Variety (July 1958)

54 VAUDEVILLE fsKiitETf Wednesday, July 23, 1958 Midways At Fairs: Gyp ’n’ Part H of an Exploration Into the Great Plunder Practiced On the Fairgrounds of America How do agricultural fairs make themselves part of the conniving that separates their local citizens from their money with dispatch, if not neatness? A carnival cannot be very profitable without a sched¬ ule of fairs. That is where the big money is, during the long period from about mid-July through Oc- . tober and later* Before. mid-July, the carnival would be playing engagements for the volunteer or paid firemen’s or¬ ganizations* Moose, Elks or other groups, with varying degrees of fi¬ nancial success. It is when the route of fairs commences that the money starts to pour in, given the right weather. There are many states and many localities which forbid the exhibi¬ tion of carnivals for a period be¬ fore and after “Fair Time.” This is the legally imposed “shutout,” aimed at protecting the carnival from competition, with a resultant positive effect upon the revenues derived by the fairs through their sponsorship of carnivals. . Fairs are. managed by officials known as secretaries. The over¬ whelming majority of them are up¬ standing citizens with a stake in the community- that varies with their status both as symbols , of the annual autumnal classics and their individual character and rat¬ ing. Many of them are men of wealth or influence, or both. Al¬ though several are highly regarded as showmen,, only a bare- minimum By LEONARD TRAUBE j can be considered as falling within the amusement trough. The plain fact is, that most fairs need but a few months of prepara¬ tion before their gates are opened, for the time-honored renewals. The average fair secretary, would need other employment to round out his livelihood^-witli the exception of those full-time dr part-time secre¬ taries with private incomes or large businesses. The average fair secretary does not get rich in the conducting of a fair* NICK LUCAS and HIS TOWNAIRES I Now Appearing BAL TABERIN Lake Tahoe Tlinr Angest 4 Management: WILLIAM MORRIS AGENCY Secretary As Mr. Big | The fair might have a large board of directors or be operated by the state, or both; it might be a large or small county fair; but it is the fair secretary w r ho conducts the actual operation, with author¬ ity to engage in negotiations for exhibits, to signature : contracts, and the like. A fair secretary, no matter how honest, will make such a good contract, from the. view of his enterprise, ttiat.it will have a built-in boomerang. He will want to affix his signature to a “good contract” regardless, for, should he make one that 'favors the carnival, the results as to gyp games will often be exactly the same as if the contract were drawn up in the fair’s favor. If the fair secretary Is not hon¬ est, or if he is not a competent negotiator, the boomerang Will amount to a bomb. Bidding for the Boodle Iff When fairs first began, to realize that their annual classiques repre¬ sented “big money” for. carnivals; they created or Were caused to Create a system of “bidding” on the part, of the cavalcades for the right to appear at the fairgrounds. It is not clear how this: originated, although a matter of history that the. major carnivals preferred the bidding process because in this way they could win . out over their less financially endowed rivals — and the rivalry for the acquisition of agricultural fair “dates” has always been extremely heated. . Carnivals — large, extra-large, gigantic and even some of the .tiny, dilapidated rag-bags which dot the nation—vied for the right to play the fairs of their choice, baised on a “route” of reasonable dimensions that could be traversed without too many costly and time-consUming ■‘long jumps” by railroad or motor. Preferably, this would be the same route and at the. same periods season after season; at places where the carnival people “know” the towns, are familiar with their mores and habits, and. especially familiar with the moods of those in power, whether, the powers- that-be of the fair itself or the city fathers, or both. To achieve these scheduling and Watch for August 3rd ED SULLIVAN SHOW MS-TV (3rd Return Engagement) Thanks At DOBRITCH • GEneva 8-493? 