Variety (April 1915)

CABLES ARM OF THE LAW HALTS SHOW WHEN BUTT MAKES ACCUSATION London Manager Alleges "Partners" Burlesque Review Has "Lifted Material" Belonging to "Watch Your Step"— Restraining Order Stops the Madison Performance Until Matter Is Threshed Out in the Courts. London, March 31. Alfred Butt lias obtained a restrain- ing order against the 70-minute "Amer- ican burlesque," called "Partners," pre- venting the use in it of alleged "lifted" material from "Watch Your Step" in New York. Mr. Butt intends produc- ing the "Step" show here. "Partners" is said to have been writ ten by James Madison, of New York City. It was first presented March 15 at the Victoria Palace, with Nat Carr, an American, as principal comedian. DILLINGHAM AND GABY. London, March 31. R. H. Burnside arrived on the St. Paul, vested with authority from Charles Dillingham, to close negotia- tions with Gaby Deslys for an Amer- ican tour, if mutually agreeable terms can be reached. Gaby has set her American tour figure at $4,000 weekly. Dillingham has offered her $3,000 a week. These amounts were named by cables between the parties before Burnside sailed. Gaby opened last week in "Rosy Rapture," the J. M. Barrie revue, at the Duke of York's. Mr. Barrie has' been informing his friends the show had the biggest first week's business of anything he has ever written. 'TWIN BEDS" BARRED. London, March 31. There will be no London production of the New York success, "Twin Beds." The Lord Chamberlain has refused to grant a license for the presentation of the play. "Twin Beds" has been running all season at the Fulton Theatre, New York. LONDON SHOWS CLOSE. London, March 31. "Seven Days" closed last Saturday, and "Excuse Me" will close this Satur- day. Both are American plays, pro- duced over here. "Excuse Me" will be condensed into sketch form and played in the halls. NO BID FOR TIVOLI SITE. London, March 31. The Tivoli site, when put up at auc- tion March 25, did not bring a bid. It was withdrawn. Two private offers of $500,000 had been made for the property and de- clined. The site is valued at $900,000. It covers over 10,000 square feet, on the Strand, with three frontages in the heart of the theatrical district. The location is between Charing Cross sta- tion and Cecil and Savoy hotels, op- posite the Adelphi theatre. The famous Tivoli had occupied the site before the music hall was demol- ished. BLOSSOM SEELEY REPORT. London, March 31. It is reported Blossom Seeley may be a member of the cast for the next Hippodrome revue that starts rehears- als April 5. Miss Seeley is in America. Xo announcement of her intended sail- ing has been received over here. Lewis Sydney, now in the Elsie Janis show at the Palace, leaves it April 3, to join the new Hip production. NORWORTH DOES AN ENCORE. London, March 31. The Jack Norworths did an encore yesterday, when Mrs. Norworth pre- sented her husband with Jack Nor- worth, Jr., their second son. The first boy was born Jan. 30, 1914. The Norworths are living at Hamp- stead, overlooking the Thames, where Norworth has purchased a house. He intends to make his permanent home there. COURT WARNS EL CLEVE. Chicago, March 31. In court today El Cleve, the xylo- phone player, was warned to refrain hereafter from corresponding with girls under age. He was arrested last night, charged with having violated an Illinois law in writing to a 15-year-old girl. The charge was dismissed when the warning was given. Rejane Leaves with War Sketch. London, March 31. Rejane and her war sketch left the Coliseum Saturday. The French actress is playing in it at Manchester this week. After touring the provinces she will return later to London in a new playlet for the halls. The Top-Liner that Makes Good the Position BROADHEAD TOUR ADVICE RE LONDON. London, March 15. Spring is rapidly approaching and with it American vaudeville artists may be casting eyes upon London with a view to securing engagements here. From all available knowledge, and the unquestionable dearth of novelties here, numerous offers of engagements in England have been made by music hall managers. The usual allurements are being held out that an artist can afford to work cheaper over here for the reason living is less and the rail- road jumps are smaller. The latter statement is true, but the former isn't. If one wants to live on the same scale the average American artist does the cost is higher, and especially so during the war period. In considering offers of engagements in England, American artists might bear in mind they are subject to in- come tax, which does not relieve them of a similar assessment in their own country. When you buy anything in England