Variety (Nov 1944)

HENRIETTA CROSMAN Henrietta Ciostuan, 79, retired legit and screen star, died at her home in Pclham Manor, N. Y., Oct. 31. She retired from the stage in 1936 after having spent more than halt a century in the theatre. She had lived in practical seclusion after the death of her husband, Major Maurice Campbell, her manager for 40 years, who'died in 1942. Her remarkable career ran the gamut of all branches of the theatre —vaiide." Shakespeare',- contemporary theatre and. toward the end of her career, motion pictures. She ap- peared on Broadway with such stars as E. H. Sothern. Herbert Kelcy. Effie Shannon. James K. Hackett and others.. Prior to Broadway ap- pearances, she matriculated as lead- ing woman of the Hyde it Behman stock at the old Park Theatre, Brooklyn. N. Y. •"Although appearing in many plays, she possibly is best remembered for her. performances • in" "As You Like It" and "Sweet Kitty Bellaires" in 1902 and 1903 respectively. Prior to thai she had been a member of Augustin Daly and Daniel Frohman ' companies. .-.'"'.' " Her last Broadway show was "Thunder In the Air" in 1929, but she played" on the stage in other cities for -several years afterwai-d. Among her pictures were "The Tor," "The Star Wagon' On an Island"* >-~ and "Two DE WITT NEWINft De Witt Newing, 61, playwright and radio script writer/ died Nov. 4, at Lake.wood. N. J. Newing's best known plays include "Love of Suslion." based on his ex- periences it; China, and "The Big Mogul" in which Fiske O'Hara, Irish tenor, starred in 1925. Later he took up radio scripting and in.the early''1930V wrote some of the "First Nighter" and "Roses and Drums" programs. Survived by' widow, brother and three sis'teTSr ■—— . .- • v SIGOURNEY THAYER Sigourney Thayer, .47, .former legit producer and one time asso- ciated with Alex McKaig Produc- tions, Inc., was killed in an automo- bile, accident: near AUentown, Pa., Nov. 2. He was employed as job analyst with Consolidated Vultee Airttatt here sinceJune, 1943. i' Prior to engaging in war work he had produced a number of plays for Broadway and the road during 1926- 3*-v.-.''"'",:",!-'^'' ''-■''■■■■<:'■* :.<.;■•:•%>';''; Democratic National Committee and the American Labor Party; seven hours, 16 minutes to the Republi- cans. CBS had six hours and 20 minutes from the Dems and four and a quarter hours of GOP oratory; Broadcasters came in for sharp criticism for selling time to politi- cians from Samuel Grafton, liberal columnist of the N. Y. Post, who lambasted the trade last week. Col- umnist, noting the bitterness Of the "campaigTCspoke of, " . .Radio, bray- ing like' an agonized, jackass with those 'dreadful- 'one-minute spot an- nouncements' is a favored device for getting hi the blow beneath the belt, You pay $30 to $50 for your minute, on a good station, you say anything you like, and then you duck. This is hit-and-run controversy." Grafton, noting that som* stations had broadcast claims that Pres. Roosevelt intended keeping soldiers in the Army after the War, declared, "That is a vile statement for anyone to utter during a .war. . But there is one, thing even worse than saying it, and that is to make a money profit on renting facilities to.someone else to.say it" . A,.; '•'.'- ■;- ; vy " '".''■;...•.:- XENIA PETROVA Xeriia Petrova, 40. former member of the Mordkiti Ballet, and who in private life was Mrs. Xenia Kernah, died in New York Nov. 6. She had IN MEMORY OF MY BELOVED DAUGHTER MARIE SAXON Who Died Nov. 12. 1*41 PAULINE' SAXON Literati Frank Fay Continued from page t Royal Famiy of Broadway," "Caro- lina" and 'Three On a Honeys moon" . "-. Survived by soil and grand- daughter. ■•.;•'<;':;'•-•:' 1 appeared with the ballet at the Metropolitan Opera House, N. Y, in, 1941-42. I HAROLD ROBB ... Harold Robb, 54, head of Robb & Rowley United, Inc., Texas Theatre- circuit, died in Dallas'Oct. 30. '-.