Variety (December 1923)

•'f-^—mm^'^.miA %...TM^ .ffiCi . p Thursday, December 6,1928 VAUDEVILLE '^^T:.- VARIETY fAR DEPARTMENT WORKING ' OUT ITS VAUDEVILLE PLAN f-} Pircct Bookings in Full Force by Summer—At Pret- V ent Only Limited Supply of Acts Required— Vaudeville Breaking Up > Week of Pictures Washington, Deo. 6. The War Department Is tast shap- . "ing Its plans for the direct bookinK of vaudeville- acts for the" posts throughout the country. It is all yet In the formative stage with the department rather, feeling Its way in the bookings. Several replies from acts scatter- ed throughout the Eastern country were received requesting bookings In response to the exclusive story published in Variety last week. A' p Jlu-ge percentage of these acts have r:'l)«en approved and are to receive f^: time, so states Michael W. Smith, f inaTiager of the local offices. ■J- It Is stated that eaoh of jhe acts i replying have received word from i' the War Department. The further »( reQuest is made ^hat when acts re- I quest bookings that Information be i jlven "as to where reports can be [..jsbtained on the acts, also inclos- !■ ing programs of post appearances as B?"We1I as photographs. I The installing of vaudeville acts |-lias been undertaken with the idea ^' In mind by the War Department of t relieving the stralgl^t picture policy |-:that has been In force since the es- 'r tablishment of the picture service In [January, 1920, at which time the •everal welfare organizations ex- 'plr*<5. R. B. Murray is now general • director of the Motion Picture ser- K Vice. The delve into the vaudeville t. iMoklngs Is being started trom the > local Potomac branch with the bookings so arranged as to make it possible for an act, when complet- Q ing one set of>camps, to Jump right through to the next series of camps. ■ Salaries paid are on a par with r present booking loondltions with all expenses, other than meals, paid by .'sj. the department. I' There are now Ave branch offices ijT^f the service, which, when the plans m-e completed, will book direct, ?'i[these being In addition to one here f' In Washington, under the direction f Cf M. W. Smith, New Tork City, f With offices at 39 Whitehall street, 1^ Where the greater majority of the ft bookings will be confined to the r' ftummer when the National Guard i Iroes into camp as well as the C. M. ■ 1". C. training camps. Dallas, M12'^ Main street, with I W. E. Christ In charge, will book {Texas, Oklahoma, Arizona and New ' Mexico. Kansas'City, Mo., Film Building, i, Vlth the entire middle west with f bookings conflned principally as In t' Kew York to the summer months, "■ fcnd Seattle, Wasli.. Film Building, ! With Al F. Smith in charge, book- ing the far west. , In addition to these there are 11 i;. theatres to be booked in Panama ' from acts going <rom New Tork ^. City to play engagements In Central i"; iind South America. Jamea Bayard, j,_ ilt Cristobal, Canal Zone, is in charge :' tt this office. - ' [ 105 Theatres L The War Department chain con- * alsts of IDS theatres. Of these 45 , -play pictures seven nights a week '. and It Is planned to put in vaude- L ville acts for two nights each month, t,.^ the bill consisting of six acts. ^ Thirty-flvo play four nights a week r where It is planned one night each f month will be given over to vaude- i vine. In these latter camps, how- l ever, no large sets ean be used due r ■ to the buildings being of the welfare r type erected during the war. The ^ acta will necessarily have to all be in "one" with possibly an occa- l Blonal act in "two." The balance of the houses play one and two nights a week of pictures; in these '. 4t Is planned to use singles exclu- >■ , Sively. Tkf route as tentatively arranged 1 from the local branch opens In Camp Meade and will receive M ^ ^Play dates out of 14 days, the addl- ^ tlonal days being given over to ,' travel. The other branch offices will F offer from five to six play dates out L of eight, while, of the houses play- [^ ing two nights of pictures a week it ll^ la hoped to arrange from 15 to 1ft , I consecutive play dates for act.s that I play in "one." Ifntil such time as , the plans have taken definite formi bookings are to be continued through the Russell agency In Phlla- Hslphia with such acts as are se- lected by the department through direct application being a«cured through Miss Russell, who has booked over 7,000 acta Into Camp Dlx alone. The United States Army Motion Picture Service books direct 46S picture programs a month trom the local offices, while the entire service buys 1,800 feature films a month with all the subsidiary features that go to make up a program. Mr. Smith has requested through Variety that the service be accorded the indulgence of the vaudeville performer until such time as their p'ans for direct booking are en- tirely worked out, and that those acts only that are in the near vi- cinity of Washington should at this thne communicate with the depart- ment for time. ACT LAYING OFF IN 9 BENEFITS ON WEEK The Vanderbilts, Gymnasts, Probably Hold Gratis Record BARBARA BRONELL as Cinderella, starring in "MY CHINA DOLL" Barbara Bronell, a mKe of feml nlnity, attractive, a wonderful dancer and a vocalist in all that the word means, holds her audience In the hollow of her tiny hand through the weaving of the clever plot which takes her through the "I^and of Story Books." WILLIAM P. MURPKrV, Press Agent, care Variety, New York IN