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53-519: Following the lead of legitimate theater owners and vaudeville producers who organized to provide the public with quality acts and theaters with a steady stream of product, burlesque producers and theater managers in 1897 incorporated the Traveling Variety Managers of America (TVMA). The concept, credited to Gus Hill , was to mount approved burlesque shows that would progress from one theater to another in succession, as though around

106-517: A "temple to clean burlesque". Despite this, not long after opening the Columbia was criticized because women in flesh-colored tights had appeared on stage. The critic George Jean Nathan was also unimpressed, but for the opposite reason. Writing of another theater, he said, "Unlike the affectedly tony Columbia Theatre uptown, the Olympic remains true to first principles and devotes itself not, as in

159-704: A "wheel". Burlesque performers would be guaranteed months of work, and theaters would not have to create or compete for shows. The TVMA soon split into two wheels, the Empire in the west and the Columbia in the east. Sixteen managers and producers incorporated the Columbia Amusement Company on 12 July 1902 with Sam A. Scribner at the head and with principals William S. Campbell, William S. Drew, Gus Hill, John Herbert Mack, Harry Morris, L. Lawrence Weber and A. H. Woodhill. Headquartered in New York,

212-683: A heart attack in New York City on 20 April 1937. He was aged 79. Broadway shows produced by Hill included: Columbia Theatre (New York City) The Columbia Theatre was an American burlesque theater on Seventh Avenue at the north end of Times Square in Midtown Manhattan , New York City. Operated by the Columbia Amusement Company between 1910 and 1927, it specialized in "clean", family-oriented burlesque, similar to vaudeville. Many stars of

265-461: A lady to acknowledge her father in public. In the end McFadden's daughter marries McTavish's son and all ends well. The play was the basis for the silent film McFadden's Flats made in 1927 and another silent film with the same name made in 1935. The 1927 film featured Charlie Murray , Chester Conklin and Edna Murphy . The 1935 film, adapted by Casey Robinson , featured Walter C. Kelly , Andy Clyde and Richard Cromwell . It remained true to

318-532: A musical specialty; Annie Whitney in sentimental ballads and serio-comic songs; James Bingham, ventriloquist; Walter Reed, who gives a burlesque flying ring and trapeze performance; the Speck Brothers, comical midget boxers; and Montgomery and Stone, buck and wing dancers. For the 1896–97 season Hill added three burlesque companies and the cartoon theatrical McFadden's Row of Flats . Gus Hill's Ideal Minstrels first appeared in 1898. That year he produced

371-531: A rift between Scribner and Herk, who felt that Columbia was out of step with the times. A rival independent wheel, the Mutual Wheel , was formed and eventually headed by Herk. Mutual shows were less elaborate than Columbia's, but took inspiration from the modern risqué revues of Flo Ziegfeld and Earl Carroll . In 1923 Columbia was still the largest burlesque operation in the country with thirty-eight shows on its wheel. However, receipts were declining. During

424-668: A rival. In May 1915 the company arranged to transfer its No. 2 circuit, which had forty theaters and thirty-four touring companies, to a new corporation called the American Burlesque Association. Gus Hill was named president of the new entity. Hill funded a number of African American reviews. One of these was Gus Hill's Smart Set Company , which starred performers such as Billy McClain , Ernest Hogan , Tom McIntosh and Sherman H. Dudley . The troupe staged vaudeville-style shows with comedy sketches, songs, dances and specialty acts. Gus Hill's Smart Set put on

477-747: A sensation. Salem Tutt Whitney joined the Smart Set Company in 1905. In 1909 he and J. Homer Tutt organized the Whitney Musical Comedy Company, which toured under Hill's management as the Southern Smart Set Company . Hill ventured into film production with the Nonpareil Feature Film Company in 1914. The first film released was the pseudo-documentary The Line Up at Police Headquarters . Hill announced plans to make

530-527: A series called McFadden's Row of Flats in the New York Journal in 1896. Gus Hill's McFadden's Row of Flats opened in London on 22 October 1896. The play was a broad comedy revolving around interactions between Dan McFadden and Sandy McTavish, stereotypes of the witty Irishman and the tight-fisted Scot. Another theme is McFadden's daughter, who is sent to finishing school and becomes too much of

583-546: A series of melodramas written by Owen Davis . The next year he introduced the Royal Lilliputians , a freak show. He managed to poach Billy Reeves from Fred Karno 's show to appear in his own Around the Clock vaudeville company. Eddie Cantor also played in his vaudeville shows. Gus Hill's Aggregation and Gus Hill's Stars were burlesque shows, but included variety acts and were cleaner than others. Gus Hill

