Variety (June 1924)

^;-».-,^^--,^.^-, VARIETY VAUDEVILLE S*'^ BOOKINGS FOR NEXT SEASON LEAVE ROOM FOR VARIETY ACTS ««< See America First*' Given Route by Keith Office— Picture ''Names'* Expected to Return to Pic' tuie Making ^ Vaudeville producers of flash, comedy and girl acts are taking an optimistic view of next season's pos- Bibilities following the routing of several big acts by the Keith office this week. Among those booked for next sea- son is Hocking & Green's "See America First," in which the pro- ducers are said to have sunk $10,000, only to be Informed by the big time bookers no available spots could be found for the act last season. The difficulty of locating spots for big flash acts was due to the number of musical units, picture stars, legit "names" and musical comedy principals available for vaudeville. The flash act requiring a spot on the bills to enable the bookers to get the proper return for the cost in- volved came into direct conflict with the "names" from the other branches and were sidetracked in favor of the latter, most of whom were consid- ered "draws," wliile the flashes were not until proven and seen. For next season there seems to b« a tendency to return to the flashes for the body of the bill, other than very early in the new season, and a reluctance to clog up the books. Another factor helping the flash producers will b« a return to nor- mnlcy of the picture sndurlry, which will lift a lot of picture artists out of vaudeville and place them tack on the lots before the clicking cam- eras. BENNY RETIRING Leaving Ring for Acting, Manager 8aya Benny Lieonard will say farewell to the padded mitt and the prize ring when his next two fistic en- counters are over. That is official, from Billy Gibson, Benny's manager. The lightweight champ la at present under contract to Reputable Pictures, and Is sidetracking his screen work to an extent this week so he can get In trim to defend his title against an opponent, whose name will be announced shortly. This bout comes off in July. Labor Day Liconard will exchange blows with Mickey Walker, the wel- terweight champion, for that title. A contract that provides for Benny's appearance In a ser^s of 12 two-reelers will keei) the cham- pion too busy for a long time to come, according to Gibson's state- ment. Leonard Is scheduled to do his training for his July battle at Tan- nersville, N. Y., which is his old training ground. FORMER PROFESSIONAL CONVENTION HOSTESS Mrs. D. Hanna was Ruth Ran- dall — Divorced Saranoff; Marriad Son of M. Hanna Cleveland, June 3. The most prominent hostess in the municipal activities and social preparations for extending Cleve- land's hospitality to delegates and noted guests, Is Mrs. Dan Hanna, daughter-in-law of the late Mark Hanna, wife of a newspaper owner and millionaire. Mrs. Hanna Was formerly Ruth Randall, who was a chorus girl in the Singer shows at the La Salle, Chicago. She then married Sara- noff, the violinist, and did an act with him In vaudeville, later acting as ingenue to Joseph Santley in "When Dreams Come True" and touring with him also in vaude- ville. She divorced Saranoff and startled society and the theatrical world by marrying the wealthy heir to the Hanna multi-millions. Mrs. Hanna has two children of her present marriage. UPSTATE ROAD SHOW Syracuse, May 28. Al Weller, veteran Syracuse the- atrical man, has organized a five- act variety road show and will travel through the State playing the smaller cities and towns. The outfit opens at Carthage to- morrow and spends the remainder of the week there, with 12 weeks In western New York to follow. Geneva, Monday, next marks the opening of that tour. Jack La Rue, 21-year-oid strong man, will be one of the acts. La Rue duplicates many of the feats performed by Breltbart. RKURMOiGIJNG TAKE OVER CAR BARNS Long Lease on Site—^Will Build Mammoth Arena— Moss House on Corner Tex '^Ickard and John Rlngllng took over the car bams at Seventh avenue and fiftieth street. New York city, last Monday, on a long lease. On this site will be built a com- posite edifice calculated to replace Madison Square Garden. The big arena will seat 23,000 for boxing exhibitions and 18,000 for other events. B. S. Moss will have a theatre (226 X 12B) at the Seventh avenue anad 60th street corner. TWO NEW BIG TIMERS Keith and F--P> Back of Two New Houses in Southern Cities '^THEATRICAL REPORTER' Mayor Appoints Detective for That Office in New Bedford New Bedford, Mass., June 3. Mayor Remington has appointed Detective Sergeant Hammersley to the position of "theatrical reporter." Hammersley will look at plays and pictures, reporting to the Mayor any Indecencies or other question- able scenes, lines or titles. "If there is any censoring to do, ril do it," the Mayor said. About a week ago His Honor stopped the showing of "Three Weeks" In picture form. "Hometown