Variety (Jan 1933)

Tuesday, January 31, 1933 LITERATI VARIETY 53 Best Sellers Best Sellers for the week ending Jan. 28, as reported by tiA American News Co.,. Inc. Fiction •Ann Vickers' ($2.50) By Sinclair Lewte •The Last Adam* ($2.00) i By James Gould Cozzens 'Kennel Murder Case' ($2.00) By S. S. Van Dine •Never Ask the End' ($2.60) By Isabel Paterson •Bulplngton of Blup* ($2.60) By H. G. Wells •Provincial Lady In London' ($2.50) E. M. Delafleld Non-Fiction '100,000,000 Guinea Pies' ($2.00) By Arthur Kallet and F. J. Schllnk 'Life Begins at Forty' ($1.50) By Walter B. Pitkin 'Flying Carpet' ($3.75) By Richard Halliburton 'March of Democracy' ($3.60) By James Truslow Adams •Van Loon's Geogi-aphy' ($3.76) By Hendrik Willon Van Loon •Life In a Technocracy' ($1.76) By Harold Loeb Not 8o Easy •Variety' ran a front pago story nn Geo. Kaufman, the author, a few >eeks ago. It gave eight grand as vis weekly Income. Immediately, housewives, stenos ^d street cleaners signed up for mall order courses In literature, and the editorial offices were • swamped liy msB. l,et the truth be known. Writing Is a luxury. It takes 1600 books to pay off a $2 title. If »' publisher prints 6,000 copies, he must .sell 3,500 to break even. Most pobllsherB are averse to bringing out more than one book a year for an author. This means that the Author can count on $700 income for tho year's output, unless he sells dramatic rights. Foreign rights ^re negligible. England de- ducts 26% tax. Agents' commission 10 20%. The publisher's share is 50%. The author is in luck if It doesn't cost hlrii anything to pub- lish his books abroad. He certainly doesn't make anything. So. much for book markets, unless you've written a best seller. 'The pulp imagazine field is no linger a mecca .for pot-boilers and the apprenticeship school for writ- ers. Today, writing for the pulp magazines, like writing books, is a;n avocation rather than a vocation. In 1929 there were 160 i^ulp maga- slnes. In this year of grace, 1933, there are about 63, and eyen ,thls number varies weekly as new mag- azines come. to. life and. puff out, most of the tline forgetting the" au- thor's check. A great many of the pulps are publishing reprints of old stories. States have been cut exactly In half. Tiiey pay a cent a word—on pub- lication. Let's say an author turns out 3,000 words every other day. If he sells 800,000 words a year his income Is $3,000; thalt Is, provided he has a market for his entire out- put, which Is highly Improbable. Page Geo. Kaufman, that eight grand guy! Theatre Interest Even though conditions may keep many folks away from the theatres, It apparently Isn't dampening or lessening their Interest In movle- dom In Minneapolis. Locfa-l newspa- pers find that the' public here has a more consuming, appetite for in- timate life stories of film notables and Hollywood ^osslP than ever before and they're going to unusual lengths to satisfy this demand. Newspapers in Minneapolis ju-e running more Hollywood and film stuff now than at any time since the Industry sprang Into being. Pic- ture publlcltj^ matter also gets a better break than before. Life stories of the stars, Hollywood letters and various articles are played up. Large space devoted to the flick- ers by the 'Tribune' marks a radi- cal departure for that sheet, for- merly considered antl-theatrlcal In attitude. Previously It Ignored the- atrical dope on week days and gave a minimum amount of space to the theatres on Sundays. Now it's the most liberal of all the Minneapolis sheets in that respect. Dailies Ban Lottery Ads With the post office department ruling the chain sales systems a lottery, Los Angeles dally news- papers have barred all advertising pertaining to such stunts from their columns. This prohibition applies primarily to the classified sections which had been used by the pyra- miding schemes in advertising for salesmen. Throwing out of these ads was prompted by the Better Business Bureau. On the other hand, the magazine Tood,' which, after resuming pub- lication some time ago found the going rough at $1 a year, has adopted the so-called prosperity plan on subscriptions In the hope of building Its circulation to 400,- 000. Fictionized Fact Lydia Lindgren, who had her day In court with Otto Kahn, has pro- duced a literary curio in 'My Heart in My Throat' which may or may not be autobiographical. The read- er is left to judge. The heroine is the alliterative Sven Svenson in- stead of LydIa Lindgren, and the arch villain is one 'Mr. Crane, chairman of the Opera House,' sel- dom honored with a first name, Ralph. The book is not announced as a novel nor yet a biography, but the story sounds largely autobiog- raphical in