Variety (January 1917)

!2 LEGITIMATE, • SHOWS OUT OF TOWN Chicago, Jan. 3. All the shows, 2 legit and variety, profited by the holiday crowds. The biggest business, according to the ticket brokers, was done by Ziegfeld's "Follies." The Al. Jolson show at the Garrick attracted big houses New Year's Eve and Day. The $3 top thing is believed to be hurting "Crusoe" and the critics devoted nearly all their praise to Jol- son personally. "The Follies" at $2.50 is in big de- mand. "His Bridal Night" (Dolly Sis- ters) is drawing very well at the Olym- pic and the show is advertised as the 7 'only $1.50 show in the Loop." £. H. Sothern will take away profit on his Blackstone engagement. "Fixing Sister" (Henry Hodge) is not doing badly at the Princess where the star outshines the play. "The Boomerang" is running at high pitch. "Fair and Warmer" seems to retain its drawing strength. "Hit the Trail Holliday" (Fred Niblo) has no kick on the holiday xe- turns at the Grand, while "Go to It" seems to have suffered through its re- moval to the Chicago from the Princess as it closes its Chicago engagement this week. At the Strand is the "Mission Play," which came here with plenty of Cali- fornia backing, and the local critics commended the production. Philadelphia, Jan. 3. New Year's Day gave the theatres another big start Monday. There was not a seat to be had anywhere. All the legitimate theatres asked holiday prices, which means a slight advance. Keith's turned hundreds away at three performances, the first at 1.30, a special 4.30 matinee and the evening show at 8 o'clock. A luncheon was served for the artists, musicians and stage hands. The four burlesque houses and near- ly all the picture theatres, including the big ones on Market street, opened at midnight Sunday and were crowded during the morning hours and all day. They were forced to handle rough crowds, doors being torn off and con- siderable damage done to chairs and other equipment. The Globe at Broad and Market streets gave a midnight show and packed them in. The "Cohan Revue" in its second week at the Forrest is playing to big business, and "Seven Chances is get- ting a strong play at the Garrick. Leo Ditrichstein in "The Great Lover" comes next week. Mrs. Fiske is still at the Broad with "Erstwhile Susan" and doing well. "Very Good Eddie" got a fine start with the holiday rush at the Adelphi and the papers treated the show fine. "The Blue Paradise" is doing good business at the Lyric. The Walnut had Fiske O'Hara in "His Heart's Desire" to follow Chaun- cey Olcott and opened big New Year's Day. "Intolerance," the Griffith picture, is drawing big at the Chestnut Street opera house. The "North American" panned.it to a fare-you-well on its edi- torial page this week and announced all advertising for the picture had been refused. The panning helped business. The Strand, a new picture house, opened New Year's Day. It is far up- town. Clara Kimball Young in "The Foolish Virgin" was the opening fea- ture. San Francisco, Jan. 3. "Fair and Warmer" is enjoying good business in its fifth and final week at the Cort. .. % . . % Business is fair at the Columbia where "It Pays to Advertise" is the at- traction. "Never Say Die" by the stock com- pany at the Alcazar brines fair returns. Annette Kellermann's feature film, "A Daughter of the Gods," is drawing at the Savoy. New Orleans, Jan. 3. "Fair and Warmer" opened to ca- pacity at the Tulane Sunday, with busi- ness continuing large. Thurton is doing well at the Crescent. He is the first magician here in three years with his own show. Returns at the Lyric are the largest of the season. Boston, Jan. 3. The first American presentation of Harold Brighouse's comedy "The Odd Man Out" came Monday night at the Copley theatre by Henry Jewett's com- pany of English Players. "The Odd Man Out" will probably surpass Brighouse's previous success, "Hobson's Choice," as the theme is broader in appeal and does not depend so much upon characterization. The theme is that of a modern Enoch Arden who returns to find his wife mar- ried and who exerts his hold to secure the marriage of his daughter to the man she loves instead of the money-match outlined for her by a designing mother. The climax is unexpected, the com- plex situation being solved in the last act by the announcement by Enoch Arden he secured a divorce during his 17 vears of absence in South America and now has a wife of his own and trip- lets. The company does full justice to the comedy and will do much to strengthen the grip that Jewett's Players are get- ting upon the stock play-goers who miss John Craig's productions. N. Y. CONVENTION LEADER. New York entertained 663 conven- tions, involving 600,000 persons, who left behind $20,000,000 in 1916, accord- ing to the statistics of the Merchants' Association. This puts Gotham at the head of the convention cities and establishes a rec- ord exceeded only by San Francisco, which entertained 700 conventions dur- ing the exposition year. Chicago, which claimed the distinction up to this year and adopted as a motto "The Town Hall of the Nation" is outdis- tanced. The Association estimates that in ad- dition to the $20,000,000 cash spent by visitors on amusements, hotels and merchandise in the shops, the conven- tions brought about business relations which will swell that total enormously. 