Philip Moeller

Philip Moeller (26 August 1880 – 26 April 1958) was an American stage producer and director, playwright and screenwriter, born in New York where he helped found the short-lived Washington Square Players and then with Lawrence Langner and Helen Westley founded the Theatre Guild.[1]

For the journalist, see Philip Moeller (journalist).
Philip Moeller
Theatre Guild Board of Directors (from left): Lawrence Langner, Philip Moeller, Theresa Helburn, Maurice Wertheim, Helen Westley, Lee Simonson (1923)
Born(1880-08-26)August 26, 1880
New York City, New York
DiedApril 26, 1958(1958-04-26) (aged 77)
New York City, New York
EducationColumbia University
Occupation(s)Playwright, Director
Years active1913-1936

Early years

He was born in Manhattan to Frederick K. Moeller and Rachel Phillips Moeller.[2] His father, a naturalized US citizen from Germany, was a dealer in raw silk and wool, while his mother was a New York-born daughter of English immigrants.[3] Moeller was the fourth of five children, one of whom died very young.[4][5] As a child he lived near the Koster and Bial's Music Hall; during summer, performers were visible through open windows.[6] In his early years the household included three servants, a nurse, and a coachman.[3] Later, the family moved to Central Park West, where they made do with just three servants.[5]

For the hot summer months the family would stay at a seaside hotel near Long Branch, New Jersey.[7] Local papers recorded ten-year-old Philip and his older brother Harry selling tickets for an amateur benefit performance.[8] Two years later he played a court jester for the children's portion of another benefit,[9] and again the following year.[10]

Moeller graduated from Columbia University,[6] where according to Lawrence Langner's memoir he excelled at toe-dancing.[11] His parents had passed away by February 1903,[12] but Moeller and his three surviving siblings continued living together in the family home for the next seven years.[13]

The Theater Guild

Lawrence Langner says that the Theater Guild came about by chance, when he ran into Moeller and Helen Westley in the basement cafe of the Brevoort Hotel on December 18, 1918.[14] The three of them had a lively chat at which the idea of a new theater company was put forth. A few days later they met with Rollo Peters at the home of Josephine A. Myers to discuss the concept.[15] The plan they discussed encompassed a wholly professional company, run by an executive committee, to produce only long plays of merit, at a reasonably-priced mid-size theater.

The new organization became public knowledge when it was legally constituted in January 1919. The membership was identified as Moeller, Westley, Langner, Peters, and Myers, with Lee Simonsen, Ralph Roeder, Helen Freeman, and Justus Sheffield.[16] The first Theatre Guild headquarters was at the Washington Square Bookshop.[17] The Guild had already decided not to produce each other's plays, so Moeller's first role would be as assistant director to Rollo Peters.

Directing career

Among plays he directed for the Theatre Guild were:

Playwright
  • The Battlefield (1913) presented May 14, 1913 at the Aerial Theatre, on the roof of the New Amsterdam Theatre.
  • Two Blind Beggars and One Less Blind: a tragic comedy in one act (1915) Debuted on the second bill of Washington Square Players first season.
  • Helena's Husband (1915) one-act play for Washington Square Players on its second seasons opening night 4 October 1915[18]
  • The Roadhouse of Arden (1916) Debuted on third bill of the Washington Square Players second season.
  • Sisters of Susanna (1916) Debuted on opening night of Washington Square Players third season.
  • Madame Sand - a biographical comedy (1917) Debuted at Academy of Music in Baltimore during October 1917.
  • Pokey (1917) Debuted on third bill of Washington Square Players fourth season in January 1918.
  • Molière (1919) Premiered at the Liberty Theatre on March 17, 1919.
  • Sophie - a comedy (1919)
  • Caprice - adaptation of three-act play by Austrian writer Sil-Vara (pseudonym of Geza Silberer) in 1929.

Filmography

This filmography is believed to be complete.

Notes

    References
    1. Cody, Gabrielle and Sprinchorn, Evert The Columbia encyclopedia of modern drama, Volume 2 Columbia University Press p. 1341
    2. Phillip Moller in the New York, U.S., Index to Birth Certificates, 1866-1909, Certificate No. 292728, retrieved from Ancestry.com
    3. 1880 United States Federal Census for Fred Moeller, New York > New York > New York City > District 0294, retrieved from Ancestry.com
    4. Florence Moeller in the New Jersey, U.S., Deaths and Burials Index, 1798-1971, retrieved from Ancestry.com
    5. 1900 United States Federal Census for Philip Mueller, New York > New York > Manhattan > District 0467, retrieved from Ancestry.com
    6. "Philip Moeller, Director, Is Dead". The New York Times. New York, New York. April 27, 1958. p. 67 – via NYTimes.com.
    7. "Long Branch Is Lively". The New York Times. New York, New York. July 14, 1895. p. 24 – via Newspapers.com.
    8. "Long Branch Enthused". The Evening World. New York, New York. July 28, 1890. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
    9. "News in Brief". The Standard Union. Brooklyn, New York. August 24, 1892. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
    10. "Children's Carnival and Ball". The New York Times. New York, New York. August 27, 1893. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
    11. Lawrence Langner (1951). The Magic Curtain. E. P. Dutton & Company. p. 96.
    12. "Death List of the Week". The New York Times. New York, New York. February 8, 1903. p. 18 – via Newspapers.com.
    13. 1910 United States Federal Census for Philip Mueller, New York > New York > Manhattan Ward 22 > District 1302, retrieved from Ancestry.com
    14. Lawrence Langner (1951). The Magic Curtain. E. P. Dutton & Company. pp. 114–115.
    15. Lawrence Langner (1951). The Magic Curtain. E. P. Dutton & Company. p. 116.
    16. "News, Notes and Gossip About Plays and Players". The Boston Globe. Boston, Massachusetts. January 26, 1919. p. 38 – via Newspapers.com.
    17. "Theater Guild is Formed in New York". The Omaha World-Herald. Omaha, Nebraska. February 2, 1919. p. 34 – via Newspapers.com.
    18. "The Lesson of the Washington Square Players Archived 5 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine"
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