Danceland Ballroom

When Danceland opened its doors for the first time Aug. 31, 1926, on the second floor of a building at the corner of Third Street and A Avenue, manager Frank Brookhiser had booked Clark's Orchestra.

The original building was a two-story garage. Massive exterior steel girders and some interior columns were part of the building's construction. The small number of columns made it easier to make an open dancing space. The dance floor accommodated 800 couples comfortably.

Architect Mark Anthony had designed the venue to look similar to a Spanish villa. Above the entrance was a large steel canopy, and double doors painted red opened to a 10-foot-wide stairway. The entry had textured plaster walls and a beamed ceiling with polychrome decorations.

The main lounge represented a large room in a Spanish manor. The floor was covered in red tile linoleum, and the windows were draped with hangings with a heraldic shield pattern. It was furnished with wicker furniture in contrasting colors. Access to a check room, women's lounge and dressing rooms and a refreshment booth were accessible from this room.

The entrance to the dance hall was through four arched portals supported by columns. It mimicked the effect of stepping from a villa to a patio. Overhead, through the beams, was a blue Mediterranean sky dotted with twinkling stars. Installed on the beams were hundreds of amber colored electric lights. Wrought-iron sconces decorated the walls. The outer wall had windows covered with striped Spanish awnings and wrought-iron railings.

A music shell was constructed at the end of the ballroom with three arches forming the shell opening. These arches were necessary because the steel girders were not removable. At either side of the shell was a balcony with iron railings and circular windows disguising a ventilation system that pushed air through at 35 mph to keep dancers comfortable. Doorways on each side led to an additional lounge and a smoking room. Behind those was an orchestra room for the entertainers. In the center of the maple dance floor were two columns supporting the ceiling.

In the fall of 1933, the ballroom was remodeled to include a Spanish tavern along the north wall and a new ventilation system.

W.H. Wenkstern purchased Danceland from Brookhiser in 1939 and remodeled it extensively. Wenkstern, known affectionately as "Wink," followed in the footsteps of his young clientele and reported for duty in the Army in November 1942.

The ballroom was a destination for many famous performers. On Dec. 23, 1943, Duke Ellington and his orchestra played. The "trumpet king of swing," Louis "Satchmo" Armstrong, and his orchestra played April 30, 1944. On May 3, 1944, Marva (Mrs. Joe) Louis performed with Nat Towles and his orchestra. The former Marva Trotter was a featured nightclub singer. On May 9, 1944, bandleader and composer Tiny Hill stopped at Danceland on his way to Hollywood. William "Count" Basie and his orchestra played April 9, 1945.

In 1955, one of the most popular events was over-28 night. Fridays featured Western music and Saturdays modern music.

Artist Gunnar Dahlstrom of Minneapolis painted a large 8-by-30-foot mural of an Iowa farm scene in the lobby as part of a major remodel in 1956. The ballroom featured figures of dancing girls and boys on the rose walls. Yellow acoustic tile dotted with small circular light fixtures covered the ceiling. Stage and spotlights were modernized. The stairway featured designs in charcoal and white of musicians playing their instruments. Manager Don Wachal signed two bands for the opening of the newly remodeled ballroom April 4: Lou Deklotz and Gibby Gibson. Two days later Porter Wagoner and His Trio shared the stage with Kenny Hofer's Midwesterners.

The 1950s saw a collaboration with KCRG-TV9. A program called "Danceland Bandstand," patterned after Dick Clark's famous national program, invited teenagers to "do the stroll." The dance was scheduled from 2 to 5 p.m. Sundays with a telecast by KCRG-TV9 from 3 to 4 p.m.

An all-star show was featured in 1958. Johnny Cash, Wanda Jackson, Bobby Helms, Don Gibson and The Golden Hawks band performed first at Memorial Coliseum and then performed an encore at Danceland.

In 1959, the Winter Dance Party tour with Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. "Big Bopper" Richardson was scheduled to perform at Danceland on Feb. 6. Frankie Avalon and Jimmy Clanton were added to the lineup with the Crickets, Dion and the Belmonts and Frankie Sardo after Holly, Richardson and Valens were killed Feb. 2 in a plane crash on the way from Mason City to Moorhead, Minn.

Bobby Vee sang "Devil or Angel" in two performances in October 1960. Conway Twitty and The Velaires took the stage on separate days of the same weekend in November 1961. Bobby Sherman and Brenda Lee found their way to the ballroom in 1965.

Danceland's farewell party was March 17, 1968. The Pete Klint Quintet played from 2 to 5 p.m., and then the ballroom closed its doors. The city took over the building as part of its urban renewal project. Today its footprint sits under the U.S. Cellular Center.

Danceland history

Danceland sat on top of a bowling alley and bar for most of its existence at 124 Third St. NE.

In 1937, Red Crown Recreation was advertising its "New 20th Century Brunswick Alleys" with pinsetters always available. A restaurant and lounge were scheduled to be completed in early 1938. By 1946, the alleys were called the Bowlium, and the lounge was called the Gold Room. W.H. Wenkstern bought the Bowlium in 1953, leased it to Jack O'Brien and remodeling began. The lounge's new name was The Tropic, and the alleys became Tropic Lanes. Wenkstern leased the lower level of the building from the city for two more years after Danceland closed.

The exterior of Tropic Lanes/Danceland. The ballroom closed its doors in 1968. The Gazette archive photos

Two interior views of the Danceland Ballroom, 124 Third St. NE, circa late '50s. A poster advertises the 36th anniversary of Danceland, a longtime teen hangout in Cedar Rapids.