Variety (December 1912)

VARIETY 19 SPORTS The pool tournament at the Vaude- ville Comedy Club has aroused no end of interest amongst the members of the organization. Play has been in progress since last week, when the big upset of the tournament came in the defeat of Tallman, the professional, by Pat Rooney. Tallman played Rooney 115 to 75 and was figured a sure win- ner. The tables again took a turn when Frank Stafford defeated Rooney, who was adjudged invincible after de- feating Tallman. Joe Kane was the first to hit the cancellation clause. Three defeats eliminates, and after meeting Stafford, Tallman and La Mar, Joe went into the discard. Up to Tuesday night Stafford led the field with a perfect slate, having three vic- tories in a row to his credit. Standing Tuesday night: W. L. Kane 1 3 Stafford 3 0 Tallman 2 1 Bradley 1 2 Hussey 0 3 Truesdell 1 1 La Mar 2 1 Murphy 0 1 Barnes 1 0 Rooney 1 * Jimmie Britt, who is doing vaude- ville regularly these days, does not neglect training, even though he has forsaken the ring for all time. The first thing Jimmie arranges for when he strikes a strange town is a place to go and work out each day. He gets in an hour or two, and is always in condition. The Sporting Editor has had several letters follow the article in the Anni- versary Number of Varibtt. There seems to be a general feeling athletics in theatricals would aid in a great many ways. Keep dropping a line from time to time suggesting some idea whereby the movement can be ad- vanced and let us see if we can't get something going before the winter sea- son is over. Guy Rawson of Rawson and Clare, who are heading their big act on the Sullivan-Considine Circuit, has inaugu- rated a walking club, out on the path every day before nine a. m. The club started away with a two mile jaunt each morning and is now taking on five without any trouble, that is, 11 >ut the gallant Guy himself, who pleads m<:£ery in the feet. New York is overlooking a thriller this week. It is "Auto Polo" at the Madison Square Garden, or was until Thursday, the* show having run Dec. 19-26. It unfortunately struck the city at a poor time, but there are enough thrills in the new sport to make it draw if properly handled. Polo is played by men in automobiles. Two machines to a contest are employed. Each auto has a driver and a mallet man. The ball is about the size of a football. Two contests daily are played, after- noon and night. The contests are of five innings. The machines race toward each other, and the ball, which speaks for the expertness of the driv- ers. They think nothing of crashing into one another. As many as five dif- ferent machines are used at a show. The autos are stripped down to racing form. The driver is allowed to touch the ball with his hand only. WAYBURN QUITS "DODGERS." The "Dodgers" had an Xmas tree and party together Wednesday night. Miss Bayes furnished the good things standing all the expense. She got her- self in right with the troupe early in the week when they all met for the first time. Miss Bayes said "Don't make any dates for Xmas night, girls, we are going to have a party of our own." After Miss Bayes left Ned Way- burn made a speech saying she had the right spirit and he hoped the rest of the bunch would get it too. Monday night, while the show was at rehearsal, Mr. Wayburn walked out of the theatre, leaving the company "flat." There was some difference of opinion between Wayburn and Miss Bayes over a bit of exit business. Miss Bayes informed the company of Way- burn's departure and said they would try to get the show over on time, al- though claiming Wayburn had not put proper work in getting out the new numbers planned for the reorganized production. TROUBLE OVER DANCERS. It is understood the Empire Circuit Directors spent more time during their recent annual meeting at the Imperial Hotel, New York, over the discussion of added attractions (especially "cooch" dancers) than over the consideration of fiscal affairs. It appears Dr. Lothrop, of Boston, was called to the meeting not so much to talk over playing terms at the Bos- ton Grand Opera House as to tell why he played a sensational dancer at one of his houses as an added attraction. Dr. Lothrop denies that there has been any dissatisfaction on the part of the road managers with his two houses. Returns, he says, have shown a profit above that of several other houses on the circuit, and there has been no rea- sonable source of complaint on that score. Incidentally there has been no infor- mation vouchsafed of the deliberations of the Empire directors. The state- ment is generally made that they de- clared a dividend, but no word has been sent around to that effect, even to the stockholders. The latter under- stand in a general way that last year's dividend will be repeated, but they have received no word. All inquiries are re- ferred "to Cincinnati." MOVE SHOW UP. "The Rosebuds," the property of several franchise holders in the West- ern Burlesque Wheel, operated as a "syndicated" property, has been ad- vanced from the second to the first class. Under the new classification it comes in for the $1,400 a week guar- antee weekly. CHICAGO Chicago, Dec 26. The map of Chicago was changed this week. Nearly every "loop" theatre has a new program. At the Grand a new farce was