Variety (June 1907)

VARIETY Orpheum Circuit After Sullivan & Considine. Will Play Cheap Vaudeville in All the S-C Towns. Orpheum Now Perfecting Plans. More opposition than bargained for seems to be on the tapis for the Sullivan- Considine circuit of low priced vaudeville houses in the West. The big Orpheum Circuit is on their trail. A statement was made this week by an official of the Orpheum that there would be an opposition theatre booked by it playing vaudeville at cheap admis- sion prices in every city in the West where Sullivan-Copsidine have a house lo- cated. There are five cities now on the Orpheum Circuit proper, with houses owned or con- trolled by the Orpheum where cheap vaudeville has already been decided upon. In Kansas City and San Francisco, new theatres are being built to accommodate me patrons of the Orpheum's high grade shows, and the present houses will be utilized for competition with S-C. The contracts for the new $350,000 Orpheum Theatre in Kansas City were signed this week by Martin Beck, General Manager of the company. Building operations will commence upon the arrival home of Mar- tin Lehman, the local manager, here. Mr. Lehman left town Wednesday with the contracts in his pocket. The proclamation by Suliivan-Considine that theatres' would be at Denver and Kansas City for addition to their circuit, besides the acquiring of houses at Omaha and Los Angeles, probably precipitated the move on the part of the Orpheum people. In Los Angeles, the Suliivan-Considine house has been open for some time. It is reported in New York that the Suliivan-Considine circuit has vainly ap- pealed for two years past to have its attractions booked through the Western Vaudeville Association in Chicago. A sort of mutual understanding that there would be no conflict, if each concern travelled along its beaten path, was in effect between the two circuits for some time. Suliivan-Considine desired to branch out, and in securing new houses trod upon the Orpheum's toes. This has brought about the retaliation. Through the Western Association, which books several vaudeville theatres in the West, obtaining the better portion of their acts direct from bills playing over the Orpheum time, the latter will be enabled to make con- nection in a number of towns, absolving it from the necessity of operating its own houses. Opposition is now in existence against Suliivan-Considine extending from Den- ver to California. The Western States Vaudeville Association, comprising the Lubelski, Weston & Bruns and other cir- cuits, is fighting Suliivan-Considine, who formerly booked the acts for most of these. Any number of Suliivan-Considine houses in the West are said to be com- monly known as "dumps." As a conse- quence they experience some difficulty in obtaining many desirable acts that they would like. Another handicap to the S-C. Eastern bookings of noteworthy num- bers is the stories which have come back East of acts sent West on contracts pur- porting to be issued by an authorized rep- resentative of the firm in New York City. S.-C. PURCHASES NASH HOUSES. Chicago, June 7. The report that the Suliivan-Considine Circuit purchased the Nash Circuit is con- firmed, excepting that the entire list of Xash houses has not been disposed of. Suliivan-Considine take possession on .June 17 of the Nash theatres in La Crosse, Kau Claire, Superior, Duluth and Winni- peg. Nash set his price and secured it. lie will retain his present offices, and wiil book his remaining two houses at Indian- apolis and East St. Louis independently. The agreement made with D. J. Bondy at the time Mr. Nash withdrew his cir- cuit from the Suliivan-Considine booking office about a month ago may have had an effect in some way on this transaction. Bondy is now building in St. Paul. He has another site, but may peacefully conclude to remain with Nash or book with S.-C. It is optional with Mr. Bondy. A dispute arose between Nash and the Suliivan-Considine shortly preceding the split in their booking relations. Upon the retirement of the seven Nash houses from the S.-C. list the latter, discovered that these houses were badly needed by them, and negotiations commenced for the pur- chase which resulted in the outright sale of the five mentioned. BUYS ADAMS' HOUSES. Chicago, June 7. The Crvstal theatres of Geo. Ira Adams' in Denver and Pueblo, Colo., have been turned over, under lease for five years, !o Weston & Burns, of the Western States Vaudeville Association. OBLIGED TO CLOSE. At a moment when the Colonial Theatre is playing to large business, it is obliged to close its doors "as advertised" to- morrow (Sunday) night through the fail- ure to provide a program for another week. The Colonial is on the P. G. Williams Circuit. Before Mr. Williams left for abroad, the closing date was set for the house. In his absence no one seemed to have taken the responsibility of con- tinuing the season. It is said that a probable reason for the closing as per schedule is the in- ability to gather a bill of the Colonial standard, required for another week, at short notice. ACTORS' LEAGUE PLAYING. The first of the series to be played by members of the Actors' Baseball League was contested on Tuesday at the Polo Grounds, when the Comedy Club defeated the "Yankee Doodle Boys," 7-4, and the White Rats put it all over "The Bed Mill," 12-1. ORGANIZATION COMMENCES. The organization for the conduct of the Kh»\v & Erlanger vaudeville circuit com- menced this week. Seven rooms on the fifth floor of the New York