Variety (December 1924)

VARIETY VftXhD'E Wc^n<«SI«x, Uecct^r^l. IbM r '■<-r--: n^ ■' WS. DAILY DOES-e^" By NELLIE REVELL ^^^^ * .^■^ ^ My diary refuMd to b« Coue-ed. I called U "Every Day In Every Way," iind then It went a week without getting written. The trouble muat have ^een with the name I picked. Suggeatlons for namea keep coming tn and ont of the lot I have appropriated "The Dally Does-ena,". because It repreaentM the dlSo-ence between thin year and laat. Just a year ago it <pirould havie had to bl( "The Dally Don'ta." ' Sumlayi The riveters aren't working today. That makes It a day of rest for both of them and me. Ifs Just my luck, of course, to be so excited that I can't sleep anyway, the excitement springing from the prospect of spending the day in the country at the home of my old friend. John C. Flinn. ' Arriving out there, I met more old friends, Mr. and Mrs. Frank K Pope and some new ones. Wiped my feet on a door mat. Ate best roaat beef ever taated. Reminiscing of' the good old days—which are always so much better than the daya we have now. Derived some consolation from the fact that the present days always become "the good old days" them- selves if we Just give them time. Departe<l early with Jelin and on the way In picked up J. J. "Covered Wagon" McCarthy. They delivered ^« to the hotel and I was to bed early. . v- Monday: Between the church bell under one window and the pneu- matic bolt-bangers under the other, one wakes early these mronlngu. ghat's a good combination. Every time you get mad enough to swear at tfae rlverters, the church chimes remind you that you shouldn't swear. This doesn't apply to my nurse (the waking, I mean, not the swearing). Bow nurses can sleep. In bed until noon, recuperating from yesterday's outing. Telephoned Blanche Ring I was longing to see her and then descended to the dining room for lunch. There I met Una Abarbanell, who is rehearsing for a new show, the qame of which la still a secret. I don't see why they keep It a secret. It will probably be changed four times before the piece opens. IrYln 8. Cobb in to e&Il on me, and a little later Nora Bayea came to Invite me to her home for Thanksgiving supper, both of which things make my day complete. But In the evening lack of pep kept me home and made me miss the opening of "My Oirl" at the Vandrebllt theatre. For this I was sorry, because I wanted to see Marie Saxon's triumph. Retired early. TuMdayt Copy day aga(B. If It were every day. It wouldn't seem to com* any oftener. So busy watching the workmen on the building hack of my room that I couldn't do any work myself. Among the mall Is a letter signed "K. K. K." Thought they had Anally caught up with me until I found It was from Karl K. Kitchen. Don't do that agftln, Karl. In the Evening I went to Mrs. Jerry J. Cohan's for dinner and there had Josephine Cohan's son, Fred Nlblo, Jr.. on one side of me and George M.'s •on on the other. And to an old trouper and an ardent Cohan fan, such dinner companions give a real tbrlU. Met there the Wolcotta and their nice boy who has lust won a long hard flght against Invaldlsm. Back home before curfew, whatever and whenever that Is, and to bed at once. SOLICITOR SENT AWAY Antonio Porfy, Formorly in In- sane Asylum, Givsn Year ' >;, Chicago, Dec. 1. Antonio Parry, solicitor for a small local technical paper, was sentenced to one year and fined flOO and costs for r;ontributlng fo the deUnqueacy of a child. Perry was fwmeriy an Inmata of an insane asylum and was released about six months ago. Paul Dillon, connected with Perry hi a dancing school, in being held over to the grand jury on the same charge. ;vV, INSIDE SIVFF I'T \1 Anit Wednesday: Trying to break In a new brace. Not so good. Fve had taticera I liked much better. In bed all day. The afternoon brought enough energy to let me work for a couple of hours. Autographed a num- «r of copies of "Right Off the Chest." for which I had gotten orders from tbe masagers on the Orpheum circuit. (I still have a lot of them [bookB] Ifft.) .At noon got up long enough to go down to the White Swan restau- rant for lunch and was glad I did, for I met there that sterling actor, itlcbard Bennett. He seemed glad to see me and promised that Just as soon as I threw mjf cane away he would take me to a cabaret. Page Jack Pulaski! ; At rate they are Closing them tbere won't be any left to go to before •Zis'tick nay stick away. ' Benny Holsman has Just made a date with me (or Saturday. I wonder It he'U