Variety (March 1959)

95 Wednesdays IVbrch 18, 1959 f'fimifri EDWIN C. MILLS Edwin Claude Mills, 77, one of the key administrators of the American Society of Composers, Authors & Publishers during its formative years and exec of other music biz organizations, died of a heart attack March 13 in Los An¬ geles. For the past several years, he had been a public relations and copyrgiht adviser on the Coast. Mills joined ASCAP in 1919, five years' after it was organized, as chairman of the administrative committee and led the Society’s fight to license the broadcast in¬ dustry for the payment of perfor¬ mance fees to the creators of mu¬ sic. He was also instrumental in getting the radio stations to pay performers, who during the 1920s worked only for the plug value of a radio show. During his early years with' ASCAP, Mills also served as chair¬ man of the Music Publishers Pro¬ tective Assn., which was also formed around 1914. He left both posts in 1919 to become president of the Radio Music Co., set up by the Carl Fischer and Leo Feist pub¬ lishing companies and the NBC network. In 1932. he returned to ASCAP as general manager, stay¬ ing for 10 years. During his early vears with ASCAP, Mills worked along with J. C. Rosenthal, the Society’s g.m. from 1915 to his death, in 1928. After leaving ASCAP in 1942, Mills joined the Songwriters Pro¬ tective Assn, (now the American Guild of Authors & Composers) as a director. He was with SPA as exec secretary for a relatively short time. Starting out as a schoolteacher, typewriter salesman and account examiner for the Panama Canal, Mills entered show business in 1911 as an operator of vaude and film theatres in the southwest. In 1916, he helped to found the Vaudeville Managers' Protective Assn. Later, E. F. Albee.' the vaude circuit operator, was in¬ strumental in getting him to head the MPPA. He is survived by his wife. LESTER YOUNG Lester Young, 49, jazz tenor sax¬ ophonist, died of a heart attack March 15 in New York. Known as '‘The Pres” among jazz buffs, he had just returned from a six-week tour of Europe. Young was a popular figure in the modern jazz school being a “regular” performer at New York’s Birdland and sundry other jazz spots around the country. He also backed many top jazz vocalists on disks and appeared with Norman Granz’s “Jazz At The -Philhar¬ monic” package. He began to make his mark on the. jazz scene in the late 1930s as a member of the Count Basie band In Kansas City. With a small group from the band. Young made some outstanding disks, most prominent of which was “Lady Be Good.” He used the nom-de-disk of “Jones Smith Inc.” on these records. Young started playing the sax at age 13 while traveling through the midwest with his father, a bandleader in a carny show. Before his breakout with Basie, Young played with King Oliver, Walter Page’s Blue Devils, Benny Moten and Fletcher Henderson. Wife and son survive. aging director of CFRB, Toronto, Canada’s largest independent radio station, died March 7 in that city. After serving in France with the Canadian Field Artillery during World War I, where he was severe¬ ly injured.' two years later, Sedg¬ wick became a chartered account¬ ant of Allen Theatres. When the latter entered partnership with. Fa¬ mous Players (Canadian), he was made general manager of the merged companies’ Eastern divi¬ sion. Sedgwick resigned to become managing director of CFRB, To¬ ronto, in 1933; was elected presi¬ dent in 1939. He was also one of the founders of the Canadian Assn, of Broadcasters in 1935 and was elected its first president. During World War II, he . was director of the New York office of the War¬ time Information Board. Survived by wife and daughter. J. MORTON HENDERSON J. Morton (Morty) Henderson, 56, veteran manager with the Harris Amusement Co. in Pittsburgh, died there March 12 after an illness of more than a year. He had been with the circuit for 32 years in a number of capacities. For a time, Henderson ran the old Duquesne Gardens, a sports arena, for the Harris outfit and was operating a nabe house, the .Liberty, for them when he suf¬ fered a stroke in early 1958. He was among the first members of the Variety Club, joining shortly • after its founding and had been ! long active in the charities of Tent No. 1. In addition to his wife and a daughter, he leaves two brothers. Harold, a salesman for Paramount in Pittsburgh, and Congressman John E. Henderson, of Cam¬ bridge, O. BOB ALLYSON Robert K. Callahan,. 