Variety (Jul 1940)

Wednesday, July 10, 1940 MUSIC HALL, N. Y. Capt. John Tiebor and SeaU, Ger- trude Westmoreland^ Carlos Peter- son, Jdn Peerce, Madeline Buddy Kdrsoh, Bill Matquettei Myron Stcfr fin, Rockcites, Glee Club, Ballet Corps, Miisic Hall S y m p h o n V Orchestra Under direction of. . Emo Rupee; "All This, arid Heaven Too' (.WB)ii reviewed in Variety, June 12. This week's stage show riins but 24 minutesv The. endurance test is with the fllm portion.. This includes 'All This, and Heaven .Toa' (WB), covering 140 mihutes, and in addi- ction there's an issue of 'Inlormatidh Please' (RKO) with Wendell L; ■Willkie as the gueist; Leon Leohidbff put together the c^irrent ^tagie; show, w^hich plays in one-set,, that of a country club, with !i pool in the foiregTOundi,'. Setting !t one of the most effective done, by Bruno Maine. Atnoiig other thirigs, it is very realistic and, in the s.tagr ing, details, as; having \/aiters walk around, have hot. been pverlobksid ^n : art effort to lelid.authenticity..; i . A e?!^ aci'oss the stage fronts ttie ■ country; cltib seiche as an • opener. Carlos Petersen, in a; bit as the . golfer who .holes out at the 18th to : cop a, cup, and Gertrude Westmore- ■ land,.:as the wife berttbaning that; she - married a. linksman, . tee things; off. Jan Peeirce and the glee icliib f ollowr : . in an arrahgenieiit of close harmony by Mi •Salii' Tivhich features 'Donkey ■'Serenade.' .. ■ ■ From here oh; the cbuntry ;club setting, in fuUstage, is, employed^ ffrst for it diving exhibition .by :- Madelinfe Buddy Karsbn. While; her technique Ss a . diver, is/all ;tha it's supposed to be, Miss Kajsdn is. ho • Annette Kellerihan ; as*: .to : figure. She'3 shortish ..and muscular. , ;Twb diving comics, ^ Bill Marquette; and Myron .Steftin,; dig la\ighs\ for.' rer . liefi ;Peature . act is Capt; John ■Tiebor's excellent seal turn which has been standard and in the top brack- ets on .entertainment; quality, for . some years. -. ;The. Rockettes and ballet corps ap-' ' -pear ih bri0;riurnber eachj fbrmer as . sailorett6s- in a-tap- routine that/^is nice but not outstanding.;; Toe divi- sibh winds .tilings up. in pne of the more impressive numbers put bri by •Florence. Rbgge. -. Girls carry, large rubbei: balls of red, white and blue which, for a finish, form the outline, of an Ainerican flag. . ;. - Theatre is doing smash, business and'Friday night sieats were at a premium. V ; Char; GOLDEN GATE, S.F. rmond, walking to mike in identer of. stage, he, makes better , appearance I than expected of screen personality, humorously kidding his interest in song-writing arid explaining how he netted $2 on his first publication, •Will Ybii.' Then sang it, aftet which audiiehce wondered how he got the $2. Immediately followed with song from ah early pic, 'All I Do Is Dream bf, You,' which drew phs and ahs frbm his femme fans. Didn't set the'. y^orld iflre, but. Ihey .liked him. House caipacity at opening.. ■'■ ■ ■' ■ ■ ■■ Wern. TOWER, K. C, V -Kansas. City, -July ■6.^ ' .^Shdyne and Armstrong, Eoga.sh and Baydine, John Tio; Lester Harding, Shirley June Thotyitdn,: Hoits^- Line, UAMioa ■irSr/'h • «5dps at-Sea,' Herb Six House QrcH; CUA) Arinuai cbntiest to select the bath- ing beauty to represent Kansas City in thfe . state contest later in, the, sea-, son is wbi-k^d: in as jpart of the stage bill this week and leads to the title 'Seashore Frolics.' Parade of .12 contest£(nt3 is staged past inid-shpw; after : an ihtrpductbry line .number'.; Serves to get,-more . gals on Stage' and rouses some local, irite'rest. . : Bill is; opened by girls bouncing large . beach balls; in rhythm. Lester Harding steps on Ss m.c. tb introduce. Shayhe and ■ Armstrbni: ' in^ tiirn combining'; ;baliroom fe'rping with acroBatics.: "They show most every- thing from, eecentxic tb swing and turn in sbme extraordinary acrobatic twirls for good measure; Wbrk is in the class of the better dance teams arid ihight; have; been -better spotted; later ; in-the show; . Bahdstarid rolls downstage; for; an infrequent specialty by I5erb Six. and his house crew: This, bne-is i a torrid 'Isle, of Capri,' With . each section .given: an inning. ..Standard; turn; is contributed by Bpgash l arid Bardirie. as inebriated acrobats. Stuff is good. .tor. ■ some laughs yand.._winds^ up. -(Bodyguards). 