Category: Fine Arts and Literature

MAY SHOW

The MAY SHOW is an annual juried exhibition of the works of northeast Ohio artists sponsored every spring by the CLEVELAND MUSEUM OF ART. The first Annual Exposition of Cleveland Artists & Craftsmen, as the show was called before it earned the popular nickname "May Show," took place in 1919.

MCCONNELL, FREDERIC

MCCONNELL, FREDERIC (18 Sept. 1890-10 Aug. 1968) transformed the CLEVELAND PLAY HOUSE from an amateur company into the nation's oldest resident professional theater during his 37 years as its managing director. A native of Omaha, Neb., McConnell earned a law degree from the Univ.

MCCOY, SETH THEODORE

McCOY, SETH THEODORE (17 Dec. 1928 - 22 Jan. 1997) worked his way from a Cleveland Post Office employee to become the country's leading oratorio tenor. Born in Sanford, N.C., he was the son of Pauline and Seth Theodore McCoy. He studied at Greensboro Agricultural and Technical College and toured with the Jubilee Singers before seeing service with the U.S. Army in the KOREAN WAR.

MCDERMOTT, WILLIAM F.

MCDERMOTT, WILLIAM F. (17 Feb. 1891-16 Nov. 1958), drama critic for nearly 40 years, was born in Indianapolis, Ind., to John and Elizabeth (McCarthy) McDermott. He attended Butler College, and began a newspaper career on the Indianapolis News in 1914 and in 3 years became its drama critic.

MCLAUGHLIN, ROBERT H.

MCLAUGHLIN, ROBERT H. (16 Nov. 1877-16 Jan. 1939) dominated the legitimate stage in Cleveland as a playwright and theatrical manager from 1912-32. Born in St. Petersburgh, Pa., he was raised in Fostoria, O. After studying at Ohio State Univ. and Rush Medical College in Chicago, he became editor of the News-Democrat in Canton, O.

MCVEY, WILLIAM MOZART

MCVEY, WILLIAM MOZART (12 July 1905-31 May 1995) became Cleveland's most visible artist largely through his numerous local commissions for public sculpture. He was born in Boston, Mass., the son of Silas and Cornelia Mozart McVey, who brought him to Cleveland in 1919.

METROPOLITAN THEATER

The METROPOLITAN THEATER, on Euclid Ave. at E. 49th St., opened 31 Mar. 1913 with a performance of Aida, the first production in an 8-week season of opera in English.

MILLER, MILDRED

MILLER, MILDRED (16 Dec. 1924–29 Nov. 2023) was a prominent mezzo-soprano with New York’s Metropolitan Opera Co.

MILLIKEN, WILLIAM M.

MILLIKEN, WILLIAM M. (1889-14 Mar. 1978), second director of the CLEVELAND MUSEUM OF ART, was born in Stamford, Conn., to Thomas Kennedy and Mary S. Mathewson Milliken. He graduated from Princeton University (1911), and was assistant curator of the Dept. of Decorative Art in New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art before serving in the U.S.

MIMS, A. GRACE LEE

MIMS, A. GRACE LEE (17 July 17 1930 – 3 October 2019) was an educator, a musician, and an advocate for African-American culture.  She was born in Snow Hill, Alabama, to Arnold Wadsworth and Alberta Grace (Edwards) Lee.  Hers was a musical family. Her father, a band director, played the cornet; her mother was a classically trained pianist.  In the 1970s, A.

MIZER, CONRAD

MIZER, CONRAD (12 Jan. 1857-28 May 1904) was a tailor whose chief contribution to Cleveland was his promotion of summer band concerts in public parks. Mizer asked the city for $5,000 to finance a season of music, and met with resistance not only from the city, but also from ministers who wished to keep the Sabbath free from nonreligious activities.

MLAKAR, FRANK

MLAKAR, FRANK (May 15 1913-1967) a Slovenian-American author, was born in Cleveland, Ohio to SLOVENE parents. His parents had arrived separately to Cleveland in 1907, and married in 1910.

