The New York Clipper (January 1920)

January 21, 1230 JEFfHRSjfSg,^.,..'?-*, (Last Wf) - Harley and Harley ■ follow*! the feature with th«r novelty offering. .The work with the rubber, ball-between .the man and wo- man Is' really the ' only ' novel' bit In the act. the rest- of the offering consisting of balancing stnnta on a table, with chairs, by the man. They went over well. Herman and" Clifton have a neat singing turn and, with what little patter there Is in the act either strengthened or, still better, omitted, they will And it much easier going. The two possess fairly good voices, bnt have a lot of learn about delivery. ■ Jones and Jones, two colored men using extra blacking, found no dlfflcaUy In getting loughs. The two work before a special drop •howlnit a yard near a railroad.' They have worked their way,, or stolen their, way, from the. Booth. .The patter between the two has a lot of gags that are new and are pnt over with good effect. Their singing, however, needed more rehearsing when reviewed. The Klnkald Kilties evidently has a lot of new people in the act; at any rate, something must have been wrong when the act was caught by the writer, for most of them seemed to forget what they were doing. One young man was particularly nervous and al- ways kept watching the others to see when to start In with them. . The bits can be re-arranged to better ad- vantage. For Instance, Instead of having the bagpipe and drum band In the midst of the act, use that for a closer. With time and rehearsing, they win be able to give a better account of themselves. At present, there are Ave women and four men in the turn. Murray Leslie can also, .nse .some new stories, for.those he Is telling st present have been done by any number of acta, Leslie de- livers somewhat on the style of Eddie Cantor, in singing. It was his songs, more than the stories, which got him off to s nice hand. Jessie Hayward and Company, are present- ing their same comedy sketch of back-stage. The work of nil the cast, is good and the offering itself pleases. There are quite a few lines wblch Miss Hayward delivers that re- anlre some one in the show bnslneas to nn- erstand. Glllen and Mulcahey sang their way Into the good graces of the audience and went well. • • • Leddy and Leddy can speed np their act by getting new gags and catting down the first portion of the act. The' acrobatic part Is very good.— O. J. H. -VAUDEVILLE REVIEWS -(Continued from Page t) I CITY (Urt Half) The Mystic Hanson Trio Is one magic act that can easily hold down a better spot than opening or closing, even on a better bill than' was offered here. A young man and two pretty girls constitute the trio. The girls do some magic In the opening bit. but assist In the rest of the act and also sing and dance very nicely. The various tricks done by the man are good, and many of them have not been used by other acts of this kind. In the nrat position, they took four hows. Frank Browne would do wen to prepare an encore for his act.' for every time the writer has seen hlra. he has contented him- self by taking a number of bows, after go- ing through his repertoire on the xylophone. In a lot of cases, the Idea of not taking en- core Is commendable, bat Browne really deserves It, for he has a very good act of its kind. "The Outcast" can be called a "problem playlet." and It can also be called a lot of other things. Two men and one woman pre- sent the offering. One of the men Is sup- posed to be a woman-hater, having been crossed In love. The other believes that there Is good In any woman, and. to prove It to the woman-hater, wagers that he will prove to him by calling a street-woman and showing that there Is good In her. He whistles out of the window snd a woman comes np. She utter turns out to be a friend of the woman whom the cynic thought crossed him. In love and explana- tions 9how that he was wrong, that women are good, and his sweetheart was true to him. The offering* Is overdone In bits. but. as a whole, will do very nicely for the small time. - Following the news reel. Berk and Sawn offered- their dance act. which is one of the neatest to be seen, mainly because of the people In It. Berk has a routine of very difficult steps and. In Jnanlta Sawn has one of the classiest little soubrettes to be found. As a team they are very good. Burton and Shea are still doing their song revue, which they now call "Burton- Shea's Revue of 1920." Despite the date, they are using old numbers, and, although It Is In Imitations the numbers are used, some new material would be welcome. The two have good voices and deliver well. Frank Conroy and Company are now do- ing a new act. , Conroy also has a new partner for this offering, which will be re- viewed.on-der New Acts. .-•- ,. a .i-Blee, and; Cady offered.patter, wblch can be .improved upon In a gr«at rrtaViy -places and some »<«««•''*«• that can only be termed fair. Martell's arannnrana closed the show and pleased. O. J. H. FIFTH AVENUE (Last Half) Ezuno Brothers opened the show with their novelty perch act, and were received with a marked degree of favor. Their work Is fast and they know how to put it over. Lexey and O'Connor, man and woman, of- fered a song and dance act which la par- ticularly strong on the dance part. They have some steps that are worth watching and they put a lot of pep Into the act They received their Jnat measure of applause. George Demarel and Myrtle Vail, in a satire on married life and suffrage, held the third position. Their skit is very clever, in- deed, and they handle It nicely. Aside from being clever In the handling of the comedy situations, both possess good singing voices. Miss Vairs impersonation of the op-stage wife Is as true a picture as was ever painted. Fourth position fell to the lot of Rowland and Meehan, who offered their singing act, containing a breath of the Shamrock. And that reminds us that, as