Variety (December 1907)

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VARIETY STOCK VAUDEVILLE ON SMALL CIR- CUITS. Marion, Ind., Dec. C. .Tno. Woodford and Jeanette Marlboro have inaugurated a new idea for the smaller vaudeville circuits in this section. They have placed it in operation in the Ammon8-Du Bois houses. It is stock with vaudeville for side trim- mings, Mr. Woodford and Miss. Marlboro having organized a sketch company of six players including themselves. Short plays will be given, and the company travel over the circuits, carrying the vaudeville acts along, giving complete shows. Special ,scenery has been built on the Crystal Circuit (Amnions and Du Bois) for the small stages which will be played upon. Besides the principals there will be Bernard Hennings, J. E. Pollard, Jane Chester and Thos. J. Fowl in the cast of the plays. STRANDED IN "TANK TOWN." Lafayette, Ind., Dec. 6. Over in Tipton, not a great way from here, is the Martz Opera House, and while the "Opera House" sounds good, somehow the meagre population of Tipton hasn't much faith in it, so when the "Berre and Hicks All-Star Vaudeville Company" played Tipton in Martz', they said: "It's no use" to the manager, who was the audience, and straightway stranded. The Eagles assisted Mr. Berre to his home at Bloomington, 111. Berre and Hicks were with the John Robinson Show the past summer. John Le Vere, a contortionist and wire- walker, who was the feature of the com- pany, w#S' with the show only one week. STOPPED HOUDINI'S JUMP. Chicago, Dec. 6. It's cold in Chicago, but Harry Houdini wants to jump in the river. The police won't let him without a permit. Houdini says if some one doesn't secure him the permission pretty soon he will have to wear boots to break the ice when it docs appear. Houdini is the feature at the Majestic Theatre. While on the Wells Street bridge in readiness for the plunge, the officers stopped him, and told the "jail-breaker" it mustn't be, taking him to the station house, where he wa,s paroled upon his honor not to make the attempt without official sanction. Houdini thought all had been arranged, but Kerry Meager "fell down" on the requisite Written privilege from the au- thorities. Houdini will probably make the jump before he leaves here, if he has to go to Milwaukee to do it. POLI'S, MERIDEN, LEGITIMATE. The new Poli Theatre at Meriden, Conn., opens Dec. 23 as a legitimate house, the first attraction having been booked. The plays will be furnished the theatre through the Klaw & Erlanger legitimate booking office. It is two years since Meriden had a taste of theatricals and a rush is antici- pated. When an open week occurs Poli will fill it in with vaudeville. ORPHEUM ORGANIZING PRESS BUREAU. Chicago, Dec. C. A Presj Bureau will be organized for the systematizing of the newspaper mat- ter and billing on the Orpheum Circuit. The main office will be at the New York branch of the circuit, and it is reported O. C. Carson, the resident manager of the Orpheum, Denver, has been invited to take the general charge. The plan of operation has been mapped out by C. E. Bray, and is thorough in its scope. Careful supervision will be main- tained over the local press representatives in the various cities, and Mr. Carson, who is peculiarly adapted to work of this na- ture, will provide material for the news- paper reading public wherever an Orpheum house is located. LILY LENA. Lily Lena, whose portraits form this week's cover design, is one of this pea- son's very successful English importa- tions. This is her second American tour, having appeared at the Colonial in New York May 14, 1905. She has played the principal London halls as well as South Africa and the Colonies. On her second American trip Miss Lena has been held over for two weeks' engagements at all the houses she has played in. Miss Lena's methods are distinctly artis- tic in their quiet grace, and her delivery natural and convincing. She has a charm- ing stage presence, free from the rougey- peroxide ilavor, and her pongs match her methods in their smooth and easy humor. She has brought the two novelty num- bers, "Swing Me Higher, Obadiah" and "And the Finish Was, She Did," to popu- larit v. JUST "FELL IN." Adams and Mack, the burlesque magi- cians, appeared at the box office of the Twenty-third Street Theatre Monday night and were about to purchase tickets with real money when Harry Leonhardt espied them. "Hello," he observed cheerfully ; "where are your trunks?" "Over at the hotel," returned one. "Well, chase 'em around here as quick as you can. You go on fourth!" ordered Leonhardt. "The Toreadores," a new act which had opened at the matinee, were absent and the hill in need of a substitute. Adams and Slack "went on" and remained the balance of the week. The pair put on a new act several weeks ago and had been seeking an engagement at the Twenty-third Street in vain. Arnold Fields, of the Fields Brothers, is ill at the Royal Victoria Hospital, Mon- treal, of pleurisy. KRUGER'S GOES, TOO. Kruger's Auditorium, Newark, N. J., this week shifted its bookings for "Sunday shows" from the William Morris agency to the United Hooking Offices, and there was not a little satisfaction on the part of Morris at this arrangement. Kruger's was Morris' lone surviving chick in this neighborhood and it was the subject of much discussion. It was one of the oldest houses in the Morris office. He began to supply its bills in