in the southern city of New Orleans, but its use in the Cotton Club demonstrates that such colorist practices pervaded northern communities as well.²⁷ Complexion tests were quite popular in the United States, as white people attempted to prevent fair-skinned black individuals from entering what they deemed to be their spaces. Tests included looking at the nails and hair roots of people to determine if they were black. From the 1920s-1940s, “spotting” was a particularly popular form of ensuring that African-Americans were excluded from entering white-only institutions by having a black individual stand at the entrance and “spot” any white-passing African-Americans, subsequently preventing them from entering.²⁸ 

The Legacy of the Cotton Club

The Cotton Club was the premier jazz venue for black musicians, and a hotspot for wealthy white elite to enjoy top jazz performances during the Roaring Twenties. The Cotton Club called itself “the Aristocrat of Harlem,” and this proved to be true through its economic and racial exclusivity. While the Cotton Club’s legacy continues to be remembered as a launching pad for the career of many jazz artists through stage and radio exposure, the legacy of the Cotton Club is also marred by its history as a racist and segregated institution that exploited black art and artists for white enjoyment. This is particularly evident in how the aesthetics and name of the Club were reminiscent of the slave south, and the hypocritical policy that allowed for black performers but hardly any black patrons.²⁹ The Cotton Club in Harlem closed in 1936 after the Harlem Race Riot of 1935, as it was no longer considered to be a safe place for whites.³⁰ Soon after, they opened a new location in Midtown. Interestingly, the new, and short-lived, Cotton Club was open to black audience members, in a (failed) last-ditch attempt to obscure its problematic racial history.³¹ 

Significance to the 1920s

The Great Migration started in the 1870s within the context of social and economic frustrations that plagued many African-American communities in the South. Due to this, many moved to the North and West to receive respite. Motivation to migrate increased exponentially after World War I, as more African-Americans were drawn to the factory jobs in the cities. In the 1920s, 750,000 African Americans fled the conditions of the South, mainly relocating in cities.³³ 

Throughout the Great Migration, which ended during the Great Depression, 2 million African Americans moved out of the South to northern cities like New York City, which was particularly popular. The North was particularly attractive as an apparent refuge from racial violence where they could have more opportunities to work and vote without being threatened. Despite the apparent improved standard of living through better wages for menial jobs, the benefits were offset by the high cost of living and racial discrimination continued as African-Americans were subject to redlining and forced to live in slums. At the same time that this mass exodus was occuring, Harlem was experiencing an explosion of new cultural expression known as the Harlem Renaissance. The Great Migration actually supported the Harlem Renaissance, as the black population in New York City doubled during the 1920s. With this stream of black emigrants also came a number of artists that became key to this cultural phenomenon. For this reason, Harlem became the site of “New Negro” art and politics, with pride in black culture being the center of this cultural boom.³⁴ 

Jazz became the defining music and soundtrack of the Harlem Renaissance and “New Negro” movement. ³⁵The African-American population often viewed music as a symbolic release from the physical and economic bondage that they were subjected to by white slave-owners in recent history. Now able to obtain instruments, the African-American community was given the opportunity to experiment with a far broader range of musical styles. The result was jazz, which combined the fluid syncopation techniques customarily used in West African music with European ragtime piano.³⁶ 

It was in the context of the emergence of many skilled artists from the South through the Great Migration and the creation of Jazz as part of the Harlem Renaissance that the Cotton Club was established. The club soon became extremely popular and provided the platform for many legendary jazz musicians that continue to define the genre. 

