Variety (Mar 1929)

Wednesday, March 0, ^929 TIM ES SQUARE VARIETY 48 Friars Go For NGami; Had Good Time And Made $I(M)00^^ <Fl)e FroUcklns Friars returned <rom Mloinl Sunday, aboard the ''Sainefl J. Corbett BpeclaltrWn.iendi ing the moat satlofacfory and en- dwahle excurelon In the history of ih^ duh. The ftollo W Miami went over lor a hit, even showmen out flont raUng It one ol the best bene- fit Mrtorioancea tbey had seen. It Setteid the club's emergency fund over »10,000. So well was Mayor Sewell pleased - iver the . event that It- ,1a,. ylftu- ' ally set to present the syoUo JUinu- »2& In Miami, charity to partld- «atei similar ammgements may be V made for JacIciMnvlllei--In8tead of iTweeli It la likely the trip neart winter to Florida wUl caU for a Mbedule 6tl6 days. The • Olympla, modem ^picture •i iouee was packed" for the Frolic ' which had an admission scale top- Ded at $60 (first four rowq). Stan- deeh consumed all the' apace the fMes p«rmlttedi Gross was $22,000. Hve per cent was given to the . local crippled children'^ fupd, BJx- > lianB^ Included $3,000 for the house -. ^d'$8,600 used to buy pit another betoeflt-which Walter C. KeUy had . monftored. That wos necessary In • order to stage the Frolic on the ' eve of the Sharkey-Strlbllng fight 'ibe show'started with a sitop. 60 ■ .jrlars'In monastery garb, singing Sbe club ;Bbng on the stage, and George Olseii'B band from; the Deau- ■ Yllle going oh nejit In order to scoot : ixiolc to 'the clUb. George "White was - hftiidUrife the stage and he did a • eraclc Job of It. - . Nobody attempted to count the jaiigbs but the house seemed ln~a / wintinuous bubble. The show wan -aimed for Just that, and by the -' -grace of some of the land's funniest - wmedlans and humorists (nad.e the 'inrade - oh high. The proceedings were radioed, the reception bplng ireported excellent, an^^lt was ampU- ; ■ jled In the city's park. - ii.Thp high lights of thft perform- 'ahce were many. Iiou Hbltz. one of " the number of stars down there who . Joined the Friars' party for the li-oUc, was never better as master ' - «t ceremonies. In his specialty he ''cleaned up,-the guitar number being V' wow. " Jlih Corbett and Jack Semptl^y got Into the laugh-mak Ing division. Introduced by the Vlr . . Ijlnla Judge, ^ Kelly, who Jater told ' /em, a- few stories and skipped on ainld .a roar of applause. -Heavy Banter. * ' Jack asked Jim If he would mind answering' a personal question and Corbett replied: "Of course not." r,WeU,V. naked r)emp8ey,".h«»w, did It teei'Whe^ Jeffries knocked you, out?" %'nrheh .tbe laugh died down, Jim got ' the ^eriaohal privilege and, queried: ""Jack. )low did you feel whSn Flrpo was leveling you?" Jack Inalciated things lool^ed black. Then the two ■former ■ cbomplons carried Young JStrlbllng off the stage. A minute • later Pa Strlbllng put W. I*'8 tbree- - srear-old kid through an-exceptional ' .acrobatlp routine. . . Ted. Liewis and hie band from the Maripogsa grille landed surely, and the Frlai'g were his guests after th^ j^rtbrmahce;' Georgle Price singled lor a bit,'too. There were several black-outs directed by Si Jay Kauf- miin that: clicked. Among those In them were .-Lew Hearn, Jack Mason, Anatole Frledland and his frau. Two lats smash singles came near 4he close,- Bert Hanlon and .Bugs 3aer sHylrig the laugh score. Bugs geiitly squawked about having to lollo'Wlrig "all thQ monologlsts In the world," but he landed ealslly and had'this honor of next to closing. He later explained he "had plenty of Bex appeal but left It In the dressing room, , . li^uise Groody, the only girl single In the si^ow, went over smartly. She had had-but 16 mlnutesT rehearsal (wd ,thos^ back stage -comme'hted on her'nerve: 'White closed the show with a tap dance number. Harry .Rosenthal did a^real Job on the pit. handling a local orchestra unfamiliar with any of the music. Joe Gllck was down as