Variety (November 1922)

^.-■; Friday, November 24, 1828 VAUDEVILXE / mmWL FOR SHUBERTS > WILL COMMENCE NEH WEEK Made Up for Garrick, Chicago—Four Units Closing—^Reverting to Last Season's Policy, When Straight Vaudeville Predominated ' ' Tw^ \ ■:i ,*?> i The Shubert vaudeville offlce*! dvyresided over by Arthur Klein, an- j ''^ounces straight vaudeville at the ^^Oftrrlck, Chica^, and Princess. ^^Toronto, beginning nej^t Nlbnday. the change four units ^JWlil close this Week: Barney ^Gerard's 'Town Talk" at Chestnut "Btreet, Philadelphia; Lew Fields' |!; Simultaneously with ^«to straight vaudeville. > -•*Rlt» Girls,' Empress. St. Louis; %M other and George Gallagher's 7"Broadway Follies" at Opera House, , Detroit. The vaudeville policy, according to Klein, will be 10 acts of straight vaudeville each, in the two houses. The Garrick will open with Nora .'r Bayes headlined, sur founded by a f; ten-act bill including the Hanne- q ford Family, Bert Baker and- Co., I Bdlth Baker. Harry and Grace Els- g worth, Pasquali Bros. The "Rose Qirl" reopens in Baltimore (Aca- deiKv) next week after a three <k weeks* layoff with a few changes in the cast. Cortez and Peggy and "Angel" Arnold are out. '^':'^-':'nuif' two shows will Start the .'Straight vaudeville policy designed by the Shubcrts to take up the vacancies on '.he unit circuit left by V the absence of units withdrawn, dis- •" banded or consolidated. Mr. Klein stated he would again T be in charge of all vaudeville book- ducers who came over to the Affll- lated Circuit with Herk. Some weeks ago the unit proposi- tion s<femed to divide itself into two factions, the Shubert and the bur- lesque sides. Lee Shubert repre- sented everything on the circuit that wfts not ^rlesque, and he is said to have stated his belief the burlesque men in the unft combina- tion were the cause of its failure. The burlesque producers of unit Shows resented the statement and answered among themselves the units had started off with a handi- cap through ubliged to play a unit show under the general 'billing of "Shubert Vaudeville." They are said to have requested Herk to drop the Shubert Vaudeville billing, but that Herk replied h^e^ was unable to do so owing to the opposition to that proposal by Lee Shubert. The burlesque producers in de- fending themselves against the Shubert statement, point to one of the Shuberts* own units taken o|f the circuit, to the four units of •W'eber & Frledlander. the one with- drawn by Jenle Jacobs and the Jos. M. Galtes' unit as not being of the burlesque producers' efforts. Producers on the Shubert unit time deny what Lee Shubert In Variety last week was quoted as .saylrtg, that the poor shows were Indicated by their gross receipts. The claim the Irregular shows on At Keith's, Philadelphia, t^^te week (Nov. 20) clean people are paying clean money to come Into a clean theatre and see two clean comedians with clean material, cleiein appear- ances and clean business methods that CLEAN-UP. f ,- ., Always, not occasionally. ROCKWELL and FOX UNIT AClk FIRED UPON REFUSAL TO CUT CONTRAQ CLAUSE PROTECTING SMALL TIME'S PERFORMANCE 3 ^'4 ^ ^ } •'■\ Y« M. p. A. Inserts Clause Permitting Management to Cancel for Inferior Presentation—Numerous Complaints of Carelessness by Acts SIR JOSEPH GINZBERG HAS DOUBLE PEEVE Professional Jealousy Possible —Wants $150 Weekly at ■Kelly's Stable Bert Hanlon Couldn't ''Say It With Laughs"—With Show 5 Weeks, Worked 3 I the circuit, not standardized for ln»s. He replied In the affirmative perfprmance, spoiled the theatres when asked If the outlook did not for business, and that a unlt^ unless appear to be that shortly the Shu- | with an exceptional attraction added bert unit circuit will b© very much like It was last season as Shubert ; TaudevlUe, when vaudeville predom- ^ inated. ^ While Klein stirted 'there would ' be 15 units continuing, with the re- 4f mainder vaudeville only, familiars ;v with the unit time give the follow- ^ Ing 11 or 12 units as the posslbll' % Ities, following the reorganization " the ujilt circuit appears to be under- l golngr "Stolen Sweets," "Spice of ' Life," "Troubles of 1922," "Midnight Rounders," 'Mldnlte Frolics," "Re- • united," "Hello Everybody," "Oh. < What a Girl," "Whirl of New York" IM and "Success." i. Two of the units named we^re set down as questionable, leaving 10 1, :iinit shows If the two should be dropped. Three of the remaining 10 are the Shuberts* own units. ^Two V. of the others are the sole units of :• I. H^ Herk. of.the Shubert affiliated .if- ^5 V-" .concern, while one or two of the re- S- xnalnlng five Herk is financially in- '>' terested in. Herk is also flnanclally ^i Interested in one or two of the ' shows that have announced their Intention of leaving the unit circuit f land not mentioned above. ^'' Failure of many of the unit shows p/to make money on the Shubert time Is reported to have vreated .some dis- cussion between Lee Shubert and L. Lawrence Weber/also Max Spiegel. Weber, with William B. Frledlander, secured four unit franchises during the summer, each taking two f^ through Weber's influence with Sh'ubert. Weber was a somi-advl.