Variety (November 1918)

•»■ ■>■.;,'.■•»■ # Legitimate HS : :- ™E CANARY. ^ 'ii1«e»r-^^.i.-„,.,\ .v.. .Harlaad DIxoa TlnioUiir. Joseph CawUiorB ' Julie Julia Sandenioii Rico Wlimer Bentleir Mary Ellen -. Maude'Eburoa A Minister, .Oeorge Bsan Euganio '. Doris FalUiful Mrs. fieaaley < Edoa Dates Ned Raadolpli...^ Sam Hardy Mr. Trimmer Oeorge B. Mack Dr. ptppy Louis Harrison Dodg'e James Ooyle What has the tutura In store tor musical ' comedy If this country goes dry? Will people who have dined wltkout alcoholio tefreebment look upon the present style o{ lyrical amuse- ment with the same tolerant attitude as they display at present* It would be Interesting to know. "The Canary," a Charles Dillingham pro- duction, starring Julia Sanderson and Joseph Cawthorn, bad Ita metropolitan piemlere at the Qlobe Not. 4. It Is an adaputlon from the French, with music by lyan Cary 11,. Irving Berlin and others. The plot Is negllglblo—on a jpar with most shows ot that calibre—the comedy being derived almost altogether from clever quips and Ingenious play upon words. As an Illustration, Miss Sanderson aska Caw- thorn: "Why do men ever want to marry any- one?" to which be responds:' "It's a sort ol ceremony women Inslaf upon." This Is an ex- ample of the amusing crossflre talk. Then there are euch play upon words as: "There's more In you than I gave you credit tor," sixikeu by one of the characters to Cawthorn after he swallows a valuable Jewel. It la not so much the book, the lyrics or the music as the usual classy production which Dillingham gives to such shows. None of the songa are likely to be bummed or whistled, or attain any degree of general popularity, but there la a mout capable cast ot artists, neat staging by Fred Uitham and Edward Royce, most artistic scenery by Urban and very at-- tractive dresses and costumes. Then there are most effective orchestrations, with the dance numbers alluringly Interpreted by Hiss Sanderson, Ooyle and Dixon, Blslc Gordon, Elsa Thomas and a cute little sirl named Marie Callahan. Miss Sanderson is so (leaslngiy pretty one doean't care very mucb wbat she does or bOw she does it—tha* la, 'f ->De has dinod well. "The Canary" la, like all musical comedies of the present era, a series of specialties with dialog interruptions—or eruptions. It la a fairly good example of light eotertalnmenL. No member of the cast distinguished himself be- yond his or her associates. Tbey are all good. It will probably go best with night audiences. Jolo. BE CALM/CAMILLA. Junius Patterson, the owner of the car, Walter Hampden Baxter Pell, a gentleman of leisure. Rex McDougall Qua Beats, of Broadway Arthur Shaw McNeil Brownlow, "Mac." a waiter, William Sampson Jo Qlbbona, a piano-mover Harold Salter BUI Slattery, another John J, Harris Cella Brooke, a lady of leisure, Carlotta Monterey Alma Robins, a nurse Hedda Hopper Camilla Hathaway, alone In the city, Lola Fisher Camilla came to this country from Paris when she was IS years old and six yeara afterward fell in a lake. Sbe waa a- hard- working orphan girl who had all of her troubles before starting to work.. When the Irat scene opened Camilla refused to marry a song writer and was run'over by an'automobile. In the next scene she was In love with a hospital and followed that up by loving a doctor. When Camilla found ber doc- tor wasn't a doctor but a millionaire, she kept on loving bim, making It furious after that The millionaire owned the car that put Camilla in the hospital. He used the same car to take Camilla to hla Adirondack camp. The next two settings looked like a camp it they didn't resemble the Adlrondacks. In the third scene Camilla commenced to get sore. Everyone loved her, but they were so clean about It. Camilla wanted them to dirty up a bit. It looked pretty dirty for a time when Baxter Pell and Mrs. Cella Brooke dropped Into the Adirondack camp on tbelr way to the South Sea iRles or any other place where tbey wouldn't be disturbed. But both professed everything up to that time had been perfectly proper between them, and Camilla believed it, because circumstances were forcing her to be perfectly proper herself. This Is when Camilla fell In the lake. They said she jumped, but she said she fell, and aa she was falling pretty fast at that time, let it go "fell." MAAnflmA .InnliiH PAttAnuin. tliA >nll1lflnftlrci Camilla sang in the flrat scene, as proof that "she did not A4ve a voice. Alt' the characters had something, more or - loss, that was smart, to say, and they said it. It was running smartness, written by Clare Kummer, who also wrote the song Lola Fisher as Camilla purposely mangled In the singing. Miss Kummer had such a alight uninterest- ing story, even with the amblglous trend ot It left so widely open to the Imagination, that the dialog needed smartness to hold the attention. The humor of t|ie dialog depended to quite some extent upon bow much dialog of this calibre had been beard before. Tbe |2 