Variety (Jan 1906)

VARIETY. HYDE AND BEHMAN'8. A quick-running bill is here this week, with Ferry Corwey, the musical clown, as the opening numbSfl Mr. Corwey Is too high-class an artist for this position, but was so placed at the Brooklyn house to aid the stage management in getting through on time. Talbot and Rogers followed, and have a different act from that last seen. There is no "heavy tragedian" nor any horse play. Mr. Talbot has a bass voice of excellent quality and range, which he uses with judgment, while the con- versation throughout is catchy and to the point. If the team would replace the final song by something more recent their hit would be sustained to the finale. ^:. ,.•■-;■--,--. -- •• ^ ■ : John C. Rice and Sally Cohen, in "All the World Loves a Lover," have the best comedy sketch they have yet shown in vaudeville. It is by Brandon Hurst, and allows both the principals plenty of scope for legitimate work. Miss Cohen as a "drunk" is inimitable. It is a troat to follow her performance, and Mr. Rice does not miss the slight- est point, doing some of the best work he has ever shown. The lines are witty and well written. A laughed-out house demanded three curtain calls. Johnnie Carroll, who is a'popular fa- vorite in the City of Nods, earned a re- call with "Clancy's Trotter," his stand- by. For an encore he sang an Irish bal- lad having the prettiest melody for the chorus that has been heard for many a day. A boy in the box helped out, but the song does not need that sort of aid. O'Brien and Havel (Effle Lawrence) struck the fancy of those present in "Ticks and Clicks." It is a Cressy sketch well known, but always receives a good reception. If Miss Lawrence is attempting an imitation of Clara Ha- vel's voice, along with her mannerisms, -fihe should ^rop tt and speak naturaily7^ It would be much better, for now she impresses one as affected. With a pret- ty face and good figure, Mr. O'Brien should allow Miss Lawrence to rest upon her own merits. He may be as- sured it will not harm the sketch. Cooper and Robinson, the colored boys, are here this week with a very funny finale for a colored team. It is nothing more or less than an imitation of Howe and Scott in their Hebrew specialty, singing one of Scott's "Yiddish" songs. It made a great big hit, and is so com- ical that even the orchestra laughs each time they appear. Cooper's trumpeting Is entirely lost sight of in the imitation, and it takes so well that were they to tell a couple of Hebrew stories in ad- dition it might help. The Sisters Her- zog-Camaras, in their hand and head balancing, closed the bill, to the amaze- ment of many who had never seen women "three-high" carry the top- mounter on a head balance up the stair- way. Louise Carver and Genie Pollard, af- ter a swing on the Kohl and Castle route, are working East and will shortly be here again after an absence of sev- tral years. PROCTOR'S FIFTY-EIGHTH STREET. If there is one thing more than an- other that merits the especial atten- tion at this house during the week end- ing it is the display of new costumes ^y the women scattered throughout the bill. Inez Macauley In "Pals" is the first to show a new creation in black and white stripes, which is attractive, but immediately following her, after the intermission, comes May Meers in a black Jet dress, suitable to her bloud style of beauty. Dot West is right up with the lead- ers in a new white lace something which is becoming, and sets off the act in "one" much better than some of the dialogue. Ford and West are one of the teams which are rapidly disappearing from vaudeville. Their conversation is bur- dened by a too lengthy beginninc: of rapid-fire continued talk, which is neither understood nor cared for by the audience. The idea is amply conveyed in the first third of the time used. Gilroy, Haynes and Montgomery have a singing act with a drop, the whole be- ing called a sketch. It is the act shown for a short time by the old trio of Cush- man Holcomb, and Curtis, under the title of "Swells at Sea." The sing- ing is satisfactory, and did they drop the "caliope" imitation, which is use- less, the act would be in good shape. Miss Montgomery should modify hor speaking voice. The three Meers on the wire fared very well and Gus Leonard in comedy magic and music barely escaped a hit, for several reasons, the greater of which is that he has not the proper idea how to dispose of his material. Mabel McKinley sang five of the ten Isongs listed on the program, six of which are credited to herself, and one to Robert A. King. Miss McKinley was _ijl good voice, hut why "Violets" should be given when one of her own would be preferred is not easy of understand- ing. The Arditti selection is for the voice only, and where a theatre draws from the masses popular numbers are more agreeable. The Jackson Family of bicyclists is showing two new tricks. A member of the family was formerly one of the "Kaufman" girls, while the youngest Jackson is not allowed to appear on ac- count of being under the legal age. "Kid" Walsh, the stage manager at the Fifty-eighth Street house, says that this boy can duplicate the feats of any mem- ber of the team, and is a wonder on a wheel. John and Bertha Gleason, with songs and dances, while Fred Houlihan plays the piano, have no trouble in earning an encore. The act could easily be changed about to allow the Gleasons to drop the singing while allowing Houlihan to work more on the piano with comedy stuff, which would help. George and May Woodward opened the bill in a rural sketch. They both pass muster as "Rubes." There is no apparent neces- sity for the girl to wear a short skirt ex- cepting to have the "business" of the