Overview

Tombstone, Arizona, is forever associated with Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, Doc Holliday, and the legendary OK Corral gunfight that made it a cultural symbol of the Old West. The town’s most iconic and storied original building is the Bird Cage Theater—a stunning example of late nineteenth-century variety theaters that were a staple in entertainment around the globe. The modest interior that was once filled with orchestra music, cigar smoke, laughter and whistles, and cheers and jeers is now an empty canvas for the echoes of the past. Every year tens of thousands of tourists are welcomed through its doors to experience an atmosphere that begs wonder and imagination. Private and public tours of its interior have inspired questions, evolving lore, and conflicting stories. In recent decades its history has been fabricated from modern myth, romantic fiction, and pure fantasy. Now, for the first time, historical researcher and author Michael Paul Mihaljevich has pieced together the real story of the Bird Cage. It began in the months leading up to the OK Corral gunfight in 1881, when property owner William J. Hutchinson engaged in a violent three-way property war between lot-owning citizens, a corrupt townsite company, and greedy mine owner Ed Field just to erect the building. After its construction was completed, Hutchinson kicked off a ten-year performance run that saw more than 250 world-traveling entertainers bring their array of acts to the people of Tombstone in scenes of classic western romance. When mines faltered and the local economy edged toward death, it was the Bird Cage that became the key player in the twentieth-century revival that established Tombstone as a tourist mecca and rescued it from near desertion.

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9781574419481

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Reviews

"""With this book, Michael Mihaljevich has given fans of Tombstone history and students of the era of variety shows and theaters a book chock-full of materials previously uncollected. The documented facts, real-life stories, and general Tombstone history, along with the exploding of myths and legends, put this book in the realm of one-of-a-kind. This book will delight every reader. -Roy B. Young, editor of the Journal of the Wild West History Association and the author of James Cooksey Earp and Cochise County Cowboy War"

""With this book, Michael Mihaljevich has given fans of Tombstone history and students of the era of variety shows and theaters a book chock-full of materials previously uncollected. The documented facts, real-life stories, and general Tombstone history, along with the exploding of myths and legends, put this book in the realm of one-of-a-kind. This book will delight every reader."" -- Roy B. Young, editor of the Journal of the Wild West History Association and the author of James Cooksey Earp and Cochise County Cowboy War ""Mihaljevich not only lifts the curtain on the iconic Bird Cage, he takes the reader behind the scenes in this thorough examination of the building's history and the role it played in facilitating entertainment in Tombstone. Mike's remarkable research finally allows the truth to shine and take center-stage."" --Peter Brand, author of Wyatt Earp's Vendetta Posse Rider: The Story of Texas Jack Vermillion ""Michael Mihaljevich is one of a handful of historians whose knowledge I trust without pause or skepticism. The Bird Cage Theatre, his debut book, is now a physical manifestation of his expertise in the field of Western history. Not only does the famous theatre in Tombstone get its long overdue biography, but the world may now know the genius that is Michael Mihaljevich."" --Erik Wright, assistant editor for The Tombstone Epitaph and contributing editor for True West Magazine ""The Bird Cage Theater is meticulously researched and rich in details of both the Bird Cage and other historic venues in Tombstone. It also brings to light information about the sequential owners/operators throughout the Bird Cage's history. Mihaljevich adds significantly to the body of knowledge, not only of its subject, the Bird Cage, but also about the town of Tombstone."" --Paul Johnson, author of The McLaurys in Tombstone, Arizona

Author Information

Michael Paul Mihaljevich is a historical researcher and author of several articles pertaining to southeastern Arizona history and its notable inhabitants. His body of work includes art photography that epitomizes the romance and history of the American West.

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