The New York Clipper (October 1919)

THE NEW YORK CLIPPER October 1, 1915 BILL FOR FIDELITY BENEFIT IS LONG ARRAY OF BIG STARS Score* of Stars to Be Seen in Role» from Old Plays That "Made Them," While Vaudeville Will Abo Contribute* Share; Play Penned by George M. Cohan The All Star Testimonial Performance, to be given at the Century Theatre, Son- day evening, Ottober 12th, by the Actors' Fidelity League, is planning to present to New York the meet elaborate bill ever seen on a Broadway stage. The perform- ance will be a contribution from the pen of George 1L Cohan, president of the League, and will also take a conspicuous part in the performance. An important role is also being written for Willie Collier. Big scenes from many successses will be presented in the first part of the bill under the title of "Many Happy Re- turns," with the stars that contributed to the hits in their original roles. The fol- lowing is the order in which they will appear on the program: Julia Arthur in "The Lady of Quality"; Amelia Wngiiam in "The CUmbers"; Mar- garet Anglin as "Electra"; Louis Mann in "The Telephone Girl"; Fay Bainter in "The Kiss Burglar"; Ina Claire as "The Quaker Girl"; Grace George in Di- vercons"; Ruth Chatterton in "Daddy Long Legs"; Burr Mcintosh in "Trilby"; Edna Wallace Hopper in "Florodora"; Baiie Burke and Henry Miller in "A Mar- riage of Convenience"; Otis Skinner in "Kismet"; Minnie Maddern Flake, as "Becky Sharp*"; Thomas B. Shea in "The Bells"; Mary Ryan in "On Trial"; Lenore Ulric and Willa'rd Mack in "Tiger Rose"; George M. Cohan in "Broadway Jones"; Florence Nash in "Within the Law": Willie Collier and Helen Hudson in "Weber and Fields Jubilee"; B&lph Hen in "The Soul Kiss"; Blanche Bates in "The Girl of the Golden West"; Holbrook Blinn in "The Duchess of Danzie"; Bessie McCoy Davis as "The Tama Tama Girl." A score of vaudeville hits will be in- cluded in the olio, while the last part will consist of a play in which Cohan will ap- pear together with a cast of Fidelty actors. Among those who will appear in the olio are, George White, Ann Pennington, Robinson Newhold, Irving Berlin, De Lyle A]da, prima donna of the Follies: Dave Stamper, Nora Bayes and Irving Fisher, Eileen Huban, Jeanne Eagles, Hal Hixon, Savoy and Brennan, Thurston, the Magician A number, known as the "Fidelity Girls" will be staged by Ned Waybnrn, music for which is being written by Irv- ing Berlin. The scenery will be by Joseph Urban. The orchestra will be composed of solo artists from the Metropolitan, Damrosch, Russian Symphony and Philharmonic organizations. STEWART * MORRISON TO PRODUCE Charles G. Stewart and Lee Morrison last week organized a producing corpora- tion with a capitalization of $50,000 for tie express purpose of producing the new musical play written by Harry B. Smith and Hugo Riesenfeld, which has been placed in rehearsal and is scheduled to open Oct. 20 in Stamford, Conn. The title of the new play is "Betty, Behave," but thie will probably be changed this week; it having been dis- covered that a play of the same title had previously been presented. The following prin ci pals are at present rehearsing inTthe piece: Josephine Whit- tell, who is the wife of Robert Warwick, and who formerly appeared in "Glori- asna"; Laura Hamilton, Irving Beebe, Josie Tntropidi, Frank Crumit, Georgie Manatt, Frances Grant and Ted Wing, Worthington Romaine, Lucille Manion, Bimmy Evans. Charles S i ncla ir is stag- ing the book and Vaughn Godfrey is stag- inx the dancing numbers. Charles G. Stewart was formerly man- ager of. the Rialto Theatre and Lee Mor- rison was associated with the Century Play Company. DRAMA LECTURES PLANNED Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Lawren are now planning to present a series of ten lec- tures on the drama, each lecture by a well known dramatist. These lectures will be given on ten consecutive Sundays at some downtown theatre. LEE ASKS ALLOWANCE Albert Lee, playwright, author-and edi- tor, asked permission of the court to uti- lize some of the $250,000 estate left by bis mother to his two daughters for the sup- port of the same, according to his petition Saturday to Surrogate Fowler, who re- served decision. Mrs. Lee, who died in 1918, left the es- tate carefully to her grandchildren, spe- cifically ignoring her son. In his petition Lee declared that he would not ask for the money now, onfy that his six-year-old daughter Barbara is not in robust health and needs special care which his own per- sonal means will not permit him to extend. He asked for $2,500 to enable him to do this. EQUITY HEADQUARTERS MOVE