Variety (July 1919)

- . . . . . i ■-,.;■.-■ ■. ww®% lifK'l-^ g • B URL E S QUE . ■ . f \i - :,:.-.■ &.< - if- - I: J. !•,: CABARET Tuesday morning found the Broadway cafes and many of the, restaurant bats open, but selling nothing but'beer and light wines, despite the series of hopes and predictions that an eleventh hour change of. heart would suspend the War Time Prohibition Law until Jan. 16, when the Prohibition Act of Con- gress becomes an amendment to the Constitution. '■ Monday night Broad- way was the'scene of much revelry, every cafe aqd restaurant being jammed to capacity, most of the pat- rons being made up of up-town advo- cates of the wet condition, the regular Broadway crowd having stored away a supply for the future. At Rector's when closing time arrived the crowd within made a belated cry for '.'more liquor," and when it was refused, pro- ceeded to wreck the establishment A call for the police brought a squad on the double quick from the West 47th street station and order was final- ly restored, but the visitors blocked the sidewalks without , for several hours after midnight demanding ad- mittance. Uniformed men were at the door and the places was kept closed. At the Bowman hotels, the better hos- telries of the city, including the Com- modore, the bars were closed promptly at midnight and the work of disman tel- ling the fixtures began. No more liquor of any sort will be sold in the Bowman places. One cafe owner in the Longacre square district, Sam Dol- liver, collected several thousands of dollars wagered in the past several months, on the bet that he would be open for business after the 1st. When prohibition looked impending he gave liberal odds he would be in business after the closing date and found many takers. Tuesday morning saw the pass- ing of the Columbia bar, adjoining the Columbia Theatre. It was taken over by the United Cigar Stores Co. and will open for the tobacco business in a few weeks. Shortly before Monday midnight Broadway was thoroughly covered by detectives 'from Chief In- spector Daly's office who visited every saloon and warned the proprietors against selling anything but beer and light wines and to restrict the sale of those beverages to civilians. Several hundred soldiers and sailors in travel- ing groupes of 10 and 20 jammed their way into Broadway salpons and took command of everything in sight with- out request or payment. At Redpath's, near 42d street, the same aggregation practically wrecked the establishment, smashing in the front doors and break- ing everything in sight. Many of the cafes and restaurants maintained or- der throughout the night, some engag- ing private detectives to protect, their property. On the whole the passing of Mr. Barleycorn was a very orderly affair, in so far' as Broadway was concerned, it resembling more a mild election or New Year's night, with the majority of the mourners from the upper section of the city. The theat- rical clubs including the Lambs, Friars, Green Room Club, N. V. A. Club and others of lesser degree will continue selling the light beverages, most of them having disposed of the stock of liquor and heavy wines prior to the closing/date, giving them to members exclusively at wholesale prices. Flo Jacobson is responsible for the advent of "Peacock" Kelly and his Jackie Band at the Green Mill Gardens, Chicago. Kelly was one of the best known of the Great Lakes' "drum ma- jors," and his aggregation of band- men had earned a great reputation by virtue of their frequent appearance in the various Liberty Loan drives in Chi- cago. Kelly, under direction of Miss Jacobson, has turned out to be a dandy showman as well as a remarkable leader, and his 25 Jackie musicians are proving a good bet for Tom Chamales, who runs the gardens. There is no doubt that the band will take a whack at vaudeville after the engagement. In addition to the band, Chamales has en- gaged the Benny Davis Trio. Blossom Seeley played the Majestic this week, which lent added interest to the trio, Benny having formerly been one' of the featured members of the boys who background Miss Seeley in her synco- pated studio act. Since he left Miss Seeley, Davis has done some little mu- sic writing, in connection with Gus and Ernie Erdman and others. With Davis are Harry Vernon and Floyd Garret, and the act as it stands is very much like that which was for- merly done by