Variety (Dec 1934)

Tuefldajr, Dec^piber 11, 1934 LEGITIMATE VARIETY 53 N.Y. THEATRE SHORTAGE . Albaiiyj Dec. 10. Executive committee of the I^ew Tprk State Federation of . Labor, meeting here -Tuesday (4) heard Frank Glllmore, president of thi Actors* Equity a,aBoclatlbh; Vigor- ously sock a proposal: to seek a law that will; permit Slunday. legit shows. Plah, which labor is prer pared to have presented before the 1036 Ijegislature, wpuld give cities local option In the Suhda.y show "matter. ~ ~"—; ■ ■ — Olllmore, addtesslng the commits tee. Insisted that If Sunday shows were pOTihlttcid actoris and actresses would be required to work seven . days a week because 'we have no faith in the. theatre managers to thie -point where we : honestly ber Ueve they would glve^us a day oft 'each week.' Asked by "Thomas Murtha, secre- .tary of the.. >Iew York Glty stage- hahda' local; whether Equity would agree to the proposed Sunday plays if the actors were guaranteed One; day off each week, Crlllmpre replied: 'We are unalterably opposed td . Bundiay performances, under any consideration.' Other resolutions discussed In- cluded: regulating use of Juvenile bands atid orchestras in connection With public functions, Including political rallies; employment of projiectlonlsts on picture machines used for educational purposes. This would include machines, used for - visual education In public schoplis; "reptial of - all' laws " crtatln charging jpiriyate employment agen- cies and extension of the system of federdl-state-munlclpal free em- ployment agencies. . Albany , was chosen, as the 1935 convehtlon city of the state .labor federation. Meeting will take place next'August.': ' KAtH CLIFFORD'S LEGIT Former Silent Fi|m Player Produc • ■,■■;.' ■■ •■.;' '■ ''ing on Coast ' Hollywood, Dec. 10; Kathleen Clifford, ex-scrieen name In ailents, announces taking a seven months' lease on the 'WUshlre-iBbell theatre starting Jan. 7 as a legit play laboratory. .She, with her rich husband backing her,, says no Sub- scriptions to be sought and intends paying actbrs Equity scalCi authors, standard royalties, etc. 7^nitlaler~t8-Mr; eiayraore's-'Steps" Out.V authored by herself and Doug-' las Z. Doty. Original plays only will be a fixed pbllcy.: KERN-HAMMERSTEIN ON SCORE FOR ROSE PUY Jerome Kern and Oscar Ham- mersteln 2d will probably do the ■core, for the circus play with mu- iric which . Billy Rose is conteihplat- ing: "prodflfcift^r" Tiext" li««h» ftTifi fiharie s MacArthur. who originally authored It as a film •cenarlo, did the stage version. This venture differs from the Hungarian play, 'The Circus Queen', which Rose saw abroad a:nd which he Intended doing, in America. New piece is likewise set In a circus, to be played under canvas, witii an au- thentic big time show ; as part of the dramatic: aictloh. . Fowler Too Rosy, Skolslqr Win Write Play 1^ Being a half portion in size, Sid Skolisky 'thought he had hair a Piay in his: system and steamed Gene Powler into .writing: the other half. That Was before their frozen flight from the- coast. Upon refie.ctipii Fowler decided he wouldn't /have the time to Colldb with Skolsky, ije- cause he is going back to -Holly- wood to make Enough coin to take a ~lOng'"cruise with^he-wife—^— "VVhen learning that, . iSkoisky: plucked up enough couroge to be- lieve he ha:s a full length play se- creted withiri his donie* and Is go- ing ahead, all by himself. ■ Scriveners squawked about, how cold the plane .was, and discovered that for winter flying .tjie iseats In the tall of the ship are bad;: Both were confined with grippe; aftei' arrival. One Incident was the plane drop- ping about 1,000 feet when hitting, an air ljocket. fioth fell out of their seats:' 'But I. fell . on: Fowler', de- ^ttfed the columnist - -— EBei^erPate Several: angles to the .deal;Where- by the Theatre Guild .will present Elisabeth Bergrier In New York in ^Escape Me, Never' instead of Arch Sielwyn and Harold B.- Franklin (Frankwyn). Charles B. Cochran, original producer of the I<opdon hit, okayed-the switch last w^ek and Guild at once started fishing for a ■house.'■■■■■ ■ Guild -waa^w.aEe^that—lt-.ls un- likely 'Escape' can make a profit during its 12-week engagement on Broadway because the contract calls for 30%, coming off the top7 10% of the gross to the star and similar percentages, to the author aiid Cochran. But the Guild needs a strong attraction to bolster its own production schedule and In- sure satisfactloh an)ong . Itis sub- scribers. 