boy taking hold of her leg, which doesn't look nice, to say the least. CIRCLE. . "MsmchesieT'B "Crackerjacks" have the stage at the Circle, and by the narrow- est of margins does it escape being a "creack-Jack" show. Was the opening piece as well written as the final bur- lesque, there would be no question that this organization would be the leader In its class. While the first part, called "The Razzle-Dazzle Girls," starts off well. It slackens towards the centre through the business introduced, which is la- bored and wearies, as bright work is ex- pected from what preceded it. .. It is hardly just, though, to judge It thoroughly this week, as the afterpiece has been cut to allow the Fitzsimmons- O'Brien fight pictures to be reproduced by the biograph. It was a mistake, as the films are palpably "faked," the only resemblance to the real article being O'Brien. The person made up to rep- resent Fitzsimmons is probably O'Brien's sparring partner, and the crowd surrounding the ringside would give the whole thing away if noth ing else. The Philadelphia firm which is" steadily "faking" graphic pic- tures will eventually work themselves out of the moving picture business. This series was hissed by the audience on Tuesday afternoon. The girls in Manchester's aggregation are of the somewhat different species. They have an appearance of solidity, and you do not arrive at the conclusion after seeing the women (for they are such) that they were taken from dance halls while still foolish. The dressing is tasty and expensive, although not ex- tensive. Two of the girls are very attractive— Lillian Held and Ruby Leoni. Miss Le- oni is of voluptuous figure, the bodice of her dress seemingly having diflftculty in fitting. Miss Held is one of the few good-looking women found in burlesque. Did she give more attention to the mak- ing-up of her eyes, she would make a handsome appearance on the stage. The olio has no especial claims for merit, but does not displease in any particular. The Clemenso Brothers, in a musical act; Miss Held; the Crock- ers, in baton whirling; Shepard Camp, in blackface monologue, with two or three stories good enough to counteract the poor ones, and Hennings, Lewis and Hennings, in a sketch, fill in the time acceptably. The two Hennings should give more attention to the dancing; in particular John Hennings should seek to improve the "loose" part, while a great deal could be dropped from the act with advantage. "Nature in Marble Hall" is the after- piece with a real plot well told, giving the opportunity for producing living pictures in the form of marble statues in a legitimate manner. Bob Van Oaten is the comedian, but is so quiet in his methods tnai he does not begin to grow upon you imtil the show is most over. It is a relief, though, all through from the noisy effect g<'U- erally heard. He is ambitious, if not altogether satisfactory. THE OFFICE BOY ON CRITICISMS. "Well," said the Olllce Boy, when I made my usual call at the agent's office, "I'm still here, you see." ■■'■■■■] ■ The Boy was asked what had caused him to change front on the usher ques- tion and he replied: "It was this way. I dropped in a couple of nights last week at Keith's to look things over, and I made up my mind I couldn't stand two shows a day in the same house six times a week. So I'm going to stick to my job and wait for something else to turn up. "After seeing that show a couple of times and then hearing what the artists said about their criticisms caused me to think a little. "A vaudeville artist doesn't like a crit- icism without it's a notice which pUffs him to the sky. They haven't had any honest criticisms for a couple of years, and they've got used to paying $3 or $4 in advertising to read what a great act they have. "They'll never appreciate how much they need criticism. What else la to help them? They will go and read a no- tice of a show they are in, and if it has a suggestion for them will holler mur- der, calling the critic all the names they can think of, the first of which is 'knock- er.' They don't seem to have sense enough to know that if the suggestion Is bifTi they don't have to adopt It. If It's good they should use It, and It may be the means of bringing more money to them each week If their act Is Improved. "I don't mean by this the inteliigent artist, he wants fair criticism and In- vites It as long as it is nothing more. It's the ones that have poor acts and know it and are trying to sneak through the circuits without improvement that are afraid of attention being drawn. You never heard a good act kick, did you? No, you call bet you didn't, and you never will. "Without criticism, acts would go right along, and as long as this mushy stuff is thrown at them by the advertis- ing newspapers they would be satisfied, even though they worked only once In a while. Criticism will never hurt them and may keep a great many from falling away back through having attention called to their faults. "If a fellow could give me a sugges- tion which perhaps would be the means of bringing me more money weekly with pN'iity ()f time, what do you suppose I would ho willing to pay for it? And if I didn't like the idea I would pass It up, but at least it might start me on a new train of thought. "Here; they are getting suggestions without paying a c<»nt. Some of these artists are going to have a hard time distinguishing between a criticism and a knock. They ought to know the dif- ference, but I guess most of them don't want to. "There a whole lot more I could say, but everyone with tho least bit of intel- ligence knows it. "I guess III go around this week and look the shows over. It kinds of helps lur vvhrn I hear them talking."