 "People
talk about our being in a depression now. I
tell them, 'Do you have more than one pair
of shoes? Do you have more than one coat? Is
there food in the pantry? Well, if there is,
you don't know what a depression is.'"
At that time, as Moriearty and his
Lincoln High School friends prepared to
graduate, the threat of war hung over the
nation. Germany invaded Poland in 1939, and
America held its collective breath to see
what the events would mean to our young men
and women.
With these concerns, the youth of the
community looked for outside relief, for
entertainment, to get away at least for a
little while from the worries and concerns
of the day. There were three theater houses,
or "shows," back then.
However, for older teenagers the special
place to go was the Maple Club, just east of
Lincoln on Illinois Route 10. It was there
that live music was played every evening.
Back then, according to Harry Rosenbloom
and Jim Moriearty, the Maple Club was one of
the best musical hot spots, not just in
Logan County, but in all of Illinois.
So, what of high schoolers going to a
place that sold liquor?
Moriearty laughed. "Things were different
back then," he said. "Heck, we didn't have
driver's licenses. There were no age
barriers. If you had money, you could buy
anything back then."
He went on: "On Saturday at 9 p.m. the
stores and restaurants on the square would
close up. About six or eight of us would
pile into a Model A roadster and go out
there for the evening."
Moriearty didn't recall if there was a
cover charge back then to get in to listen
to the live music, but the late Bob Guy in a
previous interview about those days said it
cost 25 cents to get in.
Another high school student back then was
Orville Shaffer. "The Maple Club was the
place to go back then," he said.
He has many memories of those days,
including a very special one: "Back then
there wasn't a lot to do, so we would go to
the Maple Club for dances. I remember one
night seeing a girl across the dance floor,
and I went over to ask her to dance. That
same night I asked her to marry me, and a
month later she said yes."
The Maple Club back then had the same
physical dimensions and characteristics as
we can see today, but Moriearty remembers
there were a lot more small tables back then
that had four chairs to each one.
"There were 200, maybe 300 small tables
back then. It was like a circus in there,"
he said.
A remarkable thing stands out in
everyone's memories. Harry Rosenbloom, who
was yet a junior at Lincoln High School,
became a member of the Maple Club house
band. The Maple Club had a reputation for
great live music. Its house band was
well-known and highly regarded.
"Here were all these older musicians, and
here was this kid in high school playing
with them. It was something else. And he was
good," says Moriearty.
Shaffer still keeps in touch with his old
classmate and said that Harry now lives in
Winter Haven, Fla.
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Rosenbloom has written about
his time at the Maple Club, as well as his
storied career as a musician. He remembers
the Maple Club as a little smaller than it
actually is but recalls the days and the
acoustical band shell where he and other
great musicians played in those days.
Just how was it that someone as young as
Rosenbloom got into the club's band?
One of the band members retired and
several local musicians recommended that he
get the position.
Harry was a member of the high school's
jazz band, and his music teacher, Bob Smith,
suggested him. Also, Dave Hanger, owner of
Hanger's Music Store, where Harry spent a
great deal of time, got behind him for the
job.
Among other things, it was his passion
and love for music, besides his ability,
that allowed him to fit right in with the
band.
Harry said that Monday evening was the
house band's night off. Then name bands of
the era were engaged to play. He threw out
some names that every septuagenarian or
octogenarian would remember well. The
visiting bands included Tiny Hill, Joe
Venutti, Ace Brigode and Ben Pollack. The
Ben Pollack Band included such great stars
as Harry James and Tommy Dorsey.
Rosenbloom's musical talents served him
well after those two years with the band,
and he proceeded to have a distinguished
career in music.
After a stint in the Navy during World
War II, Harry returned to Illinois Wesleyan
and received his bachelor's and master's
degrees in music education. He spent 30
years teaching in public schools, the last
18 in Lincolnwood.
But Harry was more than a junior high
music teacher. Among his most noted
accomplishments was being invited to play
tenor saxophone for three pop concerts with
the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Harry also
spent seven years playing with the Wilmette
Northshore Band. He was also was asked to
play in a band organized by Meredith Wilson
of "The Music Man" fame for two Fourth of
July concerts.
Now Harry is retired in Florida, but he
still keeps in touch with local old friends
to chat.
More and more, stories of that remarkable
era in Logan County's history get lost in
the passage of time. But here is one more
spared memory about the Maple Club and a
gifted young musician.
[By
MIKE FAK]
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