Variety (October 1922)

Friday. October 6. 1922 OUTDOOR AMUSEMENTS f CHICAGO SHUTS OUT CARNIVAL GAMES IN POUTICAL HGHT I A... Police Order Stops Wheels to Bring Showdown with Scheming Politicians—Booker Unloads Licenses Which Are Necessary \ Chicago, Oct. 4. A blow was ^t^uck to carnivals around hero, when the chief of po- lice sent out an order to all police captains instructing them not to allow pa(Mlo wheels or any kind of games of cliance in bazaars, car- nivals ov anywhere else. Thi.<? was likely promoted throusJi methods emp'oyed by local politicians to buck the police department and this order i=eom« to be a shov.-down of police authority against graftli^g politician.'-. • : . A number of traveling carnivals have contracted Ihrir outflis ard aervlces to a local booker of car- nival.s. V, ho usually lia.s taken the- j carnival and split It up into many \ aecUcn.s and distributed them in varioua sections of thf» city. Things became so acute and h-u ft»r thiu carnivijl booker that l^e trans- ferred th'v? llcen.«es tj another part J 'n i<ame in order to ayod a flat turndov^ii. It i.s ntce sary to buy a city car- nival llcen.se here for ten v.'eeki-., and UsuaUy thl:} booker picks up the un- expired time of these rarnivals which get into jams and Lli>v.- the town. ACTION IN BUFFALO UNUSUAL CARNIVAL Jersey City Hat 8tr*«t Fair, With Everything SPORTS Civic Or^anizationt Oppoo^d Ctreet Shows to INDIANA CIRCUS TAX $8,196 Hoosier State Collects More Foes Than Last Year Indianapoli."^, Oat. 4. - Tent shows and circuHes were more numerous in Indiana towns thi8 Kummor than last, flgure.s ^ade public by the'stale auditors office ahow. Witli thirty-two counties delin- quent in making rei)ortH, J8,196.9C has been turned into the state treas- ury to date, as compared with $7,396 all last year. FAIR HAPPENINGS Rochester, N. Y.. Oct. 4. Mishaps of a seriou^ nature oc- curred at three country fairs in this section during the week. At Pal- myra. Wayne county, there waa al- most a panic when the gasoline en- gine of the Ferris wheel was de- stroyed and the big wheel enveloped in flames. No injuries and village firemen soon had the blaze under •ontrol. At the "World's Fair." at a«m- lock, a section of the floor of the •pen-air stage in front of the grand- Stand pulled up Just after the flying trapeze performers landed on the floor. At the Niagara county fair, wX Lockport, a horse dropped dead after crossing the flnishing line. • CODY'S DOUBLE NEEDY Chicago, Oct. 4. Col. William LaVelfe, who doubled for Buffalo Bill, Is In groat distress, according to information which Wached the Showmen's League of America at one of their meetings. SThe friends of the colonel are ar- ranging plans for his Immediate re- lief. Buffalo. Oct. 4. Business men and otflccrs t»f va- rious civic associations of Buffalo have taken decisive action to curb the activities of street fake gam- bling Fhows conducted as "car- nivals" in and about Buffalo, as a reiiult cf the loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars during the past sprinj^ find summer by reason of the bhcw.nqr of such outfits in this vicinity. Buffalo, during the pa.«t treason, has been Infejted by an un- usua'ly large number of these shows, most operating under tho consent or co-operation of some local organization. Almc-^t without excppicn the organizations have re- ported that compared with the sums taken l>y tho j>romoters. the revenue to tht' t-Dciotics ha^^ boon almost lu.thinf^ Protests from reputable bu.'<:p.«*ss men to the authorities during the past summer ha\-e-been dlsi-cr;ar(led and it is now p'arned to brln;:; the matter to the atten- ti«)n of the City C:3unril. It is stated that ' mo?t ff the ihov.'.s playinc: about Bufialo have bfen fperatinn c^niblin.^ conces- sions with ftlmost every clement of chance eliminated. "Fixed" gam- bling devices have beeti in order and open violations of gambling lav.s have t>een in vojue. Citizens having homes in the vicinities^of grourd.s where the shows were con- ducted have made violent complaint that peace of the neighborhood has been disturbed by the noise and by disorderly show attaches and pat- rons. In a number of instances beautiful lawns have been trampled upoji and appeals to the police have not brought proper redress. Among the other evils which are mentioned are special shows and vulgar and tawdry exhibitions in which women were "featured." , An unusual street carnival was hold laat week in Jersey City for the benefit of a local church. The Mock was roped off and everyone pas*sing tha lines was taxed 10 cents, with an additional charge made for dancing.' A special feature was the music supjilied by a band of elj;ht priests and