Variety (Dec 1905)

Jt \ VARIETY. Funes and Proctor Part. The Important item of the week's gos- pJp has been the probable plans of J. Austin Fynes, who resigned his portion as general manager for F. F. Proctor two weeks ago. Mr. Fynes said at that time that he would shortly announce his future plans, but he Is not yet ready to make any statement. This much may be definitely stated. His new connection will include both dramatic and variety performances. Mr. Fynes* wide knowledge of plays and players will doubtless be turned to g*od advantage in the formation of stock companies. It is a fact that the stock companies of the Proctor houses were never better administered than when Mr. Fynes gave the matter his personal attention, and it is to be anticipated that the new announcement will be along the lines of a stock company with a variety bill preceding the perform- ance, in accordance with what Is gener- ally known as the "Chicago plan." Of this matter Mr. Fyuea refuses to speak, contenting himself with the statement to Intimates that he will shortly have in- teresting announcements to make. Mr. Fynes' departure from Proctor's was not much of a surprise to his inti- i tate friends, for it has been to them no secret that for more than a year past the relations between Mr. Proctor and Mr. Fynes over the matter of policy were somewhat strained. Mr. Proctor, upon his return from his Western trip, something more than a year ago, decided that bigger bills and a more important stock company would work to his advantage. Mr. Fynes was not In harmony with the idea of $1,000 leading men and women and $3,500 variety bills, and as his arrangement with Mr. Proctor called for a percentage of the net yearly profits, he apparently considered that he had some reason to demand consideration In tne matter. Matters appeared to have culminated recently, for Mr. Fynes has amicably re- tired. As his contract had not actually expired, It Is to be presumed that he gave up the position because the new project appealed to him more strongly, and It Is not unlikely that by next week an announcement of Importance will be made. Mr. Fynes, through his long newspa- per career as a dramatic writer. Is one of the best posted men In the theatrical business, and this knowledge will be put to good use. As to the much discussed question: "Who will be his successor?" this news- paper is In a position to state with abso- lute accuracy that there will he none. Mr. Proctor himself made that state- ment early last week to several of his acquaintances, and strengthened his declaration by officially repeating It to all his resident managers at the first "council meeting" held by them after Mr. Fynes* retirement. The resident managers were told by their employer that each of them would hereafter be held strictly responsible for the success or failure of his house: that the position of general manager had been abolished, and that the duties and responsibilities formerly "passed up" 10 the "G. M." would hereafter be performed by the •*0. Q. M." himself. This announcement was received with sedate, almost mournful, silence by at least two of the resident managers who may be said to have "had hopes." It is no secret that Mr. George Edward Gra- ham, late of Albany, had for some time dreamed of an ultimate elevation to Mr. Fynes* post, although that dream never seemed to have inspired Mr. Graham's employer. It has been whispered, since Mr. Proctor's emphatic announcement of his intentions, that Mr. Graham is again seen in the company of politicians of high standing, and that if he can eventually "land" a government Job with a good salary and easy working hours he will "grab it quick." The other and perhaps more natural aspirant for the vacant chair was—and possibly though hopelessly still is— Mark A. Luescher. His boom, prior to Mr. Proctor's declaration, had been skil- fully engineered in the newspapers and in general theatrical circles. Mr. is young, shrewd and energetic. He is the only Proctor employee permitted to have outside interests ("Le Domino Rouge,"'for example), while still work- ing for Mr. Proctor. Those who know his restless ambition predict that he will find it more profitable to go Into business on his own account than to re- main in a subordinate position at Proc- tor's. That he was bitterly disappointed by Mr. Proctor's action is conceded by his intimates. "SHEP" FRIEDMAN AND "BILL" LEWIS. Sheppard S. Friedman is well and favorably known as a newspaper man. William E. Lewis has some similar fame. At one time in the not long distant past, when Mr. Friedman recognized "Bill" as his "boss," while on the staff of a daily newspaper of this city, throughout which at present the Lewis family predominates, "Shep" was given a hurry assignment to cover a murder story. The assignment happened just in the midst of a serious -argument between Mr. Friedman and his superior, relative to a raise of $5 weekly, co wnlch Mr. Lewis, as the superior, strenuously ob- jected. Friedman went out on the assign- ment, however, subject to a future ad- justment of the money proposition. While on the way, some friends insisted that he dine with them. The dinner extended to such a late hour that it was useless for "Shep" to report back to the office, the paper having gone to press, so under the circumstances, he decided rather than to be "fired" as a delinquent, he would "quit" without notice. Wandering around Broadway for two or three days without hearing anything, he finally met "Bill," who said: "What's the matter?" "Oh, you know," Mr. Friedman roplied, expecting to get a toasting for not reporting back on the assignment. "Well." answered Mr. Lewis, "if that $5 is all that's keeping 'you away, yon had better come back to work." TOO MUCH OP A GOOD THINQ. The evaporation of Hurtig & Seamon's Music Hall In Harlem, following the opening of Williams' Alhambra around the corner, hasn't occurred