A 1916 San Francisco Bombing, A Movie Star
Wrongly convicted, labor leader Tom Mooney is sentenced to hang, then to life in prison. Can James Cagney come to the rescue?
On July 22, 1916, a bomb exploded at a busy San Francisco intersection. Ten deaths and scores of injuries resulted. Labor leader and socialist newspaperman Tom Mooney, his wife and two associates were quickly arrested.
Previously suspected as a dynamiter, Mooney was railroaded to a swift conviction and sentenced to hang. But did he do it?
What we are talking about — [Thomas Mooney]; [James Cagney]. Free Tom Mooney Cabaret Ball — Civic Auditorium San Francisco Wed. April 26. 8 PM. [San Francisco: Free Tom Mooney united front Conference, 1933]. [1]p. Broadside. 14 x 11 inches. Framed and glazed. 3725563
Within a few years, doubts about Mooney’s presence at the bombing and suspicions of perjured witnesses began to surface. In 1918, Mooney’s sentence was changed to life in prison. Still he was not a free man.
“Free Tom Mooney” movements soon followed. Labor leaders, anarchists such as Emma Goldman (of “huddled masses yearning to breathe free”-fame), and liberal politicians campaigned for Mooney’s release.
The years dragged on. In 1933, after 16 years in prison, Mooney attracted a new supporter — actor James Cagney.
Here is a poster or broadside for a “Cabaret Ball” to be held on April 26, 1933. The ball was sponsored by the “Free Tom Mooney united front Conference.” Held at San Francisco’s Civic Auditorium, the program featured Cyrus Trobbe’s Orchestra with soloist Max Dolin and “Hollywood’s Greatest Stars in Person[,] Famous Artists in 12 Great Acts of Radio & Stage[,] James Cagney Master of Ceremonies.”
The broadside shows a somber Mooney in his drab prison uniform. Cagney’s portrait, on the other hand, appears to be a well-composed studio publicity shot. Fame and celebrity to the rescue — admission 50 cents. Much more expensive than a movie, but it was for a good cause and one got to see the Hollywood stars in person.
The broadside is undated, but the date “Wed. April 26” is the key to providing the year. Wednesday, April 26, 1922 is too early and Wednesday, April 26, 1939 is too late. The broadside was printed in San Francisco by union labor — Amalgamated Lithographers of America, Local 17.
James or “Jimmy” Cagney was an unknown in 1922. In 1933, Cagney’s Hollywood star was on the rise. His 1931 film Public Enemy (in which he famously played a gangster who smashed a grapefruit into the face of his wife) propelled him to fame. Now a major film star, he was able to lend his very public assistance to the unjustly imprisoned Tom Mooney.
Eventually, on January 7, 1939, Tom Mooney was pardoned by the Governor of California. The 22 years he spent in prison had taken their toll. He died just a few years later.
Mooney’s funeral was held at the Civic Auditorium, the same venue seen on this broadside where James Cagney and his Hollywood pals had performed for Mooney’s release.
Refs. Finding Aid to the Thomas J. Mooney Papers, 1887–1949, bulk 1930–1942 accessed online September 2015. “Throngs Hail Tom Mooney Upon Release from Prison” within Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, January 9, 1939.
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