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New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Issue 1521, 19 June 1919, Page 30

“Marie Lohr has come through her first year of management in triumph,” says a London writer. “There have been three productions in the year—Somerset Maugham’s ‘Love in a Cottage,’ Robert Hichens’ ‘Press the Button,’ and the present success, ‘Nurse Benson.’ A charity performance of Rostand’s ‘L’Aiglon’ also has shed lustre upon this happy year at the Globe.” Miss Lohr spent her childhood in Australia, and gained success as an actress in London while still quite youthful. Her mother, as Miss Kate Bishop, made many appearances on the Australian stage.

Sir Harry Lauder is now the Laird of Branta. This he is by right of his having recently purchased the Glen Branta estate of 14,000 acres in Scotland. The title deeds of this estate date right back to the fourteenth century, and are written on sheepskin in the ancient and timehonoured way.

Mr. Harry Plimmer, the New Zealand actor, who was last through New Zealand playing classy comedy in partnership with Mr. Winter Hall, is now touring the State with Miss Ethel Barrymore, the famous American actress and screen star.

Vai. Newman, the tall comedian, last here with Paul Stanhope’s revue, has a company of his own on tour under the name of “The Tonics.” They have just completed seasons in Java, the Malay States and Sumatra. and intend to play India, China. Japan, Egypt, the Philippines and probably South Africa and England. The combination includes Vai. and Lottie Newman, Lallie Brooke (also formerly with the Fullers), and Ted Long.

Mrs. Vernon Castles, the celebrated dancer and motion picture artist, has married again. Her first husband, Captain Vernon Castle, or Vernon William Blyth (to use his correct name) was killed in an aeroplane smash in February, 1918, while he was engaged in training American flyers. He had served in the Royal Air Force. Her second husband, to whom she was married on May 3 in New York, is the owner of a hardware business in the provinces of the New York State, and he is also in the army, obtaining his commission in the American forces. His name is Captain Robert Treman, and his age is given as 30 years. Mrs. Treman gave her age as 25 years. She has announced that she will abandon dancing, but will remain in the movies.

Mr. John Fuller, of Auckland, has just received the following letter from his brother in London: “Food is gradually becoming a little cheaper, but clothing, boots, etc., are dearer than ever. You cannot get a decent tweed suit under about six guineas, and boots, the lowest about 355. My wife wanted a new bucket, and they asked 7s. 6d.; pre-war price, Is. lid. And you may say all manufactured articles are in the same proportion to the extra cost of production. This has been proved in no end of cases. It is rank profiteering. Only the other day the will of Mr. Coates, the big cotton manufacturer, was proved at £4,600,000. Three millions of this enormous sum was made in one year during the war. How? Before the war a 1000-yard reel of cotton cost 3id. Now, Is. 2td. I ask you is this fair and legitimate

business? Can you really wonder at the universal unrest? This is not an isolated case. If you read the annual meetings of different companies you will find them paying enormous dividends, some of which had not been able to declare a dividend for years previously, and remember this is after paying the immense big excess profits tax.”

In the “New York Dramatic Mirror,” Burns Mantle relates the story of how the English producer Walter Hast achieved a record success with Cosmo Hamilton’s “Scandal” after

the piece had been “tried out” and refused by the Selwyns and Shuberts. The preliminary tour justified the big managers’ rejection, and the play was about to be consigned to the storehouse when it was put into Chicago to fill a vacant date, and sprang at once into unique favour. In its first week it took £2OOO, second £2500, and thereafter for about 12 weeks it approximated £3OOO. At the conclusion of its season, Mr. Hast intends to introduce a strong melodrama by Lincoln J. Carter. This may be long deferred, for at latest advices from his manager (Mr. H. I. Cohen) the piece was still drawing like a plaster.

It is interesting to compare the entertainment which is being provided by the London theatres now with that when Lord Palmerston was able to announce the conclusion of peace after the Crimea War at the end of March, 1856, writes a correspondent of the “Times.” Drury Lane then, as now, was presenting grand opera in English. At the Haymarket, Mr. Buckstone was appearing in his original part in “A Daughter to Marry,” and the programme also included a comedy, a ballet-pantomime, and a diverting farce, “Lend Me Five Shillings.” At the Royal Princess’ three pieces were being presented — “Every One Has His Fault,” “The Victor Vanquished,” and “A Prince for an Hour”; while the Adelphi, advertising that its programme began at seven and ended at eleven, offered.

to its patrons “Jack and the Beanstalk,” “Mother and Child are Doing Well,” and “Urgent Private Affairs.” Shakespeare was being played at the Great National Standard Theatre, where “King John,” with a company of 200 artists, was followed by opera; and at the Royal Soho Theatre, where “Othello” formed a strange companion to the “screaming farce,” “Mrs. Jones.” Sadler’s Wells was presenting a colossal entertainment which consisted of “The Courier of Lyons,” after which “The Invisible Prince,” to be followed by the grand Amazonian ballet, concluding with other entertainment? The programme at the Royal Surrey Theatre

was made up of “How We Live in the World of London,” “The Lawyer’s Legend,” and “The Cobbler and Tailor”; while at the Royal Olympic the performance of “Still Waters Run Deep” was followed by “The Discreet Princess.” The fact that dinner was served at an earlier hour partly explains the length of the programme; but now the tendency seems to be to go from the one extreme of too substantial an entertainment to the other of a programme which is all too short.