Variety (May 1912)

12 VARIETY JOHN CORT TIES UP SALT LAKE; BUT ONE HOUSE N EXT SEASON Secures Lease of Salt Lake Theatre, and Turns Colonial Over for Pictures. Makes a Change In Ogden. Using Cort Houses During Summer for "Pop" Vaude- ville, Booked by Bert Levey of San Fran- cisco. Cort Only Interested in Profits. John Cort, now in New York, con- firmed the report this week he has secured the lease of the Salt Lake theatre, Salt Lake, and that the Col- onial, the new house which he opened there three years ago, will be devoted to "pop" vaudeville, opening with that policy as a link in the Bert Levey vaudeville chain. The Salt Lake next season will play all the attractions entering the city, both "Syndicate" shows and inde- pendent combinations. Cort, with George D. Piper, who has been man- aging the house under the Klaw & Erlanger, have secured control of the house from the Mormon Church, which owns the theatre built some years ago by Brigham Young. Piper will continue to manage it during its new regime of "pop" vaudeville. The deal was made with knowledge and consent of K. & B., it is said. Salt Lake, with a population of about 130,000, cannot afford two rival legitimate houses. Cort saw a way out of the difficulty by leasing the Salt Lake, using it for all incoming legits and throwing the Colonial into vaudeville. In the past road attractions were forced to cut down their stay be- cause of opposition. A show here- after can enter Salt Lake and stay all week if the picking looks good. In addition to confirming the Salt Lake report, Cort also announced that the Ogden theatre, Ogden, would also become annexed to the Bert Levey string next Monday, when 10c. vaude- ville is to be installed in that house, which Cort controls. The Grand will play the legit shows alone. The Colonial, Salt Lake, seats over 2,000, while the Ogden houses 1,400. Cort also told a Variety representa- tive that one of the four houses under the John Cort-Oliver Morosco wing in Los Angeles would be placed on the Levey Circuit within two or three weeks. He was unable to say just what theatre would be chosen, but that Levey could take his pick. He also stated that the Grand Opera House, Seattle, and the Spo- kane, Spokane, which have been run- ning three acts and pictures all season, will continue the Levey book- ings through the summer and winter. Cort has "pop" vaudeville running at the Tabor Grand, Denver. Cort has the Broadway in Denver as well. Both houses will resume the legiti- mate policy next fall. Cort said he was not negotiating for any house in Omaha, where the Shuberts have the Boyd and K. ft E. the Brandeis. Conditions will remain the same for the present, although a change is expected there some day in order to make road profits better than they have been this season. Mr. Cort said the only interest he would have with the 10 cent circuit was his theatres, the bookings to be done wholly through Levey and the business of the house looked after by the resident managers. He and Mor- osco will figure only in the dividends, if there are any. BRADY LEAVING FOR EUROPE. Sam Bernard sails about June 10 to 15 to look over the London pro- duction of "Princess Caprice," in which he is to be starred in America, opening late in August at the Casino. William A. Brady is expected to said about the same time. Brady has in rehearsal "The House Divided," which will be given a try- out prior to his departure.' The town has not yet been selected, but it won't be Portchester. GATTES, THE GROCERYMAN. Jos. M. Gaites is the owner of two grocery stores at Orange, N. J., and contemplates a comprehensive circuit of these stores. Eventually he says he won't care what happens to the show business. AL WILSON'S SHOW. Al Wilson opens his annual season Sept. 1 next at Ford's, Baltimore, in his new show, "What Happened In Pottsdam" under Sydney R. Ellis' management. DIED ON THE STAGE. Winnipeg, May 22. Warren Conlan, playing at the Or- pheum here last week, toppled dead from a chair on the stage, but the play went on as though nothing had oc- curred. Conlan was taking the part of an aged business man, sitting in a curtained office at the rear of the stage. Heart trouble was the cause. The body was sent to Biddeford, Me., for burial. 