301 Moonache Ave., Mobnache, N. J: The DEEP RIVER BOYS Starring HARRY DOUGLASS Opening lOtli International Toot currently CHINA THEATRE Stockkotm, Sweden Direction: WILLIAM MORRIS AGENCY . Pars. Mgr^ ED KIRKEBY |ii iii ii iiiiiui ii iiiii hi ii in m mu ii iiiii miiniinrn contractual aims, the carnival showman was and is disposed to pay high for . the privilege. Hav¬ ing bid more than he can normally afford, and gafued his contract, he now begins = ekamine more scientifically than before how he can make the , most of his “rash¬ ness.” He ha^put Up. a large de¬ posit upon acceptance of his bid. The balance will come later, more especially , during Fair Week, when the money is “in hand.” The carnival impresario already has spent several weeks after the close of his season in a study of his itinerary, or the possible and potential itinerary, for .the follow¬ ing season; By November or De¬ cember, When the carnival has been snoozing in its barn or winter quarters for some weeks since be¬ ing brought home for hibernation, the show’s owner and his imme¬ diate suhordinates will commence a whirlwind tour of another sort. This is the “convention circuit.” ‘Guilt By Associations’ These are the. conclaves held once a year by each state that maintains an association of agri- cultural fairs, and alrhost all states have them. It is here that the secretaries of fairs are met once again, not only, by the carnival owners but by a . long roster of other showmen and talent agencies with varipus kinds of attractions to peddle — circus acts, tv-film- nit ery names, outdoor musical re¬ vues, auto-races, fireworks, “thrill” or daredevil shows, and suchlike. It is here that the wining and the dining take place in rather ex¬ travagant array, new. friends, made, old friendships sealed. It is here that many contracts are officialized either by. the instrument of a writ¬ ten contract, a shake : of the hand, or an “understanding.” Some fair secretaries may sign contracts, at state association meet¬ ings, but most must report back to tlielr principals as to the availabili¬ ties and the negotiations, if any, entered into. These principals, or board of directors, will take the formality of approving the con¬ tract already signatured that has been Subject to their approval; or officialize “a shake of the hand” or an “understanding” into the more desirable form of a written instrument. " Fierce Civic Rivalry for Conveiife Louisville, July 22. Town is perking up with convention biz, total of 314 held in 1957 attracted 1^2,146 . persons who spent nearly $13,000,000 ac¬ cording to Lewis Tingley Jr., manager of the Louisville Chamber of Commerce convention division. This year an anticipated 155,- 000 visitors to some 300 conventions, will spend an estimated $13*- 000,000. Some large groups are signed up for a date in 1963, name¬ ly Credit Union National Assn,, while Tingley has another large group tentatively, signed for 1957. New Fairgrounds, with its enormous acreage: under roof,, drew 8,684 persons last month for the National Square Dance Conven¬ tion. Because competish for the lucrative convention trade is so fierce, Tingley and drumbeaters from other cities sign up groups years ahead wherever possible. Sheds Down to $100 At Side; forag e May Rise Newark. July 22. The Empire Theatre on Wash¬ ington St., long a burlesque show¬ case but dark since February, 1957, when the courts upheld a munici¬ pal ordinance banning that fonn of entertainment, was sold last week at a sheriffs sale for $100 to Wal¬ lace R. Chandler Jr.; repping the Fidelity Union Trust Co. Fidelity, which holds a $43,363 mortgage on the property, will also assume tax arrears of. $14,299.. It’s anticipated that the theatre will be razed in'the near future' to make way for a. garage to be built -by the Newark Parking Authority. Site is only a few. blocks from the heart of the city’s downtown shop¬ ping area: Built around the. turn of the cen¬ tury by the. Miner family (of Miner’s Bowery fame), the Empire originally housed Broadway . hits. Back in the ’30s it was taken over by I. Hirst Enterprises, which operated it under a hurley policy until the municipal crackdown. Cafe 4e Paris, N.Y., In More Difficulties At the Cafe de Paris, there was difficulty one night last week When both .the dining room and kitchen help refused to work until some hack pay was forthcoming, ancLthe American- Guild of Variety Artists asked for a bond before giving per¬ mission fo rthe acts to go on. The money was raised but the show was delayed about 90 minutes. How long that nitery will