In 1904, Abraham Erlanger
and Marc Klaw, who helped form the Theatrical Syndicate, built the Liberty,
just down the street from the New Amsterdam. The Liberty was designed as
a musical house and musical attractions would form the bulk of its history. Its opening performance was
on October 10, 1904, with the musical was The
Roger Brothers in Paris. The Rogers Brothers were a very popular comedy
team and helped the Liberty get off to a great start. In 1905, The Roger's
Brothers in Ireland brought the team back to the Liberty once again.
Little Johnny Jones,
George M. Cohan's first full-length musical, bowed there in 1904. This show,
which ran for 52 performances, premiered
some of Cohan's greatest songs, including "Yankee Doodle Boy" and
"Give My Regards To Broadway." The Liberty was also the home to
another of Cohan's show in 1922 with Little Nellie Kelly. This
show ran for 276 performances and yielded such songs as, "You Remind Me of
My Mother."
Following Cohan's shows, the Liberty
saw the rise of many new comers into the world of musicals. Jerome Kern
had two popular shows open at the Liberty. His first was Have a Heart,
with Guy Bolton in 1917. The NIght Boat was Kern's next show in the
Liberty. It ran for 318 performances and was quite success in its time,
although it is not well remembered.
In 1919, the Liberty saw two annual
revues take flight. The first was called The Hitchy-Koo of 1919.
It featured a score by Cole Porter and the master of ceremonies was Raymond
Hitchcock, a popular comic and monologist. The second revue was George White
Scandals. Its first year yielded no hit songs, so the following
year George Gershwin contributed to the musical score. Following his
involvement in the revue, George
and Ira Gershwin's Lady Be Good, with Fred Astaire and his sister, Adela
open at the Liberty in 1924. The Gershwins had one other successful show at the Liberty.
In 1925, Tip-Toes opened. This show utilized the same producers,
librettists, and songwriters that Lady Be Good had. This resulted
in another excellent score including the song "Sweet and Low
Down."
The great black musical Blackbirds of 1928, featuring Bill Robinson
and Aida Ward, was
one of the last major successes to call the Liberty home. It produced many
popular songs such as "Doin' the New Low-Down," I Can't Give You
Anything But Love," and "Porgy." By 1932, the
Liberty began presenting vaudeville and motion pictures. By 1990, its interior
had been heavily gutted, although its proscenium retained much of its earlier
splendor.
The Liberty Theatre had a
100 foot high lobby, but it had a narrow entrance. The theatre itself was
adorned with eagles and liberty bells. Current plans call for the Liberty to be gutted and become part of the
Madame Tussad's Wax Museum.
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