Variety (February 1959)

MRttBUftNY 'Wedtiea&a y, February 11, 1959 Japans a Maas Coimiry; Hostesses, Not Floor Shows, Are Nitery Draws By DAVE JAMPEL Tokyo, Feb. a. More than one foreign headliner has said in disgust after a per¬ formance in a Tokyo night dub, “They come only for the hostesses. If not for the hostesses, the night dub business here would die." Those remarks, albeit resulting from professional injury, are gen¬ erally true. Hostesses are the top draw In most Japanese clubs, caba¬ rets and even coffeeshops with the floorshows taking a back seat. As advertised, Japan is a mans coun¬ try. and most guests at public places of night entertainment, both Japanese and foreign, come stag. Ipso facto, the lure of the profes¬ sional dates. Hostesses are attached to their respective dubs and are hired by the hour at a set fee plus payment of their check and often a tip. Most night spots have areas for idle hostesses, usually around the tor, where the guest comes to select his partner for the evening. Foreigners prefer the latter procedure, but most Japanese guests will order a : hostess through the waiter. Direct contacts are also made with host¬ esses meandering around the dub for just the purpose. There is surprisingly little pres¬ sure placed on the guest tohire the services of a hostess, wife the pressure tending to be reduced at the bigger dubs. In most instances, it is the guest who makes the first approach, one of tho delicacies of decorum that takes the hostess out of the B-girl class. And it is at the larger, more elaborate dubs that a greater percentage of guests ceme with their wives or outside dates: ' ,, . , Hostesses come in all shapes and manner, from the demure to the devilish. They can be commas-, deered in a kimono if the guest requests, but usually, they are found in a Western-style revealing evening dress. . ■ In return- for their fees, these (Continued on page 20) JACK BENNY PLAQUED BY OJA AT FLA. MEET Miami Beach, Feb. 10. ' Jack Benny was cheered by 1,600 ] American Jews who gathered here on Saturday (7), from all over the United States to help launch .the 1959 campaign of the United Jew¬ ish Appeal, A guest of honor, with Israeli Ambassador Abba Eban, at the na¬ tional inaugural dinner of UJA, the comedian heard millions ’of dol¬ lars pledged to the 1959 UJA cam¬ paign for rescue, resettlement and rehabilitation of Jews in Israd ' and 25 other countries. Benny was warmly praised by] UJA'chairman Morris W. Berinstein 1 for his many services to UJA and; other Jewish and non-sectarian causes. In a special message read to the assemblage, Prime Minister Ben-Gurion of Israel praised Ben- (Continued on page 54) . GRAPEVINE CRACKLE ON MEXICAN GAMBLING The arrest* by the Mexican gov¬ ernment of 22 U.S. citizens who had been run ning a. “hot’^-crap game at the Rosarito Beach Hotel, 15 miles across the border from San Diego, further dispel the' recurrent re¬ ports about Tijuana Agua Cali- ente and Ensenada “mulling" a re¬ vival of gambling and the like. Ro¬ sarito Beach is a few miles further south of Caliente. These reports cropped up anew, coincidental with the murder of gambler Gus Greenbaum and his wife at their Phoenix (ArizJ home.. Greenbaum was formerly associ¬ ated with the Flamingo and latterly was president of the Riviera Hotel, both- in Las Vegas. Ben Goffstein . succeeded him in*the top Riviera berth. The so-called “inside" re- ' ports had it that Greenbaum was eyeing Mexico as “a new Las Ve¬ gas” and that “the boys” allegedly wanted uxme of that. Apparently, if anything of this nature figured in the Nevada gambling circles it was without the sanction of the-Mexican govern¬ ment which quite a few .years ago shut down gambling across the San Diego border. All that Tijuana offers today is weekend raring and jai-alai, ' ; ' : 1 i Broadcasting & Press I Yktins inTkat Afflme Tragedy inftY.LastWk. j A number of broadcasting figures ‘ and editorial workers were among * the 65 passengers on the illfated American Airlines flight last week (3) which crashed off La Guardla • Airport, N.