Variety (Nov 1937)

VARIETY VARIETY House REVIEWS M^iJSlC HALL, N. Y. ttouse. hasn't sKimpejd ojii the stage fare, this VfseW, even though it has •The-'Awful Truth- (Col) (reviewed in Variety^ issue of Oct. ZO) as a. sure screeni sock. Show is lavisnly sta-jed and* tor the most, pact; with excellent ta^e. Standout a?:,e; the- sets and drops, designed^ by Sergei Sou- deikine and. Albert Johnson, TAiey,re. visually exciting and contribute,-mar teriJilly to the. atmosphere. In par-, ticular the- decorative 'Manhattan curtain, which, ivonts all scenes. Reversing the> uaual, the-Bockettes opan. the bill: Togged, in effeQtiv.ely. tricky outftts with fur manes and' tails, they pranae- through- an. 'At the Horse. I^pw.' r^Dutiije, with their cus- tomary Rreaisioniline step for a.ftasn. Set for this, one ia little out of. the- ordinary} although, the bright, cplors. add to the gayety of the number: iElpy. and. Geraldine HudsQn4 (New Acts), nee The- Hudson Wondersi femme-fliprfliopperi?, are spottedinext in an *At the Afluprium' tuyn» bacfeeii bv an extraor.dihary setting; GoJ.oi:5. jyic! lighting. emPhasiie. tjjs fipldiin duds of the gals, which are mpant to resemble. flBh scales. Act. ijs a. dick,. 'At the Opera,' finale. poBtidn» is. in, three parts, with 'impnessipne' t^m 'Gounod's 'Faust* as the^ rowwal bracer. FtanciB- ^ow tJurnR. on a^ hef^. voice tov- the openinfr inning, foUowed. by the. glee. club. in;the- stereotype- 'SpWieus ChPf.Ufi. ■ Set,-- ting and cosliumee for the lattjei; stanza are-exoeedingly effective, both as. to, desigQ. a»4 cpjors. tsslJ paJft is. a lavishly staged scene of at v/ijtchiS. coupt, with Hi ballet arid vocate^ Set-> ting 16. oveply elaboratek Mischa VioIin>. accom^apjied by Ihe hous* ORcb, opens, with a ftddle splo. of a Tschaiifowgky concerto, a; bit tpo, long. 'itofee. KEITWS, INf)PtS. Indjanap(d(B» Noy.-. Wditii^ sbf. act» ^romisAA <W^' ^9 appeeffed' a* sbpjur- caug^, Stickey' Haggeflty npt being itt e=v34Bnce in. the lineMft Five Swing; Qirfs; are given heaiilinfr IriJJlng, an honof de- served! <5ijjefliy "on the basis, ofi nm-. merical strength, ag they, seem to be just out of a dawjiftft sidiool. . They open the show' yfimi a military routine, ap^^t alQnfi al^ub tibe, haU-^ way xfiaaX for 4 high kiolt wuajber, and) should ha^ve^ b^en. sj^otted in ag|^ t^Toto^e. t|»» show, bu^ io^eadi jdo fie^ nnmbec' just bj^foiie closing spat^wbich held. 4.own. by- the. Jordan Tria, skaters. Jack and Leo follow opening dance bjt- Swing (cHrls;, Two. cproiRS appear- m bssggf,- dress suits to, pwll some moth eaten gags, and then fal- low wiiiih: the weE knpwn laughing. song> to uli^e accompanimeni. J.wtk imitates; a ciicus caliope with a tin whistlev and tap. dances ta '©oofus.' Leo comes . on to. 1iap> to: "'SidBwalks of New Yorlc-.l Fhwsh iib unison. Foll(wed by Ixene, girl- whp. dPes contortionist ttid^ on. revQlvjng pedcstaU. She does; a seizes ot hand stands, and leg. sidits, while turn- table revolves. 'On sbpw; caughib she wos having, trouble keeping; her- bal- ance, and had to make sevejal tries on. one- trick, Also hampered: by lack of proper setting for her a^ct, fitch Cooper appears in. ni^e* out- fit to take, up, minutes running tiirs with some jokes that would- have made Joe- Miller bJu^. He c.ii'i'ies a saw- on for his fijst en- trance, andi does a. hpot owl' and trails imitation, with it. He then leaves sta.i-je- at intervals after patter to re- turn with, regulation flddle, smali fiddle, and guiteiv, to give further imitationsi distinguishable only be cni'"s. of'his verbal explanation. Joi'daa. Trio, close with roller skat Ina-typn, in which two men. do. fancy, sk-avinri, and; then whirl" the- gal' around'. Invite audfence on. stgge to go for a; ride. On sh(5w caught, youth accepted, arid when tuimed loose diKizy. flpor.ed) act by tripping- m2n,and.f3UinrT on. them. After cur-, tain, stage lights are kept u.p and ovOiicstna fakesi causing apeciustion as to Whether the- show is oven or not. until operator pro.iects film over curLoin. Bad production also evi- dcnti between, acts, with too many de^d spots. F " !s 'Man Who Cried Wolf (U). BU