Variety (March 1957)

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VACtoEVILUB Wednesday, March 27, 1957 Minsky Studying Burlesk in N.Y. On 2-a-Day, latler-Day Policy What’s left of the burlesque in¬ dustry may yet reap some benefit* out of the abortive try at that old theatrical form recently at the Co¬ lumbia (nee Public) Theatre, on New York’s lower east side. Ac¬ cording to Harold. Minsky, who had operated Minsky’s,' Newark, until local legislation forced a shutdown, the way has been cleared for other operators to come in to New York. The precedent, he says already has been established by use of the term “burlesque” on the marquee and in advertising, and others are free to attempt a hurley policy. Currently, Minsky is only mull¬ ing the situation. *He’s presently occupied with his unit, “Minsky Goes to Paris,” which winds up today (Wed.) at the Dunes Hotel, Las Vegas. Deal is presently on for the unit to hit the^ Chase Hotel, St. Louis, April >0, fo be. followed by the Latin Casino, Philadelphia, Another deal is in the works for a try at the Moulin Rouge, Paris, but details haven’t been ironed out as yet. Minsky says that should he come Into New York, he would operate on. a two-a-day policy rather than on a grind basis, and he would try for a modern type of burlesque such as lie’s, been exhibiting in Las ^ Vegas. He feels that the old Co- “ lumbia Wheel type of show has long been passe. That,, he says, was one of the mistakes made by the operators of the recent N. Y. attempt. Before taking any spot in New York, Minsky is awaiting, results of an action before the U. S. Supreme Court which seeks to in¬ validate the Newark legislation on the ground that it is a violation of freedom of expression. Should the Supreme Court go along with that view, then burlesque thektres can be opened anywhere. Paris’ Coquatrix Due In Rruno Coquatrix, owner of the Olympia Theatre in Paris, arrives In New York Sunday (31) to hud¬ dle with agents ‘and bookers on lining up American talent for his house. He’ll remain in Gotham for one week. Bill Tabbert has been spotted for a pair at Statler Hotels. Singer is tapped for the Cleveland out¬ let May 20 and the Detroit Ipn June 3 on deals by Jimmy Grady. Studio Club, Mt. Venion, Relights With ,New Ops Studio Club, at Mount Vernon, N. Y., which has been shuttered since September after a 27-year operation, has new owner-oper¬ ators, Peter Pirrone, formerly with William Morris, Agency, and Stan¬ ley: Smith, a civilian. They’ll in¬ augurate a policy of dancing and floor talent tomorrow (Thurs.). Joel Shaw orch will play and Anita De Palma, an American- born singer out. of Mexico City, will make her metropolitan area debut. One show nightly and two over weekends is contemplated. Harry Lawrence agented and Gale Brownlee is handling the .pub¬ licity. King in the Middle (East); AGVA Sore at^aud For Holding Over Amin Bros. Dallas, March 26, Jackie Bright, national adminis^ trator of American Guild of Variety Artists, here last week to address the local membership, said he would file, an official protest vif the Saudi Arabian Embassy in Washington to King Ibn Saud of Saudi Arabia for alleged deten¬ tion in the latter’s country of the Amin Bros., risley act. Bright told Variety he would send a copy of his protest to the U. S. State Dept., and also place King Saud on AGVA’s unfair list. AGVA chief, stated that the Amins, touring tlie Middle East, had been “specially requested” by King Saud to continue their act in his country. This kept the acro¬ batic duo out of previous bookings at the Dallas Sports, Boat & Va¬ cation Show, March 22-31, at State Fair Park, with a succeeding date at Houston’s sports show. Bright said the Texas dates were set by William Morris Agency, at $1,500 per week, and the Amin Bros, had received much advance publicity from the sports shows. If arbitration results, Bright said, the Amin Bros, would, of course, be