“I’ve had a life-long fascination with silent films, and now they’re coming back to the same place I discovered them,” he said.
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Combined with his interest in the State Theatre’s pipe organ, Rowe is keeping the spirit of these bygone entertainments of Springfield’s past alive.
Many theaters across the country had grand organs installed to accompany silent films and when talking pictures came in many stayed and entertained audiences during intermissions.
In the 1940s, there were special events called bank nights, where song lyrics were projected on the screen and the audience sang along as the organist played.
The State had a grand Wurlitzer Organ that was in and out of use over the years. Rowe became fascinated after hearing it before a presentation of “Mary Poppins” in the 1960s.
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By the mid-1970s, Rowe’s twin interests would intersect. A local group was interested in refurbishing the Wurlitzer, and after it was, Rowe found himself entertaining audiences with Cole Porter and George Gershwin tunes during intermissions on Fridays and Saturdays through the late 1980s.
He wasn’t paid, but got to see the features between sets.
“I must have seen ‘Jaws’ 70 to 80 times,” Rowe said, laughing. “I just did it for fun, for me more than anybody else. I loved that music so much.”
He also teamed with Ahlm to do midnight screenings of several silent films, doing the accompanying music.
Unlike a common church organ, the State’s Wurlitzer literally had bells and whistles. The push of a button could reproduce a snare drum, chimes, gongs, a train whistle, slide whistle or other sounds.
It would rise from an orchestra pit through a hydraulic lift and lower back down before the film started.
“As an instrument, they are increasingly rare. We were lucky to have one here,” Rowe said.
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He’s kept mementos of the experience including a two-hour tape of his playing, photos and movie ads touting the organ.
When the State closed in 1990, the organ was scattered among organ builders. Through a theater organ enthusiasts’ Facebook page, Rowe found out part of the organ’s carcass is in Marysville.
Now as a presenter, Rowe is excited to share the experience of silent films and live music with a new audience where it all began for him.
“It was a piece of our downtown, one that’s slipped away. I’m glad the people will get to see it done right on Saturday.”
WANT TO GO?
What: The Paragon Ragtime Orchestra
Where: John Legend Theater at The Dome, 700 S. Limestone St., Springfield
When: Saturday, Jan. 27, 7:30 p.m.
Admission: $22.50-$33.50
More info: 937-324-2712 or www.springfieldartscouncil.org/event/paragon/
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