'QUAKER GIRL" WELL RECEIVED Chicago, May 22. "The Quaker Girl," with Clifton Crawford and the original New York cast, opened at the Illinois Monday night and was warmly received. WESTERN SUMMER SHOWS. Chicago, May 22. Gilson ft Bradfield, local promoters, are organizing a company to take out "The Bachelor's Honeymoon" for a road tour through the west, opening June 7, while Arthur J. Woods <s preparing to launch "The Girl Of The U. S. A." sometime in July, opening at Benton Harbor. FRIARS' FIRST FRIVOL. The first "Frivol" of the Friars was held last Sunday evening at the Berk- ley theatre. It is to be a bi-monthly affair hereafter, and secured a nice send-off with a program consisting of the Carlton Terrace Quintet, John Campbell and Frank Meyers, who im- personated "Mutt and Jeff" in a brief monolog to the evident pleasure of the "stag" audience present, while 'Rumsey Pulls the String" a travesty on the clubhouse cafe and purely local to the many members present, was received with much gusto. The skit had Its book and lyrics from Jean Havez, who wrote himself the part of an old grouch in it. Geo. Botsford composed the music and di- rected the orchestra. Jack Mason staged the dances, of which a double quartet became a real riot. Among the players whose work stood out were William Bonelli, Leon Errol, Laddie Cliff, Tom Penfold, Harry Aarons, Wilfred Foster and Irving Brooks. The show started at eleven, running until one-thirty. Considerable of the dialog poked fun at various Friars and also sought to provoke John Rumsey, the present Abbot, into accepting the office for another term. The Friars' election of officers will occur in a couple of weeks. Mr. Kumsey is not inclined to run again, although he could do so without opposition. , PHILIPP'S DOLLAR HOUSE. Adolf Philipp will open a new Ger- man playhouse on East 57th street about September 25. It will be styled Philipp's 67th Street Theatre. The house will seat 550. Prices up to one dollar. AWAY FOR PLEASURE. A quartet of pleasure seekers left Montreal last Saturday on the Teu- tonic. They were Frank Tannehill, Paul Benjamin, Charles Bradley and H. W. Glickman. SMALL TOWN'S BIG GUARANTEE. Haverhill, Mass., May 22. Haverhill guaranteed $1,500 for two shows Monday by Geo. M. Cohan in '.'Forty-Five Minutes From Broad- way." THE MUSICIANS' MATTER. Mehibers of the orchestras play- ing in the theatres of New York and Brooklyn are making every effort to- wards securing an increase in wages next season. The Musical Mutual Protective Union, which has about 6,100 mem- bers on its books, is directing each step. Last June the union appointed five members to comprise a Theatrical Price List Committee, which was to confer with the theatre managers and obtain their views In the matter and ascertain if they were at all willing to tilt the salaries of the musicians. It is understood that the latter gave the committee no encouragement whatsoever, and that no definite un- derstanding was determined this sea- son. Now the committee will go ahead and recommend that the weekly sti- pend of the members be placed at certain figures next season, this com- munication to be heard at the meet- ing of the union on the second Thurs- day in June (13) at the Yorkvllle Casino. At present the men playing in the variety and burlesque houses recelvo $30 for fourteen performance? week ly. They want $36. The musicians in the dramatic houses average $22.60, while those playing for most of the operas and musical shows get $24. The last average eight perform- ances a week. A member of the union, In discuss- ing the matter with a Variett repre- sentative, said: "The men can't live on their present wages. They work hard, stick faithfully to their posts until the performances are over and are entitled to more money. The art- ists get big money, but what would his act be without the orchestra? The musicians are certainly underpaid when one considers the strenuous vigil they keep during the fourteen per- formances registered in the variety and burlesque houses." It is expected that the salaries agreed upon at the June meeting will then be submitted to the theatre man- agers, who must pay the union wage scale or do without union music. It is likely the committee will rec- ommend that the men receive $35 next'season instead of $30 for four- teen performances. Several managers, particularly the variety men who are aware of the strike which has existed in some of the William Fox "small time" vaude- ville theatres for the past months, have been inquiring during the past few days how the performances were received with non-union musicians. From the attitude taken by these man- agers, it might be inferred they fore- saw trouble over their orchestras in the near future. FRED DUPREZ MONOLOQIST. Aft»T an uninterrupted season, sailing next Wednesday (May 29) on the Lusltania, to ful- fill European engagements. "BUNCH OF KEYS" OUT. Charles Hoyt's old piece, "A Bunch Of Keys," will be revived and a sum- mer trip through Canadian territory has been laid out. The show took to the one-nighters this week with Agent Rudell in ad- vance.