Variety (September 1907)

VARIETY ^kIety A Variety Paper for Variety People. Published •▼ery Saturday by THE VARIETY PUBLISHING CO. Knickerbocker Theatre Building, l«OS Broadway, New York City. Telephone -I 22 I «0s»J 38th St. ma i. flXLYixMAjr, Editor and Proprietor. Entered a* §econd-cla$$ matter December 22, 1900, at the Poet Office at New Yorh,N. Y., under the act of Congreaa of March 8, 1879. CHICAGO OPTICS, Chicago Opera House Blook FRANK WIESBIHO, Representative. ■AH FRANCI8C0 OFFICE. 1116 Van Heas Ave. (Room US). W. ALFRED WIL80H. Representative. LONDON R C. C. ——i- * ~~~, 49 Rupert St.. W PARI9 OFTTCE, I, Boa LaAtta. O. M. SEIBT, Reprseentativa. ADVERTISEMENTS, IS cents in agate line, $2.10 an Inch. One page, 1100; one-half page. $50; one-quarter page, $25. Charges for portraits furnished on application. Special rate by the month for profeaslonal card under heading "Representative Artists." Advertising copy should be received by Thurs- day at noon to Insure publication In current lasue. SUBSCRIPTION RATES. Annual $4 Foreign 5 Sit and three months In proportion. Single copies ten cents. VARIETY will be mailed to a permanent ad dress or as per route aa desired. VARIETY may be bad abroad at INTERNATIONAL NEW8 OO.'S OFFICES Breams Building, Chancery Lane, LONDON. B. 0.. ENGLAND. Advertisements forwarded by mall must be ac- companied by remittance, made payable to Variety Publishing Co. Copyright, 1007, by Variety Publishing Co. Vol. VIII. SEPTEMBER 14. No. I. The influx for foreign acts for Amer- ican vaudeville theatres, which has com- menced, raises a point with the native nrtist. and eventually it must be fathomed by the manager. Our own artist reasons, with sound logic, that the manager brings to these shores an unknown quantity at a stipulated salary equalling or beyond what an American act, on the vaudeville stage for years, receives after a long term of service. For this service and name, both well known to the vaudeville public, and a drawing card of some dimensions at least, he receives compensation through a grad- ual increase, which, in some cases, might be based on a percentage scale for lon- gevity, and would not exceed the present figure. But with all the hue and cry from the managers about large salaries, over- valuation, and the like, the foreigner is imported at a price often treble the amount he ean command at home. But not alone does he receive more money here on a hazard, the foreign act is given all the benefit of press work, billing and whatever ineailS may be taken to attract attention to the fact that he or she is a "foreign act." The justifiable argument of the Amer- ican is that had he been given the same attention at the hands of the manager, the chance would have been more se- cure of placing the domestic act in a po- sition with the public where the returns from the name or offering would be se- cure, and commensurate with any salary paid. It is a settled conviction that an act in an American vaudeville thcatro can not be "made." Clacques, billing or news- paper advertising, free or otherwise, will not guarantee the success of a foreign act on this side. Americans make their own selections, and the American manager when booking a foreigner about to make his first appearance on this side is gambling. He is not a good gambler, for he is giving odds against himself. Whereas the foreigner should be content to take a chance upon an American suc- cess for the possibility of the larger sal- ary that would follow, the manager is paying more than he could possibly ex- pect to earn for a long future period at home. The present vaudeville competition has caused ihe rush for foreign numbers. One side greedily picks up this or that act on the presumption if it did not, the other would. There is no record of any foreign act arriving here, regardless of the reputation left behind, which did not have to make a name for itself on this side. The pros- pect of a big foreign success in New York is a dismal one. That has been proven. The "hits" can be easily counted for as far back as ten years. This leads again to the American artist's argument. In part it is: "Why does the manager bring over acts to fill in his bill at a price, which, what is known as a standard act here, is only receiving after say fifteen or tweuty years upon the variety stage?" There have been foreign acts which be- came huge American successes, but did the American managers, who fathered the foreigners' appearance, benefit financially, excepting through his box office? He did not, for the original agreement was made on a gamble, and hence was of short life. With the success came the expiration of the existing contract, and with the re- engagement came an increase of salary. Foreign names have a certain value, after "making good." To "make good" right, the act must go very big. Too many chickens spoil the broth. There are not too many "chickens" among the for- eigners, but there are too many foreign acts being imported. One good comedy act in vaudeville is worth 60 per cent., per- haps 100 per cent., of all the foreign "chances." Let the American manager figure how to increase the value to himself of the acts he knows; not take the risk of wasting his time and money on the acts he knows not. Another matter the manager overlooks is the proper billing of the American aria he has played, and will play again. This works to his advantage as well as the act's. If a