ovAy; fair at thind show Friday. Kiley. PALACE, CHI. Chicago, Nov. 7. Fi'iday (5) was. exploited as Brit- ish Day by thjs. houpe, and flags of th'j U. S. and England were duly crypsad to honor Anna Nagle and Herljert Wilcox whp made- an apr ■pearance on the final show, pur- portedly to see how the Chicago public received their pip, 'Victoria' (GB). Perhaps a series ot mishaps pre- ceded the duo's appearance. At any rate Miss N.agle; seemed to.have.miS' pl^icsd her. maKeup. kit While the director advanced a bad case of jit- ters in. his full-dress suit, made the audience quite as, touchy as the stage pair. Chatter followed the accepted routine for such agijeai'ances: how much they loved. Chicago, hpw much they loved their picture, etc. Introduction graciously dpne by Moiton Downey, who as headliner. fiUpd the. cleanup spot on the. bill. Downey hfiP changed some.what from his, last appear,ance. The-3pUy, spir- ited Irishman is. no, mpre. Downey pen.siVely cocks hijs head, to one. side now and becomes a, dreamer for 20, miinutea^ out of his 2S. It's swell stuff, but tbere'^ too much of. it, and during the- last five minutes is. when Downey scores the heaMiaat. The peppier stuff, registers, and to. thi^; singer's, credit is the changing- of 'Irish Eyes Are Smiling'- from a- draggy barroom ballad; to-something light and' Ipv.ely. Aside from Downey, there is no, other standout on the bill, unlfiss^ it be the Three- Swifts, and. they might -be considered so. mainly be.-- cau^e. they, hav.en't been around for a cpuple mpnthg. Frank, I,.ibouse's toupee- bit fiddling to adjust the piano bench, inti^rupt- in» the singing woman stooge, -the. walk-across gags of the-male-stooae* and the rfist of the tricks all; are-real vaudeville, but pretty familiar- after aWi these-years. Two other, acts complete the. blU; the Stevens sisters, singing duo, who are. sorsq family fare; and the- l-Z' Bines Dancers, six boy and six girl tapper^i who weren't on long, enough, to show. Bill-consumes 7fr minutes. Business up. tp, two-thirds. Ofi the.- balcony on final show opening, day. ROXY, aALT LAKE Salt tajw City, Nov. ft This unpretentious upto-wn nabe house is monopolizing, flesh biils since Utah, an Intermountain Thear tres- spot, dismissed vaudfilm- policy- last week after a brief, session!- Cur- rent crop of ts^ent at Roxy, from any anfijle i^'t a, pleaser, despite- sev- eral reputedly name acts, viz. Minjg Toi, shapely fan. terper,, Chamaui" magician) and ]\table Janis, Coasi blues warbler; Absence of showman* ship moves the 45-minu^ biJil'. at molasses pace. Line of ^vj^ gan* exhibitionists fail tp display any-in- teresting, routines, and the costui»tiig; and sceivery- reflect bargain ecwiomy.' Two. pictures, 'New Faces' (mCO;).- and 'Whaitj ?ripe Vengeance?' idn.^ dift ), tog.e3bli.ec wijthj a flofik; of short subjects^, ateo on biJJt. wl)i.ch comr. prises ami^e. fare for 23c. topadmjisl^ . Mss Toi: is spotted next to. ctosii^ and sh.o.ws ptenty during her foijx- minuie turn.. Novelty of her fanftii;* lies in the fact Ijiat feathers; are attached tp.h,er arms, instead of hanr dling; l^em. with- her hands. She- has a knack oi draping the co^uers astistx^l cally, but ijs more than generous, to. oglers. Opener features chorines-, vainly trying- to keep rhythm to a mixed fiverPifBffft band on the stagfr. Dressed Bcantiiy', their routines savor of tyro*, hooiieijy-.- Miss Janis' (j«liLv.esy «£ 'Night and Day-'' qlicks, but her- mike- technique n,s.g, Singing into. an. eight-baiH miikev she muggs- the. o^one head QonitinuaJjly, hiding ner ^X^aftn tive iaoiai features. Inez Gregg-'s forte is toe* taps and contributes a fair- assortniettt o£ sts^fi. At one- time knee d.eep in an, exr tensive Coast praisery campaign, Chandu, whose tab was. billed for a long time on a soap program, con- fines his, staige, legerdemain to three routines,, his dUck disappearing triqlt; rating best. Don and Joyce foUowedi with a can-can, winning mcwne titters for their costumes than their physi- cal endeavors, Miss Janis returns for another vo- cal stint, 'In a Sentimental Mood,' while chorines try to live up. to -tiieir billing.