Variety (February 1920)

Pnkllshed Weekly h r VABEETT, Inc. ma mvmaux, wmm 1M West ««* ltr««t NffW T.rk aty SUBSCRIPTION .........S7 Foretsn..........• Smgte eaglet, 2S cents VOL. LVIII. -jgEfr No. 1 Al Field must pay a tax on a fish dam on his Columbus, 0., home. j The mother of Raymond Stanley, dancer, wants to hear from him. William B. Sheridan has again joined .Al Meyers. Lloyd H. Harrison is now associated with Joseph Eckl. Alfred Wetmark, English artist, is in New York to study productions. ;■ ?■■■■ Mike S. Whallen sailed for London Wednesday. Fran* Labor is expected to arrive in New York the latter part of next month. - ■ a ■;••■. ■: >•■., ' After a three days' illness Billy De- aney returned to his desk in the eith office last Saturday. - - Elsie Gergiey will replace Helen Ford of "Always You" when the play takes to the road March 1. Jack Birman, formerly with Joe Eckle, has opened an office in the 1 Gaiety building. Walter Plimmer will book the Fam- ily, Lebanon, Pa. The policy is to run four acts and a feature picture. V Sam Aste, formerly with Sam Bern- stein, is now connected with Bert La- Mont, s Beginning Monday Lewis Mosley will • be associated with Jack Henry, the agent. ■ ■ - i The Majestic, Elmira, N. Y., reopened Monday after the house had been dark for a week, due to a fire which de- stroyed the stage. R. George Burnett has abandoned his vaudeville vehicle, "East Isn't West," in which he was assisted by Grace Ren- ard, to go into a production. Sol Unger was operated on Wednes- day in a private sanitarium and is in a serious condition. A tubercular kid- ney was removed. Joseph Eckl has once more taken over the booking of Gloversville, N. Y. The house was formerly handled by Walter J. Plimmer. The Joseph Lemeiro mentioned in the Federal Trades Commission testi- mony in last week's issue, was in error. It should have read George Lemaire. Moore end Megley's "Puppy Love" has been rechristened "Flirtation," con- flicting with Johnny Small and sister's billing. The Navy Club, giving a special per- formance at the Century last Friday afternoon, with $25 the top seat price, realized about $18,000. The Selwyn have completed negotia- tions with an English producer to put on "Smilin* Through" jointly in Lon- don next November. Julius- and Men Kendler for the ac- commodation of their theatrical clients, have established quarters at 145 West 45th street and forsaken their down- town offices. The Manhattan opera house .com- menced'giving a matinee last Sunday for the Keith vaudeville show booked 'each Sunday in the house. The -mati- nee, scale is 50 cents top. ■".' Herbert W. Hutchinson has sold his interest in the Hutchinson Amusement Co*, to Charles H. Vose, of Portland, Me. The latter will succeed General Manager Hutchinson as manager of the New Portland, as well. The Gaelic Amusement Co. has leased the Academy of. Music in Brooklyn for March 14 and 17 (St. Patrick's night) and will present a new version of Walter McNamara's feature film, "Ire- land a Nation." Sam Mitnick, arrested Feb. 16 and accused. of assault by Billy Abrams, was discharged when the case came up before Magistrate Nolan in the West Fifty-fourth street Magistrates court. Leon La ski represented Mitnfck. Pet V. Kinev formerly manager of Murray's on 42d street, and the Ross Fenton Farm, has retired from the hotel and restaurant business and'has for a saving of rent. Rentals were jumped so high that nearly all the ten- ants have moved out. Joseph Hart is now quartered at the Playhouse, and Harry Fitzgerald has moved to the Longacre Building. The Woman's Auxiliary of S. Rankin Drew Post, the theatrical post of the American 'Legion, has been organized and will be made permanent at a meet- ing to be held Sunday afternoon at Keen's Chop House. Mrs, Sidney Crew is the temporary president, Miss Thais Magrane, secretary and Mrs. W. G. Newman, treasurer. Acting Mayor of New York, F. H. La Guardia will be the guest of the Post at it's monthly meet- ing on March 2, and the benefit for the establishing of a gymnasium will be held SundSy, April 11. * _ At e meeting of the board of govern- ors of the Friars last week it was de- cided to waive the iniation fee for ac- tive membership until further notice. Persons eligible for active, member-' ship are persons actually concerned in the business or executive departments of theatres or other .standard amuse- ment enterprises, which includes actors, press agents and vocal or instrumental artists; persons conducting business or executive departments of the press or literary magazines as proprietors, publishers, managers, editors reporters,, artists, paid contributors, special writ- ers or illustrators; also acknowledged dramatic authors and other authors and composers. Nick Arnold was a familiar figure to PROTECTED MATERIAL VARIETY'S Protected Material Department will receive and file all letter* addresssd to It Ttia envelopes are to be sealed upon the back In a manner to prevent opening without detection, unless by permission of the owner of the letter. The following circuits, managements end agencies have slgnlOed a willingness to adopt snob means as may be within their power to eliminate "lifted material " from their theatres, when Informed of the result or an Investigation conducted by VAlUBTYi MARCUS LOBW ciacuiT (JOB. M. Srtumok) FOX ClrlCWT (Edgar Allen) mubs cmcurr (Walter F. Kesfe) FINN-HBMAN CIRCUIT (Sam Kahl) BERT LEVEY CIRCUIT shea cmnurr (Harry A. Rh»n) FE1RER-SHKA CIRCUIT (Richard geamey) NIXON-NianUNOKR CIRCUIT PANTAOES CIRCUIT (Walter F. Ke e/e) B. S. MOSS CIRCUIT (B. S. Moss) C.US SUN CIRCUIT (GusSun) MICHIGAN VAUn. CIRCUIT (\v. 3. Butterfleld) been admitted to the firm of