Variety (Jun 1927)

P«l»lliAi«d Weekly at 114 Wevt 4«th St.. New Ynrk, N. Y., hy Varietr, Inc. Annual auliaorlption. IT. 8ln«l« ooplefl. <• cents. Bntered aa itecond cla«a mattnr I >o(MMrii>Ar 2t. nuG, ^ t 'h* Post offlce at New York. N. Y^ under the aet ot Mareh t. 187*. iVOL. LXXXm No. 7 NEW YORK CITY. WEDNESDAY, JUNE 1, 1927 64 PA(iES GABRIEL LEADS CRITICS FINAL CRITICAL BOX SCORE SEASON OF '26-'27 Th« key to thm abbreviation* ie: SR (shows reviewed); R (Hght); W (wronff); O (wd opinion #K p f m d); Pet, (pareantago). Score as of May 28 8R. ft W. a PoL GABRIEL ("Sun") 105 90 15 .. ^7 WINCHELL C'GraphiO 100 86 1i .. .850 VREELANO (Helegram^) 100 8F 17 1 dBSi HAMMOND ("Herald-Tribuna")... 98 75 17 1 .806 COLEMAN ("Mirror") 145 114 28 3 .786 ANDERSON ("Posf) 106 81 28 1 .771 WOOLLCOTT ("WoHd") 104 77 10 8 .740 MANTLE ("News") 148 100 34 5 .784 ATKINSON ("Times"; 107 70 22 6 .781 DALE ("American") 153 106 43 4 .621 08B0RN ("Evaning World") 116 71 33 18 .612 VARIETY'3 OWN SCORE SR. R. W. O. Pot VAftlETY (C<Mtiblnad)............ 182 167 25 363 PULASKI (Ibee) 65 60 5 .008 LAIT 28 22 6 .786 GREEN (Abel) 37 29 8 .784 (Tills score based on 195 openings.) CRITICAL BOX SCORE-4 YEARS This score based on 749 shows Failurest 526; Successes, 223 From '23 to '27 The key to the abbreviations is: SR (shows reviewed); R (right); W (wrong); O (no opinion axpratfed); Pet. (percantage). *^Ar,r..^ SR. R. W. O. Pot. fGABRIEL ("Sun".3 Yra.) 325 259 57 9 .797 YS^I'-^'^^ <""*'«'«8''«»*«"-2 Yr*.).. 196 150 41 7 .768 ANDERSON ("Post"-3 Yrs.)....... 300 215 88 2 .717 ^^.AMMOND ("Herald-Trib."-4 Yfa.) 388 269 94 25 .893 JJt.^.i-'^*^*""* Y"**-) 581 378 180 23 -661 li?."^'^^']^ <3 •••• 388 220 110 14 .640 PALE ( American"-4 Yrs.}. 576 367 176 33 .637 J.^PjJJri:^^"^"'" C'World".4 Yra.).. 420 265 121 34 .631 S.^?225«^^^**"nO World-.3 Yra.) 366 227 116 24 .620 rTIMEO" (4 Yra.) 481 887 156 30 J07 VARIETY'S OWN SCORE \I A^amm*^ . . SR. R. W. O. Pot. VARIETY (Combinad) 700 591 104 9 .844 PULASKI (Ibea) 203 189 14 .931 J^REEN (Abal) 115 92 23 .. 300 '-^'^ • • 133 07 36 1 .720 * On "Mail-Talegram" *24.»28. I i;*®^!.'!^"®^* critic" reviews '24.'25. Winchell '25.'26, '26-'27. ; On 'Herald" and "Sun" '23-'24: "Sun" '24**25. With "World" Since then. •iL''j^" Cprbin reviewed •23-'24; Stark Young, '24-'25. No regularly ••gned reviews '25.'26. J. Brooks Atkinson now firat string oritio. ini su(;ar foot strut In the event that the 'Black Rot- intn ' I>f2:in8 t0 die out. Hilly Pierce, J'n"^e Htndfo his tuuRht tnore sfapo «ancers the HH tlian all sources ^ fnhinod, Is launching a new dance . known m Uia "Sugar Foot ''Beggar'o Opera'' in Fall J. C. Duff Intenda brinf^intir over "The n^KKir'a Opera" in the fall Ho in risk inpDaranteefli for Amer- ic.nn am»('.'iran'"«*». Tho opera ia at^on old. last on thifl Aide many yearn ago. It haa had an mhnorraal run In Uia Bng' U»h provincea. ^ S WINS FOR 2D TIME Of 195 New Plays for Past Season, 138 Flopped'-^30 Per Cent Avet^ge of Legit Broadway Hits Maintain- ed—Gabrial'o Rating .867 on Sea8cn in Vamty'o Box Score — Wiaehell (Graphic), Second; Vree- land (Telegram), Third— Hammond (Herald Trib- une) Leads Morning Mob FOUR-YEAR SCORE For the necond sucroHHivo year Gilbert Gabriel of the dun" leads the Metropolitan critics in Variety's annual and seasonal final box score. Hoftidefi fletting: the pror'odent of twice nnishinff first, Gabriel tops his last year's reoord percentage of 826 to breeze la St J67 for the sea- son of •26-'27. This final reckoning Is based on the 195 new legitimate attractions opening in Now York between Auff. 3. 1926, and May 28, 1927. exclusive of revivals, "little theatre" and limited engagement shows. Of theHe 195 plays, revues, musieals and oporettas 138 are classod a a failures, 39 reachod the "hit** dassiflcatlon, and It have (Continued on page 56) AMATEUR BUST AS POSING PRO nootleg(j;ing of amateur talent paHsed off am professionals to fill Mils In far out vaudoviUa stands h'lH j>rov«^ n a bu8L iriKhTHolling by .