Variety (November 1918)

/■:,•:■.■''■■ «/,-■• Si.--. ■.• 20 ACTS t H is Wl E k n ■ :v"'' ipr r P & or r-.' i.'i-.i Lillian Rutsell. 'Songs. 27 Mint.) Fuii SUge and Oic^ ^ _PnI«c«. "I'm broke," said the girl, on the Pal- ace stage Monday night, after whom . they named the American Beauty Rose. "I bought Liberty Bonds until my bank account ran out and now I 'am back in vaudeville trying to earn enough money to help pay for the -rest." Lillian Russell was in the uni- form of the Marines, with aix Marines ; behind her when she told the audience the inside stuff about her return after ;-;two years away from the vaudeville stage. Miss Russell also informed :. the house General Barnett had made her a Recruiting Aide and Top Ser- : geant in the Marine Corps for her work at recruiting. Miss Russell is :back in vaudeville at $2,500 a week, • And as for being "broke," there are mighty few women who wouldn't lose their all besides their souls to look like Lillian Russell—like she has and like . she does—and it is only her most inti- : mate acquaintances who could tell the Lillian Russell of yesterday from the Lillian Russell of ioday. A leiuinine freak of loveliness is Miss Riissell. -'What matters it what she does upon the stage as long as she is upon the - stage? To look at hir is enough. The younger "singles" of the variety stage, the ingenues of the drama and the Soubrets of the musical shows who go wild when their friends say thriy "make up pretty," , will want another face whenever they see Lillian. At the Palace Monday evening Miss Russell walked into a parlor set that had.a •concert grand, presided over by Mr. Whitford. In a most pleasant conver- sational tone she told the people in front -she would sing some arias from old operas, which she did; then sang others, doing these in a magnificent 'Aodish gown that, however, could not outshine her own brilliancy of appear- ance, Changing into the Marine uni- form and looking like a nifty "Sarge," Miss Russell returned with the sanor- soldiers and sang in front of them, the boys remaining silent, afterward ex- pressing herself why she is back upon the stage. No reason was required. That she is is enough. And as an at- traction for the theatre or the box office Lillian Russell is ever worth all she receives. There could be none better, for in Lillian Russell the stage presents the phenomenon of the physique, the wonder of women and the long-distance handsomest creature the world has ever seen. SMi^K .•■f.*>-|/%ttM)>hl> » Fnrnkk fv), ' 17 Mias.) On*. Alhnnbra. Frankic Fay is showing a new idea in a singing act by having her jazz band composed of but one member, who. directs the orchestra and plays the clarinet and saxaphone while do- ing it. Dressed in a black embroidered ^ cloak of shining silk, she steps out and starts her act with a dandy rag which went over while her special leader accompanied her with the dar- met. Miss Fay removed her cloak and placed it on a gold chair and then sang a new war song, getting it over to big applause while the clarinet helped^ out at intervals. The leader then picked up a saxaphone and played a popular ballad in the roost approved style. Miss Fay returned without a change and sang a ballad in a sort of a cabaret manner. She next offered her best number, a jazz song with a Ijttle dance arrangement in which she does a crude "shimmy," and the saxo- phonist in the pt't also goes into the same wiggle, exceptfhg the spot light IS on Miss Fay. A Dixie number brought the act to a close and a little more "thimmying" put the act over big. Miss Fay possesses personality and a voice which grows husky at times. The wiggles could be toned down. However, with a lively routine of published songs and a leader who can play and is full of pep, should make her act eligible for the big time. 'Bryan and Brodrick. . Singing and Dancingl II Mint.} Interior. Fifth Avenue. Here is "the makings" of a good dancing ac^. Mixed couple, youthful and attractive in appearance, who sing atrociously, but "all js forgiven" when they dance. Open with conversational singing and stepping, acrobatic waltz, Porto Rico glide song and dance and finish with a corlting "Shimmy" dance. The man has ease and grace,,,while the girl in daring costumes, has tempera- ment and shapeliness. She can t be blamed for wanting to display her physical charms, but as she grows old- er she will discover there is more in suggestion than revealment. /olo. Walton and Francis. -SoDgs ^bd Talk, IS Miaa.