Show Pop the Actor j BY HARRYDELE HALLMARK That is what the Baltimorean calls him Pop the actor He lives in Baltimore Md and is now a newspaper dog Why he is called call-ed the former and how he came by the latter is a funny story Two years ago an opera company was playing at Albaughs theatre in Baltimore There was a very handsome hand-some tenor who sung leading parts and he owned a big shaggy Irish setter that always came to the theatre with him every night and matinee Where ever you saw that tenor on the street or at the hotel you would always see that long lank shadow behind him The whole opera company loved that dog They used to try to get him into their dressing rooms but the dog never would leave the dressing room of his 1 j lnflIj2iLi fflL I 14 L U jg Illf I I 11111 I I Ijill j 5 < I 5 HE GAVE A LONG PITIFUL HOWL master When the tenor was on the stage the dog would be down on one of the trunks with one eye open and one eye shut and his ears cocked up In those days his name was Jack When his master came down the steps that led from the stage Jack would meet him and see him safely out and then condescend to play with the property prop-erty men When not on duty he was as fond of play as possible Sometimes the property men would try to persuade him outside during the act They would hold out bits of meat or a bone and say Onn ° out i v nothing will happen to the clothes but the dog would only IUDK at tu1 and give short sharp barks which meant I will not do it and you know i tI tIOne One nightthe night that made Jack an actor a new property man was detailed de-tailed to look after things in the dressing dres-sing rooms which ran in under the stage while the usual caretaker had an evening off The new man knew I nothing of the tenors dog and his habit of lying on one of his masters trunks When the other property man went out for the evening he thought he had told his substitute every thing but he hadnt mentioned Jack When the new watchman passed by the open room and saw a big shaggy dog lying on top of some clothes the I tenor had trown on his trunk he naturally natur-ally thought he was some tramp dog strayed in from the street Get out I of hear he cried The dog looked up at him in surprise Get off that trunk the man said I Jack didnt move The man stepped in then and catching hold of Jack pulled him off the trunk and kicked i him towards the door I Poor Jack He had never been kicked I kick-ed in his life and he was too startled and annoyed to resent it But he saw the propertyman close the dressing I room door and felt that his master I I must be informed and he turned and f flew up the short flight of steps and got into the wings The company was giving II Trova tore last night and Jacks master S was standing behind a stage tower j i I ready to sing Ah I have sighed to I rest me Jack had never been in front or behind be-hind the scenes for his duty had always al-ways been in the dressing room Therefore There-fore he had never become familiar with his masters singing All will remember remem-ber that just as the tenor sings this < solo the chorus sing a sad very S mournful song Jack had got in the wings just in time to hear the end I I of this and it frightened him Nor did he like the lights and the people massed out in front Nor could he see hls master anywhere And he had been kicked and treated badly down stairs and his masters door was i I closed on him His little heart was about to burst I Just then high and clear rose the tenors voice from the tower of the prison on the other side of the stage It was sad It was crying for help This was more than Jack could stand He looked up and down his master was not to be seen There was no one on the stage but a woman at the further fur-ther end who was wringing her hands He could bear no more and he bouiid ed out on the centre of the stage and lifting up his head gave a long pitiful piti-ful howl and then one howl after another an-other The people behind the scenes were calling him and whistling The big audience in front of the footlights awfully startled at first began to clap and applaud There was a perfect roar of laughter everywhere But Jack couldnt see the fun so he howled on Finally a supe ran out on the stage and literally dragged him off but the howls were still so pitiful that Jacks master had to step down from the tower and pat him on the head and talk to him so that the opera could go on Jack was so happy then that he nearly knocked his master down jump ing on him and the only way he could be made to stop was by the tenor giving giv-ing him over to one of his personal friends whom Jack knew who went down stairs with him unlocked the door and put him back on the trunk The next mornihg the Baltimore papers pa-pers had long stories about it and everyone in Baltimore knew about the dog actor His name of Jack was diojpped and everybody called him Lieutenant Poppenberger the stage name of Jacks master in II Trova tore This name was shortened to Pop and to this day he goes by it in Baltimore The tenor had a throat trouble that winter and left the stage and went on the staff of one of the big Baltimore dailies There you can see Pop any day you chance to drop in when his master is writing up his story All the newspaper men know him and f sometimes when they are at their desks writing an account of an opera and describing the tenors voice they call out to the big long dog in the corner He can sing very well but he cant sing a solo like you Pop can he And Pop will look up at his master give a short little bark and then put his head down qn his paws He evi dently thinks itwas very silly in him to act that way |