Hudson's Thespian Mayors

Last month, on a slow news day, Gossips reported finding an article that appeared in the Columbia Republican on February 9, 1915, about Richard A. Brandon, former mayor of Hudson, who was appearing at the Eltinge Theatre in New York City, in a play called A Man About Town. Checking the list of mayors at City Hall, to find out exactly when Brandon had been the mayor, it was discovered that there had never been a mayor of Hudson named Brandon. The Columbia Republican recounted how Brandon had been recruited to run for mayor in 1896, but from January 1897, when he would have taken office, through April 1899, the mayor of Hudson was Richard A. M. Deeley not Richard A. Brandon.

Columbia County at the End of the Century tells that Richard Arthur Measom Deeley, sometime mayor of Hudson, was born in England, of American parents, in 1861. He was educated in Brussels and "thoroughly mastered the science of brewing in Europe." He came to Hudson, by way of Philadelphia, in 1888 to be the superintendent of the "well known brewing firm of C. H. Evans & Sons." City of Hudson historian, Pat Fenoff provided the clue that connects Deeley and Brandon: Richard A. M. Deeley, in addition to being a brewer and a mayor, was an actor. Can we surmise then that, in his fifties, Deeley took the stage name Brandon to pursue a new career in the theater?

Satisfying our curiosity about the Eltinge Theatre, where Brandon performed, proved more fruitful. The theater, on 42nd Street, was built in 1912. It was designed by Thomas W. Lamb, and it was named for Julian Eltinge, "the top female impersonator of the American stage."

Photo: New York Public Library

Eltinge's Theatre started out as a legitimate theater specializing in light comedies. During the Great Depression, the building was sold and converted into a burlesque theater. In 1942, it became a movie theater, and in 1954, it was renamed the Empire Theatre. In the mid-1980s, the theater was closed and abandoned.

In 1998, the 7.4 million pound historic theater was lifted off its foundation and moved 168 feet to become the western entrance of a giant entertainment complex. The entire interior of the theater is now the lobby and lounge of the 25-screen AMC Empire 25.

The year 1998 provides the segue to Hudson's other thespian mayor, Kenneth G. Cranna, whose acting career, which preceded his term as mayor (2000-2001), flourished in 1997 and 1998. Using the screen name Kenny Cranna, he appeared, in 1997, in a Season 7 episode of Law & Order called "Double Down." His character was Number Four in a police lineup, and he delivered the line: "Move your damn truck, and I'll park somewhere else."

Cranna also appeared in two independent films: Illuminata (1998), directed by John Turturro, in which his role is described as "Scruffy man," and O.K. Garage (1998), starring John Turturro, where he plays "Yuppie #1."
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