-Y. Beulah Zachary, producer of the J ‘‘Kokin, Fran and Ollie” tv pro- ■ gram .was one of the victims. .She ■] was on her way to Gotham to work ] out a revival of the show which went off the air two years ago. Miss Zachary, a former school- 1 j teacher, made her home in Chicago. [ She previously was a. Broadway stage manager. Also killed in the crash was S, Harris Shevelsen, .42, former man* i aging editor of Coronet and former editor of Pageant Magazine. He re- ceVly had bqeomd editorial'direc¬ tor of Madison Avenue Magazine. One of the survivors was Edward Gottlieb, 49, of Edward Gottlieb A Associates, public relations firm. < He suffered broken legs and other injuries. . Doctors, hope for his - full recovery. Gottlieb, before or- ■ [ganizing his own public relations > [outfit, was with the Carl' Byoir i public relations concern, where he , had headed up the magazine sec- , tion and radio department at vari- , ous times. Several churchmen Identified with religious broadcasting also _(Continued on page 54) World, American, N. Y., Premieres In City Center’s : Subsidized Spring Repertory Subscription Order Form Enclosed find check for $ O One Year Please send VAEIETY for □ Two Years O Three Years (Please Print Name) City...Zone.... State. Regular Subscription Rates One Year—$15.00 Two Years—$20.00 Three Years—$39.00 Canada and Foreign—$1 Additional Per Year 154 West 45th Street I^MilETT In New York 36. N. Y. Washington, Feb. 10. Bigtime mobsters, frequently with political and labor connec¬ tions, have muscled in bn the coin machine industry in ever-increas¬ ing numbers, the Senate rackets committee charged today (Tues.). Result, Chairman John L.> Mc¬ Clellan (D., Ark.) said* is that nearer every area ’ of .nation has seen efforts by., the and.erworid to exert a strangleholdsom-tiie lucra¬ tive business of' placing, coin ma¬ chines, mainly jukeboxes, / ; Committee investigator Arthur Kaplan, leadoff .witness for the hearings, said ‘too matter where you go, you find people with*crim¬ inal records and rackets connec¬ tions” in the business.- In some big cities, legithhate businessmen have thrown up their hands and bowed out because of the unsav- • (Continued on page 64) France May Tax Resident Yanks Foreign executives of the Amer¬ ican picture companies, along with other overseas American indus¬ tries, which pay their key person- nel in dollars, are faring a some¬ what rude awakening under Gen. DeGaulle’s “new” France. He wants expatriates to pay taxes; if they don’t pay Uncle Sam, for reasons of being “foreign” residents, then the French government threatens to step up its taxation campaign. “Paying" taxes in . France in times past has been on a -musical comedy catch - as - catch - can basis. However, the new DeGaulle re¬ gime is “more earnest.” Seems to have particular eye on the Amer¬ ican expatriates working in France and earning., dollar income, taxable ^either in the U. S. or abroad. ED StnilVAN PROWLS EUROPE FORTY SHOW Madrid, Ffeb. 3. ' Television must emulate film in¬ dustry treks to foreign locations and give video viewers a change of scenery. Point was made by Ed Sullivan who stopped off in Ma¬ drid en route to join his produc¬ tion uniL. in Portugal to shoot a walk-on . with Gina Lollobrigida, Marisa Pa van, King Vidor and producer Ted Richmond all foot- marked inside Solomon’s harem for a “Solomon and Sheba” seg¬ ment Sullivan will telecast later in the year. Location tele filmin g in foreign lands has proved successful after pioneering hertzian hops by the Hopes and. Sullivans, he maintains, and looks for a sharp increase in lensing junkets abroad this year. Sullivan is bringing his Portugal show to-the Estoril Carnival which takes place the end of next week, but shooting time for. the entire (Continued on page 56) , CUBA OKAYS ‘CASINO’: POWELL ROLLS IN MAR. . . Hollywood, Feb. 10. Fidel Castro’s Cuban Govern¬ ment has given 20th-Fox producer- director Dick Powell the greenlight to shoot his film, “Casino," in! Havana. < Powell had planned to lens his pic there, when the revolutionists overthrew Fulgencio Batista. In light of the developments he asked the U. S. State Dept, what course to follow, and was advised in view of chaotic