The Lofty and Exalted Order of Uplifters or simply The Uplifters is an invitation-only social club at the

Los Angeles Athletic Club Los Angeles Athletic Club (LAAC) is a privately owned Sports club, athletic club and social club in Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles, California, United States. Established in 1880, the club is today best known for its John R. Wooden Award pr ...

founded by Harry Marston Haldeman in 1913. The club is still in existence today. Mugshot_of_Marco_H

Haldeman, originally from Chicago, was a plumbing magnate and grandfather of Watergate conspirator, H.R. Haldeman. Upon his arrival in Los Angeles, he sought to create a men's club similar to his Chicago club, The Bugs . Its membership included Marco H. Hellman, Sim W. Crabill, Ralph Hamlin, Herman Paine, Sr., Ernest R. Ball,

Byron Gay Byron Sturges Gay (August 28, 1886 – December 22, 1945) was an American songwriter. One of his best-known songs "Four or Five Times" (co–written with Marco H. Hellman) has been recorded by numerous artists including King Oliver, Sidney Bechet, ...

, Will Rogers,

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

Spencer Tracy Spencer Bonaventure Tracy (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was an American actor. He was known for his natural performing style and versatility. One of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, Tracy was the first actor to win two cons ...

Clark Gable William Clark Gable (February 1, 1901November 16, 1960) was an American film actor, often referred to as "The King of Hollywood". He had roles in more than 60 motion pictures in multiple genres during a career that lasted 37 years, three decades ...

Busby Berkeley Busby Berkeley (born Berkeley William Enos; November 29, 1895 – March 14, 1976) was an American film director and musical choreographer. Berkeley devised elaborate musical production numbers that often involved complex geometric patterns. Berke ...

Leo Carrillo Leopoldo Antonio Carrillo (; August 6, 1880 – September 10, 1961), known professionally as Leo Carrillo, was an American actor, vaudevillian, political cartoonist, and conservationist. He was best known for playing Pancho in the television ...

Harold Lloyd Harold Clayton Lloyd, Sr. (April 20, 1893 – March 8, 1971) was an American actor, comedian, and stunt performer who appeared in many silent comedy films.Obituary '' Variety'', March 10, 1971, page 55. One of the most influential film c ...

Darryl F. Zanuck Darryl Francis Zanuck (September 5, 1902December 22, 1979) was an American film producer and studio executive; he earlier contributed stories for films starting in the silent era. He played a major part in the Hollywood studio system as one of ...

, Ferde Grofé,

Eugene Biscailuz Eugene W. Biscailuz (March 12, 1883 – May 16, 1969) was an American police officer. He organized the California Highway Patrol, and later became the 27th Sheriff of Los Angeles County, California, serving in that capacity for 26 years, ...

, Hays Rice, Clarence R. Rundel,

Sol Lesser Sol Lesser (February 17, 1890 – September 19, 1980) was an American film producer. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960 and was awarded the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1961. Biography In 1913, while living in San F ...

, Louis F. Gottschalk, and

L. Frank Baum Lyman Frank Baum (; May 15, 1856 – May 6, 1919) was an American author best known for his children's books, particularly ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' and its sequels. He wrote 14 novels in the ''Oz'' series, plus 41 other novels (not includ ...

. Baum created the group's name, wrote its anthem, "Haldeman," and scripted most of their amateur theatricals until his death, several of which were revived posthumously. In its initial stage, the Uplifters met regularly at The Los Angeles Athletic Club after construction on the 12-story clubhouse finished in 1912. They also held an infamous annual party, called the Hijinx, first in Los Angeles and later in both Lake Arrowhead and Del Mar. The men-only affair featured heavy drinking, the staging of lewd plays and outdoor sports including polo and shooting. Uplifters Clubhouse

Eventually the group moved out of the Los Angeles Athletic Club to avoid the scrutiny of

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcohol ...

, purchasing a ranch in 1920 near what is now

Will Rogers State Historic Park Will Rogers State Historic Park is the former estate of American humorist Will Rogers. It lies in the Santa Monica Mountains in Los Angeles, in the Pacific Palisades area. Geography In what is now the Los Angeles neighborhood of Pacific Palisade ...

. The ranch encompassed 120 acres and included a Spanish Colonial-style clubhouse with tennis courts, a swimming pool, trap shooting range, amphitheater and dormitories. Club members were invited to build their own getaway cottages on land leased from the club, provided they adhere to strict building guidelines. The Uplifters, long dormant, now meets regularly at The Los Angeles Athletic Club. Once an all male group, it is now run by two women. The club continues to uphold their founding motto - "''To Uplift Art and Promote Goodfellowship,"'' - while also promoting a contemporary spirit of inclusivity, and outward-facing engagement with the DTLA community. Contemporary Uplifter meetings follow the same structure and procedures set by the original membership, led by the "Board of Excelsiors" which includes a Grand Muscle (President), Elevator (Vice President), Lord High Raiser (Treasurer) and Royal Hoister (Secretary), positions and titles first devised by Baum himself.

