Chattanooga’s Memorial Auditorium in the 1940s and 1950s
Now seems like a good time to write about something other than the election and the coronavirus. So how about a trip back in time, when things were simpler? I would like a share a story from my upcoming book, “Hello Chattanooga! Famous People Who Visited the Tennessee Valley.” The book will list the performers, politicians and athletes who have come our way since the beginning of the 20th century.
Chattanooga’s Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Auditorium is a big part of the book. Soon to celebrate its 100th anniversary (in 2024), the big hall has hosted thousands of famous entertainers, sports stars, and government officials. Here is an excerpt.
In the 1940s, Roller Derby was a frequent attraction. Professional wrestling continued as a weekly event on Thursday nights. Several dances were advertised as “for colored audiences.” The Auditorium also hosted several University of Chattanooga basketball games.
Many of the on-stage visitors would soon become household names, including Frank Sinatra, Rev. Billy Graham, Eddy Arnold, Minnie Pearl, Louis Armstrong, Doris Day, the Carter family, Chet Atkins, Kitty Wells, Nat King Cole, and Ella Fitzgerald. The auditorium also welcomed some of the biggest stars of the era, including Bob Hope, Roy Acuff, and Nelson Eddy, along with top bandleaders Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway, Guy Lombardo, Harry James, and Count Basie.
This decade could be considered the beginning of the Golden Age of entertainment on the Auditorium stage. Chattanooga’s railroad station made the city a convenient stop for performers on their way to and from larger cities. Highway improvements also enabled “hillbilly” performers from Nashville, Knoxville, Georgia and Alabama to make a quick trip to Chattanooga, much to the delight of local audiences.
For many reasons, the 1950s was a most challenging decade for the auditorium. The facility had endured almost three decades of wear and tear, and it was starting to show. Paint was peeling, electrical wiring was long outdated, lighting was subpar, the ceiling and roof were in need of repairs, and the acoustics were still a problem. The city agreed to fund the renovations, and the building was closed for five months in 1950.
At the reopening, WDEF radio personality Luther Masingill was asked to help test the new sound system. He noted the improved sound quality, and commented, “Entertainers will no longer call it a barn, because the echoes are gone.”
Unfortunately, that did not solve all the problems. Professional wrestling, which did not rely on lighting or sound quality, helped keep the auditorium afloat with steady crowds. But when television came to Chattanooga in 1954, its presence was felt at the auditorium box office. Some people wondered why they should spend money to see entertainers who were now visible in their living room free of charge.
By 1957, the auditorium was losing some of its signature events. The Home Show had moved to the Warner Park Field House. Several musical programs opted for the Chattanooga High School auditorium. Holiday on Ice, long a reliable draw, canceled a date. Roller derby attendance began to drop, resulting in cancellations. A news report quoted Mrs. William Montague of the Chattanooga Symphony and Opera as saying, “The auditorium is not good for anything except wrestling matches.”
Still, the 1950s decade had its moments. From time to time, national radio broadcasts originated from the auditorium stage. Musical shows ranged from big bands, to gospel groups, to Grand Ole Opry stars, to rhythm and blues singers, to the pioneers of rock and roll.
The first local telethon was held on behalf of Cerebral Palsy in April 1958 by WTVC Channel 9, then in its third month on the air. Then little-known game show host Johnny Carson emceed the event, four years before he would begin his long reign on NBC’S “Tonight Show.”
The auditorium enforced the social norms of the era, prohibiting any multi-racial shows. An evening’s entertainment was all-white, or all-black. As “race” music (later known as rhythm and blues, or soul) gained popularity, younger white music lovers wanted to attend the shows. They could do so, but were seated in their own section, away from the black audience. When racial tensions flared up across the nation, particularly in the south, some disagreements spilled out into the audience, and outside the auditorium.
In 1959, the city was asked to provide $700,000 to modernize the heating and air conditioning system, add new curtains, and to install an escalator. The request was tabled. The optimism that accompanied the “improved” sound system in 1950 had been dampened by negative reviews calling it “a disappointment.”
Many wondered if the city would continue investing into a facility that no longer had widespread community support. Thankfully, the auditorium weathered the storm, and we all look forward to enjoying live shows there again, postpandemic.