| Ed Ames and the Kenley Players of Ohio |
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I read that the Kenley Players billed themselves as "America's most exciting summer theater." The creation of producer John
Kenley, they became "Ohio's lifeline to the American Musical, bringing the great shows of the era to the stages of Dayton,
Columbus, Toledo, Cleveland, Akron, and Warren." Mr. Kenley was one of the first to have great film and TV actors of the time
to star in his productions.
Of course, in my "un-biased" opinion, the best ever to star in any of the Kenley Players theater shows was Mr. Ed Ames.
In the 1970's and 80's Mr. Ames was one of the popular television celebrities that John Kenley chose to star in several of his
summer stage productions. But Mr. Ames brought much more than his television popularity to these roles. He brought his true
musical talent along with a dramatic actor's feel for each character he portrayed, Charlie Anderson in Shenandoah, Tevye in
Fiddler on the Roof, Don Quixote in Man of La Mancha, King Arthur in Camelot, and Emile De Becque in South Pacific.
I quote an article from Theater News.org web page, February 19, 2004....
"At its meeting on February 17, 2004, the Council of Actors’ Equity unanimously awarded an Honorary Life Membership to John
Kenley, the colorful and flamboyant producer and director of the Kenley Players. For almost 30 years, the Kenley Players were
synonymous with summer theatre in Ohio and Michigan.
“From 1957 to 1995, Kenley put the “stars” in summer skies over Ohio,” said President Patrick Quinn. “John entertained millions
of theatre goers and gave our members tens of thousands of workweeks. It is only fitting that we honor his extraordinary
contribution to the American theatre by bestowing him with this Life Membership. Many Equity members, including myself, got out
start in professional theatre during those happy, incredible summers with the Kenley Players.”
On Wednesday, March 24th, the Human Race Theatre Company in Dayton will pay tribute
to John Kenley and the Kenley Players, with a special gala performance of
“Getting To Know You,” followed by a cast performance at Marion’s Piazza.
Several Council members spoke fondly about their experience working at the Kenley Players.
Councillor Jane A. Johnston, who grew up in Akron, recalled that Kenley gave many stars a boost, and shaped her own career:
“The list of stars who worked for John is fantastic - Paul Lynde, Vivian Blaine, Ethel Merman, Ed Ames, Jane Powell, Robert
Goulet, Florence Henderson, Robert Reed, Shirley Jones, Joel Grey, Gloria Swanson, Tommy Tune, Vince Price, Henry Winkler,
Mickey Rooney, Ann Miller, Noel Harrison, Jack and Alan Jones, Imogene Coca, Artie Johnson, Elaine Stritch, Rich Little,
Robert Horton, Chester Morris and many, many more.”
Quinn added that “John was, and is, one of the true originals in this business. He refined and ultimately defined the golden days of
Equity Summer Stock.”
"At its meeting on February 17, 2004, the Council of Actors’ Equity unanimously awarded an Honorary Life Membership to John
Kenley, the colorful and flamboyant producer and director of the Kenley Players. For almost 30 years, the Kenley Players were
synonymous with summer theatre in Ohio and Michigan.
“From 1957 to 1995, Kenley put the “stars” in summer skies over Ohio,” said President Patrick Quinn. “John entertained millions
of theatre goers and gave our members tens of thousands of workweeks. It is only fitting that we honor his extraordinary
contribution to the American theatre by bestowing him with this Life Membership. Many Equity members, including myself, got out
start in professional theatre during those happy, incredible summers with the Kenley Players.”
On Wednesday, March 24th, the Human Race Theatre Company in Dayton will pay tribute
to John Kenley and the Kenley Players, with a special gala performance of
“Getting To Know You,” followed by a cast performance at Marion’s Piazza.
Several Council members spoke fondly about their experience working at the Kenley Players.
Councillor Jane A. Johnston, who grew up in Akron, recalled that Kenley gave many stars a boost, and shaped her own career:
“The list of stars who worked for John is fantastic - Paul Lynde, Vivian Blaine, Ethel Merman, Ed Ames, Jane Powell, Robert
Goulet, Florence Henderson, Robert Reed, Shirley Jones, Joel Grey, Gloria Swanson, Tommy Tune, Vince Price, Henry Winkler,
Mickey Rooney, Ann Miller, Noel Harrison, Jack and Alan Jones, Imogene Coca, Artie Johnson, Elaine Stritch, Rich Little,
Robert Horton, Chester Morris and many, many more.”
