The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1905-05-08
.THEATER TRUSTS
BOOKS IN COURT
Accounts Laid Bare in Belasco' s
Suit Which He Hopes Will
Unhorse Syndicate.

the NV Cooks e My H ga seaFShn ing
teresting facts regarding the opera
tions and profits Of what is known as
the theatrical syndicate were brought
to light in court, when the suit Of
David Belasco against Klaw & Erlan-
ger, the leading firm in the trust, for
an accounting came to close. The
court reserved decision and gave Sam
and Colonel Abe Gruber, counsel for
Brooks, Belasco's alleged partner, and
Klaw & Erlanger, two weeks to submit
briefs.
Robert Walker, bookkeeper and con-
fdential secretary for AL Hayman, tes-
titled that the net profits Of the theat-
rical syndicate for the season Of 1902
were $227,676, and that Klaw & Err
LANCER share of them was $127 500.
Samuel Untermyer, counsel for Mr..
Belasco, said that the $127 500 profits
received by Klaw & Erlanger were not
from theaters owned by the syndicate,
but from those controlled by Klaw &
Erlanger and outside of the syndicate
agreement.
The Trusts Workings.
David Belasco,. who, with the excep-
De
is the only producing manager who has
stood out against the theatrical trust,
told on the stand in this suit what
the trust has done unto others and what
it is seeking to do unto him.
The extent Of the trust 8 depreda-
tions in the theatrical world Mr.. Be-
lasco outlined as follows:
cit drove Augustin Daily to his grave.
cit brought A. M. Palmer to ruin,
despair and death.
'It has enslaved and perverted the
genius Of dozens Of other men who
sought to make the stage something
more than necessary feeder to the
box office.
cit has terrorized stars, playwrights
and stage managers until they are
forced to do it's bidding.
cit has exacted blood money from
managers turnout the country TIL they
are less important than the ianitors OF
the theaters they once controlled.
His Dealings with the Trusts.
| .ssBook Belasco and you never gel
another show!' That has been the or
der that has gone out to every loca
manager in the country.
CHOW / can get into Chicago, Bos
ton and New York. That is all.
81 am an outcast, outside Of my OWL
theater, the Bijou, which l luckily go1
control of, and the Academy Of Music
which Mr.. Gilmore had the courage tt
turn over to me. But I will neve.
give up the fight.
81 am fortunate enough to be a play
wright as well as a producer, SO they
have never been able to shut me on
of the play market altogether, altht
they have subsidized every playwright
in this country and control all the dra
matte output of the other side.
Ruinous to the Stage.
"The theatrical trust magrates ar
running the stage. It is now absolute
| " at its lowest ebb. They make matt
nee idols out of the men who know hov
to wear trousers, and nothing more.
'Their idea Of art is a KALEIDOSCOPE
Of spangles and shiny furbelows,
couple Of comedians of the stick-and
bladder sort, and legs, legs, legs.
'EThe cowardice of managers and act
ors is responsible for it all. If tw
men, whether stars or managers, shoul
begin fight against them, there woul
be such stampede as you never sa,
before.
. "Thus far they have been able t
crush every one but the Fishes and my
self. They keep an enormous reserv
4 fund just for the purpose Of putting II
bellious managers out of business.
"Let one actor defy them, and yo
never hear Of him again It make
no difference how good he is. The
care nothing whatever about ability, 6
is shown by the kind of men an
women they star-untrained children
half Of them.