Variety (Sep 1946)

Wednesday, September 11, 1946 VAVDBVILUB BS VaudeviDe Wiggles Its Corny Ears In Moscow; Ham s Ham the World Over (.The JoUowino is a reprint of a copyrighted New York Times re- view of a typical Moseovo vaude- ville show). 3y OKKVI MIDDLETON i Moscow, Aug. 28! In the'United Slates they say that vaudeville is dead. That is. not quite li ne in the Soviet Union, A show now at the vaudeville the- atre in the 'Hemiitage Amu.sement Park, has a nostalgic quality for any New Yorker, for it has something o£ the.flavor of thoae which used to hit the Audubon theatre on upper Broadway in Manhattan when '"The Perils of Pauline'' was thrilling resi- dents of Washington Heights. ■ The vaudeville-like circus is truly iiilefhational.. This Correspondent's Russian is still .sketchy but remarks oMhe master of ceremonies, a tubby Julie letlow in a fuzzy green suit,' J;ad about the same content of corn S1.S those of his American follows. He even haS'a wigele of the eyebrow.' tliat is common to all masters of ceremonies when they are introduc- ing a pretty singer . . The show^ differed from its Ameri- . t;an counterparts in its strong pa- ItTiotic content. A inale singer Vi/ith. a Willie Howard dinner jacket sang Hi most exckKsivily of the war, nO\y Red Army soldiers liked a coyntry ■ like Bulgaria or Poland, which they visited during the recent cenflicti but loved the Soviet Union best and of how they thought about thfrir loved ones when far away. This number, Which- brought the '■^flu.'JC down—no difficult; task, .since i( was rather a shaky Open air the- atre-^was followed by a monologi.st. Die.sRed in a sharp tweed suit and stiakeskin shoes, the actor went off into a 10-minute routine which I first thought was-Joe Cook's old one about why he would not imitate four Hawaiians. It turned out to be a long, moving trjoute to Soviet wo- manhood. These women, he said; were wives, mothers, lovers and worker.s-^not necessarily ,all at the same time, he pointed out^and, as my companion said, "What ' could be fairer than that'.'" ' ■ A parade was followed in turn by two acrobatic acts in succession. One was very good, far better than simi- lar stuff at the Palace in the good old days, but the second was only fair. Perhaps Ihi.i critic's judgment of the second wi<s. wnbalanced by a woman's decision to dress herself as a leopard and a man's getup as an American Indian. He pursued her with a large slick wilh a crescent at the lop and alter 10 minutes finally bore her off, caught in the crescent. The last act I saw was a mellow woman who sang sentimental songs of the Kate Smithi variety, except that each had its inevitable patriotic content; She is yrorking, she said, on' a translation of . some American ballads and ! sus;.gested "Erankie and .Johnny." ■ • : ^'x S»m Gumpertz Retires Atlantic City,\Sept. 10. Samuel Gumpertz, lor the past nine years general manager of Hamid's Million Dollar pier, retired last Thursday ^5). He said he wiU go to his home at Sarosota, Fla., for the Winter but plans to visit Atlantic City often in season. He has made his home here in the-penthouse of the Hotel Sena- tor. Gumpertz for years was identi- fied with circuses and is one of the best known names in the business. He resigned as vice-pres. and gen- eral manager of Ringlmg Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Circus in 1937 to become identified with the pier when George Hamid took it over. Florida Bistros Tuning Up For Boffest Season Despite Nix On Gambling; Up Talent Budgets SOMETHING NEW HAS BEEN ADDED! JACK SHEA THE ORIGINAL ONE AND ONLY ''Mad Auctioneer" Statler Hotel BUFFALO. N. Y. From Septamber 16lh until the 29th Blade Show Skates On as Iceland, N. Y., Ops Bow to Union Dispute between American Guild of 'Variety Artists and operators of Iceland Restaurant, N. Y., was set- tled in the nick to have union give performers the green light to open •in the new blade show, which preemed Sunday night (8). On pre-: vious day; Dave Fox, head of N. Y. Local of ACVA, called a meeting of the cast at the union headquarters, advising them that they may not be permitted to op'en the following riight unle.