New York Clipper (Feb 1923)

February 21. 1923 THE NEW YORK CLIPPER U HAMILTON <L«rt Half) Considering the handicap of extremely cold weather and the beginning of .£(Cnt, the matinee business here on Thursday could really he called very good. -The show moved along nicely and contained ploity of entcnainmcnt, the poorest part being the. Qp«Quis .act. offered by Rolud Tnven and CpiQpany/who did an illusion and magic routine. Tnvers workr amateurishly and' gives away most of bis stunts to the audience 'by the lack of •howroanship and alowncss' with ' which he does his stunts. We suggest that he either tare- the act .into % comedy Jiolnim. vehicle and get laughs with him. rather than at him. Alice Hamilton is still doing her "old lady" character in ''Lavender and Old Lace'/' with a lot of new lines written by Paul Gerard Smith. She talks about her visit to her son in the big city, and her misunderstanding of the alang and tlje places she saw^ drew a fair amount of laughs and applause. Stanley' and Bimes scored with tlieir dance work, moTt of it being ec cen tric routines. The boys are doing a great deal of talk m the act, in fact a little too much in the way of attempts at- comedy than is good for them or the act. This could be cut to. advantage, particularly in the supposed "Shakespeare** bit. One of the best comedy sketches seen in a long time was offered by Jean Adair and Com- pany with **Tbe Cake Eaters," written by Tom Barry. It's one of the few playlets with the "mother is your best pal after all" theme which really gets over, because it has merit, and not bccauM of the aympathy or "flag waving" appeaL Miss Adair is lovable in the mother role, and her cost, consisting of Laura L«e, Howxrd Lane and William Phelps, is exceptionally gooiL Phelps in particular, does excellent work, handling the role of the boy friend who is trying a new sys- tem to make women love him to great results. George Rockwell, of Rockwell and Fox, started that particular offering by talking, and kept on talking for the rest of the offering. He is about the only person we know of who can keep jab- bering away constantly for fifteen minutes with- out becoming a bore, and kept the audience amused. True, AI Fox doesn't say much in the act. and . for that matter doesn't get a chance to say much. But there is such a thing as being a silent straight man. and if there is another man who could work straight as effectively as Al Fox does to George Rockwell's nut gabbery, he has yet to be found. They went along at the nte of sixty laughs a minute. The mc| is really out of the "nut" class, for it is clean in every way. from material to its method of being han- dled. They make one of the best comedy teams in vaudeville, and can be seen over and over again without being tired of. - Mabel Ford, with her orchestra. Golden and West and the Doll Sisters dosed the show. l*he act is staged and routined effectively and went over with a bang. G. J. H. STATE (LmI Half) Sully, Roger* and Sully, opened with n bounc- ing-casting exhibition dene in the garb of comic sailors, and their tramopline disguised as a boat. Some of their tumbling and casting is unusually ^ood and oiher bits arc ordinary. However, the act apparently expects its comedy to get it across and the comedy such as it is is forced and impossible for the most part, being that there is a continuous attempt at it from start to finish. The offering woold do much better if they tried to get over on the merits of their work on the rigging. Gilbert Sisters ond Armstrong, in the second vpot, in-ovcd to be a pleasing singing act, with a little variety in the form of some dancing and musical bits. Both girls have good voices and can put fcftffs over easily. The nan at the iriano made a good accompanist and also har- raonixcd with the sisters in some of their singing. Phil Davis, in blackface, did the usual black- face stuff, singing, tdling stories and ending up with a "Mammy" song that was wdl received. Ais voice is above the average and style pleas- ing. With the right kind of material, new gags, etc., he ottght to make the bigger circuits in time. The headliners of the bill held over for the second half were Burt and Rosedale. late of Shubert vaudeville, who are doing about the same act they did before their Unit engagement. This is ccmposed of the flute handled by Burt and the guitar by Miss Rosedale, wbo also plays the piano, and ccraedy which gathered many laughs. A bit of dancing was also done. Burt's ftmny feet being in evidence. ■ Johnny EU:ot and Girls, closed the shivw in a dance rcrue. the act being a dance studio. - A variety of dances wcr« done, both solos and en- semble numbers and spedalties. Some of the dances came as impersonations of Broadway stars. M. H. S. PROCTOR'S 23RD STREET (Lut Half) Six standard vaudeville acts and the cinema ftfature.