My Brother Could Never Hold a Job (Cont.)
Screen 3 of 3When he went to live in New York City in the year 1929 at the beginning of the Great Depression, jobs were very scarce. But somehow he got a job as an usher in an R.K.O. movie theatre in Manhattan. But could he hold that job? Alas, no--at least not for very long. After just eight months of ushering inside the theatre and acting as a "barker" out front to draw customers he was relieved of both these responsibilities and appointed Chief of Service--whatever that meant--first at the same theatre where he had been working and later for all the R.K.O. (see footnote at bottom of screen) theatres in New York City. He told me at the time that he was in charge of hiring, supervising and firing all the ushers in these theatres. Of course, I believed him but I did wonder how he could tell other ushers what to do and how to do it when he had been able to keep an usher's job himself for only eight months.
Now I don't want to brag, for the purpose of this story was not to talk about myself and what I have accomplished. But just in contrast to what I have told about my brother, I should tell the reader that I kept the job of waterboy on the construction job long after Will Gooch had been relieved of that job!
I must also add that I, too, was an usher in an R.K.O. theatre in New York City in 1933. But unlike my brother, I remained an usher in the same theatre for a long time-- "a faithful usher," my supervisor said several times. He was very anxious to keep me in that position, and he did.
Finally, I must say--not to criticize my brother, Will Gooch, but just to state the facts as they have always been: my brother never could hold a job!
(R. K. O. stood for Radio-Keith-Olbee, a leading company at that time in the movie and vaudeville business.
Chester C. Travelstead, December 8, 1979
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