Variety (May 1918)

VAUDEVILLE VAUDEVILLE HERO AMONG HONOR SOLDIERS RETURNED SOME OF THE MOTOR CIRCUS. Toledo, May 1. Some of the motor traveling circus PATRIOTISM UNCONFINED. While playing Denver recently J. C. Nugent found occasion to comment is now in the city with the U. S. Cir- upon the criticism of the show at the Corporal M. H. Plant with Contingent Sent Back by General Pershing to Aid in Third Liberty Loan Drive. Team Known as Grant and Plant. With First Ameri- I can Raiding Party Over There. Has Croix de Guerre for Bravery. i Corporal M. H. Plant, formerly of Grant and Plant in vaudeville, wearing the Croix de Guerre, with General Pershing's troops in France, marched this week in parades with the soldiers who had been returned home to help boost (tie third Liberty Loan. Plant while on Loan service the fore art of the week spoke modestly and lushingly of his'service abroad to a Variety representative. Plant's last vaudeville engagement was on the Pantages circuit, playing that prior to his enlistment with the old 69th New York regiment which later had its divisional identity ob- scured when it reached France. November 10 last the regiment ar- rived in France, Plant's company go- ing into a training camp in the Mons section. In January the old 69th took over the French trenches near Lune- ville and immediately the regiment was placed under the direct fire of the Germans. When the first American raiding party was formed Plant was among the 90 selected, there also being French soldiers in the contingent, there being about an even split of the two forces. They went to a point ten miles be- hind the line and practiced for a fort- night. Instructions were given to bring back prisoners and information. As the boys were in the trenches the night before, word was flashed for the dash over the top at 7.40 o'clock in the evening. It came at 7.37. 200 light and heavy pieces of artillery and 200 machine guns opened up on space of 100 yards. As the men, including Plant, went up and over the Germans began shooting star shells 200 yards away. In Plant's own words he did not know just how long it took to reach the Boches' line, but "we sure did hop it." They had no trouble getting over, as a scouting party had cut the wires the night before and the American barrage did the rest. Sergeant Eugene McNiff and Plant fought side by side. (McNiff also won the war cross.) They continued to empty their auto- matics into hundreds of Germans ap- parently trying hard to pull themselves into a more compact fighting mass. The plan was for the Americans to stay in No Man's Land and in the GeTman trenches and secure some cap- tives. The enemy kept up such a hot barrage so continuously it was five and one-half hours before the boys returned to the U. S. trenches. Upon returning the lieutenant dis- covered some men were missing. There were calls for volunteers to get the wounded. Sergeant McNiff and Corporal Plant volunteered. They i made three trips—at 3, 5 and 6 o'clock. Three of the men they brought back died later from their wounds. In bringing them back McNiff and Plant had to carry them from shell hole to shell hole and wait for the Boches' deadly fire to slacken. At the time of the action both men were mentioned in the despatches, but they received their crosses only a few days before sailing back with the other Pershing troopers. General Pershing sent the men back to help the Liberty Loan along. Tues- day morning the 50 were divided into squads and sent to Chicago, Washing- ton and other big city points to assist in the drive at those places. A dozen or so were kept in New York, Plant being among those in the local division. While here Plant, who is a hand- some, big chap, brown as a berry, is ex- pected to help with recruiting following the Loan finish Saturday. When asked just what his plans were he said he didn't know aside from that he expected to go back when ordered, but that he was very happy he was enabled to return so soon to New York, which is his home. His former address here was 876 St. Nicholas avenue. One hundred French soldiers also reached this side this week to assist in the Liberty Loan campaign. "ITS THE CLIMATE, SIR." The old minstrel gag of "The Cli- mate" was invoked by Taylor and Ar- nold as the reason given to the Vaude- ville Managers' Protective Association by that act why it could not play an engagement booked by it for the Pan- tages Circuit. Last Saturday Pat Casey wired the act at the Orpheum, St. Paul, asking why the climate on the Orpheum Cir- cuit, also in the west, was any differ- ent* from that prevailing over the Pan- tages time in the same territory. This week Taylor and Arnold are at the Orpheum, Duluth. It seemed quite probable from statements made in the V. M. P. A. offices early in the week, that if the act