Variety (Jul 1946)

40 •rchestras-music 0 —^- ■ - I I a..------— Bandleaders, Mgrs. in 1st Move To Reduce High Operating Costs Wednesday, July 31, 194$ Inside Orchestras-Music Vaude star playing in a Chicago nitery had a series of musical clashes with a maestro who insisted on crabbing the star's act by giving false song cues, breaking out with loud music at the wrong time and otherwise making a pest of himself. On closing night the batonist threatened not only to gum up the headlined* performance but to damage some of his stage equipment. Nitery bosses heard about it and stationed private dicks in the offing to prevent destruction. Maestro broke out with Chopin's Dead March when the star walked on in his final turn. To prevent further musical sabotage star told the audience: "For the first time in 18 years of show business, tonight I will not use music in the background." Foiled the musickcr went into a sulk at a nearby table. Finishing his act, the star said: "I guess you know now why I used no music tonight." Then the private dicks told the stlckwavcr. in effect: "Okay, punk. Crawl back into your cage and start playing." Teddy Powell, planning a new bund for the past few months, apparently is in no hurry to form it; he is, at the moment, mote concerned with writ- ing songs to follow up his last hit, "You Won't Be Satisfied," written with Larry Stock. Powell has . placed a number of pieces with New York publishers and is supposed to have an assignment to do the music for the fall shows at the Copacabana, N. Y„ nitery. As for band work, if he re- sumes, he may go into the Aquarium Restaurant, N. Y„ following Buddy Rich, who succeeds the current Count Basic. Jimmy Dorsey finally agreed, last week, to take his crew into Casino Gardens, ballroom outside L. A„ for four stanzas, starting Aug. 20. Crew will double off Hollywood lot where orch will be getting len'sed in "Fabu- lous Dorsey": pic. Batoneer's acceptance of date ended ;haggle lasting three weeks, during which leader didn't want to double from studio to ballroom, and yet didn't want to follow brother Tommy Into Casino Latter was willing all along to double from film in which he, too, is work- ing, but now it .Is unlikely he will make a stand at spot, which he financially controls, until next year. . Many band industry men got quite a boot out of the Count Basic orches- tra's opening at the Aquarium restaurant. New York, last week (25) for reasons other than Basie's music. When the Aquarium first introduced its name band policy, at attractive prices, the spot itself and the type of patronage it draws were given little chance to succeed or survive the opening Lionel Hampton band, booked by Joe Glaser. At Basle's opening, representatives of all agencies were there, and not just because they were Basie fans. Los Angeles* Musicians' Local 47 now has decreed that ail symph brchs operating within its jurisdiction must employ a non-playing contractor at time-and-a-half scale to oversee hiring of windjammers and check that all union rules and regulations are being observed. The Local established contractor jobs after reports reached exec ears that those hiring for several longhaired outfits were not even AFM members. The new law applies re- gardless of whether a. symph plays regular season or merely casual dates. At its October general-membership meeting Negro Musicians' Local 707 (Los Angeles) will consider a resolution recently presented before exec council proposing thut all card-carriers in Local who served in armed forces be credited with one year's dues. Out of total membership of slightly more than 800, 250-odd wore uniforms during war years. Dues in Local arc $11 annually. For the first time since the end of the war there seems to be a con- centration of effort among band- leaders and their managers to re- duce abnormally high operating costs. That subject has been getting a real going-over during the past week or 10 days, with a handful of maestrocs arid managers already set lo pare as much coin as possible from their costs of operation. They are going about it in various ways, some replacing high-priced men with lesser-known and less-costly musicians, others simply lowering salaries. These leaders and managers figure that if they can cut even as little as $350 to $500 weekly from the nut of their combinations, at the end of a year they will have saved enough to provide a cushion allowing more freedom of operation. They