The Heritage Center: Springfield’s legendary Gus Sun

Springfield has a rich entertainment past that began with Black’s Opera House at Fountain and Main, which opened February 4, 1869 and the later the Grand Opera House. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE CLARK COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Credit: HANDOUT

Credit: HANDOUT

Springfield has a rich entertainment past that began with Black’s Opera House at Fountain and Main, which opened February 4, 1869 and the later the Grand Opera House. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE CLARK COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Springfield has a rich entertainment past that began with the opening of Black’s Opera House at Fountain and Main, on February 4, 1869.

Later the Grand Opera House opened on Limestone and drew acts from around the country.

Toledo native Gus Sun, a veteran of the vaudeville and medicine show circuit, came to Springfield in 1904 and took the city by storm.

In 1906, he started The Gus Sun Booking Agency and was soon booking people who would become famous headliners who earned their stripes on “Gus Sun Time.”

At the Heritage Center, you can watch a film to learn more about the history of Springfield and its entertainment legacy.

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