The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1943-10-15


boo about red points.
"Listen, I haven't undressed q
protested. He sported brown suit, {
. prize-fighter's jaw and fists pre-
At 80, Todd is the moneymakingest
theatrical producer on dimmed-out
but still gaudy, tough, bold Broad
way. He Is a natural-born promoter:
ct 2, he moved in on Minneapolis
carnival and cleaned up with every
live duck in the ball-and-bucket
game concession. In Chicago and
Hollywood Todd made and lost his
fortune seven times. Then he hit the
jackpot in the New York Worlds
Fair Midway. Now he is building an
empire in show business, and he'd
rather be known as 1.-The original
Mike Todd" than as second zieg-
field"
FIvB SHOWS THIS WINTER
TWO Todd dillies, "Star and Gar
ter" and "Somthing for the Boys"
net him more than any other pro-
Queer Is making. And Todd expects
TO have three more shows open by
January. They are THE Naked
Genius" by Gypsy Rose Lee; Mex
lean Hayride;" and Men in My
Life" by Mae West.
All Of that Is not girlie-girlie, Todd
argues; It's just robust. Burlesque Is
In the beholder's eye.
'T.1e Mae West show Is gonna dis
appoint q lot Of people who'll ex-
pect to see her doing what she did
10 OF IS years ago." he said. you
know, Mae Is one smart dame. With
Mae, everything Is premeditated
crime"
He was asked II he finds Miss Lee
as smart.
Gypsy, I don't know-Gypsy, I'm
afraid, Is an intellectual" he unused.
Todd asserted he has just bought
two more shows to produce. One Is
q musical by "a man that's dead a
long time-one Of Americas great
composers" The other is a play by
Betty Smith, whose serious novel
about poor folks living In Brooklyn
is a best seller.
VARIETY IN HIS PLANS
"Don't that prove I don't type
easy?" Todd demanded "Of course,
though, II it's Mike Todd who puts
on that Betty Smith playa straight
love story-people are liable to go In
there and say, My, that's sexy!' You
know, there's lot Of chemistry In
what people see In the theater."
He started doing the unexpected
spectacularly, at the Minneapolis
carnival concession. A guy named
the Duke gave you a duck II you
threw the ball into the pail and the
ball stayed there. The Duke hired
Mike to get under the platform and
pull q string and knock the ball out,
every time q customer threw and
Duke hollered, Don't miss itl''
Mike got under-after instructing
Q pal Of his in the crowd: Nov,
when the Duke says, Don't miss It'll
you yell back, I won'tl and throw.
That way, I'll know it's you and I
won't pull the string"
Later Mike became a soda jerker
and studied pharmacy, and, on the
side, operated college of bricklay-
ing. A construction business, where
IN he put ads in the newspapers
and sublet the contracts, got him
into big time. He was doing $1,000
600 Q year before the bond house
that was financing him went boom.
He admits he made, and lost, even
more in Hollywood, where he en-
gagged in road building, sound
equipment, and the steamship bus
mess. Back in Chicago, he was a
sag writer for the comics Olsen and
Johnson; and he put on a sensa-
tional Flame Dance, in the Century
Of Progress Midway. He dropped
$4,000 Of his profits from that in a
straight Chicago Civic Opera road
production Of THE Mikado." Eut
before it got out of Indiana, Mike
had learned to swing the operetta-
and afterward, at the New York
worlds Fair, The Hot Mikado'
made Todd famous.
PRODUCER SCANS BUDGETS
That production and three others
at the Fair crossed $1,000 900, Todd
reported, and Something for the
6oys" and Star and Garter" have
crossed $4,000, 900 apiece. SO far.
4 don't have no budgets-that's
3 lot Of bunk" he explained. "Peo-
Ele figure so many seats for so much,
but ] always say. Suppose q seat
breaks or the customer don't show
npqss
stan, he provided q few other in
arNsfing figures. Besides the box
ilce take Of Something for the
eyss. which cost ei6e. 900. the show
oueht sass 900 from the movies.
<odd sold Garter" 10 the films for
80 eco but bought Il back for ei7b.-
because, he said. ne didn't like
he studios plan Tor filming H. II
z 9lI2o00. The Investment N |
ak6d uening'' VIII rum 20 around |
eco hut already. AefeEe "a New I
5.|144 M..I.... A. Sc &saaa4 ME.|M A 81