Variety (Dec 1929)

Wednesday, December 18, 1929 LEGITIMATE VARIETY 53 Qeveland Daily Pa[)er Local Conununity Dramatic Groups TARDY AUENATION SUIT AGAINST EDNA LEEDOM Cleveland, D€G. 17. Something new in the way of civic little theatres Is springing up jn this village, promoted by "Plain Pealer," Cleveland daily. Called the first Theatre of the Nations in the country, it" Intends to encourage and I Atlantic City, Dec. 17. develop oh a broad scale community Two blondes falmiliat to Broad- dramatics of every nationality, ;^ay a,re scheduled to wage a court Project will open. Jan. 12' with a Uja^^^i^ j„ j^a^yg xandihg, Atlantic's civic dramatic festival to continue Kj^^^^y ^^^^.^ ^^^^ mOnth, over a until June. Plays and musical ^^an ^ho has since married an- shows ere to be given every Sun- other. day by talent representing 26 local The man 1b Charles (Chick) En- and national groups. ■ dor, , night club entertainer, who Productions to take place in Pub- also saw brjef service in the latest lie Hall's Xilttle theatre, seating 7O0. edition of "Scandals," and the prin Larger shows Will be presented in cipals in the court action are his city's 3,000-seated Music Hall. Rent fo^n^er wife, Mrs. Doris K. IJndor, for. one performance and one dress an;^ the former Udna Leedom, now xehearsal, in addition to such ^x-j the wife of Frank G. Doelger, heir ' to an $8,000,000 brewery fortune in Philadelphia. Mrs. Endor, the former Doris Downs of the "Foliies," will ask $400,000 of Mrs. Doelger tor alleged alienation of Endor's. affections. She IS asking $200,000 on charge that in October, 1926, when-she was the wife of Endor, the present Mrs. Doelger enticed him away, and anr other $200,000 on a charge of mis- Conduct by the then Edna Leedom and Endor. Case is. scheduled to be tried before Judge Frank Sooy in Supreme court, January 20i Mrs. Endor, in obtaining her di- vorce, failed to reveal the identity of the "unknown womAn" until she filed the alienation suit. Endor, who had no part in the suit, may be forced to appear as a witness penses as costumes, scenery, stage help and ushers. Is to be footed by newspaper. ' City offlclalB, supporting this project, report that in jGleveland there are 300 amateur organizations, consisting of about 1,000 players, that produce an average of 200 plays every year In their private theatres, niRS.PENFIELD'ANGELED' TIORETTA' TO $250,000 The ghost of "Pioretta" stalked through the New Tork Supreme Court when Evelyn Hubbell, who got the money to help Earl Carroll I 'hj^g~cently returned from Eli- produce it, testified in the suit ^^^^ ^^^Y^ Mrs. Edith Smiley Endor, brought against her by Dorothy ^ scotch girl he met while pet Knapp, one time star of. the pro- forming in Glasgow, duqtion and favorite of Carroll, who Hearing of the suit is listed for contends she Was ousted hy MisS; Atlantic county court because Hubbell, Mrs; Frederick Courtland | papers were served upon Mrs. Dpel Penfleld, who furnished the sugar, and the composers, George L. Bag- by and the late RomlHy JohnsOn, Miss Hubbell testified: "I am a teacher of dancing and liave known Mrs. Penfield 12 years. I was her dear friend for many years and her companion for a year and a half. "Under the contract I paid money to Mr. Carroll that Was advanced by Mrs. Penfleld. The purpose was to popularize if possible the music used m 'Floretta.' If there was any profit It Was to be divided four ways, Mr. Carroll, Bagby and Johnson and myself. Mrs.. Penfield had no inter est other than to get her money back, plus 6% interest, She paid $260,000 in cash Six Shows Ctosing Five out of the six Broadway closings are flops. Four of them' were suddenly added to last Sat- urday's departures. "Follow Thru," presented by I^aw- rerice Schwab and Frank Mahdell, will tour from Chanin's 46th Street after a. run. of about a year <60 Weeks). It was the musical smash of last seasoti, grossing more than $.40,000 weekly up to summer. Until recently the pace was better than $30,000, but for some reason it failed to pick iip after the slump that accompanied the stock market crash. FOLLOW THRU Opened Jan. 9. St. John Er- vine doing, a trick for. the World at the time reported; "Sheer fiin from start to fin- ish and Anderson (Journal) : said: "Large, handsome