Citations

Footnotes

1.  Maureen Maryanski, “The Aristocrat of Harlem: The Cotton Club,” The New York Historical, February 17, 2016, https://www.nyhistory.org/blogs/the-aristocrat-of-harlem-the-cotton-club. ︎
2. Ted Gioia, The History of Jazz, 3rd ed. (New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2021), 149. ︎
3. Cotton Club 1930, Wikimedia Commons (The New Movie Magazine, 1930), https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cotton_Club_1930.jpg. ︎
4. “The Cotton Club (NYC) Opens,” African American Registry, December 4, 2024, https://aaregistry.org/story/the-cotton-club-opens/. ︎
5. Margaret Moos Pick, “A Night at the Cotton Club: Music of Duke Ellington, Harold Arlen & Cab Calloway,” Riverwalk Jazz, 1997, https://riverwalkjazz.stanford.edu/program/night-cotton-club-music-duke-ellington-harold-arlen-cab-calloway. ︎
6.  “The Cotton Club (NYC) Opens.” ︎
7.  Elizabeth Winter, “Cotton Club of Harlem (1923- ),” BlackPast, December 17, 2007, https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/cotton-club-harlem-1923/. ︎
8.  Moos Pick, “A Night at the Cotton Club.” ︎
9.  Aaron J. Johnson, “A Date With The Duke: Ellington on Radio,” The Musical Quarterly 96, no. 3–4 (November 19, 2013): 369–405, https://doi.org/10.1093/musqtl/gdt014, 375. ︎
10.  Daniel Matlin, “‘Something Part, Yet an Integral Part’: Duke Ellington’s Harlem and the Nexus of Race and Nation,” Cambridge University Press, February 8, 2021, https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/modern-intellectual-history/article/something-apart-yet-an-integral-part-duke-ellingtons-harlem-and-the-nexus-of-race-and-nation/46B58AEB337443073C1A7D3102E259A1. ︎
11.  Johnson, “A Date With The Duke,” 369-370. ︎
12.  Johnson, “A Date With The Duke,” 380. ︎
13.  Laura Townsend, “How Duke Ellington Used His Appearance to Subvert Racist Stereotypes, and Other Ways He Fought Racism,” PBS, July 12, 2022, https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/how-duke-ellington-used-his-appearance-to-subvert-racist-stereotypes-and-other-ways-he-fought-racism/17385/. ︎
14.  Gioia, The History of Jazz, 150-154. ︎
15.  Gioia, The History of Jazz, 156. ︎
16.  The Famous Cotton Club Presents Dan Healy’s Cotton Club on Parade with Cab Calloway and His Famous Cotton Club Orchestra., JSTOR (Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture Photographs and Prints Division, 1925), https://www.jstor.org/stable/community.31816453. ︎
17.  Gilbert Osofsky, “Symbols of the Jazz Age: The New Negro and Harlem Discovered,” American Quarterly 17, no. 2 (Summer 1965): 229–38, https://doi.org/10.2307/2711356, 235. ︎
18.  Malcolm Womack, “Harlem Holiday: The Cotton Club, 1925-1940,” University of Washington University Libraries (dissertation, 2013), http://hdl.handle.net/1773/23357, 102. ︎
19.  Womack, “Harlem Holiday,” 110-111. ︎
20.  “Sues Harlem Jim Crow Cabaret,” The Afro-American, July 16, 1927, https://www.newspapers.com/image/1134157240/?match=1&terms=%22Louis%20Armstrong%22%20%22cotton%20club%22. ︎
21.  Elspeth H. Brown, “The Commodification of Aesthetic Feeling: Race, Sexuality, and the 1920s Stage Model,” Feminist Studies 40, no. 1 (2014): 65–97, https://doi.org/10.1353/fem.2014.0003, 65-68. ︎
22.  Maude Russel At The Cotton Club, Getty Images (Michael Ochs Archives, 1929). ︎
23.  Brown, “The Commodification of Aesthetic Feeling,” 89. ︎
24.  Lynn Dumenil, The Modern Temper: American Culture and Society in the 1920s, ed. Eric Foner (New York, NY: Hill and Wang, 1995), 139. ︎
25. Fan from the Cotton Club., Curationist (National Museum of African American History and Culture, 1923), https://www.curationist.org/works/work-smith-nmaahc_2013.223.40. ︎
26.  “Colorism During the New Negro Movement: Cotton Club,” CUNY Academic Commons, 2025, https://colorism.commons.gc.cuny.edu/cotton-club/. ︎
27. Audrey Elisa Kerr, “The Paper Bag Principle: Of the Myth and the Motion of Colorism,” Journal of American Folklore118, no. 469 (June 2005): 271–89, https://doi.org/10.1353/jaf.2005.0031, 283. ︎
28. Audrey Elisa Kerr, “The Paper Bag Principle: Of the Myth and the Motion of Colorism,” Journal of American Folklore118, no. 469 (June 2005): 271–89, https://doi.org/10.1353/jaf.2005.0031, 277-279. ︎
29. Maureen Maryanski, “The Aristocrat of Harlem: The Cotton Club,” The New York Historical, February 17, 2016, https://www.nyhistory.org/blogs/the-aristocrat-of-harlem-the-cotton-club. ︎
30.  Meher Tatna, “The Cotton Club,” Golden Globes, February 16, 2023, https://goldenglobes.com/articles/cotton-club/. ︎
31. Colony Little, “A Tale of Two Harlems: The Legacy of Jazz and Racism at the Cotton Club,” Curationist, July 2022, https://www.curationist.org/editorial-features/article/a-tale-of-two-harlems:-the-legacy-of-jazz-and-racism-at-the-cotton-club. ︎
32. The Scott Arthur Family ca. 1920, 1920, Wikimedia Commons, 1920, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Scott_Arthur_Family_1920.jpg. ︎
33.  “Moving North, Heading West: African Immigration and Relocation in U.S. History,” The Library of Congress, accessed March 19, 2025, https://www.loc.gov/classroom-materials/immigration/african/moving-north-heading-west/. ︎
34.  “The Great Migration and The Harlem Renaissance,” Press Books, accessed March 19, 2025, https://open.baypath.edu/his115/chapter/the-great-migration-and-the-harlem-renaissance/. ︎
35.  Rachel Farebrother and Miriam Thaggert, A History of the Harlem Renaissance (Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2021), 345. ︎
36.  Farebrother and Thaggert, A History of the Harlem Renaissance, 351. ︎

Bibliography

Brown, Elspeth H. “The Commodification of Aesthetic Feeling: Race, Sexuality, and the 1920s Stage Model.” Feminist Studies 40, no. 1 (2014): 65–97. https://doi.org/10.1353/fem.2014.0003. 

“Colorism During the New Negro Movement: Cotton Club.” CUNY Academic Commons, 2025. https://colorism.commons.gc.cuny.edu/cotton-club/. 

“The Cotton Club (NYC) Opens.” African American Registry, December 4, 2024. https://aaregistry.org/story/the-cotton-club-opens/. 

Cotton Club 1930. Wikimedia Commons. The New Movie Magazine, 1930. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cotton_Club_1930.jpg. 

Dumenil, Lynn. The modern Temper: American Culture and Society in the 1920s. Edited by Eric Foner. New York, NY: Hill and Wang, 1995. 