-^'The World's Applause," divided honor? on ■ the new bill here. • "An Artistic Treat,',',4 posing novelty with two girls and a man. opened the vaudeville section in a series-of groupings which duplicated famoiia statuary and introduced several orisinal forma- tions. The act carried a'n attractive pedestal that fitted in nicely with their groupings, which were further enhanced by tasteful lighting effects, • Earle and Mullen^ a mixed duo, followed with a whirl of gayety and dance. In their opening song, **It'.s the -Little Thing* That Cotint,*.* they provided an added touch of novdty by the man trimming the girl's hat from devdads he purloined from her evening gown. . The girl handled the comedy and managed to keep, every- body happy with' her laugh getters. whOe the man did some exceptionally clever dancing. . Frank Wilcox and Company hdd down the sketch spot with a serio-comic oddity. "Shush." Just what connection the title bad with the play- let is too great a problem for us. Perhaps the act has big time aspirations, and is not particu- lar as to what it masquerades under on the pop time. The act is woven around a ghost between idex Wilcox is a young physician, who has married the wife of a departed patient,' merely to provide a home for her. He is- convinced by her carrying on at the bier of the deceased hus- band that there will never be another man in her life. He has accepted the situation, and is constantly consoling her and reminding her of the departed. His eyes are opened later when his pal almost snatches her from beneath his very eyes. He decides his system was all wroDg and that it was love, not sympathy the young woman wanted. Wilcox bandied his role with a degree of repression and finish seldom found on a small time bill. He was capably supported by two others. Salbini and Alberts scored in a. fairyland fan- tasy. The girl, :a violinist, wished for a kitty- kat. The man comes on in a skin representing a giant cat and goes through the usnal routine of tho. feline, sandwiching some good jumping and other acrobatic stunts between the foolery. The girl later does some dever cycling, and the finale is brought home that the entire affair is but a dream. The act has novelty and much genuine entertainment to recommend it on any bUL Satapsdn and Douglas followed with a routine of foolery and songs, carefully avoiding anything genuiody humorous, and adhering to the line of hokum that only a smalt time audience can love. *'Sparks of Broadway,*' a speedy dance revue, interpreted by a man and five girls, rounded out the vaudeville section. The act incorporates every style of dancing imaginable, from ballet stuff to the apache. The act is lavishly mounted, gor- geously costumed and packs an entertainment wallop that will hit anywhere. E. J. B. REGENT (Lut Half) At the Kegent Theatre thii last half, one o( the first graduates of the Keitb College of Mtuic was tried out as leader, and if his work is asy criterion of what the school does, it is an in- stitntion that should be given every support from the management. There was hut one mistake in the playing tbrougbout the performance, and that vrSiS caused by an act promising to furnish new orchestrations and not doing so. half the orchestra transposing and the brass playing tbe music as written. Gibson and Price opened with Gibson doing some fine juggling, and Sylvia Ptice doing some crayon drawing.. Gibson, as he says bimaelf, attempts to shame the andieoce into applauding. This is poor policy. If his chatter strikes tkem as funny they will applaud, ond if it doesn't, they will only get sore if they are told to applaud. Much of bis nuf! really is fanny, but the real laugh comes to us when Gibson expects applause on bis worst gags, for some reason thinking they most be funny. Brest Hayes is an accomplished banjoist. His repertoire, however, is not well chosen, two of bis classical numbers being eitirely too long for a vaudeville audience. He finishes well with a popular medley. Kenny and Hollis, canying a special drop, ex- hibit a brand of work we believe is out of date. They resort to every applause seeking gag known to vaudeville, with the eiception of polling the G. O. F., otherwise known as tbe Star Spangled Banner. At the finish they brought out Sylvia