27, half of , the dance team of Bob & Jane ! Allyson, died March 12 of injuries sustained after diving into the pool of the- S.S. Jerusalem on an early morning swim. He was taken to the hospital at Port-au-Prince. Haiti, where he succumbed. Callahan and his wife were mak¬ ing the Caribbean cruise as dancers and dance instructors. He decided to go for a swim, struck the side of the pool," and fractured his : vertebra. A native of. Hartford, Conn.. . Callahan was a graduate of the ! Julliard School of Music and had ! studied dancing at Ted Shawn’s ’ Jacobs Pillow, near Lee, Mass, He also taught terping at Albany schools. Wife, who was his dancing part¬ ner, and daughter survive. SAM HOOD Sam Hood, 42, one of Pitts¬ burgh’s best-known reporters as well as musician, composer, author and art critic, was killed March 10 when a runaway bus crashed into a crowd on a downtown corner. He was on his way back to the Pitts¬ burgh Press office after covering a story at the nearby Penn-Sheraton Hotel. A native North Carolinian, Hood had worked , on Press, a Scripps- Howard daily, since arriving in Pittsburgh in 1945 after working on a Harrisburg, Pa., paper. A longtime devotee of George Ber¬ nard WShaw, he wrote a book about Shaw’s biographer, Archibald Hen¬ derson, which was published, in 1949. A skilled photographer, he had an exhibition of his portrait work- last year at the Carnegie Museum. A gifted pianist and arranger, Hoodrgave a jazz concert a season ago at the Press Club. He was also the Press art critic and one of the most .controversial figures in Pitts¬ burgh art circles, his review on the Carnegie International a few months ago caused a furore. Hood leaves his parents, his wife and a 10-year-old son. HARRY SEDGWICK Harry Sedgwick, 63, who retired In January as president and man¬ RICHARD CARROLL Richard Carroll, 60, author, edi¬ tor and newspaperman, died March 11 in New York, after a long ill¬ ness. He had been editor in chief of Gold Medal Books for Fawcett i Publications, Inc., since 1954, with J an office in N. Y. ; He lived in Hollywood for some i years and wrote scenarios for sev- ieral film companies. Among his | screen plays were “Lovetime.” pro- j duced in 1934; “I Conquer the Sea.” in 1936, and “Five Came Back,” in 1939. He was co?author of the screenplays “You Can’t Fool I Your Wife” and “The Ape,” both i produced in 1940, and “Two Yanks 1 in Trinidad” and “Flight Lieuten- ! ant,” both done in 1942. He also 1 wrote scriots for radio and tv and ■ his play..“Between Husbands,” was i produced at The Lambs this year, j H ; s wife, son, daughter and brother survive. ROBERT LAMOURET Robert Lamouret, 44, veteran vaude and cafe ventriloquist, died March 16 in Ft. Lauderdale after a brief illness. He had been suffer¬ ing with diabetes, when he went into a hospital, and complications developed. Lamouret, who performed in top music halls and cabarets in Eu¬ rope. first came to the attention of U.S. vaudegoers when he was imported for a stand at the Roxy Theatre, N.Y., about 10 years ago. He had since played most of the top theatres and cafes in the U.S., as well as many television dates. Hfs major character creation was “Dudule the Duck.” His«wife; one of the Ross Sisters, and two children survive. P. Y. CHONG P. Y. Chong, 62, perhaps Hawaii’s most noted