All About the Iroquois Theater
The Iroquois Theater was located at 24–28 West Randolph Street, on the North Side between State Street and Dearborn Street in Chicago. The syndicate that bankrolled its construction chose the location specifically to attract women on day trips from out of town who, it was thought, would be more comfortable attending a theater located close to the safe, police-patrolled Loop shopping district.
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The Iroquois Theater was open, despite the theater not being completely finished, impatient owners opened the unfinished theater anyway on November 23, 1903 and continued finishing work as the theater operated through the holiday season. On-going painting and varnishing gave off volatile fumes and many of the theater's advertised fire-protection features had yet to be installed.
On December 30th 1903, an over-capacity standing room was filled with 1,900-2,000 people which were mostly mothers and children. Families gathered to see Eddie Foy in the comedy, Mr. Bluebeard. At the beginning of the second act an arc lamp lighting the stage sputtered, which made a single spark ignite a curtain; this made the theatergoers panic and flee back to the doors from which they entered from. You see, the theater was not approved to be open because there were no fire exit signs, or capacity rules. 27 out of the 30 doors throughout the theater were locked, preventing patrons from escaping their deadly fate. The theater should NOT have been open, more than 600 people died because they were trampled by frantic people, and because of the deadly fire, causing newly Established Regulations. And that, is how regulation came to be.
On December 30th 1903, an over-capacity standing room was filled with 1,900-2,000 people which were mostly mothers and children. Families gathered to see Eddie Foy in the comedy, Mr. Bluebeard. At the beginning of the second act an arc lamp lighting the stage sputtered, which made a single spark ignite a curtain; this made the theatergoers panic and flee back to the doors from which they entered from. You see, the theater was not approved to be open because there were no fire exit signs, or capacity rules. 27 out of the 30 doors throughout the theater were locked, preventing patrons from escaping their deadly fate. The theater should NOT have been open, more than 600 people died because they were trampled by frantic people, and because of the deadly fire, causing newly Established Regulations. And that, is how regulation came to be.
"And that, dear Kossacks, is where regulation comes from -- not from some bored bureaucrat sitting in an office in Washington trying to think up ways to make life miserable and expensive for some innocent and unsuspecting businessman, but from real human suffering and tragedy brought about, all too often, by people who shirk what should be obvious responsibilities, who neglect basic diligence, who sacrifice safety for profit. They bring suffering on those who trust them and their products, and society adopts measures to make sure it never happens again. We have to force them, through regulation, to behave as they should have been behaving all along. That's how Regulations come to be."
-- dsteffen fellow Daily KOS member 2/22/09