keep It. Tom Oorman came in to visit and told me that Tom Kyuu la mad at me because be came .to the hotel one day and found that I had shut the phone off so that I could sleep. I don't believe it. Tom Ryan couldn't be mad at any one. John Pollock cklled and announced that be and his brother, Channing, ^had iust resigned from th« Friars' club. Had a phone talk with Wells iitawks, who told me his father Is very ill. I'm sorry. " Mad been telling myself all day that I had pep enough to go out in the (Continued on pac« 53) Kiddies Week's Holiday Hears from **Sodety** Several managers of Independent small timers who had been planning kiddle revues for the week of Dec. 29 under Impression they would have little difficulty in obtaining permits for the children's appear- ances on account of the week be- ing a school holiday received a set- back when notified that the chil;- dren's society would oppose their applications. The only out the managfrs wlU have If they intend to go through with the kiddie shows will be to do- nate the receipts to charity. Even then will have to satisfy the man- agement that 100 per cent of the in- take Is being given awi^y minus legitimate expenses. Many have preferred to abandon the Idea rather than submit to scru- tiny of the S. P. C. C. Acts and Stock at Willis, Bronx, New Policy A combination of vaudeville and tabloid stock will go into the Wil- lis, Bronx, Dec. IS. Decision on the new policy was arrived at this week and gauged through the record- breaking business attracted by Corse Payton's tabloid stock presentation of "Over the Hills." Payton and thei stock will return the week after next and appear in conjunction with four vaudeville acts In tabloid stock bills, with two changes weeklyj Payton carries a company of six players, which will lay oft next week to. rehearse the new bills. '* 01 TAUDEYnil J May Woods U In (fliargt of the pop MhirfeVlUe booking dtiiarttknAt •( the Keith's New York office Miss Woods worked her way up to the elevation. She la the only woman at present In charge of as Important a booking office as the Keith's pop time. Miss Woods is very popular among the people she must daily meet la a business way. Those people seemed elated last Wednesday when Variety carried the story of Miss Woods' promotion as the sole heou of that office on the fifth floor of the Palace Theatre building (Keltli's big time agency is on the sixth floor). The office staff seemed to maka Wednesday a holiday. Flowers In profusion were strewn around the office as mute evidehce that the choice of Miss Woods has been n popular one. Previously Miss Woods had shared the responsibility of conducting tha department with C. Wesley Fraser, who had been imported from tha Keith's Boston office. With Miss Woods assuming full charge, Mr. Fruser went back to Boston. \ May Woods knows her vaudeville and obtained her education in it while acting as secretary to the head of the Keith organization, 12. F. Albee. In that position, a more Impostant one. Miss Woods made friaals for tha circuit, her chief and herself. She knew how to handle people and thfrt'a no light task in a temperamental theatrical agency of the maKnltvdo of Keith's and with temperamental theatrical peofile to be hanilled. When Mr. Albee placed Miss Woods in the downstairs deiMirtmant it was in recognition of service and ability and her promotion most llkel/ came through the same source^f and for the same reason. The Imported Siamese ensemble act that came here direct from Siam may start a world's tour under its own direction after the completion of the 25 weeks booked by Keith's. An interest {.ppears to be held In tiia turn by,foreign vaudeville managements, especially over the European continent and that niay be their line of travel after leaving America. Since opening the turn has been changed about somewhat with a couple of special orchestrations for the house orchestra to play with the native tom torn beaters. Up to now the skilful] work at tne Siamese game of takraw has proved the most popular of the performance.. POLITICAL MATTERS AND NEWS With congress now in session and state legislatures shortly start- ing their sessions. Variety, commencing with this issue will group all of the political matters and news relating to the show business OB page 2 of each ls8U6. PoUtlcal articles are on page 2 of this Issue. ^ . _,n Marie Saxon, who ran away with the hit of 'My airl,^ift» L)-le Andrew* musical comedy opening last week at the Vandcrbllt, New