Fan from the Cotton Club. Curationist. National Museum of African American History and Culture, 1923. https://www.curationist.org/works/work-smith-nmaahc_2013.223.40. 

Farebrother, Rachel, and Miriam Thaggert. A History of the Harlem Renaissance. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2021. 

The Famous Cotton Club presents Dan Healy’s Cotton Club on Parade with Cab Calloway and his famous Cotton Club Orchestra. JSTOR. Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture Photographs and Prints Division, 1925. https://www.jstor.org/stable/community.31816453. 

Gioia, Ted. The History of Jazz. 3rd ed. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2021. 

“The Great Migration and The Harlem Renaissance.” Press Books. Accessed March 19, 2025. https://open.baypath.edu/his115/chapter/the-great-migration-and-the-harlem-renaissance/. 

Johnson, Aaron J. “A Date With The Duke: Ellington on Radio.” The Musical Quarterly 96, no. 3–4 (November 19, 2013): 369–405. https://doi.org/10.1093/musqtl/gdt014. 

Kerr, Audrey Elisa. “The Paper Bag Principle: Of the Myth and the Motion of Colorism.” Journal of American Folklore118, no. 469 (June 2005): 271–89. https://doi.org/10.1353/jaf.2005.0031. 

Little, Colony. “A Tale of Two Harlems: The Legacy of Jazz and Racism at the Cotton Club.” Curationist, July 2022. https://www.curationist.org/editorial-features/article/a-tale-of-two-harlems:-the-legacy-of-jazz-and-racism-at-the-cotton-club. 

Matlin, Daniel. “‘Something Part, Yet an Integral Part’: Duke Ellington’s Harlem and the Nexus of Race and Nation.” Cambridge University Press, February 8, 2021. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/modern-intellectual-history/article/something-apart-yet-an-integral-part-duke-ellingtons-harlem-and-the-nexus-of-race-and-nation/46B58AEB337443073C1A7D3102E259A1. 

Maryanski, Maureen. “The Aristocrat of Harlem: The Cotton Club.” The New York Historical, February 17, 2016. https://www.nyhistory.org/blogs/the-aristocrat-of-harlem-the-cotton-club. 

Maude Russel At The Cotton Club. Getty Images. Michael Ochs Archives, 1929. 

Moos Pick, Margaret. “A Night at the Cotton Club: Music of Duke Ellington, Harold Arlen & Cab Calloway.” Riverwalk Jazz, 1997. https://riverwalkjazz.stanford.edu/program/night-cotton-club-music-duke-ellington-harold-arlen-cab-calloway. 

“Moving North, Heading West: African Immigration and Relocation in U.S. History.” The Library of Congress. Accessed March 19, 2025. https://www.loc.gov/classroom-materials/immigration/african/moving-north-heading-west/. 

Osofsky, Gilbert. “Symbols of the Jazz Age: The New Negro and Harlem Discovered.” American Quarterly 17, no. 2 (Summer 1965): 229–38. https://doi.org/10.2307/2711356. 

The Scott Arthur Family ca. 1920. 1920. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Scott_Arthur_Family_1920.jpg. 

“Sues Harlem Jim Crow Cabaret.” The Afro-American. July 16, 1927. https://www.newspapers.com/image/1134157240/?match=1&terms=%22Louis%20Armstrong%22%20%22cotton%20club%22. 

Tatna, Meher. “The Cotton Club.” Golden Globes, February 16, 2023. https://goldenglobes.com/articles/cotton-club/. 

Townsend, Laura. “How Duke Ellington Used His Appearance to Subvert Racist Stereotypes, and Other Ways He Fought Racism.” PBS, July 12, 2022. https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/how-duke-ellington-used-his-appearance-to-subvert-racist-stereotypes-and-other-ways-he-fought-racism/17385/.

Womack, Malcolm. “Harlem Holiday: The Cotton Club, 1925-1940.” University of Washington University Libraries, 2013. http://hdl.handle.net/1773/23357. 

Winter, Elizabeth. “Cotton Club of Harlem (1923- ).” BlackPast, December 17, 2007. https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/cotton-club-harlem-1923/.

stefanieviera

Stefanie Viera is a 3rd year History and Humanities & Global Studies double major who is taking the Discovering Digital History course in the spring of 2025. She currently work at the Jane Addams Papers Project as an Editorial Assistant.

_{^{Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Earle Combs, Mark Koenig, and Bob Meusel. Nicknamed the “Murderer’s Row”}}

Baseball: America’s Most Iconic Sport

This blog starts off with such a bold, declarative statement. Baseball is America’s most iconic sport. To a large extent, this is true. Although there are a multitude of sports within America with immense followings, baseball has truly become one of the first sports, if not, the first sport to popularize the culture behind the modern competition amongst professional athletes. Major League Baseball held the first ever World Series in 1903, and would continue to host annual championship series throughout the rest of history up to the current contemporary era. Despite the fact that baseball’s inception started at the start of the 20th century, baseball truly began to become popularized with the rise of baseball star Babe Ruth and with the success of the Yankees during the 1927 World Series. The 1927 Yankees are remembered as one of the most dominant teams in MLB history. On top of that, legacy of Babe Ruth is still talked about by experts and fans alike to this day. Serving as the face of the league for over a decade, Babe Ruth’s career not only cemented his own legacy, but the legacy of Major League Baseball as a whole.

