Ben M. Hall

Last updated

Ben M. Hall (1921-1970) was an American author and theater historian. His 1961 book, The Best Remaining Seats, [1] was a seminal work in the history of theaters. It was the first to survey the origins and architecture of America's movie palaces, the palatial cinemas built between the 1910s and the 1940s to showcase the films of Hollywood's major studios. [2]

In 1969, Hall founded the Theatre Historical Society of America.

Born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, Ben Hall resided in Manhattan, near the Hudson River, at 181 Christopher Street in Greenwich Village. He lived in the upper two floors of a former steamship company. He was murdered there in December, 1970, just short of his 49th birthday. [3] [4]

The following is excerpted from his obituary in the Atlanta Constitution of December 18, 1970: [4]

Benjamin M. Hall III, 48-year-old author ... was born in Atlanta and was active in the Boy Scouts when he attended Druid Hills High School in DeKalb County. He attended Millsaps College in Jackson, Miss., and graduated cum laude from the University of North Carolina School of Journalism.  He was a member of Kappa Sigma Fraternity.

An infantry captain during World War II, he later worked for Doubleday Publishing Co.  He joined Time Magazine in New York, working from 1956 to 1962 as a promotion copy writer and from 1962 to 1965 as a staff writer.  He also served as managing editor of Show Magazine.

Hall was the author of the book "The Best Remaining Seats," a history of the golden age of the movie palace, published in 1961.  His interest in the subject was reflected in the furnishings of his apartment – murals from a Manhattan Loew's theatre, an electric foyer fountain, a two-manual theatre organ, and a pianola.

Just prior to the slaying, Hall had completed a biography of composer Cole Porter.  He was working as a free-lance writer at the time of his death.

Contacted Wednesday night in New Smyrna Beach, Fla., Hall's mother, Mrs. Ben M. Hall, said her son had telephoned her last Friday to tell of plans for an eight-page article on "The Best Remaining Seats" in Life Magazine. [The article ran in Life magazine on February 19, 1971.] [5] [ failed verification ]

"He had a marvelous sense of humor about him." Said Mrs. Hall, "and he wrote entertainingly as well as accurately."

Hall is survived by his parents, Ben M. Hall, a retired Atlanta architect, and Mrs. Hall, both of New Smyrna Beach; and a sister, Mrs. Rhea T. Eskew of Atlanta.

An Atlanta funeral is planned.

Hall's funeral was planned to be held "Saturday, Dec. 19, 1970 at 2 o'clock at All Saints Episcopal Church in Atlanta." "As pallbearers, Mr. Robert T. Eskew, Mr. Alex M. Hitz Jr., Mr. Joseph Patton [ sic ], Mr. Charles E. Freeman, Jr., Dr. Marvous Mosteller, and Mr. George C. Woelper." [6]  

Related Research Articles

<i>The Graduate</i> 1967 romantic comedy drama film by Mike Nichols

The Graduate is a 1967 American independent romantic comedy-drama film directed by Mike Nichols and written by Buck Henry and Calder Willingham, based on the 1963 novel of the same name by Charles Webb, who wrote it shortly after graduating from Williams College. The film tells the story of 21-year-old Benjamin Braddock, a recent college graduate with no well-defined aim in life who is seduced by an older married woman, Mrs. Robinson, but then falls for her daughter, Elaine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samuel Roxy Rothafel</span> Early 20th-century American theatrical impresario

Samuel Lionel "Roxy" Rothafel was an American theatrical impresario and entrepreneur. He is noted for developing the lavish presentation of silent films in the deluxe movie palace theaters of the 1910s and 1920s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orchestra Hall (Detroit)</span> Music venue in Detroit

Orchestra Hall is an elaborate concert hall in the United States, located at 3711 Woodward Avenue in Midtown Detroit, Michigan. The hall is renowned for its superior acoustic properties and serves as the home of the internationally known Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO), the fourth oldest orchestra in the United States. With the creation of an adjoining auditorium for jazz and chamber music in 2003, Orchestra Hall became part of the Max M. and Marjorie S. Fisher Music Center. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Randy Harrison</span> American actor

Randolph Clarke Harrison is an American actor best known for his portrayal of Justin Taylor on the Showtime drama Queer as Folk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Billie Whitelaw</span> English actress (1932–2014)

Billie Honor Whitelaw was an English actress. She worked in close collaboration with Irish playwright Samuel Beckett for 25 years and was regarded as one of the foremost interpreters of his works. She was also known for her portrayal of Mrs. Baylock, the demonic nanny in the 1976 horror film The Omen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fox Theatre (Atlanta)</span> Movie theater in Atlanta, Georgia, United States

The Fox Theatre, a former movie palace, is a performing arts venue located at 660 Peachtree Street NE in Midtown Atlanta, Georgia, and is the centerpiece of the Fox Theatre Historic District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lee Radziwill</span> American socialite and sister of Jackie Kennedy Onassis (1933–2019)

Caroline Lee Bouvier, later Canfield, Radziwiłł, and Ross, was an American socialite, public relations executive, and interior designer. She was the younger sister of former First Lady Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis and sister-in-law of President John F. Kennedy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeffrey Hatcher</span> American writer

