The New York Clipper (April 1919)

April 30, 1919. THE NEW^V6KK^lHP4»Bft aa—i—■■» — ■ GRIFFITH TAKES COHAN i F OR FILM REPERTOIRE Will Establish First Stock Film House in America, Playing All 'His Big Successes, as Soon as "A Prince There '., , V Was" Closes May 10 Each show, will run < lX"W.;Griffith has leased the George M. Cfchan Theatre and will establish there the first film repertoire theatre In America. The Vith a $1.50 top. about two hours. ';' "Tiroken Blossoms," formerly known as opening date is problematical; depending "The'Chink" 1 and the''Girl," will be ♦'•- upon the;, ran of "A Prince There Was," opening film. It is a talc of the Loi which, however, is expected to' close May 10, and so to Chicago, where it will open..at the Cohan Grand Opera House May ^lp a . . The question of playing'a.different film each day-; or of letting one film run until from the Coast. His western studio con- tracts expire in June, when, it is expected, he will bring his entire company East to work near New York for some months. Lillian Gish, Robert Harron, Richard Bartholomew, Kate Bruce and all Griffith's players will arrive about the last of May. These pictures may be his own independent productions, since his contract with Famous Play era -Las ky has only a brief time to run. - Under the repertoire plan, there will be .two shows a day at regular theatre prices, the London underworld based on the story from "Lime- house Nights." ' , . ' This will be followed by "The Fall of Babylon," taken from "Intolerance," with additions, and "The Mother and the Law," also from. "Intolerance." ... ' v ' There will also be a revival .of ,S»eet^.B!wne,' , "The .Ayemjing.*: -The Birth of a Nation," and other famous Griffith films. No topical news films or comedies will be shown in addition to the feature film. . .... A Chinese band' will play during the showing of "Broken Blossom »," and'there will be other features for the different films. Mr. Griffith has been in the market for a Broadway theatre for film repertoire for some time, having considered several, among which, it was once stated, was the Rlvoli. FUND OFFICIALS NOMINATED Nominations have been made for officers and trustees to be voted on at the annus! meeting of the Actors' Fund of America at the Hudson Theatre, May 23. The reg- ular ticket is as follows: President, .Daniel Frohman; vice-president, Jos. R. Grimer; second vice-president, F. F. Mackay; treas- urer, Sam A Scribner; secretary, Gus Hill; trustees for three years, E. F. Albee, Walter Vincent, Oscar Eagle, Bernard A. Stevenson, Bijou Fernandez. One trustee will be chosen for one year, 1919-20, in place of the late Hollis E. Cooler. Mrs. Edwin Arden has been nom- inated for this post. The meeting, which will be the 38th an- nual, will be called to order at 11 a. m. for a business session. HOBOKEN CUTS OUT CIRCUSES West Hobokkr, N. J., April 27.—The town council put a ban on circuses and carnivals yesterday after bearing the pro- tests of several well-known tax-payers, which arose when permission was given to the Playground Commissioners to bring a circus into West Hoboken from which they were to receive a percentage of. the receipts, to be used is. buying new ap- paratus for the playgrounds. The reso- lution giving the commissioners this per- mission was passed two weeks ago, and George Goldner, president of the Commis- sion, went ahead and arranged for the coming of the circus some time next month. The opposition appeared at the meeting of the town council and stated that such exhibitions have always proved a nuisance' and • detriment to. the town. After hear- ing the complaints the council put a baa on all amusement enterprises of that kind. FIND DONALD BRIAN'S DAUGHTER ■ St. Louis, Mo., April 27.—Under or- ders from the New York police, the daugh- ter of Donald Brian, missing from her home at Great Neck, L. I., since April X, was taken into custody here and yester- day Mrs. Brian reclaimed the runaway chfld. The girl, who is fourteen, .but appears much older, gave the police of the country a merry chase. Florence, who is a daugh- ter by a former husband, threw detectives off her track by purchasing long skirts, buy- ing a wedding ring and staying at the best hotels under the assumed name of a mar- ried woman. When she first left her home, her mother did not worry, thinking the girl did not have sufficient cash to get far. However, she had 5400 when she left home, but only 87 cents when taken into custedy. BRADY OPENS "THE ALIBI" Stamford, Conn., April 25.