a Actionized fashion. The reader unfamiliar with the legal technicalities might easily be led to believe it fact, but the libel, if any, is only Inferential. Up to page 331 the story is a de- tailed account of the early life of a Swedish girl whose voice and adroitness led her from poverty to the concert stage. Crane comes into the story at that point and from then onward It Is a grudge fight clear to the final page 716, which Is plenty too much. Tho story ceases to be Interesting and becomes a rave. It is going to make a lot of talk and cause considerable speculation, but the last portion of the book is too grossly. overdrawn to be credible. Fowler's Newspaper Experiences Gene Fowler is working on an untitled non-fiction book of his ex- periences In newspaper work. Tome will be published by Covlcl-Frlede, with subject matter confined to In- teresting personalities Fowler has met, and their efforts to keep sup- posedly damaging news out of print. He'll also delve Into the Inside on several national stories. Fowler still, has two novels to deliver to Alfred Knopf. Writer re- ceived an advance for three, but paid back the money on one re- cently. 'The Great Mouthpiece' so far has sold 60,000 copies, fair for a non- fictfon book during trying times. Fowler's percentage on the sales has been slightly under $12,000. Neither he nor Ben Hacht expect any returns from the $2 Issue of 'Great Magod,' now on the stands. Authors Insisted on special typog- raphy, binding and color illustra- tions which cut too far Into their percentage to permit any revenue for them. Weekly Classified Newspaper Rudolph Seller, for many years with Hearst papers as classified advertising manager, and recently heading that department on the Los Angeles 'Times,' is entering the field with the Tmb Angeles Classi- fied,' a weekly throwaway carrying nothing but ads of that type. Paper will be placed on doorsteps Sunday mornings, the first issue going out yesterday (29). It Is the first publication of Its kind in Southern California, and possibly the first anywhere. Employees will work from their homes, using their own phones, be- ing paid straight commission. Martha Pennell, with the Los An- geles 'Herald' 11 years, Is assisting Seller. Report In Los Angeles Is that the throwaway Is only the forerunner of another evening daily, publish- ers using this method of feeling out advertising possibilities in the ter- ritory. 'Lions on a Leash' Agents in the U. S. who propose booking concert artists or men of letters, science or statecraft, into Canadian cities had better watch out that posters and circulars for mailing lists do not bear the 'Print- ed in the U. S. A.' slug in the corner. Public opinion was aroused in Torbnto when the press front-paged the fact that John Masefleld, poet- laureate of England, was 'under the exclusive management of Lee Kee- dick, 475 Fifth avenue, N. T.' Mase- fleld was likened In one evening paper as 'a lion on a U. S. A. leash.' Nothing might have been said but for that 'printed in the U. S. A.' line. That seemed to irk the locals. Merge in Danbury The Danbury (Conn.) 'Newp,' known throughout the country at one time for the humorous writ- ing of James Bailey, its editor, merged Jan. 30 with the 'Times,' other afternoon daily at Danbury. Paper is now published as 'News- Times.* The 'News' was thrown Into financial difficulties by the em- bezzlement of more than $20,000 by Its advertising manager. William Buckley will be managing editor, and Frank Rollins, city editor. Frederick B. Dalton remains as pub- lisher. Paid on Profit Revealed by Cass Canfield, the Harper head, upon assuming the presidency of the National Associa- tion of Book Publishers for another term, that book publishers are trying out a new system of royalty pay- ment to scribblers. Whereas royalty system In the past has been based on the retail price of the books, tho new system calls for payment to scribblers per the publishers' charges. This would work to the advantage of publishers in the case of a book that fails to sell, in that the royalty payment would be practically nil if the publisher loi3es money on the book. On the other hand, however, the author would stand to profit more than by the royalty method on the retail price should the book go across in nice sales. Most of the publishing houses re- gard thiB new system favorably, it Is said, and it may be a general prac- tice before long. Nickel Mags Out <3eorge T. Delacorte, Jr., took it on the chin with those nickel pulps, but one remaining, 'All ' Detec- tive.' With the" newsstands over- loaded with mags, newsdealers could not see spotting, the Jilckel mags in prominent positions because of the small return on a