Jeffrey Hatcher is a much-produced American playwright and screenwriter. He wrote the stage play Compleat Female Stage Beauty, which he later adapted into a screenplay, shortened to just Stage Beauty (2004). He also co-wrote the stage adaptation of Tuesdays with Morrie with author Mitch Albom, and Three Viewings, a comedy consisting of three monologues - each of which takes place in a funeral home. He wrote the screenplay Casanova for director Lasse Hallström, as well as the screenplay for The Duchess (2008). He has also written for the Peter Falk TV series Columbo and E! Entertainment Television.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William M. Stewart</span> American politician (1827–1909)

William Morris Stewart was an American lawyer and politician. In 1964, he was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roxy Theatre (New York City)</span> Former movie theater in Manhattan, New York

The Roxy Theatre was a 5,920-seat movie palace at 153 West 50th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues, just off Times Square in New York City. It was the largest movie theater ever built at the time of its construction in 1927. It opened on March 11, 1927 with the silent film The Love of Sunya starring Gloria Swanson. It was a leading Broadway film showcase through the 1950s and also noted for its lavish stage shows. It closed and was demolished in 1960.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malco Theatres</span> American movie theater chain

Malco Theatres, Inc. is a family owned and operated movie theater chain that has been in business for over one hundred years. It has been led by four generations of the Lightman family. Malco Theatres features 34 theatre locations with over 345 screens in six states. Malco also operates three bowling centers and a family entertainment center in southern Louisiana and a family entertainment center in Oxford, Mississippi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Eberson</span> Austrian-American architect

John Adolph Emil Eberson was an Austrian-American architect best known for the development and promotion of movie palace designs in the atmospheric theatre style. He designed over 500 theatres in his lifetime, earning the nickname "Opera House John". His most notable surviving theatres in the United States include the Tampa Theatre (1926), Palace Theatre Marion (1928), Palace Theatre Louisville (1928), Majestic Theatre (1929), Akron Civic Theatre (1929), the Paramount Theatre (1929), the State Theater 1927, and the Lewis J. Warner Memorial Theater (1932) at Worcester Academy in Worcester, Massachusetts. Remaining international examples in the atmospheric style include both the Capitol Theatre (1928) and State Theatre (1929) in Sydney, Australia, The Forum and Le Grand Rex.

Billy Edward "Edd" Wheeler is an American songwriter, performer, writer, and visual artist.

The Theatre Historical Society of America (THS) was founded in 1969 to promote the legacy of America's historic theatres and insure the documentation of the architectural, cultural and social history of those theatres. Through programs that include the collections in the American Theatre Architecture Archive, regional theatre tours, cooperative museum exhibits, publications, lectures, awards and research fellowships, THS seeks to promote appreciation, scholarly study and use of these historically significant buildings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yuki Shimoda</span> American actor

Yuki Shimoda was an American actor best known for his starring role as Ko Wakatsuki in the NBC movie of the week Farewell to Manzanar in 1976. He also co-starred in the 1960s television series Johnny Midnight, with Edmond O'Brien. He was a star of movies, early television, and the stage. His Broadway stage credits include Auntie Mame with Rosalind Russell, and Pacific Overtures, a musical written by Stephen Sondheim and directed by Harold Prince.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Variety Playhouse</span> Music venue and former movie theater in Atlanta, Georgia, United States

The Variety Playhouse is a music venue in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It is located on Euclid Avenue and features a variety of music acts including rock, indie, electronic, funk, country, folk, bluegrass, jazz, blues and world music as well as other live shows.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rodney Mims Cook Sr.</span> American politician (1924–2013)

Rodney Mims Cook was an American politician who served for over twenty years as Atlanta alderman and member of the Georgia House of Representatives.

Graham Washington Jackson Sr. was an American theatre organist, pianist, accordionist, and choral conductor. He was the subject of a Life magazine photograph taken at the departure of Franklin D. Roosevelt's funeral train.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Funeral of Martin Luther King Jr.</span> Funeral following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

The first memorial service following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4, 1968, took place the following day at the R.S. Lewis Funeral Home in Memphis, Tennessee. This was followed by two funeral services on April 9, 1968, in Atlanta, Georgia, the first held for family and close friends at Ebenezer Baptist Church, where King and his father had both served as senior pastors, followed by a three-mile procession to Morehouse College, King's alma mater, for a public service.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Leibert</span> American organist and recording artist

Richard William "Dick" Leibert was an American musician who was the chief organist at New York City's Radio City Music Hall between 1932 and 1971. He also had a radio program of organ music on the NBC Radio Network in the 1930s and 1940s, along with making phonograph recordings on the RCA Victor and Westminster Records labels.

References

  1. Hall, Ben M. (1961). The Best Remaining Seats: The Story of the Golden Age of the Movie Palace. Clarkson N. Potter.
  2. Callenbach, Ernest (July 1, 1963). "Book Reviews". Film Quarterly . 16 (4): 61. doi:10.2307/3185966. JSTOR   3185966.
  3. "Ben M. Hall 1921 - 1970: The Founding Fatha of THS". Marquee. 1999. Retrieved March 22, 2019 via Google Docs.
  4. 1 2 "Benjamin Hall is Found Slain in New York; Atlanta Author". The Atlanta Constitution . December 18, 1970.
  5. "Life". 19 February 1971.
  6. "Hall". The Atlanta Constitution. 19 December 1970.