Babe Ruth Prior to 1927

As previously mentioned, Babe Ruth had been the face of the league during the 1920s. By 1927, Ruth was already an established super star who had won four championship world series. Babe Ruth’s dominance did not stop at championships. Known as one of the most powerful baseball hitters of his time, Ruth earned a reputation as a powerhouse hitter during an era where hitting relied on strategy and speed.¹

Babe Ruth’s powerhouse hitting style backed up his legacy as Ruth would go on to lead the entire league in home runs every year from 1918 to 1926. That is nearly a decade time span where Babe Ruth was the best home run hitter in the league. In 1920, Babe Ruth set the home run record in a season with 54 home runs. The very next year in 1921, Babe Ruth would break his own record with 59 home runs. This record would later be broken by himself again during the 1927 season with 60 home runs. Babe Ruth’s sheer power and ability to send the baseball out the stadium forced pitchers from other teams to innovate the way they pitched. Pitchers were forced to develop new pitching strategies in order to remain competitive when pitching to Babe Ruth.² To say Babe Ruth was dominant is a complete understatement.

Babe Ruth’s dominance affected baseball within a cultural and economic sense as well. Babe Ruth’s sheer dominance and popularity was able to draw in casual fans who were initially not interested in the sport of baseball. Ruth’s fame transcended sports as he would be featured on newspapers, advertisements, and radio broadcasts. The 1920’s was heavily characterized by a “celebrity culture” in which celebrities were glorified within the public light.³ Babe Ruth was a major part of this trend, and as a result his fame brought in a higher attendance rates for major league baseball games. A larger fan base meant an increase in revenue, which led to increased revenue for his team as well as the construction of larger ball parks including the Yankee Stadium in 1923.⁴ The Yankee Stadium was dubbed, “The House That Ruth Built” in light of the fact that Babe Ruth’s impact was what helped the Yankees fund the construction of the Yankee Stadium.⁵ Moreover, Ruth’s influence on baseball also inspired younger players to follow his style of power hitting. Power hitting would eventually become a staple amongst all professional hitters within baseball.

All of this, the impact, the culture, the dominance, the increase in fanbase, all occurred within Babe Ruth’s career prior to 1927. As Babe Ruth approached the 1927 baseball World Series, many fans were excited to witness Babe Ruth expand on his already iconic legacy.

Baseball’s Introduction to Commercial Radio Broadcasts

The 1920s saw a major rise in industrialization and consumerism amongst Americans. Rapid industrialization allowed for the creation of innovations and technologies which became accessible to everyone within the public. Radios were a significant part of this trend as radio broadcasts became the mainstream form of media amongst Americans during the 1920s. Prior to the radio, individuals would find information or news via newspapers. However, newspapers varied based on the local region they were printed in. With the introduction of the radio, Americans all over the country were finally able to receive the same mainstream broadcasts and news, serving as a monumental step forward for mainstream media.

The modernization of mainstream media through radio broadcasts also revolutionized the world of baseball as well. Prior to the radio, fans had to attend live baseball games in person in order to witness live play-by-play action. Although fans were able to read about the game in the newspapers, these articles were not able to capture the authenticity or excitement of a baseball game. The radio changed this by providing live baseball action directly to the consumer. Fans of the game were able to tune into baseball games at the comfort of their own homes.

^{United Press. “Today’s Radio Programs.” The Brattleboro Daily Reformer, October 6, 1927.}

Newspapers suddenly became a resource for fans looking to tune into baseball games. The image above depicts a section highlighting the times for radio broadcast in a 1927 newspaper called The Brattleboro Daily Reformer. Rather than reading about baseball games in the newspaper, fans all over the nation would flip to the “Today’s Radio Programs” page in order to see when the World Series was being broadcasted. After examining this newspaper segment, it becomes clear that radio broadcasts attracted fans from various cities throughout America. Cities such as Atlanta, Baltimore, Buffalo, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dallas, Detroit, Hartford, Kansas City, Louisville, and New York City all participated in broadcasting the 1927 World Series to local fans.⁶ Despite the fact that most of these cities did not have a participating baseball team within the 1927 World Series, there was still an active effort from fans everywhere to listen in on this highly anticipated championship series featuring the already legendary Babe Ruth. Once again, this trend highlights the growing popularity behind baseball and Babe Ruth as a celebrity during the 1920s. In an unprecedented manner, fans everywhere were able to tune into the same mainstream sport.

Team Loyalty

Leading up to the 1927 series, fans often remained loyal to a specific team which was usually dictated by the region a fan lived in. While many supported Babe Ruth and the New York Yankees, a plethora of fans showed their support for the Pittsburgh Pirates during the 1927 championship series. Fan loyalty becomes apparent when analyzing the various newspaper articles on the 1927 World Series. Within the newspaper, The Evening Star published in Washington D.C., one article starts off by stating in big bold letters “Yanks should win or be arrested”. This article proceeds to acknowledge the superstar athletes playing for the Yankees and displays full confidence in their ability to win. Another article within the same newspaper is titled “Yank Twirlers Have Big Edge On Bucs in Series Experience”. This article dives into the previous successes of this Yankees team and explains the advantages they hold coming into the 1927 World Series. To end off the sports section of The Evening Star, a chart displaying Babe Ruth’s home runs for the season is displayed. This chart serves to bring excitement to the fans as many are anticipating a legendary performance from the hitter within the league.⁷

However, newspapers from other rival cities do not hold this optimism towards Babe Ruth and the Yankees going into the 1927 World Series. Within an article titled “King of Sluggers Has Sunk to Depths and Scaled Glorious Heights in Previous Battles For Championship” published by The Boston Globe, the writer of this paper actively slanders Ruth as a baseball player. This article claims that Babe Ruth is overrated and highlights how Babe Ruth chokes in high pressure moments. The Boston Globe even goes as far as to publish a cartoon which tarnishes Babe Ruth’s legacy.⁸

Considering that Ruth no longer played for Boston’s team the Red Sox, it would make sense that fans from Boston would no longer view Ruth as a favorite and instead would see him as a rival.

