New York Clipper (Apr 1923)

10 THE NEW YORK CLIPPER April 25j 1923 EIGHTY-FIRST STREET Whatever doubt anyone has ever har- bored as to the popularity of Harold Lloyd, the screen star, from a box office standpoint, was graphically dispelled at this house last Monday night, when the showMg of his latest and generally conced- ed greatest rinrma contribotion "Safety Last" attracted an audience that packed the auditorium of the spadons theatre from pit to dome. The film is being shown here in conjunction with the regular vaudeville program, but owing to the length of running time, five acts are being offered instead of the usual six which-gen- erally comprise the bill. Those who are in the know as to what money consideration achieved this first showing for the Keith houses claim it involved a sum hitherto tmheard of for an initial showing of a feature film after its abowing on Broadway. Whatever the Keith foQc gave up, it was well worth iL Bessye CUirord, the comely and shapely mnArnl opened the bill with a score or more of artistic poses. She stands upon a suspended pedestal while a stereoption throws various slides upon the white- screened background, making her the cen- tral figure in various groupings, which in- clude a number of the old masters. Wm and Gladys Ahem supply a re- freshing breath of the woolly west with their ^^awrtng - lariat manipidation. The girl is a good-looker, who gets in some clever stepping that is eohanced by a per- sonality that reaches far across tlie lights and brings her audience into her heart. The man also can hold his own as a dancer. He also slings a mean lariat and manages to convulse the mob with his comply slant on the topics of the day^ whirii he tsmdlcs with a det^re .of ease equaled only by Will Rogers. Their versatility and ma- terial bunched together makes foe a de- Ushtfnl offering tlut brought many rounds of well merited applanse. The Briants were also strong features of the bin in their novel slant on acrobatic offerings, "The Dream of the Moving Man." The men. are discovered snoozing on the job of a removal task somewhere in the ghetto. One of them has fallen asleep while gazing upon a_ clothing dummy. In his sleep he grabs his partner, who permits himself to be tossed around, giving At impression that he is manipulat- ing a dummy. At the finish the dummy comes to life and both walk off. The man doing the dummy gives an impression of a lifeless figure that is lucannily real. He oontribntes the greatest bit of panto- mine acting that has thus far been shomi upon the American stage. Through his tossing around he never moves a muscle of his facT, nor in any way reveals that he is a human being instead of the bundle of rags the audience is led to believe him to be. The Briants have contributed much that is new to the variety stage in their previons cootribations, but in their present vehicle they have easily surpassed them- selves. The Bison City Four followed with their condiination of comedy and songs. Tbeir whole £rame-up reminds one of the quartette acts of the Tony Pastor era. For uieir comedy they depend almost excusive- ]y upon the brand of "joke" that got by in those days and demonstrate that the same fonnnla can get by with equally good results today. The men appear as the routine comedr quartette characters, such as the tramp; the wop, the cop and the barkeepL They get over individually in strfos and pack a wicked harmony punch in tiie oisembles. Holmes and La Vere closed the show with a novelty, most of which is played in a minatnre Uiealr e box. Domestic strife is emi^yed for the comedy punch. They peruse the program and team that the act tfaey are aboot to witness has been ginnpsed so often by them that they know it by heart. In the ensuing scene the act they do is supposed to be their dream. BROADWAY The bill at the Broadway this week was cut down to six acts at each iperfonnance, due to the presence of the Harold Lloyd comedy, "Safety Last." Unfortunately, at the first mommg show, only five of the scheduled six acts put in an appearance. Although the program was short it con- tained three top-notch acts in Margaret Severn, Moran and Mack and the Runaway ' Four. Opening the show came Selvas, Brann and Company. The company is a person- able yonng lady who doesn't do much of anything but helps dress the act The two men do some good work, the man on the ground, in a naval officer's uniform, bal- ancing his fiartner, in sailor's clothes, on the top end of a long pole. The repertoire is difficult but lost its punch somewhat be- cause it closely followed the Harold Lloyd feature, in which that actor appears to be taking some desperate chances. Kelly and Pollack have been seen in vaudeville for some time and