Variety (April 1956)

82 PS&iEfr Wednesday, April 18, 1956 VARIETY BILLS WEEK OF APRIL IS Numerals in connection with bills below indicate opening day of show whether full or split week Letter In parentheses indicates'circuit: (I) Independent; (L) Loew; (M) Moss; (P) Paramount; <R> RKO; (S) Stoll; <T) Tivoli; <W; Warner NEW YORK CITY Music Hall (P) 17 Rockettes Corps de Ballet Choral Ensemble Larry Griswold J Lnngee Palace (P) 17 Jay Marshall Teddy Hale Doris & Robert A St D Wong Frank Park Bob Clifford Kilmer Manila ttans CHICAGO Regal (P) 20 Buddy Johnson Ore Ella Johnson Coasters Mickey & Sylvia Zephyrs S & J Russell AUSTRALIA MELBOURNE Tivoli (T) 23 Adcle Inge B Kayes & D Faye Jock Powell Reg Redcllffe Rili-Aruso Lawman & Robins Romano & Maureen Barry Rugless Robert O’Donnell Roslyn Dunbar Lamb St Rahlen Barbara Howe Reg Park Joe Wliitehouse Wim De Jong Geoff Thorne Helen Pluker • Dorothy Hickey PERTH Malesty's (T) 23 Bill Finch Billy Banks 3 Gypsys Brox & Myrna Vitch & Partner Neal & Newton Joe Church Romaine St Claire Jenny Howard Alain Diagora Red Moore Ken Littlewood Frank Ward Nola Molloy J's’p'n'e McCo'm'k SYDNEY Tivoli <T) 23 Hite Sc Stanley Frank Marlowe Billy Russell Salici Puppets J St D Barker M St E Rose Laycock & Maureen Stuffy Bryant Gordon Chater Darryl Stewart Tei-ry Scanlon June Salter BRITAIN BIRMINGHAM Hippodrome (M) 16 Ruby Murray Francois & Zandra Murray St Maidie Peter Dulay Johnny Stewart Les Marthys Audrey Jeans Tommy Fields Ravlc Sc Babs BLACKPOOL Palace (I) 16 Ray Burns Bill McGuffle George Lacy Falcons Kendor Bros. Allen Sc Albee Sis Billy Burdon Lanes BRIGHTON Hippodrome (M) 16 Dorothy Squires Georgette S Sc M Harrison Rochelle Trio Keppel & Betty B Sc B Adams Dargie Quar. Kemble Sc Christine BRIXTON Empress <I> 16 Phyllis Dixcy Devine & King Ford Sc Sheen Johnny Silver Ciro Models CARDIFF New (M) U Jat Herod Fredye Marshall S Sc P Kaye Medock„ Sc Marlowe Walthon Sc Dorraine J & J Bentley CHISWICK Empire (M) 16 Billy Cotton Ore Jimmy Wheeler M & B Winters Jeanne & Jon Pat Rosa Renoir St Gave DERBY Hippodrome (M) 16 Robert Earl Jack Storey Gaunt Bros. Allen Modley Joe Crosbie M St M Norris Kenways Robertis FINSBURY PARK Empire (M) 16 Vic Oliver Dennis Bros. Peggy Thompson Elizabeth Sc Collins Arrol Sc Meadows Woodward St Cooper Vanda Vale GLASGOW _ Empire (M) 16 Dickie Valentine Horler Twins 3 Monarchs L Sharpe St Iris Walton St O’Rourke Jimmy Nichol Malllnis HANLEY Royal (M) 16 Hylda Baker Kordas Gitsom Sisters McKinnon Sisters Duo Russmar P & S Sherey Rosinas Jimmy 'French LEEDS Empire (M) 16 Slim Whitman Renee Dymott O'Neil Sc Haig Anita Grossetto Sc Gason Martin Grainger Co. Jackie Ross LIVERPOOL Empire (M) 16 Don Cornell Me Andrews St Mills Jack Radcliffe Marcies Sid Plummer Brauns Wright & Marlon LONDON Metropolitan (I) 16 James Young Jack Hudson D & S Stephens Frank Murphy Marie Cunningham Joan Calmont Jimmy Kennedy May McAvo.v Bridie Gallaher Moxon Young Co. 3 Dehl Palladium (M) 16 Howard Keel Nicholas Bros. Richiardl Junior Harry Worth Curibas E Sc J Slack • King Bros. George Carden Dcrs Tommy Trinder MANCHESTER Hippodrome (M) 16 Virgil Julie NEWCASTLE Empire (M) 16 Ken Dodd Edorics Betty Miller St Co. Botandos Dennis Spicer Carlson & Tosca Golding Sc Stuart Max Geldray PORTSMOUTH Royal (M) 16 Davies Sc Lee Margie Castle James Davie John Castle Joy Marlowe Joe Baldwin Dickie Dawson 2 Peters SUNDERLAND Empire (M) 16 Smith