enter- tainment." Variety (Sime)! wrote: "Everything a pop musical should have, a smash." . "The Silver Swan," independent ly done, was taken off at the Beck last Saturday. Played two and one half weeks to small money, although favorably reviewed.' THE SILVER SWAN Opened Nov. 29. .Musical was a second string: assignment. Variety (Bang) endorsed mildly saying: "Pleasant and 'moderately pretentious oper- etta, no hit, but stands a chance to crawl into profit." Future Plays •Tamlly Affairs" was closed at Maxine Elliot's, playing a single week. Despite the priesence of a star (BlUie Burke), li. Lawrence Weber decided not to continue. for the money, and have them. My agreement for the repayment of the money to Mrs. Penfleld is oral. The money was paid in sums of .$40,000, $26,000, $16,000 and so on. I gave her no security for the money." Miss Hubbell said that if "Flo- retta" h4d been a complete failure Mrs. Penfleld could not look to her for the money.' She has repaid only $3,200, she said. Upon being asked why she refused to answer when questioned as to how old Mrs. Pen- fleld Is, she replied: "I consider it disloyal." Stock Strands Sandusky, O., Dec. 17. Dramatic stock troupe managed by H. W. D. Tooley stranded here at the Sandusky theatre after two weeks of flop biz. None of the cast received salary for the last week's work and salaries were not, covered by bond since all accepted the risk. J. A. Himmelein,; owner of the theatre and mayor of this town, took over the show for Saturday and Sunday, guarante(Bing trans- porta!tlon back to Chicago. I. A. TO FHILA. FOR JO^ Hollywood, Dec. 17. With M-G-M having nothinig' on hand for her to do, Ethelind Terry is en route to Philadelphia at the expense of the Shuberts to decide Whether she would like to play the lead in "Nina Rose." Whether she takes the job or not,, the brothers stand the travel charge and expenses. ger while she was honeymooning in Atlantic City in March, 1928. Prl vate detectives followed her for months before the honeymoon gave them a chance. Coutts' Rotary Stock John E. Coutts, indie vaude agent, has organized a rotary ;Stock, the Coutts Rotary Players to play one- night stands in four New Jersey towns and two nights In another spot, making a six-day week. ua,»un After the opening, Dec. 30, at 1 took receipts Pompton Lakes, the troupe goes^to Washington, Jan. 1; Dover, 2; Du- mont, 3-4, and Newton. 6. Route then repeats. Company is headed by John Bos- burgh and Martha Bell; will travel in two autos. and the opening bill Is "This Thing Called Love." Scale will be 50-76. Coutts will change his bills weekly. Equity Bond List The following shows are on Equity's se-urity list: "City Haul," Gil Boag, $6,000 bond; "Legal Prac- tice," Irving E. Altmah. Leo Bui gakov Theatre Association, $2,500 trust agreement; "Carry On," Con nolly & Swanstrom, Inc., $14,950 surety bond; "Have a Heart," Hy- man Productions, Inc., waiver; "At the Silver Swan," Herman. Gant- voort, $12,000 surety bond; "Seven,' James Cooper, $3,850 savings ac count assignment. "Woof, Woof!" Demarest & Loh muller, $17,000; "Top of the Hole," F.A.B. . Productions, Inc.. $5,000 surety bond; "60 Million French- men," Wray guarantee, $18,000; "Nancy's Private Affair" and "Peter Flies High," two Myron Fagan shows, guarantees by James Thatcher; '"The Novice • and the Duke," Walter Greenough, $2,242: for one week only; "The Sap From Syracuse," Johnson & Newman, $4,- 000 letter of deposit. FAMILY AFFAIRS . Opened Dec. 10. "Undernour- ished," said Lockridge (Sun), and ^rown (Post) added, "At best a pretty sour affair." "DIAna," also offered by L. Law- rence Weber, was shut at the Longacre. Played but one week. The performance was rated good Iput the press slammed the show, based on the life of the late Isadora Duncan and business was trifling. "City Haul,^' produced by Gil Boag and shaping up out of town, will steer Into the Eltinge. New Tork, Dec. 30. Bridget Farry, witness for the State in trial of George McManus for murder of Arnold Rothstein, has been spotted for a minor assign- liient In show with Boag, flgurlhg the ex-chambermald of Park Cen- tral good copy for the show. Boag had. angled for the Liberty, figuring to supplant "Subway Ex- press," but latter show Is stick- ing. "The