Variety (August 1919)

-M !:'■?■■■ '■- ■ ". ■ . ■■'.'■" a ■'■,.■■ ■" •■ ..." .'." ■••" ■■• ■■■ '.'- . r. ■■ ■-.' '.■ ',:■ ■ . f : ■,.. V A U D EVI L L E VAUDEVILLE LOSES SCHENCK WITH PICTURES GAINING HIM Has Been Booking Manager for Loew Circuit Since Circuit Started. Schenck Now Heavily Interested in Film Business, With Several Stars Under His Personal Direction. Leaves Loew Office Sept 1. t ;.:.-;. . Vaudeville will lose one of the most popular members of its executive div- ision when Joseph M. Schenck retires from the Marcus Loew Circuit Sept. 1, next. Mr. Schenck intends thereaf- ter to devote his time exclusively to the picture business, in which he is heavily interested at pr.esent. He will locate in an orfce of his own around Times square. Mr. Schenck's present activities in tiims includes the personal direction by him of Norma Talmadge (Mrs. Schenck), Constance Talmadge, Fatty Arbuckle, "Mutt and Jeff" film car- toons, and Special Films, Inc., a com- pany incorporated by Mr. Schenck to handle special films, as its title indic- ates. - Schenck has been singularly suc- cessful in advantageously placing his stars. He has made contracts for each, aggregating for all many mil- lions of dollars. His personal profit for 1919 has been estimated by picture men at between $1,500,000 and $2,000,- 000. Joe Schenck was equally as success- ful in vaudeville. He has been the book- ing manager of the Loew Circuit since its inception, though of late months Jake Lubin, who succeeds as general booking manager of the circuit, has been in charge of the Loew route sheets.. Making up programs in a de- partment of vaudeville then undevel- oped (the pop price or three-a-day) Mr. Schenck kept abreast of the new condition and saw the Loew Circuit grow from.its one experimental the- atre' to the big chain it now is. Mr. Schenck is also interested, with . his brother Nick, in Palisades Park, on the highlands of the Jersey shore, op- posite 125th street FISHER LEAVES BAYES. Unless the difficulty is adjusted meanwhile Irving Fisher will not be Norah B ayes' juvenile in "Ladies First" the coming season. Miss^Bayes has asked the agents to locate another young man in his place. Fisher has been with Miss Bayes for 'several seasons. He lately essayed a single act in vaudeville. Since showing it Fisher is reported to have asked $750 weekly for the turn. No bookings at that figure have yet been entered. Miss Bayes is to appear as a vaude- ville headlmer at Keith's, Atlantic City, Aug. 11. The booking was made direct Atlantic City, July 30. Norah Bayes will receive $2,000 for her week at Keith's, here, commencing Aug. 11. Irving Fisher will appear that week with Miss. Bayes. NOT TOMMY GRAY'S BROTHER. Tommy Gray says he has no brother borrowing money on his name. Tom- my heard someone in the West was representing himself as a relative and making soft touches from artists. Tommy does say that, as this im- poster was successful, he would like to engage him as a collector. Tommy adds he has several bills against actors that he can't get any money on him- self. MONEY FOR ALLIE LESLIE. William O'Donnell, nephew of the late John Howley, is making a search for the widow,-known professionally as Allie Leslie. Howley was at one time a partner of Patsy Ooyla and the act was known as Howley and Doyle, later it was Howley and Leslie. The last heard of Miss'Leslie was that she was in the .west somewhere. William O'Donnell sought out Doyle this week and told him that there was considerable money coming to Miss Leslie, if she could be located. She is to receive something over $20,000. O'Donnell can be reached at 31 Say- brook place, Newark, N. J. KELLY AND POLLOCK RETURN. After one year, to the day, of service as entertainers for the A. E. F., James Kelly and Emma Pollock returned to New York Wednesday. They came in on a French steamer, catching it at Marseilles, to avoid the delay of securing transportation home now prevalent in England. Mr. Kelly and Miss Pollock went abroad before the war ended. • POL1 MEETING. The fourth annual meeting of the executive staff and managers of the Poli*circuit will be held next Sunday, August 3, at Cherry Hill Farm, Bran- ford, Conn. . . Managers Not Decided on Defense. The attorneys for the vaudeville managers, named as respondents in the Federal Trade Commission action against them, have not yet decided whether they will enter a defense. It is understood the counsel so in- formed the Commission in response to its recent letter to respondents making inquiry as to whether the respondents would defend themselves, and asking if they did to hasten the date of the hearings. Berlin Postpones Opening. The vaudeville reappearance of Irving Berlin, virtually set for next Monday, at the Palace, New York, has been postponed by Mr. Berlin. His agents, Rose & Curtis, had about closed the date with George Gottlieb when Berlin asked it be put off until after the season opens, when he will take six "weeks in vaudeville around New York. Moroaeo's Producing Corporation; The Oliver Morosco Co., a new cor- poration organized by House, Gross- man & Vorhaus with Morosco, F. Un- derwood and J. D. Barnes, as incor- porators, capitalized at $5,000, has been formed for the purpose of producing burlesque, plays, operas and vaude- ville. You'll Have to Figure This Out. Flo Lewis has given Jimmy Hussey notice of intention to leave his act and intends to join her husband, Jay Gould, in the Herman Timberg turn. Hussey and Timberg are both on the Harry Webber books. Harry Seymour Divorced. Thelma Seymour, a "Passing Show" girl, secured a divorce from Harry Seymour last week. Seymour is of Seymour, Dempsey and Seymour in vaudeville. HOTEL NEWS. Buffalo, July 30. Buffalo hotels leaped into the lime- light twice this week. The Lafayette almost had a panic Thursday after- noon when George L. Gastel was lured into a room on a pretext and badly horsewhipped by George W. Koch, well known in theatrical circles. Gastel went to the hotel to keep a business engagement with "Hugo Garfield." He was shown to a room where he was set on by Koch and a party of friends. Koch pursued him down the stairs and