The Pittsburgh Press, the local newspaper for fans of the Pittsburgh Pirates, displayed excitement for the Pirates prior to the 1927 World Series. In a newspaper article titled “Pirates’ ‘Inner Works'”, this page displays excitement for the players representing the Pirates by highlighting how talented this roster is. The author of this article talks about the strengths of each player on the Pirates and how their skills and athletic ability will lend itself to success during this championship series. The front of this article features images of the hitters playing for the Pirates with hall of famer Pie Traynor being showcased in the center of this newspaper.⁹ This newspaper seems to disregard the excitement behind Babe Ruth’s return to the big stage, and instead promotes the Pirates’ success leading into the World Series.

A Timeline Featuring Babe Ruth’s Career

The 1927 World Series

Heading into the 1927 World Series, the Pittsburgh Pirates and the New York Yankees both boasted very strong regular season records with the Yankees holding a record of 110-44 and the Pirates holding a record of 94-60. Despite the fact that both teams were strong regular season performers, the Yankees were the clear favorites leading into this series. The Yankees held a strong line of hitters called the “Murderers’ Row” which decimated the rest of the league during the 1927 season.¹⁰

Game 1: October 5, 1927, at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh

Yankees win 5-4

The Pirate’s top performer for this game was center fielder Lloyd Waner. The Pirates initially took the lead to start the game. Despite his success during the game, Waner’s efforts would fall short as the Yankees would prevail with the win. Yankees’ pitcher Waite Hoyt would have a fantastic game, displaying elite pitching throughout the matchup. The Yankees showed off a deep roster full of strong hitters which helped them close the lead and eventually secure the win.

Game 2: October 6, 1927, at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh

Yankees win 6-2

The Yankees took the lead early and would continue to dominate for the rest of the game. Star hitter Lou Gehrig was the star of this game as he made his mark with his own home run.

Game 3: October 7, 1927, at Yankee Stadium, New York

Yankees win 8-1

The Yankees dominated this game as Babe Ruth hit two home runs to help the Yankees secure a strong lead. Herb Pennock pitched a perfect no-hitter that game which contributed to the Yankees supremacy in Game 3.

Game 4: October 8, 1927, at Yankee Stadium, New York

Yankees win 4-3

The Pirates fought hard during their final game. However their efforts were unable to prevent the clean sweep for the New York Yankees. Lou Gehrig would score the winning run to clinch the win for New York.¹¹

Best Players

Babe Ruth: Babe Ruth had a slow start during Games 1 and 2. However his superstardom would flash during Game 3 as he was able to hit two home runs which secured a strong lead for the Yankees.

Lou Gehrig: Gehrig was the star of this series and an offensive juggernaut for the New York Yankees during this series. He contributed to some of the most vital hits and runs during this series.

Herb Pennock: Herb Pennock would pitch a no-hitter in Game 3 which would contribute to the dominance displayed by the Yankees in Game 3.¹²

The Yankees Dominate the Pirates

The 1927 World Series was an extremely lopsided matchup with Yankees clearly being the stronger team. Although the Pirates had a well constructed roster, the Yankees were just a deeper team. Various players such as Pennock, Hoyt, Gehrig, and Ruth stepped up during key moments within this series to help the Yankees secure the 1927 championship title. With a strong supporting cast surrounding Babe Ruth, it became clear during the series that the Yankees would decimate Pirates. With a strong regular season record and a clean sweep during the World Series, 1927 New York Yankees would solidifie themselves as one of the greatest teams in MLB history.

The overwhelming success of the New York Yankees would set a tone for the MLB and the culture behind Yankees baseball. The 1927 baseball World Series reinforced the Yankees dynasty of the 1920s. This same championship series further advanced Babe Ruth’s already legendary career with his fifth World Series championship.

Furthermore, the Yankee’s dynasty aligns with the themes of the “Roaring 20s”. A seemingly prosperous time filled with economic prosperity, rise in consumerism, and growing popularity amongst celebrities, the winning culture of the Yankees fed this trend of success which characterized the 1920s in America. Although the 1927 baseball World Series may seem like a friendly competition amongst elite baseball athletes, there is a deeper story of culture and achievement behind this championship series.

