This rare United States Phonograph Company four-panel flyer advertises selections from Sousa’s comic opera, The Bride-Elect, in this case played not by Sousa’s band, but by Edward Issler’s. The flyer most likely dates to 1898. The Bride-Elect opened at the Knickerbocker Theatre (New York) on April 11, 1898, closed in June after 64 performances, then had a brief return engagement at the Harlem Opera House in October of that year.
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The flyer is from Bill Bryant’s archive, which also includes a complete 32-page United States Phonograph Company cylinder catalog and related materials. We’ll be scanning and posting the full catalog on the Mainspring Press website later this month, as part of our new American Cylinder Record Project.