York, is tha daughter of Pauline Saxon, a well known vaudeville player who retlfed a couple of years ago from the stage. The younger Miss Saxon started In vaudeville. In an ensemble act, making her first musical production appearance in "Battling Buttler" In New York, remainlng^lth It during the show's Broadway rup last sea- son. Before openingr with "My Girl," Miss Saxon was in two flops of this season, "The Passing Show," at the AVinter Qai'den, and the musical version of "The Charm School." The latter opened and closed out of town. Before "The Passing Show" opened at tho Garden the Shuberts dedAed to remove Miss Saxon from It. as she was too dainty for that horsey sort of production. They shifted her to 'The Charm School." Meantime, aha had refused an offer to appear In "Top Hole," which ran. 13 weeks in New York and is now on the road. / Engaged for "My Girl" with a role she could do something with, Misa Saxon came through glowingly. The code method of setting salaries in place of figures recently adopted by several Independent vaudeville booking offices proved a boomerahs last week when a green stenographer got the code muddled up and slgiied contracts with a team at a higher rate than bargained for. The bookw, too busy to read it, signed and the team was paid at the other end. Sihca the incident the booker has been holding mental tests for his assistants to Insure against any further slip-ups. To make matters worse, the man- ager playing the act said It wa» not worth the iponey. 4 — -«... •^nHXER lOS' nOTD STOKER A 'tMafsteak'* was given at the TrtwrB' Club last week by the Keith big-tlma ageata and bookers to Floyd Stoker, who gives up agent- Ing to become manager of tbe Rialto, /iWt. Irfmla, Dec. l. ,_ Nearly 100 guests attended the .. Carewell dinner. rr: ■t tn' Jamea Deyla's Act Harland Dixon's former pannier, ^. James Doyle (Doyle and Dixon) baa ftnin ad a new vaudeville partnership sponsored by Benjamin David. Irma ,-' Marwlck from musical comedy will b^. J>Qyle:« partner. •■>h.\^k-:'-l ■■.-.-.. . Judela an4 Ford as Act [* Charley Judeki has formed a ^_ TMidaviUa partnership with Oene !; Vord (Oordeta and Ford) and will ^ep«n for the Keith circuit Dec. 8 In a new act by £Mdie Cantor. Char- ley Morrison arranged the booking ISW ACTS Bvana and Clarkson have dts- «olvad their vauda partnership. Wattar Evans haa formed a new al- lianoa with "Baba" O'Connor, while ytank Clarkson may go it alona aa 4 Klackface single. ^ ' ', , Vlttale and Maria Foklna, Ir^ 4ancing act, with Olga Maximova. r' piano accompanist. ,. TFtiWa Gray, former cabaret dap- " car, with orchestra. ' ^ Billy Hibbitt (Hibbitt A Malleny and Maria Hartman (Wiley A Hartman), comedy, singing andi ■ tnHf|»g act in ^'ona." « JUSGMERTS (Continued from page 7) ■^ame. Popular Opera Co. of Manhattaiv Inc.; same; same. Civic Opera Asa'n. of N. Y., Ina.| 8. A N. Trading Corp.; $1,035.10. Pearl Regay; L. Sheehan; llSO.Ct. 8ain«: L. Pollack: $129.42. •eofield Howard Production*^ Inc.; W. Futter; $817.46.' Morris Qoldmani Penser's Pr»> duotlons, Inc.; $29.96. Bis Thra* Amus. Corp.; City ai N. Y.; $6«1.31. • Equity Management Corp.; samaS same. ICacOEATH'S THEATBE Syracuse. Dec. 2.. Harold MacGrath. the author* heads a group wit)) plans for a tha* atre. Four sites are under consid« eration. Interstate Opera Co.; same; aam«>^ Kennedy Thaatra, Ine.; aama: ] me. • -* Amartca. Ina.| Picturoa Inc.; Cerp4 aama} same. Little Players aame; same. Lillian Wallter same; same. Olympia Rest. Co, sam«. Schenectady Palaea Corp.; samat' same. Uncle Sam Film Corp.; samef same. i] ■ educational Film Corp.; Bamaf $1.80«.27. . Film Craft Corp.; same; $2.434.S5i MARGARET YOUNG .., ' Exclusive B»unswicT( Artist ."BooKed unUl;JHly lat, 1»25, 4" the Greater Keith Theatres Personal Direction CHARUE MORRISON nx AHD nr JUllED : Ray Dean (Ray and Emma Dean) had his tonsils removed at tha American HospiUl, Chicago. Poodles Hannaford has cancelled several weeks of his Keith route following an accident the current week at Utlca in which he tore a ligament of his leg. Marta Fara, strong girl, was com- pelled to cancel the first half at tha Premier, Brooklyn, this week on ac- count of injuries received while re- haarslng a new stunt last Saturday In which she fractured two ribs. Miss Fara had been ordered to bed but figured she could give a per- formance by Monday. BIRTHS Mr. and Mrs. Edward Tenny' (May and Ed Tenny), Nov. 23, at' Morton Infirmary, New York City*, £on. '^irfl'i VSllrf ^'^'^^- ^