Fields, Salisbury and Davis, who made themselves famous at the old Wyncliff Inn, Chicago, in the palmy days, where they were discov- ered" by Harry Weber. Bernard Gallant recently took over the Greenwich Village Inn, better ktiown to the Village-hounds as Polly's. Polly Holliday, the former proprietress, had incorporated for $25,000, calling the organization Green- wich Village Inn, naming their busi- ness as theatrical producers and to conduct restaurants and hotels. Jay Jackson and Harry Meltzer, the latter formerly with the now defunct Green- wich Village Players, are named as co- directors. This probably is the fore- runner of an extended movement to popularize and commercialize the glamour and lure of the alleged un- ' conventional Village customs for the ever-ready come-ons. As it is, an un- usual large number of tea rooms have literally sprung up over night in all sorts of places—lofts and cellars— around the Washington and Sheridan square districts. The Greenwich Vil- lage Nights, which is to open at the Village Theatre Tuesday, is the cause of this sudden boom. There teems no doubt but that Chi- cago will be offered more cabaret re- vues from now on than ever before, despite the supposed city ordinance against such shows. Some cafes like the Winter Garden continued shows almost from the time the ban was on while others did not. One of the latter was Terrace Garden, which continues to offer its revue on ice skates. It is explained that where places like the Winter Garden took a chance of being closed at least temporarily, it was only a cafe, while in the case of the Terrace Garden a closing order might shut the whole Morrison Hotel. It is for that reason that Harry Mohr has con- tinued the ice show, a clever evasion of the ordinance. The Odeon, one of San Francisco's oldest cafes, will close its doors. The owners will amalgamate with the Por- tola-Louvre located across the street. Wet or dry, the Canary Cottage, on the beach, San Francisco, will have a revue opening July 7. The personal effects of the famous violinist, Rigo, were auctioned off on 5th avenue, New York, last week; It is said that the performer, Hungarian by birth, expects to return to his own country shortly. Trixie Hicks, Edith Donan, Peggy Healy and O'Brien Brothers, are the principals slated for the new revue to open at the Martinique, Atlantic City, July 14. Thehna Carlton left the Moulin Rouge to go to the Beaux Arts, At- lantic City. SILENT ABOUT PROVIDENCE. Providence, July 1. Local theatrical men were surprised at the announcement in last week's Variety that the Columbia Amusement Co. has included Providence in its cir- cuit next season and that pending the completion of the new Columbia house here, Columbia Wheel shows will be routed from Bridgeport to the York- ville on East 86th street (New York), moving from there to Boston. So far as is known no house is be- ing "completed" or under way except the Colonial, the former home of Co- lumbia burlesque shows.here, which is being remodeled for Klaw & Erlan- ger to open with legitimate attractions Labor Day. / Rumor has it the old Westminster (now the Empire) may be the theatre contemplated. This house is now con- ducted by the Keith interests as a film theatre. With the opening of the new E. F. Albee theatre, vaudeville and stock were transferred from the old Keith house to this hew structure. The old Keith theatre is being remod- elled and it has been announced it will reopen shortly as the Victory Theatre with films as the attraction.. The plan, thus, may be to shift the Empire pic- tures to the Victory, leaving the Em- pire vacant and thus a chance for bur- lesque. At the offices of the Columbia Amusement Co. in New York this week no information could be obtained as to any plans contemplated by the cir- cuit for Providence next season. One of the officials seen refused to admit any plans had been completed for Providence, .though not denying that city was within the calculation of the Columbia people. BURLESQUE ENGAGEMENTS. Babe Lavetta, for the soubret role with "Girls of the U. S. A." Elva Greaves, prima donna, Pat White's "Gaiety Girls." Shirley Mallette, hailing from a mid- western cabaret, for the soubret berth with Strouse & Franklyn's "Girls from the Follies." Henry H. Wolff will be 1 ahead of Billy Watson's erstwhile "Beef Trust" show next season, to be known here- after as "The Parisian Whirl." Samy Levy; of Detroit, has completed the roster of his American Wheel "Beauty Review." The people en- gaged are: Jimmy Cooper, Ada Lum, Helene Stanley, Rose Hemmily, Chas. Fleming,. Marty Collins, Billy Cumby, Morris Tolin, Eddie Hall, Johnny Gold- smith, carpenter. Dave Marion has signed Babe La Tour and Syd Gold for his show next season. Harry Shapiro has been signed as manager by Pierson & Herk for "Girls a la Carte" next season. Leona Earl will be the ingenue.