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Tueeday, Fcbniary 7, 1933 VAUDE HOUSE REVIEWS VARIETY 45 PALACE, N. Y. This week's sbow Is okay, but not tieavy-eauge and Ifa much too long for what It containB, running one hour and 34 minutes. The cutting ■hould come principally In the Bob Murphy act, fifth, but with a tight- inlnB ot the show desired there could be a little In other spots. In- cluding the Benny Xeonard-Eddle Jloran turn, fourth. As show ran at the second per- formance Saturday afternoon It left a lot of room for yawns plus seats that finally got warmed up. Nothing on stagre designed as more than mild boxofflce. Leonard may drag a few of the non-regulars around. It remains chiefly for the picture, 'Bitter Tea of Gen. Ten' (Col) to supply the box-offlce draft. Over here on second-run from Badio City, chances are fair It will bold up house reasonably well. Sat- urday matinee, there were a lot of standees, snowstorm driving some people oft the streets. With Broadway battered roughly by Radio City and the thousands two houses over there are taking away from the big street. Palace must expect to suffer Its proportion- - ate share of decline In receipts, de- spite weather or other conditions . that might be considered fayorable to the b.o. Current six-act bill is opened by Felovls, Juggler, who didn't get hold of himself until near to finish of his routine. Plenty of misses, and they didn't look like stalls either. Stick and ball balancing routine on wind up, however, found Felovis better warmed lip to his Job. One of the mistakes this act makes is the siem announcement 'stick absolutely round.' To begin with, most people probably wouldn't ever figure stick might not be round. With the sign doubt might naturally enter. Arnaut Bros., varying their act a little, as they often do, spotted No. 2 and as usual well liked. These bird- chirping lads have been around lot, and every vaudegoer must know their stulT almost by heart, yet they ; don't seem to tire. More use of the violins, as In evidence on this en gagement, can't be a bad idea. These first two acts both played the Radio City Music Hall together, so it isn't unnatural that Maria Gambarelli, who was on opening - show of the.RKO Boxy, should also be booked for the Palace. Only probable drawback may be the fact that Palace might be getting some of the thousands who've been over In R.C. and won't want to see the same entertainment In this house. It might be considered bad booking Or lazy booking, with the field now adays not using up all the idle and worthwhile talent around. Miss Gambarelli (New Acts) heads . a classy little dance offering with routines that fit the mood of vaudeville theatre such as the Pal ace. With the aid of two others the vet ballerina scored strongly at the second Sat mat. Leonard (New Acts) might have been spotted one notch ahead, with Gamby In between Leonard and Murphy, since these two acts de pend mainly on comedy. As It Is, last three acts are In the comedy class, Walter Powell and orchestra with Its slapstick closing. Leonard carries^ a sister team, looking like twins, and a sparring partner. Up to this point on the woman's angle it's been one blonde after another. Bob Murphy's young Ish girl broke the monotony. She'; a brunette. The girl and the boy built up by Murphy as his kids, have provided the front-porched monologist with 60% added strength at least. Murphy also carries the plant working from the audience. The only drawback of the present act is its length, 26 minutes. That's almost enough for a picture house unit these days. :'oweIl and his band knuckles down to 18 minutes, about right lor this attraction. Powell came out of the Benny MerofC band and has Rudy Bundy, once with Meroff and an arranger for v arious bandsm en, as his leader. " Take all the slap- stick out of the band and It's still an okay outfit. Leave the slapstick In, including all the seltzer-squlrt- Ing and the laughs make It easy to forget about everything else. A nice little comedy band act. It would go okay In picture houses. Char. movements at the helm of the 10 syncopators and, aside from her own stepping contributions (best appealing was the rumba) It was all rather hit-and-mlss. Finale weak and general tempo sluggish. Miss Basquette is most effective as an in- timate worker where her own terp accomplishments, plus the person- ality appeal, recommend her for closeup cafe work and the like. In large auditorium, the marquee billing, capitalizing on the printer's ink renown she has achieved through her marital career and her most recent off-agaln-on-again ro- mance, offers about the best equa- tion for the booking. Collins and Peterson clown a mild comedy interlude, ad libbing such topical bon mots as a theme song dedicated to Lina Basquette, en- titled 'Let's Put Out the Lights and Go to Bed' (the song title originally modifies the thought and calls it go to sleep'), and also ad liblsms in Yiddish, flnaleing with a crack at Hitler and an orchid for Wlnchell for his expose of Germany's chief NanzL Anatole Frledland's revue is a la his past efforts, coming back this time in person on the rostrum to pace the 16 girls, four boys and spe- cialty people from this personnel. There's an Introductory number to the effect that Friedland this time Isn't sending them from Coast to Coast (optimists!) and staying idly home, but is with them ia person, as m. c. The usual revue idea in" a nite club setting, plus an audi- ence stoogess as interrupter. She wants to know If Friedland discov- ered Barbara Stanwyck and Mae Clarke for pictures, and also If be discovered Mrs. Freddie Rich and Jack DeRuyter. To the last Fried- land retorts, 'No, a hotel detective discovered them.' A pseudo ex-waiter is a tenor soloist who registers more because of the reflex angle, as does the stooge-interrupteyess who, when finally doing her stint, gets 'em chiefly on the novice appeal and the sympathetic equation of a friendly audience that wouldn't let the make-believe down. Throughout, the general idea is Gusedwardsian as Friedland Introduces his cliarges. The act is not a condensation of '60 Million Frenchmen,' which tab he had out originally, later expand- ing It again as a $2 legit road show try. Upon folding, Friedland tocik some of his chorus into this vau4^ flash. He only uses one number oiit of the Cole Porter show score for a chorus dance routine, and it ends there. However, It's an acceptable intermediary flash for the grade. If not particularly novel. Abel, For radio all right, but not for the footlights. All In all It's a pretty fair sales angle for the cheap trade. And that they're going for the cheaper scale around here la Indicated by excel- lent matinee business, when top is 25c, as against the nights, when price goes to 40. If they want to pick flaws with the set-up, there are plenty to find, but this doesn't pretend to bo anything more than small time and as such makes the grade with plenty to spare. Jaffe's now considering going into the market for 'names.' That may be a mistake. . ,^ Picture is 'Speed Demon' (Col), and U news and cartoon round out. Cohen. G. O. H., N. Y. VARIETY, PITTS'BG STATE, N. Y. Rainy, slushy Saturday afternoon chased 'em In off the sidewalks and the lower floor was black with cus- tomers at the State. From a rear perch, that five-act layout with 'Strange Interlude' on the screen, was very Eugeneoneillish. Maybe the boys and girls on the rostrum said and did things but the reaction from the back pews was something else again. Three Cossacks, roller skaters on an elevated platform, opened and whirled themselves" dizzy but no- body got excited. Mebbe Frances Arms in the deuce with her her- alded 'song types' had some bright lines but In the main they too were somewhat of a secret. One gath- ered the opening number was wop- plsh, the second Yiddish and the finish weakish. Seemed all too long. In the trey Llna Basquette and her Hollywood Aristocrats—slang for Jazz band—went through hotcha Pittsburgh, Feb. 3. ^mph,' said Ckorge Jaffe, no more, no less, when he read In last week's "Variety' that top price for a vaude bill, if the Indies ever re turn to stage shows, will be $800 iei week. That Timph' of Jaffe's was significant, because Jaffe could have told the muggs on 46tb street that four weeks ago when he converted the Academy, his burlesque house, into the Variety and put in a vaud- fllm policy at a 25-40c scale. For $800 Jaffe is getting an m.c, four and flve acts, and a pretty good chorus of 12 girls. A year ago the same layout would have run him pretty close to $2,000. The differ- ence represents the difference be- tween profit and loss, for with his new set-up Jaffe is managing to break even and occasionally show a profit. It's young yet, half of the Variety's prospective public doesn't yet know it's no longer a burlesque house and when they finally do awaken to this shoppers' entertain ment, the burg's other sites may sit up and take notice. Anything at all is good news to the management, for under a two-a-day burleycue policy, house had been dropping plenty for couple of years. Running between $6,000 and $6, 000 average business weekly, there's no doubt that the Variety is cut- ting In somewhere along the line As yet, competition hasn't felt the inroads of Pittsburgh's only vaud film Bite too deeply. Already there has been talk of outside interests dickering for the Alvln, the Aldine and the Pitt as prospects for the same combination policy. Those $800-a-week bills don't, of course, represent A-1 vaude, but they seem to satisfy the two-bit customers and that's all that seems to matter anyway. Current bill is typical. In ad dltlon to Nat Nazarro, Jr., as m.c, and the permanent chorus, there are the Starr Brothers, two-man hoof Ing team; Raymond and Ann, man- and-woman ventriloquist act; Key stone Songsters, a group of flve local radio entertainers; and Sher- man and Wallace, mixed comedy team. Nazarro befoia the m.c. pash waned was on the Loew circuit, Starr boys in ordinary times could qualify easily for a spot in most any of the units. Ventrllonulst turn with a little dressing up could like wise qualify. Chorus la flrst-rate individually and collectively but mu.st overcome some cheap costuming made neces sary for rea.sons of economy. Sher man and Wallace are a fair enough team. Keystone Song.sters are the only really weak spot in the lay out, and that's bccau.sc they havpn't the stage polish nor personality. Of the latest Innovations at this old Chelsea show emporium the one least likely to escape the notice of the regular clientele Is the change m the flavor of the house deodorant. For a long while the management squirted them with a mixture ot vinilla and sassafras but now Its gone in for an undiluted whiff of While the official picker of the house flavors may APy™/"" touch of the old forest is the more hMlthv odor. It's stlU too pungent foT tSe sensitive olfactories of this naborhood mob. Consequently it wouldn't be amiss the blend be pine with something such^as the essence of wintergreen. or violet. Perhaps out of this twist the G O. H. may eventually up an exploitation angle along the line of "The House of a Thousand Smells.' ,„ to- other notable change -here Is the clipping of the bill down to three acts from a previous four. If the slicing of the vaude fare was moti- vated by the box office, the business It the Saturday matinee didn't show it. Both main arena and the first shelf were filled, with the kids and their dimes In substantial attend- ance. If the intent was to spread the cost of four acts over three for the purposes of quality Improve- ment? the show on view that after- noon save no evidence of it. If any- thing it looked more like a case of reverse EngUsh. Compared to the four-act bills of recent months, this threesome was away off standard. It ran less than 60 minutes and that made it so much quicker for the at- tendees to get down to the two fea- tures. 'Kongo' (Metro) and 'Magic ^ Only act^f the three that showed any real quality and punch was the opener, Josef Blank with the missus and their boy. For other acts of Us type this one sets a high level. It s got the stunts that build suspense, a crack assortment of novelties and a keen sense of showmanship Act's finale with Blank headbalanc. ing his wife atop a perch while she goes through some flashy pot-and- pan spinning €iamed them a solid farethewell. ,. Joe Weston was thero breaking in the Weston and Lyon routine with a new partner. First half was an almost 100% replica of the turn his ex is now doing with George Sny- der. For the latter part Weston and his new connection, Marie Gal- lagher, carve out a snappy piece of tomfoolery as a pair of gashouse district inebriates. Though the Miss Gallagher is no CoUette Lyons, the looks and the comic talents are there. She's a cute trick and can spin a nifty little pair of pins. With them it primarily is a matter of working out a script all their own for the first half of the act, instead of doing a poor Imitation of the original. Closing glmgack, billed as the Bernard! Revue, was one of those tossed-together affairs that manage to get a break-in date and there end their stage career. Only thing ap- proaching a claim to existence that this thing has Is a young fellow with a smart pair of hoofs for weaving a tap. But the one num- ber he does impressiv ely doesn't justify dragging tire resfof the crew around with him In what is trying to pass for a flash act. In- cluded in the retinue are six step- ping tyros making up a line where everybody strikes out for herself. Odec. WENR MINSTRELS 20 Mins.; Full (Special) Palace. Chicaao After four years on the radio, the WENR Minstrels are playing their first stae.e engagement. For the past year Sinclair Oil has been pay- ing them. Act reported getting $2,500 for the Palace week. To say that minstrels have been scarce on the boards during recent years Is to emphasize the obvious. But on the radio this group, and possibly to a lesser degree one or two others, has found a wide and Indubitable popularity. Whether this public is the remnants of the old minstrel-loving generation or an entirely new crop of addicts edu- cated by broadcasting Is anybody's guess. Possibly a lltUe of the first and a lot of the second conjecture is the truth. At the Palace the comedy wasn't precisely explosive, but the act's re- ception indicated many warm hearts and faithful followers had paid to get in. Not without due signifi- cance is the fact that NBC has a waiting list of from 10,000 to 16,000 names at all times for the ducats (400 per broadcast) with which the public may view the minstrels In the studio. All of the present minstrels are professionals and handle them- selves well. Their gags are supplied to them (at least for their air broadcasts) by fans, which perhaps accounts for a certain Chautauqua quality about much of the material. This has been no bar to their con- tinued favor with the public and need only be mentioned for the sake of the record. That gag about the fast-traveling bull unfortunately was told on the same platform the week before by Bob Murphy. Minstrels are strong- est theatrically on their vocalizing, and here they are oh firm ground From Chauncey Parsons' sweet tenor to Joe Parsons' (no relation) subterranean basso the singing, solo and In groups, is always pleasant, Two Parsons and Interlocutor Gene Arnold, the founder of the minstrels, work white face, with the others under cork. Fritz Clark and Mac McCloud on one end and Cliff Sou- bier and Bill Chllds on the other Soubier Is also well known on the radio under hfa other characteriza- tion of 'Old Pappy' (WMAQ), while Mac McCloud heads an orchestra around these parts between times. Fritz Clark (formerly Melsner) Is the newest member of the group. Imaginary clog dance performed by the drummer Is the classic gag of the attraction on the radio and re- peated at the Palace for a quick laugh from the audience that obvi- ously was familiar with it. Harry Kogen, NBC band leader, handled the Palace pit ensemble that came upon the stage and donned radio-like smocks to carry out the broadcasting studio aspect. Min- strels work similarly in front of an orchestra at NBC. Kogen turned In a smooth Job on musicianship. Land. BENNY LEONARD and EDDIE MORAN Comedy. Singing, Boxing 15 Mins.; One, Full (Special) Palace He may have been Just a fighter and probably not a.k. Just yet in that field, but he's okay as a vaude act regardless. Leonard gags a lit- tle about not being an actor, prob- ably knowing he has a pretty good little turn. On this vaude engage- ment Benny has Eddie Moran with him. He owes much to Moran in the way of credits for laughs. .Leonard mostly gags up his talk when it figures around boxing, bis experiences, etc., but on the 16 min- utes some of that talk could be cut down, including the crossfire with Moran. Punch of turn Is the spar- ring exhibition with a profesh scrapper, then with Moran as sub- stitute for the other pug. Every- thing's well timed, making It look like maybe Moran can take It, too. Moran was formerly with Ted Healy and Grant Withers. The boxing sequence In fuU should be the proper closing point, with the two gags in one following around 'Benny's experiences' either dropped or moved ahead. A sister team, dead ringers foi each other, open act in an Intro, and later, with some boxing glove fisticuffs mixed in do a song-and- dance number. They're cute ar- ticles and serve to dress up what otherwise might be some d<-.nhnes3 for the eye. Char, HIPPODROME, N. Y. Local No. 740 of the Theatre Re- ceivers' Union ought to call an ex- ecutive meeting in the orchestra of the Hipp Just to study how an hour's performance can be put on for small green apples and be made to look like a bargain for the cus- tomers for two bits on a snowy February Saturday afternoon. They make the foundation out of a lino of 12 girls and three dancing chorines who can make a stab at a tap specialty. To this is added a m.c, a Juvenile and two women singers and the thing Is complete. For good measure two or three spe- cialty aicts are booked, and the whole thing Is stirred up and served before Willie Creager's stage band, and the folks are happy enough to come again when they have another two bits. Business has been consistently good since the new operators took hold, fio there must be repeats. This matinee the orchestra was well JOHN and EDNA TORRENCE (4) Dancing 17 Mins.; Full OrpHeum The Torrenccs, brother and sis ter, have lately been a one and two-number specialty team in the picture houses. Previously, in pres- entations and shows. Miss Torrence was an acrobatic dancing single. In their own turn they specialize In novelty ballroom and stage double dancing, acquitting themselves as befits a couple of kids who have grown up on the hoof. Unless there is a good reason that she shouldn't. Miss Torrence ought to return to her acrobatic specialty, if only for one brief number in this turn. Besides dancing with his sister, the Torrence boy plays a solo on the fiddle, after which the two pian- ists, both men, have their own spot. The musical interlude breaks up the dance mpnotony, which is a neces- sity since the Torrences' several dances are quite similar. But they're SUE HASTINGiS' MARIONETTES Novelty 11 Mins.; Three (Special) Orpheum Nothing unusual ncir.exceptionally original^ about this puppet turn, but its chances are good at the moment because of a marionette craze that now prevails. As a vaude act It will entertain the kids chiefly, as many others have done before. Miss Hastings takeis a bow at the finish, holding one of the dolls as evidence. It may be a novelty to see a woman step out Instead of a man. But there's a man around somewhere, heard but not seen. A vocal duet by two of the dolls In the tip-off. Routines are of the customary marionette type, except one trick which Is out of thef (n^inary—one doll sitting on another's lap. Bige. MAI^IA GAMBARELLI <3> Danoing 13 Mins.; Full (Speoial) Palacfl She's been around for some years now, but Maria Gambarelli In no way tips It off.. Either by announce- ment or In her work. The Important point Is that iso far as her dancing Is concerned. It seema to be Im- proving. In the picture houses. Miss Gam- barelli has leaned strongly to ballet work. She is essentially a ballerina, with her specialty being on the toes, but for vaudeville her i>outInea branch in other directions to fit the desired vaude requirements. Opener Is a combination of the classical, modernistic and syncopatic to music of 'Rhapsody in Blue.' Set is In blue and so Is the pajama-like costume of Gamby. It Is here that the finished technique shows Itself, but in the ballet following it is blended prettily with grace of exe- cution. In a more frolicsome mood are the pirouettes winding up the ballet routine. Afford an impressive climax. This number was worked out by the d.ancer for her engage- ment at the RKO Roxy on opening bill. An eccentric dancer who gets high off the ground is his work and can do bells that should make Pat Rooney sneer Incepts the closing number, Gambarelli Joining him. It's a hotcha dance to the melod^ of 'Underneath Harlem Moon,' with Gamby becoming a hot mamma, . A male pianist is third member of the act. Gfiar. presented in showmanly fashion, which overcomes the sameness. Act probably needs some work, after which it .can hold its spot as a full stage dance act on mo.st any bill. Bige. filled from wall to wall with few scattered vacancies. Balcony at three Jits was better than three- quarters. That means a lot of peo- ple In the old hangar. The merrymaking starts with a .stage band overture, and then the juvenile is on working with three dancing girls. Girls can tap plenty, and so can the Juve, who also has a nice baritone voice and can whis- tle through his fingers, all making for a brisk start. It develops a long time afterward that the young man is Tommy Sternberg, or so it was made to appear by the m.c.'s introduction. Anyhow, he is the nearest thing to an entertainer In this group. His specialty was followed by the same two girls, who did another tap and legmania session. Next in the running was an idea of a boy boot- black and a girl in black satin pa- Jamas, both of whom did taps, while a woman singer warbled In the background. Apparently this tap stepping could go on forever. Pear that it might go on Indef created something of a crlsi.s, hut the m.c. cra.s)ied just in time to re- lieve the tension. He wa.s on for a brief bit of gab, lending to the in- troduction of the Juve all over again for still more taps. Apparently it could and would go on forever. But no. Came Lemar and Kane, man and woman with a remarkably varied specialty, in which globe walking, plate Juggling, ladder bal- ancing and the ni.Tn's specialty on (Continued on Page 61)