Behind The Photo: Bob Hope Invades Winnipeg (1953)

© 2014, Christian Cassidy

Often I will see an old photo and spend some time digging into its back story. Sometimes I find a great story, sometimes not. Either way, I learn a few things about the city's history. Here's my latest attempt:

What a Hope: Gag Virtuoso Invades Winnipeg
April 29, 1953, Winnipeg Free Press

This photo from the April 29, 1953 Winnipeg Free Press shows Bob Hope on the tarmac of Stevenson Airfield. He had just arrived on a Northwest Airlines flight from Minneapolis to do a show.

Hope was a well-known entertainer by this point as the star of his own hit U.S. radio show, several television specials and a string of "Road to" movies co-starring Bing Crosby and Dorothy Lamour. The previous month, he had hosted the first-ever televised Academy Awards ceremony.

February 1, 1930, Winnipeg Free Press

This wasn't Hope's first time in Winnipeg. He appeared on stage at least once during his vaudeville days, in early February 1930 as part of Harry Webb and his Entertainers who were travelling the Orpheum circuit. He shared the stage of the comedic show with a jazz band, pianist Adele Verne, and a trio of gymnasts, among others.  

Hope asked Winnipeg Free Press entertainment reporter, Fred Morriss, who was part of his entourage from the airport:

Hope: I once played the Orpheum Theatre here, but that was years ago. By the way, where is the Orpheum?

Morriss: It was torn down.

Hope: They were thinking about doing that the night I played there.

Interestingly, it was not the original Orpheum Theatre that Hope was asking about as is 1930 show was at the RKO (Radio-Keith-Orpheum) Capitol Theatre which stood until 2003. RKO bought the Capitol in 1929, spent $75,000 on renovations, and reopened it in September as the new home for its vaudeville shows. The original Orpheum was then closed, renovated, and reopened as RKO Winnipeg, a movie house that could also host live concerts.

Winnipeg's 1950 flood relief fundraising efforts got an unexpected boost when Hope put aside the jokes for a moment on one of his May 1950 radio shows to say, "The great city of Winnipeg tonight is fighting a life-to-death battle to hold back the rampaging Red River. Winnipeg is going to win that battle. If Winnipeg should lose that battle Uncle Sam would open his heart and his pocket book because Uncle Sam lives by that line in the Good Book: love thy neighbour."

Source: Cunningham on Flickr

After being greeted by fans and media at the airport, Hope had a Provost Guard motorcycle escort him straight to The Amphitheatre where he was to perform. There, he took time to talk to the press, sign autographs and pose for photos with fans, including the St. James Canadiens hockey team, before his show.

As for his impression of the old Amphitheatre, he opened his show with the line, "I can't tell you how thrilled I am to be playing this lovely garage". From there, it was a combination of comedy, dance skits, a roller skating duo, and a local orchestra accompanying singer Betsy Duncan who co-starred on his radio show. 

Hope was likely the last big entertainer to play "the Amp". It was torn down in 1955 after the Winnipeg Arena opened.

Source: Hope for America

Hope's visit only lasted a few hours as he was on a plane again at 9:30 p.m.. It was long enough for him to get a very special invitation that he recounted in his 1954 biography Have Tux Will Travel, (p. 230):

"Of the memorable things which have happened to me on a golf course, the round I played with Ike Eisenhower in 1953 is the topper. In 1953, I was in Winnipeg, Canada when Stu Symington called me long distance and asked, 'Can you be in Washington on Derby Day?'

'I was planning to be in Churchill Downs with Bill Corum that day,' I told him.

'Better switch it,' he said. 'You're going to play golf with the man in the White House.'"

Hope ca. 1953

This brings up another Winnipeg/Bob Hope/golf connection: the claim that he played his first game of golf here in Winnipeg. You can read more about this urban myth at this blog post!

Related:
Bob Hope official site (including jokes !)
Subsequent Bob Hope visits to Winnipeg
Did Bob Hope really play his first game of golf in Winnipeg?