vaudeville number receiving say $300 a week can stand the position, of a headliner on a $2,500 show of nine numbers, why should not that act receive the position? The headliner is not gauged by the salary. In reality the audience de- termines the proper act for that position, and if through some one or more meritori- ous or laugh compelling qualities, an un- locked for American act is jumped into first choice by the vaudeville patrons, why is not that act pushed along by the man- ager? The legitimate theatrical man of affairs loses no opportunity to take advantage of the public's expression of opinion or preference for an unknown. But the vaudeville manager has the privilege of often seeing the form of reception given acts playing on his bills. Yet the for- eigner, unknown, unheard of and untried by the general public receives the choice salary, the choice position oftitimes and the choice advertising—for what? to justify the manager's or agent's judgment, or to force a foreign act into a position on a vaudeville bill that could be easily occu- pied by an American act, without a risk and at an even salary with that paid to the foreigner, although the native talent on past record as against the unknown quantity is worth infinitely more. Millie Linden, the English artiste, will appear here on Sept. 23 at the Colonial. Mile. Murger, from the Folies Marigny, Paris, opens at the New York Monday. M. A. Shea is preparing for production a 'girl act" in "one" employing seven persons. Jules Larvett, the- juggler, has entered the office of Maurice Boom in the capacity of "outside man." May Yohe opens at Butte, Mont., to- morrow (Sunday), commencing a tour of 20 weeks on the Sullivan-Considine time. The Four Colby Family open Sept. 16 at Reading, Pa., and playing Eastern time until February, thereafter starting on the Orpheum circuit. The Sidonias have closed with the "Par- isian Belles" and are again seeking vaude- ville dates. They will play the Maurice Boom Pennsylvania time. Daisy Harcourt will play to-morrow (Sunday) at Hammerstein's, taking the place of Ethel Levey, who leaves to open at the Majestic, Chicago, on Monday. J. C. Nugent arrived in town this week after an absence of a year. Mr. Nugent appears to-morrow (Sunday) night at the (Yotham (New York) in his sketch "The Rounder." Last week at the Orpheum, Brooklyn, is reported as holding one of the records for the house, and being the biggest open- ing week at the box office the Brooklyn theatre has had. John Considine, of Sullivan & Considine, w ho has been several weeks in the city, lrfI for Seattle Wednesday. He will go directly to the far Western city, stopping nowhere on the way. plication for membership to the White Rats. Mr. Romaine is an English artist, but has not played for some time, Marie Lloyd has secured passage on the "Cedric," which sails from London Sept. 26 and arrives in New York Oct. 4. On the same ship will arrive Alec. Hurley, the English comedian and Miss Lloyd's husband. W. Elms, formerly advance agent for Thomas E. Shea, has taken the post of resident manager of Bennett's London (Canada) theatre, replacing Mr. Aloz, who goes to take charge of the new Bennett establishment in Quebec. A cable received at the New York branch of the Marine Hi office this week reported the successful opening Sept. 2 of the Folies Bergere in Paris. La vine and Leonard and the Three Bounding Gor- dons were the American acts on the open- ing bill. After a tour of thirty-.five weeks over the Keith-Proctor, Orpheum and Kohl & Castle circuits, the Sutcliffe Troupe of, acrobats will leave for home Sept. 26 to play the Moss-Stoll and other English tours, returning to this country in No- vember next year. A young son of Joseph Hardin an, the singer and monologist, was seriously in. jured recently by being run over in the street near his home. The father has in- stituted a heavy damage suit, through M. Strassman, his attorney, against the express company which owned the wagon* Charles King, of the Two Kings, now playing in vaudeville, and Effice Pearson, of George Sidney's "Mazuma Man" com- pany, are engaged to be married. The wedding will take place next May, and thereafter the couple will play vaudeville as a team, according to their present plans. Winston's Lions, booked for the Klaw & Erlanger vaudeville circuit, have re- ceived contracts to play the Rickards' theatres in Australia following their American time. The Marinelli office in New York placed the act. This is said to be one of the first acts that Rickards has accepted from an agent without having himself first witnessed the performance. Edwin Forsberg, a well-known stock actor, has arranged with Emmett Corri- gan for the leasing on a royalty basis of his act "The Card Party," and will pre- sent it in vaudeville, beginning Sept. 23, at the G'otham, Brooklyn. Mr. Forsberg will be seen in the role created by Corri- gan and the other characters will be played by Harry Gibbs, Helen Coirtney and Loie Arnold. Gus Elen and Charles Romaine (hus- band of Claire Romaine) have made ap- Arthur Wilton, of the Wilton Brothers, slipped during the performance at the Franklin Square, Worcester, Monday after- noon. He struck on his head and was rendered unconscious. The curtain was rung down and the show went on after a short delay. Mr. Wilton regained con- sciousness under the care of a physician and was sufficiently recovered in the even- ing to work again.