continued in vaude- ville, it would shortly have to finish the Orpheum route, to take up its originally booked engagement over the Pan circuit. The Orpheum Circuit has been ad- vised by Mr. Casey of the facts. Ar- nold and Taylor contracted to open on the Pantages Circuit Jan. 20 last at Minneapolis. Shortly before that date they forwarded a doctor's certificate of the illness of one of the members and did not open as per agreement. Later they played the Interstate time in the south, and the next heard from were about to start on an Orpheum Circuit trip, at which time the V. M. P. A. received notification of the circum- stances from the Pantages people. During the investigation conducted by Casey, the act sent him a wire stat- ing that the western climate as well as the illness caused it to forsake the Pantages line of travel, although the Orpheum houses are reached by the same means of transportation. JEAN HAVEZ MARRIED AGAIN. Jean Havez was married Wednesday to Abba Ahl, professionally known in vaudeville as Doris Vernon. Havez is 45 years of age. Until he married Cecil Cunningham in 1916 he was regarded as a confirmed bachelor. Final papers in his divorce from Miss Cunningham were granted several months ago. New Pantages in Salk Lake. Salt Lake City, May 1. It became known here last week that the Pantages circuit will build a new theatre in this city. Recently Alex- ander Pantages on a visit approved the site and the plans. The new house will be a replica of the Pantages Seattle house. cus Corporation at last making good on a few of its earlier promises. Frank P. Spellman promoted the scheme which was to have been on the road last season but failed to come through. Louis £. Cooke, an old cir- cus man, is also interested. Stock in the project has been on public sale for a long time. Many To- ledoans have bought heavily . of it. Spellman maintains an office here in a prominent downtown building and for richness of furnishings his office excels anything of the kind in the city. The 15 trucks and trailers arriving in town were the first tangible evi- dence the stockholders have had of their investment. More trucks are to be built, Spellman claims, who says there is a menagerie from Los An- geles, employed in moving pictures, on its way here to become part of the cir- cus outfit. The circus has a 30-acre tract near the city and the trucks after parading around parked there. Each truck rep- resents an allied nation. Spellman came in with it from Cincinnati. The motor circus is announced to open late this month, in Toledo, after which Spellman says it is to head south over the Dixie Highway, closing at Jackson- ville in December. It is also claimed 1,000 people will be employed by the circus. All equip- ment will be carried on the trucks. PROCLAIMED NON-MEMBER. At the rooms of the National Vaude- ville Artists this week a notice was posted on the bulletin board that Hoef- fler & McConnell, of Quincy, 111., are not members of the Vaudeville Man- agers' Protective Association. No explanation accompanied the no- tification. Around the clubhouse it was said the information was made public through requests of acts to know if the firm belonged to the V. M. P. A. One person who claimed to have knowledge said the Hoeffler & McCon- nell house in Quincy, playing vaude- ville, had failed to pay acts in full during the fuelless weeks, and had also failed to make settlement for the amounts withheld since that time. The notice of non-membership in the N. V. A. rooms works automatically in informing artists regarding the status of the theatre through the understand- ing between the N. V. A. and V. M. P. A. WINTER, BOXING COMMISSIONER. Toledo, May 1. Harry Winter, Empire manager for years, has been appointed a member of the Boxing Commission by Mayor Schreiber. MUSIC FIRM BOUGHT OUT. The interest held by the T. B. Harms Co. in the music publishing business of Gilbert & Friedland was purchased outright last week by L. Wolf Gilbert and Anatol Friedland, the other part- ners. The Harms concern was reported at the organization in November last of the Gilbert & Friedland firm to have declared a readiness to advance $25,- 000 as the new concern might need it. It is said Gilbert & Friedland used about $12,000 of this amount. Gilbert & Friedland since organizing have been giving especial attention to their ballad hit, "Arc You From Heaven?" The remaining partners are energetic young men. Gilbert built up a reputation as professional manager for Stem & Co. before embarking in the publishing business on his own with Friedland, the latter a composer of note. frpheum in that city, made by Mr. Carter, dramatic critic of the Times. Mr. Nugent's letter follows: Mr. Carter, Dramatic Critic Denver Timet, City. Dear Sir: In your review of this week's show, I come h cross