Price and Brent Hayes to clown with tbem, and Drcnt Hayes received some applause for bis banoj playing, the stage hand running him a close second. Long Tack Sam. with his ever excellent exhibi- tion, nsing an an that should serve as an ex- ample for those that preceded him. showed them how it should be done. AU bis applause wu IcsitiDiaie, and his speedy work and fine allow- niaoship deserved it. NewhoS and Phelps slopped the show. This, pair sing, and they put everything they have into every number, and make even the' most com-' mon published number meait something. They take a number that has ,hecn heard at. this, bouse at least twenty times before, and feed it to the audience in such a way that t^osc^ out front hardly recogniie it. " Walter Manthey and Girlies doseil'tUe shdw.' Manthey is an excellent dancer, and 'works ^^xd, while bb three girls are well choseo.'' TlKr'are all rather big girls, but Ihcgr are fine. dancen, notwithstanding at least two of them ate,*'and the third, who acts 'afs pianist, is'alsd 'gifte4 with a powerful voice and puts over a couple of blocs numbers in fine shape. Tbe .act is'a fine:Tdiicle, and all. the pa-foimas work-hard and> seen to enjoy.it. . . C C. COLISEUM : (Lut Half) ■■■■■■ Cold weather. Lent or anything dse won't keep people away from this honse It' seems, and it always is at least three-quarters filled. Emil Groth can be thanked for this, for'- he has them coming from all' xtarts of the -Heights,. Inwood, Kingsbridge, Yonkers, and even Mt. Vcnun. If • ever there was a man capable of- making a oeagh. borhood feeling that the theatre in the locality belongs to tbem, and that they must come there, it is Groth. who'* is to Washington Heigfata what Al Darling is'to the Bronx. The orchestra under the direction -of ^"1 Katxenstein, has' been increased by tbe addition of Nola St. Clair, a lady violinist, who has an individual inning before the vaudeville portion of the bill is given with a solo. Daum and Scott drew heavy applause in opoi- ing tbe show with an offering of gymnastic and hand-to-hand acrobatic work. They do some ex- ceptionally good stunts. Ernie and Ernie has improved their act to a great extent since we last saw this team. . The girl now wears curls and makes a very sweet appearance. The monopede is doin^ some very good bock and wing dandsg. .and the kicking ec- bibilion has been cut down, making the bit thai he does at present so much more effective. Tbe act is dressed nicely. Marino and Haitin stopped the show cold with their *'wop*' comedy, and were called back for a speech of thanks after the lights went out. Here's a "wop" combination that docs not use "poosh "em up" or any of tbe time-wom "wop" gags, and yet Rets langbs eveir minute they are on. They'll hit on any bill. Mrs. Rodolph Valentino and Company pleased with a sketch which is Jnlly reviewed nnder new acts. Jim McWilliams worked much better than he did when we saw him last at the. Colonial, with the result that he went over so much better, plant- ing himself solidly in the good graces of the audi- ence with bis comctly. Guiran and Marguerite closed the show with their dance offering, which is practically the .ome. with a few iniprovements, as they offered when they last appeared with their own act in vaudeville before going into production. Guiran does some great cuts and Russian ecceotrie, and Marguerite had added a very good eccentric toe- roitline to the act. G. J. H. WORK ON N. V. A. PROGRAM Work was started last week on the souvenir program for the benefit perform- ances of the National Vaudeville Artists' club to l>e held at the Hippodrome and Manhattan Opera House, on May 13th. The program is being prepared by W. J. Sullivan and Mark Luescher, the former handling the advertising end and the lat- ter the editorial fart. M. S. Renton, who handled the program for the past few years, is no longer connected with the Keith or- ganization. Special rates are being made tor artists' advertising in the programme, while the commerciar ads range m price from $500 to $1,000 a page, depending on the amount of color work desired by the advertiser. PROCTOR'S 5TH AVENUE . ihUt Half) The bill' for the last half here has neither a "name star" or 'draw feature" to recommend it for patronage. .Consequatly business was. away off at tbe Thucsday matinee, which regis- tered the low mark for tbe Seven stand- ard acts and a neighborhood fralic captioned "E>fl)liAyenue ,^dy Minstxds," CDmprised tbe. bn)..,. Pron, all indTcatiqnsL these neighboAocd reyud, giVcn Ijf. local .ainateur talent, have