The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-01-31

declared II was the most gripping drama
they had come across, but they would
not dare 10 put 1t on. That whoever
put it on invited disaster. had talked
with former Senator Frank j. Cannon
OF Utah. who aided the authors in the
psychology of the Mormon people, and
with Mrs. Cannon, whose family Is still
living in Salt Lake City under the con
ditions of the Mormon Kingdom. There
was no question in my mind from the
effect the play had on me and from the
| effect the play had on the Cannons, who
had been inside of the Mormon homo
and the Mormon Church, that II was
| both good drama and a real cross sec
| ton OF a strange phase of American
| life. The propaganda side does MOI
| concern me, but the drama does. l be-
| lleved that the play as a play was n
great play-one whose underlying theme
OF the sanctity Of marriage was OF the
greatest possible appeal to all classes,
| irrespective of the Mormon side of the
| question.
| so / formed a stock company and
we took the play to Washington to try
out brought 1t to New York and opened
At the Playhouse. We expected trouble
and we were not disappointed. We were
| informed that Senator Reed Smoot had
| come to town to see the play and And
| out what he could about II. We have
no proof of it, nor of other rumors Of
| what the MormOns were going to do tu
| us that reached us. But trouble came
from an unexpected quarter. Our
friend William A. Brady, who had
come to Washington to see the play AMI
had offered us the Playhouse suddenly
and without warning lost faith IN
| 'Polygamy' in its first week counter
lei.
following the opening of the play with
out notifying us and quite frankly ad
mtted that 'Polygamy' was a failure!
The newspapers were justified in think
| ing W, were down and out. and the
gossip of the street said 50, but the au-
diences kept on increasing and business
showed that even If Mr.. Brady did MOI
| believe in us we could survive II. Other
plays had. So we hired the Park Thea
ire available through the bankruptcy
of the Lieblers and the closing of The
Garden of Paradise organized and In
stalled a house staff moved our play
uptown, and Polygamy' has been play
ing there since its third week. with
business still growing
"And some Of the problems of the
producing business are evidently diff
cult ones?"
/ ne iutsAlOI VI duNllOl Slllp 10 Oh'
Of them" said Miss Tyler. I'VE have
just taken out insurance with Lloyds
against blackmail. You may not know
1t. but all play companies are pecu
liarly open to a form of blackmail that
| Is difficult to defend. AS soon as a sue
ccssfu play is produced, Immediately
all over the country, come rumors that
some unknown had that brilliant idea
or wrote that play before the author
ever heard Of it. Nobody wants to
claim a play that fails, but when
play succeeds, beware of the authors
who claim that they sent in the same
play to the play company. or that they
told the author the plot, or that Ire
dialogue and situations were filcheu
from their own production!
Paid in Full was conspicuous eX-
ample Of this. Several of Charles
Itlein's most successful plays have been
challenged as the product of other peo-
pies brains. Within the Law We were
all told as soon as it succeeded, was
written by George Broa dhurst, and by
half a dozen other people. 'Unde-
Cover is now defending suit of tn
sort"
what is the life of a successful
play
"From two to four years is the life
of an average successful play In the big
cities and on the road A play like Ben
Hur.' which appealed to very large
class Of the public, and especially 10
those who do not usually go TO the
theatre, has lived fourteen years. After
the big cities and a year or two on the
= road the average play goes into stock
and continues to bring in royalties as
- long as the play has vitality. A play
] liL.. sNbar1i.'c Amt I'M tn Iva
g un indefinitely. for that Is a sample of
a the old timers on which royalties are
r still being paid. The life Of a good play
d cannot he estimated. There is many a
II play that has been only fairly profitable
Il in. its first run in the big cities or on
= the road that has been a wonderful
money maker In stock and continues in
demand from season to season as a
: stock play
y "There are many curious things about
n plays that no one in the play business
J. attempts to fathom. Good plays die
a and bad plays live and 1t is very hard
e to analyze why, So theatrical people
re- call it luck and cultivate a nice col
Is lection of supersitons Oh, yes. | hav
= mine That certain feeling | get about
a a play is one of them"
r, "How about the special intuition %
- women III Sensing "a success IN pays
n There are women in Wall street "
IF said she, but | think such matters -
IN fitness or unhtness don't depend on an.
+. kind of intuition-a mans or a woman's
r. They depend on the individual"
a "Are you a feminist, Miss Tyler" de
! manded the interviewer, apropos %
nothing in particular except the inter
pc esting spectacle of a woman running n
So New York theatre and "picking win
ID ners" along the Great White Way.
Is Miss Tyler flushed and gasped. as II
so she had been accused of something
~ startling.
oil "Oh," said she. you're not playing
fair. I was to talk about plays and
ed theatres. I haven't had time to be n
H. feminist. I've just had time 10 be a
n human being and run my business.
he don't belong to a club. l don't believe
st I'd belong to a club If was a man. I'd
f. be too busy. All know about politics