Kiel Opera House

Kiel Auditorium was built as a result of a bond issue of 1923. The building was dedicated and opened on April 14, 1934. Originally named the Municipal Auditorium, the City renamed the building the Henry W. Kiel Auditorium on March 26, 1943 to honor the former Mayor and civic leader who had encouraged the idea of a municipal auditorium and helped that concept become a reality. Mayor Kiel was known for his support of cultural activities. The Kiel Auditorium complex consisted of the Convention Hall, Opera House, four small theatres, a large restaurant and an Exposition Hall. The Convention hall hosted basketball games, wrestling, rock, popular, and classical concerts and conventions. The Opera House was the home of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, rock, popular, and classical concerts, dance, musicals, etc. Many famous performers appeared on the Kiel stage. The Convention Hall was razed in 1993 to make way for the new Kiel Center — a 20,000 seat arena for hockey, basketball, and other uses. The Opera House closed in May, 1991 with a promise by the Kiel Partners that a renovated Kiel Opera House would reopen as a premier performing arts center. It has now been closed for eleven years — the reopening of the Opera House Complex will help maintain our reputation as one of the foremost entertainment and cultural centers of the United States.

Kiel for Performing Arts, Inc., is a non-profit organization dedicated to the restoration and reopening of the Kiel Opera House as a performing arts and community center. The renovation of the Opera House complex will help revitalize downtown and will help develop and expand cultural activities in Saint Louis. New hotels, housing, and entertainment venues need more people to be drawn downtown. With the return of the Opera House there will be far more to draw them. More performances can be presented, and draw audiences both from the metropolitan area, and from greater distances, as our audience extends beyond the region. However, as of this moment Saint Louis is the only major city in the United States with just one theatre. On a brighter note, the building is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and in recent months it has been reported in the Post-Dispatch, radio, and TV, that a national developer has indicated interest in renovating and reopening the Opera House as a performing arts center. This project, which the public has been waiting for for eleven years, has great promise for the near future.

H. Russell Carter, Historian
Kiel for Performing Arts, Inc.

Act II, Scene 3. Camp David

History of Camp David

A brief history of the Presidential
mountain retreat and its famous guests

by David Johnson

President Kennedy with JFK, Jr., at Camp David. (Source: John F. Kennedy Library)

For more than 50 years now, when presidents have wanted privacy, they have sought the cool, secluded lodges and cabins of Camp David, the presidential retreat tucked away in Maryland's Catoctin Mountains.

Presidents have entertained visiting heads of state, such a former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, conducted cabinet meetings, and briefed Congressional leaders at the retreat. The 1978 Middle East peace talks concluded with what have become known as the Camp David Accords. Yet few Americans know much about the place, considering its prominence.

Federal Summer Camp

It all started in 1935, when the Work Projects Administration, WPA, began building the Catoctin Recreational Demonstration Area Project near Thurmont, Maryland, as an example of creating parks from worn-out agricultural land.

Three years later, the area opened as a camp for federal government employees and their families. Known as Hi-Catoctin, the facility consisted of several small cabins, a dining hall, and a swimming pool. Covered with trees and 1,800 feet above sea level, the spot provided a cool respite from the near tropical humidity of the Washington, DC, area.

Meanwhile, immediately after America's entry into World War II, doctors for President Franklin Delano Roosevelt were urging the ailing president to find a place convenient to Washington, yet far enough away to escape the heat and political pressures of the city.

President Nixon with Soviet President Brezhnev standing beside the pool near Aspen. Brezhnev is wearing one of the windbreakers given to all Camp David guests. (Source: Nat'l Archives)

The presidential yacht, USS Potomac, was out of the question because of heightened security considerations imposed by the war. After a search committee considered two other sites on Furnace Mountain on the Virginia side of the Potomac River below Harper's Ferry; and Shenandoah National Park, Virginia; Roosevelt toured two sites in the Catoctin Mountains.