■-.. Robb started in theatre business in Big Springs. Texas, about 1918 with E. H. Rowley,-'-' now vice-president and-secretary of R&R. He later ac- quired houses in Sweetwater and Abilene, gradually building a large circuit, which was later sold .to Par, amount. A few yeavs afterward. Robb & Rowley again acquired houses from Paramount, with United Artists Theatres later buying a half- interest in the R&R circuit. R&R second largest circuit in Texas, now operates more than 90 theatres in Arkansas. California, Kansas, Okla- homa and Texas. Robb. in addition to exhibition, made a large part of his fortune in oil and farming lands. Just before his death he#ad purchased a large piece of properly around Waco and owned property in Corpus Ghristi and Dallas. .He and his partner sev- eral years ago operated four theatres in Pasadena, which were taken over by United Artists Theatres. '? He is survived by his widow, son and daughter. - WILLIAM KEEGAN William Keegan, 55, former man- ager of the Hunt theatres in Tren- ton and Wildwood, N. J., died in the latter city Nov, l. Keegan, while manager of the Hil- dinger Enterprises in Trenton, was treasurer of the Motion - Picture Theatre Owners of New Jersey, a unit of the Motion Picture Theatre Owners of America. ;'■ '...;'• ; SGT. EDDIE I.ARKIN . . Sgt Eddie. Larkin. 38. former dance director at Metro, was killed bet. 28 when his plane, returning from the South Pacific, crashed near San Francisco. Body was sent to New York for interment. - Josephine Hull, who is featured in "Harvey." Before the new play opened in Boston,, a preview was given before a GI audience and after that showing there was a switch which made the show. Harvey is the name of a sup- posed six-foot invisible rabbit which the half-mulled hero insists always accompanies^ him to his favorite saloons,. Script called for an appear- ance of Harvey and at the preview a figure in a rabbit costume walked across the stage. Manager and di- rector argued with Mary Chase, the author, all that night over whether to "keep the ' rabbit" in. and finally it was agreed to scratch Harvey from the cast, . , Pemberton felt that the critics would have kidded "Harvey " instead Of'■'■.-raving, over the fantasy, Pem- berton now has a I'abbitskin costume on his hands that cost $650 and is likely to Jet go at the buyer's own price. Incidentally, the out-of-town critics called the turn on the show, labelling it a hit. Mrs. Chase is the wife of Bob Chase, editor of the Rocky .Mountain News, Denver, where they reside with three sons. A former reporter,, she has been friendly with Pember- ton and Miss Perry for some time, She wrote "Me Third," which was first done in the WPA Federal The- atre. Pemberton then presented It at the Miller. N. Y., under the title of "And Now You've Done It." That play didn't last very long but the manager encouraged Mrs. Chase to try. again, "Harvey" being the an- swer. Vv"-,- : ;'-'-' ! " j",: ■. .•' ■; ;./-'; '>. .:. ,v r Pageant Impresses ' Pageant, new pocket-size Hillman publication which debut's on stands next Week (15), with Dec, issue, lives up to advance ballyhoo and expectations as smart, attractive job. First major national mag of general circulation launched since war. book impresses paiticiilarily by its bright format,Unusual art work, smart lay- out and impressive contributors. Opens' daringly with eight pages of full color instead of usual article, and contains several unusual pix- fea- tures. Has 35 features (story and pix) in all, several of interest to show biz, as the Foxhole Circuit layout, a television and Hollywood story. Contribs include s Bob Bench* ley, Major de Seversky, Lucius Bee- be, Louis Unteimeyer. Burton Ras- coe, Robert Moses. Count Czernin. and others. Also contains a hitherto