claimed to be a wonder. ^ ^ The presence of ^rambling devices, mostly wheels which have been under cover for years, was one of the real draws of the carnival. Cash prizes attained. One wheel num- bered 1 to 50 called for a 10-cent I)lay and returned 30 cents if the peg stopped v.ithin a winning block of figures. Another wheel rarely seen in the east but common in Mexican border towns was in operation. It held the name of the American presidents and the flags of various countries. The wheel paid 5 to 1 for the president and 15 to 1 on the flags. Bets up to any amount were supposed to have bec>n acceptable, though the usual bet was 00 cents. A knock-out went to the credit of Harry Wills la^t Friday night against one Clem Johnson at Madi- ^:on Square dardcn. But it was Ike a fighter winning a contest with a punching bag. The affair reminded a fair crowd of just that sort of thing, with Wills trying to split the bag and just about doing it. Clemie v.as unable to defend himself and in the 12th round the referee who was bothered almost to exhaustion in t-cparating the colored maulers. his success of last year, when ho made the Yank.<4 look fooli.sh \ iih his curve ball. yhawkoy, Hoyt, Jone.i and Mays will carry tho Yanks' buribii. MeCJraw. with the raggediost pitching stuff he ha.s ever had in a series, is very apt to i turn the trick. OUTDOOR ITEMS Ben Williams of the Williams Standard Shows is to put a 20-car rhov\' next season. The De Kreko Bros. Shows made a long move last week, ijumping from Cap Oiradeau. Mo., to Ville Platte. I^a. This was a three-road movement of 600 miles, probably the longest Jump of the sea.son. George K. Morris of Amsterdam, m mber of the New York Stato Boxing Commission, in expected to resign this week to devote all his time to his new position as chair- man of the Ilepublican State Com- v.aved Harry away and rubbed the .'"*^^*'^' 'o which he was named at bac!: of Jcljn.son's head and neck to ^^^ close of the (J. O. P. convention revive hii. . Clom w;ia dozing over *^^ Albany, N. Y., last week. It the ropes. He came to quickly ^'^'^^ reported that Mr. Morris, who enough, sal down and guzzled water *^ extremely popular throughout the t'.iat was poured over his ebony s'ate, being put down as u "regular dome ard stroamed down his dam- f*'•'<)w," was the personal choice of aged pan. Wills had socked him <^overnor Miller, who, the rumor io frequently with the "rabbit intnch" that even the cast iron John.son knew about it. The boxing commsislon saw fit to l0( k Clem over before giving an o.k said, did not agree with the way George A. Glynn, the former chair- man, was handling matters. Chair- man Morris virtually will be Gov- ernor Miller's manager for the cam- for the match The Commish knew i I»"'k» as the Job of arranging tho While in Los Angeles the Kingling Bros, bought a den of lions from the Universal studios. The cats have been put in the menagerie with the ' show. Curtis Treland of candy racetrack fame and for the past few years heatl of the Ireland Candy Co. of St. Louis has bought a home at Venice, Cal. lit- is .«aid to have re- tired from the show business for all time. JIM McKOWEN DIVORCED • t .: Chicago. Oct. 4. A divorce was secured here Mon- day by Claire McKowen against James B. McKowen, the New York vaudeville agent. , Mrs. A^cKowen was given the custody of their young daughter, with reasonable support for the child from its father, but without alimony for herself. Tom Johnson was the wife's attorney. The McKowens have been mar- ried for several years. James B. McKowen served as a captain In the army during the war. He de- clined a commission with the same rank In the regular army to return to New York and his family, after having lived'In Chicago. Mrs. McKowen Is a sister of Marillyn Miller and has been with "Sally" for some time. It Is said Mrs. McKowen may marry a wealthy Bostonlan whom she met while "Sally" was playing in that city, on its first run there. CIRCUS ROUTES Ringling Bros.-B. B. Oct. 6, Alexandria, La.; .7, Lake Charles; 9, San Antonio, Tex.; 10, Victoria; 11, Houston; 12. Beau- mont; 13, Lafayette, La.; II, Baton Rouge; 15, 16, New Orleans. Sellt-Floto Ocf. ♦}, HuntsviUe. Ala.; 7, Chat- lanoog.i. Tenn. Hagenbeck-Wallace ^ Oet. c, Kingston, N. C; 7, Golds- ■Doro. Johnny Jones Expo. ^•OeV 9 to 21. Atlanta. (}a. ; XkJ_ Ark. Gollmar Bros. <*■ . Sall uBaw,. (.>Ula^ tla.Tlli, . ' Al G. Barre:: Oct. 0. Siuttgart. Ark.; : Waltar L. Main I 'erd\ce. YIDDISH FILM DRAMA (Continued from page 1) and picture field will be sought for most of the principal roles, A New York theatre for the spe- cial exhibition ^f the pictures Is being considered. Boris Thomashef- sky, 6ne of the incorporators, will direct and play some of the leads. Others interested in the new picture firm are William Alexander, Harry Levey, Mike Thomashefsky and Charles Thomashefsky. Few Yiddish plays are known to have been used for pictures, and none has ever been attempted with the idea of making a general appeal sueh a.