Bottom," produced by Leo Bulgavik, opens cold at the Wal- dOrf, New York, Jan. 6. Cast includes RicMli-d Hale, Mai-y Morris, E. i". Ballantihe, Edgar Stehli, Walter Abel, Jan Wolfe and Lewis Lievex'ett. ' "Apartment Seven," by/Ted Mc- Lean has gone into rehearsal, with Frederick Clayton figuring as pro.ducer, When set it will be spot- ted at a New York house. Cast includes Jean May, Marie Pittman, Mary Palmer, Marianne* Risdon, Estelle Lange, Lucille Ed- monds, Stewart Hutchinson, Walter Hor ton, Charles Penman, J ohn Lott, James Garey. J, Francis O'Reilly and John Pope, "She Got Aw^y With Murder," produced by Shuberts. and starring Fay Balnter, has gone Into rehearsal and opens at the Shubert, Newark, N. J., Dec. 30, and follows Into a New "York house a week later. Support Includes Henry Daniel, John Cumberland. Pauline Whitson, Jane Seymour and others. "Trevelyn'a Ghost," authored by Dwight Taylor, son of Laurette Taylor, has gone into rehearsal for. A. L. Brlanger and George C. Tyler It boWs in at Wilmington, Del,, Dec 27. Cast Includes Phyllis Povah, Nancy Ryan, Percy Ames, Rea Mar- tin, Charles Brown, Harold de DIANA Opened Dec. 9: "A hew rec-. ord in bad taste," declared An- derson (Journal) and Litteil (World) more emphatically ticketed it: "A cheap dance on the coffin of a great artist, clumsy and unforgivable." Variety (Bang) pegged: "A failure." Becker, Percival Vivian and Fred- erick Kerr. "After Tomorrow," by Hugh Stange, has been acquired for im- mediate production by John Golden. Golden will do It after setting George Jessel in "He Got the Job," due for the Golden, New York, lat- ter part of month. "Nancy's Private Affair" has gone Into rehearsal as Myron C. Pagan's next; Minna Gombel heads cast. Fagan figux*es ' as authOr-pro- ducer Of this . one, . with' James Thatcher of Century Play Company bankrolling. Aces Up," rxeyfr musical to be pro- duced by George White. Book is by Jack Macgowan music and lyrics by De Sylva, Brown and Henderson.; Show goes into rehearsal, Dec. 23. Bert Pehr, lead. Jimmie Cooper's new legit, "Seven," opens "cold" at the Re- public, New York, Dec, 2(. The show is a Cooper production, with Lionel Atwill doing the stage' - directing. The complete cast includes Tom^.v Douglas, Suzanne Caubye, Robert' Strange, Beverly Sitgreiaves, Ar- mand Cortes, George Lessey; Pres- ton Foster, Millard Mitchell, Dell Cleveland, Helen Guntlier, Allan, Dayis, Edgar Hennihigi stage man- ager. ■ . - "Case of Fifi Bolette," by Irving Kaye Davis, dramatization of San- ford White shooting, being readied for production by William Birns. . "When Hell Froze" has gone into rehearsal as first for the new pro- ducing combine of MacGowan and Reed. It opens cold at ah unnamed New York house Jan. 14. Cast in- cludes Helen MacKellar, Spring By- , ihgtoh, Arthur Hohl and others. Jones & Green are casting for Dana Burnett's "Boundary Line." "Challenge of Youth," by Ashley Miller and Hyman Adler. is listed as. next on Hyman Adler's production list. Goes into rehearsal next week with Adler heading cast. "Bachelors' Wives," comedy, will reach production shortly via Evelyn Chalet, former costume designer^ who is making her first plunge as legit producer. Now casting and goes into rehearsal next week. "It Never Rains." an Independent attraction, will close at the Re- public. Is In Its fifth week, hav- ing gotten little except from cut rates. IT NEVER RAINS Opened Nov. 19. Dailies sent scrub team. Variety (I bee) saidi "Too lightweight for run." Fredericks'L, A. Closing Raises New Pay Point Los Angeles, Dec. 17. With Pauline Fredericks collaps- ing, according tO. the management, list before curtain time Dec.. 10. at the Belasco, the run on "Queen In the Parlor" was suddenly termi- nated. As this was last Week of local run, Equity's ruling re- quires that the management be re- sponsible for the board and lodging of all players under $100 week sal- ary, those getting over being com- pelled to lay off without pay. However, in this case with show to close run here at end of week, Edward Belasco, now'in New Y'ork, Is seeking a settlement trying to woi'k out plan with Equity on sal- ary to those players who end their engagement with show here and do not rejoin when it opens in Detroit Dec. 