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The Omaha Sunday Bee Magazine Page
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Wilton Lackaye Complains That Dramatic and Operatic
Stars Come Here from Other Countries and Earn and
Take Away Enormous Salaries Which Are Free from
Taxation,
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While
American
Actors
Have to
Pay Their
Income
Tax
Cnruso $2,500 a Performance.
Olive Fremstad . 1,000 a Performance.
1,000 a Performance.
5,000 a Week.
(Owning His Own Production)
3,000 a Week.
Emmy Destin
Cyril Maude ,
Gaby Deslys
Pavlowa
2,500 a Week.
S
t -A r-' V
1 . - . - , - V
liaf Some Foreign Stars Earn!
Harry Lauder . . .
Forbes-Robertson
Bernhardt
Vesta Victoria . . .
Marie Lloyd
Kitty Gordon
George Grossmith
Leon Enrol
of. (ci
Caruso "Giving Us the Laugh" at Ha Sailed Away Last Season with His Un
taxed Thousands.
TTTTHY dots the Commissioner of Internal Revenue sxompt on of ths
YX largest classes of foreigners doing business In this country from
payment of the lawful tax upon Income gained herof Thle class la
compoeed of aetore and other member of the theatrical profeeelon. And,
ae stated by Mr. Wilton Lackaye In hie Illuminating article printed on this
page, they not oniy outnumber native Americans In that profession, but suc
cessfully exert a competition which actually "mothers" native talent.
As Mr. Lackaye aptly remarks, "The hands across the sea get Into our
pockets over there and aleo over here. They get us coming and going."
Mr. Laokayo has promised his fsllow "pro-American" actors to go to
Washington and see the Commissioner about It. As hs shares with Sir Her
bert Beerbohm Tree the Bvengall powers which caused the play of "Trilby"
to make a dozen fortunee here and In England, Mr. Lackaye aeems to bs the
logical selection for that mission. Perhsps he will be sble to hypnotics the
Washington authorltlss, as hs hypnotlied Trilby, and have this discrimina
tion stopped. ,
English competition Is the most numsrous and ths least grateful. If
Englleh actors aro compelled to pay tax on the Incomes they gsln hsre by
"making faces for us," possibly as Mr. Lackays suggests they may cease
"making faces AT us" whsn thsy start home with "buttoned up pockets."
By Wilton
IN the natter of Income-tax I'm no
neutral I'm pro-American. I be- '
Hot that most ot the members of
my profession who are American cltlsens
feel the same way about it. Tbey ought
to, anyway, for they are fairly smoth
ered by competition from abroad which
gets off scot-free. English and other
European actors bare to pay Income tax
at home. When we go over there we
have to help them support their rorern
menu out of our Incomes. When tbey
come over here as they do. In multi
tudes and swell their incomes out ot all
previous proportions, while ours are cor
reapottdlngly reduced, they're at liberty
to pack It all back home with them.
In other words, the hands across the
sea get into our pocket over there and
also over here. That'a the true, up-to-date
meaning ot "Hands Across the bea."
Tbey get us coming and going.
'It seems to me a little alarming that
It should be possible for a man who
doesn't happen to be an American to
apend a year here, collect, say 1100,009,
button up his pockets and sail away
without even being Invited to contribute
toward the expenses of a government
which made the feat possible. This
seems to me Just a trifle unjust
They've done it and are still doing it.
whole armies of them. Uncle Bam col
tected no Income tax from the cele
brated Kendalls, who, at the close of one
American season, were estimated to be
$400,000 richer when they sailed home
than when they came over. Cyril Maude,
as "Grumpy," is believed to have cleared
1100.000 without making any pecuniary
contribution to the United States Gov
ernment. Consider Kitty Gordon, with her $1,500
per week for three or four years, all in
American money, with no tax on It. The
Uoyds, three or four In the fam
ily, most of them with big American
salaries; the Grossmlths; the income
prince of them all. Harry Lauder. These
are familiar Instances and barely a
drop in the foreign actors' bucket, which
American audiences fill to overflowing.
Desldea dollars, this country furnishes
these thrifty foreign stage people with
much ill-concealed amusement, mingled
with contempt. We're ao "easy" that the
sentiment ot gratitude would be wbolly
misplaced.
but we "take it out" amply of the long
suffering American artist. Suppose he
wishes to present a new play. He is
obliged, even under the present tariff, to
pay what averages (0 per cent on every
thing which enters into the production;
whereas ths foreign artist Las his pro-
Lackaye.
ductlon made abroad, brings it over here
in bond, carries it all over the United
States until It is worn out, and then takes
it over to Hackensack and makes a bon
fire of It.
Now, what do you say to that? Ths
spectacle Is not at all uncommon.
There are a few Americans playing in
England not many actors, but a number
of gentlemen endowed with considerable
physical beauty, and others engaged for
their proficiency in ragtime, which usu
ally Interests the typical English audi
ence. The English Government is not
discriminating; these pay Income tax
over there Just the same as though they
were actors.
When we benevolently exempt the for
eign artist from a Ux on his income ws
simply add to his superior advantages
over our own cltlsens. This is putting a
premium on expatriation. The American
born artist, say of the Metropolitan Opera
Company, has usually established herself
aa a cltlsen of a foreign country. That
enables Mile. Ex-Patria to bring sixty
trunks into New York without duty. But
Miss Lillian Russell, returning from a
visit abroad, is obliged to pay by ths
ounce. That Is a fact.
