Variety (December 1918)

VAUDEVILLE 9 ENTERTAINING IN ITALY By EDWARD MARSHALL Editor Varibtt: Paris, Oct 30. I have just completed a "big journey in vaudeville." I have covered over fr 10 thousand miles in a little, over one month, and I have given hour and £ twenty-minute shows from one end of p; the Italian front to the other. For the most part my performances were given on the tail board of army camions, with 1 my audiences standing around like at ^ the old medicine shows or "Dutch auc- tion" outfits back-home. After having done just my chalk- g ology act around the Paris area for R about ten days I was summoned to the if U. B. O. of the Y. M. C A, the en- tertainment department at 10 Rue : Elys sees, where I was informed I was to go to Italy as a sort of pathfinder :=-■- for the entertainment department s Chas. M. Steele, chief of the Y. M. C. A entertainment bureau in France, re- turned to Paris from a flying trip to New York on the same ship on which . ; .' I crossed over, and during the voyage g; I had told him of the days when I used C to be a magician and "escape expert." .. >^So when they told me I was to in- ; " vade Italy they also told me I must also "magich," as Carl Rosini would JS say. It was up to me to put on a W- whole show by myself, as it was im- possible to transport the usual five i people units along the mountainous Italian front Then, too, there were no huts, no pianos and no hotels avail- able at many of the places. I left Paris a day or two after the :' Boche's last big air raid, and two days f. after my arrival at Verona, Italy, I put on my show in the only "Y" httt-I saw . on the whole trip. First, though, I had *.:. to build my shuw in Verona. I didn't % even have a magician's wand. It would %■ take several pages to describe the C trouble I had manufacturing certain magical apparatus and procuring the ;", necessary paraphernalia in this quiet old Italian city. I fashioned a Y. M. ' C A cracker case into a makeshift trunk for the old Hindoo trunk mystery. I was frightfully overcharged ■;:[ by a Veronese merchant for cretonne with which to make a cabinet, and I was pettifully undercharged by the poor peasant woman who sewed the cretonne into the proper shape. I I made a wand out of a chair rung and silk handkerchiefs out of my precious silk shirts. I enlisted the services of little Gwendolyn Follicallidi, the 14- year-old daughter of a popular Italian colonel. With but two rehearsals this little, miss went on and did the sub- stitution trunk mystery with me as good as ever a girl did it She re- membered every detail of her hurried instruction, and she scored a big hit. Gwendolyn has been well educated and speaks English fluently. Later on, when we played to Italian soldiers, she interpreted all my patter and got in- I ; numerable laughs. We opened to an audience of 2,500 show hungry, home- sick Yanks. First we gave them the trunk mystery, which we kidded through to success. Following, I pulled a few handkerchief and wand tricks, winding up this portion with the .restored card in the egg stunt Then a chalk talk, including trick car- tooning, evolutions and bits from my vaudeville act at home. We closed the show with a burlesque on Spiritualism, including a black cabinet stunt The show ran five minutes over the usual w«^ 75 minutes, which is the standard rvair . ning time for the camp shows over . herer- The next night we gave the same show in a large army camion. Two ambulances furnished the light with -—their headlights. From the second ■''■)"• night on the show was always given - .in motor lorries or camions. We didn't m '•v • ■ '• \ have the same camion twice hardly, so it was impossible to frame up on a permanent basis—we had to pack'and unpack continually. Our traps 'all went into the trunk mystery box. We could rarely get a camion until almost time to give the show, so we had to hustle. More than once we missed our dinners to get the show started on time. On two different occasions we actually showed in the rain. The boys insisted on the show rain or shine. On another occasion we showed alongside of a gun battery that started out to outbark me until it got orders to lay off until after the show. This night the shells of the Austrians whistled over our heads on their way to the back areas, and our own screamers went on their merry way Austriaward. Returning down the hill to our billets that night vre ran the front of our truck into a new shell hole, and we had the devil's own time getting out