The New York Clipper (March 1919)

10 THE NEW YORK CLIPPER March 5, 1919 PROCTOR'S 125th ST. (L**t Half) Friday evening was' one of the buriest nights in the history of this theatre. At 7:30 every seat in the home was occu- pied. Gjpsania started toe bin with a pleas- ing try-out of soagi and music It win be found under new acts. Felice and Craig; one- as an Italian comedian and the other a robe, followed with a talking act. The patter is poor in spots, bat, as a'whole, served its purpose and scored here. Richard, the Great, the trained monkey, went through his stunts and took a. big hand. The man on . the stage with the monkey would help the act a great deal by learning to control his (the man's) temper. West and Edwards offered a musical act that started wen and kept going. They offered a number of melodies on a variety of instruments that were well played with the exception of the cornet, which play poorly. Paul Pool offered a novel magic act that was extraordinary. See New Acta. Moore and White started fast and kept the pace to the end of the offering. They are capable dancers and singers and could work up their dancing to better advantage. Jessie Standish offered a song try-out that is sore to reach the better time: She stopped the show here. Ewe wfll be re- viewed onder New Acta. Terser* Marimba Jass Band took the house by storm and stopp e d the show. The boys are announced to be among the best phonograph artists in America and lived up to their reputation here. Bobby Van Horn tried, out a plea sing monologue that is re v i ewe d under New Acta.- Fitzsimmons sjid Norman tried out a fair double that scored. See New Acts. Newboff and Phelps were compelled to take an encore after giving their song cycle. The comedy Is dean and very wen injected. Anthony and Rogers offered their Italian dialogue. The boys have been using their p re s en t material for some time and a change would be acceptable. Wood and Ded closed the show with a good juggling act that came near being spoiled by the finish. They win be found under New Act*.' G. J. H. VAUDEVILLE REVIEWS (CocirlnnrJ from pacta * «nd •) McVICKER'S (Chicago) Plcard Brothers opened MeVfcker*s with a marvelous display of daring tricks on the triple bars. The comedy did not score much of an impression. . -• Cliff Clard proved a good light come- dian with his various impressions offered m song. "The Girl -from Starland" proved a novel lit of entertainment to those-who are not familiar with this offering;. The songs were wen rendered. Fentel and Clark opened slow, but speeded up Id the finish and won out to exceptional applause. They sing, taDc and dance. Morris and Morey, with an action on the rathskeller order, syncopated and blued untO they had the house applaud- in? heartily. These boys possess ability and have the proper knowledge of how to play and sing- Van and Carrie Avery supplied a good deal of comedy with their skit, in which Avery appears In blackface and his part- ner as a medium. Many comical lines won hearty laughs. Jada Trio, three vaudevfflians from the Great Lakes in Jackie** uniform*, pro- ceeded to distribute more syncopation and some good novelt v songs, which ' placed them also in the nit column." Vaudeville needa more acta of this calibre. - O Hana San dosed with a gorgeous display of colors, song' and dance. It proved quite an attrac ti ve as" well aa en- tertaining offering. H. F. R. FLATBUSH (Las* Half) Dura and Feeley, a team of comedy acrobats who talk quite as well as they tumble, opened the show. The boys do sB of the familiar ground tumbling stunts and one or two others that seem to be new. The closing trick, a head to head balance against the side of the proscenium arch, is played up in great shape and sent the team off to wen merited applause. : Jennie Middleton, a youthful violiniate who plays exceedingly well for one of her years, started with an opera selection and wound up with a popular number of the* jazzy sort. She possesses an attractive appearance that is a decided asset. Morrow and Gerard, in a comedy skit which introduced such good old standbys of vaudeville as a laughing song and an old-time "Wedding Bells" song and .dance, held *em for eighteen minutes. The act is fuH of entertaining bits which are handled in experienced fashion. Stone and MeAvoy, resplendent in dress suits and high silk bats, presented their s t a nd ard staging and talking specialty and landed for a hit. Stone's "drunk" char- acter ia genuinely funny and, unlike the majority of small time vaudeville "souses," he never overs t ep s the bounds of good taste and becomes offensive. The team has a good line of patter, which it puts over for more than sufficient laughs, to counter- balance the singing This ia a very en- tertaining act. Hank Brown and Ida Gunther, a com- edy duo who know their business from start to finish, were a laughing riot. Hank Brown, a real old timer, woo used to kaoci. them off the seats with neatness and pre- cision, week after week, down in Tony Pastor's, hasn't lost a single degree of Ida laugh creating ability. The Gypsy Troubadours closed the vaudeville bill with some of the best solo and ensemble dancing offered in the Flat- bush this' season. 'A barefoot dance by a graceful little brunette scored an Individual hit. H. E. MAJESTIC (CHICAGO) Fern, Bigelow and King officiated aa openers at the Majestic, offering acrobatic feats of wide variety and splendidly ex- ecuted. They were recognized as master aerobe ta. The Four of Us harmonized popular melodies to the' delight of the house, in its entirety. They make neat appear- ance and display plenty of life. Gallagher and RoUey, while very fa- miliar hereabouts, proceeded to stir up much laughter, with their comedy skit -The Battle of Whaf a the Use." Florence Tempest continues to remain vaudeville's most loveable boy and dan- ties t girl, and her many song numbers found instantaneous applause.. Nance 0"NeQ and company acted a play- let captioned The Common Standard,'' which contains many foreiful speeches, in- termingled with comic lines, that are brightly written. The cast is a capable one. and the skit held the interest of all ■Tames H. Cullen proved the cut-up in the programme with his parodies and funny sayings. At times he had the fem- inine portion of the house hysterical, and the male portion laughing uproariously. He was the hill's big punch. •""•. Phyllis Neilson Terry" was .accorded hearty applause when she concluded her offering of classical songs. Miss Terry's voice shows culture, and ia of good range. James Button and company dosed with a flashy display of equestrian bits that kept the-greater partial - of the audience seated until the conclusion. H. F. R. HARLEM OPERA HOUSE (Last Half) "WiU-E-Eide" opened the bin with a cycling act. His stunts are really good and most of them out of the ordinary, but why he persists in marring his act with attempted comedy ia a mystery. HIa remarks "are neither witty nor funny, Harris and Lyman started fast and kept the pace np to their last number. They use a special drop in two, depicting a coun- try house, and when the curtain rises the giri. of. the duo is discovered cleaning the window on the first story. A few songs, by both, and a dance were nicely delivered. Jimmy Brown and Tommy Post started with a song which they rendered while the film of the song was flashed and then gave two more numbers, with Brown at the piano and Post singing. Ducane and company followed with an entertaining magic offering. Some comedy was weU injected by the use of trick chairs, gloves a.d a fan. Ducane is assisted by a woman, a man and two boys from the audience. Harmon and Harmon, two young men, offered a variety of songs, comedy and danc- ing. The boys possess only mediocre voices and would do wen to work up the dancing end of the act, as they dance well. Hailen and Hunter stopped the show with some of the best natter heard here in a long time. While Miss Hunter only rendered a few numbers on the violin, they are well played and scored. However, it was Ha lien's monologue and his manner of delivering it that scored the big hit. With some newer stories, he should bold his own on any bill. Cola Santo and Magda Dahl, snslrtri by a band of sixteen pieces, closed the show with a very good musical offering. The singing -was- excell e nt, while the -band played their selections, an of which were classical, in a pleasing manner. G. J. H. VICTORIA (Laic Half) Swain's Rats and Cats are indeed an interesting combination. And their col- lective stunts held the Interest of the audi- ence throughout* ' Daisy Leon is a singing comedienne who knows now. to get a great deal out of the popular numbers she sings. However, an operatic medley which she rendered to- ward the end of >er act proved to be the most effective part: of her offering. "What Happened to Ruth" is a playlet that has a-number of amusing situationa. It deals with a young man who falls, in love with a young woman who ultimately marries the. young man's. father. A man "planted" in a box supplies