Variety (Jun 1930)

66 VARIETY EDIT ORI A L Wednesday, June 4, 1930 Inside Stuff—Vaude Inside Stuff—Pictures Trade Mark Refflstered rubllhhrd Weekly bT VARIETY, Inc. SIme Silverman- President tE4 West 46th Street New York Cltj Annual. SUBSCRIPTION: ... ...JIO . Foreign..^.♦11 Slnple Copies. .25 Centa VOL. XCIX. No. 8 50 YEARS AGO (From Clipper) The Troy Club of the baseball league was threatened with ex-, pulsion for having refused to stay over in Providence and play post- poned games, and the other clubs of the league were bidding for the, Troy players. Failure to play passed, games was the source of many dis-; putes in the league. "Indisputation" in the part of a' baseball player seems to havs been a minor offense. Instance is cited of a player being fined $50 for iuch an; infraction. Joe Goss and Paddy Ryai, con-, tenders for the Anierican heavy-, weight title of ^ America, met and; in Buffalo started for Canadian ter-j ritory for the match, but disagvee-^ ments about terms came up aiid the match was called off the time being. New deal was made to hold, the fight in West Virginia where there was no law against prize ring battles. How Jack Loeb retained the position as vaudeville booker for Fox- after the recent change in the Eox companies' administration is said: to have been through Mike Marco's regard for Loeb. The Fox heads'- made a search for a chief booker but evidently .didn't locate one deemed suitable. . That was when it was decided Mike Marco of Fanchon & Marco should become tlie Fox booking :oflace's general manager, under Harry Arthur as the Fox theatre operator., j Marco's regard for Loeb arose fcom:Loeb's attention to the P. & M. ■Id.ea". (F6x) units when, they first came. east.. It looks aa though Marco saw a chance to reciprocate and did so with Loeb's retention. Just previously to that also, Loeb had been panning William Fox pretty plenty and tough to the Sheehan faction/ then arrayed against Wm. Fox. Many who heard of the Loeb panning were quite surprised, for Loeb had become a very wealthy man while .with Bill Fox.. Loeb first gaihed Mr. Fox's good will by borrowing $250,000 from his father and turning it over to Fox. That was several years ago. It's only a couple of weeks since that Loeb boasted he has over $2,000,000.in cash on hand. Keen rivalry between tug boats on the Oh:cago River. The C W.: Gardener of Buffalo reigned I- r a time, but a local boat, the L. E. Johnson, laid claim to the. honor aa the strongest, and amid great local excitement the test was held, with the local boat winning. Boats were even, tied stern to stern and the engines started. There was some dispute over the terms of a trotting race between. Maud S. and Santa Claus, arid to cut it short the oWnev of Santa, Claus offerisd to make'lt a series ofj '20'races a!t $5,000 a ratfe. ' ' The Westchester Pblo club openeii a new field at n2th'Street and 6tW (Lenox) Avenue. Native New Tork crs of a somewhat later date thai!, 1880, remember when the neighbor-- hood hereabouts, was ■ unde.velop^d and for several years served as the stopping place of the Barnum & Bailey circus playing ynder canvas Clipper sets forth the details ofl an open bicycle meet in England, at which distance contests brought OTit such speed records as 10 miles in 30 minutes and 30 seconds (high wheels were used—almost immedl ately upon the introduction of the "safety" type of bicycle, racing time was about cut In half). 15 YEARS AGO (From Variety and- CZi;)per.) The war was playing havoc .ivitfi the English theatre, even the relap tively stable music hall attendance being sadly" reduded. • A strong report, to the effect that R-K-O would shortly adopt in five of their houses the same policy which Is now In full force at their Proctor's 125th street, that of a permanent stage band and a group of chorus girls, was squelched by the curt remark of Joe Plunkett when asked for a verification of the report. All Mr. Plunkett had to say about It i.s "We're slill in the vaudeville business." Though announced George Godfrey might be assigned to another R-K-O department, after resigning from Its booking office, it is now reported Godfrey is altogether out of R-K-O. That report arose by a story Godfrey was about to enter the Fox vaude booking office, through Jack Loeb with whom Godfrey was extraordihaylljr friendly while with K-K-O. Jack Loeb, of the Fox booking office, denied he had engaged Godfrey, although Loeb is now reported to refer to Godfrey as