Evening star., 1942-03-22
Two Brothers With But a Single Empire
Being Word Portrait of the Shuberts Lee and J. j..
Who Weld an Enormous Power in the Theater
By John Ferris,
NEW YORK.

All &CUUI, SUSly III llccO VI q JOV,
was accosted recently by friend as
he walked up Broadway about 4
am. in the wake Of q small vigorous
man with a copper-red face and
stride which seemed impossibly fast
for one OF his size.
Whats the idea?" the friend
asked. you're following Lee Shu-
bert at this hour. but why?"
who knows?" the actor said
testify. Its after his business
hours, but who knows?"
Actors and most other people who
have business With the theater know
that Lee Shubert, although he is 81
years of age and has half q century
of theatrical business behind him,
works 16 hours day, and that even
at 4 am. his mind is so preoccupied
with business that q flicker Of
recognition from one Of his little
eyes or q nod Of the head might
lead to q years work for an actor.
A man reputed to possess as many
millions of dollars as Lee Shubert,
and with power on Broadway and
In the theater outside Of New York
which he and his brother, ]. J.
Shubert, are acknowledged to WELD.
might be expected to be in bed At
I an.
Not Quite individuals.
But Lee Shubert happens to be
one Of the most extraordinary men
In show business. He and j. J.,
through their interlocking corpora
tions, control an empire conserva-
lively valued at $400, 900 900. includ-
ing real estate holdings and stage
properties, the rights to show music
and old plays and . financial in
terest in other producers shows.
Broadway and the Shuberts have
been associated in peoples minds
over such q long period that even
when Lee and J. J. are mentioned
by name they frequently fail to
emerge as individuals, but remain
obscured in the public consciousness
as . kind Of force controlling the
destinies of scores Of actors and
actresses, playwrights and producers
through their huge theater opera
tions.
The Shuberts own, lease or man
age 20 Of the 40-odd legitimate
theaters in New York and control
about IS in other cities.
The brothers, in fact, have vir-
tually no competition as theatrical
landlords in New York. since most
of the theaters not owned or con-
trolled by them are in the hands OF
independent producers. AS approx
mately IS per cent OF the gross re-
ceipts Of a Broadway show 60 1r
rent the Shuberts thus share in the
profits of many productions not OF
their own making.
Stories Are . Tribute.
Their activities have given rise TO
an encyclopedia collection of stories,
mostly of an unflattering nature ana
with the sort of comic Implication
contained in the apocryphal stories
about Sam Goldwyn.
Regardless OF their truth or falsity,
these stories stand as peculiar
tribute to the brothers who, be-
ginning With nothing in Syracuse
N. Y, have made more money out
of the stage than any other Two
men.
The center of the Shubert activi-
ties Is the block OF West Forty
fourth street between Times Square
and Eighth avenue.
On the north side OF the street,
under the back windows Of the Hotel
Astor, stands the Shubert Theater
Building. This houses the Shuoert
Theater, Lee Shubert's apartment
which he rarely uses except Tor
shaves and sun-lamp treatments,
his casting department and execu-
tive offces with the no smoking"
and mo casting until August signs,
and the real estate, theater- booking
and financial departments OF the
Shubert organization, the select
Theaters Corp.
They're Dissimilar.
Lee is president and ]. J. Is gen.
eral manager of Select. Any one
unfamiliar with the Shubert mind
would, therefore, expect to find J. J.
working side by side with his broth
er. particularly if he were apprised
that they share their real estate in
common and have q joint bank ac-
count.
But the stranger. upon inquiry,
finds that the brothers, while exer-
cising equal powers in the business,
are quite dissimilar In qualities one
might expect them to share.
]. J.-his given name is JACOB
and he is commonly called Jake,
though the brothers jointly prefer
the designation the Messrs. Shu-
bert"-is five years younger than
Lee. Lee is a bachelor; j. J. was
divorced in 1918.
Lee has black hair and wears
suits which cost him more than
600. is guardedly affable. polite,
sedulously careful of his figure.
given to nocturnal ramblings around
the Shubert properties and mid
night conferences. with press agents
and company managers, and is
uuietely dogged in driving home a