December, 181)0. Maurice Doom bad handled it before that. The bills averaged about $500 a week. PLAYING VAUDEVILLE IN ROBIN- SON'S. Cincinnati, Dec. C. Vaudeville is now playing at Robinson's Opera Hou.se, under the management of Nikla Shelzoni, who directed the Hun- garian Boys' Band around the country at one time. There is a good bill offered. No pro- grams are distributed. Mr. Shelzoni will not make public his source of supply for acts, and no one seems to have informa- tion where he obtained them. The numbers this week are DeLaur Grand Opera Trio, Charles Fanning, monologue; Clivette, Flying Dicketts, Spessardy's Bean and a troupe of Jap- anese jugglers beside La Keanes, comedy acrobats. It is understood Stielzoni holds a lease for 21 weeks on the theatre. At the office of William Morris nothing was known of Slielzoni's occupancy of Robinson's and it was said the acts were not booked through that office. As the Opera House is in opposition to the Columbia, which books through the West- ern Vaudeville Association, it is improb- able the bookings are obtained from either there or the United, although an inde- pendent Chicago agent may be acting for the management. VION & LOWE'S COMPANY TOURING. The vaudeville combination organized by Yion & Lowe to play New England is now at New London, Conn., where it has been since Thursday, playing three days in that city. On Monday it opened at New Rochelle. going from there to Stamford, where it re- mained two days. Jos. Vion is the man- ager with the show. The bill offered is Sears, the illusionist; Mary Ann Brown; Annie Abbott, "The Georgia Magnet"; Healy and Vance; Mr. and Mrs. Perkins Fisher: Actava, "Hindoo Idol Mystery" ; Johnson and Richards and the Hates Musical Trio. Next week Sadie Gompers, daughter of the labor leader, takes the place of Miss Brown in the troupe, who will leave it for a week iu order to fulfill an engagement previously booked. MURRAY AND MACK MAY LOSE SOUBRETTE. Cincinnati, Dec. 6. The recital of the troubles of Ollie Mack, of Murray and Mack, who are trav- eling in the Far West in 'The Sunny Side of Broadway," has been given out here. The show played two weeks in Port- land, Ore., and is to work down the Coa.st until Los Angeles, when another two weeks' stand occurs. Mr. Mack announced late last week that upon reaching Los Angeles he would many Helen Kelly of Denver. Then there were doings. Gladys Van, the soubrette of the show, and claiming to be Mack's wife under the common law, started a rough house" at the Hotel Portland, claiming she would shoot Mr. Mack afterward* poisoning herself. Miss Van was restrained, and left the hotel, declaring she would be revenged. The management of the show has an- nounced Mill Van returned to New York, and Edna Murrilla would replace her. NEW HOUSE IN FRISCO. San Francisco, Dec. 6. Ground has been broken for a new vaudeville house at the north end of town. Archie Levy is heavily interested and it will probably be a Sullivan-Considine affiliation. ♦ • ADDITIONAL WEEK FOR S.-C. San Francisco, Dec. 6. The Sixteenth Street Theatre is sched- uled to open Dec. 9. Al Flournoy will probably be at the helm. This opening will mean an additional week for Sulli- van Considine acts. REBUILDING FRISCO ORPHEUM. San Francisco, Dec. 6. The old Orpheum site on OTarrell Street has been cleaned of debris and the concrete foundation is now under way. The house will be rushed to com- pletion as the vicinity is rebuilding with greater^ rapidity than was anticipated. PHILADELPHIA PALACE VAUDE- VILLE. The Palace Theatre, Philadelphia, for- merly the Lyceum, playing the shows of the Eastern Burlesque Wheel, will open Dec. 23 as a vaudeville theatre, giving bills of eight acts. Walter Plimmer, late book- ing representative of the Empire Circuit Company (Western Burlesque Wheel) will attend to the bookings. John G. Jermon, of the Eastern Wheel, the owner of the property, will continue in the management. The Lyceum played the burlesque shows until the beginning of this season, when the Eastern Wheel moved its stand over to the Gayety. Since then the Lyceum has remained dark." CHASE TELLING SECRETS. Washington, Dec. 6. P. B. Chase is running wild again. Due to his failure to find an advertiser who considered the back page of hi£ program of any value, Mr. Chase has utilized the space for a "comparative table of the sal- aries of artists paid now and three or four years ago." 1'osing as a vaudeville manager, one would imagine Mr. Chase knew what he was talking about in this connection, but t here are errors in the list, and the artists playing here think Mr. Cha#8 is misbehav- ing himself. He might compare his own prices since lie is going to raise the admission com- mencing Dec. 23. He makes no compari- son of the qualities of his bills and those to come. The publishing of artists' sal- aries seems to be done in the justification for it. Chase must be in fear of the result of the proceedings. Although announcing or- chestra seats will cost seventy-five cents after the given date he says, on the pro- gram, that that price is fifty per cent. lower than the vaudeville houses of New York and other large cities. "BILLED" FOR DAMAGES. Llveriiool, Nov. 20. Hetty King was billed to headline the show ;it the Empire here lust week. As the management well knew Miss Kim: is in America, the motive seemed to I).- to base ,i claim of damages for breach «.f contra I u: >u the artiste's return.