Variety (Jun 1937)

Wednesday, June 9, 1937 irAUDE--NItE CLOM VAklEtY 45 Nitefy Reviews BALCONADES (PirrsBURGU) Pittsburgh, June 5. Pittsburgh's newest roadhousCi about six miles out of tpwii arid just a hop, step and jump from Bill Green's Terragied Gardens, shows the disadvantages of unskilled nitery bwrieriship. Spot was built by Jqe Borellir who made a chunk of coin in the wholesale grocery biz dnd ^ecidie'd to giVe "the cafe racket a fling. He's sunk $40,000 in actual cash into the vehturej, an^ it's a hahdsbme room, :but architecturally " and itmospherically incorrect. In ^r^t place, that's too much greeii. stuff for ^a place' out to snatch the twtf-bit kid trade away frdrn Bill Gi-een, oh which Bqrelli jnust have been figuring. Otherwise, he wouldn't have .located so far out and so close, to the oppbsish: Some- .thing considerably less elaborate would have: served ais well. In the second pla<ie, he neglected to put .in a cooling plant and since . the room's indobrs entirely, the warm weather is going to hurt ; That's particularly §0 on that bal- cony,, close to the roof, which stretches ' around the whole robin, hence the Balconades. The bar; at one end on. an., elevated platform, i^. too small to accommodate any kind Of a crowd and should be en- larged;. It's a colorful room, seats around' 450 comfortably, biit very intimate looking, tiightihg. is mulii-cpldred on a series bf-revplving rheostats and, spots are' built into-ceiling, at num- ber of vantage points.-. On' entering waitresses, always a sign of mana- gerial economy; general service is Way off and price- list at a glance is obviously aimed for anything but the swank trade. Only way Borelli coyld have pos- ibly hoped to get . a retum oh his ihvestinent was to set his inarjk higher, ,fbi:get about the success 'Green has made on the. five-and-ten biz and, make a direct play for the carriage trade. ■ For music, there is Husk O'Hare, .at one time one of Country's ace band attractions and now staging a mod- erate comeback. O.'Hare's a distinct .asset to any spot, since he's such a genial mixer and for dancing leaves little room for complaint. Features a good-looking vocalist, Peggy O'Neill, and a slick drummer, ..but stand is so small and so far reinoved from everything that O'Hare doesn't get a ehance to put his right foot for-, ;ward. well with requirements, while Eddie I^ang's hot songs and tap dancing are duck soup on. the prenfiises. Miss Martin, showgirl, who's over ma(ie-up> has no voice to speak of, but gets incrbss fairly well with a special song about the' Eluchess from Dubuque, lyrics, of which aid materially ih atoning for her, lack of vocal pjfpwess. Buddy Wagner orchestra is sup- plemented by ,a musical triumvi- rate, the Buddy-'^lay Trio. Mjrador show is a distinct buy in view.bf the popular prices,. Char. mirAdor, n. y. inactive for a time, Jack Osterman It back in the swim as master of ceremonies and co-stars here with Marion Martin, showgirl; formerly of the Hollywood. Osterman is the show, but, in several well-chosen acts, he has able support; these in- cluding among the outstanders the sister dance team of Wi ifred and Lorraine (New Acts); a girl trio, Reed, Thrift and Ray (New Acts), and Rebee Villon, cooch dancer. Mirador brought in its niew show headed by. the Osterman-Martin com- bination Wednesday night (2) and forthwith dropped the strbng strip- per note Which characterized its win- ter policy. This change came con- currently, with warnings from police authorities." The result is that while there are a couple pseudb-strip num- ber's, one being the veil dance by Joan Vickers, they cannot be con- strued as likely to endaniger the morals of the citizenry.. There's nothing blUie about the show and Osterman,. as well as the others, go no further in lyricis, wise- cracks br action than ^vpuld be per- issible in grandmother'is