Variety (August 1918)

VOL. LI, No. 10 N1W YORK CITY, FRIDAY, AUGUST 2, 1018 PRICE TEN CENTS NAVY OFFICIALLY SELECTS NOVEL SAILOR SHOW TO TRAVEL > ■ ■ ii Six Enlisted Men at Pelham Bay Camp Will Form Bill of Entertainers to Amuse Sailors on Board and Ashore. First Show of Its Kind Reported Recommended by An Admiral. Officially selected and approved six enlisted sailors at the Pelham Bay Naval Training Station in New York City have been formed into an enter- taining unit by the order of an admiral, according to report. The men selected are former professionals —Johnnie Ford, George Lane, "Buck" Mack, Bob Fisher, Sidney Phillips, with one more to be named. The sextet compose the first pro- gram of its kind ever formed in the service over here. They will travel together and arrange their own pro- gram. They expect to be aboard ships going across the ocean as often as they are detailed to visit the several naval camps. The entertainers may file a requisi- tion for a piano player to be included in the group. It is said they would like to have Frank Westphal, who is also an enlisted sailor, assigned to them. Each of the sailors included in the group could give an individual con- tinuous entertainment of 20 minutes or longer. They expect to organize among themselves, devise turns of "singles," "two-acts" and "trios," con- cluding their performance with an ensemble number, although the precise routine has not been decided upon. Following the recommendation and approval of the formation of the offi- cial playing sailor program the men were given five days' leave of absence, with orders to report Aug. 2 for assign- ment. Each of the sailor entertainers has gone through the training period and expects to continue the studies in navigation in the expectancy that they may attain a junior officer's rank. The Irving Berlin show from Camp Upton, containing men in the Service now stationed there and which is to appear at the Century may be the means of the War Department decid- ing that some of its players are to go to France as soldier-entertainers, it was said this week, after the Berlin show ends its engagement. "ROCKING THE BOAT tt Shorty Strubel and a small xylophone with him, started to play the "Star Spangled Banner." Occupants of several other canoes nearby stood up and two of the canoes tipped over. No casualties. CHORUS GIRLS SCARCE-READ I Around 300 chorus girls applied last week at the first rehearsals of "Some- time," which Allan K. Foster is put- ting on for Arthur Hammerstein. The extraordinary response was the re- sult of postal cards sent to a ma- jority of the girls, but they were al- most solid against leaving New York. Two of the applicants were in uni- form, one a conductorette who had been "off the boards" for a season or so and desired to try a come-back. She was as good looking as the average run of feminine car attendants and Hammerstein thought she was a motor- man. In weeding out the girls the manager had all sorts of run-ins. It took sev- eral minutes to convince one girl she wouldn't do, the manager finally ad- vising her that no female imperson- ators were wanted. SHUBERTS SOUTH. New Orleans, July 31. The announcement is made the Shu- berts will enter the South next season as a competing factor in the legitimate end of theatricals. They have leased the Lafayette here. The Lafayette was the local house of the Shuberts when they disen- tangled themselves from the Klaw & Krlangcr Syndicate several years back. The theatre was built for them by a New Orleans realty corporation, and first bore the name Shubert. Chicago, July 31. While canoeing one day last week, Friscoe, the xylophonist, who had LAUDER UP FOR PARLIAMENT. London, July 31. Harry Lauder intends to stand as candidate for Parliament from Leices- ter at the next election. If elected it seems likely that will end, at least for his term, Lauder's pro- fessional stage career. He is due to return to America in December for another farewell tour next season. SHUBERT SHOWS AT RIVIERA. A report this week, which ap- pears to be authentic, says that the Shuberts will play their at- tractions the coming season at the Riviera theatre, Broadway and 97th street, adjoining Keith's Riverside. The deal is said to have been put through by the owners of the house— John White and William Long—who are associated with William Fox. The Riviera has been playing Fox vaude- ville. That may be shifted to the Riviera's roof in the fall along with the roof's present picture policy. When John Cort switched over to Klaw & Erlanger it was presumed that the Standard, at Broadway and 90th street, operated by Cort and Joe LeBlang, would accordingly play the K. & E. attractions exclusively, although it was said for the Standard's management that house intended to take on any show from either side of the legitimate factional fight. William Fox a couple of seasons ago, when running the Riverside for vaude- ville only, entered into an arrange- ment with the Keith interests to pool the two adjoining theatres, Keith to furnish big-time bills for the River- side. The Keith people at the time contemplated building in the neighbor- hood. UNKNOWINGLY DIVORCED. E. Coleman Goetz, "America's young- est composer," only learned the other day that his wife. Gertrude Harrison, had secured a divorce from him, al- though the decree was granted six months ago. After reading the divorce papers young Goetz immediately wrote a song called "I Was Never a Bigger Winner in My Life," which he says the decree inspired. Miss Harrison is in "The Kiss Bur- glar." There is one child to the union. "BUSTER" STERLING KILLED. Nelson ("Buster") Sterling, aged 17, was killed at Atlantic City July 26 in an elevator accident at a bath house while trying to save another youth. The boy was the son of Kathcrine Sterling, with whom he appeared in vaudeville. His last appearance was with Jane Courthope in the playlet "Jim." The Original Bub* famUr. CHAB. ALTHOFF. DOROTHY JARDON IN G. 0. Dorothy Jardon has engaged with Cauipauiui, the Chicago impresario, and will appear with the Chicago Opera the coming season. It has long been Miss Jardon's ambi- tion to enter the operatic field. In addition to headlining in vaudeville Miss Jardon has appeared ill a number of musical comedies. CO AUTHORS BATTLE. A playwright who had several suc- cesses on Broadway last season and is co-author in a still running drama, en- gaged in a bit v of "heavy mcller" stuff himself, when he smashed a beer bot- tle over the head of another play- wright recently. The affair was "staged" in the writer's home, located in a suburb north of the Bronx. The pair were collaborating on a new play which the visitor was unable to finish alone. The latter took occasion to explain to his host's wife that her husband was not any too particular with his affections. This caused the wife to follow her mate in a taxicab one evening and during a later scene at home between them, he extracted the information as to whom had tipped her off. At that particular moment in walked the visiting author and the bottle smashing act followed. The loose- mouthed victim swore he would obtain a warrant for assault and the affair may yet reach the courts. REVENUE BADGES DISCARDED. Dating from Aug. 1, Internal Rev- enue officers will no longer wear badges. Any person presuming to act under the authority of a metal badge as a United States Revenue Officer should be treated as an impostor. In future revenue officers will carry instead pocket commissions, which must be shown on demand, and no other credentials should be recognized. The new order was issued this week by Mark Eisner, Collector of the Port of New York. SHUBERTS AGAINST PRESS WORK. In the Shuberts' press sheet sent out this week there is a request to dra- matic editors to ignore matter sent to them by players under engagement to the Shuberts, through the peisonal press agents. TWO LONG RUNS. Thursday Cohan & Harris celebrated two records in the runs of two of their current New York successes. One was the 400th performance of "A Tailor-Made Man," with Grant Mit- chell, at the Cohan & Harris theatre; the other the 250th performance of "Going Up," at the Liberty. Nat Goodwin Marrying Again? People who k !!'•'.'.' 'bom Nat ( (imid- win is gonii- to take another wife. Ccorgie Gardner is most often men- tioned by them as the prospective No. sixth or seventh Mrs. Goodwin.