The Film Daily (1928)

THE STiday, May 20, 1928 •c^mk DAILY 11 Short Subjects "Crown Me" — Cameo Ekiucational Good Gags pe of production 1 reel comedy Made lively and amusing by the ver work of Wallace Lupino who ts over his line nicely. It is prin ally concerned with a toothache d the experiences at the dentist te comedian is ably assisted by lorge Burton and Muriel Evans 1 results in a peppy offering that ngs the laughs smoothly. Lupino coming along in fine style, proving it he is a worthy brother of that ler original comedy bet, Lupino ne. 'The Valiant Rider' Western Featurette Universal Ragged pe of production. .2 reel western This one is very amateurish, and entire production seems to have :n rushed through as one of those ngs that has to be knocked off in 'f ler to meet the sohedule. The east "". 1 banker and his daughter go to * ; ranch for a vacation. The road ent kidnaps them to his shack, :' d holds them for a ransom, etc. ■ ' rector Mitchell takes the blame. fURi "Sea Breezefe."— Variety Fox Beautiful Type of production. . . .1 reel novelty Lives up to the high artistic standard set by Fox's Varieties. To the lovers of the sea, who are legion, this picture will exert a powerful appeal. It shows the sea in a variety of changing moods, from gentle summer swells to wild fury of lashing seas sweeping over the ocean liners. The method of handling the titles is particularly unique, for they merge gradually into the scenes, and make of the subject a complete harmony. Many of the shots are in midocean from tihe deck of a liner. "The Wandering Toy" Hodge Podge Universal Variety ■pe of production. ... 1 reel novelty ust a collection of travel shots m various lands tied up with the lal art embellishments of this ser. The animated gag that strings I shots together is a little toy fig; that is made to hop about and )t by various means from one forn country to another. In this way see glimpses of such lands as jrocco, India, Java and Borneo. me of the views are quite unique, t the art embellishments seem to a trifle overdone. i.iiii d\>]ti\ ■atioi ;etsl peri y aril iit nolo jis oci s in rojecli loss ihe I "The S>.3eed Sheik"-HUnive(rsal nt t Fast Fun pe of production. ... 1 reel comedy \rthur Lake is featured. As usual the excitement centers aruund his ht with tihe rival for the smiles of girl. They decide to settle it in iauto race, for Mary has prom8 to marry the winner. The race zippy, and develops quite a few ighs, being hea^/ily gagged. Ditor Kimmich did a pretty good I. It will please juvenile fans. It'B USI tW* 'When George Meets George" Stern Universal Boxing Bout pe of production. . . .2 reel comedy With the clever comedy work of 1 Saylor, this succeeds in being y entertaining. In addition, the )t is quite substantial and works to a lot of suspense with natural Ighs. Moves fast, with some nice nedy bits. Directed by S. Newid. "Follow the Leader" Animal Comedy Fox Pet Animals Type of production. . . .2 reel comedy Down on the farm little Johnny is the chore boy, but he has figured out a way to make work easy with the help of a mechanical mind and his pet animals. The mechanical devices that have been worked out are highly ingenious, especially the kid's ^home made engine and string of cars. One of the best juveniles we have seen for some time. Done with class, and a lot of clever and original gags. Will click with kids everywhere. Presentations By JACK HARROIVER; "Eskimotive" — Pat Sullivan Educational Fine Cartoon Type of production..! reel animated Felix, the adventurous cat, goes on a journey to the Arctic by means of a bubble. It serves as his airship, and after many unique experiences he lands in the realm of snow and Northern Lights. The cartoonist has started to develop a new technique in the Felix series, and it shows to fine advantage in this number. It consists in employing shadows and blackouts, and gives the cartoons an appearance of depth and body similar to actual shots of outdoor views. The boy who is doing the creative work on this series is using the old bean. Bound to please. Paul Ash Gets Going as M. C. at Paramount Paul Ash opened his first Broadway engagement as m. c. at the Paramount, and went over very smoothly but without creating the riot that the sensational ballyhoo he received seemed to promise. Opened with the front curtain showing an animated oval of the leader's face in pantomime, with two large hands just below holding ribbons. The latter extended down to five girls on each side of stage. They represented "Ash's Musical Fingers." They did a special lyric for the opening number, "The Musical Mr. Ash." Then the band came up on the elevator stage through a smoke screen of steam. Their number was "The Gang's All Here." Then Ash appeared and made a brief speech by" way of introducing himself to Broadway. He then led the band through "Back in Your Own Back Yard." The next song to be plugged was "The Man I Love." The first act was Ruby Keeler who sang "My Pet," and went into her tap dance that was very neatly executed. Milto Watson followed tenoring "Ramona," following with "Lilac Time." He scored impressively, and is probably in for a run, for Ash brought him along from Chicago. Then the band had their third number, "You're Wonderful," with a vocal interpolation by Paul Small, a member of the band. This was the only time Ash called on his crew for solo work, outside of a plug for one of the songs by one of the boys with a megaphone. The other acts were the Tiller Girls in a stepping routine that was mild, the Remos' Midgets, and the Ormonde Sisters. The settings were not outstanding, the acts just so-so, and the smooth harmonizing of the band was the feature of the show. Ash showed little of his personality stuff, and worked