Anamosa - A Reminiscence 1838 - 1988

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Photographer and script girl working on the Paint
‘n’ Palette Art Show at Stone City for a segment of
"Small Town U.S.A. " Mae Amelia Rumple is shown
demonstrating her technique in the painting of
“Stone City Store. "
"'
Mr. and Mrs. Clate Dearborn. owners of the Stone
City General Store.become the stars in the Anamosa-
Stone City-Grant Wood connection.
The Wilson Kouba family take the-story from there to
a Congregational Church old-fashioned ice cream social
and the 4th of July parade. which includes many
Anamosa groups and organizations. The finale was the
fireworks and back to the Wapsi River banks. where the
three young fishermen are spending a hot. summer
afternoon.
It should be noted that there had been 20.000 feet of
film shot during the filming but was edited down to
the 2.000 feet used for the 30-minute feature. The
producers expressed regret that so many good pictures
had to wind up on the cutting room floor.
Paul Engle. who was instrumental in having
Anamosa considered and selected. was the special
consultant and narrated the film.
The movie had a definite rural cast because. as
explained in the narration. “Anamosa has one reason
for being what it is—farms and farmers. Everything
that happens in town. depends on the weather. the
dark. the earth and the sun."
It was said by Andy Warhol before his death.
“Everyone is famous for about 15 minutes in life."
Anamosa was famous for 30 minutes. in the form of a
film called SMALL TOWN. USA.
One of the entertainment highlights in Anamosa in
the summers of the 1920s,and 1930s was a whole week
of glamour. fun and fantasy. Local residents always
looked forward to the Hila Morgan Tent Show. which
brought comedy. tragedy. and the glamour of
Broadway to the small towns in Iowa and Missouri.
Anamosa was usually included on their annual tour.
Hila Morgan was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs.
William L. Axtell of Kalamazoo. Mich.. but she spent
her youth in Vicksburg. Mich.. where she became a
school teacher.
The petite. red-haired. raspy-voiced beauty left her
teaching job to organize a theatrical tent show. under
the direction of her husband. Fred A. Morgan. a former
agent for Ringling Brothers Circus.
The Hila Morgan Company of Players. consisted of
professional actors and actresses. well-cast and wellrehearsed.
Most of the leading ladies were quite
beautiful and the leading men were always tall. dark.
handsome and well-mannered. A different play was
presented each night of the week and Hila usually
played the starring role in each of the presentations.
whether the character was a young girl. an old lady. or
anyone in between those ages.
The show tent was set up on Huber Street in
Anamosa. in a vacant lot where the Maquoketa Valley
R.E.C. is now located. Folding chairs filled the tent and
performers played to a full house each night of the
week. Shows usually opened on Monday nights and the
cost of admission was 30 cents for adults. and 10 cents
for children. However. opening night was “Ladies
Night". and ladies were admitted free. when
accompanied by a paid 30 cent-ticket. Reserved chairs
were 10 cents and 15 cents extra.
The audience gathered early so that everyone might
The Hila Morgan Show
by Mildred Barker Brown
318
be seated before the performance started. The scent of
grease paint and make-up. mixed with the smells of
summer. added to the anticipation. Tent flaps were
raised slightly to permit any breeze to ilow into the
crowded tent and the swish of cardboard fans could be
heard above the whispers of the crowd.
When the last seat was occupied. usually at 8 o'clock.
the house lights dimmed and the small orchestra that
traveled with the show would start to play. which was
the cue for the performance to begin. Floodlights
illuminated the red velvet stage curtains. and as they
were pulled. all whispering in the audience ceased. in
anticipation of the opening act. There were no
microphones or loud speakers. The actors were trained
to speak loudly and clearly. so that even those in the
back row could fully understand the dialogue.
At the end of each act and during intermission. boxes
of candy kisses were sold, with a promise that a
diamond ring would be found in at least one box. A
scream of delight could be heard when one of the rings
would be discovered by someone in the audience. Other
lesser prizes would also be in some of the boxes. and
sales were brisk.the candy selling at 10 cents per box.
or 3 boxes for 25 cents.
Hila Morgan always personally thanked the audience
after each performance. and announced the name of
the play and the cast which would be presented the
following evening. No one seemed to leave disappointed
and many attended each night's performance during
the week.
Hila Morgan retired in 1942. after a 30-year career of
thrilling thousands of people with high-class
entertainment. She moved to Houston. Texas. joining
her sister who lived there. Later she married Fred L.
Wilcox. her second husband.