Variety (Sep 1935)

60 VARIETY MUSIC Wednesday, September 25, l93$ 74-Year-01(l Printer Nabbed in New Brunswick, N. J., Sept, 24, . Government and local authorities iD^t.weelc raJded tjio Christie Press her6 and seized 70,000 contraband soiigsheets alonp with plates and cuts used in the printing of the pirated works; Sam Si. Christie, owner of the printing plant, waJved eiiinihat'i'on'in U; S. Diaiftcf Court, TJrSntori, and was held in $500 ball pending action by the grand jury on'-a charge of copyright infringe- ment, Arthur .Hoffman, head of the copyright department of the New York publishing firm of Leo Feist, Inc., who developed the case against Christie and caused the raid, de- scribed the coup as the most impor- taiit blow struck at the- songfsheet racket in years. Christie's lyric compilation, tagged 'The Continen- tal Songsheet,' found its major mar- ket among street peddlers in New Tork city. 1,250,000 Sheets Ledgers also seized in the print- ing plant showed that 1,260,000 songsheets had been turned out, and that ChrisUe had received $4,000 from their distribution. At one time the plant was . putting them out at the rate of 50,000 copies a week, Wari rant of seizure was obtained from U.: S. District Attorney Besson. in Trenton after Hoffman, who had been trailing the source of the sheets' supply for weeks, had elicited the aid of N. D. Wills, in charge of the local Department of Justice ofllce. Christie, who is 74 years old, is the printer for several, community newspapers. $250,000 ROYALTIES Painn's .MPPA EstimatoB for '35— $166,606 From Radio biscs KERN, ROMBERG, BERLIN SIGN UP Followlnig huddles with Gene Buck, .prez of ASpAP, and ' L. Wplte Gilbert, west coast liaison for th^ Society, Jerome Kern, Slg- mund Romberg and Irving Berlin sigAed the new ASCAP contracts. These, three!major| songsmiths had been hold-outs. Music ^ Notes Johnny. Long'k Duke Collegians has succeeded Mort Dennis orch at the Ten. Eyqk hotel, Albany. Richard Mack back In the Irving Mills organization after heading the summer entertainment at Grossin ger's, N, y. He's head of Mills pub- licity. Hal Kemp back into the Hotel Pennsylvania, N. Y., Sept. 30, with the same organization, featuring Skinny Ennis, Maxine Gray, Bob Allen, and Saxy Dowell. Dan Murphy Musical Skippers leaving New. England fpr six. months' stand at Denver, Col,, hotel John G. Paine, chairman of Music Publishers Protective Association, last week estimated that by the end 'St' i!>*5 th^ aSuO«iation wii!«»haye' (ii.'^tributed at least $260,000 in: royalties among the music trade. About $106,000 of this will have come from radio discs, while the balance will fiave been derived from tlvo sale of motion picture synchro- nization rights. Estimated amount from transcrip- tions win be over 30% better than the MPPA's, collection from that source during 1934. Band Blindfold Test All radio bands must sound alike to Coast dialers. Al Jar- vis (KFWB) staged a guessing " cohtei t * oh ■ aiBca,~UifBrBd "tlrei--- atre tickets to those who coiuld. name the bands playing thp numbers. Foiif pliatterfl wrer*- spun and 1,600 mailed in their answers. Only two called them rlgYit." Jaryis crossed the guessers up by playing Ted Flo Rlto t>vice..~ Continental Corp. Hopes to Start Oct 1 With Goy't Financing With Herbert Mitchell, secretary of the Continental Casino Corp. . In Washington this week for series of confabs w-ith Federal Housing Ad- ministration officials, indications are the proposed Continental. Casino chain ,of theatrie-cabarets would, make Its debut in New York ea,rly in October. Two sites, for tKe N. Y. Casino are being considered, with, likelihood that one w'ill be set by the end of this week; Mitchell's ta,lk:s In Washington will be with the object of obtaining federal funds for re-opening pres- ently closed legit theatres in key cities throughout the United States. If this money is secured, Casinos probably will be opened at once in Kansas City, Louisville, Baltimore, Washington and Indianapolis. It's estimated that $26,000 to $100,000 in-^ vestment will be required in each spot for rearranging houses for cab- aret shows and other, alterations. In. New York the company has signed Gebrgle Hale to stage the dances. A separate corpora.tlon has been formed for the Manhattan operation. Selection of talent al- ready is under, way.