Variety (January 1956)

470 LEGITIMATE Golden Jubilee P^A&IETY 50th Anniversary Wednesday, January 4, 1958 Something of Which th* Shotc W arid Is Proud: The Actors Fund of America By WALTER VINCENT ( President, Actors Fund of America) ■ D-.M-.g the 53 yeas spsized by :VIs p^b'Acatiy^. the tot. gh-z-.dtumble theztri.cz' profession; zrizh t:s high ftnanaz', •uncenzinip. '■ zs sorely bee~\ 2 'r.'Ct>'r c^.d krr2d>ier environ'1 .eitt bevzzse cf the Actors Fund of Am-rri.rs, whose hbe^zl spirit i:; trezzing its gzeszs cs pre¬ cisely thzt -‘ight well be emu lured :y other chztez^ of phi'. 5 m?,.-> phy The following 7ew.ir.iscence is -culled fro0 a piece written ;r~ Variety 2 dec?-. ego — Ed ■. 2 June 15. 1382. there assembled Whatever Happened To Those Ziegfeld Girls? If vou encounter a still good Betty MacDonald, who also went looking woman who confides that ; W*W the subSect she used to be in musical comedy, ! . Of entertainers who Participated . in t^e vanous editions of the famed don’t take her gray hair as an ex, “p0nies>f* some were already percuse to ask if she was a Ziegfeld . formers of renown — per Fannie Gml She mav not be too com Brice, Sophie Tucker, Harriet Hoc-, piimemed because that's too far , tor, Norma Terris, Vivienne Segal. back, dearie. On the other hand ! J Sobel had a lot of biographical , , . „ . , , . „ dope on the grads, as of the start she may ..brag about it. But let her of 1940 Some of thC3e items may take the lead. ' still pong in the memory chambers How far back it now is may be ■ of the old stagedoor johns. deduced from the fact that Ber; Reported Historian Sobel: nara Sobel. last publicity director ■ Mary Alice Rice went from the of Florenz Ziegfeld. was indulging musical stage to the legitimate and . . „ appeared in a prominent part in m ■■reminiscences in these pages ..J£ide and prejudice." under date of Jan. 3. 1940. rie . In the producjng field. Peggv was sayin*. then, that some of the Fea astonished Broadwav bv pre^ ner Comas ' MarioS senting the Phelan misieai, S^IM»Si M.Sfl”r»d,mm; ’ *«?? ^e^f^Hammerstein “ Dove and that the most promising Air b> Kern and Hammerstem. o i the latter-dav crop was Paulette ! Dorothy Dickerson was a prLma Goddard. He also recalled Mildred donna with the Berlin Grand Opera Lunnay. Claudia Dell, Suzanne Co. and appeared recently with the Fleming. Gladys Glad. Peggy Fears. ( Chicago Opera Co. Dorothy Wegman <who wrote a Mary Lewis was one of the stars novel about Ziegfeld babes » and |of the Metropolitan Opera. \ Helen Morgan became, after her sensational success in “Show Boat.” the star of “Sweet Adeline” and one of the outstanding musical and nightclub favorites of the era. Caryl Bergman, understudv to in the office of the union square Old Theatrical Friendship* Broke on the Passions of the Actors’ Strike In S**#.*" th* rep re venting3 the ; 1919 — But One Steadfast Admirer Eloquently Defended Cohan principal theatres in New York and | In Wailack’s Theatre. at Broadway and 13th street, a number of the most noted members of the theatri¬ cal profession, intent on per¬ fecting an or¬ ganization to be known as the Actors Fund of Amer¬ ica. For years there had been a n ever :•> . creasing de¬ mand for such an organiza¬ tion. Prior to 2i5ay 11. 1332. the indigent of the theatrical profession often became public charges. Why w ere the peo¬ ple oz the stage so impecunious even in times of plenty? The only rea¬ son which held in those years and holds today is the precariousness of their walk in life — the short pe¬ riod of the year when they have in¬ come and the long terms of idle¬ ness. Waller Vincent green plot became inadequate ar.d ir. 1917 the Trustees purchased a large plot covering a hill ;n pic¬ turesque Kens: co. within a short distance c: the city. Tne monu¬ ment. a huge obelisk, erected by 67: fber 1 3.* ! 9427 domira: es'tne mm mediate country side. A noteworthy fact regarding tr.e Actors Fund is tnat in all ::.s vears Tr.ese included Lester Walla ck 1332-34. H C. Miner. 1334-35. A M Palmer. 1335-97. Louts Aldrich. 