The Great Sam Jones Lectures: delivered by Denton C. Crowl

              The Great SamJones Lectures

Figure

delivered by Denton C. Crowl


THIS MAN DELIVERS THE SAM JONES LECTURES WITH ALL THEIR ORIGINAL MAGIC AND BEAUTY
But Oh for the touch of a vanished hand, And the sound of a voice that is still.

HIS name is DENTON C. CROWL.  With the exclusive permission and endorsement of the late Sam P. Jones he delivers the same lectures that Sam Jones made famous all over the world.  In delivering the Sam Jones lectures Mr. Crowl uses the same walk, voice, gesture, thought and expression that Sam Jones used, and he draws from his audiences the approval and interest which only a magnetic speaker can claim.

Notwithstanding the faithfulness of his reproduction of the Sam Jones Lectures Mr. Crowl is not an imitator.  He is much more.  Father Vaughan called him a portrayalist, but even this word does not adequately describe his work.  Perhaps Mr. Crowl's own words come closer to expressing the thing right.

Mr. Crowl says: My mission is to deliver the Sam Jones Message to people who have never had the good fortune to hear him, and also to those people, who, when Sam Jones died, thought that they had heard his uplifting sentences for the last time.  Whatever talent I may have for talking and speaking just as Sam Jones did, I consider as secondary.  The most important feature about my work is that it enables so many to hear these lectures who otherwise would have missed them entirely.  You know, these lectures are by their very nature intended to be spoken and not read.

Whatever Mr. Crowl's work is—it is successful.

His work is not new because he has been engaged in it for several years with constantly increasing success, but it is original because he is the only person engaged in this work, or in anything remotely resembling it.

Mr. Crowl came before the public in the fulfillment of a purpose conceived some time before the death of Sam Jones and planned with the sanction and approval of the celebrated evangelist.  Witness this letter:

Casterville Go.  July 8(th) 1903
To the Public
Mr DC Crowl of Urbana Ohio visited me at my home and I found him a nice gentleman & gave him permition to use on the platform any productions of mine & he is the only one I have given such permission -
very truly
Sam P. Jones
The jokes of Sam Jones, his stories and the hundreds of little incidents with which his lectures were interspersed can never grow old.  They are human documents, forever interesting, and because of the genius of Denton Crowl they have been kept alive.  So long as Denton Crowl lectures we will have Sam Jones with us, in voice, in walk, in expression and gesture—the same old Sam.

Senator Bob Taylor and Mr. M. J. Maxwell, two men who knew Sam Jones well, have this to say about Crowl's work:

Copy of Original Letter from Senator (former Governor) Bob Taylor of Tennessee.

DENTON C. CROWL:

I heard your portrayal of Sam Jones with mingled pleasure and sadness.  I enjoyed the sweet humor running through it like a stream, and the Philosophy of Life that blossomed in every sentence.  You brought the great Evangelist back to earth, and I saw him again and heard him deliver his message to the world.

It touched me.  It was beautiful.

Yours truly,
ROBT. L. TAYLOR.

Of all men who ought to be competent to judge Mr. Crowl's ability to portray Sam Jones, certainly the old musical director of Sam Jones ought to be that man.

Read the following by M. J. Maxwell who was with Mr. Jones off and on for more than a score of years:

It would be impossible for anyone to believe but that it was Sam doing the talking.




The stars which send down their rays to a sin-cursed world tonight, are the same that shone upon the plains of Asia, Africa and Europe when the Chaldean wondered and worshipped, when the lost white race was rearing cities in the interior of Ethiopia, and when the barbarians of the North were sharpening their swords and spears to smite the decadent Roman and Greek.

The radiance of the stars is ever-lasting; the source of their glory undiminished and never-failing.  So it is with the creative intellect; the physical strength which is its necessary adjunct may be exhausted, but the mind itself never tires.  'Nature's sweet restorer, balmy sleep,' is all the medicine such a brain ever needs.  The late Rev. Sam P. Jones was one of the few men endowed with that kind of star-like genius.  You could no more empty the mind of such a man than you could shut off the flow of the Indian Spring; or put out the fires that feed the stars.

The above description of the mind of the master platformist was written by Hon. Thomas E. Watson of Georgia and it, in a measure, explains why the thought and sayings of Sam Jones are almost as virile today as they were when he spoke them.

Read this clipping from the Battle Creek Press, published at Battle Creek, Mich.



A FINE ENTERTAINMENT
Denton C. Crowl Pleases Large Audience With Rendering of Sam Jones' Lecture

Denton C. Crowl, who delivered one of Sam P. Jones' lectures at the Battle Creek opera house last Saturday evening, fully lived up to his press reputation.  He has a magnificent voice, an easy appearance and a personal magnetism that makes him complete master of an audience.

Mr. Crowl chose for presentation here the lecture on Philosophy, Facts and Fun.  The subject gave ample scope to the Jones wit and humor and keen understanding of human nature.  It is a laugh maker from start to finish, but is also beautifully enriched with a profound sympathy for struggling humanity and a dramatic portrayal of the tragedies of life.  During the hour and a half of his talk the speaker was the great evangelist himself.  Beyond the perfect imitation of voice and manner, he gave to the audience a true conception of the broad mind and large spirit that made Sam Jones a great man.

Mr. Crowl is doing more than entertaining people.  He is giving them mental and moral stimulation and is a good type of speaker for lyceum bureaus to present to the public.



The NEWTON COMPANY
N. E. CORNER SHERIDAN AVE. AND YELLOWSTONE PARK ENTRANCE
GENERAL MERCHANDISE
It's not so much what you pay as what you get for what you pay
N
QUALITY

We sell only merchandise of character and integrity, guaranteeing complete satisfaction or your money back without quarrel, quibble or question.

Cody, Wyo., Oct. 25, 1910.

The Midland Lyceum Bureau, Des Moines, Iowa.  Gentlemen:-

You will find enclosed check for $2.40 to pay freight on printing as per agreement.

Denton C. Crowl has come and gone.  I thought you foolish to open your course with a young kid single handed, but I must say he is a giant, big enough and brainy enough to handle his own stuff if he so chose.  I wish we had a return date.  He is not a coming man.  He has arrived.

Yours truly,
The Cody Entertainment Bureau.

LLNewton
It may be of interest to mention that Cody is the place to outfit for hunting, fishing or the Yellowstone National Park.  Here you will find true western hospitality, the finest scenery, competent guides, good grub and the best outing anyone ever had.  If we can be of any service to you please command us.  In writing please give street address.