Bros. Jimmy Paige Crochet Rrazilianos Dunn St Grant Les Michelles Buster Flddess Girl Friends NEW YORK CITY Arete’s Irving Grossman Carolyn Carpenter Mai Lawrence Van Hornes Polka Dots H Roth Ore Beverly Bobby Short Gypsy Markoff Blue Angel Ronnie Graham Teddy Reno Ellen Hanley Maxine Andrews Joey Carter Bon Sofr Patricia Bright Jimmy Komack Anita Ellis Hazel Webster Jimmie Danleli Cameo Connie Anderson Stan Freo Roger Steele Chardae Tibor Rakossy Beca Babai Anny Kapitanny Hotel Plaza Vincente Escudero Carmita Garcia Felipe Lanza Jose Barrera Teresita Osta Violetta Diaz Chinin De Triana Mario Escuderio Pablo Miguel Ted Straeter Ore Mark Monte Ore Hotel Pierre Lilo Augie Sc Margo Alan Logan Ore Stanley Melba Ore Hotel Roosevelt Guy Lombardo Ore Hotel Statler T & J Dorsey Ore Hotel Taft Vincent Lopez Ore Hotel St. Regis Genevieve Milt Shaw Ore Ray Bari Ore Latin Quarter Mae West Tito Coral Chiquita & Johnson Wazzan Tr Harold & Lola Yasmina Jo Lombardi Ore B Harlowe' Ore Le Ruban Bleu Wesson & Polk Norman Paris 3 Old Roumanian Sadie Banks Alan Drake Joe Laporte Ore D’Aquila Ore Black Orchid Felicia Sanders Irwin Corey Tommy Gumina Blue Angel Calypso Caravan" Luis Torrens J. McCleverty Calypso Band Carl McCleverty Marianne Blue Note Ray McKinley Pia Beck Chez Pare# Tony Martin Alan King Chez Paree Ad’r’b's Brian *Farnon Ore Cloister inn Pat Morari 4 Lurlean Hunter Chateau Madrid Malagon Sisters Paco Amaya Curro Amaya Diego Amaya Pancho Ore Ralph Font Copacabana Red Buttons Eileen Barton Chic Layne Teddie Vincent Mickey Calin Grace Genteel Michael Durso Ore Frank Marti Oro , Downstairs Julius Monk June Erickson Jack Fletcher Dody Goodman Gerry Matthews Embers Carmen Cavallaro No. 1 Fifth Ave Bob Downey Harold Fonville Hot'l H'ntv Hudson Three Suns Joan Bishop Hotel New Yorker ^1 - Eddie Layton ' Red Carpet Dave Rogers Red Benson Two Guitars' Olga Karpis Eugene Sc Sonia Andrei Hamshay Misha Usdanoff Koysta Poliansky Ore Versailles Bill Shirley Betty Benee Pat Turner Carmen Alvarez Larry Daniels Cook & Corey Neilo Adams Buff Shurr Richard Tone Eddie Lawrence Sharon Shore Salvatore Gioe Ore Panchito Ore Viennese Lantern Vicky Autier Sirat Fred Spielman Ernest Schoen Ore Harold Sandler Paul Mann Village Barn Frank Keenan Leonardo Sc Anita Sophie Parker Larry McMahon Duke Marvin Ore Danny Davis Ore Waldorf-Astoria Ray Bolger Nat Brandwynne Ore Mischa Borr Ore Village Vanguard Hartig & Mazursky Ada Moore C Williams Trio CHICAGO Dick Marx Johnny Frigo Conrad Hilton "Icearama" Neff & Voss Shirley Linde Michael Meehan • Dave Park Boy Foy Bergman & Mimi Tune Tattlers Boulevar-Dcars St Boulevar-Dons F. Masters Ore London House Calvin Jackson 4 Palmer House Betty Madigan Johnny Puleo Sc Gang F. Szony & Patty Charlie Fisk Ore LOS ANGELES Ambassador Hotel Ames Bros. Russ Morgan Ore Bar of Music Hank Penny Sue Thompson Zulch & Noble Beverly Hilton Horace Heidt Revue Biltmore Hotel Sue Carson Wilder Bros. (3) Shyrehos (3) Hal Derwin Ore Clro's Pearl Bailey Bill Bailey Dick Stabile Ore Bobby Ramos Ore Crescendo Billy Eckstine Dick West Tony Martinez Macayo LiU St. Cyr Isabella Campo Frankie D’Amore Dante Varela Trio Mocambo “Be My Guest" Rev Rubin Moreno Trio Paul Hebert Ore Moulin Rouge Bob Williams Romanos Bros. W. W. Stevens Ffolliott Charlton Eddie O’Neal Ore Statler Hotel Dorothy Lamour Birk Twins Eddy Bergman Ore LAS VEGAS Desert Inn Johnnie Ray Paul Gilbert Art Johnson Donn Arden