New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-05-20
10! THE POOR PRESS AGENT

w nat tne uSe-!ou We uoeu lheHh OIL
The show, ad-speaking, has been riot
nit, an unprecedented success, a rec
ord breaker, a marvel play, wonder
It has been THE hit, THE success
THE-bu., pshaw! it's time to send the
copy along and that "snappy catch line
hasn't been written yet.
Eleventh week: The Sunday papers
quite took your breath away. Just CO.
incidence, you know, but nearly every
paper in town carried picture Of one
/ of the girls in the show. She just plays
a small bit, you know, but she's pretty
And does the sun shine? 1t does not.
OF course, you stand pretty we'll around
the office, but do you dare show your
face back-stage? You do not. Your life
for the next few days is about as poor
an insurance risk as you could find in
town.
Fifteenth week: Thanks belts
spring. You've got brand new set OF
pictures of the leading woman, all
decked out in spring finery. Those fur
bearing pictures which the art editors
have seen so often, they can turn them
down just by looking at the reverse
side, can now 60 into the discard
Three fourths of the Sunday papers
carry your new pictures, and micro
scopic search of the reading columns
brings to light two or three little no
tices. The sun shines again.
Twentieth week: You get big Idea
Tho boss falls for it-even lets you
spend quite bit Of money. You spring
the story. They start q war the same
day. You seriously consider resigning
Then you seriously reconsider.
One hundred and fftieth perform
ance, Hurrahl Time for souvenir
Great stuff-it's so new. Still, It gets
you a paragraph everywhere; shows
you're on the job.
Twenty-ffth week: The weaker sis
ters are dropping out. You watch them
20 with almost ghoulish glee. Each
ones departure puts YOUR show one
step closer to having the "longest run
on Broadway" Dramatic editors begin
to find they haven't quite SO much stuff
to fill their space. You're still in town;
they'll take story now and then.
Thirtieth week: At last-you can put
all the girls in bathing suits. Where
was the art editor yet who could resist
a picture Of a bathing suit? And sum-
mer stories-there's no end OF them
Many members Of your company havs
farms. And the new cars-it's really
surprising how many new cars the
members Of one Of those "hits Of the
season" will buy. Oh, the sun shines
brightly.
Thirty.irst week: There's q dramatic
editor who WILL use story If you'll
only give him a personality story on
the leading woman. Whew! You &c
back over the scrap book. Personality
stories-why, according to that scrap
book there are more angles to that lead
ing woman's personality than there are
TO a friends way Of turning you down
when you want to make touch. Still,
you've got TO give him personality
story. And you do. Who will remem'
Der, any way, that she said exactly the
opposite three months back? Not even
the lady herself-she never reads her
press notices.
Thirty-sixth week: You announce the
last eight weeks in New York.
Forty-fourth week: The insistent de-
mand of an unsatiated public forces the
management to extend the engagement
another four weeks.
Forty-eighth week: POSITIVELY the
LAST FOUR WEEKS. Only the clamor'
GUS urging Of the multitude induced tho
management 10 continue the engage
ment for one more month.
One year: You're a wreck.
Fifty-third week: The show closes;
GOES on the road; you've got new
play TO talk about, write about. thins
about Thank hsavsnsl