manager, with Fred Block, who financed the Corbett train, and I. H. Herk in charge of the Frolic, l^mmett Cal- lahan was aide. George E. Hussey •Of the Miami Chamber of Commerce helped Gllck. .Some Fun, Huh '. "Vyith the Frolic over the Friars •ettled down to enjoy Miami. The horsea attracted a few, so did those dog races, at night, but the other amusements got the real play. The ~:lOTg?8rievenIngrf6r~the"FrlEn^was Thursday when Harry Rosenthal played host to the party at the Club Lido on Hibiscus Island, Miami Beach. There was an impromptu show, many of those In the Frolic going, on. In' addition Gertrude i^wrehce accommodated as did . "eglnald Warrenrath, while Mos- saguer, the Cuban artlst-publlsher, Wade sketches, of notables present. Ernie Byfleld, of the Sherman House, Chicago, drew up to the-IJdo dock In his snappy motor boat with part of the Friars party. It created quite a laugh for rarely does anyone go night-clubbing In Miami save by motor car. Other clubs were visited on other evenings. A' few-took a chance In the game room, but most were too smcut. Bug* Buzzes Around Bugs Baer coined many a wise crack on the train going back and forth. He was among the sun- worshippers who played ,the beach nearly all day long. His snozzle was reddjer than any of the party. About ohQ fellow Whom he thought w^ht in to play roulette he said: "He Is the only fellow who ever ran a shoe string Into a heel." Asked where he went for awhile, he an- swered: "I had to look at the ticker; water wings went down three points." There ^s a branch of - Huttons on the esplanade In front of the Roney Plaza hotel afid parallel to the at- tractive private bath houses, known as sabanas. People in bath- ing suits haunt the place daily. The Roman Pools, which also houses a casino, adjacent to the Rbney got the big play from the. bathers—and the many show girls decked out Jn gay bathing suits, but not for bathing. Billy Gibson called out: "This looks like .Dave's Blue. Room" and lOO bimbos rubbered around. It cer- tainly did look like Broadway had been transplanted to MiamL Joe Seiden was a busy guy with his picture machine all the way down and back on the train, at the race track and on the. beach. He shot about 3,000 feet. The film will be titled and shown at the Friars Club Saturday night PAYINO TO HEAA Pittsburgh, March S. Several local billiard parlors have a new money-making racket They have radios In- stalled with ear phones. Drop- ping a dime In the slot, you can listen In m any station that happens to be on the air. Said to be making dough.. PHONEY BUYING RACKET Stories by Jack Conway From 1920, onward, Jack Conway wrote a series of stories appearing tn Variety. Mostly the stories d6alt with baseball and prize fight*, player* and pug*. This series is reprinted weekly. Story below appeared in Variety of October 16, 1920. \ SOMEBODY APPUUDED; CON'S LOST FOR GOOD One of the specials was run from Boaton by Bddle Mack, who Is pro-, motlng a Madison Square Garden there. A game lay-out was aboard and one Bean Bater is reported having ^one for 20 gr's. It .was fur'-- ther said that the party got very rough with the result that Mack left It flat and returned to Boston by plane. BlUyBrandall Injured his foot at the fight Seems a heavy fellow, Jumped on It and Infection set In.. The preaehce of Doc Meylackson on the train was lucky. Jed Harris, In Miami Beach on the first real vacation in years, burst out with: "Muzzlers cheerful- ly financed." Then he abruptly left for Nassau, returning by plane two days later. It la a common thing for people to make the trfp by air route, cmd there are daily flights to Havana, well patronized. Takes about an hour and a half. The nick Is 66 bucks each way. Helen Groody la appearing at the Roman Pools Casino. Recently the backers made the hat check boy the manager and he tried to flre Helen. He was called for that and grave as his only ewuaae that he thought he Would change the tal- ent. It waa explained the act waa under contract for the season. 