Exhibitors Herald (1927)

October 8, 1927 EXHIBITORS HERALD 39 Chicago Diversey Week Ending October 2 Austin Mack and his Century Serenaders was the band show at the Diversey theatre this week, and Jack Pepper, of the original Salt and Pepper team, of musical revue renown, was the master of ceremonies. The band opens with “A Night in June,” with a member of the band singing the chorus. The execution was as pleasing as the song itself. Mack announces Jack Pepper, who plays his ukulele and sings one of his songs to a fair hand. Pepper has charge of proceedings from then on and announces Prince Wau, a Chinese performer who gives some good numbers on a steel guitar, and 6inging both in Chinese and English. For an encore he gives an imitation on his guitar of Ted Lewis and his orchestra playing “St. Louis Blues.” This is more than good. He then gives several numbers on a ukulele. The prince goes over in great style. Pepper next brings on the juggling team of Bob, Bob and Bobby, the latter being a clever dog. The act is about as good as any such acts and better than most, the dog doing a great deal to put the act over. The Markert dancing girls, an unusually good dancing unit for this type of work, enter dressed in picture hats and red hoop skirts. They go through a short dance routine and then discard the skirts, and work in bodice outfit to give a good team dancing number. Then they don their hoop skirts again, give a few more steps and exit to a good hand. Mack and his band next offer an original arrangement of “My Gal Sal,” with a quartet from the band singing the refrain. The voices are good and the number is well done. Then comes the hit of the show and it’s some hit. Pepper announces it as Tommy Wonder and his big sister Betty. Tommy can’t be more than ten years old. but he knows every step in the catalogue. The way that young fellow dances is nobody’s business I He has personality, wonderful stage technique and a pair of dancing feet excelled by few adults in the business. The girl is fair but Tommy is the whole show. His Russian dancing stopped the show. The act would click in anybody’s house. The Markert Girls, dressed in red and black costumes, enter next to do a good tap dancing number. The girls go over well, dancing to “Love and Kisses.” Pepper is next with a number of good songs, among which are “Broken Hearted” and “Those Crazy Blues.” He is absolutely there with the last song and goes over for a big applause. For the applause the band plays “Just the Same,” with all the performers on the stage doing a bit. Mack has a good band unit and met the approval of the house. As master of ceremonies Jack Pepper is nothing extra and makes little impression with the house but when he does his own stuff, he’s there, and no kidding. Capitol Des Moines Week Ending October 1 The ubiquitous Jimmie Ellard, all dressed up like a Persian sheik, the return of Herbert Koch, organist, after an illness, together with a snappy stageshorw and “The Poor Nut” as the feature film, gave the Capitol theatre fans something to talk about during the past week. “Persian Pranks” is the Publix offering for which Jimmy Ellard’s Jazz Jesters attired themselves in purple trouserettes, orange jackets and, what looked much like Santa Claus caps. An Oriental dancer and six dancing maids put over some pleasing dancing in the spectacular act. Ellard sang “Back in Your Baby Days” with a softly lighted scene of a mother in her old fashioned rocking chair revealed between the parted curtains at the back of the stage on an elevated platform. Much of the laughter came from the pranks of Lloyd and Brice in a series of comedy tumbl DAVID GOULD LUBLINER & TRINZ BALABAN & KATZ Production Dept. Chicago ing acts put over with apparently the least effort but with the maximum of comedy effect. Cogert and Motto, human jazz band, made a decided hit and were recalled several times. Much interest in the track team sequences of “The Poor Nut” was due to the appearance of Paul Minnick, former athlete, in the film. Chicago Granada Week Ending October 2 Charles Kaley calls his presentation this week “Back at College,” and the college atmosphere is successfully carried throughout the performance. The stage setting effectively represents a corner of a college campus. The show opens with the Granada Girls, led by Auriole Craven, doing a few dance steps and singing "Gorgeous.” As the girls exit, Kaley enters and leads hie band through a good arrangement of “Rio Rita.” Ossman and Schepps, introduced as two college boys, follow with some good music on their banjos. As an encore they give a medley of "Dixie” and “Turkey in Straw,” which wins them another good hand. The boys are good and know how to handle their banjos. The act goes over good. Auriole Craven, a young lady with a pleasing personality and hardly any voice at all, follows to sing “Okay.” and to play the violin while doing some high kicking. Her ability is just fair but she gets over to a fairly good hand just because of her personality more than her ability. Kaley and hie orchestra next play “A Night in June,” probably one of the most popular songs at the moment, with Kaley singing the refrain. It is a pretty number and it receives a good hand. The Eton College Four follow with a group of songs and a lot of nonsense. This quartet can Bing and its “Bird’s-eye View of My Old Kentucky Home,” was pretty, but the rest of time was taken up with clowning and jazz horn imitations. However, the act got a good hand and one encore. The next is a very pretty number. The band plays “Old Names of Old Flames” with Kaley singing it. As he mentions the names of girls in the song, a girl appears on the stage to represent the girl in the song. The girls’ dresses are very pretty and the whole number is pleaasing and wins a big hand. Connors and Donohue follow, and these two young men gave the best entertainment of the show. They have good voices and their songs go over fine. But when they began to dance they stopped the show. Theirs is not an exceptional show but it is cleancut and devoid of the hoakum and foolishness that characterize too many band show acts. The boys win several encores and get the best applause of the evening. Sam Kauffman follows with a lot of hoakum piano playing. This fellow recently led a band show in a local picture house, and is now doing his vaudeville single. He won a share of laughter and applause from the audience, proving that a good many people still like comedy. For the finale Kaley and his band give a medley of all the famous college songs. This is a good number and wins a big hand. All the performers, dressed as college students appear on a second stage level behind and above the band. The men play mandolins while the girls do a dance routine. It is a good and pretty finale that gets a big hand. Kansas City Newman Week Ending September 30 “Surprises,” the stage attraction at the Newman this week, was of 45 minutes duration and presented much variation in type of entertainment. Hazel Kennedy was seen in vocal numbers and billed as the “mirthful mimic.” Gus Mulcahy offered a variation of jazz and semi-popular numbers on his harmonica, while Vic Ince and his “red hot” trumpet, as it was billed, were seen in instrumental selections. Sylvia Peterson, who recently was with “Artists and Model6,” offered vocal numbers. The Six Sweethearts of Syncopation were seen frequently in chorus numbers. The Newman Merry Makers, as usual, were featured as the orchestral stage attraction and offered popular selections as an overture. COSTUMES FOR RENT PAUL ASH uses a set of PARAMOUNT Costumes each week at the ORIENTAL Theatre, Chicago. We will Rent same outfits to OUT-OF-TOWN THEATRES PARAMOUNT COSTUMERS MRS. ALICE PIERCE, Telephone State 3465 Manager Room 600, Loop End Bldg. Community Songs — JOHNNIE DEVINE Featured Organist PATIO THEATRE, CHICAGO Where they sing “DEVINELY” — Solo Presentations MURRAY and ALAN “Jesters of 3,000 Years Ago” Just Closed a Tour of PUBLIX Soon to Repeat all B 6c K and L 6c T Houses P. S. NOVELLE BROS., “fiddled” around, until they became “good” acrobats. Direction WILLIAM MORRIS AGENCY STANLEY and BIRNES