Citations

Bibliography

1. Magazine, Smithsonian. “How Babe Ruth Changed Baseball.” Smithsonian.Com, Smithsonian Institution, 16 Aug. 2011, www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-babe-ruth-changed-baseball-51810018/#:~:text=In%20his%20first%20season%20with,the%20new%20live%2Dball%20era. ︎
2. Magazine, Smithsonian. “How Babe Ruth Changed Baseball.” Smithsonian.Com, Smithsonian Institution, 16 Aug. 2011, www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/how-babe-ruth-changed-baseball-51810018/#:~:text=In%20his%20first%20season%20with,the%20new%20live%2Dball%20era. ︎
3. Dumenil, Lynn. The Modern Temper: American Culture and Society in the 1920s. Hill and Wang, 2007. ︎
4. Leavy Jane (October 8, 2018). “How Babe Ruth Became the Model for the Modern Celebrity Athlete”. Sports Illustrated. ︎
5. Arbuckle, Alex (July 10, 2012). “Babe Ruth, On and Off the Field”. The New Yorker. ︎
6. United Press. “Today’s Radio Programs.” The Battleboro Daily Reformer, October 6, 1927. ︎
7. “Keller B., John “Yanks Should Win or Be Arrested.” The Evening Star, October 4, 1927.” ︎
8. Lardner, Ring “World Series Crowds Gather in Rain at Pittsburg” The Boston Globe, October 4, 1927 ︎
9. Higgins, Miller “Pirates’ ‘Inner Works'” The Pittsburgh Press, October 4, 1927 ︎
10. “Babe Ruth.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 27 Feb. 2024, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babe_Ruth. ︎
11. 1927 World Series at WorldSeries.com via MLB.com ︎
12. 1927 World Series at WorldSeries.com via MLB.com ︎

Laurel and Hardy were a comedy duo composed of Stanley Laurel (1890-1965) and Oliver Hardy (1892-1957). Laurel and Hardy were featured in their first silent short The Lucky Dog (1921). Their first silent short as a comedy duo was The Second Hundred Years (1927). Their career followed the new technological advances of sound in film. In addition to silent shorts in the 1920s, they also released silent films with music and effects. Their first talkie, Unaccustomed As We Are, was released in 1929. Unaccustomed As We Are stars Laurel and Hardy. The talkie was written by Thomas “Leo” McCarey and Harley “H.M.” Walker. The directors were Lewis Foster and Harold “Hal” Roach Sr. The following transcription is from a scene that take place between the 5:39 and 12:31 minute marks.

Video

Text

(In Hardy’s apartment. Hardy brought Laurel over to his apartment for dinner without telling Mrs. Hardy. Mrs. Hardy refused to make dinner and left) 

Laurel: Well, l guess we don’t eat.

Hardy: Oh, yes, we do eat. l’ll cook you a meal like you’ve never eaten. 

(to himself, cleaning off a table in the center of the room) Nobody else needs to cook my meals for me. One thing about me, l am absolutely independent. l’ve cooked loads of meals.

(Laurel sits reclined in a chair; Hardy trips over Laurel’s outstretched legs)

(to Laurel) Why don’t you do something to help me?

Laurel: What can l do?

Hardy: Set the table. That’s simple. You don’t have to use any brains for that.

(Laurel places plates previously on table on the floor. Hardy trips over the plates. Laurel continues to fumble with table. Hardy swats at Laurel’s hands) 

Get your hands off of that. Go in the kitchen and light the oven. (Laurel trips over Hardy’s foot)

And pick your feet up. And take your hat off. Now go in and light the oven. Thank you.

(Laurel looks at oven and around kitchen with a confused expression on his face. He checks the pockets of his pants. Laurel walks out of the kitchen to Hardy.) 

Laurel: Got a match?

Hardy: Yes. l’ll light it. You fix the table. (Hardy enters kitchen)

(Laurel begins to places cutlery on table)

(Off screen explosion. Fire blazes out of the kitchen for a brief second while Hardy is thrown from the kitchen.)

Why don’t you be careful? You might have blown the whole house up.

You know, there’s a right and wrong way to do everything.

(Off screen explosion. Fire blazes out of the kitchen for a brief second while Hardy is thrown from the kitchen.)

(unintelligible) light that again.

Laurel: Now wait a minute now. l didn’t mean anything-

Hardy: l’m sorry l brought you here! You’ve done nothing-

(knock at the door)

Mrs. Kennedy¹: What in the world is happening, Mr Hardy?

Hardy: Well, l was cooking dinner for my friend and l, and we had a slight accident.

Mrs. Kennedy: Oh, you poor dear boy. Maybe there’s something l could do to help you.

Hardy: That’s awfully sweet of you, Mrs Kennedy.

Mrs. Kennedy: Why, lt would be a pleasure, Mr Hardy.

Hardy: You’re sure l’m not imposing, Mrs Kennedy?

Mrs. Kennedy: Oh, not at all, Mr Hardy.

Hardy: Thank you, Mrs Kennedy.

(Mrs. Kennedy enters kitchen)

Laurel: Was that Mrs Kennedy?

Hardy: Oh, shut up!

(off screen explosion, Mrs. Kennedy screams)

Hardy: Quick What’s the matter?

Mrs. Kennedy, exiting the kitchen: I’m on fire, put me out. I’m on fire, put me out. Oh please put me out. Mr. Hardy, please. Please put me out, Mr Hardy! Put me out!

(Laurel uses his hat and Hardy uses his jacket to put the fire out. Laurel hits Hardy multiple times instead of the fire.) 

Oh please, something to cover me up. (Laurel covers Mrs. Kennedy with the table cloth).

Hardy: Goodness gracious, are you hurt?

Mrs. Kennedy: No, Mr Hardy. lt frightened me to death.

Hardy: l’m awfully sorry that happened, Mrs Kennedy.

Mrs. Kennedy: Oh that’s all right Mr Hardy, accidents will happen.

Hardy: You’re right, Mrs Kennedy.

Mrs. Kennedy: It won’t take me but a minute to put on another dress, Mr. Hardy.

Hardy: You sure l can’t help you Mrs. Kennedy?