2 Arrests in Connection With Jew- elry and Bad Cheeks Alleged phoney Jewelers making their stamping ground off the "Big Stem" came to light through the axreat of two men by Detectlvea Roger (Rajah) Meehan and Pat Harty of the Weat 47th street ata- tion. l^he defendants gave their names as Herman Heiman, 19, clerk, of 692 Lincoln place, Brooklyn, and Hugo GarllQowltch, 21, saleaman, of 360 Weat 87th street Both were- held for the grand Jury by Magis- trate Tom F. McAndrews In West Side Court The sleuths stated that both de- fendants were arrested In separate ofllcea on the fourth fioor of 1476 'Broadway. The complainant agalnat Heiman la Harry "Vbgel Company, Jewelera, of 21 Maiden I,aine, The "Vogel firm turned over $161 worth of Jewelry to Heiman, said Meehan and Harty, In the case of Garilop- wltch, Randolph Mitchell.'49 Maiden lane, of the Evkob Watch Company, delivered $187.80 worth of time- pieces to. the defendant The method 61 operation, the sleuths assert is that a man orders the articles with a request the Jew- elry be aent to the addreea given on Broadway. A meaaenger arrlvea with the Jewelry. A check Is given and eooji it is learned that the check Is N. G. The mesaenger' returns and asks for the Jewelry. The latter Is told that "Mr. So and So who ordered the Jewelry has taken It and left the-check." Bail xras aet 4n each case and fumiehed by the defendants who dehted any guilt Baseball Player Ruined Penna. Hooch Belt in Jacksonville Invite ■While In Miami the Friars re- ceived A telegram extending a cot- dial Invitation to stop over In Jack- sonville by Mayor John T. Alsop, Jr. The message said It would be a good idea to visit the historic site of the Corbett-Mltchell fight, staged there 85 years ago. The In- vitation could n"t be accepted be- causeof the aclieflule. Fred Block wired back thanks and promised to vlait Jacksonville next winter with the . Frolic, If that could be fixed. The. piirse for the Corbett-Mlt- cheU niatch was $20.(500, winner take all in a finish fight. It happened the fight only lasted three rounds with Mitchell knocked out. Shar- key and Strlbllng's combined purse was more than eight times that e;arned by Gentleman Jim, nick- named Granite Jim on the train. The Friars' Jaunt to Miami was an undoubted success, both In the matter of the frolic and the amuse- ment on board the Corbett special and off; but Fred Block figured he would have to take It on the chin flnahcially because of unlooked for expense tho trip involved. The de- parture was set back from Friday morning until 11 p. ra., that giving -the^ _bunch a n extra day on the "beaohT "~ Another thing the party praised was the food and service in the Seaboard -diner. Toung Strlbllng viewed the Frl- ara parade that proceeded to the city hall for tho key to the city stunt. Rubbering at the cowls the PottaviUe, Pa., Oct. 13. Dear Chick: We are playin TumBIin Run Park in thia burg, and of all the clown weeka thia copa the number nine. When we hit the slab our trunks hadnt arrived and we were late our- selves. The manager was atandln In front of the houae with his watch out and a nickel cigar stuck In his klaaer. He had ua open in the show and waa afraid we nrouldnt make '~ . _ ; ' it You know • we have a apeclal drop and without It we're as helpless as a burlesque troupe minus bhbrua girls. Well the drop hadnt arrived and this egg In- sisted that we go through with It anyway, drop or no.drop. It dldnt Deauville** Casino, Miami, deto in jam With Jl Law Miami, March 6. The casino at the Deativllle club, Miami Be^ach, was closed the greater part of last week. There was con- siderable s^eoyv as to the cause, but it later developed a charge of attempted bribery was made against an attachb of the-game room. Sonie 20 deputies were called