his former "best friend in the R-K-O booking oflice." Several inside stories of .the extremely clo.se relations between the Godfrey and Loeb booking offices were not printed, ad the impression had started to spread, easily inspired under the.Telatip^8hip of Charllej Freeiiiarf to the publisher of Variety (bro.thers-in-Iaw on the level and; otherwise) that Variety was panhirig Godfrey aind favoHne Freeman.;" Better informed vaudevillians understood; the situation well enough to. require no' more explanation' than the printed stories. Had Variety's publisher wished to have panned; iGodfrey, that could hayc been done, before Godfrey's first aiSpointrnent to R-K-O as Godfrey quite well knows.. Hays headquarters admits itself in a quandary. Church attacks atui the activities of women's -clubs have brought It about, especially thosa statements In "elder" publications. The old fashion way of shushing into an unimportant state, with the dignity of silence, "rebukes, cracks," etc.. of the functions of the body, is beginning to be appreciated by said body. This, especially slncfe modernism, in the form of resorting to the mimeo- graph machine 6very time an attack has been made, as has been the Hays practice of late. "If you don t answer them they holler and if you do answer Hum they stlU holler. What can we do?" That straight from one Haysite who evidence's all indications of pas:,- ing the buck of "community solution" to the industry itself. Dally newspapers are no longer "falling" for retorts. ThCfHay.s onke makes note of the same, another Haysite observing: VThey will publish ahy attack but are iretting tougher and tou.uher in using anything in rebuttal." ■ The Inside on Adolphe Osso's i-esignation as Paramount Publix's French distribution head, after being with ^he- company for nine years, is. that he warited to be Mr. Paramount in France andjcotuldn't conform to Amer- ican direction. Adolph Zukor had ideas of showing English dialog, film.s In their original American versions in Paris, -figuring there, was suf- ficiently large perniahent English-speaking colony in all capital^, of Europe, hut Osso, thinking only in the-FFenchr way, couldn't see.it, i Last ■ireek, Pierre' Srauiiberger, independ-ent-French producer-dietrib, :did that very thirig with the Pantheon, a' cinema In the Quartler-Latin I on the'Left Banfc.'wherfe the Sorbpnne rStudents alone have : since..t^.v,!- denced the I'dea a 'fcllck.' Curiously rcnough 'Braunberger opened his.poHcy with Pai-'s "Love Parade" (Chevalier) in the original- focm. As tha,t talker was shown at the Paramount! Paris,-. It was a badly tiutchered and mutila.ted print, with French titles substituted -fof the English dialog .and only a song- or tWo 'Iri native French, with the result it made one wonder why Broadway had g'bne nuts over this film. An ousted employee of the R-K-O booking office resented his recent dismissal with a display of some anger and more contempt. He hiad been held In the booking office under two regimes and each time apparently ensnared a sponsor who wouldn't believe. The day after the employee was fired, an act came into the booking office saying it should either be given the engagement promised or the $25,0 back it . had "loaned" the dismissed employee.. Evidence of the $250 "loan" was in the form of a demand. note given to the act. The employee had taken the act out to lunch one day, promised, him R-K-O dates in the east and tlien the touch. .That same fellow has been doing the same thing, for the past five ^fears while in the Keith office,, but. still stuck there. It's doubtful if he 'wer^ siilltting with anyo^* in the office. Just got away with it. Not always at lunch either: Often going backstage end just-.taking it, raw. The act that went for the $250 fad one-half week for an opening in New York and hadn't played an R-fK-O date since. \ i . - If act» five years ago had done What the $250 act did. the other day, Uie kind of leeBhes -that have infested looking-offices, .creating bad names' for the.'office and -Its-bookers, wpuldn't- have remained. To make a! squawk like that Isn't squealing;- it's for the protection of the booking office! affected, its hookers and othfer acts who may be nailed the' same way, for that-$250 was plain thieveiT- That's why a small time crook can go along so long and strut his dough • stuff, U\-ing. beyond his means' on what he can steal from acts c I promises never kept—because', no one wants to expose him, maybe