'Billyh- and the in San Francisco, July 3. Gene Raymond, O'Neill Sisters' Kiddie Revue, Gillette &; Richards, Ruskin and Norman, Elsie' & Her- man, Rex Weber, Charles Kaley's Orch, Hou^e Line; 'Cross . Country Romance (RKO). With single feature • on screen this week, Golden. Gate is double billed; bri stagey first half being deyoted to O'Neill; Sisters' annual midsummer kiddie show and last half going to four standard acts. iThus, there are ■ two. finales Vvithbut an inteirmissioh, ; Opening with- a« ballet flash,, mbp- ;pets are speeded through 10 scenes running. usual gamut of tap, toe, acrobatic, bowery ;arid patriotic rou- tines. ;iri other words, it's a tyjiical kiddie revue, with the real stars backstage, fresh costumes, snappy settings, etc., gearing the talent for biest; possible results. Which is no , reflection on the youngsters,. who tend strictly to business, one- juve acrobat all but tearing herself to pieces with smiling determinatibn, and; garnering' a. hearty hand. Modified can-can opens final scene, white-and-red costumed gals then backgrounding appearance of. other steppers until kids are all on. House line then joins' mob, remaining to bridge gap.-tb first regular act, Gil- lette and Richards, dance team. Pair open fast' with modified ball- room, adagio'. For second turn male half plays straight while girl shows how; an ex-stripper might db it, bumipirig and dropping shoulder st;raps with winks while partner looks other way. Probably funnier a little farther away from^ the kiddies, this matinee audierice still being un- der the spell of moppets; . Couple .also do a roiitine ./With ;a. iihiusical caridybox and pair; of tap-dancing dolls. - ' ■ '. ■.,;; ■ Veteran Rex Weber, singing ven- triloquist; in rube makeup, had audi- ence' with him from first yelp and : coiild have, stayed longer but didn't. Ruskin and Norman also .kid 'audi- ence; lad barking *Ate..yQ\i crazy?' when called back.. Chap's eccentric , limberTleg;' stuff is what got 'em here, his other attempts at comedy merely delaying the dancing.;: Warm welcome ;;was ■ iaccpfded Elsie arid; Hermari,; llvin;g itatue aci-p ■ team .working on pedestal iri center of fountain. Pair flahked by double fountains With, gal standing sta-. ;; tuesquely irisidie^ (each circle of water and .th^. supporting upper spray. Ef-. feet is eye-catching although one fountain failed to function at open- ing. Second finale has line and mop- pets iii an Indian flash, done in red except for whirling flnish using fluorescent lighting effect., Personal appearing next-to-clos- lag first day only was Gene Ray- stronger thari indicated, . by their opening. There's a bit of doubling up On the bill here* although this ;act is played ; mostly for i comedy; . As such it's only laugh act en route. - Harding's regular turn calls for him to sing 'Make Believe Island' for good registry, and he swings into ■Imagiriatiort,' with the line coming on for a short softshoe preceding the beauty parade; Following contest, runner is closed for brief bit of amateur. contortion ism by tiny Shirley Jurie Thornton, winner of last week's amateur contest. ; In final spot, : Francis LaBella brings on his trained African Parrot, John Tio, as a novelty. act. Bird is prettily, plumed and knows his lines, although tardy in giving theni Up. Possibly explained by LaBella's extreme sincerity to show bff .the bird's ability. So intent is he that showmanship and presentation are slighted; Girls . wind up the usual .45 minutes with a' combined Icick and aero number Upping of admission through tax, hais had little effect on customers as regular . allotment was . : present at Friday night (5) show. , /; Quin. ; STATE-LAkE, CHI PARAMOUNT, N Y. Orrin Zucker