By Michael Paul Mihaljevich -- Coming Fall 2024
From University of North Texas Press
Preorder ahead of the October release
The Bird Cage Theater: The Curtain Rises on Tombstone, Arizona's National Treasure
Tombstone, Arizona is forever associated with Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, Doc Holliday, and the legendary ‘OK Corral’ gunfight that made it a cultural symbol of the old west. The town’s most iconic and storied original building is the Bird Cage Theater — a stunning example of 19th century variety theaters that were a staple in entertainment around the globe. The modest interior that was once filled with orchestra music, cigar smoke, laughter and whistles, cheers and jeers is now an empty canvas for the echoes of the past and irresistible imaginations.
For over 130 years the building has stood in silence holding many secrets to its past. In recent decades its history has been fabricated from modern myth, romantic fiction and pure fantasy. Such oral histories have had the ironic effect of distancing people from the truth while obscuring the building’s real value and intrigue…until now.
Utilizing many newly discovered period documents and resources, historical researcher and author Michael Paul Mihaljevich has pieced together the real story of the Bird Cage. This highly detailed account helps shed the myths and establish vivid truth — a truth that is more compelling than the legend. These truths not only help set the record straight on Tombstone’s most significant original building, but it helps firmly establish the Bird Cage as a national treasure for representing an era of the country’s expansion and the world’s entertainment industry that are forever gone. The story of how it came to be, how it was operated, and the people who made it an icon have waited for their story to be told for over a century, and that day is finally here.
WHAT FIELD EXPERTS ARE SAYING...
"With this book, Michael Mihaljevich has given fans of Tombstone history and students of the era of variety shows and theaters a book chock-full of materials previously uncollected. The documented facts, real-life stories, and general Tombstone history, along with the exploding of myths and legends, put this book in the realm of one-of-a-kind. This book will delight every reader.
–Roy B. Young, editor of the Journal of the Wild West History Association and the author of James Cooksey Earp and Cochise County Cowboy War
“This is more than a book about one theater; it is a book that touches on the history of variety theaters in the West. I have never seen anything like it. It opens up a new area of study, and one I found fascinating.”
—Casey Tefertiller, author of Wyatt Earp: The Life behind the Legend and coeditor of A Wyatt Earp Anthology
"Michael Mihaljevich is one of a handful of historians whose knowledge I trust without pause or skepticism. The Bird Cage Theatre, his debut book, is now a physical manifestation of his expertise in the field of Western history. Not only does the famous theatre in Tombstone get its long overdue biography, but the world may now know the genius that is Michael Mihaljevich."
—Erik Wright, assistant editor for The Tombstone Epitaph and contributing editor for True West Magazine
“Mihaljevich not only lifts the curtain on the iconic Bird Cage, he takes the reader behind the scenes in this thorough examination of the building’s history and the role it played in facilitating entertainment in Tombstone. Mike’s remarkable research finally allows the truth to shine and take center-stage. It's destined to become a classic.”
–Peter Brand, author of Wyatt Earp’s Vendetta Posse Rider: The Story of Texas Jack Vermillion
“A book to behold...bound for the kingdom of best sellers."
–Mark Warren, author of the award-winning trilogy, Wyatt Earp, An American Odyssey
“The Bird Cage Theater is meticulously researched and rich in details of both the Bird Cage and other historic venues in Tombstone. It also brings to light information about the sequential owners/operators throughout the Bird Cage’s history. Mihaljevich adds significantly to the body of knowledge, not only of its subject, the Bird Cage, but also about the town of Tombstone.”
—Paul Johnson, author of The McLaurys in Tombstone, Arizona
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