Variety (July 1916)

11** VAUDEVILLE LOEWS CIRCUIT'S 50 WEEKS BOOKINGS FOR NEXT SEASON Addition of Pantaget Circuit to Loew Booking Office Makes Big Total, 28 or 30 Full Weeks West, to Be Placed by Walter F. Keefe. About 40 Houses in East Kept Supplied by Jos. M. Schenck. The additions to the Loew Circuit booking office in the form of the Pan- tages Circuit, secured by Walter F. Keefe last week, will give the Loew Circuit about 50 solid weeks next sea- son. Twenty-eight or thirty will be booked in the West by Mr. Keefe as full weeks (with one exception), start- ing at Toronto. The Eastern Loew time as looked after in routing by Jos. M. Schenck (the Loew Circuit's gen- eral booking manager;, will have from eighteen to twenty weeks, nearly all splits (giving a total in Eastern Loew theatres of about forty). The route Mr. Keefe intends laying out for the time he handles in the Loew agency will be as follows; as at present intended by him: Toronto, Loew's; Cleveland, Miles; Detroit, Miles; Chicago, McVicker's; Chicago, Crown and Victoria (split week); (all Chicago houses booked by Mr. Keefe are: Jones, Linick & Schaffer theatres, affiliated with Loew); Milwaukee, New Miller, Saxe; Minneapolis, Pantages; Winnipeg, Pantages; Edmonton, Pan- tages; Calgary, Pantages; Butte, Broadway (Pantages); Spokane, Pan- tages; Seattle, Pantages; Vancouver, Pantages; Victoria, Pantages; Ta- coma, Pantages; Portland, Pantages; San Francisco, Pantages; Oakland, Pantages; Los Angeles, Pantages; San Diego, Pantages; Salt Lake City, Pan- tages-, Ogden, Pantages; Denver, Pan- tages; Kansas City, Pantages; Chi- cago, Colonial; Chicago, Rialto (now building); Buffalo, Lyric. The above route does not include the new Loew theatre proposed for Montreal, nor the new Miles at Pitts- burgh. On the western time booked by the Loew Circuit per Keefe, but nine days are lost in travel. Through opening the weekly program at the Victoria, Chicago, on Sunday, the Milwaukee week will also start Sunday, together with the Minneapolis house, the latter ending the week Saturday, allowing acts to reach Winnipeg for a Monday opening without loss of time. Mr. Keefe has commenced work on the Pantages bills, filling in for the Pantages road show opening next Monday at Winnipeg. Alexander Pantages is expected East about September 1. Chicago, July 5. There is expected to be an opposi- tion clash hetween the Loew-Pantages and Western Vaudeville Managers' Association bookings, when the Pan- tases theatres open at Minneapolis and Kansas City. These will be in op- position to Association-booked the- atres in the same towns. INVESTIGATING FIRES. Butler, Pa., July 5. An investigation into a recent theatre fire here has led to the indictment and arrest of two people, both men. One suspected of having set fire to the building is in jail, while the other, ac- cused of hiring the firebug, is at liberty under a heavy bail. Their trials are shortly to come up. Syracuse, N. Y., July 5. No result has yet been announced by the officials here of their inquiry into the origin of the Valley theatre fire about the middle of last month. Suspicion was aroused as to the cause of the fire through statements made by natives living in the vicinity of the summer theatre. It is controlled by the railway company which had an agreement outstanding calling for the theatre to remain open at least seven weeks a year. At the Valley all of the vaudeviile acts there for the week lost their effects. The White Rats organization assisted its members with money and clothing. PANTAGES' DENVER HOUSE. Denver, July ii. The report here is that the owners of the Empress are negotiating with Alex- ander Pantages to take the lease of the theatre, or arrange vaudeville bookings for the house in the fall. CHARLES IRWIN A real comedian, possessing appearance, youth and voice combined with personality and a judg- ment of comedy values. Musical comedy producers would do well to see him at Proctor's 5th Ave. Theatre, New York, now, July 6-9. He would creditably acquit him- self in any Broadway production. Personal direction, HARRY WEBER. CHICAGO AGENTS COMING EAST? Chicago, July 5. Through the change in the Pantages Circuit booking arrangement by which Walter F. Keefe in the Loew agency, New York, will handle the major por- tion of that circuit's routings hereafter, it is said that Lee Kraus, a local agent who formerly found the Pantages cir» cuit an easy place to land such acts as he presents, intends going to New York, to see what connections he may make with the