Variety (August 1907)

10 VARIETY "ioi RANCH." This is a No. 2 company belonging <«> the MilJer Brothers, of Bliss, Okla., and duplicating as far as possible the show now being given under the same name by that firm at the Jamestown Exposition. The impression given by \he opening performance at Brighton Beach Saturday night was that the Millers had the ground work of an excellent Wild West exhibi- tion, but that the organization was rather lacking in features and specialties to pad it out into a well rounded show. The aim is plainly toward the pictur- esque rather than the spectacular. No better horsemanship than that shown by the three score or so of native cowboys has been seen in the East this season. The stock, all of which was shipped from the Miller ranch in Oklahoma, was excellent and seemed, in spite of the long journey, to be in excellent condition. The enclosure used last season by Pawnee Bill is the home of the show for the summer. It is a big level plot, well sodded for the ^ purpose, but its bigness rather reacts against the night perform- ance through the difficulty in adequately lighting it. Arc lights are strung along the grand stand front and these are sup- plemented by three movable search-lights, which are trained upon the riders. The audience missed some of the features when the riders became scattered at the far side of the field. The novelty of the show is the feat by one of the cowpunchers of throwing a long-horn Texas steer without the aid of a rope. It is a rather spectacular per- formance and held the crowd's attention at the close of the show. The rest was made up of the familiar Wild West material. The performance opens with an Indian attack upon a stage coach, in which one solitary cowboy is killed. This is after cowboys and Indians have fired a fusillade of shots—a rather poor showing of marksmanship by the redskins. Hie stage coach is dragged off slowly with the dead cowboy dangling limply from the back and the band wail- ing "Nearer My God To Thee." There is another dramatic killing later and the band butts into the proceedings with the same hymn. It was a matter of regret in the grand stand that the dirge was not being played over the band- master who was responsible for the wretched music. Toward the end of the show the chase, capture and lynching of a horsethief is shown in pantomime, and a third dra- matic bit is the attack by Indians upon a wagon train and the burning of the prairie schooners, together with a rescue. Both stories are fairly well told in pantomime. In the horsethief episode the malefactor is dragged across the lot at full speed dangling at the end of a rope running to the saddle horn of a rider. A leather harness protects the victim, but this is invisible, and the trick makes a sensational incident. The exhibition of rough riding, broncho- busting and cow herding is handled smoothly and swiftly, except that on the opening night one of the buffalos in the Glen Island herd, recently purchased by the Millers and used in the show, became refactory and delayed matters somewhat by refusing to return to the pen. GIRGUS NEWS A sharpshooting display fell rather Hat, owing partly to the absence of riding and a single horse menage act by a wo- man dragged lamentably. Some of the defects in the show were probably due to the hurry in which it was made up, and an effort was made during the week to secure acts to fill the program out with added features. Rush. Attachment papers were issued at Marysville, O., while the Dan Robin- son Carnival Company was playing the town in an effort to force the payment of a claim made by Lon Marsh, a ticket seller for the snake show. He demanded wages amounting to $40. A constable served the papers just as the train was about to pull out. Robinson declared that he had filed a bond with a local attorney, which afterward proved untrue, but the show was permitted to get away on this pretext. The chief of police ut Adrian, the next stand, was told by the local authorities to arrest Robin- son, but refused to do so without a war- rant. There is talk of seeking Robin- son's arrest on a charge of contempt of court. His home is in Cincinnati. Buffalo Bill's Wild West showed at Chi- cago last week for the first time iu five years. It was located at Third and Drexel avenues for this week. The canvas-covered grand stand seats 15,000 people, but the attendance was so great that pro- vision was made for 5,000 more. The show has aroused public interest. It is well advertised. Major Burke is in charge, with Louis Cook and F. W. Hall attend- ing to the press work. This week the Wild West 4, shows on the North and South Sides, splitting the week between them. A smooth performance is being given. New Castle, Ind., Aug. 2. New Castle is having strenuous times. The John Robinson shows are to appear here August 0, and five days later, Au- gust 14, the Hagenbeck-Wallace circus will visit the city. In consequence there will be a battle royal between the two for billboard and advertising privil- eges. By the arrival of the first show the opposition squads will be working overtime in Henry and adjoining counties. Two "brigades," of fifteen men each, ar- rived in the city Monday and were busy sticking up posters on any old thing. Both circuses have contracted with B. F. Brown for a given amount of space, and billboards are going up as thick as bees. 00 far only the Hagenbeck-Wallace con- cern has contracted for newspaper space, but the Robinson press agent will be along this week, and the fight for news- paper space bids fair to be equally as warm as that for boards. New Castle likes circuses, and feels that this time she is going to have all that is coming to her, and all in a heap. The opposition crews of the two concerns had lively times throughout Henry and adjoining counties. In one instance the opposition crew of one circus put up 800 sheets of paper. The crew of the