High Jinks (Amateur Theatricals) of L. Frank Baum

These shows continued to be performed well into the 1920s. Their earliest date for performance, if known, is stated below. Lyrics from many of the songs were published in Alla T. Ford's ''The High-Jinks of L. Frank Baum'' (which was available either as a two-page pamphlet (100 copies) or a

miniature book A miniature book is a very small book. Standards for what may be termed a miniature rather than just a small book have changed through time. Today, most collectors consider a book to be miniature only if it is 3 inches or smaller in height, wid ...

(500 copies). The songs included were from the 1938 Silver Anniversary edition of ''The Uplifters' Hymnal''. Also included are the

tongue-in-cheek The idiom tongue-in-cheek refers to a humorous or sarcastic statement expressed in a serious manner. History The phrase originally expressed contempt, but by 1842 had acquired its modern meaning. Early users of the phrase include Sir Walter Scot ...

by-laws A by-law (bye-law, by(e)law, by(e) law), or as it is most commonly known in the United States bylaws, is a set of rules or law established by an organization or community so as to regulate itself, as allowed or provided for by some higher authorit ...

(board executives are the Grand Muscle, the Elevator, the Royal Hoister, the Lord High Raiser, and the Board of Excelsiors), also written by Baum, and a list of every man who attended the first meeting. ''The Uplift of Lucifer'' was published privately in 1963 by Manuel Weltman's Wagon and Star Press, with ''The Corrugated Giant'' and historical information. He sold the books at-cost over concerns of

copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, educatio ...

, and they have since become prized collectibles. The other plays remain, aside from the aforementioned lyrics, unpublished. *''Stagecraft, or, The Adventures of a Strictly Moral Man'' (14 January 1914; Music by Louis F. Gottschalk) *''High Jinks'' (24 October 1914; Music by Louis F. Gottschalk) *''The Corrugated Giant'' (1915) *''The Uplift of Lucifer, or Raising Hell: An Allegorical Squazosh'' (23 October 1915; Music by Louis F. Gottschalk) *''The Birth of the New Year'' (31 December 1915) *''Blackbird Cottages'' (28 October 1916; Music by Louis F. Gottschalk) (

minstrel show The minstrel show, also called minstrelsy, was an American form of racist theatrical entertainment developed in the early 19th century. Each show consisted of comic skits, variety acts, dancing, and music performances that depicted people spec ...

) *''Snow White'' (1916; Composer Unknown) *''The Uplifters' Minstrels'' (1916; Music by Byron Gay) *''The Orpheus Road Show: A Paraphrastic Compendium of Mirth'' (1917; Music by Louis F. Gottschalk) The songs that made it into the ''Hymnal'' are "Never Strike Your Father, Boy" from ''The Orpheus Road Show''; "We're Having a Hell of a Time" from ''The Uplift of Lucifer'', "Susan Doozan," from ''The Uplifters' Minstrels'', and "Apple Pie" (a

song parody Parody music, or musical parody, involves changing or copying existing (usually well known) musical ideas, and/or lyrics, or copying the particular style of a composer or performer, or even a general style of music. In music, parody has been u ...

Current Officers

The Grand Muscle: Jennie Taylor Tucker + Suzanne Zoe Joskowhttp://laac.com/wp-content/uploads/Mercury-2016.pdf The Elevator: Carl Winston Owens II The Royal Hoister: Artem Timofeev + Field James Garthwaite The Lord High Raiser: Christopher André Hooks

Notes

References

*Alla T. Ford. ''The Musical Fantasies of L. Frank Baum''. *Alla T. Ford. ''The High-Jinks of L. Frank Baum''. Chicago: The Wizard Press, 1959 (pamphlet); Hong Kong: Ford Press, 1969 (miniature book). *David L. Greene and Dick Martin. ''The Oz Scrapbook''. *

Michael Patrick Hearn Michael Patrick Hearn is an American literary scholar as well as a man of letters specializing in children's literature and its illustration. His works include ''The Annotated Wizard of Oz'' (1973/2000), '' The Annotated Christmas Carol'' (1977/20 ...

. ''The Annotated Wizard of Oz''. Second Edition. New York:

W.W. Norton W. W. Norton & Company is an American publishing company based in New York City. Established in 1923, it has been owned wholly by its employees since the early 1960s. The company is known for its Norton Anthologies (particularly ''The Norton An ...

, 2000. * Cecilia Rasmussen. "Goofy Goings-On at Honcho Hangout." ''

The Los Angeles Times ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'', June 30, 2002. http://articles.latimes.com/2002/jun/30/local/me-then30 *Finding Aid for the Uplifters Club Records http://cdn.calisphere.org/data/13030/hd/kt6f59q6hd/files/kt6f59q6hd.pdf {{DEFAULTSORT:Uplifters, The Gentlemen's clubs in California Organizations established in 1913 1913 establishments in California