Variety (February 1909)

VARIETY BUREAU OF INFORMATION AND SALES EXCHANGE, BECK'S PLAN The Orpheurn's General Manager Working Out the Scheme. Has Little to Say of His Western Trip. • Martin Beck, Pat Casey and Mark A. Luescher returned to New York late last week. PreyiouB to Mr. Beck's arrival ft was reported he had rented a suite of six rooms on the fourth floor of the new Astor Building. The United Booking Offices and the Orpheum Circuit have 'taken the sixth floor of the same struc- ture for their headquarters, commencing May 1. Mr. Beck's use for the fourth floor suite caused some mild speculation. It seems from what he said this week to a Vabiety representative, it is his inten- tion to establish a general information bureau, where actors may secure infor- mation of all kinds at a monthly or year- ly fee. The charge is to be nominal for the support of the offices. There will be five or six departments: Publicity and Promotion Library, Scenery, Electrical, Railroad, Financial and perhaps another. Information in reference to acts, plays, routings, and all matters an artist would be interested in will be on tap at the Bureau. In the library sketches may be read over, and a Sale and Exchange Agency (probably the sixth department) will be inaugurated. Mr. Luescher may have the general supervision of this Bu- reau, if Mr. Beck goes through with it. Asked as to' particulars of his western trip, he would say nothing positive, but •intimated that before long there would be a general consolidation of the vaude- ville time in the West. Mr. Beck said that the business was very good at all points where the party t,copped. Nothing could be obtained from Mr. Oasey. He said he had seen a great deal of country, enjoyed the trip and was congratulating hini9elf upon having gone westward. Since the return of the Messrs. Beck and Casey there have been nothing but rumors, with no basis for any of them. Mr. Beck said he is writing the great- est essay on theatricals that has ever been written. He calls it "A Timely Warning," and when finished Mr. Beck is going to hand it to the Associated Press to wire all over the country. At least, Mr. Beck so informed Variety's representative. MAYME 6ERHUE IN "JUNE." Mavme Gerhue has returned to this country from Australia, and will re-enter vaudeville in her pretentious western sketch "June," opening on the Morris Cir- cuit March 1. Miss Gerhue presented it for a week or so around New York before leaving for the other side Of the world. RECOVERS $1,685 FROM DOCKSTADER. Boston, Feb. 18. The Throe Leightons were given a ver- dict for $1,085 in their action brought against Lew Dockstader for the recovery of money due under a contract issued by Dockstader to the Leightons during 1905. The act left the show at Columbus. The trial was held here last week. There is cash deposited as a bond of over sufficient amount to satisfy the judgment. Clar- ence Eldrege appeared for the Leightons; Tom L. Barry for Dockstader. LEONA ANDERSON ENGAGED. St. Louis, Feb. 18. The engagement has been announced of Leona Anderson to Louis Ginter Young, of New York. Miss Anderson is a native of St. Louis, having removed to New York, where she appealed in musical comedies, and was of the "Prince of Pilsen" Com- pany, headed by Louise Gunning, that visited England. Mr. Young was a former partner of A. O. Brown in the Wall Street stock brok- erage firm, which collapsed last fall. Mr. Brown has married Edna Wallace Hopper. Miss Anderson is a very popular young woman, both here and in the metropolis. She is a beautiful girl, and Broadway usually has a good idea of the incoming fashions in women's wear when Leona glides through the street. A brother of Miss Anderson is connected with the moving picture enterprises of Geo. K. Spoor in Chicago. FOR NEW AGENCY LAW. Albany, Feb. 18. Assemblyman Voss, of New York City, this wee* introduced into the lower house, a bill providing for the revision of the Employment Agency Law. The proposed measure includes radical changes in the old regulation covering particularly the booking of vaudeville acts. It is the outcome of half a dozen con- ferences between the Actors' Union, White Rats, Comedy Club, Actors' Society and Society of American Magicians. The final draft was submitted to Denis F. O'Brien last week, and the bill in its ap- proved form was dispatched to Albany ZE T~Moad ay. Although the text has not yet been made, public, it is said it provides a new maximum scale of commission charges in the several classifications into which bookings are divided as regards length of contract. Assemblyman Voss, who intro- duced the measure is chairman of the Labor and Industry Committee of the Assembly. CATHERINE ROWE PALMER & CO. Chicago, Feb. 18. Catherine Rowe Palmer, late comedienne of the Olympic Music Hall Stock Com- pany, and the principal woman in the "Merry Go Round" the early part of the season, is going in vaudeville with four others, two men and two women. It will be a comedy singing and dancing act, and will be booked by the Western Vaudeville Association. PERHAPS WEST; NOT EAST. Chicago, Feb. 18. Captain Stanley Lewis, who with his wife is playing in vaudeville in a dramatic sketch for the Western Vaudeville Asso- ciation, travels in an automobile furnished him by