[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 30 (Thursday, March 16, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E329]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           CELEBRATING THE CENTENNIAL OF THE CALUMET THEATRE

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. BART STUPAK

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 16, 2000

  Mr. STUPAK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join other northern Michigan 
residents in celebrating the centennial of the Calumet Theatre, in 
Calumet, Michigan, on the beautiful Keweenaw Peninsula.
  Despite its remoteness, this remarkable theater once provided a stage 
for some of the greatest actors and actresses who traveled the country 
shortly after the turn of the century. Like many institutions of its 
kind, the theater fell on hard times but was rediscovered by farsighted 
local residents. Now it is the bright jewel of a national project. The 
Calumet Theatre, which occupies a place on the National Register of 
Historic Places, sits in the heart of downtown Calumet, which is also 
listed on the National Register. Both in turn are major features and 
attractions in one of the nation's newest national parks, Keweenaw 
National Historic Park.
  The performers who appeared for local audiences included such 
luminaries as Lillian Russell, John Philip Sousa, Sarah Bernhardt, 
Douglas Fairbanks Sr., Lon Chaney Sr., Jason Robards Sr., William S. 
Hart, and Wallace and Noah Beery.
  Also appearing was Madame Helen Modjeska, whose spirit is being 
resurrected in a new book by author Susan Sontag, but whose actual 
ghost is said to occasionally walk the boards of the stage, just as she 
did in real life in 1900, 1902 and 1905.
  As the story is told--even as far away as Madame Modjeska's home 
country of Poland--an actress with a New York theatrical troupe was 
playing the role of Kate in Taming of the Shrew in 1958, when she 
suddenly went blank on her monologue. She was saved by the pale figure 
of Madam Modjeska, who fed her the lines from the balcony.
  Is there really a ghost, Mr. Speaker? Ask former reporter Rick 
Rudden, now editor of the Escanaba Daily Press, who spent a ghost 
hunting night in a theater filled with strong raps, knocks and other 
inexplicable sounds.
  But it is my own district, Mr. Speaker, which threatened for many 
years to become a ghost of its own former glory in the heyday of copper 
mining. The copper boom is a fixture of the distant past, but the 
echoes of a dying industry can still be heard. As recently as 1995 the 
nearby White Pine Mine closed, taking with it 1,200 good-paying jobs.
  This is the context in which we celebrate the centennial of the 
Calumet Theatre. The community--the region--looks back a hundred years 
to a grand past, but it need only look at yesterday to see a time of 
economic struggle and uncertainty. Yet, in the midst of these very lean 
years, residents have worked to save such assets as the theater, not 
only as showpieces for visitors but as living and working community 
centers for the performing arts.
  As the theater's Web site proudly proclaims, restoration and 
performances at the Calumet Theatre are organized by the Calumet 
Theatre Company, a member-supported volunteer based organization. The 
theater now serves as a venue for 60-80 events annually, including 
symphony performances, folk music, jazz, opera, plays, dance, dinner 
movies, community events, as well as public meetings and guided tours.
  With this passion for preserving and continuing such cultural 
traditions, Mr. Speaker, it is certainly no wonder that the early home 
of the current chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, William 
Ivey, is only minutes from the Calumet Theatre.
  I salute the people of Calumet for their foresight and hard work in 
restoring this community asset and ensuring it is included in our 
nation's inventory of architectural treasures. I am pleased the theater 
has been designated as a ``Save America's Treasures`` site by the 
Millennium Council at the White House. I thank Bill Ivey for his 
tireless efforts towards this goal, and I commend the Calumet Theatre 
Company for undertaking the day-to-day task of preserving this 
facility.

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