Who, in your family history or personal acquaintance, constitutes an “Outrageous Texas Woman of Character”?
At Spur’s Palace Theater (herself a grande dame approaching centenarian status) on May 14, program emcee Jeromy Rutledge of Spur offered up two from his own past: his late mother-in-law Priscilla Wood Neaves, and the late Revvie Lee Hefner Neaves, his wife’s grandmother.
We were honored to have these pioneering spirits summoned among us.
The theme of the evening, which you already know if you were present, was radio host and newspaper columnist Tumbleweed Smith’s compilation of show interview segments with interesting, yea even outrageous, women from all corners of the Lone Star State. Some, like the legendary Big Bend rancher Hallie Stillwell, and the indomitable author and activist Devorah Winegarten of Austin, are no longer with us. Others, such as Abilene mover-and-shaker Donna Albus of “Myrtle’s Coming, Get Your Bed Ready” fame, thankfully are.
Another, West Texas’s own “Queen of Western Swing Pianists” Lucy Dean Record, was there in the flesh, her fingers flying over the notes of “Sweet Georgia Brown,” “The New San Antonio Rose,” and other fan favorites. Happy birthday to you this week, Lucy, as you celebrate 98 on June 1. We wish you joyous returns of the day and hope you’ll come perform for us on your 100th!
(When y’all pick up your “Texas Monthly” issue for June, you’ll find Bob Phillips’ feature on this amazing musician who’s been tickling the ivories since age 4. You might wish you’d gotten your Palace program autographed.)
The Palace audience that night was also graced by the energetic vocals of countrywestern recording artist DeAnne Roberts of Dickens, who covered hits by Patsy Cline, the Judds and Jeannie C. Riley, among others. Not to mention spicing things up at the pre-show wine tasting with her Lawless Cowgirl salsa recipe.
Together, these female stars showed patrons the talent and vitality of our Texas culture.
Yet another woman of character took part in the show, behind the scenes: Tumbleweed’s wife, Susan Zack Lewis of Big Spring, who’s been his sounding board and sound engineer for half a century and more. Spur hosted Susan and Bob Lewis (yes, that’s the real name of Tumbleweed’s alter ego) overnight at the Lisenby-Campbell House, built in 1916 and currently the only Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in Spur. New owners Jeromy and D’Laine Rutledge can count Bob and Susan as their first overnight guests in what is now their historic B&B.
But back to that Saturday night at the Palace.
By 7 p.m. air conditioning— always a challenge in the 1929 theater despite recent insulation and electrical improvements—mysteriously faded even though the space had been cool and comfortable during rehearsals the day before.
Pre-show sound checks Saturday afternoon went off fine, too. As they also had on Friday, except for one hitch: an inexplicable, persistent crackle in one of Tumbleweed’s state-of-the-art speakers.
“That’s never happened before,” said Susan, as theater volunteers mulled options, flipped switches, and switched systems.
In the half-dark house Harry Bob Martin, a key player in Palace programming since its 2007 fund-raising and rehabilitation efforts, told of coming into the theater alone at times and detecting mysterious sounds. Others shared tales of circuit breakers blown, amps silenced.
Is the Palace haunted?, folks wanted to know.
Well, who’s to say? A popular theatrical super
A popular theatrical superstition, reads a Wikipedia article, holds that “every theater has a ghost, and some theaters have traditions to appease ghosts that reach far back into their history.” A ghost light—a lone electrical fixture left lit onstage anytime the house is unoccupied—is a sensible practicality to allow personnel to see their way to the light panel, but also a longstanding stage custom. It’s said, variously, to ward away or to welcome haunts.
The Palace didn’t have one. A ghost light, that is.
“Many theaters forced to close during the Covid-19 pandemic have renewed the tradition of ghost lights as a way of indicating the theaters will re-open,” adds the Wikipedia story.
Maybe the Palace, reopening for a full schedule this season including live events, needs one.
The Palace ghost apparently swooped in the night of May 14, just as Tumbleweed Smith took the mic for his main presentation. The high-tech microphone emitted a series of keening wails. It continued each time the speaker attempted to utter a word. Theater guests covered their ears . . . or sneaked out to the exits.
“This won’t work,” said Mrs. Tumbleweed from the wings.
To the rescue, the Lawless Cowgirl offered up her own mic, and the show went on. Not perfectly, one must admit—sound adjustments still weren’t up to pro standards—but it wrapped up with Tumbleweed’s live interviews of the two extraordinary women who’d graced the Palace stage that night.
The Palace has more in store. With the help of Humanities Texas, the organization that helps people understand what makes Texas what it is, the Dickens County Historical Commission will bring several programs to the Palace stage this summer and fall for schoolchildren, educators, history buffs, and others looking to learn.
“Humanities Texas advances education through programs that improve the quality of classroom teaching, support libraries and museums, and create opportunities for lifelong learning,” according to its mission statement. “We strengthen Texas communities by conducting and supporting programs that cultivate the knowledge and judgment that representative democracy demands of its citizens. These programs also contribute to Texas’s thriving economy, culture, and civic life.”
What programs and presenters would you like to see at the Palace? Email palacespur1929@gmail.com or just comment on this post.
And if you ask for ghost stories, well, the Palace might just be able to accommodate you.
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