Variety (Jul 1940)

38 HOUS»S REVIEWS PARtEfY W<'<lo«sday, July 17, l9i0 STRAND, N Y. jRudy Val/ee Connecticxit Yan- kees, Gentlemen Songsten \A), SReo.dmger Tioins, Avies and Arwk, - Bob, Nellir: 'MV Love Came Bacfc, -L-rewieu;ed-^Tv- Variivt^v June 2G. that bo the stage in the barroom. It looks like this tyjse of spot is going to spread like wildfire throughput- the country, and the talker houses GOLDEN GATE, S. F. Gordon's Rack^te^rSi Christy and Gould;.Ted Waidman and Susie, The Mariibs,^ Andre Giifhrie, Mautine Ctoivle, Betty Wells, Charlotte Ahl- gren, Lenore. O'^Neil; 'Curtain Call' (Rkoy. v.- By. ^AM X^ HliRST.,;., •; . St. Louis; July:-16. , Th« ultra-ultra in recreational.— - . . . ,• ir ^ soots a $200,000 enterprise, was livvill have to mstall bowling alleys in launched list 'week oh : the. m . ■ stea\ in 'East :: St;: LouiSf acr ^ M ississippi, by' Johnny .Perkins, for - ther m.c., and Roy Brudei', fprmer inanagbr of the Chicago Ihef^tre, Chi- cago; and. this way the place has been jammed indicates jpicture hbiises .are. id for more b.o> headaches.. .Located •down the street, from the MiajestiC, the. B&lC-operated d'eluxer, the Per-: kins-Bt-udeir center,:tagged the Play- diuoT." is easily stealinig the play. Even the dice hoUses : that abound - 111 this cattle: liiarket,and railroad: center of 8.5,000, that get a swell trade from this citizenry oh the Avest bank; are feeling the presence of the Pliydium. Showmen who have given the spot the o.o. pronounce it the last word. With its 20 stream- lined BrunSwick^Centennial bbwlirig alleys, cocktailibiinge, an ornate bar and a 16x7 jfoot stage buijt above and back Of the bar, and skinless hot dogs and cokes for ai;jitney at, a. re- freshment stand in the bowling alley section, observers point out that places of this type are the, coming coinrmakers;; .. Additioriallyi, the femme^i are; running; .the -males a neck-ahd-.heCk. race as the riioSt. fce- quetit patirons. The Playdiuitn is located in :the building where,Harry Redmond op- erate a film house, betote the de- pression. .For a number of years it was vacant. ; When.'one. enters what; was formerly the foyer he stteps into an air-conditioned modern bar, with the unusual sight of the stage up ind bfehirid it. The bar is long enough that foiir :or five dispensers of rer freshmehts are on their tootsies all tha tinve. . ":' _• '■< . The lighting! system; is of the iit- direct type, and immediately behind tlxe bar is the cbcktair iounge.^'Bar leads to a coirridor and the. bbvylihg alleys which are ah eye-dpenet,. An entire View of the alleys is possible from the- lounije:. through a ; latge window which keeps put .the noise. The alleys, on double floating . foundation, rlih iacrbss what was fpr- nierly the Orchestra; of the theatre.. The room is 128x128 feet, "ahd the; domed ceiling cphippsed of inlaid wood to deaden the sound is 18 feet liigh. Acoustics also take :ap: the- noise. More; than 300 modern arid tipholstered seats, larjgei: than those . found in : talker houses, are pro- vided for spectators and the active bowlers have swell circular wooden seats for themselveis and away from the spectators. A hew type of light- ing system vWais installed ' by Major, the first ,in. a bowling alley in the tJ. S., a decided departure from the usual' lighting system to be found in {►laces of this type. A $6,000 stain-, ess steel iand Italian marble refresh- ment stand takes care of the wants of the bowlers and :the spectators, it is here' that the cokes and hot dogs may be purchased; . . ' Ah intercommunication talking jystem is connected with ;each bowl^ ing pit from the -front 61 the alleys and a public address system is also installed for announcements, .v; Bar-^Starc Show Additionally Perkins is dishing ou.t ■ six unit show, on the trick stage, five times Vnightly. Currently the acts, booked : through the William Mi>rrls a.^ency, consist of Julie Palli- tre, pianist, for four years oh WGN, Chicago; Betty Nord and Haiel Scptt, songbirds; . the Ragtime Cowboy, hillbillyj Rbsia. aiid Raymond, sing- ing, team that also- play the fiddle aiid squeeze: box; Perkins and ;'Syra- cu.se,' a .Negro: porter employed in the place, but possessing an amaz- IfV'jly. good baritone voice.: When Parkiris isn't singing in the show he m.c.'s it, an^l vvhen. the stage is cleared he's aroiihd the entire house : dukiug. the customers and trying, to make everyone comfy in, the 160-, seat ,; cocktail lounge. Perkins has pveclooked no bet to popularize the spot: He's made a. tieup with WTMV, the only radio statibn in East' St. Likiis, and broadcasts his own; 15- min. _ projjram - nightly. Then he «ha Ves/Celeb^'that, are passinig through this necfc:Qf the