Dncrs Carlton Hayes Ore El Cortez Stuart Allen Diane Lefti Betty Gorham Sherman Hayes Ore El Rancho Vegas Joe E. Lewis Lili St. Cyr • Marlon Colby Ted Fio Rito Ore Flamingo Margaret Whiting Dick Contino Ron Fletcher Dncrs L. Basil Ore Golden Nugget Eddie Bush Jig Adams Band Sons of Golden West New Frontier 'Hooray For Life" Jack Carson Cass Daley Leo Diamond Giselle Szony Sc Cabots Dorben Dncrs Garwood Van Ore Riviera Ben Blue Patti Moore Ben Lessy Dorben Dncrs Ray Sinatra Ore Sahara Lillian Roch K. Dunham Co. Saharem Dancers Cee Davidson Ore Sands Marguerite Piazza Joey Bishop Beachcombers Jack Bunch Copa Girls A. Morelli Ore Showboat Joaquin Garey Gia Mo Garr Nelson Showboat Gifls Mike Werner Ore Sliver Slipper Sally Rand Lee & Princess Barbara McNair Hank Henry Sparky Kaye 3 Dolls Cliff Ferre Denise Bennett J. Cavanaugh Slipperettes G. Redman Ore Thunderblrd Allan Jones Roger Ray Meg Brown Sonny Howard Cordolins Roby Sc Dell Barney Rawlings Thunderblrd Dncrs A1 Jahns Ore MIAMI-MIAMI BEACH Algiers hotel I Dick Sterling I Nina St Renea Arne Barnett Ore Balmoral Hotel Enrica Sc Novello Rudy Baum Ore Wayne Carmichael ' i Ba / of Music Bill Jordan Gina Valente Hal Fisher Beth Challis Harvey Bell r red Thompson Casablanca Louise Brown Mickey Manners Bob Regent Ore Eden Roc Sonny Howard Roberta Sherwood Capella Sc Patricia Mai Malkin Ore Chuey Reyes Ore Fontainebleau . Lenny Herman Ora Dlahan Carrojd Rowan & Martin The Duanqs Sacasas Ore Lucerne Jay Jayson The Tip Toppers Luke Salem Jacques Donnet Ore „ L«on M. Eddie's Can-Can Girls Flash O'Farrell Marian Wllkcns Denise Atoma Nautilus Gene Baylos Antone Sc Ina Syd Stanley Ore Monte Carlo Hotel Martin Sc Maio Leonard Young Ben Novack Ore Murray Franklin's Roberta Sherwood Danny Rogers Murray Franklin Van Smith Ernie DiLorenzo Place Plgalle Mary Mack Pat Halladay Wlck-Wacks (4) Joo Cash Kaye Gayle Roney Plaza Eadle St Rack Calo Sc Musette Noro Morales Ore San Souci Hotel Mickl Mario Bert Stone Freddy Calo Ore Saxony Hotel Jose Cortes Ore Johnny Silvers Ore Seville Chavez Ore Fletcher Peck 3 Sea Isle Hotel Harry Harden Ore Pasty Abbott Vanity Fair .Malagon Sisters Pearl Williams Alicia Marquez Sallie Blair Noro Morales Ore Versailles Hotel Alan Gale Billy Shepard Buddy Clayton A J Sc Ron Teddy King Ore 5 O'clock Louise Angel Tommy Raft H. S. Gump Parisian Rev Vagabonds Club The Vagabonds (4: The Dunhills The Rhythmattes Babe Pier Frank Linale Ore Woody Woodbury HAVANA Tropicana Gloria Sc Rolando Xiomara Alfaro Miguel Angel Ortiz S Suarez Orq A Romeu Orq Montmartre Lola Flores Casino Playa Orq Fajardo Orq Sans Souci Benny Moore Ceferino Barios Sonia Calero Nancy Lopez Victor Alvarez Ramon Iglesias Rivero Ore Ballet It Ortega Ore Naclonal Parislen Ore Cuban Ore RENO Mapes Skyroom Novclites Matty Malneck Eve Marley Ben Richards Skylets Eddie Fitzpatrick Riverside P?tti Page Jay Lawrence Starlets (8) Bill Clifford Ore Hookers & Hookah Continued from page 2 one who bravely ventures there, j Local color and low-priced fun tops European cities. . Three top hotels are the Uaddan, which offers dancing and a wide- open gambling casino, the Grand Hotel with distractions of a bar and television (piped out of the American air base at Wheelus), and the Del Mehari. Uaddan, rumored partially owned by Lucky Luciano, charges $8 for a double with bath, a little below the inter¬ national standard price for room. Lots of service. Eating out