—'Temp-tatijonettes.' They, don't Ole Olson is next with a panto,- mime sketch, aided by a g,ood-10Dk.- ing- foil. OlBon also, undertakes emr ceeing to a fair degree of versatility, trying for laughs from his g^g cosr tumes and; double talk. Gal makes sn mild stab at la Fannie Brice imper- sonation, later at steppingv ending her stooge chores with a mild assort- ment of- slapstickery. By this time band' has increased its personnel -to seven, but with no one allowed any solo inning^. P.A. system okay and fair house at the last late afternoon show caught. Guss. HIPP^,. BALTO Baltimore; Nov. 8. After some juggling around, the Hipp has worked a well; routined and punchy 43 minutes of vaUde as its stflge- constribution to 'The Aw- ful Truth' CCol.). Lineup, ot stand ard acts including- King, King and King, Judy Star*-. Bri-tt Wood and' IjiOttie Mayer's Disappearing. Water Ballet, makes for a pleasing- and versatile doings, well received, by the customers. Opening, a hpof routine by Lottie Mayer's girls, fairly well sold; picks up moiTientum with the appearance of the K.infis, who proceed with okay hoofery, (Challenge and finale setto of fast buck tie matters up verjr tightly and. pave the way for Judy Starr in the deuce. Tiny songstress with a radio buildup gives out with •Sliake Your Feet,' 'That Old Feelin' and 'Life of the Party'; all arrange ments and capabliv. If not spectacu larly, sold. Britt Wood follows and socks from the starts Rube getup and topfiight stuff on the hai-monica, sold to the hilt and pood for numerous encor.es and a final beg off. Skillfully spotted, the act gave the necessary punch leading into the full stage doings of the water ballet that follows and closes. Mi.ss Mayer's flash of. fancy diving and line maneuvers in and out of the tank 1b an asset and billed here, rounded out an excellent and entertaining session of variety. Cus- tomers wei'e quick to respond throughout. Burm. Paris, Nov. 1. ' As the first ofPering of a straight ivarie^ bili after a. summer devoted to revues- in, wiMCh Mistingyett and .Marie Dubas topped, this one is not as heavy as might be expected. Stiy, Operator Mtitty Goldin is th^ only manager in town who- can. make, this, type- of amusement bring returns. At- the mpment the A B. C' is the only house offering anything like a first class varje.ty bill, Eys Gauty, Frenchi femme- singer bacJc from tonrion, top.3 this proff.er and catches on the side'that counts but there, is. ^n. over-abundanoe of acts that have been seen time and again in this town to fill the re- mainder- of. the- bill. Openeijs; are- the Harmony Ladies, who offer light operatic selections to grab for the gentle count. Voices of five- singers" are well enough .matched, but the wherewith to put them ovM i^. lacking. Didn't pull with the- audience- caught. Holl and Rey, dance team, follows with little up. its sieeve. (3al, who is iioo: heavy for- partner, takes spot with solo waltz- acrobatic- offering first to register little better than nil.. Movement and flow could have beeri; added' had she wojn a gown instead of shorts. Rey's tap solp; is hardl;/ better, but the i$.p routine by two warmed the. house a little. Two work, well together; but - nothing, extraordinary in. routine, offered. An oW, favorite, Rene Paul, tql- lowed to, qU<^ as usual with satiric songs on disarmament,, French politics tops. Ijhis; time with some, sarca^im. to,'mu^- about the recenli Hitler-lMiussolinii confab. He leaves, spot to Le6.I|([anginii who, also scores. BpJth, majsnificentljc huiXt.. two. do difficult head- aad hand bajtancirig. to tiine. Act is presented well. Fat as ev^- aod with a way that takes French. ai«ti,ences, re.d-theaded Frehel -iniBses- nothing ■ with lier typical QjSei'ingS. of song^ on. the •loose- side. She has her o.wn ipX- lowing; among, musichalt audiences in this. tpMOTv. as do. Charbini and Braflicstoh whp. follow ChaKpiju^. Vfho imitai!