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Kids in the Canal Zone
It looks like these kids put on quite the performance! We think these photographs are from an elementary school play at a school somewhere on the Atlantic side of the Canal Zone. Can you help us identify the location of these photos? What do you think this play was about? Were you ever involved in any school performances? What were some popular plays for schoolchildren to perform?
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S.S. Panama: from cruise to transporter of famous art in World War II
On June 13, 1941, before the bombing at Pearl Harbor, the S.S. PANAMA was turned over to the Army Transport Service to carry troops. The ship was renamed the JAMES PARKER in honor of Brigadier General James Parker.
It must have been a sight to see the ship, which was formerly used for transportation and scenic cruises, outfitted for war.
The S.S. PANAMA 
The S.S. ANCON, outfitted for the war. The JAMES PARKER may have looked like this during its tour. The JAMES PARKER made many dangerous and exciting excursions during her service for the U.S. Army, including transporting the Rockettes and other performers to Europe to entertain soldiers and evading enemy submarines several times with troops on board.
We recently discovered while sorting through the collection that the JAMES PARKER brought to New York $80 million worth of artwork that the Germans had stolen from various European countries. Tables were removed in the air conditioned main dining room to store the works. The artworks were taken to the National Art Gallery in Washington, D.C.
After the ship’s final trip in Army Transport Service was made in 1946, the ship was returned to the Panama Railroad Company and resumed the name “PANAMA.”
Did you or anyone you knew serve on this ship during the war? Were you or anyone you knew involved in protecting cultural heritage during the war?
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Champagne Complex
According to this newspaper article from The Panama American, the theatre troupe from the Cristobal Little Theatre brought their production of Leslie Steven’s Champagne Complex to the Fort Gulick Theatre in 1961. This “farce comedy” was directed by John Blennerhassett and was performed by a cast of three, including Ken Blaylock, Patricia Newport, and Dick Diaz. The news article called the play a “spoof on today’s over-analyzed world.”
This performance was part of an effort to revive the activity of the Cristobal Little Theatre since its early years starting in 1932. The profits earned by Champagne Complex were donated to local charities.
Do you remember going to the Cristobal Little Theatre or the Fort Gulick Theatre? Were you or someone you knew involved in local theatre troupes?