«ier to Shubert and Herk in the promo- tion of the unit scheme. His faith In it seemed unlimited and his en- thusiasm was conveyed to his as- pi sociates, particularly Herk, who had » spent much time on the preparation of the unit plan. When the Weber & Frledlander units rolled up their losses as they did from the first ^-^ week of the units', season, besides carrying a heavy production Invest- ment for the four shows. Weber Is t. said to have Informed hi.s partner, '^ Frledlander, he believed the' Shu- * berts handling of the theatres' end had much to do with the units' fail- ure to show a profil. On the Shubert side Leo Shubert expressed .himself as of the opinion the Weber & Frlod- 'j[ lander shows were poorly put to- ^. gether and Bid not give a proper en- tertainment for the Shubert circuit, besides which Weber A Frledlander .would not accept suRerostion.s to re- pair the shows. Shubert i.s said to }[ have made the same complnlnt . against the Spiegel unit. Spiegel has been close to Herk in the operation of the unit circuit through the Affiliated Theatres Coriwration. Three of the four units schodiiled to Qlose are shows of form*^r Colum- bia and American Burlesque pro-1 or carried, could not do ever the normal gross the unit houses had fallen Into. They say the recent additions of Irene Castle in New York and Nora Baye.i In Boston, also the addition of Eva Tanguay, are visual evidence the theatres had to put on drawing cards to bolster up business. According to report the unit producers have expressed some very strong cbnvlctions about their experiences on the Shubert time. They are manifestly again.st the insertion by the Shuberts of extra'attractions into their shows when the extra attractions have no box office pull. The producers say these extra attractions in the main have been under Shubert produc- tion contracts, under Which the weeks played with the units were deducted 'from the total the con- tracts called for. It is said Arthur Pearson of "Zig Zag," the unit show at the Central. New york, last week vigorously protested against Lean and May- field at $1,500 for the week being (Continued on page 6) The "Say It With Laughs" Shu- bert vaudeville unit, Ed Beatty. pro- ducer, isn't funny to Bert Hanlon, who left the show over a week ngo, following two weeks' notice received by him when refmiinif to cut hla salary. ■\-'"" ' ■ " Hanlcn traveled five weeks wlih I Great Joe tl\o fhow but played three. firet '.wo weeks ar>er Joining, Han- loa was carried along with no ae- pignment and received no salary. The next week he started to work and at the end of that week was informed it would be neccssory for him to cut his salary 20 per cent. Hanlon refused to cut at al! and was immediately handed his notice. Koicr Imhof is featured with the Beatt: unit. Inrttof is repox-ted to have I educed h:s salary, alsi other principals with the unit excepting a couple of minor ones who preferred to have rather than chop. Beatty was tormerly a buvie.sau«J producer and has been reported close to I. H. Herk, of the Affiliated Circuit, who proposed him aa a Shu- bert unit producer/ The Great Sir Josep^ Ginsberg is now engulfed with a double peeve. Wheft-e one grouch grew before there now exist two unl they are fairly ravishing His Royal Highness into a state of frensy. Sir Joseph's original heartache was born throug'i the neglect of the Shuberts In properly presenting him at the Wlnfer Garden. In fact, the Shuberts didn't present htm at all. Willie Tloward had sponsored the Brownsville Knlghl's debut, but the 'Shuberts, after pulling a capacity audience on Howard's promise of his appearance, it Is said, suggested The Great Glnsbei^f try his voice out in the Polo Grounds. Then came the disquieting rumors from around the country^^Jsased on pure professional jealousy. Some- one erroneousljr ' announced that Gene Sennett had knighted the His Hoyal Highness A new clause in vaudeville con- tracts to protect the small-time and I split-week theatre owner is being considered and recommended by the Vaudeville Managers' Protective Association. The clause la to be Inserted to guarantee the house the same act and the same value the larger cir-> cults receive. The insertion has already been adopted by the Fally Markus office. anA follows the open letter to the artibU by B. F. Albee. which appeared in last week's Variety. The new clause, in effect, means the house manager or oWner can cancel any act that fails to glva the same performance as seen by the booking agency representative at any stipulated theatre. Numerous complaints to the V. M'. P. A. have focused tiM attention of the organisation to "the eonditlon. Acts have been accused of reporting a day tate In houses where Sunday opening is the policy. When remon. strsted with by the managoment tba acts are reported as having said they didn't know the opening date was Sunday. Other acts have missed shows by the growing practice of maklnt m«- tor Jumpa Through breakdowns and accidents in many cases' acts have failed to nemfjr the bookiac office, so that a substitute could be The I vigorously denies this. 01nzberg-| "^i^i'.