Variety (May 1935)

Wednesday, May 8, 1935 OUTDOORS VABIETY 79 S. D. Expo Cools Off Nudist Bally, Warms Up to Ford; Need Crowd Hypo San Diego, May 7. Purity has raised Its righteous head at least half way on the Nat Eagle-Stanley Graham Nudist Col dny at the San Diego Exposition with Zack Farmer, Expo head, is- BUing orders that no publicity *•* gent out on the nudle village. How- ever, no ban has been slapped on the exhibit Itself. That the skin Bhow will be a feature of the Fair is no secret, with everyone on the grounds talking about it. Farmer Insists that the name of the at- traction be changed to Zoro Gar dens and the exhibit billed as an Il- lusion. Meanwhile concessionaries are yelling their heads off claiming that the nudist angle is a narural fo) publicity and pointing out that Sally Rand and her fan did the Chi cago Fair no harm. Feeling Is that the Fair heads are playing up to the: Ford company exhibit and sub sequent Ford publicity and for thl& reason are laying low on what they feci'is a'rough campaign. Ford company Is spending close to $2,000,000 on the fair which In eludes Its exhibit similar -to their World's Fair buUdlng and the ■bringing of the Detroit Syniphony Orchestra here for the duration p£ the. Exposition. WJth only four weeks left before the opening, those who have bought space feel that what publicity has gone out will, not bring a corporal's guard to the border town and that something hot is necessary at this time to arouse Interest In the af fair which Is scheduled to run through the summer. Lads are pointing out Chicago's mistakes and feel that the local organization should profit by them. Circus Days in W. Va. Charleston, W. Va., May 7. '■j Cliarleston, far known as a :'■ 'good circus town,'. Is having the ^ greatest run of the .tented shows ' It has experienced in.many years, Barnett Bros, had scheduled an exhibition for April 15, but when It pulled in a bitter cold-wave gripped this section and a fresh fall of snow was on the ground.: The show's management decided money would be saved by not unpacking.' Downle Bros., featuring Bill Cody, was next on the list, arriv- ing for a day and night. May l. The air was chilly but not,too cold for two fairly good audiences to greet the . performances. Russell Bros, catrie In the 7th for two perform- ances, which also drew falr-sIzed ■ crowds. Cole Bros., with Clyde Beatty and his animal act the featured attrac- tion. Is billed May 13. Will, be fol- •.. lowed on May 25 by Hagenbeck- Wallace, which frequcntl. h f s visited this section and.always h-s drawn large crowds. Charleston is the center of a largo chemical industry, most of the plants of which are working full time. Increased activity in the ad- jacent coal fields has placed money In the pockets of mlhers, most of whom arc circus fans. Music on Top Des Molnea, la.. May 7. Iowa state fair board will book 20 bands and other musical organl- Mtlons for the annual event, Aug. 21-30 this year, entertainment and Bgriculture to be stressed. Argonne Legion band, Des Moines, and Karl King's band. Fort Dodge, are among the first booked. $30,000 EESORT Clear Lake, la.. May 7. A dance hall and amusement spot that will set back promoters, the Clear Lake Amusement company, ■ Borne $30,000, has been started and Will front on West Main street and On the shores of Clear Lake. It replaces one destroyed last year. Circus Routes Al G. Barnes Cal., May 6; Merced, 7; 8; Vallejo, 9; Onliland, Cole Bros.—Beatty Hochestcr, Itid., Mny 6; Inrtlonapolle, LoulevDle, 9; Lexington, 10; Coving- ton, 11. ° • ' Legion Combo Seattle, May 7. American Legion fair, Sedro Wooley, July 2-3-4, has booked a girl show, colored show, under can- vas, and outside acts, Edw. J/ Fisher, booking agent, handling. Fisher will also handle the conces- sion bids. Various leision posts' In North- western ^Washington combine an- nually to put over this 'county fair.' Fox Met Inside (Continued frorn' page 4) least twice when counsel for the Schenck-Welsman interests would bring up that point, Attorney Na- than Burkan, of counsel, arose to ask a witness if he had ever lieard of the NRA Code and the 'right to buy.' Burkan askedGeorge' J. Schaefer, Par's general