Variety (March 1959)

JsSsiIEff VAUDEVILLE Wednesday, March 25, 1959 65 PERSONAL MGR. IN ‘NEWER ACT’ ARA Seeks New State Law to Permit Hiked % With Manager Classification A new attempt to permit talent-f agencies to hike legal commissions' In New York State from the 5% specified in the general business law to amounts to be filed with the NYC Commissioner of Licenses, is being made in Albany. A.lnew bill, patterned after the California law, would ammend the! General Business Law to permit the classi¬ fication of a new category, that of artist manager. The artist man¬ ager would file with the License Commission, a flexible amount of commissions which could presum¬ ably be based on type of services performed. Law was introduced recently by State Sen. Jacob H. Gilbert of the Bronx and has been sponsored by the Artists Representatives Assn. Bill presently before the Senate defines an. artist manager as one “who engages on the occupation of advising* counselling, or direct¬ ing artists in the development or advancement of their professional careers, ’ and who procures, offers promises or attempts to procure employment or engagements for an artist in connection with and as part of the duties and obliga¬ tions of such person, under a con¬ tract with such artist by which such person contracts to render services of the above nature to such artists.” The bill seeks to excise the 5% limit currently on the books and substitute the following procedure: “Every theatrical employment agency and artist manager shall file with the Commissioner of Licenses in the city, town or vil¬ lage where the principal is located, a schedule of fees proposed to be charged for all services rendered in relation to employers or em¬ ployees in such form as the Com¬ missioner of Licenses may by rules, regulations or order pre¬ scribe as necessary or appropriate In the public interest or for the protection of employees or em¬ ployers. A copy of such schedules of fees shall be posted in a con¬ spicuous place in the office of the agency or artists manager. The schedule of fees so filed may be amended at any time, but the fees provided therein shall not become effective before 60 days after the date of the filing of the amended schedule.” In previous attempts to change the general business law to conform with the accepted theatrical agency practice of 10% commissions on all engagements, it was generally sought to make an exception of talent agencies on the ground that specialized service was. performed. The inclusion of the category of artist manager marks a new form of attack. Martha ‘Trouper’ of Year Martha Raye will be guest of honor at the Troupers’ annual din¬ ner to be held May 24 at the Latin Quarter, N. Y. It’s a femme organ¬ ization which takes care of the children of theatrical needy. Miss Raye will be presented with a “Troupers’ Trunk,” the first of a series of annual awards going to the “Trouper of the Year.” DANNY KAYE 265G, FOR 5-WEEK FRISCO SRO . San Francisco, March 24. Final week of Danny Kaye show at the 1,758-seat Curran Theatre grossed a sellout $54,500, making the take for five weeks a tremen¬ dous $265,000. House was scaled to $5.40. Kaye is booked for nearly nine weeks in Australia, starting June 18. He’ll split time between Syd¬ ney and Melbourne and take Senor Wences with him. Second act in show, the Dunhills, are undecided whether they’ll make the trip. Tommy Morgan’s Estate $1,233—A Big Week’s Pay Glasgow, March 24. Tommy Morgan, longtime Scot comedian who died here last Nov. 28, left $1,233. His stage earnings at one time topped $1,200 per week. Comedian’s total assets amounted to $4,008, from which debts and funeral expenses of $2,- 775 had to be deducted. Because of illness, Morgan gave up regular vaude dates over two years ago. His widow, Celia, left to live with a sister in the U.S. Toaster Does Not A Kitchen Make; Phifly Cafe s Rap Philadelphia, March 24. The State Superior Court last week denied an appeal by Albud Inc., operators of. the Wedge, and upheld the revocation of the cafe’s restaurant and liquor license. The uptown spot, which had been or¬ dered closed by the Liquor Con¬ trol Board on Jan. 15; was best known as the longtime stand of stripper Julie Gibson. An LCB agent testified before Judge E. Woodside that the cafe’s “kitchen” was a room 10 feet long by four feet wide containing a packaged toaster, 12 dishes and 12 sandwiches in a beer cooler. The cafe was not operating a bona fide Restaurant, In the court’s opinion. Other charges: The Wedge per¬ mitted entertainers to contact cus¬ tomers, posted an outdoor sign which contained matter other than the names of entertainers, dis-! played an outdoor wall sign in ex¬ cess of three by five feet and more than one sign. .