Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1931-09-30
Mew York
Letter

NEW YoRK-The Astor The
atre. despite it outward display Of
flamboyant movie banners and IT.
eye-catching streamers Of gaudy
light. wears also Z slight touch Of
mourning for Its sounders Lincoln
Wagenhals, who died . few days
ago. 49,
doors win see upon the screen no
stranger tale than that Ct the kid
from the small Ohio town who put
nm this showhouse on Broadway,
II IL another or those thousand
and-one-nights legends Of Bagdad-
on-the-Subway. FOR Ire was fame
and fortune that st.-ted literally
at the point Of . CUNT
And this Is the way the story
eoes: Once upon . time 2 discour-
aged young man from Lancaster,
o. sat over his coffee and sfnkers
At 4 Broadway lunch counter
wondering II this could be tne
fair rewards OF the theater. At Is,
an amateur actor from MS nome
town high school, he hau DESCENDED
upon Columbus. O.. and for live
wears held q Job in Q stot COM
pany. Then he had headed for
broadway. And here he was gofnN
ont ahead or road shows that had
a habit OF "going bust IN the MIDDLE
az nowhere and leaving a young
gent to get back as best he could
Feeling like telling his troubles
To someone, he began talking 20
another youth occupying an al
jacent stool. The conversation
bounced back to the old home, Is
such talks do In New York
what you're from Ohio, too
SWELL. Funny you should come
from there. 49,. Yep. and your aaos
. doctor. o That sure beats
everything. And you passed up 3
chance to study medicine o tne
stage. Sure Is funny. meeting
like this. -. What's the manner,
"Kemper's my name - COIN
Kemperl"
me famous Wagenhals and Kemp
er partnerships firm that ran
nothing up to $4,000. 900 n Pc
came the wealthiest tneatricai
business in the world.
both went out as company man.
ayers for road shows, and met
again in an Ohio tank town. botn
shows were broke. Both had TO get
back to New York. They sat down
and talked things over. Certainly,
they were getting nowhere; Iney
were young and ambitious Why
not take a chance by themselvesf
aSay. / heard OF q house up In
Bingnamton. New York, We mignt
pet hold of....ran into 1t while
taking a company through that
way"
That was the beginning: q small
stock company In Binghamton'
Wagenhals was business MANAGER,
Kemper was stage manager. Iney
decided to branch out, altnougn
their finances were meager. Wag'
enhals would take a show on tout
AS company manager.
once more the scene was ONE
and the place not far from Col
umbus. Wagenhals was going ovel
the payroll and the gate receipts
He was interrupted BY q brusque
command: "!Stick EN- up and name
over the coinl" But he didn't. Ht
made a quick duck. Two shots, .
Quick scurry and the theatrical
tvro Law groaning on the floor, q
bullet In his body.
Get my father" he groaned as
emergency treatment was being
administered. A few hours later,
DR.. wagenhals was at the BEDSIDE
iust in time to prevent an opera
ton. The father feared blood pois-
oninc II the bullet were removed
Link, Wagenhals went through
life with this keepsake" as ne
called 1t.
A few weeks later he was back
In Binghamton. calling cheerily 10
his partner: well. it's the big
town now, old kidd ! was carry
ing accident insurance, and when
those stick-up boys shot me. ! got
$4,000"
And that's how the Aston came
10 be built. With the $4,000 he
promoted the new theater and
then came such successes as
Paid in Fnll- and Seven Days
and The Bat" The two kids
from Ohio retired a few years ago
on ten millions
The working nnnulatinn OF Chi