shown with Carter De Haven as one of the leading figures. At the Blackstone, "The Concert" was offered again; Louis Mann came to the Chicago Opera House with his new vehicle, "Elevating a Husband" and Mm*. Simone made her first Chicago appearance at Powers' in "The Return From Jerusalem." The American Music Hall was re- opened after a dark spell with "The Barnyard Romeo" and "The Round- Up" was brought back to McVicker's for a short stay. A new play came to the Olympic It is by Joseph E. Howard, and called "Frivolous Geraldine." At the Cort "Our Wives" was of- fered with Henry Kolker in the cast. There were the usual changes in the out skirting theatres. VIENNA TENOR IN TOWN. The Viennese tenor, who created the title role in "The Chocolate Sol- dier" on his native heath, and has tak- en part in the many of the Vienna musical productions (since shown in New York) arrived here last week. He is Gustav Werner. The tenor may appear on this side before long. He had a role in Oscar Straus' oper- etta, "The Dancing Viennese," at the Coliseum, London. PICTURE MEN ARRESTED. Philadelphia, Dec 26. Two moving picture show owners were arrested last week on the charge of having failed to pay the required rate of state tax on their houses. Henry Berman (of Fifth and South streets) and Charles Segal (of Ninth and Dick- son) are the men. They were arrested on warrants sworn out by Inspector Barton of the Board of Mercantile Ap- praisers and held in $600 bail for court. There is a law providing for a tax of $500 on houses seating 400 or more, those seating less, $300. It is alleged the men have not paid any tax for 1912. The inspectors charge that "flex- ible" seats were used and taken out when they visited the places. The de- fendants denied all charges. If found guilty they are liable to a fine of $3,- 500, or $500 for each offense. TABLOIDS DOING BUSINESS. Richmond, Dec. 26. The Jolly-Wild Company, playing a tabloid version of "Over Night in Bos- ton" over the Wells Circuit, went $200 over the house record at the Empire here. The last big mark was chalked up during fair week but the new con- densed musical comedy idea proved a bigger card. Charles W. Rex, general manager for Jake Wells at the New York office, claims the inauguration of tabloid musical comedies on the Wells time is proving the box office magnet de- sired in the supplanting of pop vaude- ville. When Rex was in Chicago he con- tracted with Boyle Woolfolk for a vau- deville condensation of all his pieces and also got hold of others. The next comedy to open will be "The Girl Question" (Woolfolk) which starts Dec. 30 at Nashville. "The Winning Miss" (condensed) will get started at Nashville Jan. 6. Jan. 13 "Whose Lit- tle Girl Are You?" another of Wool- folk's pieces, will start the Wells houses at Norfolk. The pieces now playing this week are "Finnegan's Ball," with Tom Grady, at Augusta; "Over Night in Boston" (Jolly-Wild Co.), Savannah; "Merry Mary" (Baker's), Nashville; "The Sunny Side of Broadway," with Max Bloom, Chattanooga; The Isle of Spice," Knoxville; "The Time, The Place and The Girl," Richmond, and "The Rollickers," Norfolk. All playlets, tabloids and acts, com- ing from the east will open at Rich- mond and close in Knoxville. All com- ing from the west will play Nashville and close in Birmingham, after a sweep of the Wells time. The new Lyric, Richmond, and the new Lyric, Birmingham, are being rushed to completion and Wells hopes to open them before March 1. The new Academy of Music, Lynch- burg, West Va., estimated cost $160,- 000, and seating 1,450, one of Wells' newest, opened Dec. 11 with John Drew in "A Perplexed Husband." Charles Kessnich, formerly manager of the Richmond theatre, has been transferred to the management of the new Lynchburg house. CLEARING UP KNOXVILLE. San Francisco, Dec. 27. Charles C. Shay, president of the In- ternational Alliance Theatrical Stage Em- ployes, who has been west for some time past, is now here where he arrived Wednesday from a busy time at Los Angeles. Shay expects to return to New York by Jan. 1 and then go back to Chi- cago to attend the midwinter session of the executive board of the I. A. T. S. E. to be held there Jan. 6. Oscar Sheck, sixth vice president of the Alliance, who has been in charge of the labor situation at Knoxville where the stage hands are fighting for union recog- nition, has returned to his home in Cleve- land. The Knoxville controversy has al- most cleared, only two houses remaining out of the fold FORCING HOTEL TRADE. Oakland, Cal., Dec. 26. If a proposed plan of Fred A. Giesea, owner of the Macdonough theatre in this city, is made effective, the members of road shows playing his house will be obliged to spend their money for hotel and restaurant accommodations here instead of leaving the major por- tion of it across the bay in San Fran- cisco. Very recently Proprietor Giesea an- nounced that beginning Jan. 1, 1913, the members of all traveling companies playing at his house will be required to live here during their local engagement and that this particular proviso will be incorporated in the terms of all con- tracts with the Macdonough. Other- wise, he declares that he will refuse to sign the contracting agreements. Edwin Vail is a late addition to the Peruchi-Gypzene Stock Co., at New Orleans.