should know better than to expect laughs on some of their material so early in the morning. If they were to take out all but the finish of their act and then build an entirely new act around the finish they would have a great vehicle. As it is, this finish puts the act over, although the rest of the act is just so mudi waste. From the time the woman comes out in her tough make-up until after the fast dance finish the act |;oe5 great and scores all the way. But in the be- ginning the act drags, the money talks bit, the "Portugese and Greeks" song and the rest of the material being old stuff and more or less done to deadi. Margaret Severn, assisted by a pianist and two clever male Spanish dancers, were the artistic treat of the bill. Miss Severn is possessed of unusual grace, the way she uses her arms and hands bein^ par- ticularly noticeable. Her pianist is ac- complished and speaks distinctly and in- telligently. The two other men in the act give two fine Spanish routines that are worthy of a good hand. But it is the work with the Benda masks for which Miss Severn is noted and it is in this work tiiat she excels. We were sorry that she per- formed only two dances with the masks, as we could have stood several more with- out tiring. It is wonderful, the way she manages to posture and depict char- acter represented by the mask she happens to be wearing. Her whirlwind finish goes over tremendously and brought a great hand. Moran and Mack, two blackface boys who talk as if that were their natural color, are a great treat for any audience. When this team are billed you can always be sure of a good laugh and at least two new pieces of material. They keep chang- ing and building their act all the time, al- though they still keep in the boxing bit, which is a wow. Their talk about the early bird catching the worm had -the house roaring. It is their slow, easy man- ner of worlang and their fine sense for comedy values, as much as the material they use, ftat puts the act over so success- fully. In the Runaway Four vaudeville has an act that is a sure-fire attraction. These four boys work with fine showmanship, ■ the comedian getting his stuff across with- out any effort and registering heavily. The others have good voices, when they feel like singing, and can step a little when they have to. But it is as acrobats that die quartette shine. Thdr, tumbling is pat on so quick and b so good that it has the audience gasping for breath and applauding one after the other imtil the applause seems continnous. The act is a wow and is staged admirably to get the best results for the boys' particular talents. Chaplow and Carleton were the team that were scheduled to appear but did not show up, and Mehan and Newman anH Hampton and Blake are also on the bill at the Broadway but' were not caueht at the early show. C. C. PALACE (Chicago) Eight acts and an afterpiece revue, the latter bong tacked on to the offering of the Seattle Harmony Kings, go to make up a strong program here this wedc Harry Langdon is supposed to have the main part in the afterpiece, but "^ed" Johnson, of Johnson and Baker, tan away with the comedy honors of the affair. The headline honors are bdng split be- tween'Velaska Suratt and the Seattle Har- mony Kings. Johnson and Baker open the show with their hat juggling and comedy which gave an unusually good start to the show. Pietro was his usual big hit with his piano accordion, on second. He can make his instrument talk. Harry Langdon and Company appeared in a travesty which combined golfmg and autoing and found the audience ready to laugh at everything he did. The Seattle Harmony Kings have one of the best orchestra offerings which have been ' seen here. Jack NeiU, the leader, stands out, as does Hall Hiatt, the clarinet player. Gene Collins has a dance routine thaifs sure-fire and the audience could watch him dance forever. The revue af- terpiece followed the orchestra. It wasn't easy for Myers and Hanaford to follow all this, but they more than held their own with their rube comedy and went over for a trig hit. Valeska Suratt offered "Silks, Satins, Calico and Rags," a vehicle which enables her to appear to very good advantage. It is entertaining from start to finish and adds to her popularity. Miss Patricola held the next^o-dosmg spot and scored the hit of the show, with her songs and violin routine. She was called back and compelled to render en- core after encore. Perez and Marguerite brought the bill to a close with juggling stunts which in- cluded some sensational work. R. El. R. MAJESTIC (CUcago) Chicago, April 23.