The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-02-20
FATHER OF VAUDEVILLE
TONY PASTOR TELLS OF HIS FIFTY
YEARS STAGE EXPERIENCE.
Believes the variety Show Business
Is Only in It's Infancy in This
Country and Europe.
New York Press.

In the popularity of vaudeville performances
and the unprecedented advance in their ar
tistic merit in the last few years, this state
ment might seem rash were it made by one
familiar only in limited way with the
business. When this statement comes from
so high an authority as Tony Pastor the
father and almost pioneer of vaudeville in
America it should carry weight Of porten-
tous prophecy. Most everybody connected
in any way with the theater in America
knows a good deal about Tony Pastor and
more or less of his fifty years experiences
have been connected with vaudeville or, as
he prefers to designate his particular field
of endeavor, variety shows. AS far as New
York is concerned, Tony Pastor is easily the
pioneer and parent of variety in this city.
And he is more hopeful to-day of the future
life and artistic growth of vaudeville than
he was nearly forty years ago. when he be-
gan life here as a vaudeville performer in
one of the then famous Broadway concert
halls.
Tony-nobody calls him Mr.. Pastor-con-
sented last week to tell Sunday Press re-
porter something about the popularity of
vaudeville as he has observed it in the
course of his long connection with that
phase of stage life. 1t was in the course of
this talk that he expressed the belief in
the permanence and continued artistic
growth of the variety performance, not only
as an increasing popular form of entertain
ment but also as q most beneficent institu-
ton, as far as the support of a large portion
of the theatrical profession is concerned.
Repeatedly" said Tony, during the
many years that l have been in the bust
ness, [ have heard simultaneously with the
introduction of each new departure or APP
parent innovation in the theatrical world
that this sounds the death knell of the va
riety theater.' Up to within three or four
years ago that statement came out every
few months. Yet nobody will undertake to
say that variety, or vaudeville, as it is more
commonly called. is not in a stronger posi-
ton to-day than 1t ever has been at any
time in the last fifty years.
II go even further, and predict that the
variety performance is only In its infancy.
1t will continue to grow both in popularity
and in artistic merit until / believe the
time will come when there viii be Few OF
our leading actors or actresses that VIII
fear to appear at times on the vaudeville
stage. l do not predlet, mlnd you, tnat all
of them will come to 1t, especially those
persons, both men and women, who com
mand extraordinary salaries, such
thousand or more dollars for single ap-
pearance Within the last few months we
have seen persons who were at one time
stars in opera, even few years ago, on
the vaudeville stage Ia several instances
we have seen them go back to their stellar
career with regulations enhanced rather
than dimmed by their appearance in the
variety theater
NO LOSS OF DIGNITY.
s'The really noteworthy change in variety
to be learned from this fact is that, SO far
as the vast majority of the theatrical pro-
fesson is concerned, they suffer no loss of
dignity by their association with vaude-
vile. This has been true within only few
years comparatively. To-day both divisions
of the stage, the vaudeville and the legiti-
mate, are practically recognized as on about
the same level. In all our associations out
side of the theater this is essentially true
in fact. And the variety has been a most
benehcent thing for the stage in more ways
than one. To say nothing Of the stars that
1t has furnished for the legitimate, 1T has
furnished an occupation FOR thousands OF
people with the dramatic talent only slight
ly developed we'll as by giving employ
ment to thousands Of other competent
artists temporarily out OF an engagement
To-day a star of unQuestioned prominence
can be induced to accept an engagement on
the vaudeville stage while waiting for one
in the legitimate, and earn almost as much
in some cases even more than in regular
company, and with no loss to his self-re-
spect. In fact, / have noticed that fire.
quently those stars who have gone into
Vaudeville and proved to be popular were
capable of securing better salaries after
going back to their chosen line after a brief
excursion into variety.
These observations are from one whose
experience entities him to be an authority.
former in 1S47. He was then boy prodigy,
possessing a most remarkable voice. In
those days there were no such places as
music halls we know them now, much
less theaters devoted, as Tony Posters
theater in Fourteenth street is, strictly to
high-class variety performances The cir
Gus although not the institution that 1t has
grown to be under the management OF such
men as Barnum and Bailey, was the cnle1
field of the variety performer ouch music
halls as existed then We're the places to
which the specialists focked in the winter,
after the circus had ceased its travels Tor
the season. Tony played several engage
ments in various halls in New York up to
1861 when on account of the interest in the
impending war, the circus with which ne
was under contract for the summer ADAM
doned it's tour temporarily, or until the agi-
tated state of the feelings or the people
should quiet down. In the winter before
that he had appeared at FRANK hlVers
Theater in Philadelphia, the first house in
this country to go in for straight variety
Tony received, he says, the highest salary
of aay member of the company during that
engagement 1t was $25 week. When he
came to New York he got $50 a week. with
the privilege of selling his songs. Inex-
pectedly that part of his contract maze the
foundation of his fortune In no better
way than by comparison of salaries can
the great change that mas come over the
vaudeville performance be SHOWN.
SALARIES HAVE GROWN.
seWhen I took out my first company on
the road" said Tony my total salary list
amounted to less than $500 week And
the company included eight persons, an
orchestra of eight pieces with the leader.
In that list also was the salary of the
agent A single team gets as much and
frequently more than that for a single act.
In my first company were Johnny Wild and
his wife. 1 paid the both of them $50
week Johnny wants 5000 a week for him.
self now, and / presume he gets it. 1t is
safe to say that the average of salaries
in the business has doubled in the last
twenty years. Persons who received say
SIS then now get $50 for doing exactly the
same thing. OF course you must remember
that they do their act q great deal better
than they were accustomed to do it then.
And that means / suppose, that their edu-
cation costs them more now than 1t used TO.
II am not speaking of extraordinary sal
aries that some managers are said to have
paid some recent notorious impOrtatiOns.
Those are not good criterions to go by.
When / first brought Vesta Iilley and
Bessie Bonehill over here paid them their
own prices, but those prices were not $3.50
a week by any means. Such indiscretiOn
does more harm to vaudeville, think, than
anything else I know. Somebody, usually
the other members of the variety company,
suffers for the abnormal salary of the so
called star.