1 397-1 Sul: A; Harman, :9M-34 ar.y one else, goes credit for much oi the work that led to tne establishment cf the first Actcrs Fund Home. This was located a; Wes: New Brighton, Staten Island, ar.d «as opened with imposing cer¬ emonies in 1932. It was not until i 1323 tnat the Fund decided to move tr.e Home to Engle wood. New Jer¬ sey Tr.e change was considered a good one. the big “white house on the hill” be mg commodious and the grounds in connection with it be.r.g extensive. In^ a way there er v>.tr. the house, which was or.ee tre property oi Hetty Green. Various additions have been made to the property since it was taaen over. The whole air of the r:~se is nomelike. Its rooms are pleasant and comfortable — there is r. ttring stiff or stilted about them. T.rere is nothing about the life a: tre Home that is in any .way ire: c-rtawry. The rules ar.d regu. incus that preva.1 in most rimes” are entirely unknown. E eryone is free to spend his or rer :.:re as he or she sees fit. Tr.e arc all are treated as ii they were guests at a country mansion — ::: suer :be> are — guests welcome to make a long. long stay, lr. many ways the Fund has been ::::_r.a:e. Tr-ere is probably no: a craritable organization in tne world tra: ca not been imposed upon at e: me time or other. This is not w. nter. boasungly. but we all feel tra: tre Fund has suffered less from dead beats” than any other we.: are body id the country. GIVING THE TI'-ANIMT ON GEORGE M. COHAN Brooklyn was held, and a prelim1 inary organization outlined. There ’ was real action at this meeting. As • a result, simultaneous benefits ' were arranged in the theatres of New York and Brooklyn to take place April 3 of the same year. Tne newspapers gave the project helpful publicity and the Other Activities This is written strictly as a solo and doesn't carry with in me opinion of any one but myself on Variety, the only theatrical paper I have ever been employed on and the paper on which I started as chief "broom” for five bucks a week some 15 years ago. That is as far as I know and as" far as 1 care, great public responded handsome Show business 15 years ago was a laugh to me. To Gypsy Rose Lee is ' screen star. stage and lv. the result being that through the sale of tickets and donations S3 6. 532 20 was realized. ... Several, meetings to discuss the permanent ’ organization of the Fund followed, the one on May ll. 1332. being fruitful in bringing about me decision that an applica¬ tion should be made at once to the New York Legislature for a char¬ ter. The act of incorporation be¬ came a lav. June 3, 1332. and one week later tne Fund held its first meeting under that law at Wallaeks Theatre. _ Founding Fathers At the meeting at WaRack’s Les¬ ter Wahac-k was elected president: A. M. Palmer, vice-president; Dan¬ iel Fronmam secretary: Theodore Mo'>. treasurer. The board of trus¬ tees for tr.e first year was made up of tne nr;t seventeen incorporators, namely: Lester Wallack. A. M. Pal¬ mer. Edwin Booth. Edward Harrigar.. Herr;. E. Abbey. William Hen¬ derson. Josemr Jc-fiferson. John F. Poole. M. H Mallorv. P. T. Barnum. Lav. rer.ee Barrett. W. J. Florence. H C. Miner. Frank 5. Crarirat:. William E Sim. Bartlev Campbell ar.d Samuel Colville. All have pa—ed away, ar.d of the 243 o. igii.al incorporators not or.e is a.r. e loua;. . Tre f.: -t executive comm.ttee named :. pa=.= upon tr.e appealfor aid v. a* composed of H. C Miner. Edward liar: man. John F Poole. W:ll.:m H. Mallow and Wil¬ liam Her.de: on v. a beriming to stand on stt-rdv leg*. Tin -urr. tre courte-;. of Ha:rirar. ar.d Hart. the Fund's head¬ er-*.. ar.ee oi tre .new Treat re .C’jmtq..-' 730 Broadway, and re rr^ined tr-re until a fire on De¬ cern. oer 2 1334. destroyed the pla;. hoc-e art; many of the earl;, record t:.e organization. Its next o:h -..-re established at 12 Uu.or S-:m.ie. East, where a free ’ ht •* ’ -oor:. was es¬ tablished i .>: thv use oi members. Evergreen to Kensico Cpyj-tr-.j-t in the minds of the trustee m tne beginning w„s tre need oi bunal plots, and in 1334 ter. h.t were purchased in Evergreen Cemetery. The "Gods Acre” wa later increased and through a subscription list started by James Gordon Bennett in tne Herald a monument was erected and the plots dedicated with impos¬ ing ceremonies on June 6. 