7 - Carl E. Ring and the American Playwright Trade Association

Summary

The Shuberts were not only able to adapt but thrive between the early 1930s and early 1940s. Abe Erlanger passed away in 1930 and Marc Klaw in 1936. With their passing ended the last remnants of the Theatrical Syndicate established in 1896. The Shubert brothers acquired most of the remaining Syndicate properties.¹ In late 1931/1932, the Shubert Organization went into receivership. By 1933, under the banner of the Select Theatres Corporation, the group repurchased the more valuable Shubert assets for a meager US$400,000 with no other bidders.² By 1941, the Shuberts had an interest in approximately 75 percent of Broadway attractions, and 90 percent of the remainder were “compelled” to play at a Shubert theatre.³ The biographer of the Shubert brothers Jerry Stagg described this period for the impresarios as “a monopoly, in the truest sense.”⁴