«a Ihe ^mmes in. voices puts ov^ the c<wnedy while Bcanr cato, who has. a ^i^r voice- of his own,, p.eddies. the straight. Strictflgr- French,. they offer dosages- that French audiences find easy to take. Second brajiAiet sees Rebla wi.th some ordinary juggling, doing the- opening. ]^ takes plates, baiils,. bats and stick-s in their usual combina-- tions to. put what he -has. to. offer over -with a dead pan that helps. Lys.G.aMty offiers a variety of songs^ to show, voice and 5howmansbii> andi even. tbpiMth^ the best of show, there is- some^ng missing.. Songs .for. the most part stick to .somb« side to th^ liJses. oi the- French but the finaJi.cUck is lackhig. Tries one duo, •wytij) pianist, who goes. flat. Following, is, stt tough spot for F^ix Paquet^ who. also- has songs^ to sell.. But he catches well with drollery, some typical French jokes and a try at comriiunity singing. - Only Americans on the bill are the Four Co-Eds, who dose- with ac- robatic and tap, dancing. Taps catch only fair, acrobatics better while 3et-to.-i,t presentation helps. Slow tap routine could be better synchro- nized and sequences could be better slated. But catch, well. AndreeMe- •grfnti,. talli brunette, does a fair job. of announcing acts. Lionel Cazaux in the pit. . Hu£fp. EARLE, PHiLLY Philadelphia, Nov. *7. Plenty, of novelty in this -week's 'vaude- sho.w at the Earle and the- .clientele, appeared to. eat. it up. Good-sized house greeted the first show and indications are for a good, week. Pic is. 'Hold 'Em Navy' (Par), timely, football yarn especially as , Navy played here last week, and re- turns to. play Army at the- end of the month. Stage show opens with Billy Reid. m.c. explaining, that Rita Rio and Lucky Millinder bands will stage a 'battle of music' with audience to be judge. Miss Rip's, all-femme outfit (12) on one side, of the stage;. Millinder's crowd (14) on . the. other, both on raised platforms, r^he gals looked neat and! attractive in light-colored evening, gowns, and started proceed- ings with a medley, adequately if not remarkably, played, following which Millinder's band scored with a very much modernized version of 'Sweet Georgia Brown.' Tonally. Millinder's bunch out- smarts Miss Rio's, but her personal contributions tickle the mob out front. Patterning after Ina Ray Hut- tpn, both as to sheath-like form- fltting gown and wiggles. Gave an imitation of Cab Calloway doing one of his hottest numbers, and the way she shook elicited plenty of personal r^emarks from the boys in the front rows. Millinder's orch then renders a medley of southern spirituals and clicked strongly with Duke Elling- ton's 'Caravan.' First specialty on the Rio side offered by Nichols and Roberts (boy and- girl team), announced to have won a dancing contest at Madison Square Garden, They scored sen- sationally with a shag number, but weren't quite so successful with their encore of 'Peckin.' Millinder'.s first specialty, the Edwards Sisters, are an excellent colored pair, who have a good tap routine. One of them does a little- warbling, too, which is mild but nothing extra. Cook a*id Brown (colored), one. tall andi Iftiev ottoer short; gave out spme limber-legged acrobatic tapping; and a modernized buck-and-wing. Their pantomime a highlight, but tiiey muffed chances in a. rather suggestive encore. Reid's 'Everybody's Truckin'' version a grand job good for plenty Qf applause. Just for a change, the house, ork accompanied which made the band battle a three-cornered one. Ijiou Schrader's bunch also, played for Joe arid Jane- McKenna who pre- sented a swell' knock-about act, fea- turing a fake adagio and plenty of flancy tumbling. The three orchs col- laborated for the finale which was plenty hot and iftZTy. All in all, a gpod show leaning on the loud side, but sure- to please Harlem and jpzz devotees; Waters, FOX, K. C. Kansas City, Nnv. 6, Back, to four acts this week. Pro- duction: makes-, a bow tov the- grid season, and the. college- crowd with two numbers deeply etched in the pigskin manner. Opener has, the line dressed as cheer leadArs^ Ponies close with a football g^ame^ AlthoM^: they don't rata top l>ill- ing, the Three Elites, hoafiecs, snag, the bulk- of applauset Turn- starts, with a tame- walitz,. one of the; boys' coajjs, rips and the fun is. on. it's screwy- sport from that point on. Femme member gete herself' flung, ail