even with the assistance of an Italian army "Zust" One of the "Y" huts is situated right next to a battery of big guns. I slept in this tiny little hut one night, and when the guns would turn loose a salvo you'd think the whole shack was going to tumble in. Well we gave shows to audiences of French, British, Italian and American soldiers along this front, and all the hardship became pleasure when we could look into their happy faces. I am sure I will always consider this one of the happiest months in my life. Little Miss Follicallidi returned to school, and I have just returned to Paris for a new assignment While in Italy I visited Venice,' and motorboated from Venice up the Piave to near the front, where we gave a / show. Many of the entertainers have suffered with the influenza. Paula Sherman was confined for a week with the malady. Yours truly also bad it. i The McFarland Sisters are concert- ing* all over France. The singers are making a great hit with the boys in khaki. The "Laugh Barrage".' unit was divided. Harry Adler is heading an- other unit A Miss Nelson was added, and David Learies became the man- ager. Rumor has it that Tommy Gray will put on a show in London for Albert DeCourville following the completion of his enlistment as an entertainer over here. Dave Lerner may go along to "comede" in Tommy's new show. DeCourvilles' "Zig, Zag" continues to be the most popular show in Paris so far as the Yanks are concerned. The show was evidently cut down to fit the Folies Bergere with its narrow stage, and it was no doubt roughened up to fit the Folies Bergere tastes. The show takes an awful flop at the start- and finish, but aside from Fred Kitchen's outright honkatonk smut it's good en- tertainment for the most part Pretty Shirley Kellogg leads many very pre- tentious numbers, and she scored big in her bare knees and Scotch kilts. Little Dauphine Pollard was the un- questioned hit and savior of the show. The audience is 80 per cent. American officers. _ -The Theatre League, entertainers have enjoyed a visit with Riggs and' Witchie during their month's engage- ment at the Alhambra, Paris. A M. Beatty, associated with D. W. Griffith in producing a "Birth Of a Na- tion," is routing the shows for the (Continued on page 18) TAX PROTEST. Washington, D.C., Nov. 27. All managers who are members of the United Managers' Protective As- sociation have written the Senate finance committee asking for a recon- sideration of the provisions of the new revenue calling for 20 per cent admis- sions, taxes. The matter has been taken up a - number of times by the U. M. P. A., but the personal appeal has been added.. It is thought that with the Senate having already agreed to remove the luxury taxes, there should be some levity shown to the amusement field. In some quarters it is thought pos- sible that the revenue bill will not finally be passed until the next Con- gress convenes on March 4, for it is expected that many of the bill's clauses will be attacked when the short ses- sion begins next week. A meeting at the Biltmore Hotel. New York, Tuesday presumably called and attended by private citizens, con- sidered the matter of admissions taxes, the idea being to organize a movement to protest against admission taxes of any sort. A strong represen- tation is expected from the meeting and committee will ask an audience with the Senate Finance Committee asking that not only the 20'per cent clause be stricken out of the revenue bill, but that the present 10 per cent tax also be eliminated. IN AND OUT. The Killkenny Duo replaced Skelly and Heit the last half, last week at the Harlem opera house. Skelly said he had sprained his ankle and the act withdrew. Frisco, the dancer, at the Orpheum, Brooklyn, this week informed the man- agement before the show Tuesday night his name would have to be at the top in the lights if he Were to remain in the bill Eddie Leonard's name had the top position in the electric sign and Frisco' was informed Leonard's name would remain there. Frisco ap- peared that evening. "Perhaps You're Right" out of 125th Street last Monday; illness of one of the principals. Replaced by "Some Brides." Billy Reeves could not open at the Nixon, Philadelphia, Monday; illness. Replaced by a local act The Yaltos replaced "Rule and Rule" at the American, New York, first half. Ralph Cummings and Co. through ill- ness could not open at' Springfield, Mass., (Loew) Monday. Cora and Robert Simpson substituted. MARRIAGES. June Elvidge (pictures) to