Variety (Sep 1935)

Wednesday, September 11, 1935 LECI¥IMA¥E VARIETY 55 102 TRYOUTS-26 DUE Stock Touches Bottoni Hollywood Is still evidencing: concentrated Interiest In Broadway as a Source of talent and material, it may go further and foster performances of stock companies, If talent la to be developed at the rate filmdom demands. Film meii have half heartedly pondered the -idea .more than once. Broadway producers formerly sc-ciired new faces ifroin stock but --^-thePfr-t8-n.Qw-4Hiacttcal ly .no^toclci-———• ^- ■ — ; Not a single stock, company is reported definitely slated for the new eeason and the summer stocks have folded. Stock people blame pictures. Years ago Hollywood was tpld that a loss of stock troupes would boomerang. In 1920 picture interests grabbed 'nearly, every available legit theatre In the stands outside New York, innocently or otherwise making It tough for stock to operate. In 1925 these leases,, on those houses which weren't razed, were allowed to expire^ Stock then started on the upgrade, and in 1927-28 the top number of stocks in the history of show business, \yere operating. As hleh as 165 stocks were playing in various parts of thfe country; The major film companies then again started leasing legit houses. Since which stpck has steadily declined and appears to have, about reached the vanishing point; Stock people claim there are more than 100 good cities where it is Iniposslble for stock to be presented. Either the former stock houses in these spbts have been torn down, or the rentals asked are so high that stock could not operate out of the red. The latt.er phase is claimed to be holding back stock managers from making plans for this season. Hollywood has at times backed or been Interested In stock ptesenta- tions, but In a lukewarm manner. However, pictures niay be placed in the position of going into stocks extensively to try out materia} and develop new talent.. Pictures again scouted the rural summer showshops for talent but found little or nothing. 'WALTZ' AS 10 CAR SHOW ON ROAD •The Great Waltz- will go to the road as a lO.-car ishow, it being planned to hold the baggage trans- p6rt equipment intact, with the cars painted in circus fashion. Operetta, . whiQh..enda.it3. i;e.?.yroe.d. engagement. after a total engagement of 35 weeks, will lay off two and one-half weeks, flr.st stand out- being the •Boston Opera House, Oct. 3.. Total number of people to. tour will approximate 160, executive staff to be carried because of the show's bookings. 'Waltz' will play princi- pally auditoriums. Road chorus totals 80, there are 20 principals, and J" stage hands and 10 musicians will be carried. Robert Milford will continue as general manager and will have Paul Daur and Arthur Clark as assist- ants, latter mostly assigned to the box office. About CO of the original ensemble of both sexes walked and have been replaced. Frank Hall also remains with the show as stage manager, with three assistants. There will be five In the wardrobe department and in addi- tion a man to talcc care of the wigs, and a keepei' of the dogs. Show will have three advance m.en with • John Pollock and' Elliott Foreman already engaged and out. Max Goi-<lon will tour the show. Scale for the Boston date is $3.30 top as in >rcw York, but ticket pHces will vary according to capacity. 'Waltz' is due into the Met. Phila- delphia after the Hub engagement, plans thereafter calling lor the Mosque, Pittsburgh and the Audi- toriums In Clove! and Chicago. Detroit Nixes Muny To Protect Legits Detroit, Sept. 10. Plans for a $150,000 outdoor civic theatre on Belle Isle were rejected by the Common Council here this week. Rejection was on grounds that it would discrlmihate against the city's other theatres, sonie of which are closed and cannot meet taxes even now. Pasadena Playhouse's 1st Musical in 2 Yrs; Morosco Says Coerced Interest in 33 Plays m PltY LIST L Hollywood, C'Pt. iO. Pasadeiva Playhouse is' doing its first musical In two years, 'Here to You.' ; Maurice Kusell dlmjcts an TltCR the' blackouts. J. C. Lewis is con- tributing the nniKic and lyrics. Already cast .are Richard I'owell, Lois Januai-y. Ma.vlne Lowis, Lois Lee. Frances Onrland and lUlly Taft. Muir East for Play Hollywood, Kent. 10. Gavin Mulr returned cast to start rehearsals fpr. 'The Hoom In Red and White.' Roy Hargrave play is being pro- duced by Dwlght 'Wlnan. Los Angeles, Sept. 10. Revealing that he signed away half interest In 33 plays and charg- ing that he was coerce.l into doing so while he was mentally ill, Oliver Morosco has filed suit in superior court here against Mrs. Helen Morosco Mitchell, asking recisslon of a prqperty settlement. Suit was filed In the name of Oliver Morosco Mitchell! Morosco complaint said that Mrs. Mitchell, on Sept. 6, 1934, was granted an interlocutory decree of divorce and court approval of the property settlement. Agreement is so bindin.g, suit says, that Morosco cannot now do business without consulting his former wife. He had thought, according tj the complaint, that he was agreeing only to a split of community property, instead of giving her equal rights to the plays which had been his exclusive prop- erty before marriage. Community property he agreed to divide included 'Oliver Morosco, His Book,' 'The Thlvd Mr.s. Oliver Morosco,' 'Waffles,' story and photo- play, and the Morosco Interest in American International Film Cor- poration, Plays to which he did not know he was agreeing to give his wife rights, complaint said, in- cluded 'Linger Lon.ger, Letty,' 'Mile- a-Minu(e Kendall.' 