<;s Abe Goldstein and ISFpel Lee, operators, adjusted several con- troversial matters with the union. Earlier in the week Babe Vorhis, blade performer, had applied to union for advice on new contract. Gal said she was doing several specialties, in addition to line work, and had been offered contract for $100* weekly. Union ruled that she was a principal and should get $150. When she reported same to the ops, latter are reported to have dismissed' her, Willi AGVA demanding that she be given two weeks' .'salary at the .$150 figure because of having re- Inearsed beyond probationary period. AGVA also threatened to take the matter to the State Labor Board on stance that skater had been dis- missed for i,inion activities, a . viola- tion . of the Wagner act. ■ Union also demanded additional bond money posted since $500 of amount up had been paid off on claim to another .^kater. Matter was finally adju.sted to satr isfaction of the . u.i.iion, with Miss Vorhis continued .in show at new scale, new bond posted, for current show and an additional bond for previous show, .".Derby On Ice." which is being sent out o'n a tour ,of lair dates. Hildegarde's Frisco Click Proves Natives Will Buy Top Shows San Francisco, Sept. 10. Hildegarde's local click, still the talk Of the iBitery business here, has made an impact on the local hotel busine.'^s as nothing has dorie in years. The answer is that the; com- petition to the Hotel Mark Hopkins, 'where She,.did four sooko weeks,'sud- denly discovered there is beaucoup. moola in them 'thar cover charges. Hildegarde came in at $6,000 a week for tl)e mpnlh, and apparently cost the hotel nothing since it rifibre than made back the '$24,000 in the form- of couverts. Meantime,' what has 'happened is that 'the competitive FairriiOht Hotel Called in Dorothy Draper frOra Jlew York to redecorate its grill; lured away Joe Roichman, long a local fave at the Mark, to officiate at the Fairmont in.stead; has engaged local society newshawk Bob Patterson ("ChoUy Francisco" on the S, P. Examiner) to go on the air with an '.'In Old San Francisco" 15-minute show, to institutionally plug the Fair- mont; and will fortify Reichman with the Hartmans and another name act. Kitty Carli.sle was dickered for, but nixed it in order to remain east with her groom, Moss Hart. The Mark Hopkins, in.turn, to Off- Set the new opposition, is bringing in Carmen Cavallero's orchestra in November, when the,,*. .Fairmont's new room preems. and also engaged Ted and Dorothy Friend—new local Mr. & Mrs. breakfast chatterers—for institutional radio bally.: Ernie Heck- sher's band plugs the. WaitV u Cayallero opens. Dean Martin Walks Out On Agent Pact With Perry Device of firing an . agent, started two years ago when Dick Haymes Qismissed General Artists Corp. to go with the William Morris agency; looks like it will become a standard practice when a performer wants to switch pfflces. Latest to use this gimmick is Deaii Martin, who has .lent a .notice to Lew Perry, his agent, notifying him that the deal is off, ■ ■ Martin, meanwhile, has .switched to Abnfer J. Gre.':hler, who's teamt I ing hirn with Jerry Lewis to fprrti-.a comedy team. Perry is expected to take the squabble to. the American Guild of Variety Artists. ; By LABBT SOLLOWAY Miami, Sept. 10. With the lushest season in history , .