continue is pyoblematical. . Alan Freed Enterprises Inc., a subsidiary operated by the WABC (N. Y.) disk jockey, last week filed a voluntary petition in bankruptcy in N. Y. Federal Court listing $51,- 985 in liabilities and no assets. Jack Hooke, Freed's manager, is listed as the president of the cor¬ poration. The largest creditor is Shaw Artists Bureau, which plotted the recent tour of Freed’s rock ’n’ roller, with $26,644 owed them. Freed himself is listed as being owed $15,000* and his at¬ torney of many years, M. Warren Troob, Is set down for $400. : . Alan Freed Enterprises was or¬ ganized shortly before Freed went on the tour with a rock ’n’ roll show: The trip ended disastrous¬ ly and three of the last four dates had to be cancelled because town fathers objected to invasion by rock V rollers. : The petition in bankruptcy is presumably designed to rid the corporation of obligations in¬ curred by the layout’s folderod. The Shaw agency booked it. The petitioning company is only one facet of Freed’s operations. Not involved in the bankruptcy pro¬ ceedings are his tv and radio earn¬ ings and his publishing houses of which Hooke is head, his personal property including realty holdings, and earnings from his show on WABD. Freed has been: a controversial figure in music and entertainment circles. Following the r&r inci¬ dent in B oston, Freed resigned from WINS, saying the station didn’t make a statement in his fa¬ vor during his Hub difficulties. He signed shortly thereafter with WABC. However, before his. inking of the WABC pact, Freed had been a consistent. headliner at the Para¬ mount Theatres in New York and Brooklyn. These houses are owned by AB-PT, which also owns WABC. Shortly alter his pact with WABC; Freed signed to open it the Fox, Brooklyn, a rival of the Paramount there. It’s understood that with his legal difficulties out of town, the Paramount Theatres wanted to lay low for a while on Freed, and had booked Dick Clark for Brooklyn, but which since has been cancelled. Freed has a 10- day booking at the Fox starting Aug. 29. Thus, while being em¬ ployed at WABC, he’s providing competition to the parent com¬ pany’s theatres with his Fox date. a rock ’n' roll show at Boston Arena on May 3, is represented by Paul T. Smith, prominent crim¬ inal lawyer. : : Freed was first indicted by- a Suffolk County grand jury under an anti-anarchy statute. Later, a second bill charged the New York dee jay with inciting a riot as a result of 15 persons being injured following his “Big Beat” show Freed Trial la Sept Boston, July 22. A September trial is foreseen for disk jokey Alan Freed here, it was disclosed by the office of Dist. Atty. Garrett H. Byrne yesterday (Mon.). / Freed, under local Indictment for allegedly touching off a riot at Ak’s Harry Fowler Takes Post With Denver Arena Omaha, July 22. Harry Fowler, manager of the Ak-Sar-Ben Coliseum Corp. the past .19 years. last week resigned, to take charge of Lyle Wright’s Denver Arena Corp. With the Ak-Sar-Ben org here buying out the ice equipment from the Coliseum Corp., J. J. Isaacson will take over management of the winter activities, which include annual showings of “Ice Capades.” Bruce Clark, skating pro, will be Isaacson’s ice director with Glenn Trump assuming the publicity chores. GLASON'S PROFESSIONAL COMEDY MATERIAL for all .Theatricals "W» Service the Stars'* Big T emporary SpecialAll 31 Gas Flies far SIS, Plus 01,00 Postaga Feral em tut ta. U H r S40 • 3 Paredy Beaks, Par Bk. ... SIS a • 4 Blackeut Beaks, Par tk. .. $33 • • MlnstraV . Butfgat _ .... SIS • Haw ta Mastar the Ceremonies S3 gar Copy Na C.O.D's ... .... "Always OptT ■ILLY GCASON MS W. S4Hi SU N.Y.C„ It Circle 7-113S (WI TEACH EMCEEING an* COMEDY) (Lot a RoaJ Professional Train You) RAYROMJUttE aid CLARE DISCOVER ME . . . roy fromer, boy nebechal I magician, comedian; cartoonist, pup* I pats and stuff. Nat as good laaklng I as Shari Lewis. 1 Hotels, Clubs, TV, Wakes ... ROY FROMER. 23 William* Ave. Jersey City, N. J. HI >43*3 | CAB CALLOWAY Reoamlog SPORTIN' LIFE in "PORGY AND BESS" v for a Series of Sammer Stock Engagement* Mgt. BILL MITTLER, 1419 Broadway. New York The Amazing Stars of "WHAT'S ON YOUR MIND" Lucille and Eddie ROBERTS Appearing thre Aegeit 10th GENERAL VON STAUFFEN HOTEL, Weisbadee. Germoey Juyt : .Concluded: VAL PARNELL'S Saturday NightSpectacular. Mgt. M.C.A. r---:- . i T; a ri Ir ■yjjj isim ii jr.T£• t ,r«;