Lieut. Frank C. Badgley, M. C B. E. F. in New York Nov. 20. John Henry Wheatfield to Grace Patterson (Patterson Sisters) Nov. 14, in Chicago. Mr. Wheatfield was a.for- mer theatrical manager and producer on the coast Irene Bordoni, co-starring with H. B. Warner in "Sleeping Partners," to E. Ray Goetz, the song writer, in Jer- sey City Oct 24. Marriage announced this wcclc. Fred Creighton to Cybil Warren, at San Francisco last week. The husband was of the Australian Creightons, his wife with the Albert in a Rasch dancing act. Mr. and Mrs. Creighton leave San Francisco Dec. 3 on the "Ventura" for Australia, where they will do a double act in vaudeville over there. BIRTHS. * Mr. and Mrs. Marty Semon, at their home in Cleveland, Nov. 22, daughter. Mr. and Mrs. W. Dixon Peters, at the Hahenmann Hospital, New York November 25, daughter. (Mrs. Peters is professionally known as Hazel Shelly.) „ GIRLS OF THE MOTOR CORPS. ..... The"girls "of-the- Motor Corps of America (and they have made a name for themselves around New York for untiring emergency work) have de- cided they can promote and stand a benefit for their beloved organization. Accordingly Corporal Edith (Mrs. Leo) Carrillo and Privates Reinie and Ethel Davies have been appointed a committee, acting under the direction of Major Helen Bastedo of the Corps, to arrange a performance at a Broad- way theatre Sunday night, Dec. 8. A choice of two proffered houses is be- fore the committee. While the girls of the Motor Corps have lent their cars and services to participants in all benefit drives, their corps has not been at any time men- tioned as a beneficiary. Their supreme work during the Perth Amboy devasta- tion and again at the B. R. T. accident in Brooklyn received unlimited praise, while, which is not so generally known, the girls of the Motor Corps have been on duty almost constantly, running trucks and ambulances sometimes all night, to transfer and give comfort to returned American soldiers. The Misses Davies donated an am- bulance to the Corps. Both of the sis- ters can drive anything that runs by gas. Corporal Carrillo drives her own car for the Corps. Donations are being received by the Corps for the program (advertise- ments) and tickets for the benefit. Its headquarters are at 5th avenue and 40th street .... TWO CAMP ROADSHOWS. Two vaudeville road shows, direction of WiUiam E. Atwell & H H. Moss, Inc,, are to play the camps; the first, headed by Bonita and Lew Hearn, opening Dec 9 at Camp Devens, with Merritt set for the last half of that week. Other camp bookings will fol- low. Herman Moss will personally manage this outfit, which also includes Fred and "Anna Pelot, Dunn 1 Sisters. Artie Hall, Dorothy Kenton, Mack and Lee and McKay's Scotch Revue. The' Other. show, managed by John Farreil, opens in Camp Stewart Dec. IS, with the acts comprising Golden's International Dance Revue (eight people), Edith and Douglas Carberry, Ruth Goodwin, Billy Barlow, John and Bertha Gleason, Fred Houlihan, Gil- more and Castle and Flying St. Clair s. CAMPS AND BOOKINGS. Because of the depletion of men at Camp Upton, L. I., there will be no dra- matic shows' in the Buffalo theatre there, all attractions' going into the Liberty. This switch will give visit- ing attractions the best "break," for pictures oniy will be shown in the Buf- falo theatre. The camps at Cody and Fremont (western cantonments) will re'ceive no more attractions, depletion of the complements also the reason. , Four of the,camp theatres which have in the past fared but-fairly are now playing to capacity. They are at Dodge, Grant, Custer and Sheridan, where the average business is from. $600 to $900 nightly. Capacity business is also enjoyed at Camps Meade, Lee, Jackson and Gordon. INVITE EX KAISER TO BALL The enlisted personnel of the Dis- bursing Office, Pelham Bay Naval Training Camp, will hold a "Ball Tri- umphant" at the Hotel Astor Dec. 14. This probably will be the last affair given as a unit from this station. The boys paid $15.50 to have the fol- lowing cable sent to ex-Kaiser Wil- liam: _ William Hbb~eiizoUcTiif"~~-~-"'"~~~*~~~-~' : ^ Holland. The bluejackets of Disbursing Office, Pclhom Naval Camp, want you to act as butler at their "Ball Triumphant," New York, December 1». Can we depend on you being there? Bring the Clown Quince with you, also have your best looking uniform. Hare you four or five hu i- dred iron orosea left over; Tbe boys woulJ like a few souvenirs. ■ I V : i i 3 -V 1 - ■ ■; & n^iUPi UU '*<"