-ilill many weeks away, Florida nit;- ; ery operators are already encounter- ing headaches. With civic groups launching campaigns against gambl- ing; local unit of American Federa- tion of Musicians readying increased salary and rating demands; .scarcity of name acts with upping of bids by rival bistros; the,new Miami tax on patrons (25 cents per head) plus ap- pointment of a militant city man- ager; the more optimistic of the ops, however, insist that , aside from. I Miami tax and the musickers de- mands, it's the usual presea.son [flurry before, the influx'of touri.sts I brings the "business as usual" sign. I First blasts came last week when the Miami Daily News charged that outside' mobstexs frorn Cleveiand,, Detroit and Chicago were invading.' the area, buying hotels and niteries fhrough"frohts" in order' to get in on the expected. heavy .take. Story I stated the FBI was carefully watch-l; ing such moves and would take ac- l lion with local enforc'emen): units- it' 'a war between local and out of town . factions developed. Local syndicate lis rumored to be uncertain as to I future prospects. Horse books on . I the Beach have been closed down I all summer with prospects of re- puming for the season doubtful at the moment, due to conflicting per- -sonalities' among the^ group. It is certain,', however, that if those who: That Noise You Hear Is Carrie Nation Doing Flipflops in Her Grave ■ : ,. Hollywood, Sept. 10. . Clover Club,' once devoted to the game of chance and to the peddling of alcoholic libations, opened with a. new policy under the raahagement of Sherry &r Paul, . Who moved out of ■their old joint, the Key Club, where the boys and gals OH Radio Row used to durik their tonsils. The new I have been running the setiip in the". Clover Club is dry—a rion'-alcoholic nitery where the wanderers from the booze-emporia wander in for break- fast without benefit of old J. Q. Barleycorn. The ham-and-eggery puts on a stage show, from midnight pn, with Muriel Gaines, sepia chanteuse, the Four Notes, a dusky trio and other entertainers putting on their stuff while the breakfasters break .their, fasts. There is no dancing, and 'the tables are co'vered by old fashioned kitchen table cloths. Of course, there are setups for marathon drinkers who carry their own on the hip, as in the days of the Noble Experiment. The proprietors hope to serve eggs without laying one. ! past do not resume this season, no one v'.fC will. ■■ ' I Returmers Active j Miami Beach Junior Chamber of ! Commerce appointed a "committee" I f Continued on page 55) Latin Casino, Philadelphia, will open after a summer layoff, Sept. 16 with bill topped by Buddy Lester. JOE VILANE DANCE STYLJSr Glenn Rendezvous NEWPORT, KY. JlKt-: (iEO. LiltniF Carnegie Mall, New York Dir.: .lOK J^oJlywoodi 'lotographers STAGE - SCREEN - RADIO ARTISTS NEW YORK STUDIO 154 West 57th Street DfUGHTFUtiy AIR-CONDniON£D ' PHONE CIRCLE 7-3505 BOSTON STUDIO - LENOX HOTEL Phone (or Appointment: Kenmorc 5-300 BILL JOHNSON RECENTLY FEATURED IN BROADWAY MUSICAL Hit THE DAY BEFORE SPRING" "Bill Johnson . . . I's the best romantic'foorjfone I have heord in o/ongi Jong time." JOHN CHAPMAN. Daily News. Just Completed LOEWS STATE, NEW YORK Week August 22nd "A Solid Hit" said VARIETY. Aug. 28th. ''Crowd Couldn't Get Enough" VARIETY, Aug. 28th. .' Bill Jofinsor), baritone with plenty : pOr- : sonalify and good pipes practically sews things up in fpllowup. Lad's ingratiating, ■informal mien, gets tliem from walk on and holds them all the way. Teeing off with "God's Green World" he follows with "To Each His Own" (as a salute to the pic) and, for change of pace gives out with robust ■ rendition of "Prologue to Pagliacci" to es- tablish him a.o sol'td__tiit. Comes back for a verbal tribute to the late Jerome Kern lopped by vocal of the composer's "The Way - You ItOok Tonight" for more salvos. sold BILLBOARD, Aug. 31st. BILLBOARD, Aug. 31st. It Was Bill Johnson's man-sized bary which broke the ice. Hi.s opener, God'.? Green Earth was a nice warmer-upper, and his second half. To Each Hit Oujn, cut the plate. Came back with a lorfg-haired version of Pagliacci and segued into a rhythm beat on samf> tune. Called back and this time it was the Way Yffu, Look Tonifiht. Crouid couldn't yet e«ou((h and singer was forced to beg oft. MaiiagcmMt: A !■ S LYONS NEW voa,K BOSTON