Variety (September 1919)

.'. ."• '■:• .'". VAK1A 1 » -.:, .•/■ ■:' »' -' . . t f^ f ■ 5 '.'- E I tha Knlser, drawing hisses until be puts prison bars over It sending him oil to big applause. __ Montnmbo and Nap were next to closlngwlth a good comedr acrobatic turn. Tbe closing stunt with a plant on tbe top of tables and chairs was good for many laughs. The Vic- tory Trio, throe girls, pleased with harmony singing. Tbe Rooster imitation by tbe heaviest member, cleverly done, stood out and got tbe biggest applause. Don Stanley and Mlnnette Lee, In the closing position fared well with banjo playing. Tbe girl also playing an accordion quite well. Walter Gilbert, a good contortionist, opened the show. Gilbert keeps up a continuous flow of talk throughout bis contorting. If his talk is designed tor laughs, none material- ized here. The Will King company In "Say Listen" closed the entertainment. A Fathe comedy started It MAJESTIC, CHICAGO. Chicago, Sept. 3. The Incomparable .Gertrude Hoffman head'' lined and took tbe headline honors, as aha always does. Her act Is tbe same that baa been seen at this theatre and the Palace be- tore, with tbe exception of a Peacock dance, tbe least impressive of her offerings, but much more rhythmic than Bob Hall's subsequent rhyming review of it. Tbe dance of tbe Allies, which was terrific when the war was of In- terest, loses Its kick now that the war Is more or less passe as an Inspirational basis. Not- withstanding, tbe audience paid Miss Hoffman tbe tribute she compels by her elaborate and colorful entertainment Bender and Meehan followed the Van Cellos, who opened with a good barrel-and-foot balancing and Juggling turn. Bender and Meehan have a hybrid act which Includes acro- batics, acrobatic dances apd acrobatic gags. Ollre Briscoe and Al Raub, Olive as comely as ever and Al as homely as ever, both as tuneful as ever, delighted. They were fol- lowed by Harry Green in bis Irreverent but ' irresistible satirical comedy by Aaron Hoffman. It's about heaven, but It's a bell of a good sketch, and Green fits Into It Qreen today la probably the best delineator* of Jewish types In vaudeville. He manages to portray tbe chief characteristics of the race as Montague Glass wrote them—truthfully, ludicrously but not offensively. ) Felix Bernard and Jack Duffy scored bigs, with that type of two-man act which is over- running vaudeville these days—the type where there Is a male pianist and male singer, and the singer always sings "The Woman In Room 18," with business, and dances. as Al Roth would dance If Al bad locomotor ataxia. Tbe large number of these acta Is not due to tbe fact that they are easy to do, but exists In response to a demand on the part of the pub- lic. The seltgelat (It's all right to use a German word now) calls for lass, and .this is Jass. If It's not well'done It's hideous. If It is well done It gets over big. Felix and Jack do it well. ' Bob Hall had the honor Of following Hiss Hoffman. When be called for subjects, a nut -in the house Insisted that Bob deliver a rhyme on the actors' strike. Bob refused to make up a rhyme about it He refused to rhyme about the American Federation of Labor. Bob got over nicely, as he always does. His song was "I've Got My Captain Working for Me Now." Cummins and White closed the sow, with acrobatics and a special college drop. aWbkjv PALACE, CHICAGO. Chicago, Sept 8. The Palace opened for Its regular vaudeville season and reopened after being strikebound two weeks or more as a legitimate (summer) house, Monday, with a strong bill. The show looked only fair on paper, but played like a forest Are to a capacity audience. With the exception of the opening and closing acts every turn, had songs or dances, and most of them both. -Eva Shirley and her song- dance-circus Tycobbed the league, putting the show on a strike for about a dozen recalls for bows and a speech. Miss Shirley is a -pudgy girlie with the vocal equipment of a six-foot diva. In her retinue Is Al Roth, who shimmies from his ankles to his. ears and throws the wise and the simps Into convulsions. And tbe ]azs band, led by Fid Gordon, who dances like a dervish while he razzes a Jazz on his violin, compares with any In vaude- ville. Tbe Spanish Revue stood up, headlined. Fifteen pople in several sets of scenery decked with Spanish flowers, maybe garlic buds, made a striking showing, all duded up with man- tillas, velvet knickers, high headdresses, gaudy combs and the other Spanish, trimmings. Thirty castanets can make a lot of noise, too. None of the individual work Is extraordinary, but the ensemble makes a showy act and a novelty. Edith Clifford followed. Miss Clifford took home two strips of bacon with "I've