Season after sesson foreign artists
come over here under contract, bringing
all their costumes free ot duty. They
re here to gain bigger Incomes than they
ever get at home. Tbey are free from
the financial responsibilities to this Gov
ernment which are a Ux on their Amer
ican co-workers. And yet the very next
American who returns from abroad with
the tools of her trade has to pay by ths
ounce.
Our own Captains of Industry make
these contracts and see the fortunate for
eigner In and out of the country free of
duty and untaxed. In numbers which lit
erally smother with foreign competition
our home industry of the stage. Tbey
come over with a tree pass, in and out. to
make faces for us; and they go back un
mulcted, filled with amusement and con
tempt, to make faces AT us.
In view ot the fact that ao many of the
foreign countries are now embroiled with
one another to an extent which makes it
hard for the would-be cosmopolitan
American to pick a winner, it aeems to
me that this is sn excellent time for us
to invoks the spirit of pro-Americanism.
We don't want to, and we don't need to,
put up any Chinese wall in front ot for
eign artists. Let them come on over and
make faces FOR us, but let us hospitably
Invite them to Join us in paying the in
come tax. Their contribution would
amount to considerablemore than you
would believe. And when
they have made It a tew
times they will stop mak
ing faces AT us.
I have no objection to
foreign artists from the
standpoint of art They have a mes
sage for us. Let them deliver it, by
all means. The question before us Is an
economlo one. From the standpoint of
an economlo principle I have the same
regard for a foreign artist that I have
for a Chinese laundryman. Both pack all
tbey get away with them. Let them pay,
like the rest ot us. That's what we want
If Incomes gained In the theatrical pro
fession are taxed most of that revenue
will come out of the pocketa of foreign
artists. There are hardly any American
actors now. I think there is hardly a
theatre in New York where there are not
more foreign than American players.
Any manager will rather engage a for
eign actor than an American. It Is not
their fault the public likes It The pub
lic likes to see the foreign name on the
programme. It likes to hear the lan
guage spoken, don't you see, with a broad
"a." and no "h's" at all
Since the European war began there
are more foreign actors here than ever
before. They have come over here in
enormous numbers, especially from Eng
land perhaps to make room for the Irish
in the trenches. Most of them gain tax
able Incomes. Another thing they do is
to reduce American actors' Incomes, If
not to the vanishing point, certainly to a
point where they won't bear taxation.
Whether It is because we are Anglo
maniacs, the fact remains that the Amer
ican playgolng public seems quite agree
able to the situation. There Is a rlass
of Americsns who like to be considered
cosmopolitan, and who appear to define
a cosmopolitan as one who sneers at his
own country. James T. Fields once said:
"I think that a real cosmopolitan should
know something even ot his owa coun
try" Our American managers began by en
gaging English actors for types In
English plays. That seems reasonable.
The publlo applauded, not so much be
cause these Imported actors were familiar
with the real life typea which tbey im
personated as because they were luxuries,
as most imported articles are. After that
the American public were esger to see
English actors as any sort ot types, real
life or fictional. The English actor was
planted in thla country, and the Ameri
can actor never dreamed how abundant
the harvest would be.
The American managers have con
tinued to be wise for their box office.
They engage English actors to play pure
American types, home-bred characters,
who refuse to broaden their "a's" and
who put their "h's" where they belong.
Consider the esse of Mr. Ames, first
presiding genius of the New Theatre,
built and endowed to foster and protect
American art. Mr. Ames transfers his
talents, which certainly are respectable,
to the Playhouse, and offers a generous
prize for the best native American play.
Miss Alice Brown, of New England, wins
the prise with a drama which is not only
American but New England Yankee
throughout Mr. Ames pays the prise
money and proceeds to produce the prise
play.
Now you would think, wouldn't you,
that Mr. Amos would have engaged some
genuine Yankee actors for that play?
Just as so many managers began by en
gaging English actors to play English
types T He didn't For the two best na
tive, real live Yankee parts he engaged
two born and bred Englishmen Mr.
Herbert Kelsey and Mr. A. Kv Anson. The
latter had been In this country only a
year.
And Mr. Ames himself Is a Yankee.
.
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Harry Lauder, Jokingly
Called "The Plunging
Scot," Because of His
Economical Proclivities,
Pavlowa Who Dances Away with 1
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American Sisters Pay.
He pays bis Income tax which is where
bis English actors in Yankee parts cer
tainly had the laugh on him.
It Is small consolation that the produc
tion was not a financial success. Who
csn say that It would have been a flnan-
clal success with Yankee actors in those
Yankee parts?
But the moral Is there Just the same.
If we Insist on handing our Jobs over to
foreigners, why not stop there T Why so
overdo the generosity business by letting
them off In the Income tax department?
Americans In my profession have no
illusions about the possibility of scaring
English actors from these shores with
threats of putting the income tax onto
them. They could pay the lax and still
make twice as much money here as they
would get anywhere else In the world
No, they won't lose their enthusiasm for
American dollars, they will only lose
some of their amusement
Gather them in under
the Income Ux provisions
sad they wUl not laugh
AT us quite as heartily as
they had formed the habit
or doing.
In absolute seriousness,
this Is an economic ques
tion. Thla Government
levies a tax upon all in
comes in excess of a cer
tain amount per annum. It
la robbing ourselves to
exempt any foreigner
whose Income la made In
America.
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Kitty Gordon, Resting;
Comfortably, Thank
You, Secure from the
Income Tax, Being Quite
English, You Know.
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CopjrighC mi by ths) lur CoiaaiAn Ortvt SriUlfi Rlffhta Restrrvd