Variety (April 1926)

VARIETY Wednesday, April 28. 1926 NEWS FRQM THE DAIUES This department contains rewritten theatrical newt items as pub- lished during the week in the daily papers of New York, Chicago and the Pacific Coast. Variety takes no credit for these news items; each has been rewritten from a daily paper. NEW YORK According to Kiiy Ix)nB, mnf^azlne editor, who returned from a Euro- peon trip last week. Otto Kahn, Wlnrh^l) Smith and Michael Arlen havt* formed a "literary corpora- tioD" to handle the writings vt Arlen. Long Raid that Arlen will cease writing for the stage, despite his re- cent sucess there, and devote his time to novels exclusively. Ills newest book Is "To All Young Men In Love." Kthol Leglnska, the djj=iai)i>earlug pianiste, announces her retirement from the concert Held. The pianiste »»ay8 she will retire to her home in Wa'iden, Ma.ss., and there devote her time to orcheHtral conducting and ton.^oylng. Helon I^ee Worthing, formerly of the Ziegfeld "Follies" and now ap- pearing in pictures, ti'.tsl suit for $100,000 against the Scherk Import- ing Co., perfumers, of 56 West 45th fltreet. Miss Worthing charges the company with having u.scd lior pic- ture in its advertisements. Her name wns not used with the picture. Fhe asKs $50,000 a^ personal dam- flgea, $26,000 exemplary damages and $25,000 for whatever profits were made through use of the photo. A copy of the complaint was sent to all New York newspaper.s. husband posed together on a couch for the benefit of tabloid photog- raphers. The resulting pictures Were front-paged. damage suit brought against him by Geraldine Markham, chorus girl, for injuries received in an automobile accIdenL The atnnmona was served in his home at 720 Rush street. Ruth Gillmore, daughter of l^ank nillniore, of Aciors* K^ulty. and Max Sonino, neplirw of the Italian Minis- ter of War, will marry in Florence (Italy) June 17. Fire destroyed the Grand, St. Catharines, Ontario. Loss is esti- mated at $135,000. The James Hastings stock company, playing the theatre, lost costumes, scenery and properties valued at $10,000. Tho state of Rhode Island has passed a bill legalizing Sunday motion pictures and theatrical en- tertainment in I'rovidence, Central Falls, Cranston, Newport and Woon- socl;et. I'aw tucket is speciflcally omitted in the measure. Maurice and Eieanora Ambrose, Ms new dancing partner, were mar- ried in Paris. Ethel Conrad Crumit was awaid- ed a divorce and $150 weekly ali- mony from Ffank Ol-umit in Bridge- port. Her charge of desertion was not contested. The Crumlts mar- ried in 1915 and have lived apart since 1922. The engagement of Evelyn Layc and iidonnie Hale, both prominent on the London stage, was an- nounced. Three American opera singers ap- peared in leading roles in one night's performance in Atlanta. This Is thought to be the first Instance of lis kind in the history of Metro- politan grand opera. Loui.se Hunter sang Munetta in •*La Boheme"; Mary Lewis played NedUa in ' Tagllacci" and liawrence Tibbett Tonlo in "Pagllacci." Beni- amlno Gljfll took 15 curtain calls after singing Rudolfo in "I^ Bo- heme." The audience is said to have been the largest ever attending opera In Atlanta. London censors have banned "Little Jessie James," the Ameri.-an musical success. They object to the bed scene, Important to the play. Brooklyn will have two new the- atns. The Emblem H<jldi!\p: Co will erect a 2.000-soat house at Sutter and Ralph avenues ami K •.»Mh stiA'et. Thv othtr will be built at Fort lliunilton r:»rkwa\ and 67th »tr( < t. Trene French, el.ornr. jrlrl, wns se lecfed by Judges Clnre Brir^ry, Nor man Rockwell and Nell Brinkley to bif "Miss HrfMtdway." She ha( « i.';lit coniiK-liiors. Th<' title al- lows Ml.'j.s Fr« rK h to * rcpr< sent" Bro.'ulway at nil linictlons of th» lyrf>;nlwny Ass'icla t Uni. St'VriT. 1 new directors were elrct «m1 at tile annual meefins^ o£ the New York fc^ynipliony Society hcU l ist week at the home of Waltci Panii^Fch. Mr.s. Thomas Coward, Mrs. ArnoU Whitrid>.