The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1913-11-10
What the
House Wants


amusement rs. And during that time
I've learned lot. The public don't
60 to the THEATRE, It's the audience.
Now, there was man came up to
the box office Just before the doors
open and he says: I suppose you
know this is Lent, my frtend?'
otto was standing there. and be-
fore could say anything he butts In
and answers: OF course the old
heather does. That is why we are
giving every afternoon and evening
the only sacred show in Harlem
Il was going to choke him OF, but
the man was interested. and he says:
An, indeed. l am pleased to hear 1t.
shall bring my wife and children
around this afternoon as l have moth
ing else to do
when he went away turned to
Otto and says: Nov. Otto. l don't
lind a joke, but you can't fool
patrons
That's alright, he says. Wen
have Louie sing 1.-The Palms" That
makes a sacred concert just the same
as a leather sandwich covers the Sun
day law
Believe me. putting Louie on in
sacred repertory, The Palms, Jer'
usalm' and The Rosary was the best
stroke Of work done in long time.
The public wants novelty all the time.
and give it TO them in Lent That
gave me another idea, so l ordered
a lot OF sacred films.
"The first one was certainly one
fine beauty, David and Goliath. |
don't know how they got him. but
Goliath looked twenty feet tall as he
walked across the picture. But right
there is where the boob comes in.
Max Theimer who drives in d brewery
wagon and thinks he can handle men
the way he does the barrels, got up
and yelled, I'll challenge that fellow,
best two falls in three, for a side bet
Of six dollars!' lie was too thick
not 10 know some better, but it got
the audience going, and when David
came out with fur robe on another
fellow yelled a challenge for him at
135 pounds ringside. went down
front and called:
Silence, gents, silence! This 10
a sa:rcd picture
Then Max claimed he had been
insnlted, and we had to put him out
OF the house.
But l hadn't no sooner started the
idea OF an allsacred I4enten show
than all the houses around jumped at
1t.
ut worried me so got headache
after having dinner with Otto when
We had sauerhraten and potato dump
lings and red picked cabbage and
sailed beans and shad. Did, you ever
Lotice something about shad? They
never give you big enough portion
We had to have three before we had
enough. And French fried potatoes
and Spanish onions and anchovy sand.
wiches and whipped cream puffs and
some hand-cheese. LeCause Otto's PEG.
pie come from Matn1 and he had been
trained on it and coffee. Say, don't
know how long I'd been worrying
about the state of affairs when it gave
me headache and my wife had to
take the box office the next day.
Well about o'clock at night l crept
down and looked in the door. A base-
ball picture. Say. that's sacred, amt
It? was mad until seen the crowd.
The place wouldn't hold skinny
man.
"Then Otto told me he'd dumped
all the other films and had put on
baseball strong. But he kept Louie
plugging at the sacred songs so the
people wouldn't feel they wasn't
keeping Lent. I'm conservative and
like 10 help people in their religious
beliefs, and baseball amt thing that
intertereS with any creed,
I'VE ran the baseball pictures for
two days. and then we began to have
competition. There was baseball
pictures everywhere, and sporting
pictures. So it was up to me to get
something new. told Otto thought
It would be q good idea to give an
exhibition Of the harem skirt the first
in Harlem, but Otto jumped on me.
"Mat,' he said, your wisdom grows
in the wrong direction every day.
The only people excited about the
harem skirt is the fellows that draw
funny pictures in the papers. They
have to he because It amt often they
have an idea. What excitement would
there be in it for people who so
every week to see the Boistrous
Blondes or some other show like that?
Nav. I'll tell you. Did you read
about that man who Is so rich he gets
two hundred marriage proposals
every day? Well, we'll advertise an
heIreSs who's going 10 attend our per.
tormances and select husband
II was against 1t. But he was SO
set on the idea that when he threaten.
I'd to start an opposition house so
he could run It gave in because he's
my partner,
IVo,, rI,ou1d I,ova onao +I,o Lovso