Historian and author, Richard Schwartz, will be presenting new research, shared for the first time, in this illustrated talk on the life of immigrant actor M. B. Curtis. In the Bay Area of the late 19th century, M.B. Curtis mesmerized audiences and threw his overnight fortunes towards all kinds of East Bay Civic improvements and people in need, as well as building a lavish hotel in the East Bay where both actors and working people could congregate. (the Peralta Park Hotel was the tallest hotel in the Bay Area in 1891)
M.B. Curtis is the Bay Area's most famous and forgotten eccentric, being the only person in American history to personally pay to light the Statue of Liberty when Congress cut the funding of the Lady's lighting right after the statue's dedication, never intending to light her again. Mark Twain approached Curtis to produce and perform a theatrical version of Twain’s latest book. Curtis loved performing in Oakland where so many friends and neighbors would pack into local theaters to see him perform his famous immigrant character, Sam'l of Posen, which became so deeply infused into Oakland’s culture back in the 1880s and 1890s. He introduced his play in 1880 and was still performing it well into the 20th century as people would see it over and over. He even performed in Oakland right after the Great 1906 San Francisco Earthquake.
Bio: Richard Schwartz is a historian and the author of The Man Who Lit Lady Liberty; Eccentrics, Heroes, and Cutthroats of Old Berkeley; Earthquake Exodus, 1906; Berkeley 1900; and The Circle of Stones. An outdoor enthusiast and animal lover, he worked on a Pennsylvania Dutch farm before heading west to find higher mountains, fighting forest fires for the US Forest Service. Schwartz was a building contractor and musician for forty years. He lives in Berkeley, California where he currently records unknown Native American sites he has found with the California Historical Information Resource System. Richard gives history talks across the country, but concentrates on the Bay Area.
"Richard's talk and presentation at Mechanics' Institute was full of historical insights, moving and hilarious stories, and connections to our world today. The audience was engaged with rapt attention, not wanting to miss a detail in the historical photos and documents shared or Richard's seemingly endless depth of knowledge. A wonderful program all around!"
-Alyssa Stone, Senior Director of Programs and Community Engagement, Mechanics' Institute