manager," w)ien latter testified .last week be- fore Federal 'Judge Mack. Schaefer ari.swer^d: 'Maybe you can tell- me. I'd like to know what that, means myself.' Impatient of Delay Attorney Morton Bogue, of Beek- man Bogue & Clark, counsel to the Fox Met noteholders' committee, op- posed any delay by the court for the consideration' of a possible bid for Paramount. B-B-C also are counsel to the bank creditors of Paramount who are represented on the new Par board. These banks creditors form a faction opposed to the Atlas and Fortlngton element In Paramount. Kent, Schaefer, Swope Sidney 'R. Kent, George J. Schae- fer, Herbert Bayard Swope and Al- bert M. Greenfield were the most impressWe •witnesses who testified at the. Fox Met hearings. Schaefer, the last of the four to testify, proved the most Important. Kent and Swope easily were the most Im- pressive personalities, and Green- field the most stubborn. It a'ppears to be an axiom for at- torneys when handling. show biz cases such as Fox Met not to ask questions of wltnessus, the truth- ful answers to which queries these same attorneys may not know. Attorneys questioned George. J. Schaefer, each in his turn, and over and over again, repetltlously, as to the nature of some conversation Schaefer had had with Herbert Bayard Swope. Schaefer explained each time, probably 10 or 15 times in all, to all the examining counsel, that this conversation had been a brief confab and that not much was said on either end, and also that nothing was settled between the parties at the convprs.itlon In question. Schaefer testified that Swope hatl come to his office at Par.amount and statpd that KAO wished to pay no more for Paramount product than KAO was paying for Fox and Warners. Schaefer also testified that he and Swope came to no con- clusion on the matter and did not discuss any po.sslble future terms. He repeated such testimony both to iFidor Krcsol's questions on the point and to those of Attorney Burkan. However, Attorney Milton Weis- man, of the' same camp as Kresel and Burkan, in the current picture, repeated' the question several times to Schaefer. Finally Schaefer stated from the stand that not only was the con- versation with Swope brief but that In Schaefer's opinion, Swope was not qualified to discuss the matter with him; that Swope's experience and knowledge of the business is limited; and that Swope Is not familiar enough with the operations of his own company to take up the matter with Schaefer, and that Swope left Buch matters to his lieutenants. This answer stopped further questioning on the point except for one more Instance, 'BAMA TO BUILD Will Erect «30,000 Building for State Fair Birmingham, May 7. Encouraged by the surprise busi- ness at last yeair's fair, olTlclals of the Alabama etate fair met last week to perfect plans for another fair this fall. One of the decisions reached was to construct a $30,000 all-steel exhibit bnllding. G. T. Wofford was elected chair- man of the board of directors and P. T. Strleder, of Florida, will con- tinue aL-secretary and general man- ager. Date was set for Sept. 23-28. Ed Carruthers, of the Barnes- Carruthers booliing office, here for the meeting,. said one of his prize shows for fairs this fall would be 'The Fascinations of 1935'. Show will open In Grand Forks, N. D., early in June, continuing until southern fairs get underway. Contracts for fireworks- went to the Therle-Duffield Company, of Chicago. The Royal American Shows, which had the midway last year, will return. OHIO BAniE GROUND FOR EARLY TENT TRICKS Canton, C, May 7., .Ohio will be the mecca for at least half a dozen circuses, large dnd stnall within the nsxt week. Paper is in evidence. in most every town o'». any size in the. entire state, indicating that the Buckeye state is considered by showmen as bet- ter early season territory than either the east or. west. Domlnatln the list will be the Cole Bros.