The New York Clipper (February 1917)

February t$ 1917 THE NEW YORK CLIPPER R1ALT0 r ACTORS READY TO AID UNCLE^AM-i MANY OFFER THEIR SERVICES With the possibility of wax looming big before the United* States workers in no line of business have shown greater in- terest in the situation than members of the theatrical profession. Ever since the severance of diplomatic relations between the United States and Germany this in- terest has increased day by day. Prominent among the actors who have expressed themselves as anxious to do their part are: David Warfield, now play- ing in "The Music Master" at the Knick- erbocker; Fred Tiden, leading man of "Upstairs and Down," at the Cort; Wal- ter Hampden, with "Good Gracious, Anna- belie"; Sidney Drew, Lionel Barry more, Francis X. Bushman, Edward J. Connelly, Fred R. Stanton and Charles Fang, Chi- nese actor. Some of the prominent actresses who are willing to be Red Cross nurses are: Julia Dean, Mabel Taliaferro, Emmy Whelan, Beverly Bayne and Mme. Pe- trova. That the spirit of patriotism haa also penetrated the film industry is evident from the fact that among the men' in this line who have announced their will- ingness to aid the United States to their very utmost are: Richard A. Rowland, president of Metro Pictures Corp.; Wm. Christy Cabanne, motion picture director, and Maxwell Karger. Albert Bruning, now playing in "The Yellow Jacket," who was horn in Berlin fifty-seven years ago, and haa been in America for thirty-four years without being a citizen, made application for his first papers last week. Ernst Robert, comedian at the Irving Place Theatre, and Reuben Fleishfarb, a musician, both Austrians, and Eliz Gergely, of "Her Sol- dier Boy," a Hungarian, all applied for citizenship papers. Sydney Smith, son of Harry B. Smith, and Luke Thomas, son of Augustus Thomas, who belong to Squadron A, have reported to the armory for duty. Jack Norworth has applied for admis- sion to the Naval Reserve. Fred Cruise, chief usher at the Strand, is authority for the statement that all of the ushers at that house will enlist in the event of hostilities. The chorus men of "Her Soldier Boy" company make the same announcement. At the Hippodrome 200 of the extra men have promised to enlist. WALTER E. GREENE Among the important men who have forged their way to the front in motion picture work today there is no one about whom general interest centers more than about Walter E. Greene, the president of the Artcraft Pictures Corporation. His work in the motion picture field is of especial interest, because he is apparently bringing new ideas and fresh purposes in his work of distributing the Mary Pickford pictures, and now the first screen triumphs of the already famous actor, Mr. George M. Cohan. As a motion picture magnate, Walter Greene has his own definite ideas, and is not afraid to put them into practice. He has founded his new work partly on the basis that a motion picture distributor must consider his pictures from the stand- point of the moving picture audiences, and as he has made a study of human nature for years, and knows all sides of his trade, he expects to give the people what they want and in a way that will be more than appealing. Mr. Greene thinks that an audience is sensitive to whatever is given them. He denies the truth of pictures that are over the heads of the people, and his idea is to get out pictures that will please the greatest majority. He believes in giving his audiences only the best, and desires rather to give them the benefit of the doubt than to deviate in any way from his general high standard of work. "I believe that the most ignorant peo- ple who make a practice of going to see motion pictures are in a fair way to be benefitted by them, therefore it is to them as well as to the most highly intel- lectual that I wish to appeal," he said in a personal talk not long ago; "and I never intend to recognize any truth in the remark that it is possible to give the public anything too good." From a careful study of his audiences, Mr. Greene has come to three conclusions. That an audience realizes the difference between an ordinary and a feature pro- duction, and is anxious to have more fea- tures, that the time has passed when people went to the movies out of curi- osity, now in every little town that is able to afford a moving picture house the pictures are shown to hundreds of devo- tees nightly. Lastly, an audience is sen- sitive to good acting. And it is in the elaboration of three things that Mr. Greene hopes to form an ideal corpora- tion. THEATRE FOLK MOURN DEATH OF HAYMAN CONDOLENCE IS NATION-WIDE NEW HOUSE FOR WILKES BARRE Wilkes-Babbe, Pa., Feb. 12.