In one evening alter John Law made a visit and had'a dispute. A report Is that the club opetator has been held under $2,000 bail. Deauville Is an elaborate eatab- lishment It's- letgoon pool separates the cafe from the casino. The police trouble Is - a tough break for Mrs. Tex RIckard and Charles Manny, game room opera- tor. Manny conducted Riley's at Saratoga last summer, that placo also being lidded by the gendarmes. The late Tex RIckard and- other associates Interested with him In building the dog race track, plan- ned Deauville as the Bradley's of MInml and It was hoped to take the play away from the Palm Beach resort. ■ All other clubs and bars with casinos .are . still doing. well, The Lido minus- a. game room grossed more than. $17,000 last week, a pace it had maintained for three weeks. The- night club section of Deau- ville hos,,been getting a heavy play. The principal attraction is the George Olsen band. It Is understood George ."White plans using the Ol- sen outfit In his next "Scandals." HEABST FOBOEB, 6 TEABS Danbrldge H. Bibb, 46, 1200 Bush street, San Francisco, was sentenced to five years In Sing Sing by Judge Otto A. Roaalaky of General Ses- sions after pleading guilty to forgery.. The complainant ' aganist Bibb wos Joseph Wlllecombe, secretary to William Aandolph Hearst who charged the defendant had forged the publisher's name to a check-for $15,000 on July 2, 1927. boj'H -tt'ore, ho thought it was a Northern delegation of the Klan. Lnrry Beeson and his Music Makers (urnlahed Jingles down aiid back. Larry made a hit with a lyric written by him, with kidding Verses on various Frlara in the party. FEELER IN THEAIRE; 6 MONTHS' SENTENCE six months In the Workhouse was. the sentence meted out to Abraham Zelkowltz, 28, salesman, whose home la In Baltimore, when before Magistrate McAndrews in Weat Side Court on a d|laorderly conduct charge. Zelkowltz waa arreated In the Roxy theatre after he is said to have annoyed Mrd. Frances Coxe, -923 Wakhagen street North Ber- gen, N. J., Wife of a city'fireman. Mrs. Coze and her husband came to New Tork to attend the theatre and were watching the picture when Zelkowltz baf alongside. A few moments later, Mrs. Coxe told Magistrate McAndrews, she felt Zelkowltz rubhing bis leg agalnat hers. She moved away. A short time later, she said, he grasped her by the knee. She told her husband, who led Zelkowltz out of the theatre. Policeman Carpasil, Trafflo B, was called and brought Zelkowltz to the station houae; later to Weat Side Court Zelicowlt^- gave his name aa Harria and. an addreasMn Brooklyn. He denied -vehemently he was guilty aiid said he never had been arrested before. A probation ofllcer was assigned. He discovered that everything -Zel-t kowitz had said waa untrue. He also lisarhed Zelkowltz had been convicted five tfmes In iCan^lan^ and had served prjson terrha. Marathon Dancers Start Suit to Recover $7,500 ' Nineteen marathon -dancet-s, 10 glria and nine men, representing nine teams, began a suit In the Third District Municipal Court 307 West 64th street, against laioere Silverman, attorney and lessee of the Coney Island Stadium. The acton la for money prizea due, the dancers state, aa a result of a marathon they entered at the Stadium last July 21. The dance wound up Aug. 18. They were to receive Jointly $7,600. The dancers came to the civil court prepares to give their testi- mony. Thie defendant asked for ah adjournment until March,, which was granted by Justice Benedict DInecn. The defendant makes a general denial. He, states In his answer -that-he-had"SUblctr-.thc.Stadlum_ta. Sid and Joe Bernard, brothcrg." Sil- verman averred he was to get a certain pcrcentar"! of tho receipts tor rental of the Stadium. He stated he does not know the whereabouts of the Bernords. -Vera Powell and Lewis Bell, of 1690 Broadway,. are two of the complaining dancera seem to matter for we flopped aa well as though we' had the olio. The Great Ginsberg, a ventrilo- quist, was toppln the field and he sure ruined the ahow for half a week. He had a lot of Scotch that he had brought over the border In the heada of hla dummlea and he waa dishin It out like a politician during campaign time. Everybody got plastered and walked out on everybody elsea act trying to clown.