AND OUT KENTS Patched Up Again After Court Pro- ceedings ., What Is undoubtedly a record for benefits was established the week before last by the Vanderbilts, gymnasts, who played no less than nine of the.se affairs within seven days. The act since its return from the middle west had been laying off unable to receive bookings for six or seven weeks. This week they are filling i;. for IiOew at the Orpheum. on 86th street. The act went through their stren- uous equillbristic routine at every one of the benefits. While their appearance at the affairs waa op- tional the men received no remun- eration of any sort, except the re- funding of their taxi fares. The various benefits were: Sunday night—N. V. A. Club. Monday nlglit—Charity affair, Waldorf Astoria, Tuesday night—Keith Colored Bmployes, Star Casino Wednesda.- afternoon—'Home for Incurables. Wedneeday night—Honor lieglon Police Department, Commodore HoteL Thursday n:oht—An uptown Ca- tholic church. Friday night—Palm Garden and then doubled to the Astor Hotel, West Point Cadets. Saturday night—Off. Sljnday night—Apollo Theatre. ATWILL IN NEW SKETCH Lionel Atwill, whose "Heart of Cellini'* had a short life, will open on the Keith time In a sketch by Edgar Allan Woolf December 10. His salary will be 12,000 a week. Rose & Curtis book the act. MABRIAOES Frederick J. Nicholls to Vera W. Atwood Nov. 80 in New York. Both are In the profession. Peter Loxley Firth, film dlrec- director, and Jessie B. Whiting of Carthage were marrlM at Carthage, N. Y.,-Nov. 29, by the Rev, L. E. Grabeau, rector of Grace church. The bride is a North Country newspaper woman. Kuth Scafford, musical comedy actress, has married, and retired from the stage. She became the wife, Monday, of Walter Davidson. a business man of Scranton, Fa., and the couple will make theli home there. The ceremony yfun per- formed In Brooklyn, at the Catholic Church of Our Lady of Lourdcs. The Billy Kents have patched up again. Nq one can keep track of their "oft agaln-on again" cycles. In the West Side Court Saturday, Billy, hailed before Magistrate Sll- berman for disturbing the peace, promised to behave and keep away from his wife, Elsie. The latter had to call in an officer early Saturday morning to preserve the peace when Kent left his Lambs' Club quarters to call on her at the N. V. A., where she was stopping. Julius Kendler (Kondler & Gold- stein), who Is both the Kents' friend and legal mentor, was responsible for their patching up once before. At the Saturday hearing In court he urged the fact that Kent litid a matinee to make In "Battling But- tler" at the Selwyn, New York, which caused the dismissal of the charge. Early this week the Kents again were together. LARGE FILM HRM INSERTING TARMING''CUUSE FOR STARS Famous Players Providing Against Another "Shut Down"—Offering Stars for Vaudeville at Pic- • ture Salaries SINGER NOVEH REVUE FOR NEXT SUMMER Producer of Midgets' Act' Will ^'^'^ ?"""'°". '"• V""*^'"* """• " kot doing business through Harry Place Show on B'way in Spring Leo Singer, • producer of the midget tfoupe bearing his name, win sponsor a novelty revue on BriOadway next spring for a summer try. It Is touted by Slider as being something different In revue lines than ever seen on this side with Im- ported novelty turns the features. Herb Ward of the H. Robert Law scenic stuAlos has gone ajnroad In Singer's behalf to scout around for the scenic end of it. Singer's Midgets will b« In the revue for one number, otherwise the production will be comprised of nor- mal principals. Singer has two midget turns working for Keiths no^. A new 16-peopIe panft>mime act Is playing in Troy, N. Y., this week and la featuring the Yuletlde Idea for Its pre-holiday run. After Christmas It will be shaped as a straight vaude- ville offering, but will still be com- pletely In pantomime. A dozen midgets and four other people are In the cast. The other single midget act will be at Keith's Hippodrome. 0. S. MELVIN'S DEBUT G. 8, Melvln. an English comic never appearing over here previ- otMly, starts a Keith tour at the Orpheum, Brooklyn, N. T., March 24. The Marinelll office arranged the booking. STANDARD ACTS IN DANCE HALLS TAKING CHANCES IN PUYING All future contracts between Famous Players and its stars or stock people will contain a vaude- vllle clause, enabllns Famous to "farm" the stars out in {he event of another shut down on production. Famous Is now unloading Its high ket, Webe^ who has authority to book practically every F. P. star under contract Weber has been offering the pict- ure stars to ttve vaudeville bookers at the same salaries they received In pictures plus travelling expenses and commissions. The Famous Players has collabo- rated to (he extent of giving him a list of all salaries paid to picture artists available for vaudeville and canvassing the artists as to whether they had viudeville vehicles ready > In tKe event they were booked. In the latter event Weber will supply the sketch or act and charge the picture artist a weekly royalty which will be paid to the writer supplying the act. Ernest Torrence waa booked this week for four weeks In the Coast Orpheum houses, two In San Fran> cIsco and two in Los Angeles. Pola Negri and Bebb Daniels also have been booked by the Orpheum otr- cult for six weeks. Thursday Night Usually Set Apart—Five Acts for $100 — Dance Crowds Demand Better Calibre of Turn (- ILL AND INJVSED Alfrrtl E. Anrons Is