is discouraged, with almost all the restaurants “off limits” to the American air force because of sanitary reasons, and the hotels doing most of the tour¬ ist dining business. Some of those independents run by the remnants of the Italian colony, who number 40,000 in the town’s population, are popular and acceptable, though —Le Lanterne, Trois Chefs and Romagna, splitting the biz. For “authentic local color,” most hotels provide a “genuine Arabian dinner.” That at the Victoria Hotel, popular eatery, ^features Kus-Kus (messed up rice and chicken served from a community pot, eaten with the fingers, with no individual plates or utensils— “world's most economical way to serve chicken,” one tourist com¬ mented). Dessert is usually dried fruit followed with tea filled with shelled peanuts or thick Turkish coffee. After dinner entertain¬ ment is the hookah, water vessel with pipe for smoking weakened - opium mixture flavored mainly of the brass and rubber pipe. Night life is split two ways—for the many Americans, the service clubs offer a competitive spirit of gambling, with big play nightly by the GIs at the club-controlled crap and 21-tables, and at the slot ma¬ chines. One enlisted men’s club has 14 slots, two crap tables and two 21-tables, all doing big busi¬ ness. Only thing the clubs don’t provide is girls—and most -of the fellows do their own shopping for that commodity on the economy. Other part of the night life is at the downtown cafes, which offer dancing-drinking-dating, with eu¬ phemistic call girls all over the place. Top draw is the Oriental Cafe which has a 70c entrance tab, imported German and Danish beer as well as mixed drinks, a souped- up sexy shimmy show, and plenty of B-girls on the prowl. Catering to the international set, the girls speak a variety of tongues, Arabic, Italian, French, English, and—for the recent move- in of the Russian delegation to Tripoli, apparently—some Russian. Many of the girls are lookers. All are expert with the sad story. Floorshow features an assort¬ ment of Moslem nautch dancers, greatest local draw being Kaukab el Shark, a Tunisian brownette with a built-in wiggle. Act is ac¬ companied on native homemade in¬ struments, horizontal harp, native drams, lute, violin. Mokambo, the Oriental's chief competitor, features about the same type of show. Boys who get bored with the local talent can dip into the USO shows provided at the base., but the girls there are only for looking, not for touching. “Best buy- in Tripoli,” com¬ mented one bored homesick air¬ man, “is a one-way ticket back to | civilization.” Tint TV Races Into ‘the Black’ a Continued from page 1 were only a few among the 1,500 who' turned out for the Chi civic hoopla (in which Mayor Richard J. Daley participated) and for this pioneering in “new frontiers of en¬ lightenment and entertainment” who were aware that: (1) The NBC-RCA blueprint has already been finalized whereby all of the network’s owned-and-oper- ated tv station, in rapid succession, will follow the WNBQ lead and convert all its local live program¬ ming to tint. Thus WRCA-TV, the New York flagship, soon becomes No. 2 on the tint parade. Like WNBQ there will be a minimum of six hours daily of local tinters (plus,.of course, all the stepped-up RCA’s Largesse Chicago, April 17. All the complete" blueprints and detailed mass production knowhow developed by RCA for color tv receivers are now being made