21. "Headquarters," presented at the Forrest by Sidney Wilmer, Walter Vincent and Alfred.E. Aarons, was taken ofC last Saturday! Played a little less than two weeks. HEADQUARTERS Opened Dec. 4. It was gen- erally feared mystery plays were too passe for this one to click. Variety (Rush) stated: . "Prospect is for a very brief stay." Wright Back in Toledo Toledo, Dec. 17. W. H, Wright is bringing his stocli company back to the Palace Dec. 29. Scale will be 26c to 75c. John Lyons is resident manager. Century Stock Out The Century 'stock, in Brooklyn -was .unable to make the grade and It closed with the promoters tak- ing a loss. CALHOUN DESIGNING Hollywood, Dec. 17. James Calhoun, former New York $tage designer. Is assisting in de- aigning--sets--and--^G'.stumes=for.=Jll!i. M-G-.M "Hollywood Revue of 1930." _ ^ CHI CIVIC R(iAD DATES Chicago, Doc. 17. Chicago Civic Opera Co, will be- gin its annual road trek Feb. 3. poute will Include Boston, Memphis, Shreveport and Atlanta;". Tour gen- erally lasts nine weeks and is ex- pected to run that long this year. "Arab'^ Folds Tents 'The Arab," produced by Schles singer & Toth, folded In midweek iri Altoona,'Pa., last week, with cast refusing to go on when they did not receive previous week's salary^ Cast had accepted jobs on com monwealth and with business bad on previous week's dates,: decided to 1 vamp. The show had been aimed at ■ "a" XeAv^TorkTioUgg'TIGxrw^ck^^^^ Another K-O Stock Des Moines, la., Dec. 17. Ben Ketchum and Arthur Ober- fF'lder will send a stock company in here starting with the holidays. Managers .operate a stock in Kah .sas City, Denver, and have another somewhere In this sector. They've hpfn promoting stock troupes for some time. "Prop Gun" Slays Seattle, Dec. 17. Mistaking a loaded revolver for the prop gun to be used in an amateur performance, Gerald Haughan shot and killed Walter Haley, another member of the Llgourlan Players. Shooting occurred during re- hea,rsal In. St. Alphonus Parish. A city official who was to have supr plied an unloaded revolver had left his own gun on a table during re- hearsal. IQNG BEACH STOCK TEY Los Angeles, Dec. 17. Earl Moore, is lining up a stock Lo go Into the Mission theatre. Long Beacli. He formeiiy put on stock at the W^lgwam and the Plaza, Oals- land. Charles King had stock In the Mi.ssicn la.^it year, then moved Into the Capitol. He withdrew a few weeks ago. The company ran on momentum t^wo -wefks,=the-"GapItol since dark. White's New Musical; "Scandals" on Road Early George White will start rehearsals on "Ace Up," a new musical next week. Its sobre Is by De Sylva,, Brown and Henderson, the books' being by jack McGowan and \Vhite. The production Is due to succeed White's "Scandals" at the Apollo, New Ybrk, F6h. 15. This will give "Scandals" a shorter engagement than anticipated. The agency buy extends for a 32-week period, should White insist on it. •Scandals" will hit the road long before that time expires. Reported engaged for the new White musical are Irene Delroy, who recently withdrew from "Fol- 1 -^w Thru" to Join "Top Speed" (due In next week), and Bert Lahr, featured In "Hold Everything." which was called In from the road last week. Another White show feature will be Alfred Gobdman's orchestra, to be used both in the pit and on the stage. Stocks Movia On William AValsh has closed In Des Moines and shifts to the Brandels Omaha, Dec. 30. The Kelly Players are ILsted to open Dec. 30 In Reading, Pa- Charles Ward, for some time with the Mrykli^-IJardr-r stock, Is with the kcily outfit as director. Warner-Rork's Mayan Los Angeles, Dec. 17. Franklyn Warner and Sam Rork with two associates have purchased the Mayan theatre on Hill, near 11th street, adjoining the Belasco, from N. W. Stowell for $810,000. With Edward Mack of New York and Edward Doherty, local attor- ney, the duO are preparing for pro- duction an operetta, "Oh, Susanna,*' opening Decr23. NBC TENOE IN LEGIT ' Chicago, Dec. 17. From legit to radio, Chauncey Parsons, staff tenor With NBC here, has replaced Half red Young with "Night in Venice" at the Grand, Parsons continues his broadcast- ing for the present. He is unde- cided whether to go on the road with""the ^^howv^"^^^^^"^^'^- ^^^^^^^^^^ If You Don't A(ivertise in You Don't Advertise