parlbri but wjth the . stripping tamed down and the.rest of the proceedings free from barrbom routine, the Mirador has a show that is well balanced and more than ordinarily entertaining, • Osterman opening night was a bit nervous, but. gave .a .fine accbunt of himself, nevertheless, and ihould im- orove as he goes along on his come-, back. .IJe is fast ort the trigger as an m.c. and. is hbt easily topped bn ad libbing. Always sure of himself as an m.c, Osterman can sell a song with the best of his Cbntemporarie.s. Osternian's pel-formahce here, in ad- dition to the mx.'irig chbres. include .a cOte satire bn Fred Astaire; a sure- fire delivery of 'Face the Miisic,' and an arrangement of numbers, partly dedicated to several old vaudeville favs who have staged comebacks on Broadway, including son.^s that stamp .Joe Howard, Eddie, Leonard, John Steel, Benny Fields and Anh Pennington. The arranqennent in- cludes a number which years ago helped to send Osterman to the tops, and if he disregards detours he'll .rhake it a.tjai Oslenman's stron.gest .support is in the Winifred and Lorraine dance team. GirLs. one in male attire, do an .Astaire-Rofiers routine that, is iinidiie. looped hy a novelty tan. The. Tlecd-Thrift-Ray thrceisbme is also an shtcrlairiing turn. Girls clown,, sing 'nd work finn^. clicking .strongly; The i;poch singiie of Pence Villon fits in SPANISH VILLA (SQtJTHERN HOTEL) (Baltimore) Baltimpre, June 4. The Southern is the only hotel in town featuring summertime dine and dance, utili:^ing its roof to excelleht adviantage and. chalking up an—an- nual profit for" its efforts. Lociated on a street jusjt . off the harbori Spanish Villa, atop the hbistelryi pre- sents ;a cool and colorful background for. dinnertlnae and nocturnal enter- tainment and the passing ships and breezes, off the waterfront give an added atmosphere decidedly in its favor. Current setup features Lou Becker and a six piece combo for'show and music with four acts Utilized for two shoWs nitely, one at dinner and the other about midnight. No cover at anytime with week nightsi .featur- ing a.buck minimum, and week-ends, $1.50. Spot gets considerable dinner biz. ,-::^.;-Cft< :.v.u3- rXI'^t-n in this town, has Ci'- piV^' V'Jii i>i'd doing a workman- like job of both the dance miisic and show stuff. Also acts as m.c. in straight intrpductory manner. Orch also does a good job of soloing be- tween sets and room is kept going at a good pacCi Current line-up features Tarrartt- -and Dacita, ballrbom team; Wanda Winsum, prima donna; Dr. Arthui: Marcus, magician, and Mitzi O'Neill, blues singer. Make for a nice-going 30-minute session, about on a par with the better type of spots in this section; Opening show has Tarrant and Dacita stressing Latin type of dances in adequate style. Do a passe doble and a rhumba which proves a' rather welcbme respite. from the usual waltzes, boleros and tangos featured by duos pa.ssipg through here. Femme of team looks de- cidedly Mexican and flashes a nice wardrobe. Customers, at show caught, received their eftorts audibly. Vbcal doings shared by Miss Win- sum, who gives out in legit style with an aria and the inevitable 'Italian Street Song,' and Mitzi O'Neill, attractive blonde in a series of special arrangements of a love medley, 'It Aint Right', and 'Shine,' all done on the. indigo side.. Both girls sell and fit into present layout in good style. - Dr. Arthur MarcuS, with a routine of small stuff and cai'ds which he also works at tables between shows, is a decided asset to present doings. and adds a helpful comedy touch with a skillful use of double talk, nicely paced throughout his act. Turn makes for a welcome change of pace in layout and hyped proceed- ings considerably. Villa will no doubt repeat .this summer with present arratigemenls made to accommodate customers in ballrbom off roof in case of sudden weather change, a decided help. Pei> sonnel management by.Harpld I. Fink, hotel .boniface, gives a noticeable lilt tb service' which, should reflect itself oh the count up.' Burvi. RAINBOW ROOM (NEW YORK) The Rockefellers' ace hitery has put on the slipcovers and gorie in- fbrmal fbr the sumifn'e'r ,months. Al Donahue's ' band is bacic ' ith a smooth brand of swing that is pop- ular ait this lofty spot. The l.