of any value, such as clothes or in paying your board, you are charged in guineas instead of pounds. When receiving salary here it is paid in pounds, and an English pound is not a full American $5. In setting salary for England, payment should be pro- vided for in guineas instead of pounds. (A guinea is 24 cents more than a pound.) PRESIDENT WILSON HELPING. President Wilson granted an inter- view to Harry J. Fitzgerald and Robert Fulgora at the White House Saturday, when the two presented a petition to the President asking him to intercede and assist in having Kara, now held as a civil war prisoner in France, released so that he could come to this country and fulfill his vaudeville contracts with the U. B. O. The President stated that as Kara is a German by birth he would be unable to have this country step into the breach and intercede, but he did give the two men a personal letter to the French Ambassador, asking that an investiga- tion of this case be made and to assist the two vaudeville representatives in whatever way possible. The reason for the necessity of im- mediate action in the case was brought about by information received from the juggler he was to be removed from La Perreaux, France, to a small island about 150 miles south of the coast and placed in a detention camp. M. S. BEXTHAM, Mgr. GLADYS COOPER'S REASON. London, March 31. The vaudeville tour of Seymour Hicks and Gladys Cooper in "A Bridal Suite" is about to be terminated in the immediate future owing to the ex- pected arrival of an addition to the family of Miss Cooper, who in private life is Mrs. Stanley Buckmaster, whose husband is a captain in the English army. Miss Cooper recently secured a judg- ment against the London Mail for libel, that paper having published an article without mentioning names, intimating that "a wjell known actress" had been guilty of misconduct with several prominent men. Miss Cooper is already the mother of a six-year-old daughter. STRICT ON PASSPORTS. Since the recent investigation which involved the issuance ot American passports to native Germans, secured over here with the presumed purpose of the Germans obtaining them acting as spies in the lands of the Allies, the State Department at Washington has grown vigilant in the issuance of the official paper of identification. The vigilance is resulting in some annoyance to theatrical people want- ing ;o go abroad to play en^gement*. Delay in obtaining a passport resulted in B«rt Melrose canceling hi* sailing art contract for a London hall. He was to have left March 20, and again last Saturday. The Department is requiring the per- son applying for a passport to furnish it with a certificate of birth from the Board of Health of the plac* where lorn; also whether the father of the applicant is a native or naturalized American, and demands that some re- sponsible party, known to the Depart- ment i r the official outside of Wash- ington to whom application is made, identify the applicant. In New York applications for oass- ports are accepted at Room 55 in the General Post Office building (down- town). The application is then sent to Washington to be passed upon Persons conversant with the pass- port question advise that when one is desirec for a certain date, application be made sufficiently in advance to cover any delay. ENGLISH BOOKINGS. Charles Bornhaupt, the international agent in New York, has booked several American peopk and acts for England, through his London representatives, Will Collins St Co. Baby Helen will open in London Oct. 18, for an engagement of six weeks. Van Hoven is due to open there May 10, his first contract calling for 15 consec- utive weeks. Ceballos and Desmond and George P. Murphy are under con- tract to appear in the English version of "The Trained Nurses," produced on the other side by Will Collins and Syd- ney Blow. They sail on the Philadel- phia April 10. The same English producers will put on "A Regular Business Man," opening at the Coliseum, London. Two of the original cast Douglas Fairbanks first appeared with in the sketch over here, Messrs. Bisphy and Ober, have been engaged for the foreign production. They leave April 17 on the St. Paul. Rosaire and Rodgers have also been placed by Bornhaupt through Collins, opening May 17 at Glasgow. Sam Bar- ton, the tramp cyclist, is now touring in Great Britain, through the same agencies. Robert Marks, an American stager, will produce for Messrs. Collins and Blow in London. Marks sails April 3. to take charge of the firm's producing department. JUDGMENT AGAINST TICH. .London, March 31. Judgment has u*.»*,n. given against Little Tich for failure to appear last October at Golder's Green.