Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-08-24

BIJoU THEATER.......-.......C .Chas. A. Gardner
GRAND OPERA HOUSE. ''The Banker''
HARRIS EHEATER. 'Romani''
ACADEMY OF Mus Ic........S Shelter & Bakeley Co.
WORLDS MUSEUM. M.......-.........Curiositie Etc.
~
All the theaters in town will be open to-
morrow, and the season Of 1901 may then
be said TO have begun. There is every rea-
son to believe that the season will be fully
as good if not better in financial way for
the managers than the last, which was un-
doubtedly the most profitable Pittsburg has
ever seen. The prospects for the public are
good too, for more first-class attractions will
play here, and it still seems certainty that
the Duquesne Theater will be opened late in
the fall, and thus new theater of a high
character will be added to the established
houses.
a.
During the past week the Duquesne Thea
ter has been having high old time with
contractors, architects, lessees and building
inspectors at odds. Out of this last chapter
Of accidents Mr. David Henderson has
emerged with his theater in more solid
shape than ever. THE DISPATCH has told
the whole story OF the change in architects
and contractors. and there is very little
more to be said, unless it be that Mr.. Hen
derson deserves the sympathy of the public
ana It's applause in the plucky struggle he
mas made agasnst most untoward circum-
stances. On his return TO Chicago Mr..
Henderson was interviewed by Tribune
reporter. he said among other things:
| II Il nave had to delay the opening Of the tn ca
| yer Until the latter part OF October. The month
OF october was booked with large attractions
put am happy to say that the managers have
2een considerate and have arranged with all.
| There is no truth in 1t. The building inspect
| ors have been all over the ground four or five
times. I saw them no later than yesterday.
cannot understand who started the report
| stating that the opening OF the theater was in.
| definite, and giving the managers In the coun.
| try an impression that the house had to come
| down when it is not yet erected, unless it was
,Rspibed wsp b og the rival managers Of Pittsburg
ment in the way of the erection of house
| which will be on the ground floor constructed
Titta With all modern improvements. and will give
Flttsourg theater-goers q continuous line Of
nrst-class attractions, something that no thea
ter in Pittsburg has ever had.
The death of Manager Patrick Harris was a
surprise toihis friends here, although his decln-
| ing health has been no secret for long WHILE
But the report that he died by his own hand,
which followed, was even more astonishing and
| distressing. This report has been since denied
very empnatically, but unless the New YORK
| papers are utterly unreliable it must be re-
luctantly acknowledged that Mr. Harris COM
| mitted suicide. He was q man OF vigorous
character, but that like his powerful const-
| tuition, appears to have been undermined
| by the disease from which it was at first sup
| posed that he died. All the New York press
persists in the story that the unfortunate
| manager blew his brains out, and the following
| details are given by the Neto York Star:
why Harris committed suicide Coroner Ben
| net of Bayshore, who conducted the inquest
| could not determine. and the efforts made by
| the dead mans friends to keep the matter
quiet made it next to impossible to arrive at
| any reasonable conclusion. Great stress was
| laid however. on the fact that recent severe
| illness was the indirect cause of the act. On
| Tuesday he went for a long sail on Great South
| Bay. At that time he was in an apparently
| cheerful mood. During the evening he made
no complaint of any kind. and he slept well all
| night. On Wednesday morning he ate hearty
breakfast and seemed contented and happy.
and shot himself. The report of the pistol was
heard. and the clerk of the hotel rushed to the
place where Harris lay concealed. He found
him covered with blood and dying. .Aphysician
| was summoned, but he arrived too late to be of
| any assistance to the wounded man, who died
! within ten minutes after the shooting. 1t is
limited that there is a hidden cause for the rash
| act that will. probably never come to light, as
all his friends and relatives firm in their de-
| termination to keep their information 70 them
| selves. They had hoped to keep the fact of the
1
| to several persons to hush the matter up. As
| no physician could be found, however, to fur
nish a certificate of death, the matter had to be
| reported to Coroner Bennett, and that official
promptly made full investigation all the
facts"
A number of theatrical enterprises on the
road this season have Pittsburg brains and
| comedy, THE q. 8. Mall" as THE DISPATCH
has already indicated, starts out under the
| most favorable auspices this week. Mr.. A. j.
Shedden, who is managing the ~. 8. Mail"
passed through this city on Thursday last en-
route for st. Louis. He stopped here long
| enough to tell me that he had the brightest
hopes for his attraction, and the names
| of the actors engaged for the production
| certainly guaranteed a far funnier performance
| than 'The U. 8. Mail'' made here last year.
/ be opened by "The U. S. Mail" and, after fill
| ing few other one-mght stands, the piece will
be played for week in St. Louis. A long
| Western tour to the Pacific coast and back
| then awaits 1t. 1t will be seen at the Grand
Opera House in January.
Another pittsburg undertaking Of which
word has reached me is comedy company
backed by Messrs. Sturgeon and Ed II. Tener,
| of this city. Mr.. Sturgeon is son of Dr.
| Sturgeon, and MIR. Tener is brother of the
| ball player. They have gathered good COM
| pany together and have good route booked
|
1 wish them we'll
The success Of Francis Wilson in his new
comic opera, "The Merry King" at the Broad
| way Theater New York, is unmistakable, Mr.
Shedden and others who have seen it tell me.
| MI. Wilson Ia one Of the few comedians who
| have bettered themselves by striking out
| alone. The failure of the Templeton as she is
called in New York is also one of the accom-
plished facts of the first week in the season.
| So
Mr. Charles A. Gardner, who is favorably
known as a comedian and singer, comes to the
Biiou Theater this week. "Fatherland" Is the
name of the play in which he made a success
throughout the country last season. In this he
| appears as q Tyrolean guide, fellow of Infinite
| good humor, a singer and great love-maker.
4 number OF Mr.. Gardner's songs are said to
| be tuneful and catching, and we are
promised one Of peculiar sweetness calle
| Lilac" The supporting company num-
bers 20 actors, and is said to be good:
| will be the spinstube, or spinning bee, where q
| dozen old-fashioned spinning wheels arc at
work to q very lively, catchy air. In the saeng-
erfest scene, last act, genuine Tyrolean
| lately arrived from Salzburger. The four acts
| of "Fatherlandr afford chance for great
deal of local color in dress and scenery, and at
| tention has been paid to these points. "Fath.
erland' is said to be musical, entertaining and
| humorous
Monday night the Grand Opera House will
throw open Its doors and begin new season.
The FIRST attraction will be Mr.. George Edgar
/ in his new and powerful emotional play, "The
| Banker" The cast will be:- Walter Stanley,
Mr.. George Edgar; Colonel Maitland, Mr..
Bebus; Stephen Kish Mr.. Richard Genthony;
| GEORGE Siuinton, Mr.. ]. G. Kline; Ddr6u