DEPRESSION BRINGS POOR WHITES, CAPITOL PROVIDES RESPITE

Special to El Rrun-Rrun

According to an economist, “The Stock Market crash of 1929 was the beginning and/or a symptom of the Great Depression.”

(Photo shows: Jimmy, Billy, Hettie, Sonny and Sally, five poor Brownsville kids who enjoyed a free afternoon at the movies.)

The “Depression”, which lasted for about ten years, caused mass poverty with many Americans losing their jobs and had no choice but to live in squalid shanty towns. It was said then that those that were rich in the Roaring Twenties were reduced to selling apples and pencils on street corners.”

Families lost all their possessions, were divided, and many were forced to go on Public Relief. The
hard times often drive people from their homes and many hit the roads and railroads as hoboes and drifters than ever before.

Word spread throughout the country that the Rio Grande Valley was prosperous; with a mild climate and that you could eat as many grapefruits as your stomach could hold. It was a combination of these reasons that a flood of bums, hoboes and drifters made their way to the Valley.

“They came in record numbers—more than this region had seen before,” a local peace officer told local newspapers. One such report read “The highways of the Valley are literally lined with human driftwood, hobbling along the side of the road, or footing it along the railroad tracks.”

Brownsville today, is not absent of bag people and panhndlers, but what the city experienced then were scenes of strangers at every corner. They were at street intersections appealing for money, waiting for rides and at the backdoor of many homes asking residents for food. 

In the Valley, the most vulnerable to the ills of the period were kids. 

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer comes to the rescue…

During the decade, Brownsville and the rest of the Valley region were heavily impacted by the misdry of the period. This city, according to Mark Fanning, then manager of the now abandoned Capitol Theater manager, saw the rise of more poor kids than ever before. 

Fanning was touched and wanted to do something to bring a little happiness and smiles to those who could not afford to go to the movies. What's more, the free admission was for all Brownsville kids, not just the new arrivals.

Speaking then, Fanning said, “I’d hate for a child in Brownsville to miss seeing this classic of child life, "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer." This is why I am giving tickets to poor children.”

The idea was to bring some joy to the less fortunate by inviting them to the movie theater. Perhaps, Fanning thought, a movie would redeem some life into the poor sentiments of the period.

Tom Sawyer was written by Mark Twain in 1876 and eventually made its way into film. The movie has been filmed and animated many times since its inception and the first was a silent version in 1907.

The classic movie came to Brownsville in Technicolor in 1938—ten years after the Capitol Theater had opened its doors on February 14, 1928.

On that day there were many in the audience that could identify with the adventures and escapades of the lead character.

The movie reminded all of us of the importance of imagination and having fun, especially whether you lived along the Mississippi or the Rio Grande River, another waterway that emptied into the gulf in a delta.

AIn those cash-poor times an afternoon at the movies was a rich experience for all. And perhaps for a couple of hours, the pains and wounds of the “Depression” were lessened for these kids.

Fanning at one time was the manager of both the Queen and Capitol Theaters and prominent in local civic affairs and in the advancement of a “Better Brownsville.” His deeds went beyond talk.

Throughout the years, the Capitol Theater was a source of inspiration to the citizens of this community. It was a venue where people from all walks of life gathered to witness a premier, a stage performance by local talent and/or a Hollywood movie star.

But more importantly, it played a major role during WW II when it sponsored the “Brownsville’s Scrap Iron Drive.” The ticket to the movies was a piece of scrap iron— hundreds of kids lined
Levee Street to do their part on the home front.

The Tom Sawyer film for poor white kids was just another aspect of this altruistic characteristic and concern for those with less of businesses back then, something now rarely seen.