The New York Clipper (April 1919)

Copyrighted, 1919, and published weekly by the Clipper Corporation, 1604 Broadway. New York. EnUrtd at the Poat-office at New York, Jnne 34, 1179, aa Founded by FRANK. QUEEN, 1*53 NEW YORK, APRIL 30, 1919 mall matter under Act ol Marek X IV% VOLUME LXVn-No. U Price, Ten Ctnti, KOO a Year DRAWS $400,000 111 4WpS BREAKS ALL RECORDS The Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circuses Combined closed a four weeks' season at the Madison Square Garden last Saturday night, having played to close to $400,000 during the run, there- by breaking- all previous records made by circuses. The engagement started on Saturday, March 29, and closed on Saturday, April 26—twenty-nine days in all. Deducting the four Sundays, one in March and three in April, it left twenty-five days on which the circus could be presented. With two shows a day, this brought the number of performances up to fifty. From the opening to the closing date there was only one p e r f ormance at which the house 'was not entirely sold out. This was the first Monday afternoon of the engagement. Since' then every show was sold out and hundreds were turned away, unable to get in. • The Madison Square Garden, has a seat- ing capacity of more than 7,000, about half of which is on the lower floor, the gal- leries taking care of the rest. At the prices charged the lower floor would sell for over 95,000. In all of the years that, circuses have played Madison Square Garden this is the first time that the house was completely sold out for more than six consecutive days. In former seasons there would usually be one week, in the "four or five played, in which the house would be sold ont at every show. This was' either the second or third week of the run. The other weeks' business ran from good to fair. The fifty performances mentioned above do not include' the special morning per- formances given for orphans and cripples, soldiers and sailors. The circus goes on the road with the tame people that were with it in New York with the addition of Lillian Lietzel, aerialist, to the circus, and several to the side show. Among these are Clyde Ingalls, Walter C. Van Horn, Win. B. Burroughs, W. H. Westley and Tom Nichols. . The added attrarti-us for the aide show are P. G. Lowery, tue coraetist, and wife, and a colored band and minstrel company; Walker and Oozy, a musical act, and Frank W. Decker, eccentric juggler. The show is located this week at Fifth avenue and Third street, Brooklyn; next week it goes to Philadelphia, and the fol- lowing week it will play Washington, Baltimore and Wilmington. The routing will then be west to Pennsylvania, north- ward 'through New York and into New England. '. ' Ninety cars will be required to move the show this year, this .equipment being at Mott. Haven. - The combined shows «*rry 1,400 employees and 700 homes. Of the 1,400 employees, 400 are connected with the performance. There will be eight center poles for the big top, but this num- ber; can be increased and the seating ca- pacity enlarged when necessary. — • '• - : KILLS DANCER, WIFE AND SELF San Fhanciboo, April 24.—YigoOlssen, a musician, snot and killed his wife, Vera, a toe dancer at the Chutes this week. After he had shot her he ran into the house and lolled himself. The shooting took -place in front of his father's' house on Twenty-second avenue. ' The. cause of the shooting is supposed to be an estrangement which followed Ols- sen's discovering his wife with another man.' He was about twenty-eight years old and was recently discharged from the army. His vrit e was about the same age. On the way to the morgue with the bodies, the wagon collided with another automobile and crushed the driver of the car, George Kahn, a clerk, to death. The drivers of the morgue wagon, which was badly d ama ged, claimed they were unable to stop in time to avert the collision. "FRECKLES'* CLOSING Wilkesbabbe, April 28.—"Freckles," with William Thompson featured, under the management of Joseph Rith, with James Harkless in the capacity of busi- ness manager, doses here on April 90, after a tour of thirty-five weeks. The company will open in Long Island in July with new stage scenery and win tour New Jersey, Maryland,. Delaware, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and TnrliiiTHI, ' ' FOUND DEAD IN BATHROOM Los Amnrxxs, April 24.—Mrs. Ben Dil- lon, formerly an actress, was found dead yesterday in the gas-filled bathroom of her home in this city. Her husband was im- mediately notified at the Lyric Theatre, Portland, Ore., where he was playing the leading comedy role in "Get Rich Quick." It was impossible to get a substitute to play his part and Dillon was compelled to go on. GIRL MUSICIAN KILLS SELF TOLEDO, O., April 20.—Theresa Dorsek, a former musician at the'Orpheum Thea- tre, ended her life in Detroit Monday with a bullet. It is said that the act was the result of her lover, John Yanovitch, trans- ferring his affections to another girl. In a dying statement the musician said she went to Detroit with Yanovitch, who is be- ing held by the police. ACTORS GUILTY OF THEFT DrTBorr, Mick, April 28.—WiHiam E. Fortune and John Traverse, actors, were fined $10 and coats in the district court here last week, after having been found guilty of the theft of a $67 electric fan. It is said- they attempted to dispose of the fan for $12. Both testified they were members of a troupe which had disbanded at St. Louis. ETHEL JACKSON GETS DIVORCE Bthel Jackson, co-star with Donald Brian in "Tie Merry Widow," and Benoni Lock wood were divorced last week Jus- tice Piatt, of the White Plains Court, granted it. Both had sued for divorce. They were married In 1908 after Lockwood had acted as attorney for Miss Jackson in a divorce suit. FOLLIES—JOLSON BATTLE FOR BOSTON COIN ZUvGFELD OPENING BIG Boston, April 28.