Orch (15), ipith Bonnie Baker, The Bodyguards (4), The Staplctons (2), Les Chezzis (2) I Ghost Breakers' (Par), rcvieioed in Variety, June 12.. . Paramount bolsteris its' laughable Bob Hope starrer this session with Bonnie Baker and Orrin Tucker's band, the combiriatibn that created a very large stir ;the begirihing of this year via the singer's interpreta- tion of the 20 -year old tune, 'Oh Johnny.' This date is the first local oppoi-tUnity to glom the owner of the small voice in person at popular prices. If opening night (Wednes- day) business was ' any indication, the week wiU. be a healthy one. The S;R.O, sign was out The first Tucker-Baker N. Y. date subsequent to the click of that one; tune was at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel. . Show is smartly, laid out and speedily paiced. Its only drawback (which didn't seem to bother the audience when caught; as each try was lustily applauded) is the fact that Miss Baker tees off on no less than 11 tun<5s, solo; arid back- grounded by the Bodyguards quartet. That's entirely too much for one sittirig. However, she sharpens her vocal tricks, similar to the drawn finale sigh of: the 'Johnny' waxiiig,; thereby avoiding a sameness and stale reaction from cpnipairison with her recorded versions, of the same tunes.. All of the numbers she does are ones which have been, disced. ^hese ; tricks,. hesitating " before plirases;which, eriiphasize suggestive- ness, and dwelling longer thari-usual ori: bthei-s, also tighten the bond be- tween h^r and the audierice she holds easily, .Her. ap^ fits the small voice. and . her; costuming and general appearance is :good. Starts, off • with 'Pinch Me' and in succession does '.Wouldja " Mind," 'Especially, for You.' 'You'd Be Sur- prised,- 'What Are Little Girls Made of (with Bodyguards), 'Not Yet,' 'My Resistance is Low,' .'Playmates' he was pretty messy and showed surprising lack of finesse; partic- ularly in his drunk bit. He's esseh- tially a talking comedian at present and should istay away from mugging and clowning. . Maribriet act of Lester Omans fits neatly enough with the current fad. Handles typical mariohets such as skeleton, colored dancers and the inevitable skating waltz. All to audience satisfaction. Poorest is the clbsing a.k. dance and cbUld be elimi- nated. ■■-:.■"..;.-■■-.,■'.■.-.;■.; Gloria Blake is a yoyng singer^ okay foif popular audiences .with her classical pipes. In a business over- run with shOUters and rhythm singei-s. Miss Blake is a novelty. A colbratura, she has a tendency to shrill her high notes,, but has a generally cl#ar pair of tonsils that do a good job on semi-classicals., / Always among the tbp are the De- Marcos, who' worked amazingly hard at the show caught and who did re- peated encores. Start slowly but build tb a sriiash audience reactibri at the end. Scbred particularly; well with thbir modern dance burlesque and their final waltz. Rochester (Eddie Aridersori), the Jack. Benny stooge, was liked by audience so Well he could . have stayed all. night He cbmes through with a well worked-out act that has considerable ' entertainment..._ His own chatter has nothing particularly arifiusing about it, but his clowning with the femnie dancing stooge draws plenty of laUghs. Has an • other femme dancer for a short, good-looking tropital number. Lat- ter is a foundation for a powerful dance nbvelty, but at present needs more than the neat costuming. Rochester played arourid..-the audi- erice oii his solo dance wbrk, rriak- ing .them; beg; for niore, He'^^^ applause. Business good at the last show Friday (5) . ; . Gold. HIPP BALTO. Chicago^ July 7. Bobby Whaling *k Co. (2). Helen Horian, Al Zimriiey, Nolan and Nolan, Estelle Taylor, Ward and Van, Warren Hymer & Co. (4), Walter Davidson House Orch; 'Dark Command' (Rep.) Plenty of show, here with oc- casional flashes of satisfactory enter- tainment; Headlining and closing is the skit of Warren Hyriier company (Ne'w Acts).; Act shows that Hymer is in there trying and it does succeed in presenting comedian in a type of role with which he has been identi- fied in pictures. Estelle' Taylor is here with - a straight siriging turn. Makes a fine appearance, which is her big asset currently. Miss. Taylor is backed by splendid arrangeriients which the .Walter 'Davidson, orchestra plays in excellent fashion. . .' . Opening is the; bike aCt'; of Bobby Whaling and' femme. .He does .a tramp but mariages to cbriie up with spri>e good stunts oh all types of wheels.; It's a full opener and. suit- able for most houses, Helen Honan scores satisfyirigly;;with a, series bf impersonations. . Ail standard im- pressions and' okayed by this audi- ence, which particularly liked Miss Hona.n's closing Charlie Chaplin bit, a specialty not .attempted by many impersonators. . ' Neat ballroom dance routine is dcr livered by Nolan and Nolan.; Have good wardrobe and appearance and go o.yer in sblid fashion with a series of standard numbers. Real click, on the show are Ward; arid Van with their standard paotbminie; music clowning. They^ ha v. their timing dqwh to fine point and score power- fully with, their harp and violin work. Outstanding act bf its kind and okay in any theatre for likeable low comedy. Al Zimmey is back strictly as m.c. and handles a thank- less assiginment gracefully. Business strong at the last show Saturday (6). Cold. evitable. '(Dh Johnny,': finishing with 'Ma He's Making Eyes at Me' as the elevated pit lowers; TUcker's band, . sweet aggrega- tion, is by far no powerful asset from a strictly musical' standpoint but it's a nice enough crew entirely adequate fbr Tucker's and Miss Baker's' needs. It's, composed of three sax, two trumpets^ two trorii- bones, four rhythm and three- vio- lins. It uses entertaining arrange- merits and lighting stunts that help to'ward the good impression of , the outfit as a whole: Drinking sorigs,; done by. band niembers dbwn front as a chorus^ is one stunt, and a bit wherein the stage is blacked put is another. Here crew members handle musi- cal notes of •various sizes and; jUumi nated in ..different colors, .which, flashing on and off as .a note on piano, ;sax, violin, etc., ,. ■ ; strUck, make; it possible to. 'see- as -well as hear a band playing.' It's novel and striking and the effect, especially With a skittering,' riepnilighted •vio lin note, vei*y hiimorbuSi Tucker sings and plays sax once. His vocals aren't hard to take.: • Despite all the hullaballoo over Miss Baker, however,' it remains for the Ghezzis, a hand-balancing turn that's been standard vaude fare for years, to conie up with the most solid audience response. ;;Pair have made little or rib change in their routine. In view of the confines of the Par stage, it's an unusual book ing, but they have little trouble working out their difficult balances and exhibitions of endurance. At one point the prone understander's legs project o-ver. the edge of the stage but it doesn't seem to discom fort him. Their usual finale,-an 'up- .side-down jitterbug,' crack finale here. . : The Stapletons, tap team with ^imaginative routines, round out the Par's -fare. ; They're smooth legsters, neatly costuriied. Tee off . with smart unison rhythm work. Rather than just a straight dancing turn, they work ideas into the routines and have little trouble going. over. :,.. ■■■";• .'- ;-•":.'' . Wood eHiCAGO, GHI ; • ^ ; . Chicago, July B; Lester Omans, Gloria Blake, Don Rice, DeMarcos . (2) :;Rochester & Coi (4), Louis Adrian ffousc OrcH (12); 'Brother Orchid' iWB). Business and the; show are both good this week. The Chicago comes up with a lineup of acts which are, for a change, suitable for; this estab lishmerit. In recent :*ive^?ks; the stage' here has been smudged with some acts which have no. place in this house, ;.