Variety (December 1912)

8 VARIETY WHITE RATS NEW CLUB HOUSE ASTONISH ES, AND IS ADMIRED Dedication Brings Huge Crowd to Home of Rats, Much Favorable Comment Upon the Structure. Its Signifi- cance to Organized Vaudeville Artists Talked About. No attempt was made to disguise their pleased astonishment by those present last Saturday night at the dedication of the White Rats Club House on West 46th street. The new quarters played to over capacity from 10 p. m. until 4 a. m. After the members and invited guests had expressed their surprise at the complete- ness of the building, their remarks ran to admiration for the enterprise which had brought the bricks and mortar into a monument for the organized vaudeville artists. The significance of the building to the actor was made plain in the comment of those who ambled about. The new club house was reported to have also made a decided impression upon lukewarm and inactive Rats. Many, it was said, had paid arrearages in dues. Among these were several well known artists that the meetings of the Rats of late months have greatly missed, for their standing, weight and influence. The club house is six stories high, with a basement containing billiard room, bowling alleys, bar and a swimming pool (that is an attraction all alone). The billiard room and bowling alley run the depth of the building. On the first or main floor are the offices, reception rooms, and to the rear of the entrance, a large assembly hall. The latter has a movable gymnasium. When not em- ployed as the meeting place of the mem- bers, the forward portion is converted into a lounging room. Informal dances will be held in this large room. The first will be on New Year's Eve. The second floor has the offices of the executives and the Board of Directors. The four floors above contain 107 rooms, each with hot and cold water, while many have baths. These are rented to members at a daily or weekly rate. The club house is run on a hotel system, with a manager in charge. The main rooms of the club were packed at the opening. The bowling al- leys were wine rooms for the occasion. A performance on the stage was tumul- tously received. Col. Sam Holdsworth, presented by Will J. Cooke, the stage master of ceremonies, as "the oldest Rat" (Col. Holdsworth is 80 years of age) was cheered for. The Rev. Dr. Moeller opened the dedi- catory ceremonies with prayer; Junie Mc- Cree, the Big Chief, made an address of welcome; Mr. Cooke, the Rats' business manager, spoke of the building of the club, and Dennis F. O'Brien, of counsel to the Rats, also spoke. The souvenir program credits Mr. O'Brien with being mainly responsible for the project and its successful promotion. President Sam- uel Gompers of the A. F. of L. and Hugh Frayne, the Federation's orga- nizer, also spoke. The entertainment was started by Mont- gomery and Stone, who "opened the show" without resistance. Others to ap- pear for the entertainment of members and guests were George M. Cohan and Willie Collier (in their "sidewalk act"); Lillian Shaw, Lydia Barry, Joe Welch, Cliff Gordon, Edith Merrilles, Belle Gold, Van and Schenck, Joh.iny Johnson, Marie Beaugarde, Mme. Von Zieber, Bob $us- sak and Walter Brown, Marie Russell, John Birch, Andy Rice, Ida May Chad- wick, Conlin, Steele and Carr, Lew *Piot- ti, Cabaret Trio, Col. Holdsworth, Ber- nard Granville. Earlier in the evening The Great Tall- man gave an exhibition of fancy shots on the pool tables, and Mile. Meuier inter- ested those who watched her in the swim- ming pool. The Mecca Temple Band, with Abe Holzman conductor, furnished the music Among the large crowd that continual- ly changed were many laymen, a few agents and managers, and players from all divisions of theatricals, including many ladies. JOE WOOD HOLDS TWO. Joe Wood has given up all of his New York state small time bookings, except- ing Glen Falls and Schenectady, which "split the week." TAKES NO CHANCE. Fitch Cooper, the Musical Rube, who is working at the Fifth Avenue this week, calls upon the property man in each theatre where he plays to help him out. This the prop does without knowing the reason. Cooper sends in his property list calling for a fifty-foot hemp rope, one strong enough to hang a cow. When he reached the Fifth Avenue he found the rope waiting. Props had to borrow it from a safe moving con- cern. Cooper works in "one" and when the matinee was over the prop- erty man asked him about the rope. He staggered props when he replied that he only wanted that in case of Are so he could make a quick exit. Cooper at- taches the rope to a huge crowbar which he places at the window of the dressing room. Irene Franklin, playing on the same bill, is anxious to see Cooper make his escape from those porthole ventilators at the Fifth Avenue. RATS WOULD BAR "NO. 5." At the last session of the New York Central Federated Union the White Rats Actors' Union objected to the representative of the Hebrew Variety Actors' Union No. 5 being present. The Rats' delegate averred that the Hebrew local was not entitled to rep- resentation, having failed to pay the per capita tax to the parent organiza- tion with which it is amalgamated. The C. F. U. ruled that no action should be taken pending the investi- gation of the W. R. A. U. by the A. F. of L. Executive Council as ordered at the recent