through the lobby brandishing the whip. Regular mining-town, hotel stuff! Koch alleged to the newspaper .men that Gastel had stolen his wife and broken up his home. Koch was formerly connected with Charlie Fil- brick, the billposter of days gone bye. Baggs Hotel is the other calcium hos- telry. A young woman said to have been visiting friends .opened a door to step onto the fire-escape and fell .three stories. What the young worn-* an desired of the fire escape is not known, and the hotel people refused to give any further-information. The doctor who was summoned took the girl to the Memorial Hospital for treatment The physician testified a man named "Joe" accompanied them. "Joe," according to the doctor, is the manager of a burlesque show of which the young woman is a member, and of which he is the manager. He stated that they have been playing the Aca- demy* and that he ("Joe") just pur- chased that house. The polu 4 say that the girl is Arlone Richards, 22, .of Detroit, who is em- ployed in a Pearl street restaurant as a pianist and that the accident occur- red while "seeking fresh air." This is the fourth time an accident of this sort has happened recently at Baggs, but the. management asserts it will adhere to its established policy of no extra charge for falling guests even- though they slightly damage the fire escapes. • AUTO SMASH ON BRIDGE. Joe Leo, of the Fox office, had nine front teeth knocked out, and Lew Bush, • vaudeville agent, jind a young woman described as Mary Williams were both badly battered as the result of a col- lision between Leo's Cadillac and a 5- ton commercial truck in the. middle of the Manhattan Bridge shortly after 8:30 Saturday night The driver of the truck was seriously injured. Leo and his party were on their way to Far Rockaway, and Bush claims they were feeling their, way along at eight mites an hour because of darkness occasioned by a thunder storm, which was brewing at the time. The driver of the truck, which had been halted for repairs, was tinkering with the mechanism in the rear of his car. Ha was caught between the two vehicle* and badly crushed about the head and chest' According to Bush the truck showed . no lights and the Manhattan Bridge- lights had not been, turned on despite the gloom caused by the impending storm. Leo, who was driving, declares the truck loomed up out of the dark- . ness so suddenly a collision was un- avoidable. * -:.';.• ■„ .' , The Leo car was completely smashed All of the injured were removed to the hospital and later taken to their homes. ••. . ACT LOSES NO TIME. George Clark, of Clark and Shop- pell, takes the "brown deby" for getting up an act in the shortest space of time. When his partner, Harry Shoppell, •passed away Tuesday morning at 5.30, after a short illness of pnemnonja, Clark secured Eddie Crawford, a for- mer team mate of his, to play out the Clark-Shoppell dates, opening on the' Loew time that same afternoon. DOUBLE FEATURES ADDED. Probably in an effort to maintain the same standard-of attendance dur- ing the hot months, the smaller Keith and Proctor houses are taking to run- ning double feature films each week, in addition to an augmented vaudeville program. As practised at the Harlem O. H., particularly, S. R. O. is the result many a tihie. The 23rd Street will inaugu- rate the same policy next week as will several other houses. BLONDELL AN AUTHOR, Arthur Blondell, whose theatrical ac- tivities have heretofore been confined to the booking of vaudeville acts, has blossomed forth as a songwriter, his initial effort being "If I But Thought You Meant It," written in collaboration with Ben Barnett, of the Keith office. Gus Edwards heard the number at a local theatre recently and has decided to interpolate it in his new show. Miles, a Steady Climber. Homer Miles has been promoted to superintendent and assistant to Man- ager Crull, of the Prospect, Brooklyn. Miles started at the Prospect as a cleaner and advanced via stage door tender, box office, etc., to his present berth. **<! 'el : it m A. PAUL KEITH' ESTAfE. Boston, July 30. The filing of an inyentery of the estate of the late A. Paul Keith by the ' special administrator, John P. Gor- man, showed that Mr. Keith had per* sonally invested in $217,800 of Liberty. Bonds, asjde from those purchased by him as president of the various the- * atrical enterprises with which he was connected. His personal estate was $2,663,511 and his real estate reached. a total of $1,207,245, making a grand total of $3,870,756. . In this is not included his holdings in real' estate outside of Massachu- setts, whicn are understood to be much larger than his holdings in this • state. There were miscellaneous stocks and bonds amounting to $577,324.84 and the ■ balance was' almost exclusively in- "' vested in his business. — - J I ■■■-•.,, if m i&i ■^m COOLING SYSTEM NECESSARY. Recalling a certain act that coul< fill a particular spot on one of his programs, Johnnie Collins, in th« Keith office, wrote the act offering th* date. A reply came with the condition the'management would be accepted if the theatre had a cooling system in- stalled. Mr. Collins sent back word he was not quije sure whether the theatre held a cooling system but he felt positive many fans would be there and other precautions taken against the heat. The final answer received was e de- clination of the contract by the act (single man) who stated he felt he could not appear in any theatre that did not have a properly equipped cool- ing system. Collins also felt he needed one him- self after reading the letter. • . -'■, . >/<! Cartmell Given Production Release Charles Cartmell (Cartmell end Harris) has retired from the new "Hit- chy-Koo," the producers agreeing to release Cartmell from the production Deca «se of his existing contracts with the Orpheum Circuit, the cancellation of which would cause a large financial loss to the team. Mrs. Cartmell, who had been ill, has sufficiently recovered to proceed with her stage work. r< Martha Lawrence Flaring "Sweeties." Lillian Berse, in vaudeville with "Sweeties," resigned last week, due to salary. She was replaced by Martha Lawrence.