not because they don't want to, but in fear of his possible influence in the booking, office. There's no cheap grifter in New York wha can in- fluence any booking office, whether he's working in it or not. Another R-K-O man, fired some: time ago, remarked as he was handed his notice: "This is okay. I expected it long ago." Harry Kelly's dog "Lizzie" has passed out, after standing for Harry 17 years. Kelly says it happened at his 20-acre place. Fish Cove at Southampton, L. I. Lizzie just wabbled out into the woods and diedi Kelly's place has several summer homes.' He used one and rents out the others. The talker emphasis on sophisticated dialog is said to have had an effect on kid patronage throughout the country.. Except for occasional comedies and the comparatively, rare outdoor talkers, short comedies, the small boy doesn't find pictures so fascinating as in the silent but nio.re he-man days. Reports from exhibitors to this effect influenced Paramount to schedule three stories this season with juvenile heroes—"Tom Sawyer," "Huckle- berry. Finn" and ''Skippy." Incidentally, the right type for Skippy has not yet been found. Studio officials are not clear on what he should be. Holding back some of the better and more recent talker product from France In a desire to unload the old stuff is not a bright Idea as that's giving the French locals too many good opportunities to impress with their own native dialog stuff. French picture people who go over to London periodically and see the latest American tallcer product wonder why Warmer wants to give a "Paris" (Eordoni) on France, and hold back "Gold Diggers of Broad- way," regarded as a natural because of .the production flash ideas. The "Hollywood Melodies" hour, sustaining on the Columbia network oyer a number of w.eeks, jviil be called off, according to Paramount,, un- less Warners, to use the expression of an executive, "quits chise|ing credit for the entire program." , . . , . Warners are not buying into Columbia; wiiioh..Paramount partly , con- trols, nor are they .m^tjoring ip.th6 M^lodie: series.- .-_. ... , Par, execs,, who ma,ke these declarations, assert that.,tjiie Zukor coni- ■panyy Metro,. L'nivei''s.i.i .and -Warnfers. all; vUl subscribe ip th^ Inroad- casts- from Hollywood. - ,. , . -. - Day of color, for .short su;?;<.'CLo i-i tast approaching, .despite.'fncrc-;ise.t! cost of production and.printing-, showmen in .one a-nd .tvyo-reel producer quarters, say. Vitaphone is making a series of its .Varieties in color and from .-re- ports finding exhibitor reaction favorable, eyen tho.ugh higher re.ntals are demanded. Among tlie purposes the color shorts of Warner . Bros. Tiffany and others Who are making them is serving is. the dressing of shows where features are played in black and.white. Alex Gottlieb, in theatres division of Par-Publix, Is now getting on. •Publix Entertainment," fan throwaway for New York and Brook/yr. houses, formerly edited by Sam Pa'lmer. Latter is in charge of uni-: show publicity. Plans of Par-Publix for a national fan mag to .circulate over, entu-i- circuit, possibly at small cost to patron, still in abeyance. With the opening of the new Pintages -theatre on the West Coast asr a Fox house brought out the fact that Doc Howe, the F. & M. repre- sentative-in L. A.,- spent several weeks with Alexander Pantages in his jail cell working out the^ policy details. Howe,'now in New York on biz, reported Pantages' physical state as apparently splendid. Not long ago It was reported that Pan was in ,a ■bad way and bordered on a -complete collapse. '.- • .American railroads made some concession to the traveling show business in the form of granting a car for 30 Instead of 40 tickets, as was tlie first Intention. Increased mileage rate of 2'/4 cents a mile still ruled, causing many com- plaints. New York License Commissioner censored ;'The Ordeal" film, but the Life Photo Co., producer, won on appeal when the Supreme Court ruled that banning of the picture by the National Board of Review had no standing since the board had no legal authority but existed nierely by consent of the trade. 