Variety (September 1919)

■ ■J'"'.'t' ■- - iJ r -^r! C5 «* ... , ■=.■.: ,:,,' ■. \ .' ill VAU1 VILLE H^^'-.cijj iTRIKE BROKEN BY TYLER IN CHICAGO AND MILWAUKEE — **On the Hiring Line" Put On by Non-Union Crew at Black- stone in Chicago. Laura Hope Crews Heads Cast Patricia Collinge Opens in "Tillie" in Beer City. Audience Nervous at First, Soon Settles Down. &S'" tz- i Chicago, Sept. 3. irge C Tyler broke the strike as Ill's one theatre and attraction were fected. His opening of "On the Hir- $ Line" at the Blackstone, the first nown entirely non-union performance any stage since unions came into le theatre and since actors came into |||$inion, /went off "without incident" jfttfrday night The receipts Were [i4 with the gallery not opened to ie public. f$A/unique scene surrounded the ^Blackstone. The leading Equity ac- were peacefully picketing out of oors and even in the lobby, where icy molested no one and no one mo- i them. Hazel Dawn J and Wil- _ .'Courtney, holding up' copies of The New Majority," socialist sheet : V7hich printed a special front page an- nouncing in heavy type,' "The Black- 3 stone Theatre is Fighting the Actors -?' and Union Labor" chatted pleasantly [|i with Tyler and with Harry J. Powers, general manager of the K. & E. in- | terests here. /Miss Dawn had bought a ticket, but asked to have her money refunded, at jut curtain time. Arthur Esberg, . smiling treasurer, told her in gen*, „jjf voice that- it was too late. Could IfKi/exchange it for another perform- jice, per haps ? Miss DaWn smiled iick and suggested that perhaps there '"be no more performances. Mr. sberg assured her that "On the Hir- r.Line" was in for an indefinite run. yes, breathed Miss Dawn—in- inite was right. And she returned her picketing. ?orty selected silk stocking detec- tives and a few that ran more toward Ire woolsock order, thronged about nd nudged and jostled and watched. ftfXhe curtain went op promptly and fdr about 15 minutes there was a -arked tension. The audience kept joking about as though in fear of a possible bomb or other violent mani- festation. But presently the bright lit- tlecomedy got the house engrossed fPflid.the show went on like any other. ''The audience represented the finest class of Chicago theatregoers. A special paster in the program . Jad: "Every precaution has been 'sa^^taken to safeguard your comfort. If, ^HOwjever,, the house lights should sud- ^^tiry go out, please remain seated, /Other; lighting arrangements have been ^/provided." ' 1 With the strain broken, the per- formance soon lost its either sinister oi' gala aspect and thereafter there was ' the laughter and applause accorded to ■"Mines and situations without thought of $f$fiy issues. A three-girl orchestra between the acts. The piece yas declared a sure hit on merit at the end and, in happier times, un- r$i dptibtedly would have clear sailing. M/ The cast, listed in the "Big Majority" fe; as "The Strikebreakers," is as follows: 0/>HMuri Hope Crews, Sidney Toler, ^jM'inna Gombell, Josephine Hall, Bar- bara Eduard, Frank Wilcox, McKay ;//Morris, Guy D'Ennery, Baker Moore, k|Thomas Coffin Cooke. |k|&''. The authors are Harvey O'Higgins VSjjV and Harriet Ford. Miss Ford was present. Among the guests was Pa- tricia Collinge, a Tyler star, for whose company the same procedure was due in Milwaukee Monday night, a dozen strike breakers having been sent from here to open her in "Tillie" there. All day Sunday, with only one po- liceman in sight, the box office re- mained open and the advance sale pro- ceeded with prospects of a week of about $12,000 if things went as peace- fully as they had started. Tyler re- ceived a hundred telegrams of good wishes and encouragement from man- agers and other partisans of his side to the controversy. As reported in Tuesday's Bulletin, Tyler opened "Tillie" the night before at the Davidson, Milwaukee, with Pa- tricia Collinge in the play, and the stage operated by a crew oi. 21 non- union stage hands from this city. NEW CLUB OFFICERS ELECTED. Following the resignations of the official directory of the Burlesque Ciub, a new election was held last Fri- day, when Will Roebm was selected president, Lem Siman, secretary, and Louis A. Suss, treasurer. The officials resigning were Harry C Jacobs as president, Al Singer as sec- retary/and Dan Dody as treasurer. A special meeting of the Burlesque Club had been held a few days be- <fore, to secure an expression of the then presiding officers on their atti- tude. . It was alleged they were not properly executing their duties in the respective offices. A resolution is said to have been introduced and passed calling for their resignations. Another reason advanced for the special request was that burlesque cir- cles heard the renewal of the lease for the clubhouse at 145 West 47th street shv tly expiring, might not be renewed unless quick action was,taken upon it The Burlesque Club is reported to have a surplus of $2,000 in bank. .Friday weekly bjas been designated as the regular meeting night ' Upon the officers resigning they also resigned as members of the club. SPORTS. The theatrical aeroplane record was established last Sunday by Prescott and Eden (formerly billed under the name of The Prescotts), when they successfully journeyed by plane from Buffalo to the Temple, Syracuse, arriv- ing in time