He picked Hi-Catoctin, issuing a set of instructions on how the buildings should be remodeled and asking for the construction of a main lodge, which resembled the Roosevelt winter vacation home in Warm Springs, Georgia. The initial work cost $25,000. The camp was renamed the USS Shangri La, to follow up on the nautical connection, since many workers involved with the Potomac worked on the camp.

Popular Presidential Choice

Since Roosevelt inaugurated Shangri-La with a three-day visit beginning July 18, 1942, all subsequent presidents have made extensive use of the mountain top retreat.

President Harry Truman did not visit Shangri-La often because Bess, his wife, felt it was dull. However, when they did visit, the Trumans enjoyed Shangri-La. Truman's favorite sport was walking and he spent long hours wandering the mountain trails with a secret service agent in tow.

Renamed Camp David

President Dwight Eisenhower changed the name of the retreat to Camp David in honor of his grandson, David Eisenhower. Although he and his wife, Mamie, tended to use Camp David for private relaxation, Eisenhower held the first cabinet meeting ever to take place there. He also hosted British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan and Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev at Camp David.

President John Kennedy and his family visited the camp often, enjoying the horseback riding and other recreational opportunities. Kennedy also allowed White House staff and cabinet members to use Camp David when he was not there.

President Lyndon Johnson held several important discussions with advisers on the Vietnam War, the crisis in the Dominican Republic, and other world events, at Camp David and hosted Prime Minister and Mrs. Harold Holt of Australia.

The Reagans at Camp David in 1984. (Source: Ronald Reagan Library)

Reconstruction and Improvements

President Richard Nixon used Camp David as much as his five predecessors combined. Nixon had several new buildings built in compatible architectural styles, but complete with modern conveniences. He held cabinet meetings, staff conferences, hosted foreign dignitaries, and family get togethers at Camp David.

President Gerald Ford rode around Camp David on a snowmobile, and hosted President and Mrs. Suharto of Indonesia.

President Jimmy Carter hosted the now famous Camp David Summit in 1978, between Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin, and resulted in what are now known as the Camp David Accords establishing peace between Egypt and Israel. Carter also enjoyed fly-fishing.

President Ronald Reagan spent more time at Camp David than any other president. He liked horseback riding and working in the woodworking shop. Nancy Reagan worked on various landscaping improvements and updated decorating in some of the buildings. They also hosted British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

A Camp David Wedding

President George Bush pitched horseshoes at Camp David, and welcomed Prince Charles to the retreat. In 1992, Bush's daughter, Dorothy "Doro" married Bobby Koch at Camp David, the first wedding ever performed there.

While President Bill Clinton visited Camp David infrequently in the early days of his administration, he did hold a week-long retreat on management with incoming administration officials in 1993. As his term progressed, however, Clinton spent more time at the retreat.

From: http://www.infoplease.com/spot/campdavid1.html

Act II, Scene 4. Dumbarton Oaks

Dumbarton Oaks is a 19th-century mansion, built on the crest of a wooded valley in Georgetown, that was acquired in 1920 by Mr. and Mrs. Robert Woods Bliss. The name combines a reference to the original great oaks, several of which are still standing, with the 18th-century name of Dumbarton, taken from the Rock of Dumbarton in Scotland. In 1933, after some 33 years in the Foreign Service, including five years as Ambassador to Argentina, Mr. Bliss retired and he and Mrs. Bliss settled at Dumbarton Oaks. Seven years later, in 1940, they conveyed the house, gardens, and collections to Harvard University. They established and endowed the Dumbarton Oaks Research Library and Collection, which is incorporated in the District of Columbia and administered by the Trustees for Harvard University. In 1944 two international meetings, generally known as the Dumbarton Oaks Conferences, were held in the Music Room. Here the principles later incorporated into the charter of the United Nations were established.