Follies" in Louisville. Nat Phillips will stage the "Home- town Follies" In Louisville, week of June 23, with a professional show and chorus augmented by local society amateurs, through arrange- ment Glenn Burt of the Keith Western booking office. Martha Tbroop will be the prima donna. Atlanta, June S. Atlanta Is to have big time vaude- ville again. According to the pres- ent plans, the opening of the 1925 season will find the Keith interests furnishing big time bills. Now they are furnishing small time shows at the Forsythe In connection with the Southern Enterprises, a subsidiary of Famous Players. Southern Enterprises have taken the site of the Governor's Mansion and are now getting ready to build. The Keith Interests are associated with the picture people In the proj- ect. Another big time theatre pro- jected for the South Is to be the Miami at Miami. Paramount En- terprises, Inc., a subsidiary of the Southern Enterprises, is the oper- ating company. Plans 'by John Eber- son, the Chicago architect, for a theatre seating 2,200 have been filed. Here the Keith Interests will also be associated with the Famous Players. The Interior of the new house is to resemble a Spanish patio. The theatre wlU be built on the site Of the present airdome. The Fairfax In Miami is at present play- ing pop Keith bills. Two Too-Longs Walter Winchell, "acting Mayor of Broadway," having delved deeply of late Into tha Con- fucian creed, has b«come con- vinced that x:ddla Leonard and Heywood Broun are also de- scendants of Confucius. Winchell terms Iiconard's ce- lestial appelatlon "Bow-Too- Long" and Broun's as "On-Too- Long." THOSE "COWBOY" DRIVERS Taxi Forces Actresses' Car on Side- walk—Knocks Down Pedestrian Alice Furness, SO, actress, was arrested and held in $600 ball for trial In Special Sessions on a charge of assault after her automobile h I knocked down John Hodgins, 37, an electrician, employed by the N. V. A. club. Miss Furness was driving, south on Eighth avenue when a taxicab, going west at 44th street, cut in front of her and she was forced, she asserts, to turn sharply to the right to escape a crash. Her car was forced up onto the sidewalk and Hodgins was felled. - The actress placed Hodgins In her car and hurried him to <the Poly- clinic hospital, where it was found that his Injuries were slight. LEAGUE VS. VOLSTEAD Commence Campaign For Light Wines and B««r EEBMANH CASE BISHISSED Chicago, June 8. The law suit begun by Elvis Kuy- kendall against "Sport" Hermann for 126,000 was dismissed before Judge David when Kuykendall failed to appear. Hermann was accused of "beat- ing up" Kuykendall. FRANK BTJBT SUCCUMBS San Francisco, June 3. lYaidc Burt, director of the Di- vision of Concessions of the Pan- ama-Pacific Exposition in 1916, suddenly died here yesterday at the ago of sixty-four. He was one of th« best known amusement pro- Imotera In the United States. The Light Wines and Beer League has established outposts along Broadway, In the Times Square sec- tor. In an offensive against the Vol- stead law, seeking to amend the law to permit of the manufacture and sale of light wines and beers. The agents along the streets are author- ized to collect any sum from a penny to $1,000,000, and each con- tribution must be pvoperly entered on the books of the league and duly receipted. The League plans to carry Us campaign all over the country. The collectors have credentials and their ability Is passed upon be- fore they are put to work. Plans are being laid for a long campaign In the National capital and in vari- ous States. VAUBEVULE IN TABEBNACLE Indianapolis, June 8. E. Howard Cadle, founder and former owner of Cadle Tabernacle, the 10,000-seat auditorium, talked of an Injunction suit to prevent Sa- hara Grotto from staging a benefit vaudeville show (professional) in the place the last half of last week. The suit amounted to nMhing but talk in the final analysis, although Caale served legal notice. The bill was the first strictly the- atrical venture In Cadle Tabernacle. BIBTHS Mr. and Mrs. Paul Whlteman at the Whlteman home In New York City, May 30, son. Mr. and Mrs. Charles Lang, June 1, in New York City, daughter. The father is connected wltli the sales ' department of the £. B. Marks Music Co. Mr. and Mrs. Leo A. Scher, at the Bronx Maternity Hospital, June 1, a son. Scher is head of the Theatre Servjpe Corporation, which fosters a "two-for-one" ticket arrangement for current attractions and which MoiA4 th»IJ agowas declared'opx'os^ UOB by Idil5«ii< '^ j.u;il.