- Carolina Music Fdss Spartanburg, S. C, Sept. 24. Resignation of LaMar Stringfield coniposer-and conductor, from N. C. Symphony ork reVe41ied a fUss be- tween the Pulitzer prize musician and G. O. Shepherd, manager, and former station WWNC head. Strlhgfleld and ork had a govern- ment contract, and row ensued when he and Shepherd couldn't see things the same way, Philip Schwartz, FERA official, has been sent to Ashevllle in the role of peacemaker. STAFFCLEANOUT Brunswick and Columbia last week underwent the most drastic overturn of executive- personnel that this two recording interests have been subjected to since their consolidation by. the Herbert Yates group. Among the departees was Harry Gray, who was. placed in charge of recbrding and airtists bookings for the Brunswick, Colum- bia, Okeh and other labels, after Jack Kapp Joined the neV Decca Co. of America, as its president last year. Gray's resignation took effect Saturday (21). ' Harry Smith, head of the record- ing, tecbnicans, and John Massey, Who was .broug:ht over from Colum-- bia to take charge of the Bruns- wick pressing plant, are also out^ Joe Hlggins has been made record- ing -manager for Brunswick., Hlg- gins has been serving slb assistant to Gray. Before joining. Brunswick Hlggins was successively with Vic- tor, NBC and Irving.Mills. BERGERE BACK FROM RIO; MOlPARK LANE Rio de Janeiro, Sept. 13. Max Bergere and his orch and Maurice and Cordoba, dance team, have sailed for the United States after 12 weeks at the Cbpaca- bana Casino here. Bergere will re- turn to the Park Lane, New York. To go back to New York Bergere turned down an offer to go to Buenos Aires for the radio station owned by the newspaper El Mundo. He expects to come down this way again in May, however, play In Buenos Aires and possibly a return engagement at the Copacabana in June. Bergere was the first big U. iS; name to be billed in Rio, aiid made a big hit in the ultra-social Copaca- bana, He came to town to open tlw season with Lucille Page,-Buster West and a Hhe of eight girls, all of whom have; now returned. Dajos Bela, European band, is re- placing the Bergere combo at the casiho. FTC Gets Publishers' Petition for Hearing on Code; 70% of Biz Signs Eddie Mayehoff's ork, out of Westchester Embassy club,, opened at Plantation cafe, Buffalo. Art Hix band changes address from Edgewbod inn, Albany, to the Farm, Westchester. leasur'e Beach ballroom, ridge- port, balled it a season. Eric Peterson band succeeded Larry Durant's at Seven Gables, Milford, Conn.' Herbert Stothart scoring and re- cording background for Metro's 'Tale of Two Cities,' Harold Adamson and Walter Don- aldson turning out a number for Metro's 'Perfect Gentlema,n.' Team recently completed foUr tunes for 'The Great Ziegfeld.' Versailles, N. Y., has a series of prospective names set, starting with Lucienne Boyer, Harry Rich man and Eleanor Powell. ill Scott opens at the Essex House, Newark, - Oct. 6, replacing Reggie Childs. Mildred Fenton will do the singing. ■ii. * Petition asking the Federal Trade Commission to call a trade confer- ence for the purpose of considering rules 'sir business practices for the music industry was filed in Washington Thursday (20), Signa- tures of about 70% of tbe publishers; in the popular field were attached to the document. Code proposed by the petition is the same as Article 8 on the extinct NRA covenant and also includes a; number of the provisions in Article 9. Petition states that the pop music industry does a production turnover of around $9,000,000 and is capitalized at around $20,000,000 and as;ks that the hearings on the. rules of fair competition which the indus- try seeks to ^dopt be held in Neiy York city, where all the petitioners have' their principal place of busi- ness. Among the signatures missing on the petition is that of the Robbins .Musilc Co, jack Robbins had .advised John G, Paine, chairman of MPPA, that he wanted to be the last to sign ii. Robbins was interested in see- ing what the other picture company afliliated publishers did about it. When the petition had the necessary percentage of signatures it ■"•n's not sejit back to Robbins, Inside Stuff-Music One of many such Instances which evidences a muslo publlsher'i r«- .sp«ct .A>r_.Khat. Jo ,Ar<lrop3ylftdseA.