Variety (September 1917)

T 9^ "rct^ T,— VOL. XLVIII, No. 2 NEW YORK CITY, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 1917 PRICE TEN CENTwS RESTRICTED TERRITORY BAN REMOVED FOR THE HRST TIME Maurice Goodman, Keith Counsel, Successfully Argues Be- fore City Board of Appeal, Which Grants Permission to Build Fordham Theatre Within Restricted Zone. May Open Way for Many Others. A decidedly important theatrical building question was neatly solved Tuesday of this week when Maurice Goodman, attorney for the Keith in- terests, appeared before the City Board of Appeals at a hearing held in the Municipal Building, and successfully argued for a permit to continue the construction of the Keith theatre planned for the corner of Fordham road and Valentine avenue. Tiie building came under the ban of the zone law which went into effect about a year ago, and which threatened to make the property valueless for the- atrical purposes, all applications for an appeal from the automatic condemna- tion of the building being denied here- tofore, the same "Zone" law having held up the erection of the new B. S. Moss theatre at 181st street and Broad- way, and the theatre scheduled to be built by one Kaister, an architect, at 94th street and Broadway. The Board of Appeals granted a final hearing Tuesday, attended by Kaister (in his own interests), Mr. Goodman and E. F. Albee in the interests of the Fordham road project. B. S. Moss was out of town, and not represented. Mr. Kaister made the initial plea, but Goodman, after a short survey of the situation, finally convincing the gather- ing the Keith theatre should be passed, and this was accordingly done. The board consists of six members in all, including Fire Chief Kenlon, the Super- intendent of Buildings, and four lay- men, including an architect, builder, contractor and civil engineer. Whether Goodman's success will lift the ban on the other two sites is problematical. There are a large number of picture theatres being held up by the same law, and these may now look for some relief. The Keith theatre -will r.crupy a cor- '?'?i..5.ite iO^'^20(». on v/hich a liousc seating 2,500 will be erected, stores and an office building completing the structure. \Yhen completed it will play a pol- icy of pop vaudeville, with admission based on the pop scale. The nearest opposition is Fox's Crotona, Trcmont avenue and 177th street. TRENCH HEROES IN ACT. "The Shrapnel Dodgers" is the title of the first vaudeville act to carry vet- erans of the present war, the cast be- ing composed of three Canadians who have been in active trench service since Sept. 14, 1914. The turn was originally composed of four soldiers, but one has been forced to return to a military hospital to un- dergo treatments for injuries sustained in action The cast includes Sgt. Major Parker, Sgt. Blake and Sgt. Johnson. It is being broken in around the Middle West. TRAINED HORSE IN PARLOR. Among the acts new to vaudeville this season is one from Calilornia con* taining a trained horse, "Beauty," that performs in a parlor set upon the stage. A part of the parlor equipment is a piano, utilized by a young woman in the turn. It is owned by Bert Cuther- bert. who is the trainer of the horse. William L. Lykens has the booking direction. ^ RUSSELL-TEMPLETON TURN. Pittsburgh, Sept. 5. There has been advanced a reason for Lillian Russell and Fay Templeton to appear in vaudeville together. The reason is a large salary. Both of the stars live here, and are reported to have been in communica- tion, but the consummation of the in- tended "two-act" is looked upon as doubtful. Each has headlined vaudeville pro- grams of recent seasons. Billy Sunday Trying Los Angeles. Los Angeles, Sept. 5. Billy Sunday began an eight weeks' 'drive on sin here Sunday, more than .v.).000 oersons crnwdin^r xho J.~t''nnd Avenue Pavil ion for the matinee. Watch Oat For ELSIE WHITE "The Plainclothea Girl" SHUBERFS PALACE, CHICAGO. It is reported the Shuberts have leased the Palace, Chicago, for a num- ber of years, .final arrangements and rental agreements having been ac- cepted in the Windy City at the time "The Show of Wonders" was- com- pleting a record breaking run at the Palace during the summer. Tenancy will not pass, however, un- til next May, when a Winter Garden show will enter the Palace for the fourth summer's run. But vaudeville will then cease defi- nitely during the life of the rental. The house is owned by Mort and Will Singer, Martin Beck and Herman Fehr. The leasing of the Palace gives color to the report that the Statelake, Chi- cago's new Loop theatre, which will be completed in about one year, will house Orpheum vaudeville. The se- curing of the Palace will give the Shu- berts a . firmer foothold in Chicago, four houses, since it is understood th( new Woods theatre there will be given them for booking. At present the Shuberts book but two Chicago houses. Garrick and Princess. "OVER THERE" ROYALTY. George M. Cohan's first royalty statement on his war song, "Over There," is said to be $21,000. It took him ten minutes to write the words and music. The William Jerome Co. publishes the song, as it does all of Mr. Co- han's musical compositions. JOAN SAWYER AGAIN IN. Baltimore, Sept. 5. Next week at the Maryland will be two acts new to vaudeville for this season. It is unusual for a provincial theatre to have that many on one pro- gram. The acts are "The Neglected Wife," by Roi Cooper Megrue, played by Yvonne Garrick and a company. The other turn is Joan Sawyer, who re- turns to vaudeville with her former dancing partner, George Harcourt. FIRST RETURN TO N. Y. So far, only one show that opened this season has returned to Broadway. John Cort's "Flora Bella" finding the weather against it on its early tour of New England, the show closing in Vermont. LASKY BACKING THEATRE? Los Angeles, Sept. 5. It is reported Jesse Lasky is the backer of a Little theatre project in this city to be under the management of Frank Egan, at present here. The latter has obtained a lease on the Little theatre, Pico and Figueroa streets, which is to house a company along the same lines as that which was maintained at the Princess in New York several years ago with Holbrook Blinn as the star. There is a possibility that Holbrook Blinn and Emilie Polini may head the local company. EXTENDING FREE ADMISSIONS. Buffalo, Sept. 5. The Central Park theatre, the nearest picture house to the 74th Infantry camp at Kenilworth, is going the downtown houses one better in that any man in uniform can bring women friends irito the house without paying admission. A number of other houses admitted soldiers free for a while, but discon- tinued it. The Central Park will continue the practice until the boys leave. NEWARK PRICES UP. advanced a little. The Lyric and Proclor'.s have tilted their top price, the former now charging 10, 20, 30, in- stead of 10. 15. 25, while some of the orchestra seats at the latter are now 75c instead of 50. HOLDING ONTO CHORUS MAN. Chicago, Sept. 5. There was a bit of a scrap over a chorus man here last week, the serv- ices of Harry Murray of "You're in Love" being acceptable to two other shows. Murray, who has played in stock and who once successfully con- ducted a society dancing school in Elmira, N. Y., applied for the juvenile lead in "Make Yourself a^ Home." He was accepted, but upon complaint of the "Love" management, no contract was given him. Murray later applied for general un- derstudy for "Oh, Boy," and again ob- jection from the Hammerstein man- agement "crabbed" his efforts. He is accredited with being exceptional, even though now in the chorus. ? OPENING FOR LYCEUM ARTISTS. Chicago, Sept. 5. Booking agents here continue to com- lain about the claimed act shortage, t is believed by some more concert and lyceum artists will be in vaude- ville this year than ever before, in an effort to maintain the standard of the bills. This may work out as a quasi-solu- tion, since clever musicians are always welcome to a certain percentage of v.inclevillc audiences. $40,000 FOR 20 STORIES. According to report, the "Saturday Evening Post" has ofTered Montague Glass $40,000 for another serial of 20 "Potash & Perlmutter" stories.