nickel sale. News- dealers continued giving the ace po- sitions to the 10 and 16 cents pulps, the profits in the sale of each being two and three times that of the nickel numbers. Because of the small margin of profit by which the nickel pulps were issued, Delacorte couldn't do any better for the newsdealers, and so they continued to bury the nickel mags. That spelled oblivion. Exhuming the 'Graphic' Reports of the resurrection of the 'Graphic' have the operation of a three-cornered affair, with Ormond Smith and Generoso Pope concerned, along with Bernarr Macfadden. Or- mond Smith is the head of Street & Smith, the chain mag publishing house, and Pope Is the publisher of a number of Italian - language dailies In New York and elsewhere. Madison Kidding Technocracy James Madison, former vaude gag writer, but more recently sup- plying quips and dialog for pic- tures, has hit the Los Angeles book stands with a 10-cent pamphlet titled •Techno-Crazy.' He hopes to get some sheckels from those who might enjoy a few laughs at Tech- nocracy. His analysis of the scientific sub- ject is Illustrated by one of his paragraphs, reading: 'A man may perhaps shovel snow off a sidewalk in exchange for a hunk of baloney, which he in turn can trade for a porous plaster to cure the cold he got while shoveling the snow.' There's quite a few.^.eood snickers in the book's 16 pages. One-Man Pulper With the pulp market pretty well shot, particularly as regards air tales, George Bruce, previously per- haps the most prolific scribbler of the happy landing pieces, has turned pulp publisher as an outlet for his own works only. First instance of a scribbler domi- nating a mag, and the project being closely watched for whatever it may mean. New in Detroit New local paper out as of Jan. 27, called the "Detroit Week-end Mir- ror.' Being partly a resumption of the issue put out by the 'Detroit Mirror' since dissolved. Group of the former employees of the Mirror are getting out the new sheet. Limiting to merely the week- end tabloid for the start plans are to eventually return to a daily issue if and when results Justify. Kenle Rappeli is the Pres. and editor; Ferd Fisher Gen. Man. and G. Upton Shreeve is V. Pres. and Treas. In- cluded in the staff Is Fiank Smith, dramatic editor; Geer Williams, sports editor. Paper will sell for 6c and will be on sale over the week end. Writers' Clul^ To find a literary group like the Writers' Club, you would have to go back to the days of the Civil War when Walt Whitman and other bohemian writers met regu- larly in New York rathskellers. The writers meet in the Blue Ribbon Restaurant on West 44th street, and through the twenty years of its ex- istence there have come and gone a long procession of famous names. Ellis Parker Butler, Morrle Rys- klnd, Bide Dudley, Albert Payson Terhune. Lights of importance in the literary world address the writers every other Tuesday. Au- thors who have had a book or a play accepted are eligible. Eats and Thinks Down in the Latin Quarter, a Greenwich Village rendezvous, Henry Harrison Is offering a diverse program nightly. Rachel Crothers recently appeared in a talk on 'The Production and Staging of a Play,' Chas. D. Isaacson on 'Making Amer- ica Dance Cof'solous,' and George S. Schuyler, author of 'Black No More,' 'On Negro Civilization.' The 50 cent admission charge Includes sand- wiches and coffee. Sleuthing the Solons Sidney Skolsky's political razzing of the White House,. congressmen and senators in the New York'Dally News' (tab) follows a similar series by Westbrook Pegler, the N. Y. 'Eve. Post's' sport commentator, who was assigned for a closeup of the Capitol. Pegler turned out some great stuff, likening the legislative routine to 'fixing a fight' on some of the inside stuff how bills are killed or passed. Skolsky seemingly is also under specific assignment how to handle the 'lowdown' on the lawmakers. More Carfares 'Radio Guide' has again changed editors and has also decided to move its editorial headquarters back to New York from Chicago. Frank Lovette, a former secretary of the Federal Radio Commission, takes over the post of editor left vacant by Ed Fisher. Evans Plymmer, who did a col- umn for the weekly, has been given the title of Chicago editor. 