The original Federal-style house, built in 1800, has undergone many changes. Some of the 19th-century additions have been removed and the house has been enlarged and remodeled to accommodate the library and collections, which now occupy the whole building. The area in which the Byzantine Collection is housed was added just before the transfer to Harvard in 1940. The Pre-Columbian Museum was designed by Philip Johnson and completed in 1963. Another wing, designated by Frederick King, was inaugurated in 1963 to house the Garden Library. The Rare Book Room contains a collection of the 19th- and some early 20th-century paintings and antique furniture. The Music Room, added to the house in 1929, has a 16th-century stone chimney piece, an 18th century parquet floor, and a ceiling painted in the 16th-century French style. It is furnished with antique Spanish, Italian, and French furniture. Among the well-known pieces of sculpture, paintings, and tapestries displayed there are "The Visitation" by El Greco and a statue of the Virgin and Child by Riemenschneider.

Dumbarton Oaks has important research resources in the areas of Byzantine studies, the history of landscape architecture, and Pre-Columbian studies. Each area has its own research library. Together they now contain over 100,000 volumes and continue to grow. There are resident scholars in each area of study. In addition, about 40 fellowships are awarded annually to scholars in these fields from around the world.

The grounds of Dumbarton Oaks include ten acres of gardens, known as Dumbarton Oaks Park. Especially notable here are magnolias, forsythias, cherries, herbaceous borders, and plantings of bulbs in the spring and chrysanthemums in autumn.

http://www.georgetowndc.com/dumbarton_oaks.php

Act II, Scene 6. Union League Club of Chicago

Union League Club of Chicago

Upon entering the Union League Club of Chicago, one can sense an aura of tradition, history, accomplishment and dedication. For 125 years, the Club has been the place in Chicago where people have gathered to lay the groundwork for various civic projects and organize social and philanthropic undertakings.

Established in 1879 to uphold the sacred obligations of citizenship, promote honesty and efficiency in government, and support cultural institutions and the beautification of the city, the Club has been a contributing partner in the growth and development of Chicago. Through the efforts of its dynamic membership, the Club has been a catalyst for action in nonpartisan political, economic and social arenas focusing its leadership and resources on important social issues.

As early as 1893, Chicago gained recognition as a World Class City when it hosted the Worlds Columbian Exposition. Club members were instrumental in having Chicago named the site of the exposition by the United States Congress. Since that time Club members have played a role in establishing many of the citys cultural organizations including Orchestra Hall and the Field Museum. In the 1990s, the Club celebrated its role in the opening of the Harold Washington Library Center.

http://www.ulcc.org/history/

Act II, Scene 7. Walter Reed Army Hospital

Walter Reed Army Medical Center is the U.S. Army's premier medical center on the east coast of the United States. Located in Washington, D.C., it serves more than 150,000 active duty and retired personnel from all branches of the military. The center is named after Major Walter Reed, an army surgeon who led the team which discovered that yellow fever is transmitted by mosquitoes rather than direct contact.

Civilians such as United States Senators and even the President receive care at this medical center. Walter Reed Army Medical Center is considered a tertiary care center and houses numerous medical and surgical specialties. It is part of the larger Walter Reed Health Care System, which includes some ten other hospitals.

Congressional legislation authorized construction of Walter Reed General Hospital and the first patient was admitted on May 1, 1909. Since then it has grown from a bed capacity of 80 patients to approximately 5500 rooms covering more than 28 acres (11.3 hectares) of floor space.

Base Realignment and Closure, 2005

As part of a Base Realignment and Closure announcement on May 13, 2005, the Department of Defense proposed replacing Walter Reed Army Medical Center with a new "Walter Reed National Military Medical Center"; the new center would be on the grounds of the Bethesda Naval Hospital in Maryland, seven miles (11 km) from Walter Reed's current location. The proposal is part of a program to transform medical facilities into joint facilities, with staff including Army, Navy and Air Force medical personnel.

On August 25, 2005, the BRAC Committee recommended passage of the plans for Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

Official Walter Reed Army Medical Center website

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Reed_Army_Hospital

Politicians who Died in the Walter Reed Army Medical Center
(Washington, D.C.)

Very incomplete list!

http://politicalgraveyard.com/death/walter-reed.html

Kiel Opera House

Base Realignment and Closure, 2005

Politicians who Died in the Walter Reed Army Medical Center (Washington, D.C.)

Very incomplete list!

Politicians who Died in the Walter Reed Army Medical Center
(Washington, D.C.)