Stage Door Canteen: Difference between revisions
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The film ''[[This Is the Army]]'' (1943) and the Broadway play from which it was adapted include a scene set at the Stage Door Canteen. During that scene, Earl Oxford sang the song "I Left My Heart at the Stage Door Canteen" in both versions. The song "speaks of the fleeting love that many of the men felt when they had to leave the canteen, never to see these beautiful women again." The most popular recorded version of the song was made by Sammy Kaye and his orchestra, with Don Cornell singing. It reached No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' chart. | The film ''[[This Is the Army]]'' (1943) and the Broadway play from which it was adapted include a scene set at the Stage Door Canteen. During that scene, Earl Oxford sang the song "I Left My Heart at the Stage Door Canteen" in both versions. The song "speaks of the fleeting love that many of the men felt when they had to leave the canteen, never to see these beautiful women again." The most popular recorded version of the song was made by Sammy Kaye and his orchestra, with Don Cornell singing. It reached No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' chart. | ||
{{sa|Hollywood Canteen}} | |||
==Partial list of performers and public speakers who volunteered at the Stage Door Canteen== | ==Partial list of performers and public speakers who volunteered at the Stage Door Canteen== | ||
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{{cat|WWII History Project}} |
Latest revision as of 20:30, 9 December 2023
The Stage Door Canteen was an entertainment venue for American and Allied servicemen that operated in the Broadway theatre district of New York City throughout World War II. Founded by the American Theatre Wing (ATW) in 1942, the entertainers were largely unpaid, volunteering their talents as a way of supporting the morale of American troops during the war. Several women in leadership with the ATW played a critical role in establishing the Stage Door Canteen, including actress Nedda Harrigan and ATW co-founders Louise Heims Beck and Antoinette Perry. The canteen opened March 2, 1942 and operated seven nights a week in the previously unoccupied 'Little Club' under the 44th Street Theatre at 216 West 44th Street in Manhattan.
The official estimate of attendance on the canteen's opening night was 1,250, with 200 "actresses of varying importance" as hostesses and 75 "'name' actors" as busboys.
The canteen's popularity led to the establishment of other canteens throughout the United States as well as London and Paris.
Services
In addition to shows, the canteen offered off-duty military personnel opportunities to unwind in various ways, including dancing with hostesses and female entertainers, eating, and writing letters home. Food was provided free. Between 5 p.m. and midnight daily, the canteen served 200 gallons of coffee, and 5,000 cigarettes were smoked.
In media
The original Stage Door Canteen inspired a CBS Radio series (1942–45) and a 1943 film. The film was made by RKO Pathe Studios, using a replica of the New York venue on the studio's Culver City, California, site.
The film This Is the Army (1943) and the Broadway play from which it was adapted include a scene set at the Stage Door Canteen. During that scene, Earl Oxford sang the song "I Left My Heart at the Stage Door Canteen" in both versions. The song "speaks of the fleeting love that many of the men felt when they had to leave the canteen, never to see these beautiful women again." The most popular recorded version of the song was made by Sammy Kaye and his orchestra, with Don Cornell singing. It reached No. 2 on the Billboard chart.
See also [ Hollywood Canteen ]
Partial list of performers and public speakers who volunteered at the Stage Door Canteen
A-B
- Vanoye Aixens
- Frank Albanese @wp
- Pauline Alpert
- Adrienne Ames @wp
- Don Arrès
- Jean-Pierre Aumont @wp
- Joe Baque
- Irina Baronova @wp
- Ethel Barrymore Colt
- James Barton (actor) @wp
- Frank Behrens
- Ralph Bellamy @wp
C
- Stanley Catron
- Ethel Cave-Cole
- Marguerite Chapman @wp
- George Church
- Harry Clark (actor) @wp
- Tiny Clark
- Madeleine Clive
- Imogene Coca @wp
- Grant Code
- Olga Coelho
- Eddie Cole @wp
- Emil Coleman and His Orchestra
- Blanche Collins
- Jack Collins (actor) @wp
- Frances Comstock
- Walter Compton (broadcaster) @wp
- The Continental Trio
- Melville Cooper @wp
- Peggy Corday
- Irwin Corey @wp
- Irene Corlett
- Diosa Costello @wp
- William Cottrell
- Alan Courtney
- Diane Courtney
- Herbert Cowans @wp
- The Cresta Blanca Carnival
- Cyril Critchlow
- Stumpy Cromer @wp
- Bob Cronin and his NBC orchestra
- Roy Cropper
- Milton Cross @wp
- Margaret Cuddy
- Xavier Cugat @wp
- Frank Cunkle
D
- Donald Dame
- Lili Damita @wp
- Emery Darcy
- Jeanne Darrell
- Colette D'Arville @wp
- Carol Deis
- Albert Dekker @wp
- Jack De Leon
- The DeMarco Sisters @wp
- Clark Dennis
- Anita de Palma
- Clarence Derwent @wp
- Romolo de Spirito
- Ragini Devi @wp
- Artella Dickson
- Muriel Dickson @wp
- Adam and Jane Di Gatano
- Tommy Dix
- Lee Dixon
- Doris Doe
- Bill Doggett @wp
- Larry Douglas
- Helen Dowdy @wp
- Artie Dunn
- Jack Dunphy @wp
- Bob Dupont
- Jack Durant
- Ed Durlacher
- Eleanor Durkin
E-F
- Ed East
- Dan Eckley
- Ted Eddy and his Orchestra
- Dorothy Edwards (actress) @wp
G-H
I-K
- Irene Jordan
- Chandra Kaly and His Dancers
- William Kapell @wp
L-M
N-O
P-R
S-T
U-W
X-Z
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- ↑ (February 19, 1944) AMERICAN THEATRE WING, 5.