—New York capitalists are now considering the erection of a new amusement house here. They have been looking over a plot of ground on South Main and Northampton Streets. THE THREE STEMDEL BROTHERS Al Hayman, for many years one of the leading managers in this country, died at 12:30 last Saturday morning at the Waldorf-Astoria, where he had made his home for many years. Mr. Hayman was one of the few men who jumped to the front of managerial ranks almost as soon as he entered the business, and for nearly thirty years was one of the real dominating influences of the theatre. The so-called theatrical syn- dicate was his idea, and the' system of routings now universally used originated with him. He was born in 1852, in Wheeling, W. Va., and at the age of thirty-one went to San Francisco and leased the Baldwin Theatre, which up to that time had been considered by many to be a "hoodoo." At that time few of the leading com- panies ever ventured west of the Rocky Mountains, and San Francisco was not regarded as a good show town except for companies headed by stars who had be- come favorites there like McCullough, Barrett and Modjeska. Permanent opera companies and min- strel organizations furnished the chief amusement for the Californians. He engaged the best attractions in the East for a series of weeks, paying rail- road fares in addition to a stipulated sum agreed upon for a term of weeks, and would play them from Omaha to San Francisco and back to the Middle West. It was about this time that the late Charles Frohman was winning a name in the East, and in 1889 Mr. Hayman came East and soon after formed a business connection with Frohman which lasted until the letter's death, when the Lust- tania was sunk by a German submarine. Together they acquired the producing rights to Bronson Howard's "Shenan- doah," which made fortunes for both. In 1809 he assumed control of the Co- lumbia Theatre, Chicago, which was made the centre of a choice of theatres extend- ing east and west, and proved to be the beginning of the theatrical syndicate which he soon began to form in associa- tion with Klaw & Erlanger, Charles Froh- man and Nixon & Zimmerman. Mr. Hayman had long been an invalid. In 1911 be relinquished active work and transferred his theatrical interests to bis brother, Alf Hayman. Mr. Hayman took an active interest in the Actors' Fond of America, of which he was president for years, and he con- tributed $10,000 to the sum required to purchase the home of this organization on Staten Island. He was also a member of the Players' Club. He is survived by his widow and his brother above named. The remains were interred Sunday in a private plot in Brooklyn. The services were private in every detail, and, fol- lowing the expressed wishes of the de- ceased, there were no flowers and no hon- orary pall-bearers. There was, however, a flood of telegrams and letters convey- ing condolences from many of the leading managers and players in the country. VAN LOAN GIVES PSYCHIC DINNER Herbert H. Van Loan gave a pijjehje dinner to forty members of the press' at Churchill's Thursday evening. The ob- ject was to have the' guests enjoy their meal, while twelve hundred miles away, In Selma, Ala., Edward Cayce, a paychlst, went into a trance to oblige Violet Mer- serau, a Universal star, with a type of scenario she desired, the actress' name written on a piece of paper, also style of script and length. There was a wait of two hours before word was received from Cayce. He had guessed the name of the star, but instead of providing Miss Mereereau with the vehicle she desired a script of the psychic- dramatic variety was received. MAID SUES ACTOR AND WINS Gertrude Ragland, a maid formerly in the employ of Colin Kenny, haa received $140 damages in a suit she brought against him. The action was for alleged false ar- rest and the entire coat to Kenny, with the court expenses added to the damages, totalled $230.08. In December, 1915, the actor missed a diamond ring from his apartment and charged the maid with Its theft. She was searched without the pre- liminary formality of a warrant being sworn out for her. The present action waa an outgrowth of these circumstances. PAYTON IN HOSPITAL Tom Payton, Eastern professional man- ager for Forster, Music Publisher, Inc., is in the WHlard Parker hospital suffering from a severe attack of diphtheria. Dur- ing bis illness his place la being filled by Abe Olman, the Chicago composer. PREPARING FRIARS FROUC Preparations are now. well under way for the Friars' Frolic which is scheduled for March 4. Frank Tinney will be Chief Frollcker. One of the features of the evening will be a melodrama travesty which is being written by James Madi- son. MOZART TO RE-ENTER BUSINESS Ed Mozart, at one time owner of the Ed Mozart circuit of vaudeville theatres, will re-enter the show business. He will establish a string of "store shows," pre- senting six vaudeville acts to run about an hour. IRVING A. WARD A big success in vaudeville