^-pie6e: conribb impresses not only with its rhythms, but in appearance, with the boys in, light blue and the maestro in' White. ' The- baiid is a versatile crew, with ;its ficldle-dou- hling members : as.-ah effective fea- ture with Dbrtahue in the , center ,ol- string choir. Eddie Le Baron's orch alternates for the rhiimba, ta»igb and waltz chores.- A dance team, Mary . aye and Naldi (New Acts); making its N. Y. debut in .'the Rpbm,. preisent three djvei^sl.fted numbers .with grace. Mit-- li,: Fef-var (New Acts), also liewr comer to Manhattan, is a singer of spngs lacking in,the quhlity usujiiJy to be loiind in this .spbt. Her three ;numbers, obviously: special inateria), are dubious ditties sung without any particular finesse. /They have revived the table ten^ nis exhibitions in the Room this slimmer, with Ruth Aarons and Viktor Barna, billed .World's champs, displaying their prowess. At thie ffni.sh of the match, Donnhue, who ac.ts as m-c. for the: floor s \v. invites someone ftom the tables to have a try against Mis.s Aarons, who is handicapped 10 points i a,2iT point gaihe.'At, the show c;> ((ht, a girl , voliihteer v^as beateii h;)iidily. but was awarded the bottle of cham- pagne, anyway. Helen Myers hJ>s replaced Evelyn Tyher. at'the piano on the revolving floor between dance numbers dur- ing dinner and supper this summer, and Dr. Sydney Ross, palm reader, circulates among the tables. The fiiU-dress rule .has been waived at'the Room until fall. MONSEIGNEUR, N. Y. . This newly-opened spot in the east Fifties belongs in the .newer line of niteries emphasizing the gastronomic end of; things. There's show and dancing, plus all the usual night plub trimmings, but thie food'is the thing. And quite-good, tod. It's a room which looks s aller than it is, having seating facilities (the management claims) fpr about 200. Patterned in decbr arid method of procedure: on the London spot ot. the same. name. In fact, the room very much resembles its London; namesake, although somewhat nar- rower and with less pleasing light- ing equipment. A,gain it's the rriehu. which counts; in London the. Monseigneur is one of the. places to Entertainment i.s li Lied. rlos Farrell arid Chic Endor do their slu/i- at the piano and vocally. Team ha."!, Of course, been arJound — on both sides of the ocean — and i.s a. natural for art intimate room. For novelty, there's a girl named Margaret Ci-umc, whose specially is called arithmol- bgy. By adding, and subtractiri.i^ a bunch of figures in her own secret way she'll tell you all about yoiir- self, past, presort*, a'ld luture: It's a good enough g'ag.'e.sptciully for the femmes. And music i.s dished up excit- ingly—if a bit too noL^iily—by Joe Ricardel's quintet. Kuuf. CLUB LIDO (MONTREAL) Montreal, June 4. Stepped, up for the first floor show bf the loeal tourist season, Montreal's leading spot, the. Lido, under direc- tion of Phil Maurice, Is getting the crowds these hot June nights, in- cluding big sprinkling of the advance guard of "Q. S. tourists, Running two shows a night;, 8:30 (supper) and midnight, this spot has been playing an extra at 3. a. m^ every night of first week here. ■ Floor show has four acts and eight-girl line, sriappily costumed and all lookers, who step with pre- cision, captained' by Skipoy ' Cekan. Reed McClelland and Madeline Kil- leen put on a sortg and dance turn, smooth and nicely-voiced that gives impression of having plenty in re- serve. McClellan