New York Clipper (Jun 1923)

OtpTTight, 1923, mni pabliibcd wceUy br the Clipper CorpontiaB, I6SS Broad ny. New York. Entered «t the Foit Office at New York, Jme 24, lB7f, . second class raail matter under act of March 3, 1679 Pounded by FRANK QUEEN, ISU NEW YORK. JUNE 27. 1923 . VOLUME LXXI, No. ai Price Fiitren Centa. %S.M a Year. BDWY HAS RECORD UST OF SHOWS DESPITE WEEK OF ST IFUNG HEAT "Ziegfeld Follies" and "Abie's Irish Rose" Top List of Survivors —^Many Others Have Bettered Six Month Runs—^More Shows Running This Year Than Last Despite the mid-suinmer heat which has held New York in its throes almost con- stantly since the beginning of the month, there are more productiMis holding forth at present on Broadway than there was last year at this time. A compilation of statistics assembled on Monday evening showed no less than twenty-eight shows running full blast as against nineteen of the previous year. The incoming of Earl Carroll's "Vanities" next week will add another to the list. Nothing has been an- nounced to depart at the end of the week, yet there are a few that have been playing dangerously near thdr stop limits for some wedcs. Some of these had almost petered out when the cool weather bre<^ gave them a nerw lease of life. A singular coincidence among the sur- vivors are at least two productions that have passed their first year. These include "Ziegfeld Follies," which opened at the New Amsterdam a year ago this month and has been running strong ever since, and "Abie's Irish Rose," which rounded out its first anniversary ait the Republic last month. The latter show has been one of the trick hits of the year. _ Although generally conceded to be puerile hokum, It has netted a fortune in royalties for its author-prodiKCr, Ann Nichols, and is an- other graphic illustration that this sort of a play can be turned into a bonanza when ridden in at the psychological moment. Miss Nichols has - contr3>uted many far worthier plays to the Broadway stage, but from a finandal standpoint none can hold a candle to the earnings of "Abie's Irish Rose." In all, the current season's play output has numbered one hundred and ninety- eight plays. While the greater majority of these plays got over, either fairly or strongly, the season contributed a few "fliwcTs" that survived for a week or less. Included in the list are "Persons Un- known." "Dolly Jordan," "The Doormat," "The Love Set," "As You Like It," "The Inspector General" and '^My Aunt From Ypsilanti." Turning to the brighter side of the season's activities we find there are many shows that have registered runs of con- siderable length, and althotjgh none have neared the record of Mr. Ziegfeld's cur- rent girl-and-music show nor Anne Nichols' "hokumatical comedy," there are many that have registered runs of six months and longer. Heading this list is George M. Cohan's international comedy scream, "So This Is London," which in- augurated its tenancy at the Hudson Theatre last August and which still occu- pie."; the '^boards" at that playhouse. The second edition of "The Music Box Revue" is next on the list for longevity of life, and bids fair to continue to run at the Music Box until the third edition sup- ?lants it in September. "Rain," "Seventh leaven," "The Fool," "Merton of the Movies" and "Little Nellie Kelly" are among the other veterans now going strong on Broadway. The latter show has brcn keeping up a remarkable pace and will undoubtedly remain at the Liberty Theatre tmtil September when George M. Cohan will supplant it with his latest musical opus, 'The Rise of Rosie O'Reilly," now holding forth at the Tre- mont, Boston. In the next group of plays, tabulated to represent those who are running the above a close second, are "PoHy Preferred," "Give and Take," "Mary the Third," "WildHower," "Icdxiund," "You and I," •X3o-Go," "Uptown West," "Zander, the Great," "The Devil's Disciple." In the newer group of debutantes, mean- ing plays that have opened in May or later, are "Dew Drop Inn," "Aren't We All?" "Not So Fast," "Sun Up," "Sweet Nell of Old Drury," "Adrienne," George ■White's "Scandals," "The Passing Show of 1923" and ''Helen of Troy, N. Y." Of the year's one hundred and ninety- eipht productions, one hundred and forty- three were drama;tic, and fifty-live were musical. By way of comparison to other seasons it might be well to add that of th= lot only forty-six were foreign im- portations. This was less than oni-fourth of the season's output, all of which would stem to indicate that the native dramatist is at last coming into his own. With the actual end of the season Wednesday the theatres, which up to that time for almost two weeks had been re- cuperating from the bad business they had been doing, had a relapse which is figured will last until the latter part of July. On Wednesday night the response of patrons was most negligible, with the brokers who had bought heavily on musical attractions being stung and stung heavily. The theatres which had the big advance buys by the brokers were protected, pro- viding they had a stop limit on returns, with the brokers dumping their tickets in to Le Slang's cut-rate agency and getting what they could. Every musical and dra- matic show suffered that evening, with Le Blang being able to offer seats for every one of the-houses to his customers at the cut-rate price. Thursday night business was even worse; Friday night, however, there was a little breeze stirring, with the shows picking up quite a bit in receipts over the night previous, but none of them getting much advantage. Saturday mati- nee \vzs disastrous and that evening was not much better. The torrid weather of Monday seemed to drive trade off the burning pavements of Broadway, with the result that business conditions were most deplorable. The Fol- (Conlinucd on page 30) BIG LOSS IN OPERA CHiCAca Jime 25.