other concern went over the same territory and covered up all but twenty-one sheets. Shelbyville, Ind., Aug. 2. O, but this is the busy spot for the cir- cus advance agent. Billing stands are at a tremendous premium, and householders can sell their front windows for the price to pay this year's mortgage on the farm. This condition obtains in pretty much every good show town in Indiana. The reason is that this State is going to be the battle field for four warring circus or- ganizations within the next sixty days. The John Robinson, Ringling Brothers, Hagenbeck-Wallace and Forepa ugh-Sells outfits are all routed to play the territory within the month, all four crossing in the same towns at different times. They have all planned to play Shelbyville within thirty days, and already the fight for ad- vertising space is waxing hot. Klfcs were too busy ^n the centre of the city to pay any attention to the p*/k and at the end of the week the enterprise stood $3,000 loser. A lawyer named Kumfe is understood to have furnished the capital for the venture. The Sells-Floto show was partly wrecked in a general blow-down during its stand at Great Bend, Kans. With char- acteristic unexpectedness, a cyclone came up between performances. The show peo- ple were entirely unprepared when the wind struck. The big top was lifted al- most entirely from its fastenings, and whipped to ribbons in a twinkling. It was a new canvas, having been in use only a few weeks. When the wind was through it was worthless, and an old one was brought out to replace it. The horse tents were likewise torn up. No one was in- jured, and the only damage was that done by frightened horses. The show was re- ported as being in working shape when it reached Denver. Alf. T. Ringling, of the Ringling Broth- ers' show, was in New York a few days last week. He visited several booking agents, but as far as known engaged no new acts. The trip was more of a vaca- tion jaunt. Mrs. Ringling accompanied her husband. Monday morning the couple left the city for an automobile trip to Albany. From there Mr. Ringling planned to rejoin the show, which is now playing in the Northwest. The movements of the Pawnee Bill Wild West show are still a deep, dark secret. A report was in circulation this week that in his efforts to soft-shoe about, Eddie Arlington, general manager of the show, had gone on to handle the advance work himself, and was believed to be in Texas, laying out a route for next month. This is taken as an indication that Arlington has tired of the vigorous opposition that has been handed out to him by Barnum & ■ Bailey, and is seeking a field where he will be more or less undisturbed. The Arlington-Guise Amusement Com- pany, of which Eddie Arlington, general manager of the Pawnee Bill show, was the principal meinl>er, is said to be involved in dissension. It carries on a general amusement promoting business with head- quarters in the Knickerbocker Theatre building annex. Frederick Guise has threatened to leave the partnership. This comes after a losing venture in Philadel- phia during the convention of the Elks. The Arlington-Guise concern put in an expensive show at Washington Park, in one of the Philadelphia suburbs. The Two men, connected with the Fore- paugh-Sells circuit were probably fatally injured at Middletown, N. Y., late last week. One had the toy balloon concession with the show. The other was his assist- ant. The two men had an argument on their way to the train after the night show. They grew so excited that an ex_ press train on the main line struck them before they could get away. Both are in the local hospital, and one is not expected to live. The Barnum-Bailey show is billed at Leavensworth, Kans., for Sept. 17. Ferrari's Wild Animals and other shows are playing at Schuetzen Park, Union Hill. N. J., this week, where a carnival is being given for the benefit of a local hospital. John D'Alma's circus is showing on the same lot, as one of the attractions, hav- ing a position heading that occupied by Ferrari. There was quite some manoeuver- ing for the choice spot before it was set- tled, but D'Alma got it. Ferrari came up from Jamestown, with a deficiency in his bank account, and he has kept his brigade on the jump for business all week. It re- quired six cars to transport the Ferrari show to Union Hill. They left Jamestown on Wednesday morning. On Friday morn- ing, the train dispatcher at Homestead, N. J., reported the train on a siding four miles from Union Hill. It was 7 A. M. Saturday before the cars could be un- loaded, it having taken 24 hours to move the train four miles. The animals were without food for three days. According to an Associated Press dis- patch this week, the Ringling Brothers propose to move their winter quarters. The show has maintained quarters at Baraboo, Wis., for a number of years. Lately tht Ringlings have purchased a tract of eighty acres in the Indian Terri- tory near Collinsville, and announcement has been made that the show will winter there. Climatic conditions are given as the reason of the change, together with a desire to secure the advantage of being able to start out earlier in the spring and continue the season until later in the Autumn. Stamford, Conn., August 2. W. M. H. Johnson, a veteran circus man, is dead here as a result of a railroad accident. Johnson was playing here with his own show Monday. In the evening he was on his way to the train in company with an employe. The two were in earnest conversation. Johnson heard the train when it was almost upon him, and delaying to drag his companion in safety, was struck. Both men were picked up unconscious. Johnson's companion died a few minutes later. Johnson was removed to the Meriden Hospital here. He did not regain consciousness, dying several hours after his arrival at the institution. His home was in Columbus, O., and he was a Mason of high degree, as well as an Elk.