1837. As the veai;. rolled on the Ever dav show business means everything to me. Actors are my pals now. I ov e them some jack and thej owe me some jack, but after all my pals are •actors. Today I'm a member in good standing of many clubs, but a bo've them al: l was a Friar. To¬ morrow I will not be a Friar. _ Nov to the Guts of Thi? Article George M Cohan, until this strike broke, was on a pedestal, theatrically. The oldtim ers loved him. Trey should. The newcomers admired him because the oldtimers educated him. Cohan couldn't be wrong. Cohan was a square guy. Outside of show busmess Cohan was a great actor to the mob, a smart egg to the readers of the papers which primed his picture. Of course with the layman he he actor, fellows like Jim Mark Hart. Mark Sullivan, Mathews. Brenard Dillyn, too numerous to mention, v. a? popular . But to Thor ■ntom B :.l Mac-art. Har: 7 Bulm :r. Sherrie Eddi e Foy , and others Com in was i list Cohan. W hen tne; .■ "fleshed ' aw a; n Thre e wee ns a; the pan to the avera; a a; ■ .v im a good haw! i o:m e :: the p..on? rum.: ,er was ea d_ .1 one call. 1 ir.-. t . e b: g ■V-arrel v : » a in*.-: ':C; }: w.e’TaiVt _-;r. o ' ' Geo: = •-* CLuam : t 'i : da;, r. er.t to t : Ge: man;.. He : man .■mew here e ';. ; . C-O-K Cohan they threw the mold l'j if someone put Cohan on [e showman he either went ir.g cut oz a busted face. If -re in a financial jam. Cohan's by to find and Cohan never One day just before we broke ith Germany an ex-burlesque He had seer, war service beZ-j to Plattsbmg fir a com mi s j get there Hr didn't even He was introduced. The Plattsburg and. furthermore, came back with nor.ors. And in America new. would probV> who piped a rap on Cohan. N '■ lung ago one oi the mo-t prominent members tre Vi'h.ie Rats Actors' Union died Like all the • v-u.ar Vi.n'c Rats, ne nad blown ni bankroll bei .ie the E.u Call cirne. IVr.tr. he. bumped off it -'•■-•■tor like Potter's r .eld Tho-r v. no are always -. ..tug aboil ’ Bremer P.at' voile ^ guy is alive r --r or:..;. t_ke the back alley when tr.e bankroll is : u i*at .-r.v.a But Cohan was or. tne ; Cohan paid t:.e . ndei ta.-o.-r s onl and tr.e *rv .,y was planted poor.:.; y.tb r«oma:: Catholic rite v ith his "pals" c;.ng th? mg weep stun around the bier, but with C . .nc a: the otoer end of the bill Cihi r. has stood ior murder in the past. Touches came -o oLen he used to go h-.me with a lame a:.:., lame Horn digging into the bankroll. Cohan haii a pension list almost as long as a Shubert route. BUT— The strike came along. Cu-ran. now off the -mge. retired as an actor, was a manager. The very iel. ow whom he had helped, the very fellows who cwllei him "Georgie" and bragged a rout knowing him v. hen he was achump kid. the very fellows who at -me ur another time had only Cohan between them and the morning porkc-keps. started to yell a; the top of their voices C.-.ta :. now a manager, found himself with a ciippLa ca.-t. He had sold tickets :..r a performance ar.d the people who were to give tie performance walked out oi Cohan's theatre. Cohan didn't blame ir.en, ior that. They had an obligation to keep and they kept it. They were member oi the Equity urn a mat ion and. like regular member-, they walked. But Co:wn had to give a pe;ior:;:.-.me and Cohan t> tottv HTfAWTiP I Marie Lambert is now a super Br JOHN visor of music in New York high .t -ow > xzznT Aup. 14. 19191 . j schools. stepped into the cast himself. Cohan was not up in; BOSie -Keno and; Green, origitbe part, but, like a good actor, he clowned his way : nal ziegfeld beautv. is the mother through and the result was that his show is now the ; of the talented voung stage star, most talked of one in the world. ! Mitzi Green. But the excitement was running wild. The idea ; that Cohan, an actor, one of the mob. a regular ! ^ fellow, should jump into his own show and take a i ^ . striking actor's place was preposterous. He was } Louise Andrews is the wife of promptly called a rat. a scab, a louse, a dog and < humorist Arthur ’"Bugs' * Baer, everything else one could ^hink^f. In a split-sec! Lorelle McCarver is the wife' of ond the greatest little fellow in the world turned f William Randolph Hearst. Jr. out to be the-worstegg on record, according to. this } Marie Stevens is Mrs. Billy Colbunch of “friends.” • lier Jr. B"t =« to the thinking man. Not to the friend. | Gertrude Vanderbilt is » m.m. anc Cohan has a miLion of them. Not to the striker with common sense. the very ones who are panning — . _ also had an obligation to keep. and. while not ! ,.