-c. Mrs. J. F. Dulles, Mr: Willinm i^arrlntrton, ^Trs. l<'ran(ls L. Hin<\ Mrs. Robert Law. .Ir., Mrs. Willijnii Belknap. Mrs. Alfred Kno. Mrs. Fredt^rick Hill, .Mrs. Hombrandt I'erilc. Jr.. Mrs. Bhiine r.e.ilo, Frr-d- fili'k i'otts AImoic. J-'airman Dick und Jan^es Aiithony Finn are the 11;-v.' <tirc Mors. Fn-sidi It Harry Ilarkn' ss l-'lai::- ler. Vice-Presbb-nts I'aul D. C*r;i- vaih and Han y Seli.icnian, Tr« ;;s- Jircr KdwlTi T. Rice and .«ecret;;ri( Richard AVelling and Mrs. I'leas- ants Penriln.L.'ton were rc-olcctcd. Richard Herndon's production of Fred and Fanny Hatton's "East Side" Is in rohear.sal "Out of the Night," mystery comedy by Harold Hutchinson and Margery Williams, has been placed in rehearsal by Joseph B. Brown, Inc....A. L. Er- langer will prodtice Martin Flavin's 'Service for Two." "We Ameri- cans," by Max Slegel and Milton Herbert (Iropper, will be produced by Sam H. Harrl-s. The will of the late Henry Miller eaves $3,000 annuity to Mrs. Miller and divides the residue among his son, Gilbert Miller; his daughter. Mrs. Agnes McCoy, and their four children. Henry Miller, Jr., who is serving a six months' Jail sentei\pe In California for violation of nar- cotic laws, is cut off entirely. Mrs. Miller win receive the $3,000 yearly from the profits of the Henry Miller theatre. Three-quarters of annual profits over and above the $3,000 will go to Gilbert Miller and the other quarter to Mrs. McCoy. Gil- bert Miller explained that his father built the Henry Miller theatre on leased ground and turned It over to a corporation under an agreement by which he received one-half of the profits over and above the lease. Mile. Alice Durrane, daughter of Balconee Dufrene, once prominent French octrebs and favorite pupil of Mile. Bernhardt, has deserted the Paris bar, where she had become a promising woman attorney, for a stage career. In her first performance at the Odeon theatre last week. Mile. Du- freqe was highly praised. Harry C. Moir, Jr., son of the owner of the Morrison hotel, last week married Martha Greif. 15, who as Martha Martelle was an enter- tainer at a loop cafe. Announce- ment of the engagement was made early in March, following the annul- ment of Molr's first marriage to Irene Johnson. Speaking before more than 700 women who attended the Famous Women's luncheon last week, Mrs. Fannie Bloomfleld-Zeisler. pianist, attributed a sister musician's fail- ure to Jealousy of male orchestras. "Every time Ethel Leginska is scheduled for a performance the members of the orchestra—all men —sneer at her and constantly walk out." she sflid. "Her failurb in the musical world is directly attributed to sex Jealousy, as are countless other women failures." was on the cuff for, telling Judge Walter S. Gates he used the rest to pay down on a car. The second trial of the "Desire Under <he Elms " cast, who were forced to appear again after the first Jury disagreed on whether or not they had presented an immoral play at the Orange Grove, is set for May 26. The first trial cost the city $5,000. A criminal bill of Information against the Washington GriJI, loop cafe, charging violation of the dry laws, was filed In the Federal court last week. During their run here the Sells Floto Circus elephants scored a nice amount of publicity by doing odd Jobs about the town, such as carry- ing girders for the Oriental theatre, moving a tree in Lincoln park, and carrying signs around advertising an evening paper's serial story. Sunday movies were defeated 2,427 to 1,929 at the Urbana city election last week. This was prob- ably the heaviest vote ever polled in Urbana, college town. Ogden T. McClurg, millionaire book publisher and explorer, died of brain hemorrhage in the West Suburban hospital April 20. Mr. McClurg was found uncon.scious by the side of a road near Elmhurst. Physicians said he never regained consciousness. His wife and sev- eral close friends were present when death came. Mr. McClurg returned only recently from an exploration centering in the unknown reaches of the Yucatan