Variety (Oct 1931)

38 VAmTY Ntw Act s iTuesday, October 13, 1931 WILLIAM HAINES (1) In P«rten. . ' . 11 Mfrls.;. One ' ' CaptMIr New YopK (Pets) Nlcelyi ct>Veried- in>!by' an'enveloj)^' i li^'-'wrUten turn,- William Haines | B08WELL SISTERS I'lariViony 1B Mins.; Three Rafaee (81. V.) ■ For an act that's been - strictly i-adlo In New York up to .tiow, the Bltil«9.'by tktotlyenouafa'ibr his'flrst Bpswells, with but a' week or so of stdge appearances'.'.'He'9 playing- soitfte 'of' the Loew houses' 1ft the eaet'Undet- his Metro.plcture'coh- traet. Edgbr Allan "Woolf, Metro etafC -nrrlter and former stage au- thor, "wrote or composed Haines'-'lit- tle turn ot 11 minutes, with a big elrl In It. To the audlencb In this large house Halhes did not appeal (13 a novice stage pertoi'mer. > That tells how well Woolf covered him up. It's Haines doing bits really, mostly in talk, with a bit ot song, and dance thrown In. The whole thing sug- gests Haines dOes more than he Is doing, and that aCts-for Haines, since the entire thing runs but 11 minutes. It's really In-three parts, making it swift. ' Act opens with the screen down'I the piano. In-'one,' and' Halne's ' at home Ip'l HA^-ni^ H6IIyw?>od. 'Word hds'gotteini iaround he Is going east for'. personal ai>'-. pettrances.-. Associates on the'lot who know the 'Wcture h<jytse 'routes east stop in to coiftmlseicate with hlni. Ch&rlotte. .Greeiiwo.Od, Noah Beery, 'i^obert ' Montgomery and breaking In^ were .exceptionally stage^-hroken at their opening Pal- ace show. AH the Boswells do Is sing. That's all John MbCo^^aclc cahi. do, too, poor 'fellow. Now the tibsTvells are' the top femme radio harmonists. All they' do, is'sing; But their, singing was ft riot Saturday with an audi- ence that has seen radio stars in vaudeville theatres before. ; Connie' Boswell, contralto crooner and the soloist, sits on the prop end of the piano bench, during the. songs. Her legs are paralyzed, though by some means she stands up beh tnd the traveler at the finish and is standing for the bows. The other two sisters are grouped about her, one standing and the other playing They exit ortce to give dbnhle the . stage to ..herself. She s{ngs. a. ballad in a.knockout man-, n^r and showed. that singing ' or sta'^idlng, a song is a song where the voice is there. Connie Boswell's deep. Velvety pipes were built fqr t{in microphones. ... A 'mike is used throughout the Buster'Keatph .all pat Haines on the act, nil the singing going Uirough It bapk aiid- tell .him ho-vy' fjotxy' fhiey. a'nd coming out of two-loud speak'- are for :hlm: :.]^eat'6.l}' to! finish his [crs placed at either ends of the pro- regreis p]^ce9'ft'Illy In Halhes'.hand. .Bcehlum arch. ' How 'the' Boswells As the <^rtain arises', Haines..is in ^buM sbuiid 'without the -mecbanl- 'onii' ort the btage,. holding tlie lily. I cfil -medium is never shown. And Haines, young Aiid .personable,, lis pfoliRbly not'nece'ssary to'chance it. agreeable when Urst ' 6'peaklng. ter- the mike in vaudeville Isn't 'Wliile'talking he .Is.'Interrupted by I harmful, a fefhtne. voice ln..the,.'audtehcet The girl w&nta his autograph, ahd.'keeps. annoying' , hini :u^til ,ne.'sjiys sWd. better'come'up .On''the' stage and get it.. ■ . . Up cllinbs Qupld .Alhsworth, un- billed, a chunk, of .'26$. pounds,, net, froim. HoUytirpbd. C^pld. s^nds. the affair along by antics,, finally doing the . song .and dance Haines,'joins in on. " After that there's, but a little in talk for Haines to.finish. ^Ith. . The' bigness . of. the Capitol may assist'Ilalnes in 'his. sllpi-by turn. An Intimate house might, reveal him as the amateur on "the. stage. he is. But this in person act al's'b discloses t^t the picture actor, despite hi? newness to an audience - or the stage, may be sent across in an In and out turn like' this if he is right- ly protected'by his -aUthbr. It should' aid Haines as well in handling dli^- log for the talkers. To a theatre like the Capitol, a I^-w house always playlng the best Metro's first runs' and therefore the haunt ot the ' Halnes-starred pic- tures, silent or noisy, Haines as "a personal attraction should' be. worth something to-the box office. Bime'. Lou'and Ruth CAMERON Comedy . 15 '.Mfrte.: One,' LoewV. Orpheum 'With the aid of Billy. Howard this man and woman team land in the. front ranks of hokesters. The act Is a series of dizzy bits and. gags in- terspersed, with a song or two for change ot pace. an old timer,, wise to all the gravy of hoke which he smears on thick. The peculiar part of modern vaude is that chaps like him tear audiences apart with laughs but find the going for time tough because bookers say they are old fashioned comedians. Lou Cameron Is a fast hokester and. when necessary, goes to flip- flops and acrobatic hoofing. Ruth Cameron foils In spots and sings a pop tune in nice style, Howard piled up a solid hand with a. ballad and al^o straights for the goofy Lou. Thl.< act is good for 99 out of every 100 vaude theatres. It makes 'em laufrh and laughs are the foundation, of vaude. .Carl. Actl'l^ staged and foiitlnepl' smart- Ijf and the girls, till pretty,', neatly -costumed. On their, rd'dlb rep the sisters', should attract some - busi- ness. . '.-'■,. -B'lf*'. ^EftNAftt} and GARRY : Sbnfls and Piano 17.Mins.; One Jeff.erisen . This newly formed : twb-man combo comprise.^ Felix Bernard and Sid Garry. Not the Bernard and Garry turn which had Fred Instead of Felix. Vocal, - strength lies with , Garry and he sustains the assignment. Sid Garrj- has a good' voice, and as they still go pretty strong for imi tatlons In the nabes, his Impres slons, Including Harry Riehman, ^Eiddle Cantor, George Jessel. Al Jol. sdn and the late Joe Schenck brought him big returns. Bernard sandwiches In- a little Imltftsh of -his own by doing a Liittle Jick. Little on the Ivory box. !The style of act isn't new but the present Bema:rd and Garry f rameup will get by nicely in vaude. It's that, hefty alone with Gorry and his Pipes. In Bernard, Garry has an able partner, Mark. MACK, HAROLD and BOBBIE Comedy Acrobats 11 Mine.; One Jefferson- Of late rough and hoke three-ply comedy aero combos have been eas irig into vaude with regularity. This Lou Cameron is one ^seems pretty new, especially as (1) the :two boys and the girl appear young and not stageworn Usual hoofing by the three even to a double routine by the men touched oft with some ground tum bllng. The girl. for the most part also does some ot the eccentric aero stuff, which includes some of the ho'.:e falls and tricks seen around In similar outfits. The boys' display some excellent team work but their attempts to get laughs with some pretty fiabby dialog din't get -very far here. On the general aero, routine the trio did well enough. Mark. LYA and WOLF Aerial 6 Mins.; Four (Special) Jefferson An Importation from Kurope that will find American audiences an easy pick. A Uttle away from the usual, turn has added value In sllcUnens ot performance. On trapeze at opening for con- ventional routine, later going higher to horizontal biirs, the girl ingrati- ates herself by the gi-ace with which she works. Throughout "she's an orb-teaser, certain to satisfy s. a. admirers. The Leitzel lifts from a short web in an Iron-jaW bit Is a. new wrinkle and might work out better for cur- tains Instead oC the toss-out used by )iiany other, acts. Char. DEAUVILLE LADIES (3) Acrobatic Dances 0 Mins.; Full Audubon Four of the femmes work In unl son, with each doing a bit of Indl vldiial aero -n'orU as part ot one of their combo routines. The fifth the soloist, going In. for some n^at acrobatic dancing, with a- one handed spring a standout. The girls flash some nifty rolls, nipups and the usual ground stunts. Style not exactly new since aero batlc glrla coming over from Europe In groups years ago. This contln gent -appears forelgnesqiie. In looks and routine, but have a fresh, youth ful appearance that is In Us favor, The ensemble \vork seems the weakest, the solo work the strongest. Did very well In the opening spot at this ui>town house. Mark. ATLASS, LaMARR and BETTY fiances 9 Mins.; One and Tivo Coliseum Two boys and a girl specializing in tap routines. Rather weak ef fort at the opening with a song'and a subsequent plain stepping layout. Trio works together bn a tapping number where each goes back and forth over a series of small hurdles. BfCectlve. Miss Betty appears to be the easiest dancer of the turn, as the boys seem to be hoofing under dlfll culty. The average run of boy step pers run to the- slim reed -variety but Atlas and LaMOrr seem husky enough to be candidates for a var- sity football squad. 'Well received liere. - Mark, DARBY O'DAY XylOphonist 8 Mins.; One Englewood,. Chicago Inspired by Will M.ihoney, but not directly Imitative, Darby O'Day stands out among xylophoulsts by sitting down on a high stool'and playing the wooden plucques with his feet, He docs not dance upon the Instrument. O'Day is not overly ingratiating as..a personality and should not at tempt laughs by such atrocious methods as smelling his own shoes before putting them on, Less Stall Ing and more selling. . For small time he should do well on the novelty alone. That Is the reward of his patience in learning his feet how to replace his hands Land. Arthur and Morten HAVEL (3) : 'Hot Water* (Comedy); 20 Mint.; Full (Special) Palace (St. V.) The' Havel boys ' are - -still -using Oh, . Uncle,' only the locale is a ship defilf . instead of an'apartment front'. ' Harry Greene In writing this 'new act'' retained the same foun- dation: and structure. But- 'Hot 'Water', is equally -strong 'As light comedy -va'iide entertainment and tlie change is suBlclent to prolong its life. : Helen Lockart holds over as one ot the two girls. Denise Dooley, as the other,. Is a new blonde. Bud Williamsons does a ship's captain here in place of the cop of . the old turn; serving the same, purpose. The Havels know this routine tip and down and still :play It as though they like it. That helps, as well as the manner In which the routine and material so perfectly suti<i their style. Bige.. .WiLLOCK , Comedy 17 Mins.; One and Two ngteWood, Chicago Two college boys sprang a- bright, and possibly entirely original. Idea upon the Bnglewood. They gave their- idea ot ft Fox Movietone newsreel. mach acted as the 'voice' alternately while the other,, duck- ing behind .tk screen, climbed .Into costume to ' Impersonate Gandhi, Mussolini, Frimo Camera, Rocke- feller, etc. It was all quite fresh ■ and, Interesting, despite, the awk- ward amateurishness-of the. pair's' stagie depQ^ment. boys- got - some experience In Madlso'n at the U. ot Wis.'s Hares- fopt club.. But they weren't taugt^t how to get on or oil the stage., They had'at le'ast.fbiir arltl-cUmaxes but withal suggested that'they might get'somewhere it' by. some 'magic they miinage.. to got experience. Th6y are. tiuite unprepared^ as is, to step onto: the professional stage. Yet the Originality and flair for the 'ridiculous and their-success in grabbing a lot of real laughs in the face of their nerves and their newness' cannot be dismissed. It remain^ a fact that new talent, especially new-comedy talent, needs to be, and. ought to be, encouraged. If college dl-amatic dubs can pro- duce anything more striking than obligato singers or mandolin twang- ers, it-'s a pity that present paucity of ' small time vaude dates hiakes the breaking in and eventual ab- sorption so dlfflcuIL Shortly it may come to pass with sm'ail time, burlesque, musical tabs and other sources gone dry, tliere may i>e a grevious shortage of comedians. - Maybe - RKO should hire-an official worrier. > Land. SOPHIE TUCKER (1) With Ted Shapiro. . . SOngs " 50 Mine.; Unit'. ' Paramount (Pots) . .'' V'. First 'American- api};eara;ice- foe Sophie Tupker after '.18'^. tnonth^ abroad, to team .'with George.^dssel in the. Boris PetrofC unit,.'Some of These Pliys.'- .Jessel gpts .toi>. billing while unit takes title . frpm .Miss Tucker's persbnallty.. M«^y))e tljat balances thliigs. Bqt Miss.Tuckec's- return, it anything, looks' like .she can go on forever. Hec hew £,ohgs aro particuidrly punchy, 'whelhei: for dramatic fare or'for humor, and her lyric tricks islam over as usudV. Ted Shapiro at the piano.' - . Between herself and Jessel tliey run in and out of the unit .for most of the running time. Miss Tucker's solb stuff altogether may run' to arbiihd 12 or 16 minutes here, but it's k. o. all the way, as Is Miss Tucker herself. When she sings her fav, 'Some- ot These Days,'-' for a finale . after some reptartee . with Jessel, Soph's forced to the froiit for extra bows. , . '. ■ Besides wiilch Miss Tucker knows liow to wear stage gowns that come dbwn long and make her'look slim ,wlt'h some unusually Jong ^erchlefs that miglit go 'as -well for- plUow drapes. Probably -that's' for femmi^ Ihteresf,'-'-b-ut ' whisn Miss Tnckbr shakes her 'head in' her' orl,gInaV foshloQ! since copied by others '-'ih liulirng'a ''lonesome wolfnan'"tune; the audience recognizes it!fof'd' ha'h'd. - Another big number is tliat^ one sung OS a warning to d taxi dancie ball hostess. Dramatic,. this; - and qfterlng :Mlss Tucker a strong finish, Jessel and.the line help-out here against certain setting.-' , ' .'Miss Tucker still' brightens- the footlights as .one of the great femme solos, with a big personal following. - ' Shan.- AMANDA RANPOLPH (1) Songs 10 Mins.; One State Amanda Randolph, colored . girl singer ,has been around New York vaude houses past season with. Ray nor Lehr and LaMano's Parisian colored band acts. Her peculiar slouchy walk, dynamic personality and natural perpetual. grin - com- bined with a peachy singing style, won her .plenty ot applause. She has branched out with a single as- sisted by a colored boy, Fltzhugh Weston,'at the piano. The act was only a few days old when caught here. Miss Randolph was all dressed up like Aster's pet horse. It cut down her style and personality. She lost her funny slouch -walk and her gestures were stilted. Her songs need re-routlnlng a lit- tle. The lad at the piano should be given a short crack to show up. Dressed in her familiar loose fitting style and with a little more work, Miss. Randolph looks like a sure fire bet as a singing single. Earl EUGENE JACKSON (2) Dancing 10 Mins.; Full RKO, L. A. Eugene Jackson -Is the colored boy who played in 'Clmmoron' arid 'Sporting Blood.' As a vaude at- traction he can stand on his own. Plenty of personality and a good share of hoofing ability put him above the average picture kid who takes to the stage; It's doubtful- If his two picture appearances hiake him a draw. .His two tap routines are fast l>oth oft-rhythm. During a change, his brother comes out to sing number. Brother means nothing outside ot giving Eugene a chance to breathe. For the finish both do the over worked stair dance. This can be EDDIE SOU-TH ENSEMBLE (6) Musical 13. Mins.; Full . Englewood, Chicago. , . : Curriently appearing at. the' Club Kubalyat, Bill Rothsteln'& nlte'Clubi this .five-piece Negro orchestra doubled into the Englewood jiist to see what they meant for vaudeville. It was not clei^rly established bo- cause obviously they were badly routined. Opened like a mbrgue with 'Eli, Ell,' , and didn't get any real combustion until the-sizzling hot encore. One thing stood out. South is a remarkable musician and has dis- tinctly modern conceptions of Jazz.. For those who dote upon the .un- usual and bizarre In orchestrations and harmonics he has much to arouse admiration. That suggests that when, better routined it is.' a group that could make its mark. It is not too.much to suggest that South has the makings. ot an El- lington br a Calloway. His ihusl- cal notions are distinctly arresting' and if anything he would, have an edge for he gets more sweetness and less raucous blasting. Indeed, having no brass whatever blasting Is physically impossible. With obly five men how, it is almost impera- tive to augment for vaudeville. Vet with so much that requires - doing Eddie South's orchestra is em- phatically not Just another colored nplsemaker. Prior to coming to Chicago South was in Vienna, Austria, for some time. Land. SEMON and SAURE ' Singing, Talk 11 Mins.; Ope Hippodrome As a sister team Primrose Scmon and Blanche Saure are a happy com blnatlon. They do crossfire and songs, well arranged, that gets them over the hurdles without any stum bles or spills. Miss Semon formerly ai>pGared with a male partner. - Admittedly showing here under a handicap In view of immense size Of house, the Misses Semon and Baiire set but. to overcome that as best they could stepping up their voices and succeeding fairly . Opening talk revolves around men and the niugg Miss Semon was out with last night. Moderately strong and well sold. Miss Semon follows with a special song, two girls top- ping with an: arrangement of old- time tunes -with a twist, then turn- ing to a double, words of -ivlilch are set to pop melodles; Dld nicely next to closing Satur day afternoon. Clla^, eliminated; Call. on In roller silver 'WHITE FLASHES' (3) Skating 6 Mins.; Full 86th St. Two boys and a girl skates.' Dressed neatly costumes backed by an ordinary black velvet curtain, making It quite effective. Okay opener or closer, although the girl will have to do some more practicing before the turn Is fit for big time. Both of the men are steady on the wheels and do all the standard tricks, plus adding the. touch of playing the violin while doing a toe spin. Girl, In her numbers, spilled several times and seemed to be ner- vous. , Kauf. MICKEY FEELEY (1) Songs 10 Mins.; One Loew's Orpheum Mickey Feeley, accompanied by an unbilled girl pianist, Is doing an act which Is neither poor nor good. It Is. of the typo called playable. The young -woman reminds ot Mildred Feeley. In. vaude dome time agb She sells her songs in a personable manner in a rather sweet toned sb- iirario. -Her voice does not sound cultivated, which Is evident in transitions of register, but it sut -flees. The act lacks a real socko punch to take It'out ot the playable class and lift it into the demand class. Material should do the trick as Miss Feeley has plenty of personality and parades enough talent to convince one she could .handle punchier spngs. Girl at the piano, oke. Eark BORES THOMASHEFSKY (2) , Talk, Singing .. ' ) 19 Mins.; One and Four (Special) Jefferson . : THe\emlnent yiddish character ■actor. Bores' Thomashefsky, is not all-around vaudevillQ, but in New tprk and for a select few who know iJf'.hW'vork and admire it his abt satisfies. Additionally, it 'bears its fnterestliig side for those who, for instnhce, know something of 'EU .filll/ Yiddish lament .which he com, posed for one of his Own shows 40- yeai-s ago on the Bowery. It's in the routine as done then. Otherwise Thomashefsky has a long, somewhM draggy and stiffly operated attrac- tion. .' Getting a reception here on the east side; where he is widely known and idolized, Thomashefsky rose to the occasion neatly, displaying theii aha later his facile presence of mind on the'stage;- It's easy to listen to Thoraashefslty, but his drunk scene from d Yiddish play laclcs impress-. ivenesB. With him is the prima donnd. Mme; Reglna Sukovlch, who cbZ starred in "The Singing Rabbi.' She-' - sings both in English and Hebrew. ' In'possession of a moderately good voice,. the prima is too stiff for' Vaude,-always seeming out of . her metier but valiantly trying to cover- up with a .gracious smile: .'An-interlude in 'one' brings out several - laughs froTi(i a light scene in 'Singlpg Rdbbl,' topped by song. Closing,.tl^e prima does 'Ell Ell!' . , Act was -accepted warmly Friday night, . . C/mr. DELORES DE MONDE and -Canadian" Knights (6) Sohga and Comedy 16 Mins.; Full (Special) . Jefferson- j-Pretty hard for- a rough comic, male quartet - and - pnlma donna to rtde along on a comedy effort and a serious vocal embellishment, but the DeMonde Co. has rounded out fairly good entertainment. i Tiie stage is. a special Set of a; nbrth. woods cablu where four Royal Mountles are talking about captur- ing some killers. In flounces the comic, a:miniature of the bther men In size and also dressed as a trooper. The quartet handles him roughly for laughs and frame him for a. travestied love scene with the In- spector's daughter,, played by Miss DeMonde, All the comedy is hokey with .son<;s injected at intervals. Miss DeMonde and . the quartet have a number, 'RKle AVlth Me.' that is decidedly oRectlve, The men also have an Inning , as a singing oonilngeut and please with har-' mony. , - It is a bit rotighhouse In layout, ' this, turn, but in the .main aimed' at comedy resuU.s. The fellow play- ing the sawed-ofC trooper .Is a hard worker, Iceeps his bits -worked up and also shows skill gs a dancer. The JefCerson'audience seemed.to' think a lot of the act, Judging from- the laughter and applause. Mark, FIOCHI TROUPE (4) Acrobatic 7 Mins.; Full Jefferspn A recent German Importation ot three women and a man doing some fiashy ground tumbling and balanc* . Ing with the man doing most ot the understanding. The acrobatic . work of the one of the femmes was not only done with ease and rap* idlty but maintained longer In exe> cutlon than others of this kind. The women dress d little bit dif- ferent. than the old familiar, aero style and It's for the bast, as It gives their appearance more -of a modern- istic touch. A i>art of the routine Is a la Japanese In that the man uses one of the women for a Juggling object and by his feet alone whirls her through space for some 13 fast evolutions. Act as a whole reels oft some nice and nitty aero stuff, particularly one of the Flochls. Proved d cork- ing good opener on the eight-act bill at the Jeff. Mark. FREDDIE BERNARD Songs, Gags 10 Mins.; One Academy ■ Freddie -Bernard, formerly Ber- nard arid Garry; aad later with hls - own band, and specialty people, has gone in for a. single. It Is weak. But for throe singing Imitations at the finish it would have let Bernard Oft with a cipher. He lias powerful pipes, which he uses for pop tunes okay. He tells the . hmbrella gag. which Jack Benny recently told at the ace Palace, arid got nothing. Benny socked 'em with It. Differ- ence In delK'cry and knowing how. Bernard should stick to his sing- ing and let funny ihuggs tell gags. As a songster ho rates okay. -As part of the Bernard and Garry out- fit he fitted Into'the singing picture. It should bo the tlpoft to a smart performer. Bernard ."should be smart, as ho has been in show business long enough. Earl. ZARRO and VALLEN Skating 7 Mins.; Two RKO, L. A. Usual skating roullnowvllli notn- Ing to make the team^ind ouu Finish has one ot the boys doing tne whirling while the other has o necK hold. f It Will do as an openei-. ',.