23RD ST. PICK8 UP. A revision of box office scale which brings Saturday night's and Sunday's two performances down to 35 cents for the orchestra has caused an awaken- ing of neighborhood interest in the 23rd Street theatre. Last week's show of 10 acts, liberally advertised by the new house manager, Jeff Callan, brought increased patron- age. Formerly the Saturday and Sun- day prices advanced from 35 to 50 cents. The Grand opera house, the di- rect opposition a block and a half away was slightly under this. With Callan's arrival a new scheme of billing was inaugurated, the space near the theatre being devoted exclu- sively to the 23rd Street house, instead of being divided with the Fifth Avenue. Tab Going Through to Coast. Chicago, Jan. 3. Plans have been made for the Pepple & Greenwald "All Girl Revue" to play the Association-Ackerman & Harris hojftses tp the Coast, the probable (tart being made Jan. 21 at LaCrosse, Wis. The coast trip, if it materializes, will no doubt result in other tabs making the western trip through Harry Miller's routings. John D. Proudlove will rep- resent the P. & G. offices on the trip. OBITUARY Charles Pouchot, one of the best known of the eastern vaudeville agents, died at his home Jan. 3 after a short illness with pneumonia. Pouchot, at the time of his death was an agent holding a franchise with the United Booking Offices. The deceased first became connected with vaudeville when he was engaged as a stenographer by the Vaudeville Managers' Association, some 15 years ago. Later he left the managers' organization to become as- sociated with H. B. Marinelli's office. When Charles Bornhaupt left the Marinelli employ Pouchot went with him and remained in business with Bornhaupt until five years ago, when he established his own agency. la Wmmd and Lavin* Mamory mi MY DEVOTED HUSBAND MORRIS CRONIN Wha aV aar tad this lift January Sth, ISIS. HIS WIDOW Eric Blind, who played "Mr. Jarvis" in Cyril Maude's "Grumpy," died late last week in Reading, Pa. He was taken ill with pneumonia at the Acad- emy there Dec. 22 and was removed to the local hospital. Mrs. Blind, who had come from Baltimore to care for her husband was too late to see him alive. Mrs. Blind, whose stage name is Frances Carson, is a member of the v "Daddy Long Legs" Co. on the road. Mr. Blind had played parts in many important Broadway productions. Last fall he was in "Hush." Henry Holtgrewe, 54 years old, said to be the strongest man in the world and who played occasional engage- ments in vaudeville and burlesque houses, died in Cincinnati Jan. 2, after a stroke of paralysis. He refused hun- dreds of offers to go permanently upon the stage. Holtgrewe could do a back lift of 4,600 pounds and his appearances were called "exposes of the profes- sional strong men." IN MEMORIAM la Loving Memory of JOSEPHINE VALORA Who departed this life Jaa. 4th, ISIS. Beloved Wife of WILLIAM DE HOLLIS Lee M. Hart, for years identified with the I. A. T. S. E. of the U. S. and Canada died in Chicago last week. His funeral Thursday was one of the largest attended of Alliance men ever held. Among the Alliance executives present were President Charles C. Shay and Vice Presidents Crickmore, Seattle, and Donovan, St. Louis. Stanislaus Stange, actor and author of many musical comedy books, includ- ing "The Chocolate Soldier," died in, New York Tuesday, 55 years old. He leaves a wife and son. The author was a member of the Players and the Friars. Prank W. Martinean, manager of "Ben Hur," and widely known as an agent, died last week at his residence. 132 West 45th street, New York, of gastritis. Mr. Martineau, who was 55 years old leaves his wife and two daughters. Fred Tallman, an exhibition pool player, who has played engagements in many vaudeville houses, died Jan. 1, in the Polyclinic hospital, New York, of pneumonia, after a week's illness. A widow survives. Her address is 241 West 46th street, New York. * Fred Warren (Warren and Dieterich) (formerly Warren and Blanchard) died at his home in Elmhurst, L. I., Jan 2. from heart disease. He was 55 ytars old. A wife and child survive. The mother of Katherine Klare Ward died Jan. 2 in the Home for Incur- ables, Newark, N. J., 78 vears old. In- terment was in Haverhill, Mass. Mrs. Alice Murphy Ash, neice of the late Joseph Murphy, died late last week at her Brooklyn home, 58 years old. William Healy, a stage hand at the Globe, died suddenly of acute indiges- tion Dec. 28. # The mother of Loney Haskell died in New York Dec 31. MONEY FOR THEATRICALS. An unusual amount of easy money is lying around trying to find invest- ment in show business at present A promoter who put through a big deal during the last few weeks, combining a real estate and show business proposl- » tion, is responsible for the statement there isn't any trouble at all at present to get investors for theatre building promotions, the great difficulty being in obtaining sites for playhouses. One of the big managerial firms that has a number of musical shows this season has outside capital in everyone of them, and at present there is one attraction on Broadway being r nanced by the author and another one in the distance, due to arrive in another week. A third passed out only a few weeks ago. The influx of millionaire authors anxious to get their plays on Broad- way is in a large measure responsible foi the manner in which the guarantees the managers are asking have jumped. Another man of wealth who is be- hind a project for an all-star presenta- tion of a piece by the writer of "Tril- by," which was presented in England but never seen in America. This pro- duction may be presented later in the spring. ' FIGHT FOR SMOOTH PAVEMENT. The Broadway Association is direct- ing its efforts to obtaining a smooth pavement for all of Broadway from the Battery up. At present there js in cir- culation a petition that is sanctioned by the Motor Truck Club and the N. Y. Teamowners' Association, asking that Broadway be given a granite block pavement below 14th street and a smooth pavement Those representing the organization state that if the asso- ciations fight the measure they will re- taliate by trying to have a granite block pavement on the Main Stem from end to end. A special meeting of the executive committee of the association was held on Wednesday afternoon at which the threat of the rival petition circulators was discussed. NICOLAI'S SHOW. George H. Nicolai will produce and send out on the International Circuit a new play, "Pedro, the Italian," by James Kyle MacCurdy, now at Keith's Gotham, Brooklyn, in stock, who will play the leading role. In the company will be Pearl Ford, Kate Woods Fiske among others. Leonce Perret Here. Leonre Perret-the French picture di- rector, was due to arrive from hit na- tive heath on Tuesday to enter the employ of Lewis J. Selznick. Hit first assignment will probably be the direc- tion of the next Robert Warwick pro- duction.