^rg0 Nugent, now Mrs. Harvey roasting the men or women who kept theirs, he d Albert, aoes interior decorating, kept his. ! Diana Lanzetta each year stages Then came the poison. One stupid, misled, super • a complete show for a Democratic excited sap sent George a wire about Jerry-. Jerry is dead. Jerry was George’s father. Jerry was also the actor's friend during life, but a rat never even thinks of the dead or what the dead has done. A rat will dig up anything dead to consume something alive. So they dug up Jerry, to consume George. Then came the general poison. They panned George at the Lambs and George resigned. They panned him at other clubs, but his pals never thought the Friars would cut it. But they did. The Friars, the club that fairly breathed Cohan's na¬ ture. turned dark. Members who should genuflect every time they heard the name c>f Cohan, because of Irene and Cora Stephens are provvhat he did for them, cursed him. They villified prietors of The Whirling Top. East him at the Monastery, the one place Cohan should 52nd street restaurant. Another never get the “bird. " Cohan resigned the other Follies girl. Marie Marceline. works day from the Friar? and with him went a few others. : f°r them, including mis writer. And without Cohan, who is , going to lec-d the Friars? The word Cohan and the title Friar were symbolical. In clos.ng: Why pick Cohan? The only one of the mob on the other side of the fence who ever really ; did something for the actor. Why not take a slam •' at Bel&sco. A1 Woods, the Shuberts. or some of the i other eggs you are battling. Why. Cohan? Has ' Shuben a pension list? Has any of those other : birds been receiving medals for philanthropy? You could always meet George on the street and get the : "hello.” but the other saps you are battling generally ; gave you the “go-by.” , • Now that the jam is on. use your head. Plant the ' panning where it belongs. Tell the whole world Q_ ’ ; ber of the staff of R. J. Reynolds Cohan onlj did *hat Tobacco Co [ nun would do. He i club. She was formerly president of the National Democratic Wom¬ en's Club. Madeline Dunbar, now Mrs. Vic¬ tor Lehman, sings on the radio and does wonderful sketches of people or objects. Bernice Ackerman is a portrait painter. Eatery. Hoofery. Realty Anita Rice ‘Mrs. Herman YorksA conducts her own dancing school at Long Beach. N. Y. Mildred Darling, now Mrs. Ben¬ jamin Berg, sells real estate in Yonkers, N. Y. Vivian Vernon, now Mrs. James R. Cherry Jr., advertising and pro¬ motion work for a Madison Ave¬ nue dress shop. Lina Basque! te has appeared in pictures and as a vaudeville head¬ liner. , . o „ , , ■ Anastasia Riley married Mr. Zieg what you tmnk oi managers and tell them what you feld’s nephew. T. B. Buell think cf Coban & Harris as a managerial organiza [ tidn.ipiino t , • * tion. but remember. George M. Cohan was always a ! stir a ,pictur® square guy. is a square guy now. and all the panning • Educes ^ *eenanos and you birds slip along won't change a square guv's I p * makeup. As far as the managers are concerned, personally, as I've said verbally, let me state in print right j now over my monicker they can all go straight to tion as an international legit star* hed. I v. as never owned by one and never will be. most recently she won high critical and. since , this is a personal article, let me register ; praise for her work in “Mice and io my fner.ns that what I write is strictly neutral. Men." for* the legit managers or actors never gave me anytr.iug but "air.” but George M. Cohan doesn't rate tr.e stuff he's getting. In my opinion. George M. Cohan has more man¬ hood and gut? to the square inch than the entire area of all tr.ose he is sticking with and all those who a:e panning him contain. And if George M. Cohan . _ ..... . . e\er na? to run an elevator, such as he said he would cident. soon after she became a do jciore he "quits.” I'll toss the typewriter in the cinema star, sewer and go bi.c-k to my old trade— bricklaying. For a curtain speech: BE SQUARE WITH A SQUARE GUY. KEEP BATTLING, BUT BE SQUARE WITH A SQUARE GUY. Virginia Bruce is a Metro star. Claire Dodd also a picture star. Claire Luce has gained distine Frieda Mierse recently divorced Ed Wynn. June Knight has been a musical comedy and motion picture star here and in London. Dorothy Dell was killed in an ac Pauline Mason married Sheets Gailagher, Barbara Pepper is a motion pic' ture principaL