Comments from kmason

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kmason
kmason commented about South Station Theatre on Jun 24, 2008 at 11:21 am

My mother Lorraine Hebert Gaspa met her future husband George while she was working for the theatre. They both lived in Cambridge, Ma across the street from each other. This is where my mother met my dad. My dad George T. Gaspa past away on January 25th, 2005 at the age of 83.

kmason
kmason commented about South Station Theatre on Mar 2, 2008 at 2:06 pm

I am writing for my mother Lorraine Gaspa who is 85 years old. She used to work at the South Station Theatre in Boston, MA. She lived in Cambridge, MA and traveled there at the age of 19. At the time she worked she was hired as an usherette. She was called the Head Usherette. She was the only usherette at the time she was hired. All the other ushers there were boys. She cannot recall how many ushers there were in all.

When she started working she recalls having four different jobs that she would do:

1) My mom would sell tickets at a ticket booth at the back entrance of the theatre. My mom remembers two entrances to get into this theatre, and two tickets booths. The first ticket booth and entrance was located right outside of the theatre inside South Station. The second ticket booth and entrance was located at the back of the theatre which was off the street.

2) My mom showed people to their seats using a flashlight.

3) My mom walked around in South Station and gave out pamphlets advertising what was happening at the theatre in South Station.

4) When my mom first started her job she wore her own skirt from home and a uniform top that they provided. She had to climb on a ladder and change the sign. This sign was attached to the outside of the theatre. She remembers placing posters inside the sign of what was happening at the South Station Theatre. Some of the older men would hold the ladder for my mom and at the same time look up her skirt. My mom’s boss saw this and had a tailor come and he measured my mother for a pair of uniform theatre pants. She was now dressed like all the other ushers in pants!

This is a photograph of my mother in her South Station Theater uniform at age 19.

Note: My mother Lorraine Hebert Gaspa became engaged to George T. Gaspa while working at the South Station Theatre in Boston, MA and married on 2-21-1943.