OCR Text |
Show MORI ROOM BACK OF SCENES WEEDED Stage Workers Complain That the City -Firemen Are in Their Way. Numerous alterations back of the scenes In various theaters of Salt Lake will probably be required as the' result of a conference Tuesday between Fire Chief W IL Gloro. Assistant Chief W. L. Fitzgerald and members of the Theatrical Theat-rical Stage Employes' union. For some time there , has been considerable fooling fool-ing between stage employes nnd some of the llrcmen stationed back of the scenes. The stage workers complained that Ihe firemen wore In their way and frequently bitter recriminations were exchanged. ex-changed. Tuesday afternoon a delegation of stage employes, headed by S. B. Newman, New-man, president of the union, called on tho Are chief. AsslstanL 'Chief Fitzgerald, Fitzger-ald, who is well posted on stage appliances, ap-pliances, questioned some of the callers and hrought out the fact that in some of tho theaters there is not room for the tlreman lo stand at his post without with-out being In thb way occasionally. Chief Glore offered lo recommend an ordinance which should provide sufficient suf-ficient room for- firemen back of the stage and also a smoking room for the stage employes and actors. Almost all actors and stage employes are smokers, and one of the most difficult tasks the fireman has Is to prevent them from smoking back of the stage. In Ohlcf Gloro's absence in tho cast a tlreman, stationed at tho Daniels theater, thea-ter, reported that the stage was not cleared as directed in the ordinance. Tho matter was brought to the attention of Max Floronce, who threatened lo discharge dis-charge the employe who had refused to obey the fireman whon tho latter ordered or-dered tho stage cleared. This wns taken up Tuesday by Chief Glorc, who said ho did not want anyone discharged, although al-though tho ruleB must be obeyed. The cmployo promised to obov the rules and will retain .his position. Chief Glore told the stage employes that whenever a fireman fire-man stationed at any theater was guilty of profanity or of exceeding his authority author-ity In any way tho offending fireman would be removed If they would report him. Chief Glore will make a personal Inspection In-spection of all the theaters and, as far as practicable, firemen will bo assigned to definite po3ts back of tho stage. Of course their duties In preventing smoking smok-ing and In looking out for fires require them to walk about back of the curtain a good deal, but Chief Glore believes when sufficient room Is made for them, further complaints can bo . avoided Assistant Chief Fitzgerald pointed out that several of the firemen against whom the stage employes complained most bitterly bit-terly aro no longer members of the department. de-partment. Some of them were men who did not understand their duties, but they were soon got rid of and men with better judgment asslgnod to ths theaters. |