Headquarters of the Actors Equity Association will be located on West 47th street, in the building next to the Colum- bia Theatre, as soon as the painters and carpenters have fixed up the rooms, which will probably be late this week. The building was formerly the meeting place of the Screen Club and, later, of the Vol- ney Club. Equity will remain there until its own clubhouse is" built. BLACK, AND WHITE MELODY BOYS On the front 'cover of but week's issue of the Cltppeb was a photograph of the Black and White Melody Boys, an aggre- gation of musical artists who for the past three months have been appearing at Maxim's. The band consists of Norman Carp, Moe Gappelle, George Walsh and John Ryan. They are now considering an offer to ap- pear at one of the large hotels in Cuba for the winter. At present, in addition to their work in Maxim's they are making a num- ber of phonograph records. Joe Franklin represents the boys. Their music is remarkably fine .And the band compares favorably with, tile best. HELD ON FRAUD CHARGE Charged with obtaining money under false pretenses to promote a film enter- prise he was interested in, James J. Blanchard, of Leonia, N. J., formerly pro- prietor of the Star Theatre in Hacken- sack, was held in $5,000 bail last Wednes- day for further hearing before the Grand Jury. • Mrs. Kitty R. Sehmultz, a widow of Hack en sack, charged Blanchard borrowed between $10,000 and $12,000 from her to promote a film enterprise. She alleged Blanchard promised her a weekly income of $150 ana to make her a beneficiary of a large insurance policy on his life. CHICAGO OPERA COMING HERE The Chicago Opera Association will pre- sent five weeks of grand opera here, be- ginning Jan. 26, at the Lexington Theatre, according to Cleofante CfcMiMhaj general director, who will bring several new operas and introduce several new singers. DALY'S COMES TO LIFE ' Daly's Theatre on Broadway near 30th Street, which in its heyday during the 'DO'S was' the foremost theatre in this country, of international repute, and which retained the dramatic integrity established for it by the -late Augustin Daly until about twelve years ago, was saved from demolition but week by Milton Gosdorf who leased the house for motion picture purposes. Gosdorf already controls three huge mo- tion picture houses, two in New York, the Plasa and the Odeon, and the Orpheum in Yonkers, and he has acquired Daly's under a. lease from the Schiefflien Estate, the owner, for a term of years beginning Oc- tober 1. He is spending more than $25,000 to alter the bouse from plans drawn by Abra- . ham T.ihnmn, the entire front being changed, while the interior will be restored to conform to the period when Augustin Daly controlled its theatrical destinies. An organ costing more than.$10,000 is being installed. The famous front-drop curtain which was executed by Biancardi in Milan for Augustin Daly is being restored for use at this time by the artist who originally painted it and who is now residing in this city. . A strict motion picture policy will be " maint a ine d at Daly's which is expected to. be ready for picture showing within the next two weeks, a fixed price being established for all of the 1,000 seats that the house will contain when completed. The price win be 20 cents in the after- noon and 3D cents evenings. Daly's base been empty now for more than two years. Previous to that time Walter and Jerome Rosenberg had the house under lease. During their tenancy burlesque and motion pictures held away there, but apparently these ventures failed at that time, for the house reverted back to its owner. Recently the estate planned to demolish the theatre and erect a tall office building on the site, but Milton Gosdorf came along and by leasing the house caused the owner to change his plans. ROCK AND WHITE SUED Rock and White are being sued for com- missions by the Clef dub Singers and Players' Managing Corporation, the agency which supplied them with colored mu- sicians for their act but year. According to the complaint filed in the Third District Court by Wilfred H. Smith, attorney for the plaintiff, Rock and White engaged fifteen musicians through the Clef Club agency, agreeing to pay them a total of $890 per week.' It is further al- leged that 5 per cent, of the total salary, or $44.50, was to be deducted each week by Rock and White and forwarded to the agency. The agency now claims that Rock and White failed to turn over a total df $28325, the sum it is seeking to recover in the suit. Rock and White, through their attor- neys, House, Grossman and Vorhaus, have interposed an answer to the