The New York Clipper (December 1919)

10 THE NEW YORK CLIPPER December 17, 1919 KEITH PUTS IN NEW BOOKING SCHEME EDDIE DARLING HEADS PLAN Adopting a system of bookings somewhat similar to the one employed on the Orpbenm Circuit, the Keith Vaudeville Exchange started hooking last week under a new plan whereby the handling of acts is centralized un- der one head who has authority to-act for all houses on the circuit rather tban for only a few, as formerly. _ Eddie V. Darling has been made booking manager under this new plan. Directly assisting him will be Johnny Collins, Chester Stratton, Pat Woods And John McNally. Darling is em- powered to book any theatre that plays TJ. B. O. vaudeville. It will now be possible for an act to get a route over this time without depending on the de- cision of some half dozen bookers. T."nder the old plan, the theatres playing U. B. O. acts were booked by various men. One would have author-. lty over the houses of the West, while another would hate charge of booking the New York houses. Such a method made con seen five booking Tor any length of time rare. An act that might please one booker would, perhaps, prove objectionable to another and it necessitated agents doing business with half a dozen men to get their acts hooked over the one circuit. tinder the new plan, this is all avoided. Darling, as head of the book- ing department, can, if he so desires, book an act'solidly over the whole cir- cuit. It Is estimated that this new plan will considerably cut down what seemed to be useless redtape in the old style of booking. Darling states that, in the few days that the new plan.has been working, the results have "been very gratifying. DIANE AND RUBMI CANCEL Mile. Diane and Jan Rubini haw been, forced to cancil their act be- cause of the illness of Mile Diane "While shopping at Maey's she was taken ill and is now confined In the Manhattan Square Sanitarium. The act was to go to Montreal this week, hut her Illness caused a postponement of an dates till she recovers. THROW MONEY ON STAGE Sammy Duncan, the Scotch comedi- an, broke down and wept last week while appearing at the Regen Theatre, where he played during 'he first half. The thing- that brought tears to his eyes and a pathetic rebuke from him to the audience was the throwing of some pennies on the stage by somebody in the balcony. With the clink of the coins on the stage, Duncan looked down, divined their apparent meaning and suddenly walked off. But the au- dience, with the exception of the loaf- ers who had thrown the coins, would not have Duncan remain in the wings, bo they applauded until he reluctantly came forward again. With tears in his eyes and his voice shaky with emotion be told the au- dience exactly how he felt about the happening, also explaining that, in his own country, such a gratuitous insult is never known to have been offered to a performer. Then he bowed and walk- ed off again. Immediately that Manager Emll Groth became aware of what bad oc- curred he sent ushers and a special de- tective up to the balcony to hunt out those who had thrown the pennies, himself taking up a vigil at the door downstairs, but all of their efforts in that direction were unsuccessful. Therefore he personally offered an apology to Duncan for the unwarrant- ed occurrence and then announced from the stage that he would pay a reward of $50 if at any time anybody caught people throwing money on the stage. This same thing has occurred at the Colonial and a few other Keith the- atres during the but few weeks, with- out the perpetrators being caught. As a result, the Keith offices have also of- fered a reward of $50 for the appre- hension of' any one who is seen' to throw money on the stage. FULTON TO TRY AGAIN Beginning next Sunday, the Fulton Theatre will bonee Sunday night con- certs under the Joint management of Abe Feinberg and K. M. sheedy. It te expected that the concerts will be of the same length as those at The Seiwyn and will run for 10 weeks. "UTTLE COTTAGE" GETS ROUTE «eorjre Cboop's "The rJ t He Cottage." which played th» Palace last week and Is in Cleveland this week, has been given a route over the Ornheum fme heeinnrne next week, the 22nd. in Mil- waukee. ' MUST DROP RED NOSES Upon the complaint of Wllke Bard, Duffy and Sweeney have been informed by the Keith Exchange that they must make-way with their red nosed make- up when appearing on the bill with the English comedian at the Davis in Pitts- burgh this week. Bard, who makes use of the same make-up, claims that Duffy and Sweeney's red-nose bit conflicts with his act. BLACKFACE TEAM SPLITS An account of differences that exist- ed between them. Oral IT. Cushlng and Lew Pistel, a blackface. team that played vaudeville for many years, have severed partnership. Each plans to succeed in an act of his. own. Pistel has started to break bis in and is now confronted with a complaint lodged by his former partner, who" claims that Pistel is using his name and photos. Cushlng has asked the N. V. A. com- plaint bureau to restrain Pistel from doing this. ——— * MAY BE ORPHEUM SITE San Francisco. Dec. 12.