„to.. .l>o..«. /,S*il?jd ,taleirt_ i.n tunes which will make a nation or the entire world react. Is the InstanM of 'Carioca.' As with all production songs, films or atajgie, a manuscript version of a number which may be enhanced by, pr.o.ductloft. values .1*. basically, a nebulous thing and only the combined enthusiasms of com* poser and publisher can weld it into the actuality of bitdom. ' But even the prestige of a Vincent Youmaris left the Harms people oold when 'Carioca' caine In in niss. form from the Coast No conception .of what the dance creation would be had even been attempted, and so th» music piibs on the N. Y. end otarted wondering not only what 'Carioca* meant but not even the expert song improVisors of the Harms staiE could quite catch its rhythm fron^the ms9. arid properly ^rfordi It,. „...A.?! .tb^K.npw^.know, t^ difSbulties of the tune was what caused it to be purchased^ . And," of course, tfie" success oil 'the'"'Flyliig'"D6Wn Rib' film cinched it. This Is biit one of several instances where blind respect by a music pub in his authors and coniposers sometimes Influ- ences his own Judgment. Songwriters seeni tb faVor having their birthdays on holidays as a com- pilation by the American Society of Coniposers, Authors and Pui>lishers would, indicate. . Thus on, New . Year's Day were born Maurice Bacon. Jesse G. M. Glick, Edwin Franko Goldman, Nathaniel Lief, George W..: Meyer, Rob Roy Perry and Sid Silvers, Washington's birthday, iNacio Herb Brown, Val .Burton, John E. Hazzard, Max Lief, Henry I. Marshall, Edna St. Vincent Millay and Charles Newman. On Fourth of July, Jascha Ourewich, Irving Caesar, George M. Cohan and Joseph Young. Columbus day. Jack Murray, Otto Mptzan, Chris Smith, Leonard Whitpup and. Louis Weslyn.' Christmas day, C. Whitney Coombs, Samuel M. Lewis, Mme. Mana-Zucca, Carey Morgan, Ann - Ronell, Maurie Rubens and Nathaniel Shilkret; No writer-member of Ascap was bom on April 1. The oldest male member of the Society is Theodore A. Mefz wbo was born on March 14, 1848; the oldest woman member Is Mrs. Virginia Knight Logaii, born May 23, 1850. The youngest member of ASCAP Is Milton Drake, born Aug. 3, 1912, 1th Burtbn Lane a close runner-up, being born on Feb. 2, 191.2. F. G. Hitchcock, music buyer for the Kresge chain, was due in New York yesterday (Monday) to adjust the issuhe raised several-weeks ago when he notified the publishing trade he -was opposed tb the wholesaling of popular music at more than 20c and that any copies shipped above this price to Kresge stores would be at the publisher's 'own responBlbility.' Several firms met Hitchcock's dictum with a stoppage of service for the syndicate's counters. Among those that insisted upon the 22c price or else were Robbins, Morris, Berlin and Chappell. Hitchcock contended that a sheet of mUsic wholesaling at 22c, and sold by a Kresge store for 35c, did not leave a sufficient margin of profit. Other reason that Hitchcock is coniing on from Detroit is to see the Max Baer-Joe Louis bout. Members of the Music Publishers' Protective Association met yester- day (Tuesday) to authorize John G. Paine, chairman of the board, to proceed with drawing up the form of license that the operators of sound ticker services haye asked of the publishers. The two most active con- cerns in this flield are Ticker News Co. and Tele-Flash. Proposition advanced by Ticker News, wbich -wants to add copyright music to its news and sport bulletin service, is that it pay the muslo industry a flat annual fee for each installation of a receiving set.