- ; : Don Rice, m',c., turns in a comedy monolog routine on his bwn.. t)is appointingly. Rice fails to purvey the type of turn he has pireviously done around here; The gags aire getting sloppy and moth-eaten. In previous dates in Chicago, usually -at the Palace, Rice had a smart enough line of chatter and handled- it neatly. At this show, however, Bdltimore, July 7. "Major Bowes', 'Prize 'Winners of 1940' nnit.: loith Ted Mack, Sinclair Triplets^ Bert end Betty Bradford, Buddy Lewisi Five Harmonica Bell- ringers, Patricia Holden, Jlenry. Rob- inson, Bartolo .Ortiz, . Sam Birch, George Bell, Rigoletto Trio, Phil Lampkin House Orch .(ii) ; 'Anne of Windy Poplars' (RKO) .' x About the 'teenth Bowes unit tb be played: here, current edition is eritirely up to. previbus layouts and judging from stubholders present at time caught, still potent in drawinjg power. All the familiars are on ■ hand, the major's emcee, harmonica players, bellringers, a,k. hoofer, miriiic, versatile youngster arid .lastr minute addition :from the broadcast of the current week. Phil: Lampkin's house crew helps considerably, rounding out effective musical supr porf,: . ■• /; --v; -. ;;.:■ Ill a special .set, full stage, and strictly .from Dixie, the lineup' un- folds, swiftly, under the guidance- of Ted. Mack, opening with three-way vocalizing of 'Bugle Gall Rag' by the Siriclair Triplets, whose arrangeriierit succeeds in' sounding like every other tune. ; Then pleasant tapping by Bert and Betty Bradfordj. in ' a medley ■routine arid a brief challenge which catches bri nicely. - Buddy Lewis follows with pot- pourri of impressions of film and radio personalities, scoring favor- ably and making effective; niche for the Five . Harmonica Bellringers, next Quintet swing the bells arid gather round.the mike for session of mouth-organ blowing, all okay and effectively accented by some comedy business by the shortest member of the combo. . A" slightly new twist for .a Bowes layout is the mihd-readirig stint of Patricia Holden, working blindfolded on stage and identifying;objects held up. by her dad in the audience. Works fast and smbothly, :haridling a numberTreading finish in showmanly fashiori. Followed by; Henry Robiri- sori,, introduced as 76 years ;of; age, and good for audible response to his hardshoe hoofery arid begoff speech, 'Discovery of the week,' Bartolo Ortiz, a Mexican.gives out with.riiur sical selections on a tincan fixed Into a fiddle, a table full of frying pans which he plays.;with .Xylophone h'arii- mers arid a roaster which :.alsd ~ suc- ceed? in creating a tune... Finlshies by whacking: various portions of his legs to produce music.,; He's generally quite .fUnny and could be ;develpped. Mack takes hold here fbr session of; gagging with Sam Birch, eindirig up in some swingy clarinet stuff and a comic dance good for laughs. More instriiriiental stuff- next by (George Bell,.personable youngster who plays the fiddle, hops a buck; juggles and gives out with routine on the trum- pet, to good returns. .;; Rigoletto Trio, puzzling name for threesome of Harlem singers, close matters solidly. Essaying versioh of q^iiartet from 'Rigollettb,' With one singer doing it. legit and the other jiving, .lads catch on With a bang arid hold pace with version of 'Fare You Well,' which rings the bell and brings on the finale in which all principals are reintroduced, but not without the rendition of 'God Bless America.' Burm, Jay C. FHppen with Eddie Hanley, Betty Hutton, Ray and Gerdldine Hudson, Oxford Boys (3), Gomez and Minor, Ruby Zwerling house band; ^Waterloo Bridge' (JW-G);: :. if, as- showmen ha vie been repeat- edly declaring during the past few weeks, Budiencies want frothy en- tertainment to carry their minds from such stuff as the surprising U. S. Army recruiting trailer which precedes the State's show, the theatre's current stage combo has what it takes.- Made up entirely of well-proved acts and brought on by vet; m.c. arid comic Jay C. Plippeii, it's-a full hour of high-powered en-, tertainmient In the absence of the 'usual riarhe or semi-name bandi Ruby Zwerling's house crew is lifted froiri pit to boards and given a neat setting to; provide a pleasant background for the turns. i FIippen,: who's playing, his umpteenth return , engagertient at the State, as usual cpmbiries cbmedy with his intrbing for a win- ning blend- Gags are a trifle wrin- kled from use and a couple are ques- tionable for a family houge, ; but; clicked; okay. Plippen's aided . by deadpan ;Eddie Hanley, .who also does a short sold; t'utri^eriiulating the; gal across the way getting dressed in the morning,- "- - -'.'