Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-12-21
MAKING SHOW BILLS.
Something Abuut the Posters Which
Delight Stage People.
THEY COST MILLIONS EACH YEAR.
How the Artists Dream Of Tragic Situa-
tion is Realized.
A GRAVEYARD OF COLD, COLD STONES


cry year" remarked Mr.. W. j. Tilton, OF
the Central Litho-Engraving Company.
"And the more snowy and expensive the
more of it is used. 1t now costs every
theatrical company on the road from $50 to
5000 per week for printing alone. A glance
at the magnificent stands of bills and at the
window Autographs will explain where the
money goes.
"Yes, this printing in many cases, as you
say, is the most successful part of the dra-
matte production. But, anyhow, no man
ager can hope to succeed these days without
thorough bill work along with the other
means OF advertising. So far from attempt
ing it they vie with each other in getting up
the best printing that can be had for money
and in the most profuse use of the material.
The expenditure per week mentioned runs
throughout the dramatic season-about 30
weeks. AS will be at once seen. it forms in
the aggregate one of the principal items of
expense in bringing out . new play, or even
running an old one.
OVER A MILLION IN BILLS.
"Now, let us assume that there are some
800 companies playing through the season.
merely rough estImate-and, taking the
lowest weekly expenditure for printing as
basis, we have from the S4 500 each for the
80 weeks the grand total OF 81 $50, 900. That
looks like big pile of money to put out in
paper and ink in a single line Of advertis-
ing, doesn't it?" And, mind you, it is only
for paper and ink-it does not express the
rental of billboards of windows and fences,
and the paste and the labor OF bill posters.
''This stvle of lithographic work in the
theatrical business has really come in with
in the last Is years, though color printing
was used in a small way somewhat earlier.
1t is part of the combination system and
has grown up with it. First came the small
black portraits for window work, which
were used some 35 years ago. These were
printed from stone by means of hand
presses. They were followed later by tint
ing the black, and were soon enlarged to the
22x2S size-still for windows, and for COM
paratively limited use.
STEAM AND STONE CONFINED.
mo; the highly-colored circus posters
were from wood. With the application of
steam power to stone work the lithograph Of
to-day was made possible. think it was
about IS years ago. Then colors began to
stare amusement goers in the face. The
paper then assumed the standard size of
28x42. This paper had to be made expressly
for lithographic work and of highly calen-
dared surface. This printing was still con-
fined to window work, but 1t wasn't long
before the three-sheet poster made Its ap-
pearance.
'The extent to which this condition -four
ished may be gathered from the construc-
tion of bilIboards, which for a long time
provided only for the standard tbree-sheet.
The stands began to come in about eight
years ago, and ran almost Immediately from
| 9 to 80 sheets. Nearly all prominent COM
panies now use stands. New York COM
panies usually put out locally from 80 to 40
stands per week. Many of these stands are
billed over and over again, SO as to preserve
their attractive freshness.
GOOD EXECUTION REQUIRED.
''This enormous expenditure of money
for show printing brought with it the de-
mand for a higher class of work. Look at
the splendid stands on upper Broadway and
in every direction. Not only novelty of de-
sign is striven for in every case by the
managers, but artistic execution is required.
A more or less accurate portrait of the star
is usually attained and the most striking
scenes of the particular play are brought
out with quite as mastery a touch rs is
ordinarily exhibited in the leading illus
trated periodicals Of the day. The very col
ors and particularities of costumes must be
caught. 1t takes an artist of more than
ordinary talent to lay off the original
sketches and dozens of other lithgraphic
artists to enlarge and perfect the work on
stone. The work must be done rapidly, for
these bills are furnished at 8 cents sheet"
Gould you give an estimate of the SUPER
fetal area covered by this printing!"
"Well, on the basis of total expenditure
you can figure from 8 cents a sheet about
16. OOO, 900 sheets. If they were all used they
would cover, at the rate of 28x42 inches
each, in round numbers, about 130 900, 900
square feet. Of course they are not all
used.
STONE FOR LITHoGRAPHING.
"The stone from which this work is pro-
duced is all imported. It comes from
Bavaria, Germany, and costs from II to 25
cents pound, according to the market
The stones are 29x43 and weigh from 400 to
600 pounds each, averaging about $50. Now,
as each sheet requires a stone and another
stone for each color a 32-sheet stand must
have 123 stones. There is S640 locked up in
that job alone in stone. Nor can they be
distributed like the type in job office, but
they must be set aside for future work. All
show lithographic houses carry from $75,-
600 to $50, 900 worth of stone thus locked
up and temporarily, at least, out of use.
''These stones are used over and over
again, however, until worn too thin to risk
job. They break very easily. To break
one with 500 drawing on it would add that
much to the loss of the stone. The drawings
are removed by grinding in a machine with
fine peculiar sand found only in France.
The standard colors are red, yellow and
blue, and from these we produce, with
black, 20 or more different tints."
A GLIMPSE OF THE PROCESS.
While the process of lithography is now
pretty familiar to most people, a hasty look
in upon this particular line of work amply
rewards the curious. Upon the top floor of
big building in Duane street is small
room cut out by rough, unpainted board
partition. Not wholly unpainted, either,
for the boards are ornamented here and
there with half executed designs, grotesque
figures, etc.-as il the artist had been turn
ing an idea over in his mind and had me-
chanlcally daubed it on the first thing he
met to see whether it was genuine or not,
onstratlon had gone his way leaving the
world out OF countenance.
Inside of this partition is the artist him.
self-a blonde young man, with large, soft
ewes and Boulanger whiskers-brush and
palette in hand, before a smudgy, every
day-in-the-week business easel. On this
easel is small picture, about half the size
of this newspaper page. 1t is picture and
vet not picture-for the spectacular stage
scene it is going to represent shows q foot
light beauty with but one leg, and a whole
row of ballet girls with no legs at all,
whereas the public at large entertain pref
udice in favor of two,