T-Bone Walker - Plamor Club, Wichita, Kansas, May 1950

Back in the Fifties... It was 73 years ago on May 14th, 1950 that the Great T-Bone Walker played for one night at the Plamor Club in Wichita. Most old Wichita, Kansas posters such as this one were thrown away not long after the shows, so hunting them today is a fun hobby. This poster was designed and printed by Woolever Press out of Los Angeles, California.... AND, you just don’t see a lot of T-Bone Walker boxing-style concert posters because not a lot were saved during the 1940s-1950s. Hoarders and collectors didn’t start to save old blues show posters until the early ’70s, it seems. Pay attention to how only two colors were used in designing concert poster… black and green, that’s it… but when combined with the white color of the board, the three-color effect is really handsome. In particular, take note of the name of the club that T-Bone Walker was playing… The Plamor in Wichita… pronounced “play-more,” probably named after that musical play on words. Cute! It’s anybody’s guess just how long the Plamor Club existed in Wichita, but several years, I’m sure. Wichita promoter Ray Overton held many shows at the Plamor plus the Mambo Club, the Rose Room, the Kaliko Kat, the Officers Club, the Forum and the Esquire Club. Ray Overton was one busy fellow! The oldest known Wichita, Kansas concert poster actually dates back to the 1920s, so this one is a relatively young pup compared to that! Notice how this T-Bone Walker display prominently shows the “Capitol Records” logo.