—The site for the new Orpbenm Theatre is re- ported to be at the corner of Eddy and Powell streets, and will include the lot now occupied by the Tuipin Hotel. This was the original site of the Co- lumbia Theatre before the big fire. N. V. A. TO HAVE XMAS TREE AND SANTA WILL ALSO CELEBRATE NEW YEAR ' MASON AND BENNETT SPLIT The vaudeville team of Maeon and Bennett have split. Miss Mason has formed a new trio act consisting of herself. Stella Ehrens and Betty Lewis. A real tree for Christinas and a party until the wee sma" hours on New Year's Eve will help the members of the National Vaudeville Artists to rea- lize that the holiday season holds something more than merely playing a number of extra shows. It is planned to make the holiday spirit felt within the walls of the N. V. A. clubhouse, and, to that end, a committee is now busy making ready for both the Xmas and New Year celebration. The Christmas celebration will cen- ter around a vaudeville Santa Glaus who will give presents to all vaude- ville performers who have been good throughout the year. He won't be able to give contracts or increases in salary or flopless acts to his followers who stand around the tree, but it is pro- mised that he will have a present of some kind for everyone. It is planned to make the,New Year Eve celebration as hilarious as the ab- sence of John Barleycorn will permit. The celebration will start with dancing, which will be followed by an all-star surprise entertainment. After the en- tertainment, dinner will be served at five dollars per bead. Reservations must be made for this In advance, and it is stated that already all but a few have been taken. A dinner will also be served to top off the Christmas celebration. KRAMER LEAVES LEONARD SHOW Dave Kramer, formerly of Kramer and Morton, who has been with "Koiiy Boily Boys" for the past six weeks, leaves the show Saturday night. He will work with Jack Boyle in a new vaudeville act. PEYTON AND LUM JOIN Lou Peyton, formerly of Hlckey and Peyton, and Jtanmie Lum, formerly of Rogers and Dam, have joined and are rehearsing a new act that will open shortly. The title of. their offering will be "The Sportsman." LOEWS, MEMPHIS, SUED Memphis, Tenfi., Dec 12.—Loew's Lyceum Theatre Company, here, has been named as defendant in a suit started by the Lake Cotton Company, for $10,000, the amount of damages, said to have been incurred when the building, on Union Avenue which has been demolished by the theatre com- pany, collapsed on Oct 23. The build- ing was being taken down for the erec- tion of a' new theatre. ABORNS ENGAGE NEW PEOPLE The Aborns have engaged several new people for their vaudeville acts, among them Eddie Dowry, the Broad- way Juvenile, and Roberts and Polaire, specialty dancers. ESCAPES COMPLAINT The complaint of Joe Jackson against Joe Barton is not being investigated by the X. V. A because. Barton, who is charged with doing some bicycle bu- siness belonging to Jackson, is no longer in vaudevillle. He is now with the production, "Joan of Arkansas". CANCEL AT COLONIAL Myrtle Flake and George Lloyd, al- though programmed at. the Colonial Theatre Monday, did not appear be- cause accomodations could not be made for their act, which demands a full stage set. Clark and Bergman were also cancelled from this hill at the eleventh hour, due to slight illness of Miss Clark. DAN HEALY COMPLAINS Dan Healy, of the team of Byan and Healy, has registered a complaint at the X. V. A. against the team of Murphy and White, claiming that the latter are using a copyrighted number of his. relative to prohibition. He de- sires the x. v. A. complaint bureau to take action in the matter. CAME ASHORE AT HALIFAX • Grock, the French clown who will open here shortly, arrived in town last Saturday, after being forced to come from Halifax by train, after the Carmania, on which he was travel- ling, collided with another ship. With him was his agent, Percy Reiss. WANT DANCING DOLL BIT Mack and Redding have asked the N. V. A. to restrain the Monte Carlo bur- lesque company from using a dancing doll bit which, the complainants allege, was originated and copyrighted by Jack Inglis, They say that Inglls gave them perinlsison to use it in their act, hot that no other act is entitled to do so. LESSER SIGNS KELLERMAN Los Angeles, Cal.. Dec. 18.—Annette Kellerman, famous 'mermaid and mo- tion picture star; has signed with Sol Lesser to make a series of pictures. She will haw her own company, of which she will be in complete charge, even selecting the directors, story and so on. She will'also make a series of health pictures. NEW ACTS "Krazy Kat "KaperV- with Alfred Tornado, of the Six Tornados, fea- tured, opened on Thursday atBayonne. "The Golden West Girls," a new act by Bert LaMont, opened on Monday at South Norwalk, Conn. "The Girl," a dramatic sketch writ- ten by Edward Peppte, opened Monday .with : James Cormrlcan, Louis 'Aneker ami Bert D. Harrfct featured. Howard and Bernard, two men, opened in a new singing act last week. Eddie O'Connor will open in a new single' in Philadelphia January 1st. PALACE TENANTS MOVING Tenants who will be forced to va- cate their offices in the Palace Theatre Building on January 1st are already starting to get out and some ane mov- ing next door into the "Little Palace" Building, as the Witmark BuQding is fomiUarly known. Those who have al- ready established themselves- in the new quarters are Bay Hodgdon. Bill Lykens, Joe Paige Smith, Patsy Smith, and Norman Stadiger. WEEDOirS COAT CAME BACK George O. Weedon's $150 overcoat, which" was stolen from the tailoring establishment in the Putnam Building, where Weedon had left it for repairs some time ago, was recovered last week by Detective Clarence Daly, of the West Forty-seventh Street Station. He found it in I. Harlem's pawn shop on Eight Avenne near Fortieth Street, where the coat had been pawned for $14-00. '.'■.•: