Screenland (May–Oct 1925)

Q The theatre in New York is the editorial room of the movies. The public is the editor, blue penciling some plays and 0. Kaying a few for Hollywood. Kaye, and "An Old Fashioned Girl," written and sung by Edith Meiser, are awfully good, too. A burlesque of "The Guardsman," "Sh'Sh!" a pantomime by Louis Sorin and Sam Jaffe, and the performance of Romney Brent, Philip Loeb and Sterling Holloway as "The Three Musketeers" are also guaranteed to make it a pleasant evening for you. Besides Hildegarde Halliday gives a funny impersonation of Ruth Draper, June Cochrane and Betty Starbuck present their lovely selves, and Eleanor Shaler does some fast dancing. p. S. — We liked "Mr. and Mrs.", too. "JUNE DAYS" Ir was Lowell who first pointed out that there was nothing so rare as "June Days," which opened at the Astor during the first week in August. Just why it is called "June Days" except maybe that it was August, is one of those things we could never quite figure out, like problems in spherical trigonometry. "June Days" is popularly supposed to be a musical version of Alice Duer Miller's Satevepost story, "The Charm School," which was afterwards made into a play by Mrs. Miller and Robert Milton. Also, there was a screen version of it, titled, strangely enough, "The Charm School," made by Famous Players and starring the lamented Wally Reid. The Shuberts, however, after buying the musical comedy rights, exercised their right to charge the title to "June Days." Then they decided to change the story, too. The new story is, briefly, that Elizabeth Hines is in the cast, and so is Jay C. Flippen, the latter disguised as Al Jolson. Aided by a pretty fair group of dancers, the lovers are reconciled just before the grand finale. This, as can be seen by the naked eye, shows a marked difference from Mrs. Miller's version. Off-hand, that sounds as though your reviewer didn't have such a swell time. But the contrary is the case. It seems that your reviewer is what is known as a sucker for blondes. Miss Hines, by a strange coincidence, is fair-haired. And your reviewer, as he likes to call himself, just sat there and watched her and wondered what her telephone number could possibly be. So, if you like blondes, see "June Days.". And it would not be fair to close without mentioning one other important fact about the show. It is the only play ever witnessed by your correspondent here or abroad — and he has never been abroad — in which "Deuteronomy" is used as a music cue. "IT ALL DEPENDS" IT All Depends" is the work of Kate McLaurin, who did "Whispering Wires," and the movie rights should be worth more than the play rights. Maybe even more . f^an the play itself. a story about the younger generation, which, it rounding the corner of the second act and settling down for the big moment — it is the hour of wor\ for Broadway — ten o'cloc\. And then the paralyzing whistle of a motor cop, the double red lights in the trajfic signals, screeching bra\es, and suddenly jostling crowds on every corner. The defiant wild thrilling shrie\ of the motorcycle rider comes nearer, and all Broadway waits. Down the famous street past theatre after theatre comes the mounted cop leading the way through' the jammed taxis and street cars, and close behind at fifty miles an hour shoots the limousine with the mysterious occupant. "Who is that Who is it Who is she?" Tou will never \now if you are on the outside, but if you are of the Broadway elect you yell — "Go it, Ethel — Atta girl. That's the stuff." It is Ethel Shutta, and she nightly receives the affectionate losing salute of Broadway because she is "There with the exhibits, boys." Miss Shutta plays in "Louis the 14th" at Columbus Circle, but as Mr. Ziegfeld refuses to have any show better than the "Follies" Ethel has to appear at the }\ew Amsterdam Theatre at Forty-second Street as well, and Broadway maizes way for a girl that can carry two Ziegfeld shows. It is the hardest parboiled street in the tcorld to you, but to one of its own it has a heart li\e a Brontosaurus Dinosaur. is Miss McLaurin's contention, smokes and drinks and makes love. Now the funny thing is that we had noticed this ourself from time to time, but hated to bring the matter up, fearing that we would be set down as an old fossil. And with middle age — thirty — looming up before us, we are naturally getting a little sensitive about ourself. But Miss McLaurin, with the superb courage of the fair sex, has gone and written a play about it. It seems that Shirley Lane — and very well played, too, by Katherine Alexander — is in love with a married, stout and moustached gentleman of forty, and vice versa. Now we could understand — for we have read a great deal and therefore know Life — why the vice versa, but the versa vice bothered us. Just what there was about the aforesaid gentleman that made Shirley willing to Give Up All for him, we couldn't figure (Continued on page 70) 59