Variety (Sep 1928)

STAGE CENTS NITE CLUBS DYING 10 International Lookers to Tour Over Here for Shows, Balls and Pliu[s • James A. Currier, who resigns as genei'al manager of theatres for Universal as soon as he reopens the Colony, New York, with "Uncle Tom's Cabin" (sound) is general manager of the . International Beauty Tour, Inc., Georgia corpora- tion. It is behind a theatrical tour of ten international batliing beauts from Ireland, iScotland, England, France, Germiany, Spain, Italy and, of course, America, scheduled to etart in mid-November. Howard Lichey assistant director general of the tour, sailed Saturday on the "Leviathan" to bring over the foreign beauts, counting heav- ily on the Irish looker for the box oflice appeal in America. . The gala will travel in a tandem trackless train of two-motor (Continued on page 58) John R. Rogers at 88, Taking ''Dugan" on Road Tours Merrily John R. Rogers, 18, started on the road last night (Tuesday), after a lapse of 20 years, to manage the Al Woods' "Mary Dugan" company. AI seems to have sort of taken the veteran under his wings. John R., spry at his age, has been ill off and on of late. The "Dugan" show is bound for the Pacific Const, after playing ■eastern time. It was 20 years ago that John last wont west as a com- pany manager, at that tlmfe handling Eddie Foy. Yours Merrily first saw the Pa- cific in 1872, as a producer. His birthday Is Dec. 22. Pr.e.scnt fare Al, who shares. John, when leaving yesterday, •aid:. . "I don't owe a guy a dollar" and he had a Marty Hei*man check in his fist If anyone matlo a claim.. 2 Stars Talking Cyril Maude, English star, and E, II. aothern, will apiiear before the Anierican public this season exclusively, as locturors. Mr. Sothern will do readings and Interpretation.^ from Shakespeare. Mr. Maude will discuss the theatre generally. The lOnglishnian will coine over about .Tan. 1. opt'ning at Town Hall, New York. M. C/s Sunday Morning Dance Class Draws 1,200 =^"Ai4^rliTsc^j; nlv-(^-aL^-the l*ranf()r(l, NowjirU. X. .)., ji spocijU luaiso gag i.s diri'cLiii;.'- ii il;i!K'ing class in the house every Sunday morning. The Jirst .Sunday Jielasco startfil the siunt, T.L'UO pupils .Tijpoared ran;;iMf; from l:i<Mi>-s of t'-ndor aso.-^. to t;rn ndinotllei s. Elinor Glyn Tells •Elinor Glyn is spilling some inside during her spiel as a Paramount talking short. Elinor tells everything she thinks she knows about "It." That's the short's title, "What Is 'It'?" Release date after it cools off; SCHOOL START COST FILM BIZ $750,000 NET . Opening of the school term throughout the country Is esti- mated to have cost the show busi- ness $750,000 for the first week in net profit. The drop In business, especially picture houses, was marked on the first school term week, with the matinees showing it. The opening of the new school term Is usually accompanied by a slumped matinee trade. This season the pei-centage of cut grosses is said to have reached a high por- (Contlnued on page 53) Hot ^Kissing Scene To Siren's Whistle Los Angeles, Sept. 18. ■ -TlVie "camera' picked " the" hottest day of the year In Los Angeles on which to record its longest kiss. At the First National studio An- tonio Moreno and Billie Dove were playing husband and wife in "Ad- oration." All forenoon the dh-cotor had been' building toward the cli- m.ax, the return of the husband from the war. "The wife was in bed when the long-absent husband reached the family roof, He leaned over the bed and entered upon a passionate kiss. Logically it was not a short affair, and no censor who also is a human (Continued on page 58) Hodge Off Road William Hod.!i:e, htrrotoCore rated as ii roiid money gottcr. Is passing UP. the^rqad^this_.sc!ison to steer his iatcsl. ''Stniip:l)rMiHughth«;jj^ Into Now York Oct, 1, with only metropolitan dates to follow. Hodge's decision to pass up the road is taken as anotlior indication that the road is tlirouijh as fur us Icjvft.t nro concr'i-ncil. Not Enough in Selling-—^Too Much Smearing and Fix- ing—Booze Left to Speaks and Hideaways—Recent Raids. Taming Down Times Square RACKETEERS REFORM That the hite club racket, like all meretricious rackets, was doomed for extinction is no great surprise^ That a cosmopolitan, sophisti- cated metropolis like New York should still hanker for the gyp and the fake and the take of the racket is the big surprise. Cafe men, realizing that there are still enough chumps left who are gluttons for cafe punishment, main- tain that there vyill still remain a fjew high spots in the same old racket to take 'em over on the same old terms and ways. The general trend is away from the racketeering. Without reflect- (Contlnued on page 57) Any Taxi Ride/25c Providence, Sept. 18. Theatres here are benefitting from the local taxi war. Sheiks can take best girls from any location in the city to down- town for a quarter and