The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-01-06
BENEFIT TOMORROW MIGHT FOR STRANDED THEATRICAL TROUPE Mrs. Searight Secures Serv- ices of Vaudeville and Oth-
 CT Performers in City ONE OF SHOW GIRLS
 IS SERIOUSLY ILL Little Boy Blue" Company Met With Misfortune Here Last Saturday.
 Members Were Left Prac- tically Penniless

To provide funds for the members of the disbanded Little Boy Blue" company to return to their homes a benefit per formance of this comic opera with added special acts from the Lyric and other local thea tres will be staged at the Jefferson theatre tomorrow night.
 Seats for the benefit are already on sale at the box office of the Jefferson the atre The prices are 50 cents for general admission and 10 cents for reserved seats in the orchestra. The public of Birming- ham is requested to respond generously to this appeal for the penniless theatrical this city.
 Last Saturday afternoon the Little Boy Blue" company was attached by the sheriff at the conclusion of the matinee. The show has suffered a hard trip and the members were all penniless when the actions of few unpaid creditors caused the theatrical company to suspend opera tions The performers were thrown at their wits end to return to their homes, as they were absolutely without funds for anything to eat, much less for rail- road fare.
 To add to the misfortunes of the Little Boy Blue" company, at the last matinee, Miss Jack Baulm, one of the show girls, daroed out of the performance into an ambulance which carried her to Robin sons inflrmary in critical condition from sudden attack of appendicitis. At the infirmary it was stated last night that Miss Baulm was showing slight improve ment, and had withstood the operation with great fortitude. Her recovery is not despaired of
 At the Motion hotel, where some of the me mbers of the stranded company were stopping, someone suggested that there was one person in the city that would help them, and that was Mrs. Wilson Sea- right. The head of the welfare depart ment was informed of the plight of the show people, and immediately suggested 6 benefit in which she would lend her in- fluence and patronage to make the affair a success. Then Mrs. Searight got busy
 In few minutes she had extracted a promise from Manager R. s. Douglass of the Jefferson for the free use of his
 
 musicians were consulted and they prom ised their services gratis. Vice President J. P. II. DeWindt of the Birmingham Rail- way Light and Power company promised to donate the cost of the electric lights used for the performance out of his own pocket. As for the tickets the Alabama Printing company printed and delivered them to the box office of the theatre with out cost at the request of Mrs. Searight.
 The details of staging a benefit in which the public would get their moneys worth were left in the hands of expert theatrical men. It was decided that only the best parts of Little Boy Blue would be shown, and the rest of the evening would be filled with special acts--local and from theatres. The members of the Little Boy Blue" company will also pre- sen. special acts of their own. The man. agers of the affair assure the public that one of the best shows of the season will be presented.
 The money from the benefit perform ance will go directly to pay for the medi- cal and hospital bills of Miss Jack" Baulm at Robinsons infirmary and for buying railway transportation for the performers to their homes and pa ying their hotel bills.
 "I hope all who can afford it. said Mrs. Wilson Searight, will buy tickets and attend the benefit performance at the Jefferson theatre Thursday night. It is for a good cause. and will mean so much to these people,