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636-462: A series of single-reel Happy Hooligan episodes, but none appeared. Nonpareil released a version of Alice in Wonderland , starring Viola Savoy . The company appears to have then quietly folded. A "cartoon theatrical" is a live theater performance based on a comic strip or cartoon. More than two hundred cartoon theatricals were produced between 1896 and 1927, about fifty of them original and

689-514: A venue for viewing premium 70mm films with reserved seating. In 1976 the theater was split into three separate and very narrow cinemas, and was known as the Embassy 2-3-4 Theatre until 1997, and then the Embassy 1-2-3 Theatre until finally closing in the early 2000s. In 2007 the theater was converted into a restaurant. By May 2013 this had also closed. The theater had been completely gutted so the site could be cleared. A skyscraper at 20 Times Square

742-536: The Lafayette Theatre , New York. A reviewer in Billboard said :There is no reason why this show should not furnish a very complete evening's entertainment for either colored or white audiences. In the twenty-three song numbers and specialties one is certain to find several that will tickle any fancy. The chorus is fast and the wardrobe gorgeous." Hill first staged Happy Hooligan in the early 1900s, and

795-455: The "great Leonzo Brothers and their celebrated dog, Tiger." He would travel around the country challenging local jugglers to compete. On his first appearance he would let the local win. He would challenge them to a repeat match when he returned, ensuring a full house, and would then defeat the local. He gained the title of "Champion Clubman of the World". There was some sharp practice involved, but

848-460: The 1910 Follies . The theater's managers, Cliff Gordon and Robert North , decided to put on an adaptation of The Merry Whirl for the summer of 1911. The show had been on the road for several months. The Broadway version had "sixteen chorus girls, eight 'ponies' and four 'show' girls, also six chorus men to give them strength." All wore elaborate costumes. Alexander's Ragtime Band by Irving Berlin , sung by James C. Morton and Frank F. Moore,

901-644: The 1925 season Scribner grudgingly authorized chorus girls, who had worn tights for over twenty years, to perform barelegged. More significantly, he permitted the show "Powder Puff Revue" to feature a tableaux of bare-breasted women similar to those in the revues of Ziegfeld and Earl Carroll. By the mid-1920s cinemas were providing shows that combined film and live entertainment with ticket prices lower than any burlesque show. Columbia continued to lose customers to Mutual, more explicit stock burlesque, and other types of entertainment. Performers and theaters began deserting Columbia and switched to Mutual. Mutual also stumbled in

954-401: The American Burlesque Association. He also staged drama and musical comedies. He launched a highly popular series of "cartoon theatricals", musical comedies based on comic strips or cartoons. At one time he was running fourteen different shows. Gus Hill was born Gustave Metz in New York City on 22 February 1858. His parents, Gustave Metz and Martha E. Baecht Metz, were German immigrants. Gus was

1007-534: The Arts." There were two balconies, as was common with theaters designed by McElfatrick. The theater was one of the first to have a ventilation system that partially cleaned the air of tobacco smoke. The Columbia Amusement Company opened the Columbia Theatre on January 10, 1910. The opening was well publicized and was attended by various dignitaries. The opening was also attended by actors and managers from

1060-574: The Burlesque Club held its annual benefit at the Columbia Theatre, again featuring the Tennessee Ten. Jimmie Cooper's Revue, with white and colored casts, opened at the Columbia on December 10, 1923. The white players performed in part 1, and the colored players in part 2. A reviewer said of the second part, "We have never seen anything as yet in burlesque to equal the act of these performers, individually or collectively. Furthermore, it

1113-514: The Columbia circuit in 1922–23: American Girl; Beauty Revue; Big Jamboree; Bon Tons; Bowery Burlesquers; Broadway Brevities; Broadway Flappers; Bubble Bubble; Chuckles of 1922; Frank Finney; Flashlights of 1923; Follies of the Day; Folly Town; Giggles; Greenwich Village Revue; Hello Good Times; Sam Howe; Keep Smiling; Knick Knacks; Let’s Go; Maids of America; Dave Marion; Mimic World; Radio Girls; Al Reeves ; Sam Sidman ; Social Maids; Step On It; Talk of

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1166-978: The Columbia circuit included theaters in large cities east of the Missouri and north of the Ohio, such as Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, New York, Pittsburgh, and Cleveland, as well as Toronto and Boston. Since the theaters were in the east, the Columbia Wheel was also known as the Eastern Wheel. The Columbia organizers aimed to provide affordable shows that were acceptable to women as well as men. They advertised "clean" or "refined" burlesque. Shows had multi-act programs that included comedians, skits and variety acts and chorus girls. In August 1905 Will Rogers signed with Columbia for five one-week shows in Brooklyn, New York, Buffalo, Cleveland and Pittsburgh. In 1908