wbods and exploits thtfir presence. During the .first week of operation he had: Bob Hope. . Jerry COfbtina.. Ben -Pollack, Ace Brigbde mixi his. .Virgihiaiisi Anson Weeks and L'io DurpcHer, manager of- the Bi-oolclyn. Dodffers.; ;; - - SatLirday (20) Perkins .will umpire: a bowling mateh. between: members of the Dodgers . captained by Joe Med wick, former Cardiiial.fly-chaser,: and a ■Cardinal;teani masterminded! by Bob Bowman, hurler-i This event is beiiig widely publicized: via radio, newapaper ads, ;etc;;.. , Observers whP have seen the doors to Playdiurn closed, four brfive times ijijijhtly, since opening,, because' the pi:ice: could accpmmodiate ;,no more spenders assert it Will out-gross the Ma jestic by $3,000 on; the Week. The place has so miany 'attractions under ons roof ; not 'found elsewhere in. the- towri that it is going to get a lot of patrbhage frrtm; this side of the big drihic after :the locail closing houn Hiere are up juke-boxes or radios In tha i*laydi.um and the bnly musrp is For his: 'first Broadway :personal in- a year or~ more, Rudy Vallee has put togelhCr an ablfe ui\it. Though it lacks a really solid punch, it's pleas- ant and smoothly entertaining, well.-: rounded, and: contains many laughs. However.; gpbd many of the hearti- est laughs -when oaught. seemed- to be private ;onet.s between Vallee and ventro Htob . Neller; In combo with ■My Lbve Game BaCk,'; business here ... should be fair. San Francisco; July. 10; Major; pbrtibn of the, SO^minutie or W/ittsy: Ro|)crts, Count Berni Vici:Vso funning tihae: is takeri by tbe 'Cqinedjie Ji>ancotsc' tinit, Bronyo,! ie,ader^sirtgier; .He runs the gamut ■ Count Berni Vici's 'Cbmedie Fran- caise' unit: is supplemented here by Whitey Roberts, ai^combihatibh which jells nicely, although Roberts got off to a cobl start it; the firit show. Audience was almost hoistile tb: his; blue gags, but after he gbt into his plate-jiiggling . and jitterbug imitar tibns they couldn't get enough of hirh; In .addition tO; being a sock; act, there's 5brnethihg about the way he does; it thai brings, back nPstaligic membries-rhe's as miich ait home oh the;boards as though we actually had vaudeville. ; Other • specialties playing in front of; Befni Vici's -double-deck Settings include ;comedy acrobatics of Christy ahd Gbuld ,and Al Gordon's dis-; obedient dogs, both smooth and cpr- i-eispondingly well; received. .Ted Waldmah, in blackfa.ce With blue gags and a; harnionica, drew hiost attention here ■■ for mbuth-orgah solo without using his harids; The Marcbs do hand-tb-hand stuff, male half bal- ancing his partner on one arm and making it lobk^easyl T'he. Gount,; with his ll-gifl band oh" tTie stage: and scantily .costumed ladies ci?nvergirig: from: all sides, is still, using two platform levels with stairways, scrims, flying • moons and; silver-coated human statues,. Colprr scheming, between lights and. drapes, achieve sbmiethihg ;; akin ; ,to the Arabian' Nights. . Mieans plenty of. business ^for . backstai|e crevi/, biit aside ffoni a,; temporarily dead, mike and one br two missed cues, opening went, off /Satisfactorily; Troupe ,bt dozen , lasises participates . in: devil, storm and other symbolic numbers, with : Brohya, doing an astral- se- quence in a veil and little else, put- ting the Golden Gate in competition with the Gay way. ■ As ' is. customary with the Count's unit, peeprshbw in lobby; offers ,'lOrinch undrap^d half- caste girl firom Bali'-^rfof free. Main flbbir. three-quarters filled at Opening. ; : WeVn. TOWER, k. G. Kansds City, July 13. Barr. and Estes. Three .Toppers, Bud Hughes and Pals,' Lester Hard- ing, Barry Watts, House'Lirie, Hirb Six House Orch; 'Grand Ole Opry' iiRep).: :Mid-July figured a ripe time, tp take customers minds off the heat and the Tbwer is ihakihg its bid with this 'Eskimo Follies,' although the weather man hais taken matters into his; own generous hands. While the shbw's running time is shortened to 40 minutes; the production is height- ened and measure's up to the regular standard. ... : Three line numbers, bpehinig, clos ing and. midway, are out of the ordi nary ■a;nd, combined with a'mountain Scene setting, boost the show con sidefably. Opiener to *If Winter Comes' is a ballet built around pair of snowmeh,, mid-shbw tp 'Winter Wonderland' is done in ski suits with clacking ski shoes, and , finale 'Skater's Waltz,'. gets in some imita ttve ice stejpsi, all above pa^r. 