Loew Circuit there. It is said Mr. I^raus is of the opinion if he can not make a direct booking connection with the Loew people, he may be able to place his acts on that time through another agent. It is reported there are other Chi- cagoans who have been placing acts hereabouts on a ten-per-cent. basis who may drift to New York with sim- ilar ideas. At the Loew Circuit agency this week it seemed to be pretty well under- stood that such an occurrence as re- ported above might happen. An im- portant personage in the booking of- fice informed a Variety representative it would do no harm to warn Chicago agents not to try it and for New York agents not to become a party to any such arrangement, through the very large sized chance both parties will be caught at it, with the New Yorker the probable sufferer in his Loew agency business relations. PINCUS BOOKING. With the passing of the bookings oi the Pantages Circuit to the Loew Cir- cuit agency, Louis Pincus, the Pan- tages New York representative for several years, severed hp connection with "the Pan time," deciding to be- come a general booking agent in an in- dividual capacity, representing acts. While it was reported in connection with the Pantages move that Mr. Pin- cus would have a franchise to book with the Loew Circuit, Pincus has not announced where he intends playing on the booking field. He has a wide acquaintance among show people. JACQUES, WATERBURY, CLOSED. WaterbUry, Conn., July 5. The Jacques theatre, playing pop vau- deville, closed Saturday, through a rush of attachments by creditors of James Clancy, who has been running the house. The local paper said a representative of the White Rats had been in the box office for three days prior to the finish. The Saturday receipts, around $100, were seized by the constable, stagehands and musicians. The Jacques played burlesque in the regular season. New Miller Opening in Fall. Chicago, July 5. The new Miller theatre, now building, will open around Thanksgiving or Christmas. It's a $500,000 proposition including a hotel. Jack Yeo, now managing Saxe's Or- pheum, may become the manager of the newest Saxe theatre, that is to play the Loew Circuit vaudeville bills. SEX STAGE-CHANGED. Chicago, July 5. What indicates an original idea in burlesque will be promoted by I. H. Herk next season. He has placed Elsie Stirk under contract to be fea- tured in a show written especially around her. Miss Stirk will essay the role of a "boy" in the show, while a fe- male impersonator will work "opposite" her in feminine attire. The Herk show will open early in August and will play the second Colum- bia wheel. CLARK'S SOCIETY PARTNER. San Francisco, July 5. It is not Bert Clark's wife who is appearing at the Orpheum with him in the Clark and Hamilton act The girl now appearing is under the nom de plume of Jean Ruskin. She is claimed to be a well-known Boston society girl, protege of Pav- Iowa's, who has studied dancing abroad. At one time she was wifh one of the Dillingham attractions. WEINGARDEN'S ENGLISH OPERA. Chicago, July 5. Izzy Weingarden has everything set for a tour of the Weingarden Chicago English Grand Opera Company, which will play Klaw & Erlanger houses next fall under the general management of Basil Horsfall. WILDWOOD THEATRE OPENS. The new Nixon theatre on the board- walk at Wildwood, N. J., opened Sat- urday. The house is playing six acts, split- ting the week, booked by Frank Wolf of Nixon-Nirdlinger office, Philadel- phia. On the opening bill were Mrs. Ralph Herz and Co., "Midnight Rol- lickers," "Seven Little Darlings," Frank Gabby, Kanasawa Japs, Elizabeth Otto, Ah Ling Foo. COOGAN IN CASTLE ROLE. Jack Coogan has been placed under contract by the Mittenthal Brothers to play the role originated by Vernon Castle in "Watch Your Step," going on tour next season. Texas Guinan has also been placed under contract for this production. DALY IN "KISSES." "Kisses" is the name of the sketch Arnold Daly may appear in in vaude- ville. It was written by S. Jay Kauf- man and published in the "Smart Set" some months ago. The playlet is due at the Palace, New York, in about a fortnight, having been booked through the Marinelli office. Stock Burlesque in Harlem. Stock burlesque commenced Mon- day at the Lenox theatre (at 110th street and Lenox avenue). It wjll al- ternate with the burlesque stock on at the Union Square on Fourteenth street. Chicago Alhambra on Market Chicago, July 5. The Alhambra, remodeled since the fire in it, has been placed on the market by real estate agents.