-Clyd'e Beatty and the Hagenback - Wallace - 4-Paw - Sells rail shows, which will be playing through ti e state within a few days of each other. Russell Bro!9. after a hasty trek out of the west is already playing southern and central Ohio stands and will halt the eastward j&.unt at Massillon May 11, turning and swinging back west. This truck outfit will get fully two weeks in the state. Barnett Bros, picked up Steubenvllle and East Liverpool and Warren, three Ohio valley stands, and then moved into western Penn- sylvania and may return to the state later. Downle Bros, plays one day in Ohio, Monday, May 13, at East Liverpool, then heads east into the Pittsburgh area. Numerous small carnies are play- ing Ohio at this time but unfavor- able' wc.ther haB kept business at a minimum the past two week.s, ac- cording to reports. KeDey, H-W Press Chief, Quits as Ringling H. 0. Fires Asst. P. A. Fields Staggered Flacks Fairmont, W. Va., May 7. Press department of Cole Bros.- Clyde Beatty Circus works under what seems to be new plan. Earl DcGlopper Is ahead of the show— 17 days ahead here—with the ad- vertising car. Ora O. Parks then makes only the Monday and Tues- day towns. Rex deRoselli makes the Wednesday and Thursday towns and Bob Hlckey makes the Friday nrd Saturday towns. CIRCUS BILLS 4 DEEP IN H-W-COLE CLASH Fairmbunt, W. Va., May 7. Billing war between the Cole Eros, and Beatty and Hagcnbeck- Wallace outfits .with the paper al- ready four sheets deep, \ylth the Cole show In Saturday (Jl) the Hagenbeck the following Monday. Hagenbeck made the first billing, but the Cole car came along and blanketed everything. A second Hagenbeck car was in yesterday with the Cole No. 2 car. expected' today (Tuesday). Shows have been in close com-, petition since leaving Chicago, but this is the -first spot so closely, booked. McCoy Joins Ringling After One More Oater Hollywood, May 7. Before reporting to the Rlngllng circus, 11m McCoy will make the second oC his series of 10 westerns for Puritan Pictures. Feature, 'Man Prom Guntown,' Is slated to get under way this week under direc- tion of Ford Beebe. As soon as he finishes the pic- ture, McCoy hops a plane to Join the Ringling show in Brooklyn, re- turning to the coast in the fall to complete the .series. Gets Back Pay Reading, Pa., May 7. G. Harel Gundry was awarded a verdict. Including interest, of $345.27 In civil court here against the Carsonla Park Company. Gun- dry was manager of the park com- pany's dance pavilion and sued for unpaid wages on a contract. 'Skill' Gaines Out Independence, la.. May 7. The heat is on in this community with the result that all- automatic slot machines, games of skill punchboards, or anything relating to chance, are out. Similar action has been taken by various enforcement agencies In counties to the east and northeast. Elephant Injures Two Des Moines, May 7. Two children were injured at the Atterbury Bros, circus at Fairfield, Iowa, last week when an elephant, frightened by a dog, charged the spectators. CanceDatiiHis Clipping Fairs in Midwest Dust Storm Area Abe Lyman, Paul Whlteman, Rudy Vallee and Phil Harris have been Bet for dates at Plum Para- dise on the Lttke, Detroit, open-air cafe. Chicago, May 7. Just when the fairs were getting on their feet after four years of sag- ging on the ropes from the depres- sion they are being clipped to the 6anvas again. This time the sock comes frona the dust storms which have ruined the hopes for a flock of fairs throughout the southwest and western fringe of the midwest, which takes in the Kansas, Nebras- ka, Oklahoma, western Missouri, Wyoming, Colorado and Texas pan- handle terrltorj'. Fairs in that largo district were planning on big revivals thl.s year after four and five years of lay-off or restricted budgets. The secre- taries had been working on the scheme all winter and had, in many Instances, secured substantial in- creases In fair appropriations from the various counties and states. Now these appropriations are be- ing either withdrawn entirely or slashed pitifully. Result has been a flood of cancellation and retrench- mcnt orders to the various fair booking agencies In Chicago, St. Paul, St. Louis and Dallas. Fully 00% of the fairs in the dust storm area have ordered drastic curtail- ment in expenditures already and expected that before the fall season rolls around there will be at least 40% in complete cancellations 'un- less the dust areas are allovi.atcd considerably. . Not only are the people In no mood for fairs In this stricken area, but the legislatures, relief commissions and the public have stated that with so many people In dire need for help It's better to use the money appro- priations for food and shelter for the stricken rather than turn It over to Carney guys for cooch dancers. Long Advance ICsthervUk", la., May 7. Chamber of Commerce is to sponsor a rodeo here June 20 to 30. Interest is being roused in this and neighboring communities through the wearing of westorn coslumos through the latter part of M;iy and W-C Shows Starts So.