available for im¬ mediate use by other tv set manufacturers, Frank Folsom, RCA president, disclosed here yesterday (Mon.) at a sym¬ posium conducted for most of the nation’s tv manufacturing companies. “Our color tv manufactur¬ ing facilities are open to your inspection,” Folsom told the rival manufacturing outfits. “In our opinion this action will prove to be as important to color tv as the first- table- model was to black-and- white.” network color programming). After New York comes Los Angeles then Philadelphia, Washington and the brace of UHF o&o’s in Buffalo and New Britain, Conn. In all in¬ stances black-and-white equip¬ ment will be tossed into the dis¬ card, for use only in the event of feeding the parent network local- originating b&w shows. “Tint for Everybody’ (2) With the opening of the fall season, NBC-TV expands its pris¬ matic programming to a full hour every night in the week (with two and a half hours of tint stanzas on the nights When the 90-minute spectaculars are on). (3) With its “something in tint for everybody at any time” form¬ ula formalized, the revelation of an imminent RCA tube price re¬ duction to bring the cost of home receivers in the $500 area (with RCA distributors briefed on the “big push” here yesterday) is ex¬ pected to spur set sales to take it out of the “thousands” and into the “millions” on buyer accept¬ ance. Fresh on' top of this comes the report that Philco is prepping a $350 tint receiver. One thing thus becomes crystal clear: it’s no longer RCA vs. the field in getting color off the ground. They’re all coming in. The announcement last week of General Electric’s pur¬ chase of the RCA color tube, the revelation that Motorola was all set to go—here were accompany¬ ing facets to WNBQ’s “world pre¬ miere” as the first all-tint station to clinch the sooner-fhan-we-ex- pected era of tint for everyone. More Incentive ' (4) ABC President Robert Kint- ner gave the. color push some add¬ ed incentives when he announced to affiliates at the NARTB conven¬ tion that the network was ready to abandon its aloofness toward tint with a $10,000,000 reserve fund al¬ ready earmarked for ’57, satisfied that sets will be moving in earnest. (5) The NARTB convention ex¬ hibits were taken off the mono¬ chrome shelf for the first time; practically everything, topped by RCA’s equipment showpieces, bore the color stamp. Delegates to the NARTB con- ventipn took their cue from Chi’s polychromatic promotion with evidence that more and more broadcasters are ready to hop abroad the color bandwagon. Thus far there are some 30 tv stations transmitting local programming. It’s NBC estimate that 93% of all the tv homes in the nation are al¬ ready in reach of network color¬ casts. The chain of resistance—from manufacturers, dealers, advertis¬ ers, viewers—-thus at last seems to have been 1 broken. And just as the Chicago area relailers took ad¬ vantage of WNBQ’s all-color con¬ version to spark new interest , in jthe medium, it will be ■ intensified manyfold when New York WRC\- TV’s goes all color and ditto for Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Washington. As prexy Sarnoff put it at Sunday's WNBQ’s cere¬ monies, “what has been the priv¬ ilege of the few will soon be stand¬ ard fare.” Ho Wall Streeter -- ’ Continued from pace 1 — — wonderful and satisfying could happen to anyone. “When people talk about me be¬ ing such an able business man, it’s an