* "Sliding" Billy Watson has Joe Wil- liams as leader with his American wheel show next season. WAINSTOCK'S MELLER. Morris Wain stock, heretofore iden- tified with burlesque, will produce a melodrama entitled "A Chance Every Girl Takes," for one nighters next sea- son. The play is the joint work of Fran- cis Keeley and M. Kalliser. Rehearsals begin July 15. Minneapolis Stock Closes. Minneapolis, July 1. The burlesque stock at the Gayety closed its summer season June 28. • i :. t i !■ ■ Jim Lyons (Ir.man and Lyons) may be obliged to retire from the stage owing to throat trouble. Jim Horton ("Innocent Maids") will replace Mr. Lyons in the act. IF YOU DON'T ADVERTISE IN VARIETY— DON'T ADVERTISE BEST BURLESQUE OUTING. The Burlesque Gub outing was held as per schedule, June 29, at Witzel's Grove, College Point, L. I. It was the unanimous verdict of the 200 pic- nickers it was the most- successful of all. Will Roehm, secretary of the club worked like a Trojan and succeeded in arranging an outing in which there never was a dull moment The Pontiac left the foot of West 35th street promptly at 10 a. m., and the crowd was served refreshments on the trip to the grove. Swimming races, running races, a greased pig contest and other events made up the out-door program, while dancing contests occupied the indoor contribution. The managers and Ators' ball game furnished the most amusement, the managers fooling the wise ones by taking the uniformed and capable look- ing actors into camp by a score of 12-10. The managers won a large silver loving cup, which will be inscribed with their names and presented to the Bur- lesque Club as a permanent trophy. George Marchall won the 100 yard dash. Chuck Callahan won the fat man's race, and Edie Dunedin the 50 yard dash for girls. The Fox trot went to Joe "Blum" Emerson and Elsie Mc- Cloud, the prize waltz to Geo. Madden and Babe McCloud, and the one-step contest to Syd Gold and May Miles Bernstein. PINCHED DOWNTOWN SHIMMYERS. The long needed police interference in checking the wholesale "cooching" Which l had been running rampant at the National Winter Garden stock bur- lesque company on the East Side, downtown, finally culminated in the arrest of 12 female members of the company last week. When up for ar- raignment before Magistrate Groehl in the Essex Market Court, the hearing was postponed to a later date. * - The defendants* attorney argued that a -similar brand of alleged shimmying was being dispensed on Broadway for the edification, and whether it be Broadway or Second avenue and Hous- ton street, it should make no difference and cause police interference. The Minsky Brothers control the downtown house. The East Side ver- sion of a shimmie differs from the Broadway brand by so many wiggles more per longitudinal inch than on the White Way." Bowers in "Kiss Me Again,'; Max Spiegel will start rehearsals next week on a new musical comedy called "Kiss Me Again," in which Fred Bowers will' be starred next season. Bowers wrote the book and lyrics. The show opens in Trenton, Aug. 23. Spiegel will also send Murray and Mack over the one nighters in a new musical piece entitled, 'Til Say So." He has two more musical shows in preparation with the tentative titles of "Go to It" and "Where Am L" Wynn Asked for "Piece of Show." When the Shuberts' new "Gaieties" production was at Atlantic City last week, breaking in, it was decided that Ed Wynn could aid the performance. Interrogated on how much, Wynn replied $1,000 a .week and a percentage of the gross. The deal was not closed on those terms. , Friml to Remarry. . Rudolph Friml, the composer, is to marry Elsie Lawson, a chorus girl. Friml made.this fact known immedi- ately he got his divorce from his former wife, who was- known on the stage as Blanche Betters, and who ac- cepted $35,000 in place of alimony. Friml himself composed the scores of several recently popular musical com- edies. I i v