- ,. Buddy Ottenburg,* president of : the Albud firm, now manages the Rathskeller, in the midtown sec¬ tor, still featuring Miss Gibson. acts: bit role ON ‘FREE’ TALENT By JOE CQHEN One of the major offshoots of the increasing scarcity of top tal¬ ent and headliners is the passing of the controls and discipline that were clamped on performers by the agencies. The act is today a freer agent than he has ever been and, say the percenters, more responsi¬ ble for, his own destiny in show biz than anyone else. Partially responsible for this state of affairs, aside from the de¬ mand for established performers, is the increasing reliance by per¬ formers on personal managers. In these cases, the agency rarely deals with the performer directly, the agency becomes a remote entity, and frequently, in the eyes of the act, a stymie that prevents the art¬ ist from reaching the top rung of the profession. In some respects, this feeling has been promoted by the managers, but others say that this condition has been brought about by the - agencies themselves. Lists of' the larger offices, where the bulk of the work lies, have fre¬ quently become so large and un¬ wieldy that an act has been forced into personal management to get a fair share of employment. However, even among the acts without a personal handler, control is also passing away from the agents in cases where the talent has achieved some degree of rec¬ ognition. The spira^of higher coin and higher tax brackets, coupled with the sure knowledge that a specified number of weeks are open to them, create the tendency to cause the talent to disregard agency advice. Still another factor that tends to (Continued on page 66) Let Havana Fade Its Own Bets: D.S. Lucille & Eddie Roberts’ Mt. Kisco Home in 3d . Fire With Vegas Debut Las Vegas, March 24. On the same night of their opening at the Tropicana here, Lucille & Eddie Roberts experi¬ enced a third fire in their Mount Kisco, N.Y., home, the result of a defective flue. Besides her ward¬ robe, Mrs. Roberts lost an inval¬ uable collection of lifetime- ac¬ cumulated photographs and kin¬ dred memorabilia. A second fire just about a year ago, this time due to the wiring, occurred on the. very eve of the Roberts’ commitments in Europe but they sailed regardless. In that blaze they lost one of the four originally made “Thayer Magic Prediction Chests”. These sold for about $200 arid were made only for. the mentalist or fortuneteller who wanted “something infal¬ lible”. While touring with the Nicola Magic Show, their equip¬ ment was lost off Singapore in November, 1939. Nicola, who died in 1952, used to make world tours with the “vanishing elephant”. Roberts says that, as veteran mindreaders, they may try to be¬ come a dance team since they never seem able to predict their own unforeseen misfortunes. Havana; March 24, The status of American casino operators has been thrown in doubt by new regulations issued by the Cuban government’s Na¬ tional Institute of Savings & Hous¬ ing, which has the task of over¬ seeing all legalized gambling. The Institute ruled that future casino operators must be of “proved moral and economic solv¬ ency” and subject to its approval. Foreign operators, in addition, must secure “approval in writing from the corresponding embassy.” Queried about this, a U.S. em¬ bassy spokesman told Variety: ‘The embassy. dbes not issue guarantees as described in press reports of these casino regula¬ tions.” Obviously, the embassy meant it can hardly be placed in the position of endorsing people to run casinos. So, if the government requires an OK from the embassy, and the embassy cannot givfc-it, what then? Most of Cuba’s casinos are at present run by Americans. Henny Youngman has been signed for the Copacabana, N.-Y., bill starting Monday (30) for two mid a half weeks prior to the preem of Billy Daniels on April 16. Frankie Laine had been previously inked. Sammy Davis Jr., current head¬ liner, is slated to open at the Sands Hotel, Las Vegas, April 1, and is set for a tour of theatres in Australia, starting April 20. Town Casino, Buffalo Buffalo, March 24. The Town Casino will £e re¬ opened tomorrow (Wed.) by Harry Altman. Spot was closed Jan. 18 because of waning business and is being reopened for a six-week try and with a special pitch for con¬ vention and banquet patronage. Altman announced that the Casino would remain open all summer if business warranted in which case it would be operated in conjunc¬ tion with his Glen Park Casino at Williamsville which opens early in May. Les March has been appoint¬ ed banquet manager of the Casino. Acts booked include Ames Bros., ; March 28; Three Stooges, April 4; Buddy Haekett, April 11; Marion Marlowe, April 18; Tommy Sands, April 25; and The Kingston Trio, May 2. N.Y. State & Atty, General Me’ Inside Dope on AGVA Foundation Bal Tabarin’s New ‘Beat’ •The Bal Tabarin, one of the old¬ est niteries in New York, which has been on a French policy for many years, has joined the beat¬ niks. Spot reopened last night (Tues.) with jazz and poetry read¬ ings. Jon Adams and Hugh Romey will make with the odes and the Jazz & Poetry Quartet will do the music. Chester Fox is impresario. -4 The N.Y. State Dept, of Social Welfare and the Attorney Gener¬ al’s office have an interest in the affairs of the AGVA Foundation Inc. and any information received by them as to practices of the Foundation which would be the basis of further investigation will be given the utmost consideration. This information was received by an AGVA member who asked that his name be withheld because of possible reprisals by AGVA. According to the information contained in the letter, the inter¬ est of both the Dept, of Social Welfare and the Attorney Gen¬ eral’s office in the matter is being maintained. Letter was signed by Bernard Perlman, chief of the sec¬ tion on charities registrations. Letter stated: “Thank you for your letter of March 15, 1959, | which contained a copy of the speech made by