Got My Captain Working for Me" and "Walt Till Tou Get Them Up in the Air," and then ran the string of her 1910 assembly of snappy comedy songs. She worked fast and bit hard for an encore and speech. Her pianist, ,Roy Ingrk- bam, Is a competent accompanist Epos Frazere opened. He does trspese swing work, rather exciting and very neat, but kills his finish by descending and taking three-quarters of a minute to pick up a hat, coat and cane and stroll off. They call what he commits an anti-climax in books about stagecraft. Whitfield and Ireland, with Joe-Donahue, came •n in an uproad of laughs over their funny rural drop, then pulled bellrlngers one after another and finished with Whitfield lunging uto a eaxaphone as the other two burlesqued •fn«s. This team took better In mid-act than »t t*i sad, but Is a strong winner. 8am Orson and Helen Myra, newcomers In this sector of the blg-tlme map, held Number two with violins and dances, and Miss Myra did an approach toward a song. 8hs Is a sprightly rascal, easier to look at than listen to, and she Is generous with her stingy skirts. Ray Fern and Marlon Davis contributed per- haps the most notable performance of the bill. It was notable in that, except for a word or two, It was Identically the same as last season; yet It was twice aa good. Ray is a sunny comedian of yore, but somohow he seems warmer than ever before. And Marion I Zlog- 'feld should seize her, strike or no strike. Any walking delegate who would call her out and make her put on long Clothes Is no friend of equity. What It takos to do a model on tbe stage, sbe sure has It—twice. Last year this reporter wrote that when sbe wore gold boots she had more gold In them than on them; sbe still wears the golden boots and the condition. Is ditto—sxcept that gold has gone up since then. Miss Davis Is rounding out artistically as well as llmbphatlcally, and her performance has taken on the graces of smooth, quiet assur- ance and cbio poise. Collins and Hart closed, always the same pair, of side-splitters. If there is a criticism to make It's that they are always the same. But. probably vaudeville audiences wouldn't have them change, Laii. McVlCKER'S, CHICAGO. .-..-..-/-: Chicago, Sept 8. Somebody that has something to. do with this bouse is getting ambitious. The bill this week is far removed from the class which affords the dally paper highbrow critics an opportunity to trot out their most aclduous adjectives and give them an airing. It being Labor Day, with the honest proletariat at case, and there being an actors' strike in Chi- cago (and elsewhere) tt would not have made much difference what kind of a bill was offered; they clamored for seats-oil day long. But "it was an exceptionally good bill. The biggest flash on the bill was Mack Ben- nett's Bathing Girls, but the best act on the bill was a single- turn by a not unknown young woman of the small big time and big small time—Peggy Brooks. Peggy Is tbe Jass edition of Grace La Rue. Her touch of brogue has irresistible charm, and sbe has a natural break In her voice which if properly utilised would be worth a million ($1,000,000) dollars to ber. At that, Peggy Is not without tricks. In her numbers, which like herself are full of sex, she knows when not to sing a line, on the principle that the unsung line Is like the unwritten law—it covers a multitude of sins and gathers no moss. Peggy has four num- bers, nicely chosen with a regard for her peculiar delivery, and speaks no lines except to music, which Is a mistake. A wise little monolog delivered In that wise little brogue would enhance the value of ber act Peggy- needs words as well as music, but with Just music sbe Is still a fine entertainer, and a little more gowning and an accompanist would make her eligible for the deuce per diem. The bathing girls are a riot. Bach and every one of the darbs gathered and assembled. by Mack Sennett Is a carnival of curves. If Mack is ever put out of business by a strike of the celluloid actors, he will not have to worry. He can get a lob any time for tbe Sultan of Turkey, as chief scout for tbe harem. The darlings in Mack's vaudeville harem come out In bathing suits. This Is, they almost come out Such concealment as the sea apparel affords Is of no consequence; the dear things do not wear tights, and each and every one of them flashes sinister knees. At last the problem aa to what makes tbe wild waves wild has been solved. When those babies saunter out it Is to gate, pop-eyed, and when several come out together, cock-eyed. As may have been gathered from the foregoing, the act went over. The Aerial Le Vails opened, with a novel turn In which the comedian of the pair does a comedy disrobing while