The San Francisco call., 1910-10-02
R. |. P. WRITTEN
. ON RIPPING POSTER
Risque Signs Describing Beauty
Chorus" Ripped From School
Walls by Teachers

OAKLAND, Oct. Altogether un-
digni1ed and shocking was the poster
recently placarded by the students of
the Oakland high school advertising
the vaudeville show to be given to aid
the girls edition of the school paper,
the Aegis. At least the teachers
thought so, and they tore down the
posters.
The shocking poster told of the
charms of beauty chorus in which
the schoolgirls were to be the beauties
It announced the perpetration of a
ripping" one act farce, in which the
girls were to do the ripping. In big
black type these announcements were
nailed against the school walls and in
Oakland store windows. 1t was too
much. Schoolgirls as chorus girls who
did anything that was ripping were not
to be countenanced
Sputtering with indignation, a num-
Der of teachers of the Oakland high
school held a teachers meeting in the
school building Thursday and after
brief discussion of the outrage went
forth and tore down the posters.
The pupils in charge of the show
were not daunted. They felt that in
phrasing the posters as they did they
had committed no wrong, and had
merely kept up with modern advertising
methods. They appealed over the heads
of the teachers by going straight to
City superintendent of Schools J. w
McClymonds to ask permission to
stick up their posters. They showed
McCIymonds sample of the objection
able thing.
McClymonds did his best not to laugh
With straight face he made certain
amendments in the poster and told the
students to go ahead The word rip
ping" was expurgated. He pointed out
that the advertising of beauty
chorus was hardly in good taste. So
that feature was left out, too. To-
gether with the students he went over
the draft of a new poster, which has
since been stuck up and which bears
at the bottom the words:
Approved by the Oakland board of
education
With that sanction no teacher of the
Oakland high school has dared to lay
hands upon it. 1t glares down on them
from school walls and from shop win
dows. and the students go by with
satisfied grins The coming show is
being properly advertised. Instead of
beauty chorus the new sign reads
costume chorus which is manifestly
more dignified and is better English.
For 1t may be added that some of the
teachers when called to task for their
objections to the first sign said that
it was not couched lin good English"
The show will be given in the Oak
land high school gymnasium on the
evening of October Z. 1t is a custom
at the school to permit the girls to
publish semiannua1ly the Aegfs the
school publication that has existed for
a score OF iiioio - sooio' nc SHOW
idea originated in the mind of Miss
Camille Adams. one of the students.
Together with Joseph Hunt she gath
cred around her for her purpose an
array of talent that says 1t will be
ripping whether the teachers like it or
not. Also it viii be a beauty show,
they say. James Gleason of local
theater is coaching the performers.
One feature of the performance will
be 'In Fog a one act farce, which
is being rehearsed under the direction
of Robert Harrison, also professional
Those who will take part in this farce
are Camille Adams, Edward Kitto,
Leland Huntington, Thoda Cockroft and
Fred Thomas.