held blameless. Sarattac Lake By Happy Benway Saranac .Lake, March 26, St. Patrick’s Day was celebrated here with , a iampacked party and entertainment directed and pro¬ duced- by Jack Norton. The “We The ; Pati«||^s” committee With Alonzo Tick as chairman, assisted by Marion McLaughlin, Mitzie White, Frank Healy, Alphonse Losocuito, Louis Blanco and Fran¬ cis Tranks, left nothing undone to make this blowout one of the best. A feature was the drunk bit put on by Norton. A buffet lunch 'was followed, by dancing. Birthday greetings - to Francis Healy, vaudevillian of yesteryear and singing waiter' of the ’9Gs. Since his arrival here his progress is of special mention. , After- a three-month try at work¬ ing ■ for the Florida Paramount Theatres, Ruth Cockrill, ex-Rogers- ite from Charlotte, N. C., is back on the staff of the Will Rogers Re¬ search Lab, Eddie Ballantine, orch leader with Don McNeill's Breakfast Club, and Johnny Garwood, ^annquncer of WBNZ, have started a fund drive to defray the expenses, of the Saranac Lake Bobsled Club to the Olympic tryouts.' Ballantine is a -member of the Bobsled Club. First donation ($400) -was received from the Don McNeill gang. Write to iliose who are ill. Vienna Stirred By Hilton Setup Vienna, March 19. Presidential elections, Hungarian revolution or the Suez Canal crisis .are nothing in comparison with talk about the Hilton project here. Never before was the city so .much into two camps since the Vienna Hilton Co. came out with plans to build a modern hotel in the City Park here. While it seem¬ ed at first that it would become a strictly political issue, the Peoples Party as conservatives being for it. and the Socialists against, there are now splits in those two coali¬ tion parties. Hilton intends to tear, down the famous old .Huebner restaurant and cafe dansant. This would be of minor Importance, but opponents of the plan intend to prove that it would mean a considerable re¬ duction of space for the thousands of people, who stroll in the City Park during the summer. Both parties now have agreed to leave it to the city council which decides for or against issuing li¬ censes. Inside Stuff-Vaudeyille Billy Eckstein, old time composer-pianist, at 68 is back playing at the large Chateau Ste. Rose, north of .Montreal, where he spent il'years before. “I’m starting my .second ^doiibler-decade there,” he says. He left the midtown Clover Cafe in January, after 11 months there, be¬ cause it went non-unipn. Eckstein gives shows and plays for dancing, with three acts and an orch added weekends. Howard Wynness works with him on marimbaphone, as he did tor! most of the previous 21 j^ears/ “Willie” Eckstein, as a teenager, played .on Broadway at. 14 and toured five years' as “The Infant PadCre^yski/’ He had 26 j 0 -songs published and recorded and one, in collab with Oene Buck, in “siiegfield Follies” of 1919; and still cuts the odd one for RCA-Victor in^ Canada. His latest, “Dear Old Lady,” was' written about a 1.03-year-old woman who lives on the Montreal street where he was born. He sang it to her this week on her birthday. Machito’s date to play the Palace Theatre, N.Y., Apz’il 11, has been called off because of failure to come to ternis with Local 802 of the American Federation of Musicians. House had-wanted to install the Machito band^onstage during a period when the house orch headed by Myron Roman would have been vacationing: JJnion stated that it pre¬ ferred to send fill-ins during the vacation period, so that essentially the same crew would be in the house. Upder these circumstances, house felt.that it would be too expensive to pay both orchs, and the deal was called off. - The American Guild of Variety Artists is getting a lot of unfavorable attention in-the Wilkes Bafre (Pa.) Independent. Tom Moran, a re¬ porter on that sheet, had hoped to do- a feature on clowns by* donning greasepaint during a Polack Bros. Circus stand for the benefit of the local Shriners. Permission was granted by Ray Sinclair, head clowii of the outfit, but Dewey Barto, bead of the AGVA outdoor division, nixed the proposition, threatening to pull the entire show if Moran- walked into the ring. Jackie. iGleason, who’s*^frj'ing the circus idea on Saturday (30), has lined up a show which includes Emmett Kelly, Ufius, Elly * Ardelty, Dieter Tasso, Takeo Usui, Clausen’s Bears.' Circus acu.. were put in by A1 Dobritch.’