twisting around a bar, fastened to it by his feet . Bobby Henshaw followed, in a coat made out of pool table cloth and ducks of trousers. With a freak opening In which he yodels off- stage while tbe spotlight bunts him, he comes out. with a uke and gives Imitations ef a poll parrot, flute. Christian auto-horn, Jewish auto horn, steel guitar and everything, all being fairly recognizable as announced and pleasing the customers. Emmett and Moore are earnest If not unduly talented and esger if not versatile. Opening before a special drop In two representing a scene in Ireland, with tbe man in the char- acter of an Irish blacksmith and the girl a Hibernian hoyden, they talk and the man sings, and then they change to fancy cos- tumes, and they talk and the man sings, and then they both sing. There is a dog In the act He neither talks nor sings. Ann Hamilton and Co. (the company Is a voice offstage) offered a dramatic sketch con- cerned with spiritualism. Miss Hamilton acts like Kalich. The sketch Is so dramatic that It gets somewhat heavy. The subject however, does not permit comedy relief. The six Royal Hussars followed Miss Brooks, and tbe bathing girls closed. Swing. KEDZIE, CHICAGO. Chicago, Sept 8. This house opened Us season with a good bill and a capacity house, and nothing could be sweeter. Addlngtoa Roth is manager of the house this season as he was last and beamed ghoulish appreciation of the box office. On number two, the Qulxoy Four tied'us the show, proving again that position Is every- thing In life, but not In vaudeville. The Four are nice looking lads whose act en the whole to Jan ssualc, la which they hansusito* effec- tively. There's a plaio, and one of the boys plays It well. Tbere are banjos, and they all know how to handle them. For the rest, they Just sing. Better days are in store for the four. Another early spot got honors—the Aerial Macks—who opened the show. This Is the return to vaudeville of this team after an absence of two years. Their bar act is swift and. sure. The one trouble with them is that they are high-fliers, and tbe house has a low proscenium. The result was that some of their stunts were hidden from the view of the audi- ence. / '" Joe Bennett with his "Telephone Tangle" sketch followed the Qulxoy Four, with Ben- nett In the funny Abe Kablbble type. The telephone operator In the aot is a golden beaut. Tbere are four women and three men in all, wbo elaborate on the Idea carried out by Harry Watson In his specialty In "Odds and Ends," now being presented In vaudeville. The act Is Jammed with laughs. Two of the men bad a tendency to speak more loudly than was necessary, with the result that some of their lines could not be understood. The act hit Dorothy Vaughn preceded the closing act She is the laughing type of entertainer, clos- ing, In tact, with a laughing number which was the hit of her act. Samaroff and Bonis, last seen here at the Majestic, made an acceptable closing act with their Russian folk dances. Biotoff. ORPHEUM, NEW ORLEANS. ' New Orleans, Sept 3. Quite auspiciously was the sew season In- augurated at the Orpbeum. Fall weather pre- vailed and two capacity audiences viewed the Initial performances. Minus a name featureV Anna Chandler and "Tbe Heart of Annie Wood" were designated to Jointly headline. Frlscoe (tbe xylopbonlst) opened tbe show and season. He proved the surprise bit of the bill at the very outset working 27 minutes, stopping the show completely and leaving them begging for more. Frlscoe has gone ahead and dons something. He has a whole coterie of plants who help work up bis matter, reaps an avalanche of applause and outdistances bis nearest rival many lengths. Edwin and Lottie Ford pleased In the second position. Several drops and a Grecian setting are employed In elaborating their dancing, which Is rhythmic and vigorous. Lottie Is dressing dandlly, and a few changes would help Edwin keep pace. Henry Toomer wrung gales of laughter with "Tbe Wife Saver," making the old Ardell play- let a rlsable tickler of unusual proportions. He has added considerable patter of his own. Harry Jolson got to them In short order, heaping the returns as he proceeded. The grand opera burlesque got the most, as usual. "The Heart of Annie Woed" again exposes to view the splendid directive artistry of Emily Ann Wellmon. Thematlcally, It Is conventional enough, but Miss Wellmon, with ber quaint, originative manner in a productive way has caused It to ascend to a niche of magnitude. From the interpretative angle, it is apt and precise. Anna Chandler started slowly, due to open- ing with a fast ballad that will be a whale on Broadway, but somewhat ahead of the provin- cial places. It Is about a chorus Jane