| Ona. American Roof. Bert-Walton, the comedian, and May Francis. Miss Francis is very small, and Mr. Walton looks very large alongside of her. H6 has his own style of handling himself on the stage, but suggests Al Jolson at all other times, without the blackface, and the impersonation might go better, if it is an impersonation, by Walton using cork. In the double work there seems a suggestion of Whiting and Burt for system of doing the numbers. Each does singles, and there are two or three doubles, with Walton trying nut stuff alone, while the girl does a kid number in costume, though she doesn't need it, since she looks kiddish all the while. It is a good act for small time, but if it gets to big time it will be because Mr. Walton finally decides to do something on his own, also over- come what looks to be something of awkwardness upon the stage though it may be through the contrast in sizes of the couple. Mr. Walton gives promise as a comedian and the girl seems able to take care of a nuiifber nicely. Notwithstanding they were the hit of the American Roof show Tuesday evening, they should be doing a better act. And there is no need for them to borrow sympathetic bows with the stalling entrances and exits at the finish, one by one, then twos, and ones again. That is the fashion for the No. 2 act at the Palace, and it'' often explains why acts are on No. 2 at the Palace. 8irM. Mack and West. Piano-Act. ~ . One. American Roof. Piano act with man and woman. The man plays the piano, slightly, and ^_. dances, also slightly. The woman is ""the actV" Sht i5irigs BMIads 'niostiy; is able to get them over and will carry the turn around small time. It might be better for the turn to have .the man the accompanist only, without dancing or talking. He only assists at the piano. Simft Bernard and Merritl. Music 11 Min«.t On«b 23rd Street. > Two women. Musical mixture of accordion, voice, saxaphone. Accor- dion numbers predominate. The dark- haired girl's instrument had "Mabel" adorning its outer covering, while the light-haired miss had "Deane." After the double accordion opening, Deane Fetiiirned "and" sang' in "spot"; the'jfeirr* register was in the upper tier. Then Mabel had an inning with the saxa- phone. For the finish Mabel played the saxo, Deane sang and also played the accordion, and tha house ap- plauded. Pop house calibr«. Uarto. Mil*. Nitta Jo. ... Ufa. Cigolette .P«riiiaaae"-..(t«Bgt}.. V.... 16 Mine.). Two (Special Drop). , Palace. • Mile. Nitta Jo is a study among "sin- gles." She was an unimpeachable riot at the Palace Monday night—and Mon- day afternoon, and probably the same record every performance since. Mile, is French and sings. A slide mentions her song titles, also informs the house that "La Gigoletto Parisienne" is a firl Apache-French. She is what Is est known over here as a chanteuse, whatever that is in French. The Amer- ican definition is a French girl who can sing almost anything and make good. The program says Mile. Nitta Jo is th« mo$t popular character singer in France. But she isn't in France now,- nor is she likely to be - for some time. Coming to New York and having some difficulty in locating H. B. Marinelli, who had been her agent in Paris (before the war). Mile, suggested she wanted to do something on the stage while here. Vaudeville naturally attracted her, since she had been doing a turn abroad. Marinelli is reported to have informed her a "French .single with songs" meant nothing—she needed an idea, and Mar- inelli is also reported to have supplied thii idea of Nitta Jo's singing in a cabaret restaurant, with the restaur- ant represented by a drop. And what~ a dropl The more you see it the more you see in it Mile, is seated at a table (painted on the drop), sing- ing to her vis-a-vis as the curtain goes up. The painted man opposite looked so real he seemed interested. The drop was hung in "two." Further to the rear of the stage, and it's doubt- ful if the audienc'b could have easily guessed all the figures at the tables were painted. On the drop are two chandeliers, so realistic they seem to hang from the wall, fully lighted. There is much detail in the drop and the scenic artist should be program- mentioned. Mile, commences th,e turn with an Apache number, running through some French songs, a couple quite catchy, doing "Smiles" in English, singing "Over There" partly French and English, and closing with the audience standing to "The Marsel- laise" in French. She grew on the house as the act progressed. Her voice is a contralto or mezzo-soprano of much fullness, and Mile, uses it to the greatest effect. She has a shy way of making an exit that is enticing snd her manner on the stage is that of a thorough artiste. The illusion of her single turn is of a singer in a cabaret, and the illusion is perfectly carried out There is an appealing