New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-06-16
New York Spent About Five
Times as Much as Paris
or Theatres During
Season 1911-'12.

Whether there are any plausible reasons
tor II or not-and there are some that may
~ orered-New York is the most theatre
hungry city in the world. Not only are
there more theatres here than in any other
Mace not excepting London, which has so
much larger a population. hut there is an
Unsuitable desire for the theatrical form
~ amusement in New York that does not
exist in the same manner or to the same
extent anywhere else
The theatre is in the air. You breathe It
IN. YOU read about the plays, hear every
one talking Of them, see the players on the
streets and in the restaurants and finally
you 60 10 the theatre. When YOU go once
@ou go again. Then if you are visitor to
the city from another place you want 10
see the playhouses and the actors you have
been reading about in papers and maya
zines for years.
In way, those are reasons for the thea
t,e-going hobby. But there is better one
n You do not 60 to the theatre, where VIII
xou eoo That seems 10 be the real eXplana-
tion for the race to the glittering lights OF
Theatre Auey-there is nowhere else to go.
IN European cities and i'm other cities
end towns of the United States there Is far
more social life. The evening is largely
taken IN with private entertainments. Be
sides this there are various amusements
Of other sorts. In European cities the care
ufe occupies the evenings of a great part
of the population. In mild weather there Is
considerable driving about in the parks an"
IN suburban places because the fare OF lhe
comfortable facre is moderate. There are
also pleasurable little trips on small boats
which 20 up and down the rivers on Which
many of the European cities have thought
fully been built
In winter there are winter sports OF oi'e
form or another in which the people u
most places indulge.
In New York there is almost nothing ''a'
ran be done casually either in summer VI
winter except to 60 to the theatre. lheie
ora M cafes here. There are no little tripS
"a nearby places where simple amusemeh'S
are offered. except the beaches ana alnuse-
-. ,orle which exist only when the
theatres are for the most part closed. There
&c almost no pleasure driving IN Pupll0 Oo'I
,evsncAs because the fares. for the RAM
and file. are prohibiuve.
So it's TO the theatre to Kill the eNe''l"7
.,d the holiday afternoon. what else
copId account for the fact that over S'O-
n,nao was spent in New York on theatre
tickets during the season just passed Inns
,,,r, includes the income not only OF the
homes Of drama. but Of the opera, concerts
vaudeville and moving pictures
parts the Gay City" as they love 20
,au II in London. where pleasure Is sup
rosed to twinkle in every street lamp an"
where the cau to the theatres mas pee"
Going on for more years than II mas IloN'''S
here. a metropolis TO which there Is a con-
slant stream Of people from every co'H
n the world the year around VINO 80
10 the city OF gayety solely Tor the pun
nose of seeing its celebrated cehlIeS Vi
aousement-even Paris corraled less lha'
Sl2 100000 in its theatres, concert mans
and all its various entertainments p'aC'S
during the year 1911. To be exact the
theatrical intake amounted 70 siI'otl'I'''
r-h. evact figures for the largest Cohu-
Mental metropolis are known 10. the 'edS'''
that the municipality collects uhiIoi III
tax Of 10 Der cent Of the gross lecelpl9 VI
regular theatres and daily concerts PEI
-, Of the receipts of casual concerns
q,veo bv individual artists or mus!caI So
ci,,ias and y FER cent Of the receipts OI
halls races and certain other amasefleI'-S.
rrba income from these taxes goes toward
III support Of the poor 50 that no one can
81 sltogetber selfish in going to the inca
Ire in Paris. .,,,.
For tho interest q realizing the enormous
eg,,ee shown by many Of the playhouseS
in New York, IT IS worth while 10 colHP"- -,
The report sent by the United States Consui
General in Paris, Frank d. Maso" m
Owes the income Of the Paris theatre '-.
the year 1911: ,.t,.
There are i'm Paris four theatres en-,
Comelie Francaise, Cdton, the opera anu
Opera Comique) which receive suOVeh'lo"S
from the government and forty regular tne
aires. among which are included the CidlV-
let. Gvmnase. Gate and Palais Royal, "h.o"
receive no subyentiOn. There are pes'ueS
twelve large cinematograph theatres. thir'E-
eight cafe concerts. eight music mans WI
skating Kinks yelodromes ana cliCustS'
among which are included the Magic C"S
and Luna Park, both originally America"
enterprise: six permanent balls or oahcli'S
places. including the Bal Tabarln burner
and Moulin Rouge. and finally three ciassl-
cal concerts. the Concert LamOureauX' CO.
Tonne and the ConscryatoIie IN all IL
regular places Of amusement.
From the report Of the municipal al
tninistration FOR 1911 it appears that the
total receipts collected during that year DS
these various groups OF theatres, etc. were
as follows The four subyentoned theaueS'
g,sg9.422: forty theatres Of the Gaite-claSS'
ASSESSED: cinematOgIaphs, $J4l,O9i Hu-
seurce and cyuosit!ons. $123.361; cafe con-
certs. S1.33OT52; music halls, 1885, % ;
skating Kinks circuses etc, SS4o,2S7 paLs'
sl89.7l4: artistic concerts Sll4'5'4' van
Gus other concerts, s457221 total Sll'04i'-
i59 The total revenue thus derived LOT 'He
poor fund In 1911 was Sl,225,Ol3.
The steady growth Of Paris and the oe-
votion OF its people and the constant 'nroNe
Of foreign visitors TO theatrical and musl0a J
entertainments are shown by the fact tnAI
the receipts Of 1911 from these sources e"-
ceeded those Of any previous year. not eH-
cepting even the years 1873, 1889 and l9VV'
when international expositions Of world
wide interest were held In Paris
In New York there are nearly ninety the-
etres Of all classes ana ABOUT seven ""',
hred cinematograph theatres. II such
places Of Amusement as the PARKS an
shows on Coney Island and similar IeS'' =
at the other beaches, etc. were counter ~
here. as they arc IN Paris, there "oulo W
no such limi. as $50. 100000. But 'hey are
omitted because they are pFacueaiY IN
calculablc
In considering the incomes OF the play
houses In New York the Hippodiorhe 'oPS
the list with its Sl,5O0,0oO intake ourihs
The forty weeks OF It's billie season.
This IS said TO bcThe record even for that