At The Jonathan Channel, we are reflecting on summer’s past. Summers going all the way back to the early 1900s. What’s remarkable about these summers is they don’t look that much different than many today. Families packing their children up to spend summers away filled with nature, sunshine, exercise, art and music. Today these camps a little pricier and often for shorter periods of time, but campers still share in the traditions of summers past gaining valuable experiences and skills for their future.
One of the earliest camps to provide valuable summer experiences was the Weingart Institute’s camp in Highmount, New York. Screenwriter, playwright and former camper, Sig Herzig referred to the camp as “a prep school for a Musical Hall of Fame.” Alumni included Oscar Hammerstein and his brother Reggie; Herbert Sondheim, who years later would father Stephen Sondheim; Teddy Hart and his older brother Larry; and Larry’s future partner Richard Rodgers.
Camp Weingart was more of a summer school for the private Manhattan elementary of the same name. It catered mainly to well-to-do German-Jewish families, often many who attended the elementary school during the year. The Institute was situated in the Catskills in an elegant school building and run on strict terms. Discipline was part of the daily routine, starting each morning with bugle calls, cold showers, personal and room inspections and included two hours of academic instruction.
Though life at camp Weingart was very strict, campers found ways to have a bit of fun. Inspired by minstrel shows of the day, campers would perform weekly shows satirizing camp events through songs and skits. Though it is difficult to imagine young boys and counselors dressing in blackface and drag in today’s camp culture, the minstrel performances allowed for great creativity. By dressing up as someone else, campers dreamed up new characters and stories far beyond the Catskills.
In his first summer at camp, Larry Hart made his theatrical debut in a camp production of the farce a New Brooms. Later in the summer he performed in the camp minstrel show as the End Man, a character who sits at one end of the company and engages in banter and song. Hart sang a popular tune by Harry Von Tilzer and lyricists Vincent Bryan called “Pass It Along to Father.”
Hart further found a creative outlet in the camp newspaper, The Weingart Review. In only his second summer he was unanimously selected as the editor-in-chief over many older eligible campers. Through the Newspaper, Larry explored the world of short stories and met his future lyrical successor, Oscar Hammerstein. Richard Rodgers was younger than both his future partners and missed meeting them by only a few summers, but possibly heard about their contributions at The Weingart Reviewfrom older campers.
The talented campers of Weingart continued their camp careers elsewhere, further sharing the common experiences that would affect them for years to come. As campers and eventually counselors, they continued to develop into the great artists we know today. Continue on their journey this week, on The Jonathan Channel.