1219-453: The Columbia on December 9, 1918. In 1920 James E. Cooper produced Folly Town , a burlesque show that was one of the first racially integrated productions in New York. A clean burlesque, it featured the colored Tennessee Ten with Florence Mills and the comedians Bert Lahr and Jack Haley . It cost over $ 20,000 to produce, a huge amount for that period, and opened at the Columbia Theatre. The show received enthusiastic reviews. In June 1920

1272-633: The Progressive wheel and the subsidiary circuit was spun off as the American Wheel, keeping Columbia's brand clean. Gus Hill was named president of the new entity and drove competitors out of business. While tastes were changing after World War I, Scribner still insisted on keeping Columbia shows comparatively clean. Although the American Wheel offered cooch dancers and runways, Columbia avoided runways until its final years. Scribner, who banned smoking in Columbia circuit theaters, also tried to ban

1325-472: The Town; Temptations of 1922; Town Scandals; Varieties of 1922; Billy Watson ; Sliding Billy Watson; Mollie Williams ; Wine, Women and Song; and Youthful Follies. Some titles were used year after year, although with different casts and content, while others changed titles but kept the same cast. Billy Watson and Sliding Billy Watson were two different performers. The American Wheel was dissolved in 1922 due to

1378-400: The case of the Columbia, to fifth-rate imitations of third-rate Broadway music shows, but to pure, unadulterated and heart-warming old knock 'em down and drag 'em out burlesque..." The musical comedy College Girl was staged at the Columbia in 1910. Fanny Brice was one of the stars, and was noticed by Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr. He managed to get her freed of her contract so she could appear in

1431-485: The combined wheel decided to revive clean burlesque in 1930–31. The experiment failed, and the circuit closed. Citations Sources Gus Hill Gus Hill (born Gustave Metz ; 22 February 1858 – 20 April 1937) was an American vaudeville performer who juggled Indian clubs . He later became a burlesque and vaudeville entrepreneur. Hill was one of the founders of the Columbia Amusement Company , an association of burlesque shows and theaters, and became president of

1484-442: The comedians from using double entendres, but with less success. A 1922 report said "the companies will come to town on the same day each week to offer what is declared to be comedies with music, musical shows with chorus girls or whatever may best describe clean, wholesome offerings that should not be confused with "burlesque" as it was presented when Dad was a young chap." During the 1922–23 season, Columbia shows were routed through

1537-666: The company acquired the Murray Hill Theatre on Lexington Avenue . Although the wheel system made the industry more stable, the shows became standardized and repetitive. New costumes and acts were expensive, and when performers became better known they often left burlesque for the legitimate theater. Performers who worked in Columbia shows included Bert Lahr , Rose Sydell , Sophie Tucker , Fanny Brice , Leon Errol , Jean Bedini, and Bobby Clark and Paul McCullough. Many of them graduated to musical comedy or Broadway as soon as they could. But as long as audiences came to see

1590-993: The following theaters (alphabetically by city): Palace, Baltimore; Casino, Boston; Gayety, Boston; Miner’s, The Bronx; Casino, Brooklyn; Empire, Brooklyn; Gayety, Buffalo; Columbia, Chicago; Englewood, Chicago; Star & Garter, Chicago; Olympic, Cincinnati; Colonial, Cleveland; Lyric, Dayton; Gayety, Detroit; Majestic, Jersey City; Gayety, Kansas City; Gayety, Louisville; Gayety, Milwaukee; Gayety, Minneapolis; Gayety, Montreal; Miner’s, Newark; Cohen’s, Newburgh; Columbia, New York City ; Hurtig & Seamon’s 125th Street , New York City; Gayety, Omaha; Orpheum, Paterson; Casino, Philadelphia; Gayety, Pittsburgh ; Cohen’s, Poughkeepsie; Empire, Providence; Gayety, Rochester; Lyceum, Scranton; Gayety, St. Louis; Empire, Toledo; Empire, Toronto; Colonial, Utica; Gayety, Washington D.C.; Grand, Worcester. Shows were not routed in this order and theaters were subject to change each season. The vast majority of these theaters were demolished. The following shows were on

