1935 Mullin Comical Pictorial Map of New England and its Theaters

This is a comical 1935 Willard Mullin pictorial map of New England highlighting the summer theater scene. Covering the American northeast from Augusta, Maine, south to Bay Head, New Jersey. 'Wooden' signs mark cities and towns, but the map's focus is on the regional theaters.

Theaters and other Attractions

These include the National Theater; the Roadside Theater in Washington, D.C.; the White Roe Theater in Livingston Manor, New York; the Grossinger Theater in Ferndale, New York; the Beach Theater in West Falmouth, Massachusetts; the Wharf Theater in Provincetown, Massachusetts; and the Lakeshore Theater Colony in Westford, Massachusetts. Comical vignettes highlight other local attractions. For example, a soldier marks West Point and is shouting, 'When's the next war?' Rip Van Winkle can be spotted near Haines Falls, New York, complaining about someone bowling nearby, and a man in New Hampshire carrying a pickaxe is labeled 'granite farmer' and is stating that he has a 'pretty good crop'. An inset in the upper left details the vicinity of Washington, D.C. Here, 'Billy Penn' marks Philadelphia and Generals McClellan and Lee face off over Antietam.

Summer Theater

In the American Theater world, summer Theater (also known as Summer Stock Theater) features a stock cast that takes up residence in one of the summer Theaters. They use stock scenery and perform either the previous season's hit Broadway shows or new shows being tested for Broadway. Broadway, film, and television stars regularly performed with the stock cast. Many of these companies are identified throughout, including the Schroon Manor Players in Schroon Lake, New York; the Parish Players in Stony Creek, Connecticut; the Hampton Players in South Hampton, New York; and the Periwinkle Players' Show Boat, illustrated here in Long Island Sound.

Publication History and Census

This map was created by Willard Mullin and published in the July 1935 issue of Stage magazine. This is the only known example available on the market of the separate map and the magazine is also very scarce.