most of the humor of the offering by scoffing at the players. The sketch gave considerable sat- isfaction in spite of the fact that it was not well acted.. . Pease and Howell are a couple of black- face comedians whose act is patterned after the one formerly use by Conroy and Le Maire. The old Conroy and Le Maire act centered around an insurance policy that had to be explained and the Pease and Howell act has, a subpoena ever which they both-ponder. The fight at the finish was uproariously funny and helped-the act to. gain, the appreciative recognition that it deserved. - ... . Martin . and- Clare open- with a- semi- classic dance designed to prove the.pair's dancing ability, but it proved nothing be- yond an ability to work hard. However, a burlesque of the.present day jass dance gained a great deal of favor for .the act. The settingB and the pretty costumes worn by the woman went a long way interesting a xavorahle impression. . , r - . IL-Lv A. PROCTOR'S 23RD STREET (Last Half) Rowley and Tointon held the initial spot with a singing and dancing offering that scored as an opening number. They have pleasing voices and are neat dancers. : Gladiola and Pollant presented a song cycle that pleased. With Pollant at the piano, Miss Gladiola rendered a number of popular songs in a "Frenchie" manner, but failed to keep her accent for her closing numbers. Pollant assisted capably on the piano. George Drury Hart' and Company went over for a big band with a good comedy sketch. It win be fully reviewed under New Acta. Lew Hawkins offered his blackface monologue and scored one of the big hits of the. bQL Hawkins' material is up-to- date and is put over in a manner that ia sure to get laughs. His singing voice is not particularly good, but his delivery goes a long way to make up for lack of voice. "Mr. Inquisitive,'* a musical comedy with a male lead, a leading lady and a chorus of four followed. The playlet starts off with a preliminary film showing a scene in a booking agent*s office. After the film the curtain rises on a dentisf s office and oper- ating room. The playlet was weU re- ceived. . . . Dunbar and Turner stopped the show with their comedy offering.. Their act is a rare combination of a male and female "nut." Miss Turner proved herself an ex- cellent comedienne, while Dunbar put bis material over in a laugh-provoking manner. Dunbar has a good "*"|ri"g voice and also won favor for singing The Leo Zorrell Duo dosed the show with a startling series of tumbling and balancing stunts. See New Acta. -: --..-•:■. O.J.E PROCTOR'S 58TH STREET George and-Nellie Fosto headed the bill in an act that included contortion, acro- batic stunts and talking, with some singing and dancing also thrown in. They started with a double song and dance in one, after which the drop was raised and they did their stunts in two. The turn opened well, but the patter which is rendered through- out needs strengthening. GayneU and Mack, a man. and woman, offered a song and dance act. There ia very little out of ordinary in the turn: ■ - Backer and Winifred, impersonating aa Ethiopian and Mongolian respectively, drew a goodly number of laughs with their, non- sensical offering. They started with an argument, both talking at top speed, so that nothing could be understood,, except that some chop guey had not been paid for." After the discussion the blackface member of the team sang two songs. Some more patter and slapstick comedy got them a big band -at the finish and they were recalled several times, but refused to take an en- core. . . '•».'.""' . Billy Reeves, assisted by a man and woman, captured a big share of the laughs in his little playlet, entitled "The Right Key. But the Wrong Flat" In It Reeves impersonated a -"drunk" and caused un- limited mirth with a aeries of falls and by stumbling over the stage. The other two in the cast gave excellent support and were largely responsible for. the success of the .sketch. .... . . .. :;..--'. Rice and Cady, two men, presented their. mbe singing and talking' act, with some dancing to fill in. The dialogue could be improved in several places. - They' will doubtless improve with more work.. Marion Harris sang a. budget of popular hits and received a generous round.of ap- plause. . Her opening number went espe- cially wdL ..., ",- _; •-,..-_.•-;."' . Hadji Sambolo dosed the bin with a magic- act that completely mystified _ the crowd. The turn is nicely staged and the performers, two men.and a.woman, do their work in a businesslike manner. ..'. L 3. '-