Keith, B(enjamin) F(ranklin)

The Oxford Companion to American Theatre | 2004 | 700+ words | Copyright

Keith, B[enjamin] F[ranklin] (1846–1914), manager. Born in Hillsboro, New Hampshire, he left his family farm to join a circus but by the early 1880s had moved into the realm of theatre management, taking over the Gaiety Musée in Boston in 1885. Keith claimed that a dream convinced him of the value of continuous vaudeville, which he initiated at the theatre. His policy's success was immediate, and he soon owned a series of theatres east of the Mississippi. At the turn of the century he enlarged his chain by merging with F. F. Proctor, at the same time forming the United Booking Office to control the hiring and firing of performers. At its height his organization controlled well over a hundred theatres, many of them named after him.

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Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Keith, B(enjamin) F(ranklin)." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Keith, B(enjamin) F(ranklin)." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O149-KeithBenjaminFranklin.html

Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Keith, B(enjamin) F(ranklin)." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O149-KeithBenjaminFranklin.html

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