The Ward M. Canaday Center

for Special Collections

The University of Toledo

Finding Aid

Arnold Krastin Papers, 1909-1911

MSS-039

Size: 3 in.

Provenance: Documentation for the provenance of this collection has not been preserved. It is highly likely, however, that it was donated to the University of Toledo Libraries by Krastin's only child, Karl Krastin, who was Dean of the University of Toledo Law School from 1963 to 1976.

Access: Open

Collection Summary: This small collection documents the business activity of an early Toledo motion-picture theater owner and entrepreneur. In addition to its primary research value as a source of early theater history, it is useful for research in popular entertainments of the early part of the 20th century.

Subjects: Business and Commerce

Processing Note: None

Copyright: The literary rights to this collection are assumed to rest with the person(s) responsible for the production of the particular items within the collection, or with their heirs or assigns.  Researchers bear full legal responsibility for the acquisition to publish from any part of said collection per Title 17, United States Code.  The Ward M. Canaday Center for Special Collections may reserve the right to intervene as intermediary at its own discretion.

Completed by: Paul Gifford, March 1987

Reformatted by: Arjun Sabharwal, June 2009; last updated: June, 2014

Introduction

This small collection documents the business activity of an early Toledo motion-picture theater owner and entrepreneur. In addition to its primary research value as a source for early theater history, it is useful for research in popular entertainments of the early part of this century.

 

Biographical Timeline

1885 or 1886.

Born in Riga, Latvia.

1894.

Emigrated to United States; settled in Cleveland.

1909.

Came to Toledo; operated Family and Gem Theatres.

 

1911.

Sold theater interests and returned to Cleveland, where he worked as a distributor and salesman of automobile parts.

 

1973, Oct. 27.

Died in Waterville, Ohio.

 

Scope and Content Note

Although this collection is small in size, its limited time range and well-focused subject may make it useful to scholars. Krastin typified the immigrant Jewish motion-picture theater owner of the period. He developed a plan to build and furnish theaters for others and to go into partnership with others in new theaters. Promoting this scheme in newspaper advertisements, his responses provide an insight into the types of people interested in the venture.

The collection includes a selection of promotional material pertaining to the Gem and Family Theatres---flyers, tags, tickets, programs and dance cards. Such ephemera document the operation of the theaters and indicate the volatile nature of the early cinema business. The scrapbook in the collection contains mostly newspaper clippings, including Krastin's promotional advertisements as well as clippings from a later period concerning the automobile parts business.

Folder List

Folder

Correspondence

1

outgoing

incoming

2

Responses to advertisements

3

 General

4

Handbills and other promotions

5

Receipt

Scrapbook

 

 

 (All of the above are located in R-4)

Last Updated: 6/27/22