wbo hod lots of luck, but It was all bod. Conclusively, she employed Berlin's "Captain" song, which exited her to voluminous returns. Miss Chandler Is working now with the poise of Grace LaRue, the naivette of Irene Franklin, and a bit of the devilment and rlsqueness of Marie Lloyd, shaping up as a corking turn. Her pianist, Sidney Landfleld, extremely com- petent with the Ivories and debonair personally, has done excellently in providing special num- bers. Dainty Marls made a capital closer, keeping everybody seated, and sending her familiar specialty over to bounteous success. Manager White added to the good impression created by providing several unexpected nov- elties. O. if. Bamual. PICCADILLY JIM. • Indianapolis, Sept ft. "Piccadilly Jim," the new offering of P. O. Wodehouse and Guy Bolton, had an opening weehwat the Murat Instant and prolonged hucJBI on Broadway locally la predicted. A tangle of a plot In which amusing situs- ' tlons crowd upon one another Is bound to- gether by sparkling lines. The piece was presented by the Btuart Wal- ker Co. Stuart Walker owns the American rights. The Bolton-Wodehouse humor Is more than sparkling—most of it Is brilliant Delicious new slang will give the show some Invaluable . advertising when it,-is staged In earnest. The plot runs smoothly. The play is without technical faults. The characters range from tbe quaintly Berlous to tbe flippantly ridicu- lous. Tbere Is a dash of melodrama, consist- '. lng of a flash of revolvers, tbe theft of a sate combination, and the careless handling of a vial of terrible explosive to add zip. Piccadilly Jim, played by Gregory Kelly, starta from London to America in tbe prolog. Jim'thought It best to cross to his native- land because ho had mussed up the son of a ' British peer. The peer held the influence which Jim's stepmother thought necessary to land a title for-his father. Jim goes to an American employment agency In the first .aot^- and is hired by a wealthy man to kidnap his son from an aunt whoso coddling methods were unsulted to tbe proper manly development of a lad of fourteen. The boy's mother hires a gsverneBB at the same employment agency to Idnap the ssine subject. Jim, of course, has already fallen In love with tbe governess. Jim gets introduced Into the aunt's household as a European futurist poet Thf kldnappse can be accused of neither intellect nor beauty. The plot tangles until there is Jim and the gov- erness trying to kidnap the youthful Oggte, .'■ a society crook trying to steal the newly in- vented explosive of Oggle's uncle, a girl de- tective watching Jim in the belief that he is attempting to steal the invention and Oggle's aunt Intensely bewildered by the whole outfit Ruth Gordon plays the governess well. The oast showed fears for the piece on the opening night, which were entirely unjustified. They strengthened during the week so that equal pralso should be bestowed on Beulab Bondy, Edgar Btebll and Robert McGroarty, who ad- vanced the prolog; Lael Davis, who handled a broad comedy part faultlessly; Elisabeth Pat- terson, as the nervous sunt; Aldrlch BoWker, as tbe Inventor uncle; George Somas*, as the crook; Florence Murphy, as a bubbling devotee of futuristic art; James P. Webbor, Ben Lyon, Helen Bobbins, Agnes Horton and Orlo Hall- ■*** Volney B. Fowler, NEWS OF THE DAILIES, "Peace. Prosperity and Prohibition'' to'.'tkr title of the theme which will be the. feature Joseph All, musical director of Hurtle 4 Seamen's Theatre, left an estate "not exceed- lng *4,O0O in peraonul and not exceeding 11,000 In realty," when he died Intestate but month. Rita Oloott producer of the Irish play, "Lusmore," discontinued rehearsals and dis- banded her company lost week. Tbe premiere had been announced for the Henry Miller, Sept. •*. ',.,■.•''---•; Supporting Louis Bennlson In Mare Klaw'a forthcoming production, "Petroleum Prince," by Richard Barry, will be Julia Stuart, Owen. . Meech, Charles Thursby, Barbara Milton, Merle- Maddern, Virginia Roche, Lenore Oltlnger and Joe Macauley. Tbe piece Is being held Up pending the strike differences. Maro Klaw has also accepted the book and lyrics of a new musical show, "His Majesty the Queen," from the typewriter of Ethel Watts Mumford, I 11 - •' i i i A m ■<$;:_ V 1 v 9 f mi ■ I • '-^'-'/' e£^r REMOVAL NOTICE LILLIAN wishes to announce that she has removed her offices to the Astor Theatre Building, 1531-1537 Broad- way, Suite 503. Handling exclusive acts for Cabaret, Clubs and Vaudeville. Special Orchestra Department under the management of VINCENT MIANO, Musical Director of Churchill's. Thone Bryant 5208.. "'>' -■"■ ': ''- :, .;;j:$•■;$•$ ! •>^ ,'■/-'> /•;\i. " f «-•>."'* •■■■■ ' ■■<"■■■'\ : : :■:■ :m