'Valley Fprge,' second production of the group this, sea- son, opened at the Guild ' Monday (lp>, and ther^hlrd, 'Rain irpm Heaven,''is in rehearsal. : : 'Escape,' which Is due at New Tear's,: is the first dramatic : Imr portation by the Guild. With the ldea> of lessening the loss possibilr ities, such heavy sharing terms are requestied that-few theatres are -in=- terestod in boo king the show. Guild "is reppriea askln5HsO:% of the gross- and unusual participation In ex- penses by the house. V .Understood Gullil proposes to up the admission scale for the Biergner engagement; BPost however, would not Include subscription tickets, unr iess ^Escape' is classed as an extra attraction. Figured the show must have $10,000 weekly as its share to ■pay .off. Fifteen Moi^e Sfkpw B^ing Readied Than Houses Available — Qiiick May Make Rodin 46 THEATRES Taths' to Moye Abe Cohri and Eddie Scanlon kre inaking a deal with Matty Zimmer- inan Of l^iblang ' s fur anoth e r house for their 'So, Many Paths', current at the Ritz. Latter .has 'Piper Pays', ; Harold 'Berg prpductlon, slated to open Dec. 24.,> ; The Rlt55, Incidentally, was being ga'gged :to be rehamlEd the Irvi.rig Kaye: Davis.: theatre.. His 'P^ current, was :preceded by ■another 'p]ay^'"ofTiTs""tiuCHprshl^^ Reserved", whiOli closed on. the Sat- urday before the Thursday premiere of 'Paths'.- , ' Byington Vic€5 Seelciy • ■ • ; Baltimore, Dec. 10. Spring Byington late last week rcpia:ccd Blossom Seeley In 'Piper Paid,' legit play by Sarah B. Smith and Viola Brothers Shore, which debuts: tonight (10). iat the Maryland here.; ' WouM hsLve : been Miss Seeley's first ieglt. straight drama role. ; ' ■ For the: ilihBt. tlnie In five years, all. legit theatres in Broadway will "be' occuplcd-by New- Tear's.-TaecPrd-'- Ing to. preisent bPoklngs. ; There. a:rie 16 more attractions being readied thaii there are available houses. Lilkely. there will be a theatre short-, age for at least a brief period. How- ever,- .ilgnirlng. J.the;^Eerti?nt,age^^ ^.^^^^^ failures among new attractlonsi there shpuld be theatres open for booking by mid-January. ICotal number of houses available iipr ieglt shows Is 4<t as against 69 previously, latter figure not taking in two ropf spots and twp little the- atres (Hopkins . and President). Among the 23 theatres currently ex- legitimate- are six houses which could be readily reconverted to show" usage but the others are'out, being iised for grind pictures, burlesque shows, free radio performances and nightclubs. V ■ ^ There are 31 attractions on the list this .week. Withdrawals oi some current attractions will permit , some of the unbooked shows to secure berths, but the others, will probably take-to~the-r6ad-:-for-^seyerai: w'eeka.. Latest list' of legit theatres in- cludes three built for pictures- Center, Hollywood and, Warner. LAtter house Is being remodeled and will be rpody for bookings late in February. ■ "rheatrer..-. Houses occupied or due to get shows are: Adelphl, Alvln, Ambassador, As- ter, Barrympre,. Belasco, Biltmore/ Booth, Centre, Civic, Cosmopolitan, Broadhurst, Broadway, Cort, Elliott, Empire, Erlanger, Forrest, 48th Street, 44th Street, 49th Street, 46th Street, Fulton, Guild, "HollyWPOdr Imperial, Liittle, liongacre, Lyceum, Majestic, Mansfield, .Martin Beck, Masque. Miller, Horosco, Music. Box, National, New Amsterdam, Play- house, Plymouth, Rltz, Royale, Shu- bert, Vahderbllt, Winter" Garden, Worner a . ; ■ ■ In Hertz's lllfaltz of Fore Complaint 'Fraid? Shuberts have a new atti- tude regarding theatres. ,. A manager talking, of renting a house last week was told that the business of authprs closinig plays this season had Jake and Lee worried. Producer was told that he would have to guarantee that his show would- ~opcn"ffnd"wcrsta;te-ln-hls-thea— tre rental contract, being liable - for- a couple of weeks* rental in case something, hap- penied to it v Fact that there's a thealtre shortage currently may have something to do with; it, also. Former legit houses now with other policies: Apollo,- Avon, Bayes, Belmont, Bijou, Casino, Cohan, Comedy, El- tlnge, Gaiety, Globe, Golden, Harris, Hudson, Jolson's ■. (Venice), Lyric, Liberty, Manhattan, New Tprker, Selwyn, Times Square, Waldorf, Ziegfeld. Pkkford May Do on Coast Tour for My . ^ : , Hollywood, Dec. 10. Henry Duffy Tan^ a deal on with Mary Plckford to star In 'The Farm- er Takes a Wife,' which he plans to produce here shortly after the new year. . -Play would go into El Capitan here, and the Curran' in 'Frisco, with possibility of other coast dates to follow. With the Dramatists' Qiiild whipped in the arbitration suit over 'Waltz in Fire,' matter now goes Into the hands of the legit Code Authority and . may be threshed out all over again. Producers on Broadway feel that their chance is nPw open to make headw;ay in the old fight against the scribblers and feel that they can gain considerable Hand in Fog' Actors Win ROOO Award in Bout with Macloon . ■ Hollywood, Dec. 10. Equity arbitration of salary claims against Louis O. Macloon, producer' of "Hand In. the Fog,' which folded In Frisco last year, resulted In an award of the full amount