1643-554: The girls burlesque remained profitable. The Star and Garter opened in Chicago in 1908, providing "Clean Entertainment for Self-Respecting People". On 10 January 1910 the Columbia Amusement Company opened its flagship Columbia Theatre , "Home of Burlesque De Luxe", at Broadway and 47th Street in Manhattan. It was housed in the lower three floors of the Columbia Amusement Company's building. The theater, owned and operated by Columbia,

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1696-606: The late 1920s, and merged with Columbia in 1927 to form the United Burlesque Association, with Herk as president and Scribner as the chairman of the board. The new organization, comprising 44 theaters, was still referred to as Mutual, and soon reverted to that name. By the 1927–28 season the combined circuit was struggling financially and the following year the Great Depression proved fatal. With smaller, cheaper stock burlesque theaters popping up,

1749-531: The legitimate theater or of films were discovered at the Columbia. With loss of audiences to cinema and stock burlesque , the owners began to offer slightly more risqué material from 1925. The theater was closed in 1927, renovated and reopened in 1930 as a cinema called the Mayfair Theatre . It went through various subsequent changes and was later renamed the DeMille Theatre . Nothing is left of

1802-535: The musicians and the stage hands had made producing more and more unprofitable. By the 1927–28 season the Columbia Burlesque Circuit was struggling financially. This was the last season where cartoon theatricals were a significant part of the burlesque shows. Hill produced Gus Hill's Midgets in 1929, marking the end of his career as a producer. He continued to perform as a club swinger in charitable events and nostalgia shows. Gus Hill died of

1855-471: The oldest of three surviving boys. His father was the owner of a sawmill and furniture factory. Gus Hill was an amateur athlete. He became a wrestler and then a juggler with Indian clubs. He took the name "Hill" from a sporting resort at Broadway and Crosby Street in Manhattan called Harry Hill's. On 16 June 1876, when Hill was eighteen, he was listed as a club swinger on a bill for a vaudeville show at Tony Pastor 's theater in New York. The show featured

1908-729: The others derivative. Gus Hill was involved in over half of them. In the 1890s Hill started producing a vaudeville act that was based on New York Sunday World's cartoon, The Yellow Kid . He later added characters from other cartoons such as Mutt and Jeff and the Happy Hooligan . He was also responsible for Alphonse and Gaston and Bringing Up Father among others. Most of the theatricals were musical comedies. Hill produced these "cartoon theatricals", or musicals based on comic strips, into 1920s. The theatricals would first play in legitimate road shows, then move to Hill's burlesque franchises. The Yellow Kid cartoon featured

1961-517: The play's vaudeville origins and received friendly reviews. Hill's Mutt and Jeff , and sequels such as Mutt and Jeff in Panama (1913–14) and Mutt and Jeff in College (1915–16), ran from the 1910–11 season through to the 1927–28 season, and at one time had six companies playing the show in different places. In 1922 Hill staged a version of Mutt and Jeff performed by Conoly's Colored Comedians at

2014-512: The theater. What would be called the "Home of Burlesque De Luxe" was built on the northeast corner of Seventh Avenue and 47th Street in Manhattan. A photograph from May 1909 before construction began shows the site was occupied by typical four- and five-story brownstone buildings. Construction by the Thompson–Starrett Co. took seven months from the start of demolition to completion of the job. The building had ten stories above ground and

2067-517: The title was useful in his variety act billings. Gus Hill soon moved into show business management, although he continued to perform for ten years or more. Hill produced Gus Hill's Mammoth Novelty Company in the 1885–86 season, and performed in the show with his Indian clubs. He produced Gus Hill's World of Novelties in the 1886–87 season, featuring the new performers Joe Weber and Lew Fields . Hill produced musical comedies priced low for unsophisticated audiences far from Broadway . The scenery

2120-529: The touring show The Black Politician , a musical comedy, in 1904–08. Music and lyrics were by James Reese Europe and Cecil Mack . It starred Jim Burris, Tom Logan and Irvin Allen. At this time Hill was running fourteen different shows. He had a mule which had appeared in McFadden Flats , and then was moved to other revues without success. Hill gave the mule to Dudley, who brought it on stage and created

2173-544: The travel arrangements. Typically the show moved to a new city by train on a Monday morning, and were put up at a boarding house for performers at their destination. Hill owned several of these boarding houses, as did other variety company owners. The cast would share rooms, and would be given their meals at the boarding house. This kept expenses down, but conditions were acceptable for the performers. Hill signed up David C. Montgomery & Fred Stone in May 1896. By this time he