river. Funeral services for Alice Wil- liams, 79, said to have been the oldest music teacher in Illinois, were held last week in the Congregational church at Batavia, 111. For Ws "Craig's Wife," George Kelly was voted the Theatre Club's annual gold medal in recognition of the club's selectl')n of the "best play ot the year." At the meeting held at the Astor, Channing Pol- lock's "The Enemy" was chosen for secoiid place, with "The Great Gats- by" and "Great God Brown" trail- ing for third. According to reports. Commis sioner of I'olice Mci^aughlin intends to talk with Mayor Walker on the subject of ft detlnite closing, or "curM.w" hour, for New York's night cbi>»s. Mrs. Amy Ilall In suing Tluirstt»n Hall for soj)aratl<m. She seeks $ir)ri weelvlv alimony and $3.oO() counsel fees. 'I'he Halls were married In Denver July 20, 1914. In 1021. Mrs. Hall says, her husbnnd des'^r(«d hrr. ilall hait failed to contribute toward her support for the last thrto year."?. nho charges, stating tl?at be earns $20,000 a year. Harry IT. 0;^hrin Is attorney for Mrs. Hall. Marguerite Namara's dlvoice from Guy BoUon In Paris last summer and her subsequent mruriaKe to MIndret Lord. 26-year-old oti.u io writer, were not reveal^^d until l.ii^t week-end. Following tb^ annonncc- M«iit Marguerite und h< r young Al I^ewls, formerly of Lewis & (Je»rdon and now producing inde pendently. since his partner Joined the Ori>he\iin Circuit Interests, an nounces five new plays lor produc tion next season. They arc "SOS," Iiy Rudolpb Lother; "Storm Con ter." by Jesse Frt\est nnd Max Si- mon; 'Loose Ends." by Dion Tith err.dge; "The .Spider." by Fulton ()ursl»^r nnd I^owell Brentano, and "The International Revue." which %ill be sta»;ed by <ieorge Jessel and Is lo feature Helen Trlx and "^tUtr Coot. ~ David Rosen, operator of a fr*^nk show at Coney I.<-lar,d, was paroled by Ma*-'l.^-trate Hirshficld when ar raltrned on a charge of employing minors preferred by Lester Bock over of the Children's Society. Mary and Margie Gibb, 13, "Slam rso Twins," were on exhibition in lioscn's show. John C;ibb. father of the twins, .said he s»'inctloned the girls' .Tppr;ir;ince and was present It f'u' p<-ritirmances. CHICAGO Probably the most stren\ious plug ping.ever accorded a motion picture is the advance bljth-blah now occu- pying the major pbrtlon of the Hearst papers for the Cosmopoll tan production. "Beverly of Graus- tark." In one issue of the "Herald nnd FiXamln*»r" five columns were devot*'d to the picture, four filled with almost complete reprints of the larlflh praire poured out by New Yoi k critb s. AVo!cott Blair v/ns .I'^rved with a LOS ANGELES William Reiter, motion picture di- rector, brought suit against Mrs. Gladys Reiter in Superior Court for divorce, charging cruelty. Paul J. Mahoney, builder of the grandstand at the Pasadena Tour- nament of Roses parade, which col- lapsed New Year's Day, killing 10 people and Injuring many more, was found guilty of manslaughter by a Jury here. Over 100 witnesses were heard. The Jury was deadlocked on whether to find Charles B. Buck- nall, Pasadena building inspector, guilty or not. Sentence will be given later by Judge Charles Bur- ncll. Word was received her© that Harry Katz, 22-year-old actor of Los Angeles, was arrested In San Francisco as he alighted from the steamer Admii-al Fisk. Katz was charged with forging the name of his wealthy Los Angeles uncle, H. Katz, to checks cashed here. He will be returned to this city. David "Red" Kirby. screen heavy, and his divorced wife appeared in Judge Parker Wood's court to an- swer a suit for $105 brought for merchandise purchased while they were married. The KIrbys stated that they had paid for the goods, but could not produce receipts. Mrs. Kirby was ordered to pay, as the clothes were for her. Nels A. Nelson, electrical foreman at the Metropolitan Studio, wn.s killed follov.'lng an accident while dusting a tran.