a sort of farewell to John Barleycorn, the management has booked a Scotch and Irish act on the same bUl. "Those French Girls," otherwise known as the Amoros Sisters, were next. These girls have, as the saying goes, improved with age, •nd their act, as It Is today, although very little changed, Is much better than it ever was. They were a young riot . Lane and Moran are two men. one of them a comedian of more than paaalng notice and the other a rather clever "straight" man. The comedian, whom we surmise to be L-nne, does the major portion of the work. They had to come back and take an encore. The Shirley Slaters, aided and abetted by Bad Bernle, offered a singing and dancing act that went over very nicely, Indeed, for they tried hard and. with Bernle'a assistance, pnt it over. The girls work well, look well and dress well. Felix Adler, tbe man who knows them all, assisted by Frances A. Ross and a stage hand, offered his old set But Just the same, they laughed at It and appreciated. Jack Wyatt and his Scotch Lads and Las- sies closed the show and, despite the position, succeeded in keeping the audience seated. The act moves with more pep and go than It ever did. and that's going some. Pictures closed a tip-top hill.—S. K. PROCTOR'S 23RD ST. (Last half) Monahan and Company, the latter being a lady partner, offered a roller skating act that went over quite well. They work hard and fast and have some stunts In It that are worth watching. Dolly Ward, assisted by a male partner who receives no billing or mention whatso- ever, although be Is entitled to It, held num- ber two spot The act consists of a lot of hokum, some singing and some piano playing. They were well received. A. C. Astor. the globe-trotting ventriloquist, was third snd was the only Set on the entire bill that was encored when the reviewer saw the show. He has changed bis act around a bit having got hep to the American idea of comedy. His work with the dummy Is extra- ordinary. Vnlmont and Reynan have a singing act that ranks with the best of them. Both pos- sess powerful, yet plensant, voices and their repertoire has been chosen with an ear to- ward the classical. All of their numbers are of the high-class or operatic variety, and splendidly rendered They scored a hit that was deservedly theirs. "Puppy Love." a six people singing and dancing act with some good comedy thrown in for extra measure, was headlined and suc- ceeded in scoring a large bit The acrobatic dancing of Jack Edwards Is the feature of tbe act although Just praise •must be given to the fellow who plays the part of bashful Willie and Iesds as comedian of the act. The turn has to do with the love affairs of three different couples and shows the different methods of procedure. Robbv Henshnw, tbe nkelele kid. was on next and shared headline honors. His imita- tions, yodellng and comedy went over great and resulted In bis scoring a big hit Princess Olgs and her leopards closed the show. She certainly Is a dirlng miss, for It takes courage to go through the routine she did with the animals In the mood they were when reviewed. "Hawthorne of the TJ. S. A." with Wallace Held, was the feature.—S. K. FROLIC TO GO ROUND CIRCUIT The Parisian Fashion Frolic, which ended- a ten-week's engagement at the Broad way ; Theatre, on. Saturday,, night, opened^for;a-touiypf. the Moss. Ciipuii- on Monday. It is-now playing a fuU,v,eeX,at the Hamilton with a week at each Moss House to follow. KEErtEY'S ''*. (Last Hall) LaMonnt and Wright two girls who 'pos- - aess. ability to a marked degree, opened the show with a musical offering that waa re- ceived with approval. They did a little of everything and made the audience like It The Randow Trio, two men and a woman, the smaller of the men doing comedy, were on second and offered an act composed of singing, dancing and acrobatics. All three worked hard and some of the ■ stunts per- formed merited the hearty applause they got Third position fell to Conlin snd Glass. camouflaged as Lynn and Goss. They were using a new drop with yellow centre curtains and a yellow piano cover which we have never seen In their act before. Otherwise, the act Is the same as It always has been; even to getting laughs. Aunt Jemima and her Syncopated Bakers, who held the fourth spot arc newcomers to the vaudeville stage, as far'as their present set goes. For a further review of the turn, see the New Acts column. > Following the weekly news reel came Helen Gleason and company In "State Room No. 18." The act has been changed to make the dialogue comply with present requirements Inasmuch as the old dialogue about sub- marines Is passe now that the war Is over. However, the bulk of the act still remains the same, and was received in tbe same man- ner' it always has been. We might suggest however, that the man put a little more pep into his work. Gibson and Pollack, assisted by a fellow in a box whom they called Mr. Gordon, offered the same act, with the exception of several bits of business at the finish. In which "Mr. Gordon" figured They went over very big. for the audience liked their style of work. The - new bits are sore Ore laugh getters, -Sfcntorm's Pets, trained canines, closed the show with an exhibition of highly developed intelligence. The dogs went through a routine of tricks, old and new. as though they liked It The audience did, and stayed till the finish. H B. Warper In "Haunting Shadows" was the feature.