^ Flipperi and Hanley are also the foils for Betty Hutton,- the angular blonde with the torrid pipes arid crazy; antics, who appeared in the revue, 'Two for the Show.' during the past winter. She turned oiit to ■ be a sock feature iri the latter , and repeats here.' Femnie zany; beats the innards out of Flipperi in the process ; of hei"' cacophonous : throating and earns tremendous laugh and;salvos, it's a nifty turn—if Flippen can hold lip until the end of the week;. :: .:. Oxford Boys mesh . solidly.; with their imitatibns of bands and vocal- ists. Only instrument; liised by: the trio is a guitar, the ;rest bcirig en- tirely vocal. Carboning is amazing,; consisting of such crews as. Henry "Busse's, Royal Hawaiiaris, Fred: Waring's, Horace Heidt's, Clyde McCoy's aijd • others. Also "smash . with miriiicry of Kate Sriiith. Gerie Autry. Rudy Vallee, Bing Crosby arid Martin Block (of. 'Make Believe. Ballroom,' WNEW, N; Y.) : Aesthetic side Of the stage goings oh is well, cared for by the ballroom duo of Gomez and Mirior. Team, Which was at the Versailles, swank N; Y. hitery, during the winter, is coihparati'vely new, . Gbniez being fbriheriy teariicd with • Wiripna and Miss Muior with Root. Their excel- lent work is highlighted by remark- able lifts. Ray and Geraldinie Hudsbn, femme flip-flop terpers, open the proceed- ings; So-so on lobks, the gals are- tops in , their line,; /doing somersaults, spins and - twirls with speed and agility,' Working both singly - and together in; prebisibn bits, they drew a load of handpatter; with a num- ber of unusual stunts. Herb. PALACE, GLEVE: . , Cleveland, July- 6. Three Vespers, Vic Hyde, Three Sariiuels and Harriet Hayes; Red Skelton, Edna Stillwell, Hattie -Mc- Daniel, Bert Vnger's House Orch; 'Private AlJairs' (V). -■-'..; Headlining duo of Red Skelton and Hattie McDahiel, with; a Unit- and Bert Unger's orchestra built around it, is giving a much needed shot of vaude into arm bf Palace, which has been dropping grosses into cellar with straight films. Bill doesn't have the bigtime wallop that some of the house's: previous: shows had but. it's tightly constructed, cbri- tainirig jplerity of laughs and sales- apipeal to overcome a. hot week; Skelton doing sv/ell work as m.c;, displayirig a new radio polish as well as better gags since his last vLsit here, Althoiigh building himself up with walkron .patter, he still gives acts heavy push: in 'his intro- ductions. As for his. own offering,. it's a home-run of fresher, snat5py material; that bats out laughs with surprising . regularity. 'Taking' care of baby' skit is: a surefire Jiowler that gets the femmes even on the. Usually; deadly matinee sessions'. ■ Three Vespers uncork show With familiar yet nicely timed acrobatics on teeterbpard.' Newcomer to Cleve-- land: is Vic Hyde, one-man band im- pressions. While stunts with three trumpets seems a bit bucolic, his chatter about his hometowri of Niles, Mich., is likeable, earthy whirhsy that's right down Ohjoans' ; alley. Three Samuels and Harriet Hayes punctuate the trey-spot. excellently, repeating their precisiori taps and sly slapstick in a slick style. : : : ; As co-headlin6r, Hattie McDaniel's makeup as the ginghamed -Negro mamriiy of 'Gone with the-' Wind' sells, her as emphatically as her .robust singing. Whoever wrote her lines did a showmanly job; Her re- marks, about Clark Gable, Holly- wood, etc., carry .the right tone and' she doesri't bverf)lay hei: screeri' suc- cess. : Jiving bit is ;a corking finale for her hot swinging Of 'That Old Feeling- and repartee vvith Skelton. Heat on , advanced Fourth of : July opening melted crowds but biz picked up oyer weekend. Pulleii.