unpublished short story by Irvin S. Cobb. Features include book digest, dept of puzzles and tricks, with a monthly guest editorial on . back cover, first one by Eric Johnston, U. S. Chamber of Commerce head. Mag. carrying no advertising, has first printing of 500,000 copies/: Eu- gene Lyons, ex-American Mercury chief, is editor. Publisher Alex Hill- man (who also prints Movielanci, among others) explains getting paper for new mag by dropping several other sheets and cutting newsprint on others. ; - to be published separately and he backed it for 18 years, dropping $900,000 in the process.. Henry Seidel Cahby, founder and first edi- tor,' is how associate ed and still co- owner, Nonnah Cousins is now ed, with Amy Loveman and William Rose Benet also associate eds. Har- rison Smith is pies, and J R. Coniinsky. v\p, Mag has no circula- tion or ad manager, usually adding only another stenographer when biz increases. ; Farrell Book Cleared •-'■'/.- ---Chi cago;—No v~- f: ■- James T. FarrellV 1936 best-seller, "A World I Never Made," was at- tacked as "immoral and, indecent" in police court ^here last week by two coppers, who seized a copy in .a Loop book store, owned by, Morris Levitan, and charged him with sell- ing indecent literature. Police were acting on a complaint received by Commissioner Jim AUmen Complaint was dismissed by Judge Jay Schiller after arguments by de- fense attorneys that the book has been passed by the Chi Public Library committee and is available at the library, ;.;■'••';'■..','•'.■' CLAYTON LYNCH Clayton Lynch, 55, Los Angeles branch manager for Metro, died in Chicago Nov. 2. Lynch had stopped over, in Chicago with his wife for a short stay, while enrpute: to New York for a Week of home office con- ferences, when taken suddenly 111, Lynch joined the old Ooldwyn Dis- tributing Co.. at Omaha as a sales- man, later becoming Omaha branch manager at^the time of the merger of Metro-Gold wyn-Mayer in 1924. He transferred to St, Louis in 1926 as branch manager there and after 10 years was moved to Los Angeles to head the local distribution office. Surviving are his widow-, three step-children, a daughter and two sons.' ■ '■>:>■ ■-'- ■:'. h'--' v'.- : "■-'•'.•• , JOHN PHILLIBER S John Philliber, 72, ,, stage and screen actor, died at Elkhart, Ind„ Nov. 6. He had been in show-business for more, than half a century. He had spent the greater part of his career iii touring companies and Stock but finally got his big chance on Broadway in 1942 in "Mr. Syca- moi'e.'' Probably his best portrayal in motion pictures was that of Pop Benson in "It HSppeti^.^0m6l;r6W." .-^.:-if..v*. was "The Heart, of Chicago" many, years back. He subsequently appealed In f'The Wooden Slipper," "Wlnterset," "High Nathan Levey, 76, father of Ar- thur Levey, president of Scophony Corp. of America, died Oct.; 31, at Stamford, Conn, Also survived by another son, Philip Levey, an attor- ney; '..-■..' r';" 'V William Piltz. 69. one of the film industry's pioneer cameramen, died Nov. 2 in Hollywood as, a result of injuries inflicted by a ; hit-run driver. -.- ■ Mother. 77, of Danny Winkler, Hollywood agent, died of pneumonia Nov. 3 in Hollywood. Mrs. Louise M. Noll, 60, retired stage and screen actress, was killed by a bus Nov. 1 in Los Angeles. MARRIAGES Sally Raymond to Lt N;- Peter Rathvon. Jr., USN, Nov. 4, in Evans- ton, 111. Groom is son of RKO presi- dent.. ■'• „: . '■'.'.- ":••'-.•„'•'•• ■;'.■ : ' Betty Jane Watson to Gerald Aus- tensen. Chicago, Nov. 5. . Bride is Lauiey in Chi company of "Okla- homa:" groom singer in same show. Eva Betty Stone to Corp. George Finley. Chicago, Oct. 23. Bride is Stratford Theatre cashier: groom, former Rhodes Theatre assistant. , . Lillian Spiegel to Pic. Leo Simon, Los Angeles, Nov. 5. Groom was a screen writer before induction. Belle Fenstock. to J. C, (Brownie) Brown at Waldorf-Astoria, N,- Y,, Nov. 5. Bride is composer and por- trait painter: gloom is manager of Washington-branch of M-G-M news- reel. "News of the Day." Mrs. Ruth Somper Wertheim to Arthur S. I^yons. New York. Nov, 6. Groom is former talent agent now associated with. David L. Loew in Producing Artists, Inc. ,'■';':'■:-'.''