restaurant operator* died March 11 in Hono¬ lulu. He operated some 20 - res¬ taurants at one time or another. He opened Waikiki. Lau Yee Chai, a large nitery, in 1929 on $2,000 in cash and $50,000 in credit, and served as host, chef, designer,, contractor and even landscaper. But he was forced to sell out to creditors just before World War II. During the war years, he op¬ erated the “House of P.Y. Chong.” More recently he was manager of the Golden Dragon Room at the Hawaiian Village hotel, resigning becase of ill health. JOHN F. GILBERT John F. Gilbert, 64, president, director and owner of the School of Radio Technique, in New York, died March 13 in Bernardsville, N. J. A former operatic tenor, he made his debut in Italy in 1925 in Verdi’s “Ernani.” Later, he toured with the American Opera Company in the U. S.- In 1935, Gilbert joined the School of Radio Technique, which he reorganized and later acquired. With Milton Cross, opera commentator and author, he pro¬ duced the Ora Lexicon, a series of records comprising a pronouncing dictionary of musical nomenclature and terminology. His wife, son, and three sisters survive. (wife of Norman MacLeod, Of Maple Leaf Four) and a. son. PAT WOODINGS Pat Woodings, 51, actor and stage producer, died recently in Leeds, Eng. He entered show biz as a child, and appeared in plays by Ivor Novello and Noel Coward. Before the . war he toured many countries as Jim Hawkins in “Treasure Island,” later going into radio. Survived by his wife, Valerie Skardon, an actress. MARCUS BLOOM Marcus Bloom, 50, manager of the Sunset Drive-in Theatre, Regina, Sask., since 1951, died in Toronto March 6 while on vaca¬ tion. Surviving are three children, two brothers and five sisters. Arnold and Murray Bercovich, operators of the Broadway Thea¬ tre, Regina, are nephews. producers have n&CTed in the right direction and they have the support of the theatreowners. The po6ling arrangement, or ! some other scheme aimed at the 1 same objective, would come at an i important time. It’s now a matter J of public knowledge that Holly- j wood generally is suffering a major ! migraine because too few stars are ; available, and their salary and par- ■ ticipation demands are regarded ! by some film-makers as overly , burdensome. | If Hyman has his way, “the old ' stars will portray people of their own age.” And he footnotes: “They would draw better at the boxoffice if they acted their age instead of making love to young¬ sters.” HAYDN WOOD * Haydn Wood, 76, composer, died March 12. in London. He composed more than 200 songs and his out¬ put ranged from ballads to sym¬ phony and orchestral music. “Roses Of Picardy” was by far the most popular of his ballads, selling over 3,000,000 disks and over 2.000,000 song copies. “Bird of Love Divine” and “Love’s Garden of Roses” were other hits. r Born in Huddersfield, York¬ shire, Wood won a violin scholar¬ ship to the Royal College of Music and studied in Brussels. He was married to concert singer Dorothy Court, who died last year. JAMES W. STEEL James W. Steel. 70. longtime Atlanta musician, died March 9 in Atlanta. A native of Atlanta, he was a trombonist in the first or¬ chestra to occupy the pit of the 4,400-seat Fox Theatre when it opened in 1929. Back in vaudeville days and era of house bands he also played at Loew’s Grand, Capi¬ tol (now gone), and Georgia (now Roxy) Theatres. Wife and two daughters survive. * MRS. LEE SWEENEY ( Mrs. Lee Sweeney, treasurer of Washington’s Shubert Theatre which was destroyed by fire Jan. 29, died Feb. 28 in Washington. With the legit house for four years, she had formerly worked for Keith’s Theatre there.