to: the five cast members. Back salaries aggregating $2,000 are Involved in -the verdict Those ishar- ing in the award are Helen Mac- Keller, George MacQuarrie, Vernon" Steele, Robert Warwick and Cyril Delevailti. Actors were represented on thei board by Robert Emniett O'Connor, Macloon by Mitchell Lewis and Capt. Samuel A. Purviance was referee. Charles Miller, coast rep for Equity, presided. funds Coin but Lets 'Eih Watch Rehearsal •Trenton, Dec. 10. Ina Claire-gave a 'party' to a thousand persons in Mcdarter the- atre, Princeton, who had gathered. Saturdajr night. to. wltijess_lh.e. pre^ nilcre pf Sidney Howard'.s new play, •Ode to Liberty.' \ , ' Immediately before the curtain went tip Miss Claire came out and said: 'I'm going to give you all a party.' , /•', ; . ^he, then retired, and the man- ager explained that because the show had not been properly whipped into shape, the cash tustomers would get their money back. 'I am also ordered to announce,' the manager went on, 'that the play will be given immediately, but that it will not be a premiere. Please call It a rehearsal. Tou are all Invited to stay and see it. Il'ti a party given by Ina Claire.' And a reiiearsal it was. . : . - :Some of the sets had not been j)aiii.^d.^yet.:lQiiu6eve.ra^^^^ particularly in the first act. Miss Claire fumbled her lines and was prompted. But so enthu.-scd was the audience at the end of the perform- ance that the star was given ten curtain ■ ;calls. Show,, produced by Gilbert Miller, opens tonight (10) in Washington. . -.■ During Saturday night's Initer- ml.ssion, persons who came from out of town were refunded the price of their tickets, ranging from $1.10 to $2.76, while local residents were In- formed they could obtain their re- funds this week at * Princeton store. -.. . • '. •■....:■-:'■ . ) advantage and possibly even a re- vision of the minimum basic agree- ment. It is the first time that the writers have legally lost in a battle with the producers. Matter became legal history last week when two of three scheduled . arbitration suits were heard and won by the producing team of Sid- ney Harmon and James R. Ullnian. The third case was anvlcably set- tled just prior ftp opening of the arbitration. Trouble arose out of the proposed production" of 'Waltz in Fire,' by Harmon & Ullman. ; Play was au- thored by David Hertz and was to open on Oct 31, 1934. Tlie author aiid the 'Dramatists Guild,-acting for the author," ordered It closed on Oct, 29 because production was al- legedly 'inadequate.' Producers fold- ed the play, paid off, the cast and filed separate bharges against the author, ithe Dr amati sts' Guild and^^ Zlta Johann, star of the fihoVr, First case to be tried last Wednes- day (6) . was that of. the producers against the Guild. Brock Pember- ton, producer; John Rumsey, presi- dent of American Play Co., and Hermann Irion, head of the Steln- way Piano Co., were the arbitrators, Irion chairman. John J. Wildberg. and Fhifip Wittenberg acted as co- counsel for the producers and Wil- liam Hamilton Osborne was attor- ney Xor the Dramatists Guild. De- : cislon of the committee was that the 'Dramatists Guild's arbitrary exercise of power and the failure of Its officers. to_dIscuss or confer w^ the managers entitles the managers, Sidney Harmon and James R. Ull- man, inc., to damages of $500 plus all -costs.'.: _• ...:__ ;. .: Second case, the next day, was -the- prodqcers-agalnst-^avid HertZr- the author, and-'proved to be more complicated, going over well : into : the third day. Arbitrators in this case were Pemberton, Robert E. Sherwood, playwright, and Lewis A. Hlrd, president of the New York Rotary Club, Hlrd . as chr.lrman. They found that Hertz was 'ill ad- vised by the Century Play Co., and by the Dramatists Guild and was unjustified In sending the letter of. Oct. 29 and his requests and de- mands of Sidney Harmon and James R. Ullman,; Inc., were unwarranted and unreasonable.' Arbitrators did : away with the Harmon & Ullman demaiid for restitution of the $15,000 . invt>fltpa In nrod ucing the play, but awarded the producers a six- month extension of their contract : on ownership of the play. That is tantamount to n payment of $500, Which the producers would have: • had' to pay for a eiXTmonth exten- sion ordinarily under the minimum basic agreement. :': • Johann Compromise' ' The third case was against Zita Johann and was for $1,600. Miss ; Johann, as star of ,the play, had an iron-bound Contract at $750 per week for a minimum of four weeks. That was paid her from the bond : put up by" the produccrs:^,at Equity. Producer.s, however, 'wanted the re- : turn of half of that sum, or two weeks' pay._ A private settlemenV/f was made with Miss', Johanii, pay'-:>' Ing. the producers an unnamed-sum of money and the producers prom- (Contlnyed on page 57)