®^. claims the only thing they ever did to him at Scnnett's cabaret was crown him, and they weren't par- ticular what they crowned him with i CONSTANCE FABBEB TO WED within a month Constance Far- ber is to marry Herbert deBower, a wealthy New Yorker and vice- president of the Hamilton Institute. Miss Farber appeared last season In "The Demi-Virgin" at the Eltlnge. New York. Previously she had been In vaudeville with her sister. The latter married and retired from the stage about two years ago. Marie KAVANAUGH and EVERETT Paul Now headlining on the K«Mth Circuit In their Revue "DANCEOLOGY" 1923 Edition now In preparation will be presented very; shortl/. Direction MARTY F0RKIN8 ' ' *'^' either. - Then through the underground channels, not clear to peasants but Just casual among royalty, someone pa8.«^ed the word Al Jolson has been panning Sir Joseph. But the scion of royalty is no dumbbell. He avers Jolson is glad to see him out of Chicago, for were he playing against Jolson, the latter would not draw a corporal's guard while Joseph could pack the stockyards of Chi- cago with his flawless Imitations of stars and his remarkable vocal im- pression of John McCornuick. When he offers those two specialties even the babies and children cry at him. Besides the Great Joseph Is a royal tllgnitary and proudly wears two pewter medals on his coat lapel, presented him by Willie Howard, to convince the skeptics that his blood Is the pure royal fluid even though they still claim his brain Is a trifle dusty. The Great Sir Joseph bounded Into Variety's office last week and politely requested that hie state- ment be published. He declares Bert Kelly will have to pay him 1150 weekly if he wishes him to return to Bert Kelly's stable in Chi- cago. He admits he feels at home in the stable, but business is busi- ness. Sit Joseph also declares he will possibly make a concert tour pro- vided Paul Whiteman will accom- pany him. If Whiteman's good enough for Jolson, Sir Joseph may give him a chance. His personal representative is B. K. Nadel. ac- cording to Joe, but Nadel! doesn't know anything about It as yet. Sir Jo.<icph is probably keeping it a secret. Joseph Intends to wear his trick derby and all his medals with the Guttenburg complaint coat on all engagements, something Which makes things more binding, for Joe is handicapped in ducking things thrown at him with poor aim with this garb. This week Sir Joseph tried for an audience with Georges Clemenreau on the matter of a Joint concert tour, but the police were too in- quisitive and Sir Joe couldn't get to the "Tiger" of France. It any- thing In the ron( ert line is arranged, tho Great Sir Joseph will appear In the swimming tank at Palislides Park, for Willie Howard figures ho ; can rent that spot at a re.isonable amount and take in the admission fee In rubles. Next week His lIlKhness proposes to spend a few day:< in Cleveland, provided he can make the railr<»nd conductors apprecir«te his imT>'>?- tani and waive the formality of trnnsportation. Ho goes to ripvel:ind t. nttend the opening of Keith's new Palace theatre and may address those pr'i^seht. Willie Howard found an One Independent ac«ncy*reported a case where a Scotch act playing a small-thne bouse discarded the klHs and maks-up. working the engage- ment in street attte**. , TRAVELLING DffOSTOR THROWN OOT OF THEAT Manager At Qitiis of Grand, St. Louis, aatches ''Phil Rofo- . inson" Back Stage \ St. Louis. Nov. 22. One "Phil Robinson" was bodily thrown put of the Grand opera house last Saturday afternoon by Man* ager Al W. Qlllia. Robinson who- said he was a travelling representa« tive for Variety, presented a card to Mr. Glllls, asking for an o. k. to go back stage. Manager Glllls gave his consent. Shortly after the manager while in his office reading last week's Variety, which had Just arrived, saw the notice the paper contained that a "Phil Robinson" had been impos- ing on managers in this section by representing himself as connected with Variety. Repairing forthwith to tbe stage, Glllls found^Robinson still there. fraternizing with the artlsU. With- out ceremony Mr. Glllls threw him out, surprising the back stage bunch who were afterward greatly pleased- when learning of the reason. ' TVJfO-FORtONE ' % ' i i 4 Cut Rate Tiekets For Central, Newli ^ York . . s- The "two for one" plan is beinff used at the Central, New York, to , stimulate matinee and nig|it week- day performances. The house an- nounced an increase to a |2 top dur- ing the engagement of Irene Castls two weeks ago. The raised scale has been in effect ' since, but the two-for-one plan of | distributing rebate tickets for the i non-holiday or Saturday and Sun- day performances, really scales th« , house at 11 top. '^ The half price tickets are being ^ liberally distributed for the current engagement of the Watson SIsterf.; m "Stolen Sweets." The tickets arit I exchangeable at the box office an^ rend "For (1) peidon or couple at half price. Good matinees and eve- nings, Monday. Tuesday, Wednes- day, Thursday and Friday. t ■ I ■ iiiii • I ' I ■ > engraved invitation to the opealmf and knew Sir Joe would like to go* Thfr*» was no date on the card, St everything is "Jake' fO» dtia.. t?