insult,” Rodgers continued “But insult or compliment, there’s nothing to it. I have no idea how the legend started, but it’s been’ repeated over and over. It’s one of those idiotic myths, which nobody takes the trouble to check. “I haven’t all the details of the Rodgers and Hammerstein opera¬ tions at my finger tips. I have no idea about most of the business matters. We have an able, efficient staff, and I leave such matters to them. I'd be silly not to. That’s what they’re for. “I can’t tell you how much Bill Johnson gets as ebstar of our ‘Pipe Dream.’ I haven’t any idea. I hap¬ pen to know a little about Helen Traubel's contract for the same show, but I’m vague about the ex¬ act terms. I couldn’t tell you how much we grossed last week and I rarely do know such matters. “I’m supposed to be the alert, on-the-job business man of the firm. I go to the office for short periods two or three times a week. Fine business practice that is. When there are decisions to be made, they're made by our lawyer, Howard Reinheimer; our general manager, Morrie Jacobs; my secre- tary, Lillian Leff, or the appropri¬ ate other members of- the staff. If they take up a problem with me, I listen and then. tell them, ‘All right, you attend to-it.’” The composer-producer dismisses the fact that he’s a member of .the board of directors' of Magna Pro¬ ductions, which recently made the Todd-AO film edition of “Okla¬ homa,” the musical folkplay that launched his fabulously successful partnership with Hammerstein. “I’ve never attended a meeting,” he remarks. “I wouldn’t be caught dead at one.” As for the commonly-held belief that he’s a well-informed operator in the general business field, with a canny touch in Wall Street, Rodgers insists, "“I haven’t the faintest idea what General Motors is selling at^-or General Electric or any other stock. My wife knows. She’s good at that sort of thing. I’m not.” He also pooh-poohs the frequent¬ ly-heard statement that he dresses with the care and conservatism of a banker. “Clothes *>ore me,” he asserts. “When I need clothes I ask Lillian to order me some. She phones Brooks Brothers and has them send me some shirts, or socks, or a suit—whatever it is I need. She and they know my size and the rather plain kind I prefer. There’s nothing fancy or particular about it.” Although Rodgers is only 53, his professional career goes back 36 years, so he regards himself as a real old-timer. His first show was “Poor Little Ritz Girl,” produced in 1920, when he was only 17 years old; It was a hit, and he’s had a remarkable record of hits in the ensuing years of intense activity. The composer has no special theory about the fact that his work has kept abreast of and even slightly ahead of the ever-changing times and styles. ‘.‘It’s a matter of attitude, I suppose,” he ventures. After all the music he’s written and the shows he’s done, lie’s be¬ ginning to feel like a veteran, lie admits. -“I guess I’m becoming pompous, but I think I’ve found out a few of the answers, and maybe I can help somebody else a little. I’ve been through a good deal—there have been difficult times, and re¬ cently I’ve known pain and have stared death in the face. “I’ve gotten to know myself. I know who I am and what I am. What he Is, he reiterates, is not a business man or Wall Street brand fashion plate. Rodgers’ conception of himself is a musical man of the theatre, and ah intensely grateful one.