also m-c's through-, out,, a heati suave trick, sans wise- cracks, that stands out for that. kind. o"f job in town. Plenty bf variety with the' acts doubling up. Barbara Valmore opens with butterfly dance, discarding wings to,throw a flock of flips and splits to ijuild up to a step on hands circling the floor for a Call. She speeds up a similar routir^j for her second appearance. St. Clair and Yvonne, adagios, white tails and evening dress, in standard act, return to clo,se the show with a Russian dance of death in costume, th.e girl crashing the floor repeatedly as she is toissed around by her part- ner. Incidentally she loses quite a piece of heir,scanty clothdng in the nroceiss. It goes over ,for a bunch of calls and encore. The Three Georges In comic rielief in a knockabout turn thickly sea^ soned with- mayhem and gags that get plenty' Of laughs. Present layout calls for. no cover charge, but minimum of .$2 per after. 10 p. rn, and sup.ber listed at $l..'i0. First show since. Lido closed for renovations,, making it. factually the coolest spot in toWrt. They figure on big U, S." loui-ist biz this .season. Lane. Pennsylvanifi^ Roof ^ N. Y. unny Berigan, ai newcomer in the swing division, who for five weeks has been downstairs in the Pennsy hostelry, opened the. roof Tuesday night .(1): With some new mert in his outfit who may need further irbning out; This is also true of the brches- tra as a Whble, for while appearing to have the makings of,a ^gobd. swing organization, it caA't knock at the dbors pf the big league Until it has had more propping and training. The engagement here, to be followed by the. Pavilion Royal out on . Long Island, plus radio broadcasting, may develop Berigan and his crew to the' position .where they ill really cbrii- mand' notice. " Formerly with varibus name band Icadpr, , including-Benny Goodman, Tommy Dbrsey and Freddie Rich, young Beri.gan, a nice-appearing, lad, makes the trumpet his specialty. He blows it to pieces at times, but on occasion, for such as waltzc--. he can hold it under nice control. Berigan sin.gs a .bit here and there, but, <ib- yiously has no ambitions in .a vocal wny. H isoi'chestra numbers 12 men. in- cluding a tricky .sax player, whp'.s i'eatiired more than .the. others. Lad with the .sax .seom.s to have sf)me-. thi)i.!:',„;i.s docs. Berigan, the ti'iimbet- er'-lcader. All the members are ypimg fellows, iand on a roof date of this kind they are specializing in the kind of swing mu.sic that will appeal to the out-of-tbwners and collegiate.'--. Outfit, leans to brass,, andv. -w>hether the acoustibs here amplify loo much or npt, freqiiently there's too much biatancy. Onie number done.opening night,, also,..was so fast tHtit it topped War Admiral's pace in the Kentucky Derby. A singer is carried., with the band-^ Ruth. Bradley, She has a fair voice for pops and an ehga.gihg personality, When.Berigan and his band go oiil to the Pavillbn Royal on L, I;, July 8, Tomrny Dorsey, who will be there until then, x-omes onto th Ponnsy yoQt. ' Char. ' HOTEL ASTOR ROOF InEW YORK) This rnairks Rudy Vallee's secrtnd successive . summer booking in one of the midtown's best nocturnal sky playgrounds. Per usual,: Vallee bx'OUght along his own^ floorshow via the specialties he carries in and but of his orch. In toto, he pre.sent.s ex- cellent eye and ear entertainment, though a good percentage of the terps-playing is left to Val Ohman's five-piece crew, which is spotted in •the cut-out stage above Vallee's band shell. It's from is stage that some of the specialties also perform, notably the male and femme harmoni.sls in duo and quartet combinations. Throe^ other specialti ., Judy Star, Song- stress; (^ril smith; corriie, and SteVe Warihg, mimic, do their sLuff from the -band.stahd, while arron and Blair, ballrooni team, hop the light fantastic on the floor itself. Team