-former. His foot be- came tanirled with a hlgh-voltagc cable which sent 4,400 volts through his body. Although physicians gave him up as dead, the fire crew of a Hollywood station revived him with a pulmotor. However, he lost his fight for life some hours later when he succuml^ed at Angclus Hospital. Mrs. Martha Long, 28, dancer, is in the Receiving Hospital in a crit- ical condition following an attempt to take her life by swallowing poison, according to police. Mrs. Kathryn Wright Howell, known professionally as Kathryn Wright, eccentric dancer, received a divorce from Garret R. llowell on cruelty charges. She also testified on behalf of Mrs. Mary A. Clark, her mother, in a suit for divorce against Archie B. Clark on non- support charges at the same time. DORCHESTER AS HUGE ATHLETIC PLANT Boston. Ai)ril 27. Dorchester, suburb, is to be de- veloped into the largest athletic plant in the world at a cost of $io,« 000.000 according to the announce- ment of a real estate firm here. Work will st:..t immediately. Plans call for a football stadium seating 60,000, a baseball park of the same capacity and an indoor pavilion for bll indooi ga.niec and conventions which will take p^re of 30.000. Both outdoor structures, under these specifications, will be bigger than Soldier's Field, the Harvard stadium, while the pavilion will ex- ceed New York's new Madison Square Garden in mass accommo- dation according to these figures. N. Y. MAY GO IN BASKETBALL LEAGUE Ernest Vajda, playwright, lost five silk handkerchiefs, which he valued at $10 apiece when prowlers entered his home. Nothing else was taken. Burglars walked out of the front door of the home of Jack Conway, motion picture director, with a wardrobe trunk valued at $190. Back Ball, cameraman, took poison after a quarrel with his bride of two weeks, according to the police of Hollywood, who rushed him to a hospital. It is said he may recover. Ian McTavish. a W^arner Brothers studio executive, knocked down a bandit who took $10 from the purse of Mrs. McTavish and ordered the pair, who were seated In their ma- chine in front of the nearly com- pleted El Capitan, in Hollywood, to drive him away. The bandit es- caped. Leopold© Berlstein, Mexican actor, was welcomed by several hundred members of the local Mexican colony when he arrived here from Mexico City to open an engagement with his company at the Princess, Si)an- ish-language house. Irene Rich denied that she was engaged to David Blakcnhorn, realty operator of Los Angeles and Pasa- dena. She declared that Blaken- horn, whose divorce from his wife will not be final until September 4, was not free to marry. Mrs. Hiram Matthews obtained a divorce from her husband, film heavy, when she testified to his cruelty. liVed Solomon, dance hall ov.'ner, was denied motion for a new trial in the breach of promise suit brought by Glena Syfert. Solomon will ap- peal from the Jury verdict of $40,000 to Miss Syfert, a former employe, who says she became engaged to Solomon in 1916 witli the marriage postponed several times. She asked for $75,000. Albert A. Mo-rs, husband of Teresa Mors, for whose murder Kid McCoy is serving a manslaughter sentence, returned here with his bride, for- merly Marjorie Jane Kahn. At the same tlm« Kid McCoy has appealed his case before the Superior Court. Sylvia Breamer. picture actress, has been sued for divorce by Dr. Harry W. Martin, local physician, who charges cruelty. Cullen Landis was allowed an- other week to pay up the remainder of the back alimony he owes his wife, Mrs. Mlgnon LeBrun Landis When is a bullet-proof vest not? Ask John Edwards, local inventor, whose last demonstration cost him $1.')0. Edwards had to keep a party in his side of a double bungalow lively, so he held up his brain child, a chilled steel weskit, and started to empty a gun at the chest pro- tector. The galvanized gravy- catcher stopped five of the bullets, but allowed the sixth to pass on through. Not only did the lead pellet punctu.ato the vest, but it continued right through the wall ol the duplex and entered the domicile of William Anderson, shattering a valuable vase belonging to the lat- ter. Municipal Judge W. S. Baird assessed Edwards $150 for damages to the vase. Edwards is thinking of working on a bullet-proof vase. Mrs. Carolyn D. Chester was granted a divorce from C. L. Chester, motion picture producer, who left Lo3 Angeles in 1922. Mrs. Cheater said her husband left her stranded in Honolulu and that she was forced to pawn her. jewels to get back. Chester made a property settle- ment with his wife under which he agreed to pay her $7,000, according to her attorneys.