s line or two whloh I read with dis- tinct sense of shook. "Patriotism should not reach the point where Old Glory figures ss a theatre curtain." Why not? I ask, not as a player at the Orpheum, who entertained cantonments from coast to coast, bought bonds and contributed to benefits to the limit and given a son to the service, but as a simple citizen of these United States. Is patriotism to be limited to certain places? And if so, why, In the opinion of such self-appointed of its custodians as your illustrious self, should the theatre be barred. What sort of narrow-minded prejudice Is It which would prevent the flag from being Im- pressed upon the multitude—any time—any place—amid this world crisis, where we are fighting as much this lethargic hypocrisy and carping criticism at home as foes abroad. What educational institution of our land reaches more people than the theatre, what has an influence so subtle and far-reach- ing? Do you know that President Wilson has written enthusiastic and emphatic thanks and endorsements to all the theatrical man- agers of the United States and all that they represent for the tremendous returns In money and service watch they have rendered In this great war. Will you say the flag Is used to draw at- tention to, or popularize the offering whloh used it? If so, you are talking nonsense. The flag is greater than any act or any theatre and in such ratio detracts rather than adds to the thing It overshadows. The pres- ence of patrlotio speakers, flags and refer- ences to the war are distinctly deterlmental the interest taken by the audience In the entertainment Itself. This destroying of the interest by patriotic interpolations has cost the theatrical interests many times more than it brought to them, as any showman can as- sure you. But there is a great point which you overlooked as do most of the laymen. While we are actors and managers, we are also human. We are also citlssns. We think a great deal of our country. We know this country better than you do. You may be semi-familiar with a locality. We know all its pulses and all its parts. We want it to win because it belongs to us. We know Its public from coast to coast. We know that if it loses It will not be because of the foe aboard, but because of the hindering, harmful, cramp- ing, hectoring, fault-finding and criticism of those who say "Czar" of the President, "bungler" of Garfield, "Incompetent" of Baker, "bluff" of Roosevelt and "fake" or "graft" of every Influence toward victory! which may be exerted by sincere men and women from the theatre up and down. When the Flag Is impressed upon an audi- ence of thousands, twice a day, seven days a week, week after week, in hundreds of thousands of theatres from coast to coast, ts its message and meaning lees potent because It floats In a theatre or a dance hall or a church or a hospital or a circus? The place may be wrong, be It church or stage, but the Flag is always right, and its message is al- wsys ths same. So which, think you, Is your noblest work, Mr. Carter, to attempt to be- little the theatres or to help win the war? Is this a time to split hairs over when and where the Flag should ring out its challenge and its command? Is this a time when a man. who reaches the large unthinking mass, which reads theatrical criticism, shall allow anything to dull the ed°-e sf National Spirit— shall allow anything to lessen effort to help the man in the Hell of the trenches? If so. please remember that the last place against which such an Ignoble attempt should be aimed Is the theatre, which exists, not by toleration, but by right—Just as the church and club and home and lecture hall—and, equally with them needs no apology and no defense. This attitude—unthinking, no doubt, but still pernicious on the part of a few scat- tered writers here and there, must be stopped —now and forever—not for the sake of the theatre—but for the Hake of the common cause and the common danger—for while the church and club and home and rostrum reaches somo of the people, the theatre di- rectly and Indirectly reaches all of the peo- ple—and for the triumph and preservation of principle greater than all of them together, all the people must be reached by any and every means which shall dispel inertia and prejudice and sneers and division of effort, and unify popular sentiment into one grim, unrelenting, undaunted. National effort tow- ard the goal, which must be won, though It costs the last cent of our treasure and the last drop of blood. Vory Respectfully / C. Nugent. McCracken at Coney Island. Samuel McCracken, formerly identi- fied with the big circus interests, has taken a financial interest in a circus concession at Coney Island, and will open his show at Luna Park May 18. Goth! It's orMt to be s Rube.—Sheriff CHA8. ALTHOFF.