is young and good looking, presenting a variety of routines, with the stand- put a takeoff on dancing as prac- ticed by the. Westchester debbies and their swains. It's swell satire. . --smith's English barroom bit, a battle between two drunks,.is. plenty .okay comedy, bvit Waring's .mimicry, notably that Ford: bit, is Overdrawn. Miss Stairr's work Is confined to vo- cals during ;the dance musici Astor Roof itself is a splendid spot to escape the street-level heat at night. Tastefully decorated and splendidly .serviced,- it also is reaspn- able in. its food and drink' scale. There's ,a .couvert of 75c after 10 p. m. week nights, with this tilted to $1' Saturdays and Sundays. SchO. YACHT CLUB (CHICAGO) Chicago, June 3. Yacht Club, intimate Uear north- side nitery, with , a capacity of 150, is one of the* b^st conducted spots hereabouts. It dpes, howevier,. have one physidal fault, and that is the horseshoe bar built at the. end of the room, directly opposite the show stage. Such a bar, with its accom- panying noise, can easily be the means of making a capable per- former do a nosedive. But as to showmanship, the Yacht Club knpSvs what it's all about. The whole set-iip, both entertainriient and otherwise, is pointed at the money, rather than the swank crowd, and manages tb keep its tables pretty well 'filled. Particular hits in. the show, are two girl singles, Joan Abbott and Corrine, The former, as headlin^r, proves .her knowledge of Yacht CZlub audience is as deft as that of the producer. She is smart in appear- ance, in material, and style; Through- out her. song turn i^he exhibits an astonishing amount of sex appeal and rhythm, accompanied by an ability tb put chat^acterizations into torch numbers. /Corinne far outclasses other si ir lar nudies. Her routine is smaller and smoother. Even her figure in .slim silhouette has a delicacy about it quite in keeping with the excel- lence of her toe w^rk. Audiences at the Yacht .Club arc nbisy, and to that end Florence and Bob Robinson fit into the picture. This young team turns in four speedy tap routines. . Opening and .closing thie .show is a line of si . nicely costumed and wbrking. evenly.. First is a mod-, erjiistic semi-ballet number, and finale is hotcha. Show i.s m.c.'d by Jack. Waldrbn^ No smart-alec .stuff in his style;: and he knows how to handle both his performers and his audiehce.. ' But. topping everything else he dbes.is his way. bf .isclling a song, ~ ■ Ni Rihaldo band okay floor . show job, arid' an . excellent strblling instrumental arid vocal foursome'i.s ;led by Roland Uanelj. Loop. Nitery Placements Emitt Ca.sey, baritone; ardy's Showboat Revue, N Y; ' Ro.ss and Edward.s, Fly ing WhiVlo.s, Barney Grariti -St. Clair .'arid Eliiot, and' Dorothy Joffer.s; Cocbahut Grove, Park Central Hotdl. N. Y. Arlene. and Nor an SeJby. dancr ers. Jame.s Keogan, singer, added to Leon arid Eddie's rev\i(i,.N.. Y> Johnny Messner Orch. arid Jeanne D'Arcy, vocalLst, at.Hotel. McAl in, ■n; y. , Marjorie. Gainswbrth. singer, M' rico and Novello, dance team, iirtd the four Vespers ow into the Ver-;. sailles. N. Y.. Th.ur.sday i.tO). Thrre Randall Sis(<<rs ofjoriod in Eilfmore Bmvl. Ln.<! Ant'tlcs, hL^-t week. Admish (Continued from page &) majpr circuits. They are beginninjf to believe 4hat what larger' cxhi" seek in higher admissi • they also can go after. This changed attitude amou almost a philosophy pn show busi- ness todayj as defined by one Vet- eran theatre oper It is can't share and share alike; Aye. can do and do alike.' applies speclficnlly to ini.ssi coupons currently, because the in-' dependent and srinaller first-run exr; hibitprs feel that they iuv accomp- lish a.s muich with cardboards as bigger, operator.si .With major civciiits and bigger; houses forced into ' i.sing fidiois- siohs because omand.s of pro- ducer-di.stributor parent compfiincs^'? it