use the saved two-bits for cake and cof- fee. Rogers Taxi invaded city a week ago, offering rides all over for 35 cents. Then the local boys organ- anized the Economy Co. It cut the price 10 cents. Now the Rogers out- fit says 11 may go to 15 cents; Both companies admit the reduc- tions are merely experimental, but the cuts have boosted biz at great rate. News by Oath Walter Winchell of the .New York CJraphic has developed his own system for verifica- tion of Broadway news items. Believing . ho knows Times Sciuare, Winchell's method runs along this <;hannfl; Calling up a young woman, inrjuiring as to a report she had just been married, the girl gave the reporter her word of honor it was not so. "That is not enough," an- swered Winchell. "If you'll say^So-hciU).- me v-God,-'^i£. .■a'iU_, be better." "So help me God," replied the girl. And evon then Winchell didn't believe her. Relatives and FainOy Trees Among Film Staffs Charted by Bankers Free Lunch Lobsters Bootleg lobsters, the baby. size that fishermen are sup- posed to th. ow back into the drink according to Bureau of Fisheries' regulation, are now being served in several of the Times Square whisperlows that maintain a free lunch counter of sizeai>le proportions. , The young lobs are served gratis only to steady patrons. SLICED HIPS AND LECS SAVE MISS MOLLY O'DAY IjOs Angeles, Sept. 18. Molly O'Day Is collecting her weekly check from First National again, after one of the most strenu- ous reducing campaigns in Holly- wood annals. Many of them are on the record here. Molly was put under a long-term contract by First National two years ago, the agree- ment carrying a weight clause and the customary provision guarantee- ing 40 weeks a year, the company (Continued on page 39) National Needle Tie-Up For U's Stars' Clothes Thousands of farmer's wives and other girls or women are expected to conriJFte a.«? dre.s.«!makers for Unl- vor.sal's stars unc!<>r a tie-up just effected between the film company and a. cotton goods manufacturer; said to have. 17,000 retail contacts throughout the V. S. One of U's exploiteers, Lee Bal- sley, got the idea and sold It forth- with. Prizes totaling . $3,500 will be awardt^d at the national contest, it will follow the series of eliminations in all localities where the. three- cornered tie-up of theatre, news- paper and dry goods man Is ex- pected to compensate Svinners with- in thoir borders. • Contestants,' including all who (Continued on page 33) Bank's New Policy f'hicago, Sept. IS, "-".Sheridan ^ theatre--has^^^^--^^^ stage presr-ntation and is now show- ing slragiht iilcturcH. Now policy was dfcid'.-.d by a board mc'ciiii:,' of tlie Cliif.ugo Till .and Tru.^t Co., oiwrntlrig rL-'-i-ivf.-i of the houKe. The cfllclency experts in the pic- ture business, through banking coimections, have finally hit on a. peculiarly appealing and worthy chart which should look very pretty after It Is completed and printed In colors. Heretofore the outsiders haye confined their activities to cutting down on electric lights, carpeting., pencils, stationery and so on. Now, it is reported, they are engaged in drawing up a genealogical chart, or family tree, showing the. descend- ants of various picture men who are employed in the studios and offices. Compared to this important work , the past, efforts are rela- tively of a frivoipus nature. It seems that the intent of the efTlcicncy experts is to eliminate a head of a tree, whereyer possible, . (Continued on page 56) Sidestepping Will Hays' No-Make Orders IjOS Angeles, Sept. 18. Those Will Hays' ultimatums that producers cannot make this, that, or the other play, or story, into a picture seem to be a lot of apple aauce. Of late the producers have been paying as much atten- tion to the Hays ^'don't's" as they do to a mosquito in Hollywood, where none appear. Metro-Goldwyn Is the latest to disregard the bans of the Hays body by producing Michael Arlen's "The Green Hat" under the title of "Woman of Affairs." This picture was recently completed by Clarence Brown with Greta Garbo starred. It is likely that ITays may not recognize any similarity in the story when It gets on the soroen with the stage play as the title h.'.ia been changed. Bunion Dancers' '(Grudge* Bout Draws $5,000 Des Moines, Sept. 18. An aftermath to the dance mara- thon, which recently set this town cuckoo, was tho "gni.dgo" boxing match between Nick I'appas arid- I>an .Salisbury, both participants in the dance thing, The light, staged according to the. Marquis, was at $1 per head aiid drew 5,000, a record crowd for a sporting event Jiere. Locals took the quarrel between I'appas and Salisbury seriously. Whether a by- product racket to the marathon or on the level, Salisbury knocked out I'appas In the fourth. BROOKS COSTUMES iCrowrsis Afsirt uniforms I 14.37 B WAV. H.V. TEL5380 PENN. k Atio ii.ooo COSTUMES TO Btwr