-^everftl more or l»^(*s rocogniised aKencies have knocked prices down to such a low liKure the amatourn hava walked out on playing the daten. The lateat dark Ulu.<)tration of what vaudeville is selling for in Heme npola h.tpi>cncd lawt w»rek when a f.«'am played a J'-r iey town for a single date at |8. Faro^ were ORPHEUH ClRCUrr SAYS LEGrr Wm UNPROFITABLE DRAWS Lenore Ulric as Prize Flop at $3,500 Weekly Seems to Have Been Deciding Factor—Mean Notking in Groit Increase DEADHEADING LISTENERS-IN FORTHEAM Tivoli, Brooklyn, Passes on Letter to Radio Sta- tion or Theatre Free adrniHsion to vando ind pic- ture hoij8oa via radio ia Uie latest to hit N"W York. TlVDll, Fulton Htioet, Hrooklyn, has effected a tioup with Station WRNY whereby a letter written in either to the station or the theatre will result In a frea admission to the theatre, good for any afternoon or ovonlMp: Harry Tranb Is the Hponsor of tJ>e tjaK. with a belief bU» idea will make new patrons. In addition to tjiving the theatre publicity. Tho Tivoll plays six acts and picture*. The present free tieup will run intil June 16. thrown In when they igrcofl to double anotluT hoMSf^ two p'TTorrn- innefi at '^••cli, and briiiKin*? tli<; U*s- ure Individii?jlly to )1 a Hhow. The team wan book»'d by a booker handling i i h iiri of Oi'^ h dih -y lorik.^ \U(\ r''j)orifd •IiMnint; up $200 \vf k ly on a small profit tarn-over, pr if- ticalfy net for him Hlnce he oper- ne.s with desk room and little other svei'hoad. ^ers ia 5th Ave. Eatery Th« Nmw IlappincMfl r<'-sf iurant on ith ivenue is fjoing after far more i)ijMi' ity t^y play on tho ap- I)^ i,r irii o th' To of the Happiness ]U)yH front r «'ilo. It haa l)er>n derided to have the "hoy.-;" .'*iri>< Mmto Morula v-» Mnd Wodrif-»rl iy>» and '»1ho Friday at 7 ^'.0 J), ni , l.'Ut i>roadca^tIrig via VVKAF Friday nlghU only. Their othrr restaurant concerts start at 6,3n, 1ST UNDBEEQH TI££ATRE Detroit. May 31. It looks iH fboii^h the first tb'-.i- tte to be named J^lndbc^rgh in on<' the local Kunsky intMrents ar'* about to open. It'-H'jf'HtM for a till'- v.-'V" ilrnost Ufuuiiiuous for Ibc Uior's uai^a. No more rooruits from U'^rit for Orpheum Circuit vaude, according to reports stating that that decision has been reached by the Orpl»eum bookers. Its main cause is said to have been Lenore Ulrlc's disastrous tour along the Oriihcum line. At $3,500 weekly .salary, Miyn l lric is rci^ort- ed to have only drawn protit.ibla business at the Orpheum's I'alace. C'lilrnxo, Nvh<M«' .she opened th»- tour. Other h>»Kit "narrx-s ' ,n sii;n<'"| .md paid by the Orpheum have meant nothing in t^a gross way either from acc(.»unt8. Ono of the lar^eHt vaud»' Hke|( h producers of late with "nanieH" lr<Mn legit for both eastern and western vaude ha.s been Al Lewis. Lewis was the former partner of Mar (lordun. ronipoaing the booliin^; and producing Arm of f^ewls St Gordon. Gordon is now the general man- ager nnd In rli irKe of bookings for the Orpln^unj (-Ireuit. Al White's Scissored Nose for ''Juvenile'' Al B. White, the single, intends to have bin no^e .scIhsoi cd. Mr. White has picked Imh spot in the beautifying doctor and hlH ham (i<;- teotor may switch into the new cla.sH any day. White Mays ho'g really in tbe Juvenile divinion but liii^noH<: Htands in the way. To reconcile the pro* bosla with the show busineHH as iz, that niuHt have it;i Juv< riilf,s with a Barryniore l)eak, Al l.s Koing through the facial metamphroslA, OS Lew Price and othors li ive done, not ex'-epting Jaf^k Hcmpsi y. Al claims to fri^-nd.s that he knows of a Juvenile Job waiting fnr - bim if his noser can be made to fit it. GIRLS IN MOVIETONE Con Hanco .M< i in^ and Murird Pol- lock have made a Moviotune for Pox. The rirl pianlstes are the duo with "Uio Uita." B ROOKS THE NAME WMFN YOU VOU GO BY GO TO BUY COSTUMES ,or»>vrN9 AMD UNI ro RMS 1 1437 B WAY, rjy TK.&M0 PCNN;! ■ '. ' ViJ3QO Oe$TUKICS TO WtNT -^- '-i '