The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1920-01-13
NEW YORK CITY
By o. o. McMTYRE


New York. Jan. i2.-HaJry Pilcer. a
young East side boy. who gained
fame as the dancing partner OF Gaby
Deslys. Is running the Apollo Cafe in
Paris. and now that American jazz
music Is further cementing/ French
American ties his place is becoming
a rendezvous 1t Is near the Mont
martre district and Pilcer. who is ap-
pearing in French revue next door,
runs in between acts to dance with
American sightseers.
The Apollo Is trying to be a strictly
Bohemian resort and with the hordes
of Americans going to Paris now-in-
stead Of New York-for an occasional
fling young Pilcer Is becoming richer
by several thousands every week:
Once week Gaby shows up at the
Apollo and dances with Pilcer ana
| this proves a great drawing card. A
negro crew of jazzers from Birming-
ham furnishes the whiny. syncopated
notes.
A writing friend returns from Paris
to tell me that he saw a comic opera
star. three writerss two pugilists and
novelist at tables in the Apollo. and
the place bids fair to be like the place
run by q Swiss publican named Pfan
in the late forties. The restaurant
was near the cd Broadway Central
Hotel. and 1t was the first of the
Bohemian colonies in Gotham.
The chief attraction aside from the
brilliance of the guests were pancakes
and beer and it was at Pfaff's that
Georges Clemenceau visited often
when he came to America long before
he ever dreamed of world power.
Among the other patrons were Will
lam Winter, foremost theatrical
critic: Z. c. Stedman, the poet. and
James O'Brien. gifted young Irish
writer. Too. there was Artemus
Ward, who found congenial company
at Pfaff's.
Just as Pfafr came to America and
founded strictly Bohemian resort, so
IL is reported Pilcer is doing in Paris.
Pilcer is a product of Broadway and
his manner and dress are typical of
the street. He had the gayest shirts
and the loudest shrieking scarves
along the thoroughfare. 1t is told that.
in his most startling checkered suit
and haberdashed to vie with the rain
bow. Pilcer stood one day looking at
the Grand Canyon.
A moving picture actor on his way
West was going along with guide
when they came upon Pilcer What
do you think of the scenery" asked
the guide with a wide sweep of his
hand. The movie actor. unable to
move on account of his fascination for
Pliers. clothes, replied: "Snappiest
scenery ever saw off Broadway"
Since nearly every saloonkeeper on
the East Side has decided that it is
no use to hang on any longer to such
frail hopes only few remain open.
The big problem of the welfare work
ers is to provide some place for the
men who played a game of cards or
chess and drank glass of beer in the
back room of a saloon. Many of them,
it Is said. were steady workers who
never INDUCED and had no other place
to spend idle moments. Some have
drifted into the dark underground
holes run by bootleggers and have Ia
ken TO moonShine whisky A noted
social worker in an address the other
night declared that now that prohibi-
ton was becoming an actual condition
ii was up to New York to provide
places of recreation or poor mems
clubs for those driven from saloons.
New York grammarians are all
fused up over the correctness of this
sentence: alfred. than whom a great
er King meyer reiGned, deserves to be
held up as a model to all future SOW
ereigns." Grammar sharks say
whom" is wrong. 1t should be who
and others state for sake of euphony
it should be whom" Others, too, say
whom" is correct. I think grammar
depends upon surroundings. / know
a man who broke up a pool game say
ing. Whom do follow?' He was
too gosh-awful educated for pool.