Variety (March 1921)

PRICE 20 CENTS • . # p m * ■ Published Weekly at 114 West 4fth St., New York, N. T., by Variety, Ino. Annuel subscription $7. flagle copies, 2* centa ICutered as second class matter December It. 1901, at the Poet Office at New York, N. Y., under tks Act of Marcl t, 1IT9. VOL. LXII. No. 4 NEW YORK CITY, FRIDAY, MARCH 18, 1921 40 PAGES LOWER ADMISSIONS FORCED MANY FILM ROAD SHOWS BOOKED NEXT SEASON BY THE SHUBERTS Special Picture and Vaudeville Combinations Ex- pected to Fill Shubert Houses—Reduces Need of Legitimate Productions. : That there will be from six to ten big feature films playing in Broad- way theatres of the Shuberts by May 1 carries with it the signifi- cance that of these special features the Shuberts will have for roac! booking purposes next season any number of film road shows It is now estimated the Broadway fea- ture showings will result in at least forty picture road shows going out oyer the Shubert route next season. 'Griffith will have ten "Way Down East's" anyway, if not more; Metro Will put out at the smallest five ••Four Horsemen," and Fox intends to start about six "Over the Hill's." In addition to the film road book- ings the Shuberts will have their vaudeville combinations to route, that even include at present the two shows made up of Century Roof acts that are now traveling. These bookings are contemplated by the Shuberts, it is said, with much personal pleasure, for two rea- sons; they lessen the necessity of preparing legitimate productions for the road, to keep their time filled, and the second reason, alleged by some to be the most important, is that the Shuberts through their booking offices, especially the vau- deville end, will reap a large weekly Income that will go directly to them- selves out of the commissions. While the maximum number of special films now in sight for Broad- way this spring and summer is set (Continued orf page 8) SUED FOR BREACH, AUTHOR WOULD MARRY Montayne Answers Clara Car- roll in $100,000 Action. TAX BURDENS CUT INDEPENDENTS AND" EQUITY E Business Off 25 to 30 Per Cent, on Broadway— New Attractions Do Not Attempt Lofty Box Of- fice Scale—Road Shows First to. Revise Prices Downward. TALK OVER "CLOSED SHOP" Meeting Monday Sparsely Attended—One Proposal That Independents Be Given Contract to Run with P. M. A.'s. NEW SONG SENT BY PHONE FROM FRISCO NOTICES AT GARDEN F»r»t Time • • ■ So Many Dismissals Early in ~Run One of the most unusual answers In the history of the New York courts was filed by Carlton S. Montayne, an author, to the suit of Clara Carroll, a dancer, who alleged breach of promise and recently started action for $100,000 damages. The writer states in hs answer filed through Samuel Chess, his attorney, he has always been anxious to marry the plaintiff and is willing to do so now. Miss Carroll was in the Gus Ed- wards' Revue with which she closed last Saturday. Formerly she ap- peared with Lew fields and was in other Broadway attractions includ- ing the Century Roof. Montayne la weU known as a magazine writer and scenarist. He wrote part of the book of "The Rose Girl" when that show was originally put on. Roth & Altman are representing Miss Carroll. 4 NEW SHOWS DUE With the business on Broadway further off from 26 to 30 per cent, last week, talk of a reconstruction of box office scales with a downM^ using; the number in the "Green- APPEAL FOR 'CLOSING ACT' Big Time Programmes Request Audience to Remain Seated I Notices were given to some mem- bers of the "Passing Show of 1921" at the Winter Garden Saturday. This establishes a precedent for a Winter Garden show. It is the first time it has occurred in the history of the house. The notices, effective two weeks from Saturday, were received by six principals :»nd 15 choristers, to reduce the operating expenses of the show, according to the shu- berts. The principals were Joanette rMetHeh, Juliet Strahl, May Deve- raux, a female Impersonator, and a violinist ami his feihalc tartner, in addition to the chorus girls. The latter reheavt<ei1 for -ix Keeks with the p.ece. on the supposition that they erouid remain for the inn. The Garden show is no.v in its '-th week. By order from the Keith office the programs in all the big time houses in New York now hold a re- quest to tho audience to remain seated during the showing of tho final act. This notice is carried in Efti "box" holding the bill and di- rectly under the billing of the fir.alo turn. It reads: "The last act on our bill is always interesting and general- ly the feature of our show, ami in justice to tins act. tie audienee is requested to re- main seated until it has fln- ish«'d. it is very disconcerting to have part of the ainlhneo leave while tho artists are doing their best to pleas" those remaining eeerted, who era rtis- commodeu by having then tii- tention distracte.l i »m h< stage by people leaving, ward revision deemed necessary has been started. It is believed the payment of federal income taxes is more to blame tor the continued slump than the close advent of Easter. But the campaigns for lower prices and a return to "nor- malcy" appears to have invaded