.•• Corinne Gi ifiith's Book Coriniie Grifrtlh. former film star, wife of George Preston Marshall, the Washington (D.C;) "wet wash king" and owner of the Washington Redskins, has authored her autobiog, "My Life With the Redskins." inci- dentally, she's co-owner of the pro gridders. Formerly billed as "the orchid of the screen.".' sports writer Bob Considine rechristencd her "the orchid of the screen pass," that be- ing a football term. : Considine also suggested she re- title the "book "My Life With Mar- shall" and "thus make if a real hor- ror story." but seriously, he's help- ing to get it published. :■ CHATTER Harriet Parsons resigned from the INS Hollywood staff to devote full time to :film producing, ,. /- Mrs. Bugs (Louise) Baer, ex- Foliies beaut.- has sold Reader's Digest a number of mag pieces...... Ted Lewis goes literary., with his autobiography. "Me and My Shad- ow," slated for Christmas publica- tion.'-;, 'V--- 1 V'■';•';.','v-".,.v : ''.*" -.• Wanda Tuchnck's screenplay on . "Nob Hill" at 20th-Fox to be issued -, in book form by McNeilson Pub- lishing Co.- '. - ;'-''! ::'-■■,'■ ■ Alex Hillman and Eugene Lyons celebrate the launching of their new Pageant, monthly, with a cocktailer.y at 21 this week. . Time-Life-Fortune staffers burstr ing out of their Rockefeller Center office space and overflowing inlo the French and Empire bldgs. . V Bill 7.ift. head of Ziff-Davis Pub,, authored "The Gentlemen Talk of Peace," for Macmillah. He's also head of Alliance Book Corp, Samuel Hopkins Adams getting on wi", : i his biog, untitled as yet. of Alex. : Woollcott. Book by one of A.W.'s nieces getting nice notices, another family saga : Although now in the Army.- David Ewen has managed to put the linish- ings touches to a new book on oi eh pilots, "Men of Popular Music," for Zifl'-Davis publication in the fall. .Two Philadelphia radio spielers have gone literary, Franiiy Murray, WIBG sportscaster. has a gridiion piece in current Saturday Evening Post titled, "Danger! This '-Football Field Is Mined." Dave Grubb. WPEN announcer, sold a fiction yarn to Good Housekeeping slugged "L6V lipop Tree." - . ';\ ',--.':.-'',. ■'• New son (their secondv of the Bob Gessners makes the'third gene- ration in the professorial family. The author and Hollywood seripter, now Prof, of Motion Pictures at N.; Y. University, says he'll do every- thing possible that the boy "doesn't make the fourth generation in the professorial racket; if a Hollywood seripter, I'll settle for that," • Gl's Home Abroad — ■ Continued from page 1 ; M Campaign 1 Continued from page 1 sjssJ w r oiild spend. Democratic National Committee figured it, too, would wind up with $750,000 plunked into radio. Both parties used radio on a more liberal scale than in previous campaigns. GOP, in particular, •tlirough- state organizations, going heavily into spot campaigns in key states, notably Pennsylvania. It was held more than possible that "gross political business for the entire in- dustry would be somewhere neat $3,000,000. . It may never become known, however, since state expen- ditures are not reported to Congress: Mutual's take 'resulted from sales of .21 '-2 hours; of which 10 were used by the Republicans and all but one- half hour of the remainder by sup- porters of President Roosevelt. .Blue sold five hours and 25 minutes to the Democratic adherents: eight hoitjis and five minutes to the GOP. NBC .screen writer; mother is former sold eight and a half hours to the ';United Artists publicist. BIRTHS .fMr.