suit in which the principal'defense is that, at the time the contract was made the agency was not licensed to "conduct a booking business on a commission basis as required by law. CHATTERTON COMPANY FILLED The supporting company for Rath Chatterton, with which she will open her run at the Miller Theatre, here, in "Moon- light and Honeysuckle," includes James Rennie, Lawrence Eddinger, Lucille Wat- son and Charles Trowbridge. The play will open on September 29. FRIEDLANDER WRITING BIG SHOW William B. Friedlander is writing music and lyrics for a revue which will feature Jack Norworth. Norworth is writing the book, and Friedlander will stage the pro- duction. ELWOOD OPERA HOUSE BURNS Elwood, Ini, Sept. 26.—Fire early to- - day destroyed the Grand Theatre causing a loss estimated at $75,000. The fire is believed to have been caused by defective wiring. CLAIMS ACTOR CHOKED HER Harry Bartling, who said he was a moving picture actor, and that he just finished a seven-week engagement with Mary Miles Minter, in Boston, was ar- raigned but Thursday before Magistrate Curranv in the Washington Heights Court. charged ,by Itfjf wife with ( ;havingJat- tempted to choke and'stab her while'she lay in bed at their; honra early that morning. >-. '•' M The BartlingB- live at 8297 Eighth avenue and have one daughter, Vivian, Is years old, who testified against the father. She said that her mother ar- rived home at two that morning, and that she arrived home thirty minutes later. The father became angry over their late homecoming so, she testified, he went into Mrs. Baxtling's room about four that morning, grabbed her by the throat and while choking the mother also attempted to stab her with a penknife. The daugh- ter said she came running into the room, grabbed her father's arm and pulled him away from the bed. Bartling, after denying that he had in- tended to stab his wife, told the magis- trate that she was an excessive drinker attributing his marital unhappinese to his wife's alleged excessive desire for liquor, and that he had merely placed his hand on her throat while pleading with her to give up drinking. Magistrate Curran released Bartling on probation, placing him in the custody of Probation Officer Fitzgerald. ACTORS ON ROAD MAY VOTE An amendment to permit absentee vot- ing in the State of New Tork will be put before the State voters at the general election in November. This amendment directly affects the actor, for, .at election time, thousands of actors whose residence is New York, are on the road and there- fore unable to vote. If the amendment is passed absentee voting will be permitted. The amendment will be known as "Amendment No. 2" on the ballot, and is the result of the following bill which was introduced in the State Legislature by Assemblyman Louis M Martin: Section 1. Resolved, That article two of the constitution be amended by insert- ing therein a new section to be section 1-a, to read as follows: Sec. 1-a. The legislature may, by gen* eral law, provide a manner in which, and the time and puce at which, qualified voters who may, on the occurrence of any general election, be unavoidably absent from the State or county of their resi- dence because of their duties, occupation or business require them to be elsewhere within the United States, may vote, and for the return and canvass of their votes in the election district in which they re- spectively reside. Sec 2. ' Resolved, That the foregoing amendment be submitted to the people for approval at the general election in the year nineteen hundred and nineteen, in accordance with the provisions of the election law. MUST PAY TAX BEFORE SAILING According to a ruling handed down by the Board of Internal Revenue, actors leaving this country must pay their income tax before they will be permitted to part Aliens, also, including opera singers, must satisfy all income tax obligations up to and including the month preceding their departure. A citizen must have paid all install- ments of the tax due up to the time of sailing and make arrangements for. the payment of future installments as they fall due. Evidence that the tax requirements have been met are "being required at the port of embarkations, and where certifi- cates from the collector of the district where the person has his residence are not forthcoming, the person is obliged to meet the requirements before the collector at the port of sailing. GET ROAD RIGHTS OF 'BETTER 'OLE' The .road rights of the "Better '01e" have been bought by De Wolf Hopper and James Kerr from the CoburnsT Mr. Hop- per win take his role of "Bill" and play to the coast.