- Survivors include two sons, mother and a sister. FLORENCE DUNKERLY Florence Dunkerly, operatic and concert singer, died Feb. 17 in Whitley Bay, Eng. She appeared with her husband, Hubert Dun- kerley, baritone with the Carl Rosa Opera Company, for 34 years. Survived by husband, now man¬ ager of Priory Theatre, Whitley Bay. HAROLD K. CARPENTER Harold K. Carpenter, 58, account exec for KNX, Los Angeles, and CBS-Radio Pacific Network sales dept., died of a cerebral hemor¬ rhage March 10 in North Holly¬ wood. Prior to joining CBS in 1946, he had been with Foster & Kleiser. His wife and daughter survive. ROSE F. MAURER Mrs. Rose F. (Maurer) Webster, who once headlined with the Rose Maurer Revue on the RKO vaude circuit, died March 11 in Lowell. Mass. She had settled in Lowell with h n r husband, the late C. Her¬ bert Webster, also a member of the revue, upon her retirement more than 20 years ago. Surviving is her son and a brother. FAN BOURKE Fan Bourke, 73, a comedienne in musicomedies and films in the 1920’s and 30’s, died March 9 in Norwalk, Conn. She aDDeared on Broadway in “Lady Billie.” “Head Over Heels.” “The Magic Ring” and “As Thous¬ ands Cheer.” W. Samuel Hampton, 85. pio¬ neer exhibitor, died recently in Edmonton. Alta. In 1909 he took over operation of the Bijou Thea¬ tre in Edmonton from his brother. Later he built the New Bijou, now the Rialto. Survived by three sisters and a brother. JOHN DE MATTEIS John De Matteis, 61. a flutist, died March 9 in Philadelphia. He was first flutist with the Joseph Pasternak and the old Mastbaum Theatre orchestras. He also played with Clarence Furman at KYW (now WRCV). Surviving are his wife,'son, two daughters, brother and sister. HOWARD BELL Howard Bell, 51, veteran Los Angeles radio announcer and head of the advertising agency bearing his name, died in Hollywood March 9, only three days after returning from the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. He had operated his agency for past 10 years, and started as an announcer 20 years ago in L.A., working on virtually every station. His wife and two daughters survive. RALPH MAW Ralph Maw, 56, former Metro district and later branch manager in Minneapolis, died there March 7. Until he left the. company in 1957 he had been with it 30 years, 12 of them in Minneapolis. Prior to his death, he and twoof his sons operated a suburban night club and presented “Jazz for Moderns” con¬ certs in the Twin Cities. His wife and three sons survive. D. A, CLARKE-SMITH Douglas A. Clarke-Smith, 70, actor, died at Withyham, Sussex. March 12. Clarke-Smith. v/ho used only his initials professionally, first appeared on the professional stage at the Kingsway Theatre in 1913 in “The Great Adventure.” Since then he had been con¬ stantly employed in the theatre, films and television, usually as a heavy. JOSIE GORDON Josie Gordon, 64. actress and widow, of the late Harry Gordon, longtime Scot comedian,, died in Hove. Eng.. March 6 after a several months-' illness. She was a Sou- brette in vaude in her early days, and partnered her husband on the stage. Survived by daughter Bunty Frank W. Ne T son, 58, owner of the Grand Theatre and Twin Circus Drive-in Theatre, Mc- Camey, Texi, died recenty in Dallas. His wife, two sons and daughter survive. ; Continued l:om page 1 ——; a mile of any kind of propaganda he’d immediately succumb to the message?” j Main point in refuting the crit- ! ics, however, is that the U. S. ap- ; pears to have a good deal to gain ; from having its pictures shown ! behind the Iron Curtain. The Gov- ; ernment obviously thinks so, since !—after due approval by the_State 1 Dept.