over the place; An absurd airi& mix up is. particiiUar^ effective^ Trio know tjieir comedy and pla-y it to the hilt. They got t»ree- call backs at show cau^it, which is plenty some<^ thing- here^ Lew Parker and Company also- peddJe.. comedy-. "Three iri.en: and a gal in the crew-. Parlcer's- tiie- wheel- horse and 'feids the mob- not set for his patter. Miat^rial is all give and. take; Bei^ns tp, catch when, one oi companiy heckles from a box. "Purn stays clear of specialties. Qal is a look^ and haiudy with lines, al-^ though her sMnt wit^ Pankec bonders: the indig¥>> OpenMi has Everett and Eyetett in a wiire routine^ Dad and son had trouble with their equipment second showing- Friday oisht whichi t-ook off some oS the edge. Wire igi^ung to a box, lad walks up» and comes down on his head. Vocal chore: is handled by Mar- gar^ ReedL . Choice- of numbeirs is unfortunate. Her voice i5n.'t the. kind that can put heat in 'Basin Street Blues.' She'd be- more efTec- tiive with tibe sweet stuff. Harlan Christie intros in his best gcatterbra-in fashion-. Judy- Conrad's band is on. the- crawler. Pic is 'Man Who Cried- W-ol** (U)., Biz fairish. H.'oyii. Fop.tiba'U., duds- randies and ani- mals account for about half the bill- here this week. Quarter of IJje- hour is devoted to football, with most attention to, the N. Y. U. - Colgate game shown, in detail. Camera caught, some- wonderfully- executed plays, but 15 minutes to this.'and other games, seems like overempha- sis. Another 10 minutes go to 'Dude Ranches,' one of 20th-Fox Magic Carpet series. Wars in the east and west come in for coverage by Paramount and Universal, with Madame Chang- Kai^Chek's effective speech, asking for a. Japanese- boycott. As per- sonality of the we^ here, she's it. Scenes of destruction in various parts of China, refugees and wounded are included in the surveys. Janan's Ambassador in Washington, Hiro- hito Saito w.as- booed for his state- ment. Whatev» the- Japanese- are up to, they don't shine at propa- ganda. War in the west is shown by Paramount's clip on' the fall.of Gijon. last Loyalist seaport on the- Bay of Biscay arid one by Movietone-shows Palestine under military rule. Not much on last week's election except to", show President Roosevelt voting, This shot and his appearance are not up to his usual snowman- ship, and; it's hard to make out the gist of the dialog. La Guardia and Dewe.y are- shown, best shot being an effective photograph of the Times Building flashing news of the Mayor's re-election. . Pathe's ship news interviews in- clude Sir Ronald Lindsay, Caotain Ernest Simnson, and returning Com- mander Daniel Doherty, of the American Legion. Also a, good- view of N.egr.o sculptor William Edmorid- son's work. Paramount has King George VI, with hie famil.y. en route to open Parliament Universal covers a couple of U. S. disasters, one in Minne- apolis and another in Marvland. Not much else in the wav of news on this one, but .scenes of natives going through fire barefoot in Singapore arp interesting. Rest of the bill includes three clios on dogs, one on Colorado .sheeo. .salmon, Lew Lohr'.s twn bits, neither esoecially hibriou.s. War Admiral winning the Wa.shingtpn hanrii'iaD and the horseshow oncning in New York, I.ptter is very f»ood and .seems to he tnkert from the ton of the Garden by Pithe's mnn. Mjsrplla- neouK (-^ther shots include an 8.000- page Bible, manufactured lifthtning at the Pnris expo and Mu.ssolini re-^ viewing Italian cops. STATE, N.Y. : Ted liew/ls has, a stage shnmr mora radicalla? daangisd in character than any he's trotted oiit for inspection in sonietime. And those who'll chirp, 'it's about time,' will be satis- fled. Show consumed 47 minutes when caught a'b tdie washup performance opening (Thursday) night and had the large crowd ali the- -wajy. Fact Lewis now gives his 15-piece orch more attention and has one of his best combos to date, helps raifeer a deal. Star is now dressing up his band with 'six choral gjaite seated in front, backgrounding and building out his O'Wm renditions nicely with their voices. They don't do too, weJi when eventuaJto^ riiarched dojviai