Mrs. Kennedy: Oh no, thank you, Mr Hardy.

(Mrs. Kennedy goes to leave. She sees her husband entering the Kennedy apartment. She reenters the Hardy apartment and closes the door). 

My husband.².lf he sees me, he’ll, I think, he’ll kill all of us. What’ll l do?

Hardy: Do? Why, we’ll tell him the truth.

Laurel: The whole truth.

Hardy: And nothing but the truth.

Laurel: Absolutely.

Hardy: Pardon. 

(Hardy exits the apartment to approach Mr. Kennedy. He sees his wife in hallway and returns to his apartment)

My wife. What’ll we do?

Laurel: Tell her the truth.

Hardy: Oh shut up. We’ve got to get out of here. (all enter the Hardy’s bedroom) Right in here. (to himself) l don’t know where to go. (to Laurel) Close that door.

(to Mrs. Kennedy) ln the trunk.

(Laurel gets in trunk) 

Mrs. Hardy³ (off-screen): Yo-hoo

Hardy: (to Laurel) No, not you! Get up!

(to Mrs. Kennedy) Now keep your head down.

Mrs. Hardy: Oh, pussums.

Hardy: What do you mean, pussum?

Mrs. Hardy: Don’t be cross. l’m sorry for what happened and l’ll fix Stan dinner. Look, l brought him some nuts.

Hardy: No, Barbara. We are through.

Mrs. Hardy: Oh but what do you mean?

Hardy: You’ve broken the camel’s back once too often. My trunk is packed and l’m leaving for South America tonight to do big things.

Mrs. Hardy: Oh! But, Oliver…

Hardy: And l’m burning my bridges behind me.

Laurel: Burning your what?

Hardy: Burning my bridges.

Laurel: Oh, l thought you said britches.

Mrs. Hardy: Oh oh but, Oliver, why are you leaving me?

Hardy: Because my friend advised me to go.

Hardy: Come, Stan.

Mrs. Hardy: Oh.

(Laurel and Hardy carry trunk with Mrs. Kennedy out of bedroom)

Mrs. Hardy: Just a minute (grabs Laurel’s shoulder).

You wolf in sheep’s clothing (Mrs. Hardy hits Laurel on his shoulder). lt’s men about town like you that cause all the trouble between man and wife. What do you mean by taking this poor little innocent to South America and advising him to burn his bridges when he never even started a fire in his life?

(Laurel does not respond)

l’m talking to you. Come on. Answer me.

(getting more agitated) What do you mean? Well come on. What do you mean? 

Can’t you answer? 

(Laurel uses his arms to cover his head)

Oh! You’d thrash me, would ya? Oh you would?

Hardy: That boy wasn’t gonna hit you.

Mrs. Hardy: You’d thrash me!

Hardy (yelling over Mrs. Hardy): He wasn’t gonna hit you.

(Hardy and Mrs. Hardy start indistinctly yelling over each other. Camera cuts to outside of apartment where yelling can still be heard). 

Source

Unaccustomed as We Are. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1929.

Bibliography

IMDb. “Unaccustomed as We Are (Short 1929).” www.imdb.com. Accessed April 25, 2023. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0020531/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_2_nm_1_q_unaccustome.

Unaccustomed as We Are. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1929. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BHU6MPJ-_o.

mkukan

Michelle Kukan is a spring 2023 student of Discovering Digital History at Ramapo College. She is a sophomore studying history, American studies and museum & exhibition studies. She is a volunteer for Mahwah Museum’s Veterans Project and works on the Jane Addams Paper Project.

Don Juan is a 1926 American silent film directed by Alan Crosland and produced by Warner Bros.  It stars John Barrymore in the title role of the legendary Spanish seducer and womanizer, Don Juan. The film follows a legendary Spanish lover as he pursues romantic adventures and duels with rivals in 16^th century Spain.  The film begins with Don Juan, the protagonist, seeking to avenge the death of his father by challenging “Count de Polan” to a duel.  After defeating Polan, Don Juan is wounded but manages to escape with the help of his loyal servant, Pedrillo.  Fleeing to a nearby monastery for refuge, Juan encounters a beautiful novice named Adrianna and is instantly smitten by her, however Adrianna has taken a vow of chastity and rebuffs his advances.  Undeterred, Don Juan continues his escapades, charming and seducing numerous women along the way.  He also becomes entangles in a political conspiracy involving the King of Spain, who suspects him of treason.  Juan’s adventures lead him to encounter various characters, including a jealous husband, a vengeful suitor, and a lecherous Duke among others.  As the story unfolds, Don Juan’s pursuit of Adrianna becomes more desperate, and he faces numerous challenges in his quest to win her heart. Ultimately, Don must confront his own reckless behavior and come to terms with the consequences of his actions.

Don Juan is considered a commercial and critical success since its release in 1926, and it remains a landmark film in the history of cinema, and a film that has made a significant impact on the development of the motion picture industry. Don Juan was also one of the most expensive films made up to that time, with a budget of over one million dollars.  The film’s lavish sets, costumes, and special effects were highly praised by critics and audiences alike. In addition to Barrymore, the film features a talented cast of actors, including Mary Astor, Warner Oland, and Myrna Loy in one of her earliest film appearances.