—it is going quite a long way in encouraging the film industry to j enter into commerc'-al relations . with the Russians and other Com- |munist nations. The “official” at- Ititude is that in reflecting Ameri¬ can standards and the American way-of-life, Hollywood's pictures in themselves constitute cuite potent propaganda for a people who enjoy ; a very low standard of living and ; who have been told in greatly ex¬ aggerated fashion of the average man’s problems in the States, j In effect, runs the argument ot : the Motion Picture Export Assn., , the Soviet-Americsn deal, worked I out on a reciprocal basis, stands to ; benefit the U.S. side far more than j the Russian side. The Soviets, in ! theory, have little to offer in their films but “art,” since the Aineri- : cans wouldn’t accept propaganda , of a political nature. The L T .S., on ! the other hand, can impress the i Russians with virtually any picture ; that shows American life. ! What those who object so strong- i ly to the film swan are in effect saying is that it’s all right for the Soviets to be iianre-se ’ ‘-trongly ; by the subtle type of U.S. propa-: i ganda, which visually contradicis , what the Soviet government has ; been telling its own people about j the States, but that the Russians [Should not, in turn, be allowed to even show off with their film “art,” j which is the only value they have 1 to offer in the kinds of pictures which the U.S. will accept from Moscow. Derek Bancroft, 20, stage man¬ ager and actor, died in Southport, Lancashire, Eng., Feb. 27 after a lengthv illness. A native of South- port, he entered repertory after leaving school. Wife, of Harry Meadows, pro¬ prietor of London’s New Chur¬ chill's nightclub, died of cancer March 5 in London. Son, 30, of orchestra leader Jacoues Renard, died March 5 in Boston after a several months’ illness. Cont'nued from page 1 _j_ expense of trying to. build new stars.. This entails payroll obliga¬ tions and the necessity of working the individual performer in a num¬ ber of the same studio’s picture in the hope of winning public accept¬ ance. Under the new modus operandi the promising new face would be available to all studios. And all studios would pledge to put said new faice to work as often as pos¬ sible as a means of familiarizing same with the general audience. This entails an exhibitor obliga¬ tion, one that they’re prepared to meet, according to Hyman. Thea- tremen in past bought their pic¬ tures on a who’s-ih-it? basis. They demanded star names. Now, states Hyman, these same exhibs will un¬ dertake to help in the development of new talent by way of booking; their pictures and going to work ; on the publicity end. . 1 The AB-PT chain, particularly - prez Leonard H. Goldens on, has. been strongly in.favor of a “new] faces” project and it definitely, looks as if the industry finally is! hitting upon it, said Hyman. The ■ MARRIAGES Judy Kemp to Stanley Illsley, Dublin, Feb. 28. Bride's an actress; he’s an actor-producer and joint managing director of O ympia, Dublin. Mimi Weiss to Robert J. Simon, New York, March 14. Bride is as¬ sistant traffic manager at WQXR, N.Y. Lena Schunzel to Donald Nelson, Durham, N.C., Feb. 12. Bride is widow of actor Reinhold Schunzel; he headed the War Production Board in World Wgr II. Dorothy Sparks # to David Sykes, Hollywood, March 7. Bride is daughter of Penny Singleton and producer Robert Sparks. Barbara Lewis to Tony Brown, Sarderstead, Surrey, Eng., March 8 . Bride is a Windmill Theatre showgirl. BIRTHS Mr. and Mrs. A1 Brodax, daugh¬ ter, Norwalk, Conn., March 9. Father is in the television depart¬ ment of the William Morris Agency. Mr. and Mrs. David I. Rees, son, Ajo, Ariz., March 6. Father, a one¬ time foreign film importer,,, is exec director of West Wind Productions,! Mr. and Mrs.* Gerhard S. Stindt, daughter, Berlin, Feb. 20, 1959. Father is NBC’s correspondent in Germany. Mr. and Mrs. Joe Mann, daugh¬ ter, Miami Beach, March 8. Father and mother, Elaine Beverly, were longtime tv stars; he’s now work¬ ing in television in Florida. Mr. and Mrs. Tom Segar. daugh¬ ter, Pittsburgh, March 6. Father's floor manager at KDKA-TV. Mr. and Mrs. Robert Biernacki, daughter. New York, Feb. 8. Father is an account executive with Radlo- TV Representatives, Inc. Mr. and Mrs. Mitch Leiser, son. New York, March 14. Father is oroduction manager of Goodson- Tod’man packaging agency.