is .strictly a question of. whcl.het" the-indies will follpw suit; Iri falli in line with' rice tilt, indcpcni v. dent slant is simply that they ca ' afl'ord to oyerlopk a.gbod thing, have an excellent alibi for iricrt-;us- ing admittance fees . b6cau..so, being, able point to the major circuits taking the lead i doi . ,thi.s and showing their pukillc that if the inore prosperous chains can afford to. do it, there i.s even greater .r :u'on; fi< the: smaller houses to pu.sh up. price.s.' Perhaps .the greatest problem con*' fronting those initiating price, tilts, will be to get those , in the present ;.40c; ;cli»ssifl.catipn to eleViite llieir scale past, the fcdcrar tax barrier. Hike to SQc. mean.s only 5c. in- crease for the exhibitor, since the other ni6kcl.~£iq«&.:tA.thAK4;«:i&^:r^^ However, it is the crux to the en- tire situation. Becau.se witljout any itpplng of .scale by the 40c. theatre, those charging 20c, and 30c. at pres- ent. hOld>back for fear :of coming close, to the scale the liig bracketed houses. Once the 40c. hibitor crashes through to .'iOc. 60c., it permits otheris to lift pri all down,the.line,, bringing them up to the old parity With the exhib who has gone to .sop., ithout causing substantial daniage. Thu.s,. the. 3pc; theatre goes up to 35c. or .40c. and the 20c. huuife ralsefl :tb 25c. or 30c.. Price raising will be of particular bebeflt to the smaller indie houses, bow generally showing two features, because at present the exhibitor charging 25c. gets Only I2V(2C.\ per -film and the one getting 30c. is only iable to show l.Sc. per ■ picture. In contrast, the larger thea- tre operator..with a 40c.. scale quite often has a single feature ppljcy. Trade leaders feel that the .entire^ admission tilting campalgin will have to be done by means of pcr.suasion, with the sales, resistance of the po- tential patron alway.s in riiind. Rea- son is obvious; the anti-trust law.«l frown on anything smacking., o£ agreement on prices. With no prospect .61 getting the federal tax law changed or altered for a year br. two, exhibitors'are inclined to, take the bull by the horns and hurdle this obstacle. Be- caiise practically everything Iha the public buys-today has gone up in price, exhibs how realize that Ihe time is ripe 'for stiffening their ad- mittance price: istructure and getti out of the Ibw fee doldrums. Cavalcaide of Stars tCbhtinuCd from page' 44) f.Lshion that he resembles the car- toon sailor,, . While duo of twins are doing thei stuff Sid Severs slip.s" out from be- hind his drums on band car and jirr rays hj self in a set of allege musical instruritients and rioi>;<»T makers. They're' around'hi.«; net^k, on both arms and legs, in. front and in back, too. Lad pfTers 'St. Louis Blues' for a mild ovation, and then brings the house down with his 'Tigier air:' He has to beg off. .Udell riplets, who arc lookers, are back in front of the mike at this point With .'Until the Reiil Thing Comes Along,' encoring with 'Say,. Babe,' inninfi another good hand.' ; Dance. Trip return for a .scric, of dance impre.isioris from- all counli ie.s • —German waltz, Parisian lanao, English ballroom, American truck- ing. .They work in Plenty of. comedy in this .«;cries and :the: audience gives them a good hand. . .V Closer brings on.Freddie and' or- othy King,. 16-ycar-old.^, who t>o through n fast routine,of acrobatics. K.id.s are well set-up youngsters who know what H's all. ' about, . boy's double twister and twirl's forward Mip.s revealing the ftne.s.se of:old troupers. Rex King: their dad, helps thcm-a bit toward the end of their acl. 'inalc finds Souther in mi s1a.i?e .sunimoni acts on bne timr?. for bows. There are 18 in this cpmpan not ('(wini\m Davis.- Unit , carries only .three topters augment house's seveiLr iecc band. Organ \v:).s u.scd as rcnlnccmont.on .second s nwi. Is tl ed in 41 mi utcs.