conditions there it might be best for him to go there per¬ sonally and show the new govern¬ ment his script, .Powell was mulling shooting his picture in Portugal, when he de¬ cided to call Castro personally about his venture. Castro was out of town when the' producer called, but his office advised Powell that Castro would he glad to talk to him on his return. Meanwhile, the Cuban Government gave Pdwril permission to shoot “Casino" there, and he now plans to roll it in Ha¬ vana the first or second week, in March. # Powell said ‘1 don’t want to show Cuba in a bad light, .and our script doesn’t.” He mentioned that the below-the-line, cost on his film is $1,300,000. He has not yet cast the picture. Showfolk Rap ^Neglect’ Smce Hampshire Honse Forced OwnersMpStatas Type of proxy fight that rarely makes the headlines is one involv¬ ing New York’s Hampshire House, plush Central Park South hotel which went cooperative in I94SC Fighting management for" control is a. group of tenants led by Edwin L. Weisl, prominent Wall Street attorney and board member of Paramount Pictures. Others on Weisl’s side: . Barney Balaban, president of Paramount; Texas oilman Buddy Fogelson and his wife, Greer GaTson; Arnold M. Grant, show business attorney and former president'of RKO Pictures; John Wayne, actor, and others who own apartments in the-establish¬ ment. Their beef is the familiar one heard from show businessites and others who have switched from the status as “guest" to “owner” as residential buildings in Manhattan changed from hotel to co-op basis! They 'say the service has bogged down, management has become neglectful and they have been the ones neglected. For one, Weisl, who occupies a top duplex, says the roof leaks. Other charges: Carpets are torn; draperies are soiled; the television (Continued on page 69) New York City Center’s second spring season of Americap opera (financed by Ford Foundation grants) will include ■ Gian - Carlo Menotti’s “Maria Golovin.” This is the work that David Merrick pre¬ sented in the fall at the Martin Beck and closed after five perform¬ ances, though critical notices were good. It had earlier been mounted with NBC funds at the, Brussels World’s Fair, Jules Rude! chief of the 55th Street opera regime, has designated “Golovin" for opening night (March 30) of the spring Season. Rudel investigated many possi¬ bilities for the second season. Among those f ound .either not suit¬ able or too complicated for the facilities- available were “Th«- Golden Apple,” with a score by the late John Latouche whose “Ballad of Baby Doe," a hit of the first Ford spring season will he re¬ peated. . ‘ Center 1959 spring repertory will Include: . . ' “Six Characters in Search of an Anther," music by Hugo Weisgall, . adaptation after . Pirandello by .Denis Johnston, __ . “The Scarf," premiered last summer at Spoleto, Italy. By Led Hoiby. (One-acter). “Wuthering Heights," by Callisle Floyd (whose “Susannah” holds over in repertory for third year) Sante Fe Opera Assn, first mounted this Bronte adaptation, “The Triumph of-St. Joan." This. is Norman Dello Joio’s one-acter, “The Trial at Rouen” Under new title. It was done on NBC-TV in April, 1956. “Street Scene," a work of the late Kurt Weill will be revived: 1 '“The D evil udDiMel TIFebster "; based on the story andMm of same * name, in opera adaptation of Doug¬ las Moore. ~ .. “He Who Gets Slapped” An¬ dreyev’s art'play of 35 years ago has been made into lyric drama by Robert Ward and Bernard Stam- bler. performed at the Columbia U. opera workshop previously, but this is a first pro production. “The Medium." One-acter by MenottL Repeating.'■' ' .‘*Regtoa” by Marc Blitzstdn, ret; ■ vived last spring to tig response, also repeating. HAL SCOTT NEW AD MGR. OF'DAH.IVARffiTT Hal Scott is taking ovei;. as.Ad¬ vertising Manager of Daily Variety, succeeding- Charles Ger- laeh Jr., who is leaving after 24 years to enter the real estate bus-, iness in Albuquerque. Scott, who-has been in the. ad¬ vertising department of Daily Variety for the past 10 years, as- sumes his. new duties April 1. 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