-Figure suggested is $15. Both Ticker News and Tele-FlaSh have held that the usual license .a.rrangement of $5 per master and 26c. or BDc. per composi- tion whenever used would be too exorbitant for them. The annual fee .method would allow them to use the recordings made by others. At the annual high and low jinks of Frisco's exclusive Bohemian Club, annually held in a northern California redwood grove. Gene Buck was the guest of Herbert Hoover. One of the events on the schedule was a mock nomination for the presidency. After the campaign committee was assured of an eribrmous campaign fund. Buck was naimed as the candidate, after taking a 30- minute ribbing from Irvln Cobb who proposed him. Buck was elected a member of the Bohemians (all not a native son. Los Angeles Chamber of Coinmerce had three bands lined up for Its annual tribute to radio last week over CBS, but was lucky to have one when the red light flashed. Hearing of the gratis, layout, musicians' union stepped in and demanded scale. Baron Long, owner of the Biltmore Bowl, where the show originated, wrote out a check for the 14 men in Jimmy Grier's crew at $8 a head. Two other orks, Dave Broekman and Benny Goodman, were cancelled. Only a few of the ra^ilo and screen stars advertised to do a turn appeared. Skinner's Pix Chores Frank Skinner left M6nday (23) for Hollywood on a deal for Jack Robbins to score and orchestrate 'Kins of Burlesque' for 20th Cen- tury-Fox. After that bhore. Skinner goes oh 'The Great Ziegfeld' arrangemient assignment for Metro. Variety at Roosevelt Hotel Roosevelt, N. Y., when pre- miering Bernle Cummins' orches- tra, will Inaugurate a variety show idea, unusual for a hotel floor s-icw, booked by George D. Lottman. Acts will be changed every two to four weeks, witii the bands more permanently installed. Harold Stern has revised, the in- strumental setup of his unit for the opening tomorrow (Thursday) at the Fifth Avenue hotel, New York. Now combination will include three fid- dles, three saxes and a guitar, with all brass eliminated. iSammy Robbins has quit the ho- tel managing business and is back in New, York ol-ganlzing a band.. Record number of network commercial plugs for a two-week period has been line up by Harms, Inc., for the score of William Rowland's pro- duction, 'Sweet Surrender.' In some cases arrangements have been made for the band or warblers to do the entire score. Among the 24 programs that have included the film's music are Fred Warlng-Ford, Paul Whlteman-Kraft, Dick Hlmber-Studebaker, Frank Parker-Atlantic Refining, Rudy Vallee-Flelschmann, and the four Black- ettrSample-Hummert shows supervised by Abe Lyman. Liberty Music Shop has an exclusive deal up to Oct. 15 with Har Inc., on its Cole Porter folio of ten songs, just Issued. During this tl store Is to spread Itself in New Yorker, theati-e programs; etc.; on the edltiori. So far 1,500 copies have been delivered, with store addressing a heavy inalllng. list. Harms also handling Por.ter's 'Jubilee' score, shov- ing it out at the Madison avenue shop first. Joe Morris* 'Little Gypsy Tea Room' went over the 300,000-copy mark last week. It's the third tune to go above this level during 1935. Other two songs are 'Isle of Capri' (T. B. Harms) with a total sheet sale of 567,000 copies, and 'When I Grow Too Old To Dream' (Robbins) which, to date, has done better than 450,000 copies. Arthur Freed and Naclo Herb Brown, who wrote the songs for 'Broad- way Melody of 1936,' also wrote the music for etro's original 'Broadway Melody' in '29, one of the first of the talker musicals. AARONSON-SAXE REUNION Phil Saxe is rejoining the Irving Aarpnson's Commanders organiza- tion. Long standard with Aaronson, Sftxe broke away for a couple of seasons and m.c.'s his own dance combo in a Pittsburgh cafe. Now that Aaronson has a radio and cafe berth In view, the old combo is being, reassembled. Gys Kahn has turned in the iyrlcs for 'Just for You' to- Metro for 'Rose Marie,' BAHEW IN N. 0. New Orleans, Sept. 24. Smith Ballew and his orchestra open in the Blue Room of the Roosevelt Tliursday (26). Succeeds Harry Sosnik's crew. . ^ Dorothy Williams, sister of Mrs. Jack Dempsey, will be featured vocalist. Ted Black debuted his Unit at the Paradise Showboat, Troy, N. Y., Saiturday (21).