* It Is set that the National Basket- ball Leagfue Is to invade New York next fall. Tim Mara has secured the franchise for the New York Club. A present outlook Is that Brook- lyn may be forced out of the League in favor of Philadelphia and that the lineup will also find Pittsburgh Included as one of the stands next season. At present it appears that the cities will be New York, Chicago, Detroit, Fort Wayne, Washington, Cleveland Philadelphia and Pitta- burgh. The schedule will call for 77 games to be played on the seafton, followed by a World's Series be- tween the teams heading the league at the completion of the first half of the season and that heading when the season closes. In the event that the same team leads at both periods the world's series will have to be called o(T. The world's series match won by Cleveland last year in three straight games is said to have pooled $11,0001 That leads those backing the sport to believe that It has great boi ofllce potentialities. Joe Carr of Columbus, president of the National Football League, is likewise president of the Basketball League. Actors' Fond Sweepstakes Chicago, April 27. The Washington Park race track, the new course to be opened early this summer at Home wood, nearby, has arranged to give an Actors' Fund sweepstakes, the receipts of the day going to the charity. Tom Bourke, general manager, ia a former theatrical writer. Inter. Hockey League Toronto. April 27. E. J. Livingstone, Toronto pro- moter, states that an international professional hockey league will op- erate in opposition to the National Hockey League next winter. Livingston© says they will have teams in Jersey City, Cleveland. De- troit, Toronto and two in Chicago, with perhaps further teams. The Jersey City t^-.m will play W tlie new Journal Square Garden. Meanwhile the N. H. L. ha» granted a franchise to a second New York team. Frank Dazey, playwright, left here to complete arrangements for the pre.sentation of his latest play, "Big Boy," which he wrote with Jim Tully. Paul Robeson, colored actor, will play the title role. Fred II. Solomon, local dance hall owner, was given Judgment in a suit filed against him by Sam P. Avery, who sought $11,150 damages because Solomon caused his arrest on reck- less driving charges. Dick Wick Hall, author of the "Salome Sun" stories In the Sat- evepost, was reported near death at the Angeloa Uoapltal here, auffer- ing from acute glomerular nephri- tis. mi'ioi'.M 7nst wenk in the $100,000 He gave her $400 of the $1,000 he cruelty grounds. Arthur Franklin fuber, paralyzed musician, who has been working as a concert pianist, composer and writer of poems and essays, as well as a vendor of pamphlets on the streets of Los Angeles, was awarded a divorce from Violet Fuller on EODEO DATES Cedar Rapids, la., April 27. Dates for the second annuw Cedar Rapids rodeo, staged under the 'Cedar Rapids Amusement Com- pany auspices, have been change from July 12-16 to Aug. S-7 the Iowa organization may routed after the Cheyenne Frontier Days celebration and obtain jn best of its talent on the Jump to Chicago rodeo, Aug. 14-21. E. I.'S 12-EOUro BOUTS Providence. April 27- The Rhode Island House of resentatlves haa passed, in c®"^" rence. a bill legalizing boxing state and creating a commiww" three members to sup'Tvl-'e and res ulatc the sport. «;--iod The members of the <'«>»"'"'7' will serve without compensau They will have the authority to spect the contracts made for oo^^^ and lo see the managers anu boxr-rs abide by th« m. 1'" '^* be limited to 12 rou?)uf.