audi- ence seemed to think a great deal ot It very funny. In vaudeville it may be often found, not aa polished perhaps as Miss Kummer ladled ' it out nor stretched into four scenes. But there are at any rate a couple of good laugba la it, Misa Fisher looked, and played a not dUBcult role, with William Samption as a Walter, "Mac," the next In line through his role like- wise being "tat." Hedda Hopper as the nurse was, excellent. Walter Hampden, tbe millionaire, was a youthful and serious one, as though tbe weight of his cares forbade him even taking careless chickens in any but a serious way. Arthur Shaw, tbe song writer, was too much his own conception, since Miss Kummer must know tbe aong writer she char- acterized better tban Mr, Shav played him. And the others failed to count either way, but there weren't many of the others, for eight principals play the piece in threo sets, ot which the hospital room was about the single one worthy of more than special note. It could be called gorgeous for a hospital, a room that only a millionaire could afford, and then he would have to build the hoapltal himself to have it. "Be Calm, Camilla," • produced by Arthur Hopkins at the Booth Oct. 31, aecurea Its title, per Camilla's explanation, tronr an exhortation by ber mother When young, to always. «iy "be calm. Camilla," when Camilla commenced to show excitement. She aald "be calm, Ca- milla," when tbe millionaire told her they were going to the woods, but when the moneyed man kissed her at the flnlah she voted to omit the- warning. "Be Calm, Camilla," should get trade from girls and song writers. It may appeal to them. Bime. THREE WISE FOOLS. Mr. Theodore Findley... .Claude OiUlngwalter Dr. Richard Oaunt. Harry Davenport Hon. James Trumbull William IngersoU Miss Falrchltd Helen Menken Mrs. Saunders Phyllis Rankin Gordon Schuyler Cnarlea Laite BebJamln Suratt Stephen Colby John Crawsh^y..I...... Cbarles B. Wells. Poole .IHayward Olnn Gray...... ....Harry H. Forsman Clancy. Levitt. James Douglas J. Moy Bennett Policeman. 1 '. Oeorge Spelvin Wlncbell Smith and John L. Oolden pre- sented foi the first time In New Tork, Oct. 31, "Three Wise Fools," a comedy by Austin Strong. Friday evening the bouse indicated it was plentifully papered'. After 8.30, tbe time aet for the opening, there came a stream ot rather cheaply clad people to the front seats ot tbe orchestra, showing every appear- ance of having secured downstairs seats at bargain prices at tbe cut rate offices. All of which, however, baa no bearing on tbe quality of the stage presentation, other than tbe tact that'tbe public evidently did not rush frantically to the box office, to "buy" for it. Tbe prediction Is made that they won't In the future. "Three Wise Foola" starts off with a corking first act and then peters out into cneap melodramatic clap-trap. It is tbe old story of three crusty old bachelors living comfortably In one home, having a young lady suddenly thrust upon them. In this Instance, however, they are 00 years old, but it develops tbey all loved the same girl, who bad suddenly disappeared, and, altbougb the trio are very wealthy, they were never able to secure a trace of ber. On ber death bed she willed her daughter to theae men, one adjudge, another a famous physician and tbe third a millionaire business man, with a nephew. Tbe Judge bad sentenced a crook to 20 years and the criminal had sworn revenge. He escapes from prison and, although the bouse is surrounded by the police, he breaks in to "get" the judge. Tbe girl prevents the crook from carrying out bis purpose, and it de- velops her father was the jail companion ot the crook, ber father having been Innocently * convicted of forgery. The bad man had really committed the forgery, and altbougb tbe jail crony of the poor old father, bad never before confessed until captured In the bachelor homestead. It Is a waste ot type to chronicle tbe fact that tbe nephcw falls hi love with tbe girl and stands up for her when appear- ances indicate she Is an accomplice ot the crook, Tbe judge, in questioning tbe girl on tbe EPIDEMIC (Continued from page 3.) pressure to close, went under quaran- tine Tuesday, but Miniicapolis is scheduled to open Nov. U. The in and out nature of the epidemic acts as a barrier to definite prediction and booking men have given it up, looking for a general clearing in two weeks. Business in bi^ cities after the lifting of quarantine is encouragingly reported. It works conversely, how- ever, for the smaller points, and man- agers there are holding of! a week or planning to act thus, after the ban is officially lifted. The situation amoiig the canton- ments continues favorable and no repe- tition of the epidemic is now looked for. But four camps east of the Mis- sissippi were closed, starting this week. Among them is Camp Merritt, listed to start Nov. 6; Camp Sevier will open .Nov. 14, while Camp Sheri- dan remains closed, with the theatre