The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1901-04-17
BON TON
SHOCKERS.
Gaiety Burlesquers, Even
When McGillifed, Make
the Coppers Blush.
CHEAP VICTIM IN THE TOLLS
Advertising Agent Arrested
While Dinkins and the
Proprietors of the
Theatre Go Free.

|
John Moore, the advertising agent Of
| the Bon Ton Theatre was placed under
arrest this morning on a charge of ex-
hibiting obscene pictures. The complaint
on which warrant was issued was made
i by Captain John Cody, of the First pre-
| cinct police station. Chief Murphy APP
1 peared before Police Justice Hoos and
| after showing the court samples of the
| McGillified posters to which exception
| was taken, said he would make the
complaint if Captain Cody did not. There
was no reluctance on Captain Cody's part
and Justice Hoos issued the warrant. The
case will be heard in the First Criminal
Court tomorrow morning, and Chief
Murphy will request that Prosecutor
Erwin or his assistant, Mr.. Vickers, APP
pear against Moore.
| Some months ago, in the latter part of
last season, when Olga Nethersole's pro-
duction of "Sapho' at Wallaclxs Theatre,
| New York city, caused so much sensation,
a road company advertised that they
would play Daudet's piece here and
elaborate posters were put up all over
| the city to advertise the play. These
! posters were offensive to many and con-
tinued complaints were received by the
police. DR.. McGill, President of the Board
| of Police Commissioners. came out with
emphatic denunciation of the pictures and
the play, with the result that the pictures
were taken from the boards and windows
and the production of the play was pre-
vented by the police authorities. Since
that time DR.. McGill has been waging
more or less of battle against the dis
play of posters in which the prominent
details are leg, bust and laces that
adorn the slightly gowned figures of bur-
lesque queens. Up to this time DR.. Nc
| Gill has been satisfied with having broad
strips of paper pasted over the parts of
the pictures which he liked least to see
when he delighted his eye with the
beauties of the bill boards.
| But the McGillifed posters now adver-
tising the fact that the big Gaiety Bur-
lesquers are at the Bon Ton Theatre
proved the last straw and it was deter
mined to bring the matter before the
courts in order to decide where the line
was to be drawn. The arrest of Moore
was considered sufficient Neither Din
kins, the manager of the house, nor the
manager of the company, responsible for
the offensive posters, was arrested,
though Moore is merely the agent of both
and they are responsible for his acts.
The show people send the posters into the
| city and they are given to Moore by Dim
| kins for distribution. The offensive pic
lures appear only in store windows. None
are pasted on bill boards, because Mr..
James OMealia, the bill poster, will not
handle Objectionable" matter.
Three un-McGillified posters were shown
to Justice Hoos. but he refused to pass
! judgment on the question of their de-
cency.
! One purported to be a photograph of
| the Gaiety Burlesquers in swell cafe,
seated around at tables, cavorting in airy
fashion with slightly lifted gauze skirts
that had gotten little beyond the begin
ning and many of the figures were about
half hidden from the sunlight by nothing
more than tights and a slight semblance
| of corsage. All the figures, however, were
crowned with wonderful millinery
creations, with enough ribbons and
| feathers to more than cover the figures
below them. There were men seated at
| tables drinking from wine glasses. On
| the knees of some were women whose
arms were thrown about the mems necks.
| These women were particularly scant of
dress and their positions and manners
such as to convince the police that they
were the very limit of suggestiveness.
In the centre of these tables, which
formed a circle, were three women kick
ing high hats held at arms length above
| the heads of their owners. There was
evident labored effort to show as little
of the men and as much of the women
as possible
/ Another poster shows what purports to
/ be a scene in a ballroom, based on an
exaggeration of the most exaggerated
ideas of French balls. Here again is the
| high kicking stunt the chief feature. A
| burlesque minuet, which gives ample OPP
portunity to raise the skirts above the
/ knees, is in progress. Standing in the
/ front, and therefore most prominent, are
| three women in tights and low cut waists
4 The central figure is of a particularly
1 offensive character, according to the
standards raised by the objectors. But
small stretch of the imagination is
| necessary to see the altogether save
| for the hat One would have to close the
eyes to shut out that hat. The lower
portion of that figure has been McGillif1ed
with square piece of paper on which
is printed an announcement of one of the
acts in the olio. The presence of the
piece of paper gives the details Of the
picture additional prominence.
| Another bill the police have taken to
use as evidence is the picture of a num-
ber Of girls in a ballet. The authorities
admit that they have no particular OBJ
lection to that BILL
/ WANTED FEATHER BED IN cFif