an automobile concern. His route is so arranged as to permit Ihc touring from town to town. ORPHEUM PROPERTY BOUGHT. Omaha, Feb. 18. When Martin Beck stopped off here on the way from San Francisco to New York, Mr. Beck purchased the Orpheum Theatre property for something around $225,000. The property now belongs to Mr. Beck and Morris Meyerfeld, Jr., the president of the Orpheum Circuit, according to re- port, as their individual investment. With an exception or two, the buying in of the Orpheum property here gives the Orpheum Circuit the future control of all its houses. The exceptions are New Orleans, Los Angeles and Kansas City. In the last two named cities, the Circuit has announced it will build to re- place the present Orpheum theatres op- erated by it. MONTGOMERY AND MOORE OFF. The illness of Florence Moore caused a postponement of Montgomery and Moore's engagement at the 125th Street Theatre this week. The date at Hammerstein's for next week has also been canceled, the 4 Fords replacing the team at the latter bouse. OPENING IN TORONTO. Toronto, Feb. 18. There is an opening in Toronto for an opposition vaudeville house to Shea's, through Ambrose Small, manager of the Majestic, having announced there will be no more melodramas played there after I his season. The Majestic seats 2,000. When William Morris, the New York independent vaude- ville manager, was here recently he stated to a newspaper man that only the largest capacity in Toronto could draw him here. Toronto thinks that there will be Morris vaudeville here next fall, or the Majestic must install a stock company. The work upon M. Shea's new vaudeville theatre here will start in about ten days. It is to have a seating capacity of 1,000 and cost $200,000. The location is corner Richmond and Victoria Streets. 0LYMPIA REVIEW WITHDRAWS. (Special Cable to Variety.) Paris, Feb. 17. The revue which has been holding forth at H. B. Marinelli's Olympia here was withdrawn Feb. 12. Dating from then straight vaudeville will be the attraction at the house. In the void loft by the withdrawal of the revue have been placed Alexia, in a new act; Loie Fuller and her ballet, and the Slecds. KELLEY BACK TO VAUDEVILLE. The sudden retirement of young War- ner from "The Battle" and the hurried substitution in his place of William J. Kelley, has caused the latter to postpone indefinitely his purpose of re-entering vaudeville. Mr. Kelley has instructed his agent. Alf. T. Wilton, however, to secure him dates following his engagement in the legitimate piece. NEW OLYMPIC MANAGER. Chicago, Feb. 18. The new manager for the Olympic, to succeed John J. Murdock, who resigned last week, has been announced. He is Fred Ackerman. Mr. Murdock resigned to give his atten- tion to the business of the Western Vaudeville Association. He is also the president of the new independent moving picture concern recently organized here with a capital of $2,000,000, the Interna- tional Projecting & Production Co. SHORTSTOP LANDS ON STAGE. Racine, Wis., Feb. 18. Joe Tinker, the shortstop of the Chi- cago baseball champions for 1008, is play- ing the leading role of "A Home Run" in the Middle West. The show was here last week, and Tink- er did pretty well. It was the first per- formance. Tink muffed a couple of lines in the first inning. While at bat in the second, the shortstop placed a bad foul and was almost counted out, but when he declared himself, the official scorers in the gallery gave him credit for a "homer." How Tinker declared himself waa in this wise: "You are yeller dogs, and think you can buy me. But yer can't—We will win the game." Tinker lasted for the Racine engage- ment and after a while he may stop any g r ound e r which bounds back from the footlights. GERRY COSTS ACT ENGAGEMENT. Through the Gerry 8ociety forbidding the appearance of twelve-year-old Ross Forrester at the Fifth Avenue in "Lucky Jim" this week, Jane Courthope and Charles Forrester withdrew the act after the Monday matinee. Mr. Forrester wired from Pittsburg last Saturday for a young woman in Chicago to come to New York and play the part, which she did, but the lack of rehearsal for the very important role the youngster takes in the piece brought the sudden decision of the princi- pals. The ruling of the Gerry Society was taken through the smoking allowed in the balcony of the theatre, the Mayor revok- ing the permit he had issued for the child upon the Society's request. FLORA PARKER UNDER THE KNIFE. The engagement of Carter De Haven and Flora Parker for the Morris time, upon which they were to open March 1 at the American, Chicago, has been put off indefinitely, Mr. De Haven informing the Morris office his wife (Miss Parker) had been ordered by her physician to undergo a surgical operation immediately, prevent- ing her reappearance upon the stage be- fore May or next season. Mr. De Haven said he would gather a few girls, and play out the contracts with a "girl act," himself at the head. PORTLAND THEATRE CHANGES. Portland, Feb. 18. The Star, playing Stair A Havlin at- tractions, has been leased by Sullivan & Considine for continuous vaudeville. Jas. Erriekson will be the malinger of both the S.-C. houses in this city. The Star will inaugurate "amateur nights" in Portland, holding the event on Fridays.