-to the mob in the wings. They ruined us a couple of timea sendin out stage hands with womens hats on to kid Cuthbert and Algy. Two hoofers- that fol> lowed us was the worst offenders, but Cuthle certainly paid them off in rubles before it waa over. Tues- nlght these birds - are doln their Strollln Thru the Park" hokum when Cuthbert sneaks behind the street drop and raises It about an inch from the stage. Then, he gets a long whip that.a high school act usee, and atandln well back he Just. flicked the laah acroaa the anklea of the shufflers. . They were cursin and- threatenin murder but had to go through their humpty dumpty rou- tine, with tha audience thlnkln they were arguln with one another. It ' was a whale. They moved iis down to "next to - slough" after Monday night and wa went over like Man O. War for-the reat of the tlm^. I uahed the itaan- ager what was the report' on' ua and - he aald he' dldiit uae auch language etnce Billy Sunday .left. ' However 1 know he was kiddlh, for each act on the bill w^ friendly with ua which. - la the flrat past'on how yom- doin>H&~. If you dont hold they hardly talk -' -'. to you. I thought we had seen the. last .of ... them glboneys with the idmptf fai their hata, but their ualn them ber« for a different pnrpoae..Elvery other ?uy yon meet la bobtleggin a^d they cariy thia -hooch In ;^e Uunps.-'-)[t - would be a great co.Ubtt^'lpr,iEk'yte - man. ! Ey^ryl'ttiq'e . hii. n<^iide4 .his' head you could grab youfseilt a 's)iqt ot the bld' skee, .'. , ■r^:-' .-■" Thia act of ours Is gettln. bdttet • '. all' the time and who knows it Wtt :. ; keep on puttlh lt-' 6ver we may'be teaturing the ;blll, aii thja .i9tetn\tay - some of the^A. daya. The wky ,wte'ra going now thiiiklng-Seriously.. pC - aehdln for the reef of, the family.to ' come out with ua and take bowB> A guy offered us twenty weeks on^ the.back yard circuit last week-but^ we turned, it down for Algy. sold'^the open'air" would; biJuM bur'-'plttes^ . • You Know J was also in plctuf^s rf-" once bnd'l clal'in to be the only ; deaf and dumb liiambo In the world to play a bull without a cigar in my - Pian. Well old., timer they . all. cleaned np ' , on Cleveland out here for you know ■• the Covaleskla come from around. this pa!rt of-thiS county. Harry used . to pitch lor Shamol^ln In. a dcugh> nut league , out bw9 when OLave Cross had the clut>. He got $60 month and they pal^l.him: off ln.<one d/011ar bills. Befo^e.tiiat .he waia an -: advance man for a mule tet^m in. the mines and developed his. arm coax^ . In.the ^orax brothers.vto .keep'.goln In one direction. . . Give my best-regards to the moh and hold everything. Your old side klckcfr, Con. Mrs. Hopwood Dies Mrs. Julie' Hopwood, tnbthcr of Avery Hopwood, the late play- -wright, was In the midst of a $16,« 000 suit on an Inaurance policy against the Globe Indemnity Co.. when she died March 1 at hep-.v?:- apartment In the Hotel Chathanb ■ Mrs. Hopwood yrtiB bcneflciory on that policy and was engaged. In a ■ suit against the Insurance company which her. estate -yvUI. continue.; The Hopwoods, mother and i90n, were very devoted. The playwright ^ was drowned at Juan-les-Plhes, Frahcc, July 1, last, hla mother sur- . ■ Ti-ving- Mni - cxactly-elght-months, ...i-v The insurance company's defense In' the suit Is that their evlderico..; shows conclusively that the os^. aured,. Hopwood, did not ^1^ a.ocl- dentally, but "did dio, as a result.:bf- acute Intoxication and cerebral con- gestion, caused by /feaid acute In- toxication." ■ i