The herald., 1895-07-20
Great Success of "America''
During the Worlds Fair
ALDRICH AND "MY PARTNER"
A Summer Production of "Triby" Sold
for Fifteen Thousand Dollars
Of One and One-fiaIf Million Dollars
in Four Years

been put into the theatrical business than
has2 ever been taken out. The public
have been the great winners. The man
ayers and producers in the aggregate, OF
course, have been the losers. For all
that. there is seldom any difficulty In
raising money to produce plays or to
build theaters. The bait is too tempting.
There are always innumerable instances
to be brought up of quick fortunes that
have been made by plays.
A short time ago Mr.. "A. NJ. Palmer sold
the rights to a summer production of
Trilby. in Boston to Mr.. Brady for $15,-
600. That is one of the biggest produce
ton prices ever given. In view of that
fact it is interesting to look back over the
field of American dramatic productions
and see where the large amounts of
money have been made. Uncle Tom s
Cabin has taken in more money than
any other play. because it has been play
ed over a longer term of years and by
more companies. 1t never. however. was
produced to any extraordinary large
business, and hundreds of companies
have been stranded and gone to pieces in
trying to play it. These small companies
make the aggregate of loss much greater
than the aggregate of profit. A NUN Der
questioned on the subject all agreed
that the most profitable play ever gwen
in this country was The Lights o. Lon
don. Within four years this play cleared
net profit of SIS, 900. 000 meanwhile being
played by from one to four companies.
During this period it was under the man.
agement of Messrs. French, Shook e. Col
lie. This foutune, however, was very large
ly lost by the production of subsequent
English plays which proved to be fail
ures, notably Storm Beaten and Separa-
tion.
Another singular thing about this play
is that it went begging for while. Mr..
William Mcconnell came on from the
west. representing his brother, to invest
SIS, 900 in New York in some theatrical
enterprise. The first thing he struck was
the manuscript of The Lights O. Lon
don. He was offered it outright, with
the entire American rights of production
for $12, 000 He wired to his brother the
offer. "My brother" SAID Mr. McCon-
nell, wired me back that l was an in; be-
cile. He said that there was no manu-
script in tho world that was worth S12, 900.
unlesssit was written on plates of solid
gold. We didn't take it up. We did in
vest that $4,000, and $4,000 more, in a
Brooklyn theater. It's there yet. We
never got any of 1t back"
In the six months that America was
played in Chicago during the worlds fair
the receipts amounted to $50. 600. That is
the biggest business ever done by any
theatical production in this country.
Messrs. Brooks & Dickson made nearly
half million dollars on The World"
and the "Romany Rye' within three
years. Then they lost it all in other pro-
ductions. The late Mr.. Chanfrau made
fortune of over half million dollars by
paying kit, the Arkansas Traveller"
Oliver Doud Byron is credited with hav-
ing made nearly half million dollars bv
playing blood-and.thunder melodramas.
notably "Across the Continent. Mr..
Byron can thank the gallery gods for his
fortune. ''My Partner made Mr.. Louis
Aldrich famous and rich. my Partner"
however. was good play. For all that,
Mr.. Alurich had almost to get on his
knees to get it produced to start with.
New York managers would not have it
and the story is told of how one manager
could have had half an interest in it for
less tnan $1,000. 1t has made for Mr.. Aid
rich probably about all the wealth he is
now credited with, which is well nigh
million dollars. Shenandoah u the most
successful war play ever given, has made
Mr.. Charles FIohman probably the most
extensive theatrical managertin the world,
and even Mr.. Frohman. who is credited
with having the keenest insight into "a
good thing in the way of play. was
doubtful about hazaruing his money on
=
haps his hesitancy arose from the fact
that he was offered the play SO cheaplv.
The price that is said to have been paid
for IL was $4,000. Now for the sequel.
1t was pretty hard work for the new man
ayers to raise the money to produce
''Shenandoah" at tue Star 'theater when
1t was brought to New York. The audi
ence went crazy over it. General Sherman
got up IN his box and made speech in
dorsing it. Within one year from that
night IL cleared for the management $780,
900. Mr.. Bronson Howard. who wrote
the play, received something like $50 900
besides.
TOO Much Johnson was first pro-
duced on the road for week or so. Then
it was played over in Brooklyn for week
and was billed to come to the Standard
theater, in New York, following the
tration at the Standard, tine New Boy"
had been most disastrous failure fnan-
Cially. So when Mr.. Frobman saw the |
production of Too Much johnson" in
Brooklyn and saw that it was witnessed |
by small house. which was anything
over its prospects in New York. The fol- |
lowing day he met friend at lunch in
New York, and offered him the play for
5000. You can play the part yourself"
said Mr.. Frohman, land save salary
All Gillette has to do is to walk around
lHs
require any acting. You can play it,
We'll, the upshot of it all was that Mr..
Frohlnan couldn't sell ''Too Much john
son" and had to produce it himself 1t
has made in its run at the Standard
theater nearly $50, 000 1t is generally ad-
mltted to be Mr.. Gllette's masterwork.
and that Mr.. Gillettes acting in it is
even cleyerer than were his efforts in
"The Private Secretary
etlll another funny feature of this pro-
ductlon is the fact that Mr.. Gillette him
self had no confidence in the play. He
ola not even care TO invest his money in
It's production. So he sold it outright.
retalnlng small interest something like
per cent. | unders tand
The biggest bonus ever paid to an au-
thor Tor play was given by Miss Fanny
Udven port to Sardou for the right to pro-
duce Gismonda in America. Miss Daven-
port paid $lD, 600 to Sardou on the receipt
OF the mani script. This payment was en-
tlreiy bones. OF course, the regular roy.
atty she had to pay weekly in addition.
And even with this big preliminary hand
leap on the box office. Miss Davenport
mas made great deal of money out Of
Glsmonda this season.
jim the Penman was another play that
was persistently turned down by New
! ork managers. 1t was offered at one
time for $500 and found no takers. The
manuscript was. knocking about from one
managers o.:ce TO another, with IN. g."
marked all over it. Finally it tell into
Mr.. Palmer's hands and, doubtless, Mr..
Palmer is very glad that it did, because
II w, was one OF the big successes.
Nl1A