Toby Tent shows

The Toby Tent shows came to Osceola in the summertime. A big tent was put up on the vacant lot on the northwest corner of the square.

“Tobias T. Tolliver” was a man who wasn’t particularly bright, but good-natured. He wore bib overalls, red wig and silly hat. He painted on huge freckles, clown mouth and peaked eyebrows to become the best rube around.

His cornball antics delighted hundreds of thousands of Mid-westerners for more than 40 years.

“Susie B. Sharp” was a gal with the same huge freckles who, with Tobias, brought live theater to small town audiences. Their act was very popular when tent shows prevailed. The players usually performed for a week per town with a variety of comedies.

The company traveled in a caravan of trucks and carried a tent that could seat 1,100. If needed, they could add 500 more seats.

The tent company played in opera houses in the winter. They were on the road 15 weeks each summer and later made yearly appearances at the Iowa State Fair.

The tent shows prevailed 143 years. The tent theater company lowered the curtain in 1998 at an auction that drew approximately 500 people. Auctioned off were the trucks, chairs, costumes and the big tent itself.