to fulfill the engagement The- plane maintained an altitude of 5.COO feet during the entire journey. The trip was made in one hour and fifty minutes. , The performers were introduced from the stage of the Temple, Syra- cuse. : -/ / •. Over last Saturday and Sunday the Lights baseball team annexed two more victories, but went down in the loss column for one. The first win was over the Freeport Stars, Saturday, by a score of 11 to 3. The first game Sunday, against the- 13th Infantry (Camp Mills) was also added on the victory column, defeating the soldier boys by a score of 6 to 4. A surprise was then sprung on them in the fea- ture tilt the same day with Saunder's All Stars (colored). It was the third game with this club, each team having v/on one. When the game started the colored aggregation had a white bat- tery and a white left fielder, sufficient to beat the Lights. According to- the Lights, the white pitcher had more curves than a scenic railway. The score was 7 to 0. BURLESQUER WEDS MILLIONAIRE. Chicago, Sept 3. With the engagement this week of the "Bon Ton Girls" at the Columbia, it became known Shirley Bennett, one of the chorus girls, was married last week at Cincinnati to Herbert A. Strasser, Jr., twenty-year old son of the soap king millionaire. Fearing the wrath of his father, young Strasser is traveling with the company. \ . r , UP STATE STRIKE. Oswego, N. 'JL Sept 3. Oswego had a taste of the actors' strike Friday evening when the 30 members of "What's the Idea?" de- clined to go on at the Richardson with a non-union orchestra. The leader, who travels with the company, is a unionist and he would not sit in the pit with the Oswego musicians. The company's pianist played the musical comedy alone and the members of the house orchestra looked on. HOUSES OPENING. Alhambra, Stamford, Conn., Sept. 15. Liberty, Staten Island, stock dur- ing the week and vaudeville Sundays, opened last week. Gordon's Olympia and ScollaySq., Boston, next week, Sept 8. They have been added on the books of Doc Breed. Alhambra, Stamford, Sept. 8. BURLESQUE ENGAGEMENTS. Sylvia Edwards replacing Babe Wel- lington as soubret at Kahn's Union Square. Norma Bell, prima, for Union Square stock. ' Frank Lilly (Wong and Luiey) has been en. gaged to play Boza in Edmund Hayes snow. @m (THIS U NOT A MCI POWDBt) J. GORDON BOSTOCK Author—Director—Producer 1493 Broadway, New York, City I want to buy Plays, Musical Comedies, Sketches, Songs and Vaudeville Acts of all kinds. Stars and clever people looking for a vaude- ville vehicle, see me. I will finance and pro- I personally nook my acts on ths big tlms through the offlse of my brothar, CLAUDS W. BOSTOCK. TOMMY'S TATTLES. By Thomas J. Gray. Show business now consists of the Summer Season, the Winter Season, and the Strike Season. It has now been decided that only one Senator will trail Wilson. It is hardly possible that the closing of so many Musical Comedies had anything to do with keeping the old boys home. Telegraph company issued a new rate book in the theatrical district Maybe it expects a rush of wires, with "touching" messages. "— Home Theatricals. Musical Act Give each member of the family a comb covered with tissue paper, any kind of noise they make on it will sound like a Jazz band. A touch of uptodateness can be given the af- fair, if you dress the folk in sailor suits. ; _ . .' Drama. .'Give each member of the family the editorial page of a different daily newspaper, have-each one read the Jeading editorial aloud. Nothing could sound more dramatic Moving Pictures. Put the family album on a string suspended from any height, then swing it around the' room. Problem Plays. Figure out some waj of getting out of paying your rent Most of those dear old railroad men who are always thinking up schemes to raise the fares, travel on a pass. To a man on the side lines it looks as though those fellows working with the circus have the best of it this 'sea- son. Newspaper, story says "it will take a year to heal all the scars made during the present strike." What an optimist the fellow is who wrote that How to Be Happy on Broadway. Walk fast Wear blinders, a - Don't stop to argue with anybody. The surest way is to stay home. Suggestions are now in order to make General Pershing happy when he arrives in New York. Might pass a law against anybody singing some of those "Peace songs" to him. \ Might appoint a committee of those who announced from the stage what they were going to do for the "boys in the trenches" and then thought the trenches were over here in the thea- tres. In the new list of unions announced this week we fail to find one made up of the fellows who sing the parodies about the bathing suit ripping, surely there is enough of those boys to form their own union. The Chorus Girls' Johns may organ- ize against the high cost of flowers and perfume. Hope they don't get the Knigh'ta" of Labor mixed up with the Knights of Columbus. This has been a great season for cheering. SHOWS IN SAN FRANCISCO. Alcazar.—'The Miracle Man" -with Walter P Richardson and Belle Ben- nett Casino.—Will King Co. (15th week) and A. H. & W. V. A. Vaudeville. Columbia.—" Chin Chin" (4th week). Cur ran.—"Broken Blossoms" (pic- ture; 2d week). Majestic—Del Lawrence Stock Co. Princess—Bert Levey Vaudeville. Wigwam.—A. H. & W. V. A. Vaude- ville.