up to date. And when it is further said that tho Music Hall is now actually drawing more patronage than at this time one year ago, before the Alhambra was its opposition, an explanation will be de- manded by the predicting wiseacres who 0 fell decidedly short. The logical explanation is simple and harks back to the day of the Circle as a vaudeville house. When Percy Will iams conducted that composite theatre at the lower entrance to the Park, it was the strongest opposition Hurtig & Seamon had, although situated eome four miles further downtown. The business of the Music Hall was affected to an appreciable extent by It, but this firm has not the capacity to compete with larger houses or more expensive bills. Also saddled with the added disadvantage of being an "up- stairs" house, it was freely opinionated that the doom of the Hall would be sealed upon the entrance of the Alham- bra into the field. Meanwhile Williams secured the Co- lonial, discontinuing the Circle for vaudeville, trusting thereby to divert the latters' clientele intact to the new ven- ture. It was found necessary, however, to build up a patronage for the new house, as most of the former Harlem patrons of the Circle commenced to cir- culate, dropping in anywhere that prom- ised a good show—having been educated to recognize one—with the assistance of the Subway. The underground mode of rapid tran- sit whirls your Harlemite downtown in no time, and he was "downtown." All vaudeville houses between Fourteenth and One Hundred and Twenty-fifth streets were easy of access and often visited. Presently the "sameness" of most of the shows in town began to pall. A bill at the Colonial one week would be found in its entirety at the Alhambra two weeks hence, while the bills at Hammerstein's and Proctor's Twenty- third and Fifty-eighth street houses al- ways had a familiar sound. The tangle became so involved that it seemed as though a portion of every show you had keen was playing at some house. The starting point of an act could not be conveniently located, and even so, that discovery was clouded by the multiplic- ity of other acta in conjunction which had already been dodged for five or six weeks. The matter became complex, and how to see a vaudeville show above Four- teenth street that was new or at least seemed so was quite a serious question. This condition tended to restrict the vaudeville going public to its own local- ities. Consequently a bi.'l promising some variety, if not novelty, was sought. In the Harlem section the rebound was in* favor of Hurtig & Seamon'a. The realization came that a show there did The Business of SoiiQ-Wrltina BY WILL D.COBB. I am a song writer, with both hands raised. May I Speak? Why is It that ever and anon some self-styled and erroneously-labeled "critic" dips his sar- castic Spencerian In the jealous jet of human uukindness and criticises a call- ing he wots not of? It is of him I would speak, for I am a song writer. I have rhymed "love" with "stove," "baby" with "lady," and have not been ashamed to take money for it. Of all the reviews, printed comments, or alleged "write- ups" on song writing in the magazines or the daily press, I have yet to read an article written by a man or woman who knows the song business. There are scores of writers to-day taking jealous jabs at the successful "songsmith," who would gurgle with glee at the merest prospect of having a song of their own composition accepted by one of the music publishers. I wrote "Good-Bye Dolly Gray," and received $6,000 for It; "Good-Bye Little Girl" netted me $7,500. A writer on one of the evening papers recently ridiculed the sameness of these two songs. I put that "sameness" in the second song because I wanted a same- ness in the money I received. One of my latest songs, "Good-Bye, Sweet Marie/' has the same sameness, and so far the same sort of money in royalties is rolling in. Believe me when I tell you the song writer is the highest ,*aicl man for his writings in the world. The chances are open to all. The pub- lic wants songs and is willing to pay for them. Try to write one. No, I am not laughing. A baseball writer on a morning paper foolishly frittered away a column of valuable space recently en- deavoring to burlesque popular songs and their authors. Indignantly mention- ing the article to a fellow song writer a day or so later, I was amused to hear my confrere reply, "That's peculiar, for it was only yesterday he was seeking my assistance, seriously intending becoming a song writer himself." The music publisher is pestered daily by writers of "higher class poetry" who, allured by the mirage of "paydirt," fall from their perch on high and offer him a few little things they have "Just dashed off." One poet out of a hundred can write a popular song, but it has been shown and proven that song writers who write hits can nearly all write poetry. But why should they.' If there were a great demand for cotton goods on the market and silk had gone en- tirely out of vogue, would you admire the exhibition of "gray matter" dis- played by a manufacturer who kept his mills running for silk? How many writers, Mr. Critic, do you suppose would refrain from adopting a certain highly paid for style of writing if they could "make good?" I believe, and I be- lieve that the public believes, the paper and magazine critics' caustic comments on successful song writers savor strong- ly of sour grapes. third and Fifty-eighth and Hammer- stein's are booked through the office of ^William Morris. Without reflecting not contain *iames that had been con- I hleastwise upon Mr. Morris or his man- tinuoualy flaunted in the newspapers if ner of conducting business, the con- and on the bill boards for weeks. jidition is apparent. Anxiety to furnish It is a matter of booking alone. ThrV Jthe best always gives the same often, Alhambra. Colonial, Proctor's TwentyJBind satiates rather than satisfies