Variety (February 1912)

Vol. XXV. No. 9. FEBRUARY 3, 1912 PRICE 10 CENTS * *■ m UNITED MANAGERS TALK "POOL" PROTECTIO N FROM 'OPPOSISH" Suggested Plan to E. P. Albee Said to Have Been De- clined by Percy Q. Williams. Can't Get F. F. Proctor, But Majority of Other Managers Willing. Beck Buying Williams Circuit Report Revived. Chicago Palace Opening March 3 With^High Class Vaudeville. The long,deferred scheme of "pool- ing" all the important vaudeville thea- tres of the United Booking Offices managers has been revived by E. F. Albee. The resurrection arrived with the announced entrance of Martin Beck into New York through his pro- posed Palace theatre. Albee is said to have gained the tacit consent of James Moore, M. Shea and Harry Davis to the pooling ar- rangement, but finds his stumbling blocks in Percy G. Williams and F. F. Proctor. The report is Mr. Williams has ap- proved the pool, but declines to have his theatres in it, while admiring the spirit which prompts the United man- agers to place all of their theatres un- der the protection and guiding spirit of Mr. Albee. An authenticated re- port this week said Albee has not even approached Mr. Proctor upon the sub- ject, under the rightful supposition he wouid be wasting his time, Mr. Proc- tor having had a previous experience, which is just now about being finally settled in the courts. Proctor and B. F. Keith "pooled" sometime ago. The "pooling" revival is traceable to Harry Davis. Mr. Davis has had in- timate business relations lately with Albee-and J. J. Murdock through his (Davis) plan to work out a moving picture combination which could bring together the "trust" and "independ- ents" in the picture line. Though that this should not occur as scheduled, Davis believes the picture business among the vaudeville houses can and should be controlled by the principal vaudeville managers. The managers are not averse to accepting any profit Davis can bring home, but are sitting around saying, "We would like to see you do it." The Bhuberts are in on the picture proposition ajso. Through this connection and other things, the "pooling" for protection against opposition by the United man- agers became active once more. It was last heard of three years ago. In fact, it is always on tap when "opposi- tion" shows. The "opposition" now is Martin Beck, but as far as New York City is concerned, with its pres- ent and contemplated "music halls," even Mr. Beck's Palace upon com- pleting may be well surrounded by competitors if all the building plans and announcements are gone through with. The "pooling" revival, however, brought forth another—that Mr. Beck bad asked Mr. Williams his selling price for the six Williams vaudeville theatres in Greater New York. A story says Mr. Williams set the figure, one-half million dollars away from what Beck wants to pay. The sum named as having been ask- ed by Williams when this story for- merly appeared was $2,000,000 for the good will, with long leases to be taken by Beck upon all of the Wil- liams houses, which are owned in each instance by Mr. Williams' theatre com- pany. At that time also Williams pub- licly mentioned he would sell his thea- tres, if the price asked was given. The number of bookings of late made by Mr. Beck has commenced to annoy the competing vaudeville man- agers. No line can be obtained upon what Beck has secured. Injunctions have been placed upon the Orphewiii Circuit's connections to reveal no bus- (Continued on page 11.) ANNOUNCES PIER THEATRE. Atlantic City. Jan. 31. Alfred E. Burke, who with George H. Earle, Jr., and others are to build the new pier at New Jersey avenue and the Beach, gave out Monday that on the front of the new pier there would be a new theatre. It is proba- ble the big convention hall that is contemplated will be situated in the rear of the theatre. Workmen have begun removing the jetties which surround the Earle stores and as soon as the winter breaks concrete pilings will be Bet. The-pier will extend about 200 feet further--out than the Steel Pier. With the theatrical situation here of a rather muddy color, the success of a new theatre is entirely proble- matical, especially so since the pro- posed playhouse is somewhat away from the centre of amusements. KLAW ON THE OCEAN. Marc Klaw is on the ocean, bound for home, and duo here Monday on the Victoria. Klaw, has, it is understood, in addi- tion to having obtained "Eve," landed tne American rights to "Le Petit Safe" ("Little Cafe"), a French farce, by Ivan Caryll. This satire In French will be adapted for the New York stage by Chas. M. S. McLellan. MILLER CLOSING SEASON. Detroit, Jan. 31. Henry Miller closes his season Thursday night and goes direct to New York to begin rehearsals of a new comedy by A. E. Thomas. SHOW HAS DISAPPEARED. "At Old Harvard" has disappeared. Nobody seems to care, but the Talbot Amusement Co., which put the show out, also procured a line of paper that is just loafing around with no place to go. ROAD RIZ PICKING IP. The various hooking agencies for leeitiimite productions reported this week a alight picking up of business on the road It w;«s not marked, the agency men stated, hut noticeable. GERTRUDE BARNES ••THE OH! JOY! GIRL" WANTS $12,000 FROM DRESSLER. On behalf of Oswall Stoll, of Lon- don, A. L. Fullman, the company's attorney in this country, baa institu- ted suit against Marie Dressier to re- cover damages to the amount of $12,- 000. The suit was filed in the Supreme Court of Orange County and will come up for a hearing next Monday. The grounds for the action are based on an alleged breach of contract by the comedienne. Miss Dressier is at present appear- ing in "Tillle's Nightmare" somewhere in the middle west. She and Lew Fields are joint owners in the produc- tion, having purchased the interest of the Shuberts. Before the opening of the present season it was reported Miss Dressier would not appear in this country but would play her Eng- lish contracts. This she failed to do, resuming her tour in the "Nightmare" piece. The contracts on which the Stoll suit is based were signed in 1909 when Miss Dieii&ler was abroad. Under them she was to appear in the Stoll music halls for a period of eleven weeks at $1,000 weekly. At her re- quest the time was set over from 1909 to a year later, and then to Sept., 1911. The managers refused to fur- ther postpone the contracts, and as Miss Dressier did not go to London to fulfill them, the English managers are seeking to recover under the liquidated damage clause in the agree- ments. MOOSER AT LINA PARK? With George Mooser returned to New York from the Far East, and staking his tent at the Frederic Thompson of- fices, it became reported about Mr. Mooser might be this season's general manager at Mr. Thompson's "I.una I'ark," Coney Island. Mooser is a newspaper man, and the theatrical magnate of the coun- tries he has been living in for the past few years, playing evr\ thin:.' from a picture show to a Hrcns in tin Orient. Several foreign ;ii f r.i< * w>ns ;ir<« umh-r his direction, ;iinl inny In- seen h«»n next -.'I 1 "'', i. : 11 i< u! 11 i \ Cliing IJni» Fo<>. i»... i .'in.. • :•..):•'.!!;:•; \ ho would !' K • tii«. • j i • ■: i i ■