—"The Alibi," a mystery melodrama in four acts, by Owen Davis, was given its first production on any stage last Monday at the Stamford Theatre. It tells a story of the confes- sions of three persons for the same murder. These confessions are extorted from two men and a woman, each of whom is sus- pected, and there is, seemingly, sufficient drenmstantial evidence against all of them to believe Oat either one committed the deed. ...... The woman and one of the men confess, each under the impression that the other.is guilty and each wants to save .the other. The other man tries to shield- the young nam, who is really guilty/ who, .when 'he believes he is going to die, tells his friend that he cannot die with an unconfessed murder, on bis sonl and thus makes a clean breast of the affair. The author, having cleared up the mystery, leaves the audi- ence in doubt as to whether or not the murderer is to be punished. The story is well told and holds interest to the end be- cause of its suspense. Tile cast included: John Cromwell, Ger- ald Binkmas, Robert Fraser, James Dy- renforth, Romaine Callender, James Bar- rows, Frank Hildon, Peter Lang, 'Robert Thorne, Nick Long, Jane Carieton, Marie Goff, May Collins and Idaline Cotton. The play was produced by Wm. A Brady, who plans to take it to New York. LAY OFF FIGHT TICKETS Because of what they considered an ex- cessive top price for tickets to the. Leon- ard-Ritchie fight in Newark on Monday night, most of the ticket agencies along Broadway "laid off buying the large num- ber of tickets they would ordinarily have taken on tor the event. TSie promoters set $10 aa the top price, plus the war tax, and most of the brokers who did buy sold them at box office prices for the most part, except in very rare instances. ■ - Another reason the brokers say caused them to."lay off" was the fact that Jack Curiey was not interested in the affair. Just the same, Billy Gibson, Leonard's manager, is reported to have distributed $16,000 worth of tickets which he bought in advance, receiving a fifteen per cent, discount on the buy. Among the ticket brokers, David Marks of the United Agency, Leo Newman, and Charlie Levy, of the Broadway Agency, are reported to have been the largest buyers, Marks taking $8,000 worth and, Newman and Levy dividing between them $5,000 more. These brokers distributed part of their holdings in small Iota to other brok- ers, it is said. FLORENCE BOYD SUES , .'. ' Florence Boyd, jb;"Listen Lester," has started an action for separation through llarry .Saki HeehV-itner.' \ S In - her application for alimpny, - Miss Boyd states that' she married Clarence' WUlooghby Boyd in 1912, under preasion that he. was ^a_ man of good char- acter and had ample means with which to support her.. T^Jtiidea proved incorrect however, she States, for she' soorf" found herself forced to live at the home-of'-her mother. He then., went to Florida, she states', whence he wrote her letters that , spoke of eric!6sing rn'dney but nothing more. The checks'Tetered''to' ; riever- arrived, she Bwea■^s;"'•''•■ ""•""* '^P**' > In 1914/ he : went to Bay City, Mich., , she charges, where, "upon investigation, she found he was Irving' with another woman named Lockwood." She also alleges that he struck her, audi' when she -wired her brother for money, made her give him part of it; -•'.:;•'..? "";" ..'• ■„_., " .Boyd is no*.rrn tha lumber business in a nearby 'state, and the application for alimony has not been decided. The couple have one child, 'Walter, fife years oM. . ROSENTHAL HAS AN IDEA Sidney' Rosenthal, the playwright, pro- ducer and legal ligTi't, was working out plans early this week for combining the two former Coney Island attractions,- "Cre- ation"-'-and "A Trip, to the. Moon" and exhibiting them in. the Times Square dis- trict. He stated that he had a building in mind for the venture which could be ob- tained reasonably. ..,. ; WALSH SUCCEEDS MOCSARY Lawrence A. Walsh has succeeded Ed- win Mocsary, treasurer of the. Hi alto and Itivoli corporations,, the latter having re- signed to produce legitimate attractions. TULLY WRITING THREE PLAYS Richard Walton Tully is busy writing three news plays,-all of which he expects to have ready for production next season. THREATEN TO STOP JARDON Court proceedings were threatened last week by the' Commonwealth Opera Com- pany over the appearance of Dorothy Jar- don at the concert held at.the Hippodrome last Snnday night, when A. M. Watten- burg, attorney for the Commonwealth, stat- ed be would stop her. She appeared at the concert, however, and-on Monday it was stated that she bad not been served with any injunction papers. The singer stated; furthermore, that she had never signed a contract with the Com- monwealth company.