-i is expected by the use of English titles. ^ t ' ■■■■ I ■ -III ■ ... lll1IM« - . ■ • ( , Thursday. Fept. 2S. marked 25th an ii i s I r i. 4 >i> uZ "Tixe.I" " ff ^'f v Y»>i K," now pla> .ng i .1 foim as a Shul>ert unit under the nam.' f.f 'The Wli.ii fif New York." The Honest Bill and Lucky Bill will have their wint»*r quarters at Lancaster, Mo. The old quarters were at Ada. OMa. where Honest Bill makes his home. The Ringling Bros.-Barnum & Bailty shows claim that their coast trip was a complete success nri.i 'state that what oppo.'iltion they en- countered failed to make the slight- est dent in the reeeii>t8 of the big show. Doug and Mary Fairbanks visited the show at Los Angeles. Sam McCracken, with the publieity dei>artment of the Barnum-Bailey shows for a number of years, has joined the Manhelm press staff In Cleveland. Tho Manheims operate several Mutual wheel shows and theatre."^. The State Fair Board for the In- diana State Fair announces a clear profit of $10,000 at this season's fair. The Indianapolis event, although one of the biggest in the country, has never brought In any big finan- cial returns to its promoters. Oscar Babcock, with his "death trap" loop the loop and fly the plane act, has been creating a sensation in the Hawaiian Islands. Babcock Is en route to Australia and the Far East. The John T. Brunen murder trial has been set for Oct. 23 at Mount Holly, N. J. Charles M. Powell, who confessed to having shot Brunen; Mrs. Doris Brunen, the victim's wife, and Harry C. Mohr, brother of Mrs. Brunen, are all ac- cused of Implication. Brunen was the owner of the Mighty Doris Shows. The Greater Sheesley Shows will close shortly and go Into winter quarters near Chicago. Blllle Owens has been doing the booking since W. "Bill" Rice resigned from the show. I ,- Tho J^ivoli, Xev.- I'.ninsv. U k. N. J., r Oct. 0, SMii»<l)ury, .Md.; 7. Ci infield r"in;< i !y booki d by .Iilin Hobbins is ' (close o!" Hr.;i<?cm). . liou l«":f.,'.j boolird )..•. .I.o k Lind» r. Geoige C. Moyer, of the Muggi- van-Bower-Ballard forco.s, i.s still confined to his room at the Palmoi House, Chicago. AUSKINGS IS AGENT After closing the seasrm as Con- tracting agent with Gollmar Broth- ers' Circus, Clarence Ausklngs be- cnmo general agent for the George C. Roberson two-car tent rep show. It carries twenty-five people, head- ed by Claudl.a, White, and will travel fiotith. This week the show Is at Alw<»od, 111. Charlie Williams, of the Gus Hill m.'iiKigerl.tl st.'itT i.^ aroimd after a six weeks tussle with pheumonia. Tho Strand, Portehester. N. Y. Ii.is dropped v:uide\ille. showing 1>' ;ur< s only., ,. ;., ., ... something about tho.se colored bouts that rever get anywher^. The John- con youth i.s a black panther to gaze upon. He looks to have ter- rific power. He has a back that is r.n envy. But he can't "box. Often at tho opening <.f a round he left- jablxd Wills to the mouth, with no power. Once anyhow he socked over a right to the face. Johnson either knows nothing about in fight- ing or was afraid to hit Wills, per- haps figuring that if he hurt him. Harry might get mad and knock him into Fourth avenue. Clem kept coming In. principally to hold on. f-'om(! of the hopeful sports thought Johnson was perm'tting Wills * to wear himself out. Others h d it doped that Wills was saving his man for another match—in some (ther burg. Never will the two come together In New York and ex- pect to get real money—not until the Johnson person learns to light. Clem has guts which he proved by taking a bad beating. Ho could l>!»VO ...quit but didn't. Wills hit the new boy whenever hf wanted and that J eemed all the time. Whether he put all he had into his punches he can best tell. Ckm's left eya went bad in the fif:h. In the seventh It was shut t .