'Round the Square Down on Lafayette street,, near Canal, is a shoe shining street bo* with a sign on it saying, "Silk Hat Tony." Silk Hat Tony in. person stands outside the place wlien not shining shoes. He wears a silk hat, dark walking suit and carries a cane. When busy Tony sets only his cane aside, doing the shine with his silk hat on. While loafing outside, Tony lifts his hat to every passing car. The big film producers had gone overboard on contracting legitimate stars, one competing with another until all had gone to excess. B. A. Rolfe took charge as director of the New York Strand, succeeding S. A. Rothapfel, who had moved oyer to the new RIalto, which re- placed Hammerstein's Victoria. Frank TInney was injured playing polo on- Long Island. nose Coghlan, legit star, celebrat- ed her 50th anniversary on tlie stace. Forty-sixth street in the Times Square zone is to be widened four feet, two feet, to be lopped off the pavements on each side of the walks. Work of makin.g theatre canopys between 8th avenue and Broadway is well advanced. All the old stoops of brownstone houses remaining are being removed, the eliminations being the same as carried out .on the same block on 45th street last year. Times Square cabbies are squawking that biz "ain't what it used to he." No more CiiUs to the Bronx or Brooklyn from the b. f. who puts up a front before his g. f., say the cabbies. Now it's all short distance calls and they're lucky to get a call that nets them over a buck at a lime, so they say. "It seems," said one, "as though everybody's holding on ti,ght to what- ever money they've got. They use the subway now.instead of u cab. Even the young follows with their girl friends, from whom we formerly got the best breaks, are now traveling by subway. It's pretty lough to make a livln' by hackln' today. Radio Corporation and the Hays organization are,.using, the same pub- licity' bureau; That this departnient- handles only stpries of a politic nature is being commented upon within.the trade. The neutral position of Hays Is coming in for a certain amount ,of inside criticisrn. .So far, pobody has been .hurt and the regular publicity <?irectors for both organizations are drawing their salaries. ..... .. .. . Joe Brandt, of,Columbia Pictures, returnipg with the.M,issus,an(jl Jerry, Jr., on the"Europa,'.'.dubbed "Flight" In German..^^nd cu.r,rently .sliowing in Berlin, recorded on Tobis equipmept^.a.qd-, projQ.cted;. over Klang/ilm wiving. BrandVd awangements in CSermany, are^-with-.^uedfllm, fij.m renter, which is also a Jicensee Qf Tobis. .henc.e: P.ol.umbj<i.,product, is 'foijtunately situated for German .distribution.■ ..... .-J. . The many cheap and independent soundrreproducing eqiiipqients wired Into the lesser European picture houses are playing hav.oc with .sound- film prints. The cheaper equipments ai-e unusually-rough.qn prints. The foreign distribs find the prii^ting and i-epairing bills trebled, con- sidering that a .print.now lasts one-i third, that of a former silent release. Sam Rachman, in New York on a secret mission on behalf of Tobis. aa agent in the "I'obis-W.arner deal, received $225,000 as his bit for com- missions. The queerest mistake recorded in theatre construction Is laid to one of the big circuits with a couple of new theatres in upstate New York. In putting the roofs on the theatres the ceilings became mixed, with the result the architecti^ral motif of each is changed by a glance skyward. It is understood it's going to stay that way. Shorts production schedules are being seriously affected from report.s due to the acute scarcity of worthwhile material and especially comedy which is not being turned out fa.^st enough. The Warner Brooklyn studio Is supposed to schedule production three weeks ahead at all times but in understood lucky if getting near two weeks' through shortage of .'JcriptH. Joe (Bud) Williconibe, reporter attached to West Side Court ami who lives in the "City of Churches," has been granted several weeks leave .of absence, while he seeks a Senegambian youth, who .peddles song sheets on the Main Stem. . - "Bud" was taken for five big simoleona. "The "Harlem Moor" was a pl-lsoner in West Side Court for peddling song sheets; "Bud" needed his "fin" probably more than the Negro. But the latter had been fined $5 by Magistrate William C. Dodge. "If I could pot free for 10 minutes I would get that $3. Man .1 nui-: serve two days In jail," he confided to Williconibe. "Bud " turned lo \''^ associate and sought his advice. Latter explained it was a poor g uni-k. "I'll take? a chJince,"'declared "Cud/' ' It is now more than'' 15 days and the black boy has failed to •iri'S back Joe's fi.vo. "Bud" foufjht in the amateurs. "My motto is 'bring back your m.i'» ' he said. So "Burt " is combing the "Main Stem" for Negro Green