will then be in a better position to ac- cept bookings they couldn't have taken before diic to their higher payroll. All of the bands involved seem to be in the secondary classification, those with b.o. reps insufficient to command the sort of coin the. top- pers exact but high enough to have payrolls that can seriously interfere with proflt-or-loss computations: on certain dates. HEBMAN BUYS BOGAHT HOME Hollywood, July 30. . Woody Herman has followed the genercl trend of bandleaders, estab- lishing a Hollywood home. Over weekend the batonecr bought the Hollywood Hills home of Hum- phrey Bogart. Mpls. Symph Seeks 150G for '46-47 Minneapolis, July SO. ' S. T. McKnlght, president of the Minneapolis Orchestral Assn., has announced that a guaranty fund of $150,000 must be raised to maintain the Minneapolis Symphony orchestra the coming season. MeKnight disclosed that unre- newed pledges total approximately $20,000. The 1945-46 operating deficit of $142,317.86 compared with that of $134,928.00 for the 'preceding season. The deficit was covered by guar- anty fund contributions from 981 persons, business Arms and corpora- tions. The only appreciable increase in 6spenditures was $19,024.59 for salaries which again may have to be boosted if the expected rise in living costs develops. The association's permanent fund has been increased by $10,283 in gifts. Record 20 Waxers Licensed in L A. Daring Past Month Hollywood, July 30. Despite fact that small, odd-label diskeries are foundering almost daily here and elsewhere across country, and many more are' so un- productive they remain in : biz only nominally, Musicians'. Local 47 has licensed 20 new firms within past month. This is largest number ever to pass union muster in any 30-day period with single exception of last March, when 25 brand-new outfits bobbed up. New crop contains expected ratio of exotic, baffling and frequently conflicting cognomens. The lineup: Regal, Rhapsody, Roger, Sarco, Spe- cialty, Venus, Enterprise, Caribbean. Cardinal. Crest, Crystal, Elko, Gui- tarist, Hamilton, Hollywood, Im- perial, Milton, Mirror. Winner and Genne'tt: The latter label, formed here by Cliff Rucker and Henry Martin, is identical label used about a score of years ago by Chicago out- fit which turned out jazz of early 1920's vintage, many of which plat- ters now are listed as prize collec- tors' items. Two of the new outfits are backed by orch leaders, Winner being Bob Mohr-owned, and Milton belonging to Roy Milton, of the sepia sextet' billed under his name. Close count last week revealed that there are 89 different labels ac- tive here to great or small degree. Number includes the major disk- eries, and some of the stronger in- dies which aren't headquartered on Coast but do recording or waxing here. Altogether, more than 150 are liconsed by Local 47. but many have become so spot-shot in their opera- tions or been reduced to such a competitive crawl that they all but cease to exist. Singer Gets Cap Thumb On Kenton Vocals Hollywood, July 30. Gene Howard, vocalist with Stan Kenton orch, which currently is holding down ballroom berth at Meadowbrook Gardens, was told over weekend by batoneer that he Is no longer to chirp on platters band cuts for Capitol Records. Ukase came direct from Cap upper- level execs, and bofh Kenton and Howard are completely mystified by order. The waxcry. opined that hereafter all Kenton renditions will either be straight or June Christy, band's femme, will do the piping. The two unreleased sides which Cap already disked of Howard warbling with crew apparently will be scrapped. Local 47 Raps 88-er Hollywood, July 30. Taking one of severest raps ever meted out by trial board of Musi- clan's Local 47, pianist Orville Yar- nell has been fined total of $600 and refused permanently a transfer into local here. At trial Yarnell admitted he had come here from Local 339, Green- burg, Pa., and before clearing trans- fer into 47 had gone to work at downtown spot, doing a single at the keyboard. For this he was nipped $100. For falsifying an application he deposited with 47, and for flat refusal to answer questions concern- ing it at his hearing, Yarnell was fined $500 and ordered to report back to Greensburg local. Data on case automatically will be forwarded to American Federa- tion of Musicians' national head- quarters in N. Y. HERMAN SIGNED FOR % FORTNIGHT AT AVODON Los Angeles, July 30. Avodon ballroom over weekend