—Civic grand opera lost $331,718 here during its ten weeks' run here and three on tour. The loss, coming from a'total expendi- ture of $1,335,925, and receipts'^984,207, will be_ rnade up by about 200' gtrara'ntors who will be called upon to pay approxi- mately 70 per cent of their pledge. Plans now are being made for the next season, which will be extended to eleven and one-half weeks, with at least eighty- Ave performances. Lengthening the road tour also is planned. 'Last season seventy-two performances of twenty-six operas were presented, which netted $757770. The three weeks' road tour receipts totaled $226^436. FLORA FINCH FOR SPEAKING STAGE Flora Finch, film comedienne, who <worked opposite the late John Bumiy in Vitagraph features, has beiea engaged by Bohemians, Inc., to play the leadmg come- dienne role in E;diward Laska's play, "Brains, Inc.," whidi goes into rehearsal next mont^ Robert Ames, now appearing in "Icebound" at the Harris Theatre, has been cast for the male lead. ARBUCKLE FOR ATLANTIC CITY Roscoc (Fatty) Arbuckle has been signed to open with a new revue at the Falais Royal. Atlantic City, on July 9. Arbuckle will be featured and will work with De Haven and Nice in the comedy numbers of the piece. Ernie Young, the Chicapo booking agent, handled the ne- gotiations. GRAND OPERA FILM FLOPS San Franctsco, June 25.—"Frate Sole," which was given at the Civic Auditorium here last week and heavily billed as "The First Motion Picture Grand Opera" ever shown in America, proved to be a quick and decided flop and closed after a few performances with a heavy loss to local investors. On the opening night prices ranged from 50 cents to $1.50 and about 4,000' people were in attendance, mostly paper. Ad- vance advertising was extremely mislead- ing, "Frate Sole" being nothing more than the life of St. Francis of Assisi, atrociously screened both as. to story and photography. During the first intermission hundreds of people walked out and the exodus con- tinued until at the finish but a comparative handful were left. - , > As a big 80-piece orchestra was .used, besides a chorus of '50 trained singers, and as it is und?-i:;id that the rental o' the Auditorium was in the - neighborhood a' $500 a day, the lo.<.s entailed' in the rapid flo;> must have here tremendous. The ex- hibitors tried' to struggle along after the first showing but .ill attempts at resuscita tion were unavailL-:g. "BREAKING POINT" OPENS Washington, Jtme 26. — "Breaking Point," the new Mary Roberts Rinehart play opened herie on Monday night. As its plot unfolded the approval of the big audience increased until a hit of great proportions was assured. Mrs. Rinehart, and Mr. Wagenhals and Mr. Kemper, the producers, were present. ARRESTED ON PIRACY CHARGE Toledo, June 25.—Through ithe efforts of the Department of Justice in Washing- ton, and the Producing Managers' Assoa- ation of New York, who are co-operatins in the apprehension of "play pirates" and infringers of dramatic compositions, Sher- man I_ Jones, doliig business as the Wood- ward Play Company, was arrested by Spe- . cial Agent H. W. Kage, of the Department of Justice, on a charge of having violated Section 28 of the Ct^yright Act, and ar- raigned before Um'ted States Commis- sioner Frederick W. Gaines in the U. S. District Court, Western Division of Chip. He was held for a hearing later in tbe ■ week. According to the afiBdavits made out by Special Agent Kage, Jones infringed on dramatic compositions in three speafic nj- stanccs, by making copies of well known plays and selling them to whoever wanted to bny them at the rate of four dollars per copy. On or about April 22, 1923, it is alleged that Jones -violated sections of the Oypy- right Act by selling his copies in manu- script form, of the play "Kick In." which was registered by AI. H. Woods, producer, who since has assigned the ri^ts to the play to the Century Play Company, Inc. At the same time an infringement of the dramatic composhion, "Turn to the Ri^t," was also offered for sale by Jones. TWs playr -was originally registered by Wintbell Smith and John E. Hazzard, on January 2, 1917, and since assigned and transferred to the Century Play Company. Anotfier play for sale by Jones and bought by Spe- cial Agent Kage was an inftingemeot On "Paid in Full," copyrighted by Eugene 19^" "^^'^ bought on May 7, Edward C. Raftery, of O'Brien, Hale- \nnsky & Driscoll, New York attorneys, representing the producers whose works were infringed upon, arrived in Qevdand and was assisted there by attorney George Q. Keeley in looking after the mterests . of his clients. Th^ will press the charges against Shermaii L. Jones, taken .into cus- tody by Spedal Agent Kage. • The copies of the plays alleged to have been infringed upon _ by Jones were in manuscript form and it was immaterial to Jones what the buyer of the play did -with ' it after they took it way with them. Ac- cording to Mr. Raftery. the same titles were tised but some of these copies had- a line changed here and there in the dialogue and in one or two cases instead of havmg a character come out of the left door, they ' entered' through the right. Also some of the characters had different names. Wheth- er this was done through careless woilc or through the belief that such minor changes ' would aid in effort to evade the law is not known. The campaign against "play pirattng" and infringers such as Jones, said the at- torneys, was just begtm. and word was sent- out from Washington that every pos- sible help would be ^ven to the Producing Managers' Association to stamp oat the practice. Mr. Raftery was instramentaj several weeks ago in the arrest and convic- tion in Pittsburgh of offenders who pro- duced such plays as "Lightnin'" withoot any consideration for the play owners. Producers and authors have for years lost much by the pirao* practice.