—The Majestic show, seen Sunday night, includes an act or two in, for Sunday only, along with most of the regular bill and made one of the strongest programs seen at that house for some time. Jack and Jessie Gibson, prevented from appearing at this house recently through illness, opened the show and offered stunts on unicycles which are splendidly pre- sented. Ray and Edna Tracey did decidedly well in second spot with an offering in which the comedy of the young lady at the piano stands out John and Nellie Olms centered attention to tricks wiA clocks and watches, ad- mirably presented and affording constant surprise and highly entertaining mysticism. Earl and Edwards, who offer parodies in such a way as to make a dandy act, took encores and then left the audience hungry for more. The Royal Venetian Five registered strongly with operatic singing and instru- mental touches. McGood, Lenzen and Company have such a classy acrobatic act that it is a real departure from the ordinary. The tricks accomplished are not only the last word in their line but they are admirably done. Pierce and Ryan provide splendid en- tertainment whidi4ias novelty through the comedian taking an old man character. Henry Antrim and Company in a sec- ond edition of "Along Broadway," have a revue which is classy and which intro- duces song hits from the big musical shows and dancing specialties. Hazel Moore, prima donna, has an exceptional voice of quality and scored big. The dancer in the act executes her numbers with skill. This is by far the best thing .Antrim has done in \'audeville. R. E. R. STATE-LAKE (Chicago) Lady Alice's Pets is the first offering of an entertaining bill, and gives the show a good start Lon and Paula Miller, a sister team hold the second spot with a routine' of piano, violin and singing bits, with some dancing thrown in tor good measure. The girls worked hard and gave a very good account of themselves. Frances Williams and Miss Vanessi, as- sisted by Arthur Freed and Jack Qifford, at two loanos, were the first hit of the show. The act is staged attractively, and the girls dance exceptionally well. One delivers popular songs to ^ood results. In addition to playing the piano, one of the boys also sings in a good baritone voice. The act is worthy of a spot lower on the biU. Jack George appeared in blackface and did a routine of comedy on King Tut, and then a sermon which were filled with laughs. An unbilled young lady assists him and made a good foil for his remarks. Jimmy Morgan's Orchestra proved to be a real musical treat The organization consists of nine men who know the art of repression and use it They played five numbers and had to do two encores. Betty Morgan, who used to do a two act witb Jimmy sang two numbers with the boys and deliveroi them effectively. Swartz and Qifford scored a comedy hit, keeping the laughs coming their way steadily. Gus Fowler offered his illusions with the myriads of watches and mystified all. Fowler has one of the best acts of its land in vaudeville. He works fast and the offering doesn't lack for interest for one moment. W. C Fields and Frank Hurst and Eddie Vogt did not appear at this performance. R. E. R. COLONIAL MAY STAY OPEN The Colonial Theatre will be kept open this year instead of closing as usual, if this wedc's experiment with a summer policy of six acts and a feature picture proves successful. The tentative date set for the closing was'May 7, and should it be decided to keep the house open, it will assume the summer policy on that day. This week the house is playing Harold Lloyd in "Safety Last'| aiid six acts. It will play the regular big tiuM policy be- ginning next week until a decision is made as to whether to keep it open or not. EUROPEAN TRIPS POSTPONED Ruth Roye and Tom Patricola, both of whom were booked for engagements in England this summer, have set back their dates until next year. Miss Roye has numerous American engagements she wants to fulfill this summer, while Patri- cola recently signed a contract to appear in George White's new show which will be staged early in June. William Morris, arranged the txx^ngs for both parties and Stained the extension of time for them as well. R0MAN05 IN NEW YORK Phil Romanos paid a short visit to New York this week. His orchestra which was booked for ten weeks at the Hotel Ken- more, Albany, has been held over for six additibnal weeks. They have also been featured at Proctor's Albany Theatre. Ih June. Mr. Romanos will start a tour of the Adirondack Mountains Summer resort, and next season he will return to tthe Kenmore. TEX McLEOD COMING HERE Tex McLeod, an American performer who has been appearing in Europe for the past number of years, and is said to have' become as clever as Will Rogers, will open in Keith vaudeville at the Royal Theatre on September 3. - McLeod does a rope- spinning and monologue act.