-' JACK LEWIS' BANQUET Three hundred friends of Jack Lewis, the theatrical agent, will banquet him at the Hotel des Artistes the night of June 4. These friends Include men prominent In the show world and In politics. State Senator James J. Walker will deliver the personal "toast." Lewis was to have been given a "surprise party," but the tip got out so Jack called In three-score' "pals" to help him whip a "reply" Into shape. DORA DUBY THE AMERICAN DANCER Who was brought over to appear In "The Whirl of the World" at the Palladium, where she scored strongly, and is now appearing with such great success at the Piccadilly Hotel "Dolly's Revels" that she has been TbtiiineA indeflnit^ly. She Is also plhytrtg the Lohdon fnublc halls. In aflisociation ^itfi 'Terry K^iidaJl, afa'JBAgllah dancing partner. '' Wednesday, June 4, 19SM ALHAMBRA AND ROYAL REOPENMC AS POPl Small Time Season Closed-^ ^ End of Neighborhood Big Timers :^' Keith's Alhambra In Harlem and Royal in the Bronx, New York, closed Sunday for the summer, after a few weeks of small time vaudeville policy, following a regu* lar season of big time. f The houses will reopen next ^ season wUh small time split weeks at a reduced admission scale. The change marks the fading ot two big time weeks on the Keith Circuit, with the changes due to Intense neighborhood competition from other houses In both neigh> borhoods with pop vaudeville, moderate admissions and larger ca- pacities. Showmen, in discussing the changes, claim it marks the long- predicted passing of the neighbor- hood big time houses, and that the future policy of neighborhood houses will be a combination of vaudeville and feature pictures. CHARGE AGAINST THEATRESi i Academy and Garden, at Buffalo, Draw Protest from Church Buffalo, June 3. ' Charles that the Academy and Garden theatres nro presenting al- leged immoral shows were given oral expression at a meeting In ths Hotel Tourraine, at which both tha Federal and local district attorneys, the Buffalo Council of Churches, and editors and public officials wers present. The church representatives tookl the view that while they have no' quarrel with theatres in general, these two bouses have persistently violated all laws of decency. Ths G.irden !s u«ed by Mutual burlesqus and the Academy Is running tab shows of a burlesque character. Letters from a number of citizens were read, condemning the houses named. No decision, if made, was given out. It Is expected the the- atres will be Warned before further action Is taken. , MIXED SHOW AT AVE. B. Loew's Ave. B, New York, Is ex*; perimenting with a mixed policy booking In several Jewish acts In conjunction w^th the regular vaude- ville bilL If the new policy gets over, hereafter the bills will bo equally divided between American and Jewish vaudeville. The house Is located in a thickly populated Hebrew section of the city. EKOUSH BnXS IN HT. MOBBIS The Mt. Morris, Harlem, which discontinued Yiddish va. devllle at the close of its regular season sev- eral weeks ago, is reopening next week with English bills. The houss will play five acts and pictures on split week basis. Hyperion Act Displeased. Frank Leo and Co. walked out ot the bill at th« Hyperion, Brooklyn. N. Y., after the matinee Monday dissatisfied with Its spotting. Lew Kendler, monologist, substituted •<"< night HOUSES CLOSING The Crescent, Perth Amboy, N. J., will discont'nue vaudeville on the first half, beginning next week, adopting a picture policy for the first three days and putting In a five-act bin for the last half. The Strand, Lakewood, N. J., has reconsidered Its decision to close and will continue with vaudeville the last half, five acts and pictures, booked through Jack LInder. Rialto, Amsterdam, N. Y., closed Sunday. For the past month it had been playing pictures and vaude- ville. The Keith interests own two other local theatres. Strand and Re- gent. Both will remain open over the summer with pictures. Keith's Riviera, Brooklyn, closed for the summer last Saturday. It will re-open in August. None of the William C. Smalley theatres are playing pop vaude- ville at present, calling off all book- ings the latter part of last week until the fall anyway. Of late busi- ness returns have not been encour- aging with Smalley Informing the John E. Coutts booking offices a chain of conditions' has kept-down the theatre attendanice;'" '^'--' NEW ACTS Jack Tralnor fuid Co. (2), in "one." Grace Valentino and Co. (4), In "The Cat's Meow," comedy sketcti by Jack Lait "Apartments to Let," with a No. 2 cast. Four-people act. "James Boys," Whlteman band with the road company of "Little Jessie James," with prima donna. The two Sams, Lewis and Dody, new act, written by Bert Kalmer and Harry Ruby. Bobby Bernard and Adele Kellar, new act by Billy K. Wells. Garry Owen and Mike Bernard, comedy piano act. Maurice Barrett and Co., five people. Al and Flo Adel, 2-act. Al Gary (Olga Myra and Co.), single. "The Bug," comedy sketch, with James Bradbury, Jr., Ethel Bezlnar William Foran and Tom Gunn. IN AND OUT Jans and Whalen were out of the Majestic, Chicago, bill after the first show Sunday due to one of the boys losing Ills voice. ' Roy Conlin filled the vacan<*y.'!'• 1 '' o) !■ ) i •' .