—Al Jolson and his show, representing the Shuberts, and the .Ziegfeld "Follies," representing Klaw and Brlanger, have gone to the mat here, and if there is any money left in Boston after they leave, the amount win be so (mall that no self-respecting producer win give a Mayflower whoop about it. For, even before the "Follies" opened here at the Colonial Theatre tonight, Jol- son, with his show, had established thea- trical history In Washington, where be played to $50,000 in two weeks at Poll's Theatre. And when be came here with his show to re-open the antiquated Boston Opera House, which bad remained dark since last December and was being slated for abandonment as a first-class show house, he found the box office laden with an advance amount of $20,000 in coin of the realm. Since that time every perform- ance has proven to be a complete sell-out, and from the ovation which Jolson 'receiver* at each performance it would seem that he will continue packing 'em in until the mil- " lennium. Nor is the "Follies" to be sniffed at, despite Jolson's popularity. This show opened here tonight at the Colonial Thea- tre, where the audience that attended was of national convention proportions. The opening takings were close to $3,000, or $2,842, to be exact. The "Follies" remains here another week after this. The Jolson show continues longer. But during the two weeks they win play here together, each making an unprecedented bid for the town's theatrical patronage, the odds seem to be in favor of the Jolson show garnering the most money of the two. The "Follies" doesn't often play to seer ond money to any Sbubert show it hap- pens to encounter. Recently in Ohio the Ziegfeld-K. and E. show ran into another Shnbert "ace" musical show, with which it competed for a week The "ace" show was the "Passing Show." Result: "Folliea," $28,000 for the week; "Passing Show," $12,000. SHOOTING STARTS DIVORCE CASE : David S. Shearman has sued Jacqueline Shearman for a divorce. The latter, the daughter of the late Lillian Lewis and stepdaughter of Lawrence Marsten, the playwright, was recently shot by a man whom she identified as J. G. Knapp and who, she says, was a Jealous admirer. She herself is a cabaret singer and the mother of three children, respectively nine, four- teen and eighteen years of age. SENTENCED FOR ROBBING ACTRESS Sait Francisco, April 24.—Bichard A. Palmer,lias been sentenced to San Quen- tin Prison after confessing to the robbery of .Mary CamptnitV room at the St Fran- da Hotel, together with a number of other robberies which have taken place in hotels. DURE KIRALFY DIES Of LONDON London, Eng., April 28.—Imre FJralfy, for half a century known as a producer of spectacles, died yesterday at'his. home, at Brighton, aged seventy-four years. ■ He was. the last of three brothers whose fame was. world-wide. -•.'-- ... : ' - -' .. TOOK rOISONi WONT GIVE NAME Chicago, llh, April 26.—Lying on a cot in the Cook County Hospital la aa actress known to the police and theatrical pro- fession only as "Myrtle," owing to the fact that she will not tell who she is, where she came from or what caused her to take poison at the Grand Pacific Hotel early last week She continually calls "Author, Author," smiles and then asks to be per- mitted to die. The poison, taken by the woman is of a slow nature and jhystrtsns attending her state'that she has no pos- sible chance of recovery. Jimmy Orr, a former comedian, at pres- ent employed aa a bell boy at the Hotel Gault, admitted that he knew her, but only as "Myrtle." He also admitted to tike po- lice that he had entertained her several evenings prior to the attempted gulcMs, but could throw no farther light upon the matter. She has displayed an indomitable spirit when placed under a third degree by the police, who are endeavoring to iden- tify her. Mrs. Ray Wells, an actress, telephoned over the long distance''phone from VTn- cennes, Ind., and stated that the descrip- tion given by the police tallies with that of her daughter, Myrtle Howard, who came to Chicago some time ago to join a'theat- rical company. Mrs. Wells is on her way to this city. In the meanwhile the local theatrical colony is aiding the police department to make a positive identification. THREE PERFORMERS KILLED Three members of a vaudeville company were killed and three injured last Friday night after the show at the Liberty Thea- tre, Camp Merrltt, N. J., when'two buses collided. Three privates and a major also lost their lives in the accident Mrs. Paul Pitching was Instantly killed when a piece of the car pierced her heart. John F. Sully had a large piece of wood driven through his lungs and died as it was removed. Young Sully, thirteen years old, had his head severed from his body. Mrs. Solly was severely lacerated but not fa- tally. , Lillian Young 'received either a broken back or a broken hip. The extent of her injuries had not been fully ttttss M by the X-ray Monday night. A sister of Lillian Young, Marguerite, was badly lac- erated, but notfatally hurt Paul Pitching/ also a performer, and the two cauffeurs were uninjnred. ' BROWN SUES DOOLEY . Ch a mb erlain. Brown is suing Johnny Dooley for $180 in the Third District Municipal Court." The complaint filed last week by 8ol Goodman, Brown's attorney, alleges that the amount sued for is due Brown fat commissions from Dooley. recent engage- ment in the "Listen Lester" show. Brown claims that he obtained a ten-week book- ing in the show for Dooley, the latter re- ceiving $400 a week, from which Brown says he was to receive 5 per, cent, or a total of $200. After paying him $100 Dooley refused to pay thV balance, Brown alleges. ' ■•; ..''. Dooley, who opened in Ziegfeld's "Mid- night Frolic" .show a, week ago Monday, having left the "Listen Lester* show^-Se previous Saturday, has filed aa answer to the suit through Harry Saks HeehhslmeT, bis attorney, in' which ne denies the plain • tiffs allegations. - * '■