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2226-568: The two wheels competed directly. In 1913 the two wheels were consolidated into the Columbia Wheel, and Scribner and Herk put on fairly clean shows. Another independent wheel, the Progressive, filled the void left by the Empire Wheel. In 1914 Columbia launched its "No.2" circuit to compete with the cheaper shows offered by the Progressive Wheel and local stock burlesque companies. The following year, Columbia's No.2 circuit absorbed

2279-421: The worlds of vaudeville and legitimate theater. The Columbia Circuit was a leader in offering clean burlesque, family-style entertainment that resembled vaudeville. The main difference was that burlesque shows had an overall theme, a carry-over from the old minstrel show format, while vaudeville was a series of unconnected individual acts. The Columbia Theatre became the circuit's flagship, and has been called

2332-437: Was 39 metres (128 ft) high. It held the headquarters of the Columbia Amusement Company, or Columbia Circuit, one of the largest of the burlesque circuits. The theater was designed by William H. McElfatrick and had a capacity of 1,385. It occupied the ground floors of the new office building. The decor was a form of Beaux Arts . There was a mural painted by Arthur Thomas above the proscenium arch called "The Goddesses of

2385-543: Was another production with an African-American cast that was popular with white audiences. By the mid-1920s cinemas were providing shows that combined film and live entertainment with ticket prices lower than any burlesque show. In the 1925 season Columbia's president, Sam A. Scribner , authorized the removal of tights and display of tableaux of bare-breasted women. Columbia continued to lose customers to other types of entertainment and to more explicit stock burlesque theaters. The Columbia Theatre closed in 1927. The theater

2438-403: Was designed by William H. McElfatrick and had a capacity of 1,385. The theater was The opening of the theatre was well publicized and was attended by various dignitaries. Under Scribner's leadership, Columbia put on respectable shows. Meanwhile, the Empire Wheel, headed by Isidore Herk , pushed the legal limits. Columbia responded by sometimes lowering its standards, especially in cities where

2491-446: Was designed to fold up into specially designed trunks to save space. Hill was known for cost-cutting, using old scenery and costumes, and employing performers who could not demand high wages since they were not yet known, or were past their peak. In 1892 Hill added a second company, Gus Hill's New York Vaudeville Stars . Hill would put on shows from Monday to Saturday each week, including Wednesday and Saturday matinees. Hill made all

2544-496: Was one of sixteen producers who incorporated the Columbia Amusement Company on 12 July 1902. With the "Columbia Wheel" a series of companies followed each other round a circuit of theaters, a concept for which he claimed the credit. Hill produced three burlesque shows each season for Columbia until the early 1910s, when he leased his franchise to other producers so he could devote more time to Mutt and Jeff . The Columbia Wheel came to operate two large burlesque circuits after buying

2597-532: Was one of the richest of the variety show promoters. A reviewer described Hill's show at the Haymarket Theater in Chicago in 1896: The program for the week contains several features that are popular with lovers of vaudeville. It includes Fred Hallen and Molly Fuller, who appear in a singing sketch in which they introduce some novel and entertaining features; the American Macs; Frank Latona in

2650-591: Was sold to Walter Reade in 1928 for conversion into a cinema. The architect Thomas W. Lamb replaced the two original balconies with a single balcony, and renovated the auditorium in Art Deco style. In October 1930 the cinema opened as the Mayfair Theatre, operated by RKO Pictures . Brandt Theatres was running the theater by 1950. In the early 1960s it was renamed the DeMille Theatre, and became

2703-454: Was still staging a version of that show in the 1923–24 season. Bringing up Father ran from 1913–14 to 1932–33, with up to three companies at one time. In April 1921 Hill spoke as president of the 110-member Touring Managers' Association, which employed about 6,000 actors. He said his group would strongly oppose the Actors' Equity Association . He said the increasing exactions of the actors,

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2756-571: Was the best dressed colored act that we have seen on any stage. Each and every turn was well applauded. Will Rogers performed at the theater in the Red Pepper Review , a tribute to the Columbia Burlesque Circuit, on January 8, 1925. An African-American troupe opened at the Columbia in July 1925, including a jazz band featuring the clarinetist Sidney Bechet . Other players were Jerome Don Pasquall and Wellman Braud . Lucky Sambo (1925)

2809-481: Was the hit song of the show. Will Rogers appeared at the theater, performing his rope tricks. Joe E. Brown , a comedian, was playing in the Columbia Theatre in 1918 when he was spotted by Henry Cort and offered a part in the successful Broadway show Listen, Lester . This launched Brown's career on the legitimate stage. Clark and McCullough , former vaudeville players, opened as burlesque stars in Puss Puss at

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