^hl and a bit later it looked as if Harry hs^d hit it so hard, the lamp opened a bit. Also Johnson s nose leaked. It was in the seventh that Wills acted up. He simulafed pain and held his right hand as though he had broken It. ' The crowd advised Clem to start some- thing. In the next rouml Wills led as if his starboard lunch-hook was really on thl- fritz. But he forgot about It during the round and let go a couple that were too lusty for a damaged wing. In the ninth he was slamming away with his right socker as if nothing happened. Wills probably pulled the Injured rtunt to draw Clem into a position that would permit .a hay-maker. Clem was shy and the crowd was skep- tical. When Wills made motions as if in pain they gave him the raz. Thereafter he didn't recollect any- thing about It. Johnson waa really through In the 11th. Wills meas- ured him and the new lad was groggy. Either Wills didn't want to or was too tired to put over the finLohlng wallops. If Wills was try- ing he looked quite ordinary except his ability to deliver punches. How" he can take 'em Is anothing thing. Present was a big smoke named Thompson (Jim or Jack) the same who Is credited with having floored Wills in Jersey City several time.s ui)eaklng dates of the Chief Execu- tive and various other details in connection with the pre-election campaign will fall on his shoulders. Chairman Morris also probably will resign the presidency of the New York State Basketball League, to whkh he was elected at the organ- ization meeting of the court men at Albany last week. Fifteen thousand dollars in cosh and many valuable trophies have been hung up for the winners In the National Futurity and Waterloo cup events, at Nevada, Mo., October 1-15. Greyhound racing Is rap- idly becoming one of tho most popu- lar sports, and some of tho fleetest dogs in the world will compete at Nevada. Among the canine starii' to be featured at these races are "Blue Rock," tho winner of the 1921 Futurity, and "Buck," winner of the Waterloo cup in 1916 and 1917, the Waterloo plate In 1918 and purso In 1919. "Martinsyde," an Imported dog, winner of the 1922 Waterloo, In Nevada, and the property of a San Franeisco fan<ler, was entered to defend his championship, but was killed a eouple of weeks ago, when he fell from an auto truck. Thou- sands of devotees of tho ancient sport with the greyhounds will come from ;;ll parts of the country for the event. Tho world series opened Wedne.'--- <lay with the (Jlants the short-end- er.s at 8 to 5. The wise dough will be on tho Giants. The superiority of tho Yankee i»itelilng .staff will ,be offset by John MefJraw's unrivaled joekeying of his pltehers. As a ball elub the Giants figure to offset the Yank.s' edge in the box. History has proven that a seven-game .series doesn't rofiuire more than two. or pos.slbly three, good pitchers to cop. McGraw has an ace In the hole In Jonnard, a young.ster touted by ball players as a marvel when he ac- quires the necessary big league polish. MeGraw, one of baseball's greatest gamblers. Is liable to start tills kid. Neff is ready and In good iiliape. r{.\.»n is a curve ball pifclur who might beat 'he Yanks any time lie starts. Seott has pitchfd bril- liantly In spots, but is reported as l;a\ing trou!»le with his arn». If «o, l:e will hardly start. Barnes li;i.-i had a bad year, but is liable to fla^^h one of his go(»(1 games and repo.it Wally Simpson, Springfield crn-- lerfielder. recently broke the home run record in tho Eastern League by clouting a pair of four-base smashes in a double-header with Worcester and hitting two oth*«rs in a game with Pittsfield, running his total up to 20. The previous high mark was 16. made by Jack Flynn in 1916. Flynn, now manager of Worcester, .sat on the bench and saw hl.s swatting performance sur- passed. Bill Wernor, who closed the Cha- teau Laurler, City Island, for tho season, almost connected with a bale of I>ookie'H money last Satur- day. Some one tipped him off to a winner named "Wild Heather,' en- tered at Aqueduct. The hoise was entered in both the fifth and alxth events, but Bill didn't pay attention to that. He put his bankroll on the fifth race, later to find out that "Wild Heather" had been scratche<l and started in tho sixtli. That spot looked better to tho trainer and the horse ran in with tho purse in lua tr'eth. Bill was slightly put out about the switch, but In getting his bet back had no squaivk comin:^. Edward Wachter, Jr., next to Johnny Kvers Troy's chief claim to a place in the athletic sun, left the city this week for Harvard, where he will again act as basketl)all and .sculling couch, Wachter will devote his time to sculling until the oix-n- ing of the basketball season and at the close of the latter will resume his work at the former. This js Ed's third year at Camltridge. Th • b.iiketb.'UI team he d»'vek)i)ed la.st year trimmed Yale two straight games in the flr.st meeting on tluv floor between the ancient rival;! in l.l years, and .also won the larger share of its game.s elsewhere. One of Wachfer's pre-season worries is Ihe dJi^'OVTy o f .1 m an to tak e \hf pluep of Ko.scoo Fitts, star center of 1 ist Aoar'.'^ five. Fitts. halfl.,»ck on the f'timsori ehven. Is ineligible for ba.skethall, having played It one .\ear at Tuft's bef«»re going to Har- vard.. .-■.■■-;.-,:■';■•.:,;;