- ' ' ' BARRY MELTON Well known prims donna who is beading "The Liberty Girls" and found by Chamberlain Brown, who immediately placed her tinder a five-year exclusive contract. Miss Melton la a prima donna with a remarkable voice and per* •onatity. Others managed by Mr. Brown ex- clusively are Bessie McCoy Davis, Fritii Schcff, Elizabeth Murray, Oscar Shew, Walter Morrison. Irene Franklin, ZeMa Sears, Martha Mayo, Richard Pyle. Lucille Minion, Julia aCelety, Zoe Bsrnctt. T. Roy Bancs and others. "ITS. UP TO YOU" IS PANNED .,I^ew;JBUv»n, Oonn„' April 24.— "IV* Op to You," which closed yesterday a three- day stay at the- Shnbort Theatre, is not likely to go rery far if the verdict of New Haven critics is 'upheld. The local w rit - er a agree that the only bright spot in the performance is furnished Dy Rose and Arthur Boy Ian, who are 'praised for their dancing. ' "The book is classed as very ordinary, the music little better, and the staging bad. The wonder is how the piece could have gotten into the Shubert Theatre as the show is sans girls, sans music, sans wit,, sana.-scenery, sans costumes, and everything. .The show had ita premiere in Springfield, Mass., where it shared the same'fate as that accorded it by the New- Haven scribes. .-.'.■- > There 'was a report on Broadway early in the week that this show had closed. The Shuberts, who had been NsSeafnsj the bookings, stated, upon inquiry,"that .they were no longer doing eo, and that they had no idea who was. THEATRE LICENSE DENIED The application of Benjamin Menachel for a license to build a theatre on the northeast corner - of One Hundred -'and Twenty-ninth Street at Lenox Avenue, was refused last week, after a hearing at the Bureau of Licenses. As soon as the sneriuncement was made that Menachel- would attempt to build a house here, taxpayers in the vicinity started a petition protesting against the building on the grounds that negro patron- age would cause a depreciation in the value of property in the vicinity of the theatre. There is a large negro district above One Hundred and Thirtieth Street Residents state that litre arc sufficient theatres in that vicinity to furnish entertainment and that if a theatre was built the main pat- ronage wonld come from the district to the north. Almost every year for several years pest attempts have been made to get a license for a theatre on this corner. FITCH ESTATE TO BE SOLD The so-culled Clyde Fitch estate at Bed- ford Hills, Westchester County, was sched- uled for sale under the hammer last week, but the matter was adjourned to give a distant relative of the late playwr i g h t a chance to come from the West and bid on the property. As a matter of fact, the estate never be- longed to Clyde Fitch, nor did the late playwright ever see or live on the prop- erty, the place being owned by his mother, Mrs. Alice M. Fitch, who acquired It many years ago, but did not live there. Clyde Fitch did own an estate known as "Ka- tonah" at ML Kisco, Westchester County, which was sold a few years after his death to Grenville T. Emmett. "MARY'S ANKLE" HALTS Rumors that "Mary's Ankle" came .to a sudden bait at Kenosha, Wis., April 20, after having played the middle west for three weeks on a "commonwealth" plaa r reached Broadway early this week. Early in April the organisation found) itself without a manager, it is claimed, and the cast took It onto themselves to carry on. At Kenosha, however, the stage hands demanded their salaries and forthwith the piece dosed. The original contract for the show was signed by Hunter and LyteH. but it is said that Lytell had served notice on the cast that he would not be respon- sible for the salaries. The Actors' Equity is looking into the situation. ELIZABETH MARBURY TO SAIL Elizabeth Marbury, who entered the theatrical business several years ago aa a play agent and then became prominent as m producer of "Oh, Boy!" and other suc- cesses, will leave for France the latter part of May in the interests of tbs Knights of Columbus. Miss Marbury has been aiding the K. of C. for many weeks, and goes to Europe not only as the first -woman representative of that order, but as a> representative American woman who, at the request of the French Government, will lecture to the women of France on the democracy at the women of the United