MOELLMAN, CARL FREDERICK

MOELLMAN, CARL FREDERICK (19 Aug. 1879-3 July 1950) combined an artistic temperament with business acumen to become one of the area's foremost lithographers. Born in Cincinnati, he was the son of Charles and Mary Frey Moellman. His father was associated with the U.S. Lithograph and Playing Card Co., headed by an uncle, John H. Frey.

MONUMENTS

MONUMENTS. What a city may think of itself is expressed, in large part, by the monuments it chooses to build. The emphasis, the mix of subject matter, the recurrence of themes establish a mood and convey a message to those who reside there and those who visit, and give a city its character.

MORGAN LITHOGRAPH COMPANY

The MORGAN LITHOGRAPH COMPANY was established by William J. Morgan (1838-1904) and his younger brother, George W. (1843-1905) in 1864. The Morgan brothers' parents emigrated from Wales in 1842, first settling in Pittsburgh before arriving in Cleveland in 1854. Both brothers were veterans of the Civil War, during which William served as a captain in the CLEVELAND GRAYS.

MORRISON, TONI

MORRISON, TONI (18th Feb. 1931 - 5th Aug. 2019) was a renowned and award-winning American author and professor. Morrison wrote extensively about the plight of African Americans and Black people, focusing on the Black female experience. 

Morrison was born Chloe Anthony Wofford on February 18th, 1931 in Lorain, Ohio, to George and Ramah Willis Wofford. Morrison was the second youngest of four siblings. 

MOSES CLEAVELAND STATUE

The MOSES CLEAVELAND STATUE, erected in 1888 in honor of the 92nd birthday of the city's founding, dominates the southwest quadrant of PUBLIC SQUARE. Erected at a cost of $4,378 by the EARLY SETTLERS ASSN.

MURAL ART IN CLEVELAND

MURAL ART IN CLEVELAND. Throughout most of the 20th century public art in the popular mind meant murals. After 1890 literally hundreds of murals were created for Cleveland's public buildings and businesses.

MURRAY, J. D. BAIN

MURRAY, J. D. BAIN (26 Dec. 1926-16 Jan. 1993) was a composer, music critic and professor of music at CLEVELAND STATE UNIVERSITY. Born in Evanston, Illinois, son of Donald Bain and Frances Lewis (Langworthy) Murray, he graduated from North Shore County Day School in Winnetka, Illinois in 1945.

MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART CLEVELAND (MOCA)

The MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART (MOCA) in Cleveland is a non-collecting, non-profit institution founded in 1968. Originally opening in a small storefront in UNIVERSITY CIRCLE, it has become one of the city's most recognizable arts organizations. In 2012 MOCA moved to the intersection of EUCLID AVENUE and Mayfield Road.

MUSIC

MUSIC. Music in Cleveland can date its present eminence from the first decades of the 20th century. By that time, population growth and business success had reached a plateau from which could emerge significant cultural events.

MUSIC SETTLEMENT

The MUSIC SETTLEMENT  (incorporated April 25, 1912 as the Cleveland Music School Settlement) began with fifty pupils, and was designed to provide free or inexpensive musical training for the children and wage earners of Cleveland's newly arriving immigrant population.

MUSICAL ARTS ASSN.

The MUSICAL ARTS ASSN., operating the CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA, Blossom Music Ctr., and SEVERANCE HALL, has existed since 1915 as an association to support music in the community.

NEW DAY PRESS

NEW DAY PRESS was a nonprofit publishing company committed to eliminating racial stereotypes and historical distortions by publishing new literature for black schoolchildren that presented the story of AFRICAN AMERICANS in American history with dignity and from an African American perspective.

NEW ORGANIZATION FOR THE VISUAL ARTS (NOVA)

The NEW ORGANIZATION FOR THE VISUAL ARTS (NOVA) was created in 1972 as an incorporated nonprofit professional organization dedicated to the promotion and development of the arts and ARCHITECTURE in the Cleveland area.