Henry • I.us tig Co., wholesale fruit and veget- able dealers. Leroy and Dresner are well known male performers. It was said last week mistakingly that they would do a "sis- ter act." As they come of good- fami- lies and don't wear red neckties they ask that the "sister" impression be cor- rected. Tho entertainment committee of New York Lodge No. 1 (Elks) is giv- ing a beefsteak on the evening of March 6; for the members of the com- mittee only. They number about 50. The affair will be held on the roof of. the clubhouse. Tickets are $5 each. Harry Lauder sailed last Saturday for South A. r rica, where he will tour under the joint direction of William Morris of New Yo*4c and Richard Car- roll of Australia. Morris solely directs Lauder's American tours and hereafter will be interested in the management of his world travels. Tho annual banquet of the Police Lieutenants' Benevolent Association was held Monday night at the Hotel Waldorf. • Among those present from the show business were John J. Col- lins, Harry J. Fitzgerald) Arthur Blon- dell, Jack Dempsey and Jack Lewis, Mr. Lewis was the politician of the party, otherwise the fixer. — * Ligon Johnson, secretary to the United Managers' Protective Associa- tion, has moved his offices from the 45th street side of the building at 1520 Broadway to the front, that making the Times Square crowd. He fre- quented the Broadway cabarets and the road houses around New York. Ar- nold has been called "The Master Mind" in the bond thefts and the New York dailies made a sensation of his disappearance, following an indictment for the theft of $42,000. On t6p of this a bonding company filed an in- voluntary petition in bankruptcy against Nick Arnstein, his correct name, to tie up any property of Arn- stein's that could be located in order that the bonding company could reim- burse itself for large amounts paid out through bond thefts which the com- pany alleged Arnstein was responsible for. Fannie Brice is Mrs. Nick Arnold. They were married sometime after her husband was released from Sing Sing where he bad been sent for three years, after his arrest in England by Detec- tive Sergeant Flood. The Arnolds have one child, girl, born about a year ago at Huntington, Long Island. While Arnold was in Sing Sing, Miss Brice was with "The Follies." She made no secret of her intention to marry Ar- nold and her friends said that Miss Brice's only concern during that time was to provide a home for Arnold upon his release. She appeared to have been infatuated with him, they having known one another for several years prior to his conviction. Miss Brice was mentioned by the dailies in the stories concerning Arnstein and she was quizzed by the district attorney as to her knowledge of her husband's whereabouts and his operations. Miss Brice is in "The Midnight Frolic" on the Amsterdam Roof, another Ziegfeld show, where she has been playing since it opened, receiving $700 weekly. A rather peculiar near-matrimonial LONDON OFFICE OF KIETY (IVAN PATRICK CORK IN CHARGE) 23, REGENT SQUARE, W.C Telephonei North I7M matter is now occupying the attention of New York attorneys. A picture star became the mother of a son about three years ago. The boy was born* in England. Since then the mother came to this side, bringing her son with her, and she is now in pictures.' The father, non-professional and of a very wealthy American family, recently kidnapped his son, and the mother has engaged attorneys to recdver the boy. ■A i TOMMY'S TATTLES. BY THOMAS J. GRAY. Chicago man just died at the age of 101; never saw the inside of a theatre. Probably he always tried to buy tickets at the box office. Lord Northcliffe, English newspaper owner, plans to link nations through the movies. Why not? Pie can be ' understood in any language. Titles that numerals such as "1920- 1921," etc., can be tacked on to a la Ziegfeld's "Follies" are rather scarce —owing to the demand, so we submit the following, with a line or two added to help the press agent. "Chills and Fever of 1920." The costumers gives the chorus .the chills, The audience gets the fever. 'The Idealess Revue of 1920." With the Forty Idealess Beauties. "Hash of 1920/ With a chorus of well done broilers. "Mirth, Music and Murder of 1920." A bang up show with many merry murderers. ■;■■••■■* "Costumes and Scenery of 1920.'' With fifty cute costume fillers, "Giddiness of 1920." With the giddy girlie guy guyers. Italy is to teach history in its schools with motion pictures. When they show the days Of»Nero its going to be easy to get a voilin player for his part- but how are they going to show Rome burning? -• If American history was to be posed for the movies, the following scenes . would have to be omitted:. Washington chopping down the cherry tree. ■ (It would bring back the thoughts : ;■ a of those Manhattan Cocktails.) Lincoln splitting rails. (Labor leaders would say it would be a bad example to their followers to X show somebody working.) • Dewey at Manila. (Admiral "Sims might object to the way the battle was won, or say our Navy didn't do it.) Seems to us most of the people who ' are uringing recognition with the fM Trotsky Russian Government, are the "•'; ones who showed so much sympathy . with Germany. They probably have the same stage manager directing them. ';" Many of our officials who are wasting •■'; time trying to figure out what's wrong with America might start with them- .■ selves. .- , .'■ ■' m If Mexico would guarantee to kidnap .' everyone we sent to her, it might solve the Red problem and save a lot of '•'.';; ships for good use. The Frtfeport boys are hoping there >Wi will be something in the cellars besides. ,"'••' water this year,