Call Number:

Ms. Coll. 1281

Repository:

University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts

Extent:

0.5 linear feet (1 box)

Language:

English

Preferred Citation:

Charles Zuber papers on the history of theater in Cincinnati, circa 1937, Ms. Coll. 1281, Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, University of Pennsylvania

Date:

circa 1937 (inclusive)

Creator:

Zuber, Charles

Form:

Drafts (documents), Notes, and Typescripts

Abstract:

Charles Zuber (1872-1938) was a sports writer for the Cincinnati Times-Star from 1895 to 1910 who intended to write a definitive history of early Cincinnati theater events. This collection includes a heavily annotated typescript draft of his articles on the history of theater in Cincinnati; notes from his research on the topic; and a more polished typescript, possibly a finished version designed to become a complete history.

Charles Zuber, the son of German immigrants who lived in Kentucky, was a sports writer for the Cincinnati Times-Star from 1895 to 1910. He also appears to have written articles for Sporting Life, including at least one infamous article relating to Native American integration in baseball. After ending his career (possibly being dismissed by publisher Taft) as a sports writer in 1910, Zuber became a press agent for several theaters, the Cincinnati Baseball Club, and the Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce. He wrote sporadically for the Cincinnati Times-Star about theater in Cincinnati and intended to write a definitive history of early Cincinnati theater events.

This collection includes a heavily annotated typescript draft of his articles on the history of theater in Cincinnati; notes from his research on the topic; and a more polished typescript, possibly a finished version designed to become a complete history. The annotated typescript drafts of the articles are ordered chronologically by the date in history that they concern, from a brief history pre-1820 to a more comprehensive history of the years between 1820 and 1854. The notes are his personal, handwritten and typewritten notes concerning theater in Cincinnati between 1830 and 1854. Finally, the more polished typescript provides a cleaner view of his history. It is possible to see Zuber's focus on subjects ranging from plays and performances, specific theaters, and actors (including Edwin Forrest) to the effects of theater on war to the involvement of African-American and women actors. It is unclear if this circa 1937 work is actually complete (Zuber died in 1938) or that it was ever published. There are references made in the Cincinnati Inquirer in 1948 to Zuber's "history of early Cincinnati theater events," but there are also indications that a copy of Zuber's writing (probably identical to this one) was sold to the Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio and may have been consulted for the 1948 reference.