'Letty Pepper," 'Canary Cottage,' he Unchastened i Woman,' 'Tie Toe,' 'Man of Oz,' i 'Myrtle,' 'Marry the. Poor Girl,' 1 'Sadie 'Love,' 'Our Children,' 'Mam- 'ma's Affair,' 'The Truth Wagon,' 'Mary's Way OUt,' 'Madonna of the future,' 'Girl of Grarhercy Park.' 'Society Pilot,'. 'Judge aixd the Jury,' 'Watch. Your Neighbor,' 'Mom,' IThe Song l^ird,' 'One of Us,' 'Pretty Mr.s. Smith,' 'Love Dreams,' 'Wait Till We're Married,' 'Morning After," 'The P'ox,' 'Please Get Married,' •Slippy MacGee,' 'Let 'er Go Letty,' 'Tho Master Thior and 'The Half Breed.' Proijerty .settlement also agreed that in all niattern which might be consunimated at Metro-Goldwyn- Mayer or any other studio where the name of Oliver Morosco was u.sed,' that his wife should received 50%. Percentage of Likely Plays in Sticks Better Than Usual Several Picture Nibbles—Five Plays Al- ready Rehearsing 13 MONEY SHOWS Summer season In the sticks shapes up better than that last year. Not so many plays were tried out but nearly as many "Broadway pos sibiUtles were discovered. Out of 102 try-outs, 26 are rated as having a chance for regular pres- entation. Last, summer there were 135 try-oUts and 29 possibilities, Then there were 61 rural show- shops as. against 40 for the seasoh just ended, stricter regulations by Equity weeding out some of the cake and coffee spots this year. Five plays, amoDET the new crop are already In rehearsal, proving that the -product was In much better shape thai! previous summers. That Is accounted for by the iCact that recognized managers were Inter- ested in the showings this year and nearly all plays nominated for Broadway had managerial direction. Last season the rural crop wais slow in reaching productibn. Few summer try-outs have clicked In the past, but Indications are that the percentage will be eon- siderably upped during, the coming season. There were several attempts to try out new plays week after week in the same spots, but the schedules were too tough In three instances and most of those plays f4ilf|.4 . to Impress. An exception out of seven plays- presented are among the possibilities. It Is claimed, too,- that five plays, all of the sa;me authorship, presented at Scarborough-on-Hudison, will reach Broadway. Best Possibilitiei. Of the summer's crop, 13 plays are rated having the best chance to land in the money. Listed alpbe- betically: " 'Ail Bow Down.' 'If This Be Tr 'Mad Morning.' 'On Stage.' 'Penny Wise.' 'Remember The Day.' 'Return To Folly.' 'The Beloved Rogue.* 'The Country. Wife.', 'The King's Messenger.* There's Wisdom In 'Women.' 'With All My Heart.' 'Wild Justice.' Also Likely. Also given a chance to reach the main stem:' •At Marion's.' 'Backwarda' 'Corrida.' 'Crack-Up.' 'How Like a God.' 'The Long Frontier.' 'Murder With Pen and Ink.' 'Mr. Smith.' 'Closed Door.' 'The Little inn.' 'Thy People.' •White HeU.' 'Woman of Destiny.' Shows, of rural try-out origin now In rehearsal are 'All Bow Down,' which has a new title, 'A Touch of Brimstone'; 'Remember The Day,' 'If This Be Treason,' 'The Beloved Rogue' (presented by St. Louis Municipal opera) and 'Crack-Up,' now known as 'Blind Alley.' Soriic of the others are being rewritten, while several await completed cast^. Ing. There is better picture material indicated in the summer try-outs than usual.. Some are definitely tabbed as -likely film fare, but for the mutit part the picture value will, be dependent on whether the shows make the grade on Broadway. Para- mount and Metro have options on several plays definitely slated to be Gov't Sets Aside $27^15,217 ReEef Coin for Art Projects; Looking Up ingham, Siept. 10.. A brighter outlook for road shows this winter is seen In the plans of the Wilby interest here to book road shows into the Temple. Five shows , have already been snagged, these being 'Earl Ca,rroll Vanities,' 'Student Prince,' 'The Constant Wife,' 'Blossom Ti ,' and 'Life Begins at 8:40.' quarterly Meet Equity's first quarterly meeting, held Monday (9) afternoon at the Astor, N. Y,, saw..less fireworks than usual in the past, year or so. Proposed basic agreement with the managers was the- ^ain topic of tllscusslpn, the new policies—Mln- clpally rehearsal .pay and -double pay for Sundays—having been gen- erally agreed upon last spring. Usually proposals sUch as the ba- sic agreement suggested by the Theatre League are matters for the Council, without reference to the general membership. However, it was brought up from. .the. .flpor .bjr; " "" ^'»o^■''t^t■i•i^^&^»i^ tant younger group within Equity. Motion was adopted that no agree- ment with the maneigers be entered into until it be placed before the members. That does not mean that ah agreement would