The premiere of Don Juan was a star-studded event that took place on August 6, 1926, at the Warner Bros. Theater in New York City.  The event was attended by many celebrities of the time, including John Barrymore, as well as Gloria Swanson, Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, and Charlie Chaplin who were all stars of the era.  The premiere was a highly anticipated event, due to it being the first film with synchronized sound effects and musical score.  The event was covered extensively by the press, and fans lined the streets to catch a glimpse of the stars as they arrived.  The film was well-received by the audience, who were impressed by the film’s innovation, technology, and advanced style for the time.  The Warner Bros. Theatre was located at 1700 Broadway in New York City, and had a seating capacity of around 3,500 people.  It was one of the largest and most luxurious theaters of the time and was equipped with all of the latest technologies of the era.  The theater remained a popular venue for several decades, hosting many premieres and events over the years until it was demolished in 1952.  The exact number of people that attended the premiere of Don Juan is unknown, but it is estimated that it was a fully sold out event hosting at least 3,400 people.  The success of the film in its initial run at the box office demonstrated the potential profitability of sound films and encouraged studios to invest in sound technology. Don Juan pushed the boundaries of what was possible in film production, and use of technologies at this time.

Significance

The film is notable for a number of reasons.  It was the first feature-length film with synchronized sound effects, including a synchronized musical score and sound effects in selected scenes.  However, it did not include any spoken dialogue, as that technology was not yet available. The production of Don Juan (1926) required the development of new technology, including the Vitaphone, elaborate special effects (for the time), and advanced camera techniques.  These advancements paved the way for future innovations in filmmaking. 

The film used a sound-on-disc system called the Vitaphone, which synchronized a 16-inch phonograph record with the film’s projection.  The record contained the synchronized musical score and sound effects that were played back during the film’s screening.  The synchronization was achieved by timing the playback of the sound disc with the projection of the film, using a special device called a “projector interlock”.  A projector interlock refers to a safety mechanism in film projectors that prevents multiple projectors from running at the same time, which could have caused damage to film prints at the time.  The interlock system was designed to ensure that only one projector would be running during a film screening.

Vitaphone allowed films to add synchronized sound to a motion picture.  It was developed by the Western Electric Company and was introduced in 1926, in the fil Don Juan.  The system was used primarily in the 1920’s and early 30’s, before it was surpassed by better technology.  Many classic films from this period, such as The Jazz Singer (1927) and The Singing Fool (1928), used the Vitaphone system to add synchronized sound to their musical number and sound effects. However, because the Vitaphone system relied on separate sound discs, it was limited in its ability to incorporate dialogue, and films using this system remained silent with musical accompaniment and sound effects.  It wasn’t until the development of sound-on-film technology in the late 1920’s that synchronized dialogue was invented, that films began to have dialogue sound. While the Vitaphone has been long surpassed by more advanced technology, many of the Vitaphone discs have survived and have been preserved, providing a unique glimpse into the early days of sound in cinema. This system was revolutionary at the time and paved the way for the development of sound in motion pictures. 

The 1920’s was a decade known for its cultural, social, and political changes and the film reflected some of the attitudes and values of the time.  It also reflected attitudes and values of the time, as well as some of the challenges that people of the era faced.  One example of this is gender roles, such as the “male gaze”, where women were objectified and seen as objects of male desire.  This was a common attitude in the 1920’s, as traditional gender roles were being challenged and new forms of sexual expression were emerging. Another example is political instability.  The film’s plot revolves around political intrigue and the struggle for power between various factions. This was a representation of the political struggles of the 1920’s, as the aftermath of World War One and the economic challenges of the time created by social unrest and political tension.  A third example is economic prosperity and excess. The film’s lavish sets, costumes, and special effects were a reflection of the prosperity of the 1920’s, as the United States experienced a period of economic growth and prosperity.  The film’s excess reflected the era’s tendency towards extravagance and opulence.

John Barrymore’s portrayal of Don Juan also set a new standard for leading men in Hollywood.  He was suave, sophisticated, romantic, and his performance helped establish the archetype of the “silver screen” hero. The character of Don Juan, who was a legendary seducer and womanizer, became a popular figure in literature and drama throughout the 1920’s.  The film helped cement the character’s place in popular culture and inspired other films, plays, and novels that featured similar characters.

Sources

Hall, M. (1926, August 7). Vitaphone stirs as talking movie; new device synchronizing sound with action impresses with its realistic effects. noted musicians heard provides orchestral accompaniment to photoplay “Don Juan,” with John Barrymore. The New York Times. Retrieved April 11, 2023, from https://www.nytimes.com/1926/08/07/archives/vitaphone-stirs-as-talking-movie-new-device-synchronizing-sound.html

In The Good Old Days Of Classic Hollywood. (2015, June 25). The Classic Movie History Project Blogathon: Don Juan (1926 ) and the introduction to vitaphone. In The Good Old Days Of Classic Hollywood. Retrieved April 11, 2023, from https://crystalkalyana.wordpress.com/2015/06/25/the-classic-movie-history-project-blogathon-don-juan-1926-and-the-introduction-to-vitaphone/

A tale of romance and derring-do (with synchronized music and sound effects): A study of don juan (1926). Silver Screen Classics. Retrieved April 11, 2023, from https://silverscreenclassicsblog.wordpress.com/2021/06/26/a-tale-of-romance-and-derring-do-with-synchronized-music-and-sound-effects-a-study-of-don-juan-1926/

Wikimedia Foundation. (2023, April 4). Don Juan (1926 film). Wikipedia. Retrieved April 11, 2023, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Juan_(1926_film)