Quinn added that “John was, and is, one of the true originals in this business. He refined and ultimately defined the golden days of
Equity Summer Stock.”
| John Kenley |
| Ed Ames in Shenandoah Photo by Ott Gangl |
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So, Ohio, Akron, Cleveland, Warren, Columbus, Dayton.......I grew up in northwest Pennsylvania, a stone's throw from any of those
cities which Mr. Ames appeared in while starring in the summer Kenley Players' productions. Shenandoah, Camelot, Fiddler on the
Roof, Man of La Mancha, and South Pacific all in the1970's and 80's. One of the greatest regrets of my life will always be that Mr.
Ames was that close and I never got to see him on stage in these unforgettable performances.
But a few weeks ago, as Mingo would say, the Great Spirit was watching over me. In one of my many Internet searches I found what I
knew had to be out there: a very special collection of publicity photographs of several Kenley Players' productions. In that collection are
numerous publicity photos of Mr. Ames in these magnificent shows.
Ott Gangl is a retired photographer for the Akron Beacon Journal and, in his own words: "as a side job I did all the publicity pictures for
the Kenley Players while in Akron, Ohio at the E. J. Thomas Arts Hall." He donated his collection of photos to the Akron Summit
County Public Library in the spring of 2008. It consists of approximately 15,500 negatives with corresponding contact sheets and
photographs, including over 500 8 X 10 photographs pertaining to the Kenley Players, 1978-1986. It is listed as restricted access:
materials fragile, access by request at the Main Library, the materials do not circulate, and
NO COPIES CAN BE MADE WITHOUT PERMISSION FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHER.
It was a Saturday, when I found the entire list of photos in the collection and saw Mr. Ames' name included in many of the photos,
needless to say I started to try and find out how I could contact Mr. Gangl. Akron is only about a three-hour drive from me and I knew a
trip to the library would be in my very near future. That same Saturday I found an email address for Mr. Gangl and a web page of his
own that included four photos of Mr. Ames I had never seen before.
In my email to Mr. Gangl. I told him who I was, and a great admirer of Mr. Ames' work, and how hard it is to find any photos from stage
shows he did. I mentioned that I had a web page with a section on Mr. Ames, and that finding this collection was like having a Christmas
in February.
Mr. Gangl emailed me back the very next day. He was very nice and appreciated my compliments concerning his photos. I told him that I
definitely planned to go the library to see his entire collection and I asked for his permission to make copies of the photos of Mr. Ames.
He very graciously emailed me back and said to let him know when I would be going to the Library. He said he would contact the ladies
in the Special Collections Department and did give me permission to make copies. He said I was welcome to share the photos on my
web page; all that he asked is that I credit him with being the photographer, which I am very proud to do.
With thanks to Ott Gangl, these photos of Mr. Ames
that I am about to share with you are spectacular.
Let credit be given where credit is due:
Mr. Ed Ames, actor, for being able to emote happiness, sadness, age, wisdom, comedy, drama, honesty, integrity, despair, truth, love
and to have it show through, even in a still photograph.
Mr. Ott Gangl, photographer, for capturing those emotions at just the precise moment and preserving them in black and white to last
forever, and sharing them with us, the public.
And the Akron Summit County Public Library and their Special Collections Department for the care and presentation of these most
precious photographs.
| Ed Ames in Camelot Photo by Ott Gangl |
Photos by Ott Gangl
Please enjoy as I share with you a very special Photo Gallery of Mr. Ames' performances in
three Kenley Players' Productions, photographed by Ott Gangl, in Akron, Ohio.
three Kenley Players' Productions, photographed by Ott Gangl, in Akron, Ohio.
| Click on the symbols to view the photo gallery from that show. |
| Ott Gangl |
1976-Shenandoah, in the cities of Columbus, Akron, Dayton, and Warren.
1977-Fiddler on the Roof, in the cities of Columbus, Dayton, and Warren.
1979-Shenandoah, in the cities of Columbus, Akron and Dayton.
1980-South Pacific, in the cities of Columbus, Akron, and Dayton.
1981-Camelot, in the cities of Columbus, Akron, and Dayton.
1984-Man of La Mancha, in the city of Akron.
1986-Shenandoah, in the cities of Columbus, and Akron.
* these dates and cities are from my own Internet searches, if you see any discrepancies,
please let me know and I will update the list.
| Dates and Cities of Ed Ames' performances with the Kenley Players in Ohio* |
| The song you are hearing is Ed Ames singing If I Were A Rich Man, from Fiddler On the Roof. Although I don't have any photos from his performance in that show, I did find this little snippet of him singing this song. It is from one of his many talk show appearances. I don't know the name of the show or the date, but it is a rare chance to hear him sing one of the songs from this classic musicals. Any of the comments, photos, or bits of songs have been included here solely for the enjoyment of fans and not for monetary profit. No copyright violation is intended. |