The Mountebanks
Your interesting article about the history of the
theater at Union (March issue) states, “Founded in 1912, the Mountebanks claim to be the oldest continually-operating student theater
organization in the country.”
The impression one gets is that the Mountebanks presented plays of various forms since its inception in 1912. This is not true.
Towards the end of the 1950-51 school year, the Mountebanks and its sponsor from the English Department, Prof. Donald S. Jones, had a falling out. As a
result, the Mountebanks “struck” for the 1951-52 season and refused to take part in any play production activity. Not to be outdone, Prof. Jones dedicated the activities of the spring
1951-52 “Play Production Class” (English 13) towards putting on the only play that was presented that year.
The play was “Angel Street,” and of the six students in the class, only one had ever been a Mountebank. I was an EE major and, as the only one of legal age, became business manager as well as being charge
of set construction. The College loaned the class $600 to cover expenses. We stayed within budget and even made an extra $21 after all expenses were paid.
The forward in the playbill noted that the presentation “is not a new departure at Union
College, but the carrying on of a well established tradition which has expressed itself brilliantly in the past, and may be expected to do so in the future.”
This statement was a sop to attempt to bridge the chasm between the Mountebanks and Prof. Jones. It was also an attempt to claim the preeminence of the English Department over the Mountebanks.
I wish the current Mountebanks well-but the preceding story is important to keep the record straight.
S. Bruce Franklin '52
Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif.
Your article on the Mountebanks was nostalgic for me. My late husband, Abe Smith '35, was active in the group. Especially meaningful was the scene from “A Bold Stroke for A Wife,” where Abe is on the extreme left. Abe also used to speak glowingly of Ed Carrol. Thank you for invoking old memories.
Mrs. Florence Smith
Sunrise, Fla.
Re your enjoyable feature on the Mountebanks: I was not sure from the caption on the bottom of page fourteen if you realized that the man on the right is the very, very young Ed Carrol '27.
Bernard S. Krause '39
Oxnard, Calif.