theatricals. It is a sign that none of the recently arrived attractions have attempted excess scales. Out of town especially the revision is more patent, and it is known that two or three big revues have modi- fled their scales within the past three weeks. Managers contend admission scales are high because of high labor charge and inflation of other costs. One factor toward reduc- tion that would be a powerful aid is the projected slashing of wage scales tmong the major railway sys- tems. Transportation executives have stated they intend to promote travel and traffic by putting the rates back to a normal basis and (Continued on page 12) Ted Lewis Plays and Sings "Maybe" Over Long Distance. A new song written by Ted Lewis and Al Robins in San Fran- cisco, was printed In NeW York the following day and sale copies for- warded to the Coast, where Lewis McVlCKER'S THEATRE BUILT IN 4 MONTHS Fleischman Construction Co. Will Do Record Building Chicago. March 1«. Jones, I.iniek * Sehaefer are making arranKements to demolish McVieKcr's six months hence arid rebuild tho theatre within four n or.th-*. To accomplish this record br n aj<- h | feat of removal and reconstruc- tion all materials a e to b^ ddlivertd wlch Village Follies" now playing out there. A store demand for the sheet music of the song created the haste. Lewis got Louis Bernstein of Shapiro-Bernstein A Co. on the long distance from "Frisco and advised the publisher of the object. Mr. Bernstein assembled his song de- partment staff, Including an ar- ranger and stenographer. Lewis played the music and sang the lyric three times over the phone, before Bernstein advised him it had been perfectly gotten- on this end. Tho time consumed was 12 minutes. Ordinarily a song may be sung over the phone in about 100 seconds. Orchestrations of the number were ordered in 'Frisco, after Bernstein announced to Lewis he would ac- cept the song for publication. While the contract from Lewis was on its way east, the printed sheet music of the song passed it, Coast-ward bound. The full title of the Lewis song is "I'm Coming Back to You, Maybe" PLAYLET IN PICT. PROGRAM. Los Angeles, March 16. The Ambassador this week is pre- senting a spoken one-act playlet, en- titled "Fancy Free," with Mary Mac- Laren as the principal player, In conjunction with the regular picture program. Kathleen Clifford is also in the oast. Dooley and Rugel Booked Together. John Dooley has aceepted a Keith mute for next season. He will ap- pear or all bills with his wife, fvette Kur;er. Miss Rugel will do her M i Ingle" turn preceding Johnny's m advance and p! iced in storage specialty, following which they will I fore starting to demolish the I double for a third turn. Johnny will present structure. < any a straight nan in his act* The Fleischman Bros. Construe-1 Dooley started rehearsing Monday tioft Co. have charge of tbe work. 1 of this week with "June 'Pointing out that the "Equity," or closed shop, adopted by the Actors' Equity Association was discrimina- tory, and that it worked hardships on independent managers, a meet- ing at the A. E. A. headquarters Monday, to which all managers not members of the Producing Mana- gers' Association, brought up a number of questions that must be decided before the "Equity Shop" principle is invoked next season. But four or Ave managers attended the meeting, officials of the A. E. A. telephoning to some with a request to attend. Those most active in the discussion were Brock Pcmberton and Max Marcln. Walter Jordan, for Sanger & Jordun, and a repre- sentative of Lew Fields were also present. No one representing the Touring Managers' Association at- tended. The object of the meeting was to learn the managers' opinion as to why the Equity Shop should not bs applied to their productions, start- ing next season, it being in the power of the Equity council to do* clde against which managers the plan Is to be used. It was pointed out that the field of the independent manager was made more narrow than that enjoyed by the big pro- ducers In the P. M. A., since the lists of the Actors' Fidelity League was open to them for casting but apparently closed to the indepen- dent. Mr. Marcin touched on the mat- ter of the A. E. A. selecting the players for the manager. He pointed out that out of the A. E. A.'s 10,000 membership, about 9.000 were used for road attractions and about 1,000 for Broadway shows. He desired to Hiow whether if the road players voted it so, managers would not be compelled to use the road men for a change Instead of the known players now appearing. The answer was that if that situa- tion should come to pass there would be a split in the A. E. A., and those members representing the big- ger shows would form an organiza- (Continued on page 8) RAZZING" SPEECHES READY. The "razzing" or attempted break- ing up of acts by rowdies In somo big and small time vaudeville houses throughout the country has grown to such proportions this season, sev- eral artists have prepared emer- gency "razzing" speeches to bo used in the event of trouble. Tho "razzing" speeches are framed to meet Any aituatlon ihat may arlee, , — ' ...*