Finding aid for the Wayne and Bette Morse collection on the Kenley Players

History of the Kenley Players

Stage performer and producer John Kenley was renowned for bringing large Broadway shows to small towns throughout the Midwest. Between 1940 and 1995, his Kenley Players performed over 500 plays across Ohio and Pennsylvania. The Kenley Players began performing at Dayton's Memorial Hall in 1957 and returned from 1966 through 1983, eventually presenting their final season in 1995. Performances often included famous television and film actors, with Dayton shows hosting figures such as Mickey Rooney, Ed Ames, Burt Reynolds, Florence Henderson, and Betty White. Kenley was 103 years old when he died in Cleveland, Ohio on October 23, 2009. As a local television talk show host, Bette Rogge Morse interviewed many of the performers who came to Dayton for Kenley Players productions. Wayne Morse's advertising firm, Morse/Stotter/Plummer (later Morse, Stotter & Associates), handled advertising for the Kenley Players.

Scope and Content

The Wayne and Bette Morse collection on the Kenley Players includes a wide range of materials related to the theater company's operations and performances at Memorial Hall in Dayton, Ohio. Included are programs and playbills, correspondence, agency documents, advertisements, flyers, and black-and-white photographs and head shots. The collection fills four boxes.

Statement of Arrangement

Copyright

The materials in this collection may be protected by copyright law (Title 17, U.S. Code). The materials are available for personal, educational, and scholarly use. It is the responsibility of the researcher to locate and obtain permission from the copyright owner or his or her heirs for any other use, such as reproduction and publication.

Restrictions on Access

The materials in this collection are open and accessible to the public for use in the University Archives and Special Collections reading room.

Bette Rogge Morse papers. University Archives and Special Collections, University of Dayton Libraries, Dayton, Ohio.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

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Preferred Citation

[Item title]. Wayne and Bette Morse collection on the Kenley Players, 1966-1995. University Archives and Special Collections, University of Dayton Libraries, Dayton, Ohio.

Acquisition Information

Wayne H. and Bette Rogge Morse donated this collection on the Kenley Players on December 12, 2002.

Processing Information

This collection was processed by David Brownell in 2011.

Detailed Description of The Collection