- and Mrs. Irving Yergin. son,,. Brooklyn, N. Y„ Nov. 1. Father m WB homeoflice publicity, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Gessner, son. "their second, Nov. .3, in N, Y. He's the author and present Prof, of Mo- tion Pictures at NYU. Mr. and Mrs. Leonard Lyons, son. their third. Nov, 5,,.New York. He's the N. Y. Post columnist. I ■ Mr.-and Mrs, Vic Mi/./.y, daughter, New- York. N6v, 5. Father is-, sohg- wrilct-arranger; mother , is Mary Small, stage and. radio singer.. : Mr. and Mrs. Frank Cooper, son, New York. Nov. 5.. Father is talent ag'feri.t. v-:•':.'- ; .;. '■'■ .'.■'•:;.'•,'•-■, '.'-t''--'.'.: ■.";' Mr, and Mrs. Donald Wayne, daughter, N. Yv.Nov. .5. FarhfeV.^s Grrl Lawrence's Book . Gertrude Lawrence has just con- tracted with Doubleday, Doran to write a book of informal reminis- cences. It will include an account of her experiences this past summer, entertaining the soldiers in France! and it will contain flashbacks of "her early career, hoi- private life and her public triumphs. Miss Lawrence ex- pects to finish it before opening iti her hew play, "Errand for Bernice." Doubleday will publish the book early in 1945. O'Connor Prez of Gi osset & Duiilap Grosset.& Dunlap, which has. just passed into the bands of the Book-' of-the-Month Club. Harper & Bi os. Little, Brown: Random House and Scribner's announces that John O'Connor will assume the presidency of the corporation on Dec. 1, 1944. O'Connor began his publishing career in 1907 with P. F. Collier & Son, and . has been with Harvard Classics, Grolier Society (Book of Knowledgei, Quarrie Corp., v.p., which he is, resigning to assume the presidency of Grosset & Dunlap." Donald Grosset. son. of the founder of the firm, will be a member of the new board of directors of Grosset & Dunlap, which will also include Mr. O'Connor* and representatives from the .publishing houses joining in the purchase. . - - , > Streamlined Sat. Review Saturday Review of Literature Will, drop last two words of title after the war, becoming "Saturday- Re view" to cover all the arts. . Mag was book section of N. Y. Postyfeginally, When Cyrus H. "K, Curtis sold Post in 1924, Thomas P. Lamont said mag was good enough European jTheatre of Operat ions. Specific city areas where programs will be produced and recorded were suggested to the National Association of Broadcasters, which has under- taken the task, at conferences with armed service toppers. Every state, no matter how small the population, will be allotted one program with additional stanzas for more popu- lous areas. J, Harold Ryan. NAB prexy, has named Arthur Stringer, of .the NAB staff, as coordinator of the entire protect, and the latter, in turn, has appointed "Task Force Commanders'' in the 17 NAB districts who are going ahead with production.«A total Of 168 programs have been accounted for to date, with remaining 12 to be ironed out shortly • - Although all shows will have a standard, opening and closing an- nouncement, as prescribed in a kit of do's-and-dont's that has been dis- patched to "T.-F. Commanders" by the NAB, formats will comprise the precise things that returned vets have recommended. Kit also includes an authorization from Major Gen. F. H. Osborn. head of Army special services, authoriz- ing the NAB to arrange the pro- grams, and a- music clearance letter from James C. Petrillo, president of the American Federation of Musi- cians. • ■-'-''■■;!.■• ; :'..•'• .;•■'■■ ''--"'-\ '. "Task Force Commanders" in the N. Y. area are, Arthur Hull Hayes • WABC: Walter Duncan, WNEW, and Elliot Sanger. WQXR, who in turn have appointed a com- mittee of three to evolve prpgrani ideas, and produce tlie six shows which Will come from the territory. Ted Cott.-WNEW; Gordon Graham, WABC, and At Grobe, "WQXR, arc on the production committee;