national convention. TWO NEW DANCING ACTS. A dancing act will be placed in vaude- ville by Emile Agoust, who will be the principal of it, assisted by his wife, Yo- vonne (in the Simone De Beryl posing act). Mr. Agoust has been with the Shu- berts, putting on 'The Ballet of 1830" for them. Greville Moore (also of the "1830" ballet) is not going back to the other side, not just yet, anyway. Miss Gre- ville is thinking of vaudeville in a danc- ing number. She will have with her Chattel, the first dancer over here'with Gaby Deslys. The Marinelli agency has the direction of both acts. DE VEAUX ASSAULT CHARGE. Rochester, Dec. 11. Harry DeVeaux was discharged in the magistrate's court here a few days ago after pleading not guilty to the charge of assault in the third degree, preferred by Louis Gold. The affair was the outcome of an encounter be- tween DeVeaux and Gold during the session here of the A. F. of L. con- vention. The men were opponents in the dispute between the White Rats and a band of insurgents of that body. Gold caused DeVeaux's arrest fol- lowing a passage at arms in a local theatre. He was released under nom- inal bail for a hearing. REMICK'S MANDOLIN DEPT. A mandolin orchestra department has been established in the new and well laid out quarters of Jerome H. Remick & Co. on West 46th street. This is in addition to the other instru- mental departments of the firm, besides their product of popular and classical sheet music. Jerome H. Remick, the head of the publishing concern, is in New York this week. TWO FOR 8HEEDY. The Sheedy booking establishment in New York this week announced the acquisition of two more theatres under its system. They are the Lenox, 111th street and Lenox avenue, New York, and-the Boylan Opera House, Taun- ton, Mass. Both will play six acts and pictures, "splitting" the week. The Lenox opened Thursday of last week. The Massachusetts theatre opens Jan. 16. The Lenox appears to have started successfully. There were so many peo- ple standing behind the orchestra rail Sunday night the manager was sum- moned to court to answer to a charge of violating the fire regulations. CANADIAN PICTURE TAX. Montreal, Dec. 11. A tax was imposed by the Legisla- ture calling for the payment of 20 cents per seat on the full seating capacity of all the picture houses. The legislature also makes a board of censors, three in all, imperative. The tax is provincial, as the city license is $500. Protests from the film exchanges re- duced the censoring from $3 to $1. There is talk that the authorities may taboo the "Soul Kiss" film here when an attempt is made to exhibit it. HUGHBY DOUGHERTY'S BENEFIT. Philadelphia, Dec. 11 A monster benefit has been arranged at the Forrest theatre for Thursday of this week tendered to Hughey Dough- erty, the veteran minstrel and one of the very few of the "old school" of blackface men still living. Dougherty has been for many years with the Du- mont Minstrels, which succeeded the famous Carncross and Dixey Minstrels in this city. The veteran minstrel is now almost blind and recently suffered a stroke of paralysis. The benefit was arranged by a com- mittee of citizens, many of the most prominent residents of Philadelphia be- ing interested, and as early as Monday afternoon the house was sold out. Harry T. Jordan, manager of Keith's, was in charge of the stage entertain- ment, and had as assistants F. G. Nix- on-Nirdlinger, Frank Wiliams, H. Bart McHugh and George M. Young. There were other committees which included every theatre manager, dramatic critic and many prominent business and hotel men. The theatrical program included Babe La Tour and "The Bon Ton Girls," "The Monte Carlo Girls," Leon Rogee, "Texas Tommy Dancers;" Harry Cutler, Digby Bell and Co., Sophye Barnard, Juggler Nelson, Geo. M. Cohan, Sallie Fisher, Tom Waters and a number from "Eva," Charles S. Dooin and James McCool; Montgom- ery and Moore, Lou Anger, Four So- ciety Girls, Neil McKinley, Ethel Whiteside and "Her Picks," Armstrong and Ford, and a big afterpiece and min- strel first part by the Dumont Min- strels, led by Frank Dumont. Everything was contributed, even to the bill posting, music and transpor- tation. UP AGAINST THE UNIONS. Newport, Ky., Dec. 11. By cancelling Bird and Kema, booked for the Temple here for the last half of last week (a "split" with the Colonial, Covington), Manager Marcus got himself in trouble with the White Rats Actors' Union. Unless a compromise is effected, all union oper- ators, stage hands, musicians and bill posters will be called out of the Tem- ple. Bird and Kema appeared in Coving- ton, but were told their local date was off, the management claiming Roberts and Fulton refused to play on the same bill. The W. R. A. U. had the local labor committee investigate but upon Manager Marcus refusing to act the Trades Council then made arrange- ments to call out the union men. The matter was taken up through Frank Morrison, secretary of the American Federation of Labor, who wired instructions to the local commit- tee. PICTURE HOUSES SHUT. Newark, N. J., Dec. 11. Several moving picture houses have been closed by the authorities, owing to their locations in buildings where other business is carried on. Among those shut is the Arcade, seating 1,000 people, and the largest theatre of its class in the city. DOC BAKER??