to, the foots for some efforts on their own, but when working, on madrigal ar- rangement with the band boys they're good. There is in the layout one vet standout, specialty in the Sylvia Manoa troupe of adagidiists. With the band a flxture on the- stagje; I'^e act which, is accustomed to a' 'full-' setting: is ratiaes' hemmed in, but tiie boys manage- most of ij\siv tosses regardless, Two. new men are wo ing in 'Hjb: act now, with the c.atc;;3r the same who. has. worked with ttee sylph-liJCe MSss Manon for rather a time.. -Aiso,. men have. beea ne.v/ly togged outi ift red-dewili costumes, nice change asMay^ from those- Louis XI^V outfits they so, long affected'. Baye Royce^s (New Acts,), tum- bling, set off: in bis. sinxulatlon of a drunk, scores, appreciably., Loretta Lane is an e.k. Dl<mde rhythm tap- stress;. .Gteye I>ix.on a sweet awing singer, bit of the hefty side, and supplies a cbang,e-.of ^ce at a need- ed moment. Still retaininft Ws. always-effective- ifi-huge-hoke Tsn't She a Pretty Thing' routiftev EiCwiB. is Ufiina as his tow: de. force this, week. The/). Hnoy.. Hi-JUcks. control dancer., lissome Miss Troy has the grace and limpid looks to lend credence to Lewis' buildup. Charles 'Snowball' Whittier, who has virtually gr<K«rn up in the Lewis act, is a real big boy now. He's even doing .a shag stomp with light-lico- rice Betty ihdcersonw Routine is poorly- staged and as a hoofer, 'Snowball' -has. not. yet arrlyed. He's still a better whipping-, hay for Lewi&' funning and fol-de-rol'. On his own side, Lewis has re- furbished much of his material. 'Baby Smile& at Me' is. now being used thematicaJily toi get the show on and off; 'St. Louis Blues' has wisely been dropped. Instead-, 'The High- Hatted Tragedian o& Jazz! ^a title now dvop^ed, tdo) uses 'Old Feeling' tune for imposed lyrics about how he feels about the living^ stag.e.. Lewis' careec te^fies to> his feel- ings in. that, regard. Another nicely' executed number is 'Castle to Build.' . Only two. -criticisms can justly be aimed at the star on his. current show. His, injdulgefnce of a bit of Holtzian cane maneuvering during, a session with Whittier is distinctly out of place, and whien caught Lewis was prone to ease into, the calcium spot too frequently when a special- ty act was in the core- of its routine. On the screen, 'Big City' (MG), re- viewed in Varibtx, Sept. tS-. Ber.t. PARAMOUNT, L. A, Los Angeles, Now. 5-. With such toppers as Everett Marshall, baritone-,, and the Nowello Bros., doing- their bird imitation- act, the current stage show at the Par- amount is heavy on talent, though the routining, mars what might oth- erwise be an outstanding bit of en- tertainment. Novellos, and Myrtle Hardin, torcher singer with the- Jay Whidden band, featured on the bill, make two separate appearances, thus splitting up their offerings. Result is the show sags at times, and is more or less spotty. Marshall, who, is headlining, was in robust voice at the opener. Offers a diversified repertoire ranging, from a. Russian number to.'Old Man River' and 'That's Why Darkies Were Born,' Baritone's forceful delivery and his high tonal qualities register solidly. Opening bit by the Novellos is a comedy skit in which they use their violins while dancing and cLowJiing, but it fails to make much of an im- pression. When they return later in the show for their timeworn. but al- ways popular bird lovemaking rou- tine they wow the pay, customers. Miss Harwin,. member of the Whidden entourage, does a straight torch- number on her initial appear- ance that registers so-so, but gets under the audience's skin when later on she delivers' a Hawaiian song, winding ud with a semi-torrid hula dance routine. Whidden band does only one solo number, at opening, and might click for better returns if it injected a hot swing routine between some of the vaude turns. Fanchonettes are on for two routines, one at opening in which they manipulate black lace fans, and a Snappy finale that set^ Lho gals off to good advantage. Screen feature is Par's 'High. Wide and Handsome,' first time at regulai prices. Also Par News arid 'Coloi Classic' (Par). Ediva.