Theatre build- ing have been taken for the operation of "Advanced Vaudeville." The structure of the newly formed cir- cuit will be subdivided into departments, with Louis F. Werba as the head. The press and billing bureau has already been placed in running order under the charge of Mark A. LueRcher. The production branch of the business will be located in the offices and active preparations pushed forward for the pro- duction of the K. & E. vaudeville feature acts. About 30 experienced vaudeville man- agers are to be placed under contract, with a like number of stage managers, who have handled variety shows. Up to date, as far as known, no manager of note in vaudeville has been approached by Klaw & Erlanger to enter their employ. Contracts will be made through Willium Morris, and the bills for the various houses probably arranged by Messrs. Mor- ris and Werba, at least for the more impoitant points. The laying out of routes is expected to take place in the vaudeville offices of K. & E. If the proposed plan of sending a num- ber of travelling shows over the circuit is carried out, the booking for the several theatres will be simplified. REMODELING THE NEW YORK. Internally the New York Theatre is torn asunder. The seats have been re- moved, and scaffolding erected from the floor to the dome. The repairs on the inside of the theatre will be completed in plenty of time for the reopening of the New York for vaudeville. A lobby on the main floor will be made by tearing out the wall now separating the present lobby from the large inside room, formerly wasted space containing a few dressing rooms. This will give a promenade on the street floor directly back to the stage wall. The entrance to the theatre proper will remain the same. SAYS HUSBAND IS "A LEMON." The newspapers this week landed on another "heart interest" story which brought into the inflammable press Vera Michelcna, playing at the Colonial. A Mr. and Mrs. Charlton K. Burnett are Joyfully bringing divorce actions against each other, and Mrs. Burnett says the rea- son her husband wishes the bonds parted is to marry Miss Michelcna. The wife took pains to inform a reporter of the many mistakes the singer would happen across if her husband married her, after a divorce was granted, but added cheer- fully "Miss Michelena is welcome to him. He's a lemon. She'll be better off, though, if she hangs on to her stage job." Miss Michelena is reported to have said that she had no intention, of marrying Burnett, and that he was only one of the many admirers necessary to the existence of a girl on the stage. The Kaufman Brothers have been en- gaged by the New York office of II. B. Marinelli to play over the Moss-Stoll Tour in England, commencing in the fall. VAUDEVILLE IN BOSTON THEATRE. The Boston Theatre in Boston, now under the control of B. F. Keith, will play \audeville next season, according to ex- cellent authority. That course has been decided upon by Mr. Keith. This will give the United Booking Offices three Boston houses, the Orpheum, Keith's and Boston Theatre. A recent announcement issued from the Keith headquarters was to the effect that stock would be given in this house, but that vaudeville will be the policy is as- sured after September 1, if Klaw & Er- lunger carry out the expressed intention for their vaudeville circuit in the same fity. QUARTET DISSATISFIED. Pittsburg, June J. The Empire City Quartet has been in an ugly mood all week. They are playing at the Nixon, the Klaw & Erlanger vaude- ville theatre. Moore and Littlefield and Karno's Comedy Company are the present featuied attractions there. The billing is the cause of the Quartet's dissatisfaction. Their name appears among the crowd in ordinary type. An- other complaint entered by the singers is the location of their dressing room. It is close to the roof. KERSAND'S MINSTRELS SOLD OUT. Keisand's Minstrels, an organization of 27 people, mostly colored, broke up in Macon, Ga., last Saturday, when their entire effects, including a private car, were auctioned off to satisfy seventeen judg- ments, totaling $3,374, claimed by the singers as salary due. The show had closed its- season a week previously, but attachments were immedi- ately filed against the property of the managers, who were thus prevented from leaving town. Lawyers were engaged dur- ing the week in an effort to adjust the dif- ficulties, and the proceeds of the public auction were divided pro rata among the members of the company. It is probable that the organization will be kept intact and an effort made to se- cure park engagements. Billy Kersand will head the troupe. E. C. KOHL REMAINS HERE. New York will have E. C. Kohl, of Kohl & Castle, the Chicago vaudeville firm, right along from now on. Mr. Kohl has been in the city during the week, and will use this city as his headquarters practically hereafter while the vaudeville war wages, making intermittent trips West. WIGGINS LEFT $1,000,000. Report has it that E. W. ("Pop") Wig- gins, who died at the Hotel Breslin sev- eral days ago, had a fortune of over $1,000,000, which is to revert to his widow, lie left two sons to whom the property will finally descend. The will has not yet been offered for probate. VAUDEVILLE AT LONG BRANCH. The Casino at Lou;; Branch, N. J., is in process of preparation for a summer sea- son of vaudeville. It i* scheduled to open dune 24, but the probable date will be duly 1. Geo. Humans' will book the house on hit "seaside circuit" composed at pres- ent of the Casino it A. bury Park.