“Up ahead (29) on CBS-TV, Ed Murrow does a person- to-person with Felix Adler, dean of clowns, and Mrs. Adler, from New York’s Belvedere Hotel. o • Vande, Cafe Dates ESTELLE SL0AN America's Foremost ^ Dancing Star - O''. r > Hi ^ aH ‘ New .York Jan Murray booked for the Mapes, Reno, June 27 . . . Carl Brissoii pacted for the Milwaukee Athletic Club, Milwaukee, Oct. 5. Spot, like ‘the Detroit Athletic Club, will experiment with name talent. . , Arlene De Marco, of the . De Marco Slatera, singling at the Copa, Pittsburgh, May 20 . . . Ricky Lane tapped for the Balinese Room, Galveston, July 4. Juliette Greco starts a stand at the Hotel Waldorf-Astoria April 8 . . . Barbara McNair has signed With the William Morris Agency . . . "Vic Damone set for the Town & Country Club, Brooklyn, June 11 . . . Steve Lawrence preems at the Casino Royal, Washington, April 8 . . . Merry Macs to the Cipango Club, Dallas, April 23 . . , Dick Contlno spotted for the Shoreham Hotel, Washington, April 23 as a maestro . . . Matt Dennis Trio opens at the Byline Room April 2 as replacement for vacationing Mabel Mercer . ., Car¬ olyn Carpenter and Steve Karman newcomers to the Velvet Club, N. Y. . . . Corbett Monica into the Three Rivers. Syracuse, April 28 ... Keyboard Bltery trying a vaude policy with Gns 'Van (current) as the opening headliner. Chicago Jimmy Conlln a Dorothy Ryan booked for August fair dates of Barnes & Curruthers . . . Jerry Lester into Congress Hotel, St. Louis, for two sets April 15 . . . Nomads into Decatur Lounge, De¬ catur, Ill., for two frames April 1 . ... Teddl King inked for Mr. Kelly’s on a ‘ four-weeker June 4 . . . Eydlo Gorme into Palmer Housd Aug. 8 for four frames*. . . Nick Noble bows into the Chanti¬ cleer, Baltimore, April 4 for a week . , . Debbie ie Diplomats into Club Crescendo, Houston, for two weeks April 10 . . . Casino Cafe, brings m new four-week bill April 23 to include Billy Falbo and Heller Sc Helene. " Dallas Comedienne Patricia Wilson due April 4 at Statler-Hilton for two frames; The Sportsmen follow April 18;'^Jo8d Greco Sc Co. inked for May 2 and Myron Cohen suc¬ ceeds May 16 . . . Lillian Roth re¬ turns April 19 to Hotel Adolphus’ Century Room . , . Pat Moreho at* Club Marquis . . . Jeah Shannon and the Brooka Bros, are dated for the Colony Club April 29. Exotic Evelyn West comes In May 20 to temporaril y rep lace Candy Barr, cabaret’s standby, who will fill a date at the Silver Slipper, Las Ve¬ gas . . . Caprice CJiantal, after a split week at Cipango Club, due a week at King’s -Club, where Eddie Vames returns April 1 for two weeks . . . Jack Morton Produc¬ tions, Washington, D, C., talent agency, opened a local branch with Robert Peterson Jr. asmianager .,. The Doodlers, local vocal trio, wax¬ ed four sides for Lin Records, lo¬ cal indie . . . Rusty Brown enlarg¬ ing his local talent firm and chang¬ ing-name to Allied Artists of Amer¬ ica. Hollywood Alex^der, pianist at Rand’s Steak Ranch, holds over for six weeks . . . Pete Dimaggi<» and Joe Cozo handed a new contract at the Plymouth House . . . Comic Lenny Brace back at the Crescendo. 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I ■ 1 VARIETY $al€h-"lt*$ qvlta a foot—4li« sesty pac*' asd givc-thgm-all porformoneo but C«b Ib bio Iwntliap rolo ai leader of the freniied Rech—it'i the breeiieat itochage araand.” CAB CALLOWAY Currently 13th Week COTTON CLUB, Miami Beach M«t. ilLL MimER. U19 8re^«, Hew Y#rk I