-ittlc, May 7. West Const .Shows, cjirny, is on the road, orioning hoi-c two wof-ks, and now finlJ-'liing f.nlr wnclc'n rrt- gagoment ;it Wouatchoo. Chicago, May 7. Because William Fields, press agent with the Hagenbcck-Wallace- Forepaugh-Sells circus here, sent a news-letter to George Ross, of the New Tork Telegram, in which he gave an honest picture of the- atrical and circus conditions in the loop he was let out of the Hagen- beck organization by Roland But- ler, general press chief for the Ringling interests. Beverly Kelley, top press agent for the Hagenbeck show, squawked to Butler that the treatment of Fields was unfair and interceded for Fields even with Sam Gunipertz. With neither Butler nor Gumpertz revising the original stand on the Fields news-:etter Kelley wired in; his resignation wliich takes effect on May 11 in Pittsburgh. Admitted generally among news- papers and jihow business that the campaign conducted In Chicago for the' Ha.genbeck show by Fields and Kelley was among the best ever trotted off in this town. Results are seen- in the excellent business that the Hagenbeck circus did at its new Stadium stand despite the opposi- tion of the Cole Bros.-Clyde Beatty show .at the Coliseum. Butler's yelp was based on the Ross column In the Telegram in which Fields mentioned the Cole show as being in the loop. , Butler squawked that he didn't think a Hagenbeck man should mention a rival show and second that he didn't care for the Hagenbeck .show being mentioned in New York while the Ringling, Barnum & Bai- ley show -was In that territory. Fields news-letter to Ross fol- lowed a telegraphed request from Ross for some loop gossip and Fields replied strictly out of friend- ship. Replacing Beverly Kelly and AVIl- llam Fields as press agents on tho Hagenbeck - Wallace - Forepaush Bros.-S'elis circus are Sam Stratton and William Wllken. (j Stratton was formerly with the 'Zlegfeld Follies' on Its road Jaunt. Wllken was with Ringling. New Tork newspapermen Monday '(6) sent several protest letters to Rola.nd Butler, manager of the. Habenbeck-Wallaco circus, over the let-out of William Fields, p.a. Scribes used no uncertain language In asserting to Butler that the let- outs was, in their opinion, unjus- tified and unfair. A. C. MAYOR DENIES LICENSE TO H-W SHOW Atlantic City, May 7. The report that a circus will set up its tent here next month is Just a 'pipe dream,' according to Mayor Harry Bacharach, who says that ho had not granted any permit and would not grant one until he con- sults with leading business Intf-r- ests Wednesday on what action (.ho city will take At this session. Boardwalk policy for the summer will also be discussed, It Is also reported that the mayor has received an offer from Rlngllng Bros.-Harnum & Ballcy shov/ for an afternoon and evening perform- ance In the Auditorium, which It ig said, would provid tho city troo.s- ui-y with far more revenue than tho $3D0 license required from the H.ig- enbcck-Wallacf; circus. Oddities on Strike Ccd.-u- Rapids, May 7. A KlriUe was declared here by tho freaks connected with the Inter- national Congress of Oddities, somo of whom were with the Ripley show nt Chicago, because they have been referred to by the gentlemanly barker and In other publicity as freaks.' Headed by 'Eig B.ertha' a delega- tion' waited on Col. Brydon, man- ager, and told him they were through unless classier English w;is used. An armistice was arr.anfrod when it was agreed that hereaCLer they would he called 'human oddi- ties' and so the show went on. Tody Hamilton worked the gng for. Iho l?;u'n\iin show yc-ars ago. Evi- dunily still good.