signed Woody Herman, whose band is current at Casino Gardens, for two-week stand commencing Oct. 1 at a flat $7,000-per stanza. The buy was made at lowest figure at which Herman is working on the Coast. For his month-long booking at Ca- sino, orch is pocketing $7,000 guar- antee against 55% of gate; on strength of first week's biz, ending Sunday (28), the Herd grabbed a juicy $10,500. Casino is doing its brightest thus far this year. To facilitate the Herman booking, Barney McDevitt, Avodon manager, secured okay from Music Corp. of America to move back opening of Bob Crosby combo from Oct. 9, as specified in inked contract, to Oct. 15, and the Billy Buttcrfleld band, which precedes Herman, will hold for a total of seven weeks. Meanwhile, Larry Finley, operator of Mission Beach ballroom, San Diego, definitely refused over week- end to release Herman from con- tract which sends orch into spot for two weeks, commencing. Aug. 20 at a fiat $7,500 per week. Casino wanted to extend the crew's run, and Herman obviously wanted to stay, since his percentage deal would net him far more moola. Ca- sino has Jimmy Dorsey set to open Aug. 20, but as both bands are handled by General Artists Corp., arrangements could have been made whereby Dorsey would not go into site until Sept. 3. Dorsey, inciden- tally, wavered three weeks before deciding to play Casino for a month, as his crew, will have to double off General Service studios, where musicrew will be getting lensed in "Fabulous Dorseys" concurrent with ballroom date. Mclntyre V Interim Deal Though he has not yet signed a new contract with Cosmopolitan Records. Hal Mclntyre has recorded four sides for the company in New York pending a new deal. He made the sides on an individual salary and royalty agreement which prob- ably would, not. come under the terms of the new deal. Mclntyre pulled out of Cosmo several weeks ago after a disagree- ment over the financial end of a one-year contract he had with the company which guaranteed him 192,000 yearly. He quit when It was ■lightly more than half completed. Kearney Quits FB Jack Kearney, one-night booker at Frederick Bros, agency, has left that organization. Kearney's plans are indefinite, and his successor at FB hasn't been named yet.. He's been at that agency around six months. BM1 pte '<< SHEET Hit Tones for August (On Records) ALL THE CATS JOIN IN (••■ml) ••any Qiifa n C«l, 04M7 • l«r tUnd f D.i. MM1 - - - " „ ||D) BLUE CHAMPAGNE Jimmy Darnr D m . J77J • FraaWy Mai Ma Vk. FraoUa MaUarv-Okar, 417» • Carta Crau-Caraaat 10 COFFEE SONG, THE laafc Mam Ma|, 71*1 • Mai Gattr IDONT KNOW ENOUGH Jaaiay Daiawiaf-Vk. M-1M1 • F»**T la*-C«a. ••my Oaaa m aa Ctl. 17001 • Mill lollwn Dw. I LAUGHING ON THE OUTSIDE (Valient) Uafc »rlma Ma|. 71»1*« Mm, Sktan-W l»-IMfc MWTYN (CaaabaHFafgla) Maq Batman* 1 Vk, M-1M1 • »»**T Ua-Caa. M* ••my Oaaa m aa Ctl. 17001 • Mill lollwn Baa, INM (•Ml) DJaam Saaf»—C*l. MM4.< iMdl UpM C aat. 1171 Many Man Bit. 1M11 • TnMy Wakan-«1A US ll—i.) Kaya-Vk.10.1U* • AaaV Kaaiaal C aa. Ml Jerry WaW—laaata 9007 * Vlac a at laaai Marwry 1074 MOON OVER BROOKLYN ■• Ovy larnaare V Pat. IMOt THERE'S GOOD BLUES TONIGHT Mar** TaW-taa. 1*4 • Tammy D*nay-W 10-1141 (Cmaany) lady MMmaat-Dac. IUU • Ut Ofawa-Cal. MtTi Crra* MtCay-Vaova 711 TOO MANY IRONS IN THE FIRE Cwt M«u«y-C*W«l M9 • Mtttt lf»tfw-0*<<«*. (*Urb) ToMty PaHter—CaMfirt 4ft * 0*n|tr ttwpt-Vk* VEM VEM "•"»••' Jaaa Marana'-Aaaaa 1007 • Baa Jaia Balaam 101 WHAnA YA GONNA DO (•Ml) Hataa Nnttt-Oat. 1(*00 • Uart Prima-MaJ. 71*1 laala Armaaraag-Vk. 10-lttl • Nly OatiaraaH Caa. MS mi I tiia M m krafl ISOM • (aafcy Byraa-Caama 400 Kk> lacaa-Dlimiaa Ml* • Oaaraa tarry Caraaal 17 Oak Cata. F aar Itar' 1114 • Jakaay MaMw-WI IM* tfcaa Fl i U i Vaana 7*4 • Sway la.ytar-Mar.wy" Hark Kara Tamaa* • Jarry WaH laalra' nursvoi (laavalk) (Stavani) WHEREVER THERPS ME ■atty Hvrran-Vk. M-ltlS WHICH WAY DID MY HEARTGO? TaMy WaUan- Mailcrat) IS07S • Dkk Haarii C araaat 11 ' (Catkaa) WHO MDWFHAT LIE? Cimill ki»<l-0« 10MI • Vaa»M Ma ar aa Vk. M-IOtl FM Onta. Mwlcrafl 15071 • Harry Caat-Df. IIMI WITHOUT YOU "".r" 51 ««*> ■ini«a-C«a 114 • Patl Araai-Vk. MV0IM Um Wahaa-Mmwy M01 • Nam M n alil Mi| SOM lamty imaa-Oai. 10074 • laak CmaB-Mmk A>1 7SO Taay Martm-Marury Ml* • OhhW Martmai-AOA iOOt K.ri Oraltian-tlarli 1014 • IK« Miraall-alaaa IU00 NmI aa (atva-Faa-Amarkaa IM • FraaUa Cark-Cal.* • Ml Hff rUMt 'taaa la aa n lil i l* AH AVAH40U, 70O, Oft mi nAmauniOM uhykh mm