not be possible within three months, when the next quarterly iheeting is dated. Pro- posal from the floor was that a spe- cial meeting.be called if necessary, If the managers and Council get to- gether on the provisions of the basic contract, which would assure no further changes of policy during the-term of the agreenient, a special Session will be called. Frank GiUmore favors such an agreement, to give the theatre a 'breathing spell.' Philip Loeb, J. Edward Bromberg and Irving Gor- don opposed entering into a term contract v/lth the managers, ex- pressinftjthe opinion that the actors might suffer in light of changing economic conditloixs, such as infla- tion. It was announced that informal meetings would be.' held perhaps monthly for the discussion of mat- ters not usually discussed at gen- eral meetings because of time lim- itations. All members will be ad- mitted to the Informai sessions. Members of the Forum stated that its purpose of getting together was identical and saw in the announce- ment a move to absorb its thunder, if not its members. Jessel-Sdwyn's Play Hollywood, Sept. 10. Stage rights to 'Golden Sunshine,' by Sam Hellman and- Louis Lee Arms, have been taken by deorgc JesscI and Arch Selwyn for early production in San Francisco. They'll then bring comedy on Cal- ifornia real estate salesmen to Los Angeles before, taking it cast. regularly presented and will.have a .share In the production end. Try-puts in the woods were vir- tually completed last week but there is at least one more to be played in Stony Creek, Conn. Washington, Sept. 10. President Roosevelt removed the rubber bands from his $4jqoO,opO,000 relief bankroll last week and doled out $27,315,217 for cultural projects, which will include a still nebulous drama program.* With many details far from set- tled, Relief authorities insisted no final allotment has been made for. the undertakings, which are expect- ied to .jrpvide Jobs for an estimated- 12,000 lobless legit. and yaude per- fornniers, playwrights, directors, stage''hands and technicians. Indi- cations were that between $7,600,000 and $10,000,000 of the $27,000,000 grant for whlte-cpllar ventures will be used for financing the drama pro- gram. Because so many details have not yet been given final approval and only sketchy outlines, have been fixed, ofQciais refused to throw addi- tional light on the formal announce- ment issued, by works program headquarters .Saturday (7). Works Progress Administrator Hopkins gagged all of his subordinates and associates, and issued strict don't- talk orders, silencing all persons concerned with the cultural projects.. Only Estimated Despite the formal prediction that 12,000 jobs will be created by the drama undertaking. Variett learned that employment ilgures are only a rough es.timate; bflnclals steadfastly refused to disclose the basis of calculation used In arriving at the decision to allocate $27,315,217 for the art ventures, but responsible sources said no specific grants liaVe been made or recommended yet for .any Indlvldujal actpr-reUcif under- Allotment fpir all sorts of cultural endeavors, is expected to provide six-month Jobs for more than 30,000 individuals, bfllcial announcement said. Figure embraces ^,000 actors and 3,000 technicians, playwrights and others In the theatr.) program; 5,000 artists, designers and sculptors, 10,000 vocal and instrumental musi^* elans and 6,500 scribblers. Only two concrete facts of any significance were revealed in the ofllcial statement that the President has started loosing shekels for art work. First verified ifrcdictlon that all persons employed in the drania projects will be paid according to government wage scales, under which $99 a month Is tops, and that pleas of Equity, Musicians' Federa- tion and I. A. T. S. E, for observance of union schedules have been dis- carded. Second was confirmation of report that drama program will be administered nationally through a regional set-up. . OfFicial Description Emphasizing the attertipt to com- bine practical and educational ideas in a wprk.able program, Relief head- quarters described the drama iinder- taklng as follows: 'The WPA theatre project will employ actors, playwrights, design- ers, directors, vaudeville artists, stage technicians and otiiers In .the theatrical ifielda. Approximately 12,000 profefislonal workers will be included, of which about 9,000 are actors, the balance being stage tech- nicians and otiiers.. 'The purpose of the theatre pro- gram, aside from giving employment to needy workers, will bo to estafc llsh standards of theatre production which win improve the skill of the artists and to develop metlvods by which the. drama units may become r> self-supporting in whole, or in part by providing entertainment to large audiences at low cost on a regional ba.sis.' While Hallie Flann.igan, Vassar- ettc bossln.'j tho actor, pv Jects, re- mained mum under the Hopkins gag order. It was loai-ncd that the pro- gram In i.t.s present shape inoludc-s a number of arty and amatftCirl.sh angles and makos no. provision for »j1 several thousand stage people (Continued on page C2)