there converted into a hospital. • Attractions -are gradually taking to the road, some of the legitimate book- ing offices going slowly and awaiting several - days after a citv is declared open, so as not to be caught with the attraction marooned with a re-closing, which has frequently been the case. Vaudeville bills in the far west are laying off in the cities awaiting the opening word. Orpheum circuit bills will take up their bookings as listed. •That doeS not mean they are to re- sume the time where it was left off but to open in the city called for in the route. This means a loss of what- ever weeks have been affected by the epidemic but was the only method to prevent jumbled bookings. Some acts which started over the Orpheum and were caught by the quarantine have lost four weeks to date, while a few have been lucky in dodging the epi- demic and have lost but one week. Eastern Canada should be entirely open by Monday, Ottawa and Hamilton opening, on Monday next. Montreal nearly sure of starting at that time also. , The decline of the disease wave in New York City continues. ^ Los Angeles, Nov. 6. While the epidemic is abating, there is no sign of theatres reopening. Buffalo, Nov. 6. The quarantine was lifted here Nov. 1, the picture houses resuming on that day, the other theatres getting into action Monday. Schools were not or- dered to resume until today. Hamilton, Ont., Nov. 6. The local board of health has de- creed theatres may resume Nov. 11. This is a week behind nearby Toronto. No other important Canadian points are yet freed of quarantine. Harrisburg, Nov. 6. The ^ state-wide influenza ban in force since Oct. 4, will be lifted in more than two-thirds of the counties of Pennsylvania before the end of the week. The disease is disappearing in most sections. Only two communities decided to lift the ban prior to the effective dates set for the ban lifting by Acting State Health Commissioner B, Franklin Royer. Lancaster, whose ban was of- ficially lifted yesterday, through its health board and city officials, backed by presiding Judge Landis of the Lan- caster rniintv rniirts. lifted iV.et han The dat.e.5 for lifting of bans by countiers iii Pennsylvania a.re as fol- lows": ■ "'■■ Nov. 6—Snyder, Sullivan, Northamp- ton, Bucks, Leh)^h, -Juanita Blair, Ly-* coming, Fulton, Union and McKean. Nov. 7 —Cambria, Indiana, Jeffcrsoo, Bradford, Potter, Warren, Venango,. Tioga. . • ;.; Nov. 8—Carbon, Northumberland, Schuylkill, Columbia, Clinton, Centre, Beaver, Bedford, Butler, Cameron, Clearfield, Crawford, Erie, Huntington, Lawrence, Mercer, Mifflin, Somerset, . Susquehanna, Wayne. Nov. 9—Puttsburgh. There are 67 counties in FennsyU '■{. vania and by the end of the week this . ban will have been lifted from 53. San Francisco, Nov. 6. . ^' The prospect of r San Franciscd theatres reopening seems nowj at th^ earliest, Nov. 17. It appears certain they will remain closed next week, ki the health officers promised five days' . notice of reopening. The epidemic is steadily on the de- cline, with 22,000 cases to date, and 1,500 deaths.- At Sacramento the authorities sane*.' tioned a reopening Nov. 10, if patroni;. wear masks. Managers unanimously agreed to defer opening for another^: week, when masks will not be required. : Stockton theatres also expect to re* ; open Nov. 17. - Pittsburgh, Nov, 6, :.'■■'■ Information was laid .yesterday ; against 25 theatre milnagements of thii city that had reopened on the mayor's order. The complaints were made by representatives of the State Board of Health, alleging violation of its order. Today it has been agreed the : theatres closed willVemain so until al- . lowed by the state board to reopen. While no promise has been made i!t is . understood the misdemeanor charge v against the 25: managements .will he^ dropped if they do not. aitempt, t^ r«- ' open without state sanction,..;;.!'.;!.'.-; The three downtown theatrts af- '■■ fected by the criminal procedure were Gayety, Victoria and Harris. The Pitt is announced to reopen Nov. 9, (Other openings are ihentioned in the Pittsburgh correspondence. in < this issue,))^ .. • The tangle here as a result of the conflict in authority with Mayor Bab- i cock acting independently is generally ascribed to politics. Detroit, Nov. 6. All Detroit theatres were allowed to kf J reopen yesterday, by order of the Si Governor vS3 The ban on the remainder of MichI- :•;} gan will be lifted tomorrow (Nov. 7). ■ >! , > - '\' .. ■■- ,.v. ■*..'3 Friday the new iJietroit will open ; with "Twin Bids." Both Shubitrt _.^ theatres remain clpsed until Sunday, j Vaudeville and picture theatres prac- tically al| open. .;,"<; Seattle, Nov. 6. After six weeks closed the theatres look forward to reopening Nov. 11, though the date has not been set. CincinnatiJTiov. 6. The health board today aecided to continue closing order ten days longer, making six weeks since theatres wiere closed. The board will meet again next Mon-