Variety (Aug 1939)

RADIO STAGE PRICE 25^ PuMlxhod WVekly at 154 Woal 4Cth Street, New York, N. T., by Variety. Inc. Annual subscription. $10. Slnsls copies 20 cr-nls Kniered as Secoiid-claHs matter December 22, 190S, at the I'o.it OfClce at Neir YorU, N. Y., under the act of March 3, 1IIT9. COPYRIOIIT, 1U39, DY VAKIETV, INC. ALL KIGIITS KKSKBVED Vol. 135 No. 8 NEW YORK, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 2, 1939 56 PAGES FILMS-STAGE ON THE SPOT Rachman s Prison Pix Rides Include: 'Don't Applaud If a Cop Gets Shof Br BARNET OLDFIELD Lincoln, Aug. 1. No. 11,588 at the Nebraska State fen Is Jules Bachman, former Omalja exhib, and the film biz's No. i penal case. : He's a showman a dual murder rap' couldn't stop. , Since he-entered Feb. 13, 1933, to, «erve 15 years for the shooting of, Harry and Sam Goldberg, his two cousins and biz partners, on Dec. 2, | 1932, in a row over money, Rach- 1 (nan has been in charge of prison theatrical enterprises. ; When he entered, films interested less than 20% of the pen's popula- tion, being booked without shorts, or an_eye to programming. Now, his average house chalks up all but 60 of the 1,000 men, and that's usually, because they're either work- liii, or celled with privilege losses. ■ Warderi,' in handing him the job, (isked it he could build the biz. Bachman said he could, 1' he could ba guaranteed one thing. 'I don't want to get going, and then have somebody stick up an opposition liouse somewhere else in the yard.' Warden okayed. ' Bachman has show., nearly 600 pics during his time behind the rock fence, and has staged 12 flesh shows on the inside, plus framing a 20-peo- ple, all ex-cons,' 'Big House Follies,' which ran 12 weeks in theatres out- side. A Choice Cast . His fleshers are unusual in cast. Ork in the pit has a orass section composed of two 'p'-ltinfc pai;ty' ban- dits, and two rapists; rhythm group has four highwaymen and two bank robbers; and, the reeds ara handled (ContiAued on page 27) Six From Ali-Girl Orchestra Now Nuns San Antonio, Aug. 1, : Six members of a former all-girl dance orchestra have given up music to Jjecome nuns. They include Hazel, Gladys, Dorothy and Evelyn Jop^, their widowed mother, and Wnieen Gray. They took, their first vows last week. All used to appear with a musical, ensemble known as Jerry McRae and her Rangereltes. , , OP llCTOR-lll FIGHT Jurisdiction Squabble Be- tween Stagehands, and Four A's May Tiie Up Pic- ture and Legit Production, and Stymie Vaude — Actors' U n ion Group Lodges Charges Vs. lATSE Several Tryouts Indicate Broadway Possibilities; Names Big B;0. in Bams NIME AUTHORS MED FOR RADIO N.Y. Fair Midway Hopes Name Bands Will Help; Unappeased by 50c Gate Unappeased by the slash in ad- mission fee to the New York World's Fairgrounds on Saturday-Sunday from 75c. to 50c., midway concession- aires are looking to name bands to hypo their lagging biz. After sev- eral deals for bands had been started and dropped for various rea- sons, the Fair decided to follow the lead of the San Francisco Golden Gate Exposition and Install' Music Corporation of America outfits in its amusement area starting this Sat- urday (5). S. F. expo also used MCA crews, Kay Kyser and Benny Goodnian proving exceptional draws. N. Y. Fair bands will give concerts ifom a specially constructed shell on.the midway, fronted with seating Jfrangements for 3,500. Guy Lom- bardo's the first band in with Tommy "orsey succeeding the following week. None has been set beyond that. Outfits are cuffo as far as '.'steners are. concerned, Fair assum- (Continucd on page-55) Transamerican Radio it Television Co. holds the radio rights and ex- pects to close presently a deal for sponsorship of a package consisting of assorted items from the Play- wrights' Company, New York legit stage group that has bsen very suc- cessful this past season. Its leading personalities are Robert E. Sher- wood,. Maxwell Anderson, Sidney Howard, Elmer Rice and S. N. Behr- man. Anderson has done special radio writing in past. Others have not. All are topflighters. four of the five having won Pulitzer prizes. An in- tegral part ot tiie package is re- ported to be one original script from each playwright, plus various scripts already done on the siaje. •Abe Lincoln in Illinois,' by Sher- wood; 'No Time for Comedy," by Behrman; 'Coun.sellor at Law,' by Rice; 'Winterset,' by Anderson, and 'They Knew What They Wanted,' by Howard, are sampled of the material the men have written. SAG OPENS, FIRE The battle between the actors and stagehands, which threatens to halt virtually all show business, will cen- ter In Hollywood and Broadway, with the producers in the middle. The Issue will probably depend on only a few vital factors. Crux of the situation appears to be the question of the solidarity of the two scrapping unions, the Asso- ciated Actors Si Artistes of America and the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees. Battle was touched oft Monday (31) with the lATSE granting a charter to the American Federation of Actors, fol- lowing the AFA's probing by the 4 A's. Whichever organization can hold its ranks intact will probably win out. However, the major picture com- panies, with millions tied up in pror duction, may seek to force a solu- tion to protect their investments. Also possible that pressure may be brought to bear by other American Federation of Labor unions. There are countless other angles, including the probability of a showdown at the AFL executive council meeting in Atlantic City next week. Meantime (Continued on page Ti> Tushcart' Act Selling Is New B'way Wrinkle 'Pushcart' peddling of acts Is a new