'Guide' has also arranged to change its for- mat from the tabloid to the mag type. Back to a Daily Finding the going worse as a weekly than as a daily, the French- language sheet, 'Courrler des Etats- Unis,' is back to daily >publication. The newspaper went weekly about six months ago, after daily publica- tion for more than 100 years. Bought Assets Only Pueblo, Colo., 'Chieftain,' morning paper, has been purchased by Frank S. Hoag, owner and publisher of the afternoon 'Star-Journal.' Hoag bought the Associated Press fran- chise, subscription list and mechan- ical equipment of the 'Chieftain,' but acquired none of the liabilities. George H. Sweeney, owner of the 'ChlefUln,' has left Pueblo. Cheap Treasure The drop in money values abroad has flooded America with rare vol- umes at relatively bargain prices because of the higher purchasing power of the American dollar. Autographed first editions are be- ing shipped wholesale by the Eng- lish booksellers into the U.S. for disposition. Jerry Wald's Mag 'Radio Reporter' is a new fan weekly which Jerry Wald will edit and publish with financing of some radio interests. It's due out In a couple of weeks. Wald is ex-radio columnist of the now defunct New York 'Graphic' California Publisher Dies George W Barton, Jr., 27, died (22) at hie Mcntebello, Calif., home from asphyxiation. He was pub- lisher of the Lynwood 'Press,' and former owner of the East Los An- geles 'Tribune' Hurry Up Job , J. George Frederick deserves the writeathon prize for completing in two weeks a 266 page book, illu.s- trated, on Technocracy. He's for and against it. Greenberger On Own Sanford Greenberger has resigned as vice-prosident of Kennaday & LivIiiBston, and opened a literary and play agency of ills own. Green- berger, at one timo story editor for "Warners, has a number of iinixn-iant Stn-opcan connection!; ;uid expects to specialize in foreign rights i>n both sides of the ocean. New Auspices 'Singing and Playing,' the music mag, goes under the operation of the Magazine Guild this week, as the first unit of a plan by which the Guild will put a number of pub- lication.s. Heading the Magazine Guild is Joseph Roth. Alfred Human continues as editor of "Singing and Playing,' which he founded in 1925. Previously, Hu- man was managing editor of 'Musi- cal America.* McQuigg Out, After 27 Yrs. Frederick McQuigg, head of Chi- cago 'American' amusement depart- ment for past 27 years, let out Sat- urday with Oscar Schenk, formerly head classified given post. Another 10% cut all 'American' employees went into effect. McQuigg, some years ago, aver- aged $30,000 a year through adver- tising percentage and was highest salaried department head in Chi- cago. Elsie Janis' Col Elsie Janis now wiring about 300 words daily from Hollywood, all film chatter, to the New York 'Dally News.' Chatter Another writer formerly in the employ of the Pulitzers has been given a Job In Albany by the Demo- cratic State administration. He is Irwin Thomas, ex-leglslatlve corre- spondent 'of the N. Y. •Evening World,' appointed a general clerk in the Senate at $10 a day (for 100 days). Thomas is now working in the Chamber which he once 'cov- ered' from a press chair. None of C. Hartley Grattan's an- cestors were writers and the au- thor of 'The Three James' did not originally plan to be one. He took a commercial course In high school. Edward Dean Sullivan doing a blog oh Samuef S. Llebowltz, the present-day William J. Fallon. Put- nam will get it. G. B. Holdsworth will do her next book abroad. Gertrude E. Trevelyan, whose 'Applus and Virginia' is out, is only 23. With the pulps n. s. g., Erie Stan- ley Gardner Is devoting himself to book-length fiction. George S. Chappell going serious In his new novel. When not doing rhymes, Hugh T. Fitch Is an Instructor at the U. S. Naval Academy at Annapolis. John J. Trounstine added to the Alfred H. King editorial sUff. Lytton Strachey's niece, Julia Strachey, makes her bow as a nov- elist soon. Pitts Sanborn, the 'World-Tele- gram' music critic, has another novel coming along, 'Greek Night,' Philip Guedalla here, and will go South for a few weeks. Michael Arlen, who's been almost forgotten, will be represented in the spring book lists. Arthur Carlyle didn't like London, and so to Paris. Ruth Raphael lunching Isabel Paterson. Bargain offer is three novels and two novelettes of Mary Roberts Rinehart in a single volume for $2. Another cut went Into effect last week at the New York 'Telegraph.' Ten per cent nick for everybody on the paper with the exception of the executives and. heads of depart- ments, who took 20% chops. Virgil Jordan, economist for Mc- Graw-Hill Pi^bllshlng Co., some- times uses the non de plume. Homer Hudson. Robert G. Seymour, telegraph ed- itor of the Denver Post, underwent a major operation and a secondary emergency operation in a San Fran- cisco hospital. He went there to have the operation performed by a personal friend. Here is the finest novel that ever touched on show business—by the celebrated author whose Hoboken revivals astound- ed New York producers. HUMAN BEING by Christopher Morley $^.^0. PiB. Douhlcday.Dofjn