recovering from a painful abdomln.ll operation performed at the Lexington Hos- pital two weeks ago. He returned to his office this week. ENGAGEKENTS Denman Maley, "The Clown.' Town The practise of many standard acts playing the various dance halls under assumed names and risking detection by the various booking managements that do not counte- nance this sort of promiscuous pub- lic entertainment may get a num- ber of them into a jam. The acts, playing at houses adjacent to dance halls or in that vicinity, usually fig- ure they are making some extra money, but they heed little of the attendant risk. No dance hall In New York or Chicago, OF any city, can pay over tlOO gross for Its three or four ex- tra acts a week. These acts are only played on one night a week— Thursdays generally—as that Is a notoriously poor night to draw 'em for straight dancing. Coupled with the acts, the natural "off' condition is Bufnciontly counterbalanced to attract the extra admissions. In- cidentally, the ritiMiagcmcnta usual- ly lose out on It on Thursday even- ings, but that they come and keep coming la believed to be good pol- icy. It is obvious that the acts don't average over $20 or 125 for that night's work. It Is UMual'y $10 and 115 from knowledge. The dance handle "coffee and cake" acta, but stage rigged up for the acts w'hich present tholr umial vaudeville rou- tine for a comparatively small sti- pend. It was formerly the practise of lift agents that specialize in book- ing talent for these dance halls to handle "soffee and sake" acts,'but It has been found Impracticable. The people that patronize the dance ( halls, paylnc 66 cents to tl.lO ad- mission, each usually know what It's all about and any Introduction of mediocre talent only boomerangs for the management on the follow- ing Thursdays. Therefore only good acts are In demand and most always recruited from the ranks of cur- rently employed turns. This in- cludes several cabaret acts also who, before they go on for their stuff after 11, are not adverse to doing a show somewhere earlier In tfle evening at a figure much below their supper club price. It's a pe- culiar situation for an act, plc^ring In a high couvert place, also taking on pop dates just for the few ext^a dollars. / Many a dan(!e turn. Incidentally that has tried playing dance halls has also expressed Itself "off" any further such dates. The dance hall bands which play a naturally fast tempo cannot adjust themselves to the proper exhibition step tempo, with the result It spells a "flop" since no rehearsals are possible, the acts merely coming In, handing their music to the band and going through the usual motions. The music angle, also. Is still an- other problem. With singing acts, using special orchestrations. It pre- sents a now rlr;{ of enticing their music aw.ay from the regular house orchestra at which they are playing In order to make possible to l>all- room date. It requires much diplo- macy on the woman member's part of a team usually to hoodwink the orchestra leader who may not be so "dumb" as the porformor thinks. With so many avenues for leaks It 15 surprising acts risk IC SORE ON "G. V. FOLLIES'* Woman World's Champion Feathsr* weight Says Jones and Qrsen Copped Her Nam* Al. Jones and Morrte Green better watch their step or it.Is quite pos- slble that on one of these fine evO' ning's little Gene Lamar, the world's champion woman featherweight. Is going to step rlgtit In on them at the Winter Garden and lose her Gaelle composure and cut loose a few jabs and swings. Gene Is a pretty sore girl and thinks the "Greenwich Village FoU lies" management has not only don* her an Injustice but Injured her pro- fessional reputation, not only as • pugilist but also as an actress. "■- They have given a girl, mind yoa just a show girl In the "O. V. Fol- lies" her name and the girl has ad- mitted to Gene that the latter part of the name doesn't belong to her at all. That happened after Gene offered to stage an athletic number for them showing the girls going through the real thing In physical culture stunts just as they do at Gene's studio up on Riverside Drive. Gene Is French. Oene has put on the gloves right on that same Win- ter Garden stage with Bennle I,eon^ ard, and exchanged rights and lefts with some of the boys on the Madi- son Garden Roof. Gene has tem- perament and Oene has temper and if she ever loses the latter, Al and Morrle better beat It for the^Igh grass, 'cause she carries a punch and she is looking for satisfaction. NEW ACTS "The Togl Man," tabloid musical by Jack Arnold and A. Baldwin Sloane, produced by Henry BellltU Cast includes Walter Ware, Nellie Lynch, Jack Collins and six dancing girls. ' Baker and King, two-act. The newly formed dancing team of Jose Cansino and Marlon WII- kens separated recently in the west. CansIno hna returned to the Can- alno Family act. Miss WJlklns Is soon to be seen with a new partner. Armstrong and Phelps, two-man songs and piano. Lucille Ballcntlne Revue, 10 peo- ple. Including a six-piece band, pro- duced by Joe Sullivan. McCarthy and Stemard, who have been heading a three-people act, have discarded It and are doing • double act. Rao Heaney and Co., "The TorrR" Boy," four people^ tabloid musical comedy. Mlldrod Fischer and Band (T pieces). Knwley and King, two-act. -» Mile. Stephanie, dance olassique* Ruth Warner, posing. Frank Redding and Co., four pee- jile, comedy skit. Hone and Sterling, two-aot