been grealiy overdone'ind 'are losing their strength as ■vi><uMrcjs :hnilderJ;*"At the outset they vera a rtsWlty; bnt'-that''novi^ty'lias long aince woni off aa4' ^ «udience'.aside''from tbe rooline parties oq-hand to boost soma iadividiia] fnun their nelgb. borhfrnd,..an .bcco«in« . bored to death by tbe ■Wl.ioei^ attempts^ a(:parlor entertainers to usurp the place pf regular entertainers on tbe vande- vlHe bills.' '■' A''confession of' weakness in the liae-np is gleaned by the fact ^t the "ndebborhood oter^ tamaent"; holds third spot on the bni, instead of ckning position, which has nsnally been the spot. The .closing spot .at least gave the andicnca an opportunity to view the regular show - and pass oat it they wished. But according to Thursday's linmp yon had to witness the amateois whether yon Jcared to or not. - , NfUie Araanl-and Company, the latter eonsist- mg pf two young men, opened the show with- a dancing violin novelty. The.trio rendered several selections upon the violin and accompanied most of them with precision 'dances, scoring in both departments. Arthur Astor, ventriloquist, followed with a good line of chatter that was woven into a »!■<« The dommy rcprcscated a sleepy bellhop tad most of the talk. was woven around his ahoit- comings and aversion to work, A "crying bit" was put over in great style and brought a greater hand than anything else of the act. If Astor coold disguise his pronounced English aceoit wbcn replying for the .dummy the act wonM an- doubtedly achifve better, results. The ."Lady Uii^els" followed, irilh Uinnia Allen, Annie Kent and Margie Coate, being held over from' the first half as featured '• ^ ^^n' t of tbe revue. Miss Allen -was Ibc intertoentor, whSe the If isscs'Km ond Coate held down the "atds." Amatenr singers, a - ventriloqalst and banjoist *^ beard in more than^genems profusion, only to be coicrastcd later by :snch able vetoans as tbe Misses Kent and date. Margie pot ovo' a coopl e of "rag** numbers she had been doing in her regular "turn"' earlier in the we^ while Annie did a novelty ntmber and showed iOBM fancy stepping. 'The ontslanding feature amonc the embryonic entertainers was eontribotcd by a pleasant appearing', ynnthfal Miss, wbo sans and danced "He Loves He—He Loves He Not" h a manner that was dangennsly near profestienal- ism. Ont of the doicn or more that made np tbe ensemble'she was the only one that shoved any real histrionie ability^ The act was stnmg ont for snch a length of time that it bcome a tedioos proposition for those wbo were not ndgbhors or (rieads of the cast. However, Aiuie and Hargie did their best to relieve the situation by indnlging in some humorous clowning every time things let down. and Honxtl scored in their nifty non- sense and songs. The vamp tactics of the girl which are later contrasted b^ the cave-man stnS of her partner proved as mirth-provoking as ever and kept the audience in nan. At the «>»»i*i» Howard was as tattered and' torn as something tbe cat brought in,, but this. situation only made the mob ydl tbe merrier. B<)lh worked bard and got over for a deserved bit. " Franker Wood and Bnnee Wyde were other valoable comedy assets to tbe bm. They offered their familiar routine of foolcrx and song j'^rv, assisted by two men who were'not meslioned la the billing. One of tbe bttcr was a comcily scream as a "hick" soloist, dolled dreaa, red nose ud anily hair, wbo tried to warble satimeota] son^ only to be yanked off when the stage had been set for the neH sceoe. Wood and - Wyde scored aa osna] in c te 'iy thing they offered and were the nearest thing to a headliner on the biD. Martha, Pryor was heard to adrantagr. in a pleaaing song repertoire, while Lee and Hano managed to spill considerable ciTtnedy in "Ednctt- ing tbe Edaator.** - * Tbe Bob Pender Troope closed the show in their familiar stilt stnnts and dancing. £. J. -B. "LAND OF TANGO" NEW ACT Gertrude Arden and William Elliott' will be featiired in a new tabloid musical com- edy, "The Land of Tango," which is 'now in rehearsal and destined for the Reith Circuit. 'Aside from the featured princi- pals the act will carry three girls and a singing orchestra of five pieces. CONCERT VI0UN1ST£ IN PTT' Nola Mt. Clair, violinistc, has been placed in the Coliseum theatre orchestra by Stan- ley W. Lawton, general musical director of the Keith, Moss and Proctor houses, as a soloist. Miss St. Clair, who formerly played concerts, will. play , several weeks at the Coliseum, foHowing which she will be seen in the other houses under Mr. Law- ton's direction.