physical quality to Mile. Nitta Jo that baffles description, but it is always there, de- spite a blonde wig she wears that no one could rave over, nor does her cos- tume (not changed) under the lights used blend with the coloring of the drop. At first the costume with its bright coloring appears in harsh con- trast and that impression is never en-' tirely effaced. But Mile. Nitta Jo stopped the Palace show at each per- formance Monday, without" any large percentage of French natives present. The way her act has been put on, the way she sings and what she sings ensure her for vaudeville, and among singles she is a refreshing novelty. Wiki Bird. Singing, InstmmentaL 15 Mins.) One. Fifffc Avenne. Hawaiian young man in Tuxedo suit, uncultivated, but good natural high baritone voice" and playing, native-steel • guitar. Ballad, rags and so on. When rendering a ballad he essajrs rhapsodiz- ing by ^'reaching" for his notes in- stead of lighting upon them and adopts the same method with his instrumenta- tion. Rather indifferent opening turn. Harry Watson, Jr. and Co. (4). ...Comwlly Scenes from "0dd^,and K,p/^t^~.\, 16 Mins.| Foil Stage (Special Sets). Palacob In removing the comedy bulwark qf Jack Norw;orth's "Odds and Ends" to the vaudeville stage, Harry Watson, Jr., has an undeniable huge laughing hit Mr. Norworth "presents" Mr. Watson, and that billing presages an undue feeling of friendliness between the two—with the show closed. Mr. Norworth was the star.of "Odds and Ends," in the singing way, and Mr. Watson was featured, also the star comedian, of the show. The two bits taken into vaudeville are the "tele-^ phone scene," wherein Mr. Watson tries to phone his wife in a pay sta- tion booth h^ will be late for dinner, and the gym scene, in which' Mr. Wat- son, as ''•Young Kid Battling Dugan" meets his victor with the boxing gloves, the latter young Joe Herbert. Mr. ' Herbert also stalled the necessary waif for the setting of the second scene with a dance in "one." These scenes were very funny in the show and they are very funny, in vaude- ville. Mr. Watson did the phone scene for the first time in "Odds and Ends." His "Battling Dugan" dates farther * back, but has never lost its boisterous fun qualities. It was first done by Billie Reeves and Watson in "The Fol- lies" of 1908. When Watson slouches on the stage in his character of Dugan. a rough scrapper ready to meet all comers, and says to the announcer, "Tell 'em what I done to Philadelphia Jack O'Brien," the Palace audience Monday evening started to laugh all over again, never stopping after that and winding up with screams as Mr. Herbert, with What looked like ter- rific right-hand upper cuts knocked Dugan completely out Mr. Watson has been.one of our funniest come- dians and was so acknowledged even before the dissolution ofthe cele- brated variety trio of Bickel,. Watson and Wrothe, when Bickel (George) and Watson left to join "The Follies" (Ed Lee Wrothe, the other member, is now at the head of his own act in vaudeville, after starring for several :. seasons in burlesque). Mr. Watson's company, besides Mr. Herbert, has the "announcer," also from the show, and a couple of telephone switch girls. The phone sciene is entirely new to vaudeville fans and holds enough laughter in itself through' the manner Mr. Watson does it. The turn displays Watson's showmanship. He did those two scenes from the production, with a wait, in \f> minutes. Although ap- pearing just before the Chaplin pic- ture, "Shoulder Arms," the best Chap- lin has ever put over, and closing the vaudeville program proper, it is doubt- ful if there were any heartier laughter ■ during the comedy film than that evoked by Mr. Watson and Mr. Her- bert in the boxing scene. The chances are that the Harry Watson act can remain in vaudeville just as long as it wishes to. It soars to the front as one of the best low comedy turns vaudeville has had. Bimv. Smith and Kaufman. Singing and Crosstalk. 17 Mins.( One (Special Drop). Fifth Avenue. Opens with traffic policeman going off' duty at 3 a. m., encountering a "souse" in dress suit, later saying he'll just step arouird'to the station house, don his dress clothes and join the sport for a night out Some ballad- ing and a score or more of jokes, most of them of ancient Vintage, fin- ishing with patriotic ditty. For en- Core "Oui Marie" with monkeyshines. Not very much brain matter expended in- gcttins^-up thisroutine. The soust:-.-.. conducts himself like a classy perform- er, but the act is woefully deficient in material. The act doesn t sound new and seems to be the one the late Steve O'Rourke once appeared in, as the co^. /olo. 1