Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1901-01-19
SALARIES In VAUDEVILLE.
The Top-Notch Figure "a Thousand a
Week.

Week.
Higher salaries are now paid to indi-
vidual performers in the modern vaude-
vile than We're dreamed of in the old
days of the variety show, which was the
precursor of refined vaudeville. The
most insignificant act in a bill costs Mt
least $40 per week. Of you CHANGED on
some of these you might think it would
be worth forty To keep them out of the
theater) The less important acts, those
that appear in full force at the supper
show, cost from $50 to 500 per week.
The stalwart remainder which consti-
tutes the real force of the bill receives
salaries running from $3.50 to $1,000 per
week. The last is a top-notch figure,
and u is reached no oftener than can be
helped. Do not forget that these sal
ares are for engagements of from
twenty to hfty-two weeks, according TO
the value and the luck of performers.
competent acts usually can book
thirty weeks of the year. Again, mt a
very popular theater, an act may draw
SlOO week, while at smaller theater
the same act will draw only $75. Per
formers hooked only for small num-
per OF weeks in vaudeville often play in
the cheap variety houses. These are
called hide-away dates. Then many
monologlsts and singers do turns at
clubs after theater hours at profitable
terms. The late J. w. Kelly, whose
salary was at least $500 a week. is
known to have earned as much as S7OO
above this figure at club entertainments,
lie was worth tive shall not see his
peer, in many a long day.
TO compare present conditions with
those Of the past: A monologist of the
j. W. Kelly type usually received $50 a
week twenty-five years ago Today he
can often draw ten times that figure.
what is more, his salary is safe, because
the vaudeville manager is a conservative
man OF business, and not of the fiy-by-
night species that has made theater PEG
pie the dread of creditors. Again. the
average salary for a song and dance
team years ago was $40; today it is more
often 800. A more sensational hmm
was made by Ching Ling Foo, the Chi
nese c0njurer. A couple of years ago.
when he came to this country, he had
dithcnlty in securing an engagement.
FINALLY ne was booked for cities outside
of New York, at $500 per week. railroad
fares not included. His novel magic
fetched good houses and the managers
doomed him. Eight months later he was
being booked at $1,000 per week and rail-
road fares paid. As an indication Of the
inducement that leads the legitimate ac-
tor into vaudeville, here is the case of
w Ai,"h AA"i CouIt ANA Ailce FlSuef. Both
Of them, while not possessing the pecu-
liar endowment of stars, have a certain
reputation in leading roles. In the le-
gltlmate 1t may he ventured, that each
of them received from $3.50 to 5000 per
week. They played perhaps thirty weeks
in the year. In vaudeville they com
manded together $500 per week. To be
sure, they had TO appear twice a day, and
for each appearance they spent about an
hour in the theater. In the legitimate
theater each night, and there for one or
two matinees in the week. Furthermore.
in vaudeville they get an amount of ad-
vertising that could be had only as stars
in the legitimate. They are but a type
and must not be considered an excep-
tion."-Richard Duffy in Ainslee's.