Penny Singleton : at a meeting of the National Board | of the American Guild of Variety * ,, , ,, . . .! Artists. I have read both the Kaf at the Ilotel Waldorf! St 3 " 11 >° ur ktter with *«* Astoria is the filing of a complaint <(T ,. „ with the American Guild of Vari-1 1 would like to correct the lm- ety Artists by six singers who ,? a Xf regarding the worked the date with the French I int< |rests of both the Attorney Gen- chanteuse. They claim two weeks’j £, ral an /? department m the salary, which represents the can-1 Fo u nda iion. It is true that this de- celled portion- of Miss Piaf's pact; P^Lnmnt does not wish to involve at the New York hotel. f itself m the internal affairs of the The six singers, who were assem-! H. nion ’ However. both the Attorney Piaf Sextet Files With AGVA Asking $1,650 Standby Pay bled by Harry Lawrence for the Waldorf run, claim they were told to stand by on the possibility of Miss Piaf’s sufficient recovery from an ailment to resume the engage¬ ment. Having been thus instructed, it is their claim that they lost out on possible additional engagements elsewhere. Total claim is $1,650 for the fortnight. The claim, in this instance, is against the hotel. Although Miss Piaf is obligated to pay the salaries ! General and this department are extremely interested in the Foun¬ dation and its activities since its inception. The Foundation is re¬ quired- to file a financial report here, containing the opinion of an Independent public accountant, for its fiscal year ending June 30, 1959, within six months of that date. As yon can see, this will cover all its activities since it started operations. Copies of this report are available to you or any ‘ of these background singers who i °* ne *[ interested party upon re¬ worked behind a curtain, the con- i Q- uest aa< I without cost, tracts were signed on behalf of the “However, our jurisdiction is hotel'at the request of Miss Piaf's | limited to the Foundation and its handlers who felt that her status; activities and can only concern it- : would be simplified if she re-! self with them, for as you know it trained from being an employer. | is a separate legal entity, distinct Miss Piaf’s manager, Louis Bar- • and apart from AGVA. Any in- riere, declares that the loss of I formation that you have as to the the engagement because of illness; practices of this Foundation which comes under the category of “an I would be the basis of further in- act of God,” and that therefore all! vesligation of its records, either by claims for that period are can- j this office or the Attorney General, celled. The union is expected to! would be given the utmost consid- set up an arbitration panel to hear ’ eration.” the issue. j AGVA’s national administrative There is a possibility that Miss j secretary, Jackie Bright, who is Piaf will return to the Waldorf to } president of AGVA Foundation; fill out the date, but nothing is definite yet. There’s also likelihood that the singer’s Carnegie Hall, N. Y., concert which had to be cancelled, will be played May 10. Miss Piaf took ill and underwent an operation for removal of an ulcerated part of her stomach. She was discharged last week from the Harkness Pavillion. Weinstein’s New Lounge In Dallas Bowing With Dallas, March 24. Barney Weinstein unveils his new midtown Theatre Lounge, just Off hotel row, April 2 with Tura Satana, Japan’s leading exotic, headlining. Other strippers on the bill are April Flowers, Dottie Car- roll, Nikki Joye and Mary Cintra. Chuck Mitchell, comedian and vo¬ calist, will emcee. Freddie Cohen’s trio backs the acts. New spot, seating 400, doubles the capacity of Weinstein’s subur¬ ban house, a click since its Novem¬ ber, 1949, ' opening. Owner has spent $100,000 in his new spot, which boasts a balcony along each wall and in the back, with no table more than 40 feet from the raised stage and runway. New for Theatre Lounge: a menu for hungry pa¬ trons and attendants at the door to park customers’ cars. New spot puts Barney in direct competition with brother Abe. Lat¬ ter’s spot, the Colony Club, up¬ stairs cabaret, is s landmark here Rex Weber, Foundation’s secre¬ tary-treasurer, and counsel to the union and Foundation, Harold Berg, filed for a certificate of reg¬ istration with the Dept, of Social Welfare on March 4 which is still to be acted upon. Miss Singleton had charged before the AGVA National Board that the AGVA Country Club & Recreation Cen¬ ter was purchased illegally with AGVA funds, but is not the prop¬ erty of the union, and it had il¬ legally solicited funds. She stated that because of the failure to reg¬ ister it with the Dept, of Social Welfare, the South Fallsburgh, N.Y., property could not be used legally as a home for the union’s indigent. AGVA PREZ PENNY’S GAB WITH BD. AT AIRPORT Chicago, March 24. Penny Singleton, president of the American Guild of Variety Artists huddled here at a Midway Airport stopover last week (19) with four national executive board members before continuing to New York for today’s (Tues.) meeting of the board. No. 1 topic of the Chi tryst, it’* understood, was the current contro¬ versy relating to the AGVA Foun¬ dation, to which the Manhattan session was to devote itself. At the airport confab werg Pat Patton of St. Louis, Linda Compton of Cleveland, Ann O’Connor of Chi- . cago and member-at-large James Thompson.