The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1922-07-15

VIEW AOAN, s1iy Iouc -
considIne's. Also the Knicker-
booker. And soon The claridge be-
comes memory. When the famous
hotel closes it's doors Broadway
loses its last public meeting place
for theatrical and sporting folk.
The Claridge grill was the haven
for the raconteurs. Wilson Mizner.
Rem Wolf and host OF others told
their best ones' there.
In the main restaurant the noon
breakfast crowds reflected the gay
insouciance that Is typical of the
Rialto. Stars. producers. race track
plungers. playwrights and the army
of White Way cleaners. collected
there to hail the day that began
for them at the luncheon hour.
1t was gathering bristiing with
worldliness-the Broadway round
table for the fop and sophist One
day at Breakfast a skidding play
wright beaming with a flock OF
before-breakfast cocktails lurched
to George NJ. Cohan's table.
Some day. Georgia. real soon I'm
going to write you the great Ameri-
can drama"
Fine says Cohan above the din
of popping corks. this is the place
to do it,"
The Claridge, in the Broadway
vernacular. got away to a bad
start" 1t was built by Charles z.
Rector in 1912 and was known as
Rector's. The same year a daring
musical play called THE Girl from
Rector's" was produced. 1t gave the
new hotel a black eye.
1t languished in one bankruptcy
after another. Then AL Jolson and
Nat Goodwin went there to live. In
tended as a super-inn. the atmos-
phere became theatrical. 1t was
called The Lighthouse" and some
of the gayest parties of the mid
| night sons and daughters were held
there.
At sunrise one morning Longacre
Square was startled by a series of
sharp explosions. 1t was discovered
that a famous stage beauty was
greeting the dawn's first blush by
hurting champagne bottles at pass
ing cabmen from her window.
The hotel then fell into wiser
hands. In 1915 II started on an era
of prosperity. Withsprohibition the
! cafe trade slumped.' The manage
! ment monographs to the press
that II is closing because of "the
unequal enforcement of the VOL
stead law" The truth is that IL
had its day. Broadway tires very
| quickly.
The Grand Central Red Caps are
| not to have exclusive rights at the
big terminal. The Green Caps have
arrived. 1t is the newest idea in
service for the 200 900 people who
use the terminal daily. message
exchange has been established on
the main floor. The Green Caps
will accept and deliver telephone
messages for outgoing and incoming
travellers. II the commuter has been
detained in "a conference" and ar
rives at the train without the time
to telephone his wife the Green Cap
will attend to II for a fixed fee-lo
cents.
Providing about the Grand Central
| incidentally always provides some
thing out of the ordinary. Coming
up one of the long ramps the other
| afternoon was a fullblooded Indian
painted. feathered and beaded. In
the opposite direction a flapper with
| pearl bowler derby and walking
stick strolled along. They stopped
to watch each other out of sight.
| The Indian gave a characteristic
Erunt. But the flapper could not
resist calling out in the flapper
argot: Amt you the one. though -
There are some who are really
| gluttons for punishment. The pic
colo player in a Fourteenth street
moving picture palace confesses
that in his moments of recreation
lie seeks to master the intricacies
of one of those French horns.
| Two of New York's most exclu.
sive hotels on the East Side have
removed all chairs from theil
! foyers. 1t is the first step in a wal
\ on the lobby hounds who gather
there around luncheon and dinner
time. 1t also foils the adventures,
| who accidentally drops her hand.
| kerchiaf or hand bag at the oppor.
| tune moment In one of the down.
| town hotels woman with a varie.
gated parrot stalking majesticallS
at her side strolled through the lob.
! by. A house detective approached
her with: Madam, this is not q
geological garden" She perchec
the parrot on her finger and re.
| piled: Maybe not. but try to put