wrinkle in Broadway agenting of talent, chiefly among the talent- purveyors of small-time specialty acts. Gag is being worked at the nearby 4>eaches . and parks using' acts for Sunday concerts. Agents load up their cars with talent and tak« 'em to the resorts, selling right on the spot for immediate appearances. It's a gamble for the acts, while the worst that can happen to the agent is the cost of the gasoline and wear and tear on the car. KYSERWORKSAT SCALE TO PAY OFF PALS FILM PRODUCTIONS FROM RADIO PLAYS NW: CHAIN PLUGGING ^0 TO CHURCH' DRIVE * Minneapolis, Aug. 1. Paramount Northwest (Minnesota Amus. Co.) theatres have launched a 'Go to Church' movement of its own as a good-will builder. All houses are running trailers urging patrons to attend some church ser- vices on Sundays. Trailers point out that if there was more consideration given to re- ligion much of. the strife and turmoil now prevalent In Europe would be eliminated. Hollywood. Aug. 1. Series of film productions of 'prize' radio programs is planned by a new local outfit. Radio Guild Productions, Inc. Claiming extensive backing, it is currently dickering for a major releasing deal for the pictures. Necessary sponsor and writer okays are understood set in New York. Venture is slated to bow in the fall. According to the plan, Radio Guild Productions will sponsor monthly contests, with listeners receiving cash awards for letters explaining why such and such dramatic air pro- grams would make suitable screen material, Scripts would be limited to original, live, one-time dramatic shows on the networks. Serials wouldn't be eligible. Winning script after three months would be adapted for the screen/ with the author get- (Continued on i .ge 10) San Francisco, Aug. 1. All local records at hotels and night clubs for a single week's busi- ness were broken by kay Kyser and I his band at the Bal Tabarin during j the week ending Thursday (27), with I some 10,000 patrons coming to the I Bal to hear the Kyser music. I Kyser has always credited the co- j owner's of this night club, Frank ! Martinelli and Tom Gerun, with giv- I ing him his first real chance seven ! years ago. When he was booked into I the Golden Gate here for a week recently, he turned down offers to play in a number of the city's swank hotel spots, not wanting to compete with the Bal. When he finished his Bal Tabarin stint last Thursday, Kyser asked only the regular union scale for the band, which was below $2,000, less than one-eighth of what Kyser got at the Golden Gate Theatre when some i 90,000 customers paid 65c each' I to hear and see him. The week be- I fore his Bal Tabarin engagement, ; Kyser played to 60,000 persons at I 40c each at the newly opened Music 1 Hall at the Golden Gate, Inter- . national Exposition. After leaving San Francisco, Kyser I played three one-night stands, at Manteca, Sacramento and Bakers- ; field, (28-29-30), before returning to i Los Angeles for a three-week rest prior to starting work on his forth- coming RKO picture. Tryouts in rural summer theatres last week indicated several Broad- . way possibilities, attracting consid- erable interest in show circles. Us- ually the percentage of worthwhile new plays in the sticks is low. Es- timated there will be fewer tryouts than . usual, but the expectation Is that the quality of presentations will be better as a whole. Business also is commensurate with quality of the plays and the importance of the casts. Where stocks are played and the casts principally amateurs, attendance has been light, although the weather has distinctly favored the strawhats. When fea- ture players are announced, how- ever, the, ticket sales jump, that be- ing true right along the line, Ethel Barrymore, in 'Whiteoaks,' b proving a boon to summer managers. After a season-long torn, the star de- murred accepting such dates, but finally agreed when urged by the supporting players. At Maplewood, N. J., she broke the record with a gross of $8,500. That meant a worth- while engagement for Miss Barry- more, who is receiving 10% of the takings. Edward Everett Morton, In 'Springtime for Henry,' is another distinct b.o. click in the strawhats. Broke all records last week at the Cape Playhouse, Der.nis, Mass., with an $8,000 take for nine performances. Jane Cowl also drew handsomely last week in 'Easy Virtue' at West- port, Conn., breaking her own previ- ous record of $7,000 for the same spot. Paul Robeson, In 'The Em- peror Jones,' pulled $8,100 for a week early this summer at White Plains. N. Y. Advice tor more careful prepara- tion among strawhat impressarios (Continued on page 53) BIBBING A GOV. Musical dig at Michigan's purist chief exec has been authored by Claude Lapham. Tune is titled 'Save Me, Gov. Dickinson, I'm On the Road to Ruin.' Saratoga Gambling Ban Kayoes Nitery Bands-Acts Budge's Saratoga. N. Y., Aug. 1. The Spa opened last night (Mon- day) for its annual one-month sea- son, but sans gambling, for the first week anyhow. Several matters have yet to be straightened out with local law and state liquor authori- ties, but the casinos expect to have their tables working by the second week. One_result of the temporary gam- bline ban is the great curtailment In the budgets of night club floor- shows the first week. None of the spots can alTord names unless the roulette and dice games are op- erating and once the lid Is lifted the elastic will come oft the bankrolls. For instance. Piping Rock, which always went for an expensive show in its cafe-restaurant portion, has trimmed considerably for the first week this season. Top name in its current show is Adelaide MofTett, (Continued on page 53)