—S. K. VICTORIA (Last half) Cecil B. Do Mine's "Male and Female" was the big feature at this bouse and the vaudeville was cut down to four acts. The Stelner Trio, all men. followed the films with a casting offering of merit They opened with some patter and a song which they shouted entirely too loud, evi- dently thinking that the size of the house required it The stunts on the horizontal bars were very good and took them off to much applause. Bonner and Powers will never get beyond the small time with their present offering, whether they have ability to handle better material or not. The patter consists en- tirely of old gags and even some of the songs were published more than three sea- sons ago. The man possesses a good voice, but is not the type for "nut" comedy, which he tries to put over. The woman has a nice figure and shows it In a pretty gown. She also has a dance which is ordinary. The pair could do a song offering without their present patter, to better advantage. Homer Llnd and Company were sharing headline honors with the big feature. "Male and Female," although the act which fol- lowed him scored, by far, a bigger hit as far as laughs and applause were concerned. Llnd is using the. playlet in which he takes the role of a music teacher, and his part- ner that of an ambitious pupil with an awful voice. The comedy went well, and the girl's violin playing also pleased the audience. Shea and Carroll were the hit of the bill. The male member of the team Is a fairly good comedian and a very good pianist Tbe lady sings and hnn !es her end of .the act capably. Both are very good deliverers of "blues" and have some clever gags, which went over for \'g laughs. . ~ O. J. H. WORKING ON FRANKLIN SHOW Irene Franklin will shortly be seen in a musical comedy, now being especially written for her by George Kaufman and Marcus Connelly, who are doinng the book and lyrics, while Burt Green is to write the music - HARLEM OPERA (Last. Half) James and Etta Mitchell. in : opening the show, presented an acrobatic act that Is both sensational and Interesting. However, their various attempts at humor are.weak'and de- tract rather than add to the entertainment value of the act The offering received a fair sized hand. William Smytbe and. company, in second Elace, did not do so well. This act is sadly l need of new material, especially an open- ing 'song and new gags. Smythe has a fair voice, beard to best advantage in bis closing number. The "ft Co." Is fair at the piano. Marietta Craig and company were next presenting a comedy playlet. .The piece has been greatly overdrawn in an effort to give Miss Craig a good role. The story is based on the familiar theme of the • ne'er-do-well son and the hard-fisted, hard-headed, business man father, Ray Fern and Marie, scored the largest hit of the evening. Neither are performers of marked ability, but both possess the needed something, to put. an act over and leave the audience wanting more. ' James' "Fat" Thompson still presents bis old slap-stick, blackface offering, and, with the aid of much talk and numerous pots of white paint manages to score a fair sized band _. The White Hussars, In closing, scored. They present an instrumental offering, together with some part singing. Their instrumental numbers were well received but their chorus work lacks finish and, especially,, a good tenor section.—B. H. PROCTOR'S 128TH STREET (Last half) Considering that. In addition to a feature like "Male and Female," there were ten acts of vaudevUle offered on Friday even- ing, one does not wonder that the house waa packed to capacity. Wright and Wilson took four bows In the opening position with an acrobatic offering of exceptional merit See New Acta. Bhoda Paul didn't attempt to fool any- one with her male Impersonations and couldn't If Bhe wanted to. New Acts. Frances and Love offered a fairly good singing turn and got over. See New Acta. Sam Milton did a Hebrew monologue and sang some psrodles. New Acts. The Three Nltos found It easy going with a good eccentric acrobatic offering. New Acta. William Slsto, the "Italian Statesman." was at iioma with this audience. He has some clever material In his offering but can also use better gags In Borne spots. His closing harmonica bit sent him off to a big hand. Alexander and Mack are using a tramp comedy ct similar to the one done before by Alexander with another partner. They are using the aame freight car drop and much of the material which the other act contained. ' They found the audience easy and gave a good account of themselves. Joseph E. Bernard and Company, the lat- ter consisting of Nlta Bristol, presented their comedy sketch of domestic life, In Which they quarrel and make up over and over again. The act waa new to most of the audience and went over for a big nit. Anger and Packer also found It easy go- ing, although they had followed a number of comedy acts. Miss Packer Is not singing any solo number, but is heard with Packer. The act has a lot of room for Improvement . In the way of new gags, for most of those which are being used at present are re- leased. The pair are clever performers and went off with one of the biggest bits of the show to their credit. Despite the lateness of the hour, Orvllle Stamm held the audience in very well and offered his novel strong-man act With his dog. O. J. H. BERNSTEIN ARRANGING CIRCUS Jack Curiey, the sport promoter, and Freeman Kerstein, booking agent, have leased Madison Square Garden for one week, beginning February 2, when they will install there an athletic carnival and circus. Ourley is attending to the athletic end of the affair and will run, as one of the features, an elimination wrestling tournament in which the largest of tbe big boys will compete. Among those who are to appear are Joe Steelier, Strangler Lewis, Earl Caddock, John Pesek, Armos Laitenan and Stanley Zbyszko. . Berstain is booking the cirens acts and taking care of the side shows and conces- sions. The circus is planned to be an an- nual affair. There will be fourteen per- formances, two dailyi GET FORTY WEEKS LOEW TIME Wcek' cbl«ract>to^^V,;rtkrtingrAprfl 5. This will make' the team's third tour over this circuit. V, ; GET TWENTY WEEKS . ■ >a</ Simmons ' and' Bradley,''Freeman i^and 1*^ Taifr Tcwsell : and^WitiB 1Kvfr f «Been booked for a twenty week tour over the southern and western Loew time.