rather unoljtrusively with the various acts. Looks as if the edge has been taken off his particular line by all the other stage imiiresarios who have been plugging the intimate line for the past six months and more along Broadway. He was just a little late in coming from Chicago. But there is no question that he is an m. c. to be reckoned with, and it is a pretty safe bet that he will work up a big following, for the boy seems to know his mass psychology, and plays his audiences with a lot of class. But it will take time. Pathe Review No. 22 Diversified Type of production..! reel magazine Some very interesting foreign views are presented, starting of? with "Maids of Java," showing Javanese girls training to become temple dancers. This is done in Pathecolor and the shots are beautiful. Then is shown pictorially the ancient Chinese legend showing how the Pekingese originated as the pet of an emperor, sacredly guarded for many years, till finally the little pet has become the favorite of milady of fashion the world over. The reel concludes with a section of the adventures of Horace D. Ashton, explorer and adventurer, showing his experiences in the Sahara desert. A fine entertainment throughout. Loew's To Build On Heights Work will start soon on a new Loew theater at 175th and Broadway, New York. Strand Production Is a Very Light Offering The Strand showed little this week, with the Holland motif emphasized in setting and costumes under the title of "In Dutch" for the stage show. The Mother's Day influence got a break in the opener, with a special reel made up of famous mother quotations and portraits of the notables in history who made them. The production opened with two large reproductions of the famous Holland blue plate used as a drop in "one." The stage band was rigged out in Dutch costumes of deep blue, with caps to match. A large figure of a Dutch girl with two yellow pigtails occupied the center of drop behind the band. Myrtle Pierce sopranoed and was just fair. Other acts were Franklyn and Stanley in eccentric dancing; Reeves and Leu in novelty stepping; Pauline Miller did a good dance. Carlo Restivo was very good with his piano accordion. Al Siegel had the closing spot and did some nice kidding work with Navara. The latter did his piano solo, and was one of the outstanding bits of the show. All the performers were dressed in the Holland garb, and the finale had a good atmospheric touch with the back drop being replaced by a Holland landscape sfiowing the tulip fields and three windmills turning in the breeze. Navara seems to be holding his own, and is building quite a following. But the show that Joseph Plunkett provided was just routine, at times very mechanical, and lacked that vital spark of originality that is needed to make a Broadway show click. Roxy Has Lavish Show with Fine Novelties Another impressive production at the Roxy, with several unusual features, especially two novelty acts that went over big. The most outstanding was "The Spirit of Labor," an ir.terpretive dance done by Von Grona. The stage effect was impressive, showing gigantic building cranes and derricks which appeared black in sharp silhouette against the red background. Von Grona does his interpretation unaccompanied by music, and the effect is unique and impressive as he writhes ana twists, while back stage the symbolical movements are interpreted by the sounds of machinery used in building modern steel structures, punctuated by the blast of whistles, crashing of steel on steel, the strident sound of electric drills, etc. A real novelty, and Von Grona's final pose of a laborer ready to collapse after his day's toil brought the act to a close amid a burst of applause. The other outstanding unit was "The Miser's Death," a dramatic episode with characters portraying the Miser, the Devil, Symbols of Gold, and Death. The staging was spectacular, with the stage in half light showing a castle dungeon. In rear was a barred window looking out on the ocean, with waves lashing against the building. The miser was portrayed by Douglas Stanbury, who sits gloating over his treasure as the (Continued an Page 12) R Box OHice Prescriptions MURRY LIVINGSTON Creator of Box Office Builderi BARREL O' FUN and PACKAGE PARTY Phone me at CANal 6480 Write me at 270 Lafayette Street. N. Y. C. Capitol Clicks with Great Show Values Stage show, done by Boris Petroff, was unusually elaborate. The setting was artistic, showing the Capitol dome in the rear. Walt Roesner, leading the band, opened with an entertaining comedy number with the Templeton Boys. Ruth Etting did some nice soloing. Mercer and James Templeton uncovered a fine line of sensational dancing. Then came the Williams Sisters in a very neat song and dance number, which called for more and got it. A pleasing number was Tom Nip's Sixteen Dancers who pepped up the proceedings with nifty stepping and classy appearance. A nice tribute to Mother's Day was contained in the first performance of a new composition. An adclpd attraction was Milton C. Work, auction bridge expert, in person and on the screen in a one-reel Technicolor film titled "Auction Bridge." He gave a talk on the highlights of the game, and answered questions. It was the rnost pretentious show that the Capitol has given for a long time, and the values were there in staging, music and the work of the various specialty acts. The show ran over the two-hour limit, and was certainly a grand smash with entertainment plus. Standard VAUDEVILLE for Motion Pictnre PreeeDtalion The FALLY MARKUS VAUDEVILLE AGENCY Lackawanna 7876 1531 BROADWAY, ^EW VORK GflY AMALGAMATED VAUDEVILLE AGENCY Attractions for Pictiu'e Theatre! Standard Vaudeville Acts 1600 Broadway, New Ycrk City Phone Penn. 3580 •*4 i