'Lineup; of standard acts is begun by Three. Toppers With a; rPutine. of pole balancing. : :$tuht; of anchor man ^ balancing : partner on bicycle atop long pole, and then balancing both partners atop another,, makes setup, one long gasp. SecPhid spot taken by Bud Hughes, who; ppehs' , with some ;silk handkerchief magic; but changes' tenure with ' canine couple which he-balances and tosses about stage. . ■ Following : mid-chorus, number. Lester Harding calls up h's.baritone, for 'Where .Was; I,' aptly suited tp: his .style-and nicely done, and: encOres wit|i 'Perihies from Heaveh.' Weekly ainateur; Barry ■ Watts, ■ has- a yenr trilpguial personality in his; woPden 'Skeeter.? - While his ability, is.good, delivery and presentatioh ; need '.work;.':.: . ''.'- V' - "■■-"■■:■'•--:;■."■■ ; :- Closing, regular spot is turned ov.ier to Bafr anc| .Estes,; annpunced as a dance- team. Bafr wprkS; solo first half of: act with' ah.;eccentriG cpmedy terp, does, sbrne laughablie imitations and chatter, and then brings on. hii parihei: for some added looks, and .comedy dancing. Fair are' in the right, spot and ; rate coritihuoiis chuckles, ^ ; Wea;ver: flrois. on screen/ always good tof certain; amount .of local .biz and boxoffice holding its .av'efage ■pace; •'■■■■'-:;•■' <iuin.. of sbme of his better known tuhes, ones • hie has long , been doing , as novelties, like 'Lydia, the Tatooed Lady, through jwps to his curtainr drbpjief .medley ;bf. hits designed tp arouse nbstalgia among Vallee radio fans:. He heralds :the latter; as jiurh- bers with which he was ;identified thfough 11: years of i'adio. : Rem- iniscing : takies listeners through 'Kitty from Kansas City,' 'Lonesome and Blue.' -Stein Song,' 'Betty ^o- Ed,' 'Dahcihg with Tears,! theme 'My Time,' among othe.rs. winding up with 'Vagabond Lbver^';;- Clicks easily;: ^Geivtleineh . Sbngsiters back- gfound him later: 6h;vone number, the 'Yale Whiffenpoof writing. . Vallee . :hahdlies himsielf ; neatly. Band behind hini is ho more.: than background; hevv'ing closely to the style of; arrangements his. Yankees have Used, for years, which butnibdes it when-, cbrhfiared to. mbdern dancie bands. No. cbmparisbiv. is dert\anded," however, this : buhch being in only for aGcompanirrient and, built, to. fit Vallee's .singing; "Whether not they*re . the original- Yankees isn't, coriimented on. Readingef Twins.;, biirleisquers of ballet, are first oh, given a, heavy intro; as are all the turns; by Vallee; They're worthy of his -plaudits,- serv- ing up something different arid in teresting, Vallee's ^ sendpft isn't clear re the act's aim, but in work it ;Seems tb add up to a polished, well-fehear<»ed takeoff on ballet routines, d one ;i n cpnyentiohal danc- ing slippers. It's ^mart sight stuffy the, pair's unisbh nipvements , behig well .high, perfect. Secpnd piece is an amusing , physical interpirelatibn of 'Dpnkey Serenade.' Routine of Ames and Arno is familiiar but nPne the less effective. Pair go ;about,beUing each other all oyer the rostrum and encounter lit-- tie trbuble setting themselves solidly. Vallee, doles out another adjective- loaded intro to bring. .Oil: Evelyn Schooler, rccPunting in the same breath his assistance to spotlighted pbsitibns of many current 'names/ Miss Schooler would: be another 'dis-: covery.' Girl has a; highly pleasing, warm vpice. displays a wide range and strong poWer oh Sigmund Rbm- berg's;'.'Will You Remember' and *BlUe Moon/ concluding with a duo, with Vallee. on 'Little Hug. a Kiss.' Both her low and :high' regiisters, are attractive, though at various, points her. diction isn't all that it could be. Didn't seem entirely at ease either; her .'first* on Broadway could ac- count for that.. Neller and Vallee worked tbgether the last time Vallee flayed LbeW's State , i Ust across the way. - the routine of the two, .which, has Valleie taking part in the la:st half; of the act with a cblored .dummy, is. almost identical to that .-which they used theny' even to. the gags. It's a laugh: .provoking sessipn of crossfire be- tween Nellef's woodpile,; tagged Reginald PicklepusS; and Vallee. Neller's yentroing is '. of high calibr-e but .the turn is tarnished somewhat by bis atterript to-vary, its pace. He comes forward witti a billed takeoff on Bonnie Baker do- ing,'Oh Johnny.' In the first place burlesquing the tune and its singer has : been done to. death; secondly, , Neller's method is poor; thirdly; Miss Baker herself;is playing- a feW blocks away at the opposition Pat-arhpuht, which niakes it in. pobr tastie; • -■■->.: ■ ' Wood.':-'. his corny gags about Niies, Micb.. and when they laiugh at that stuff the audience must be J.ull bf'cpusins. Jay and Lou Seiler haye been around for years ..with their novelty dancing, but these peWrholders Would have elected theni twin presi- dents. ;The Seilers, have addled some new riiaterTal, 'parirculafly a'coniiedy fencing number, It didn't impress this reviewer much, but thivS mob screamed for rnbre. Evelyn Farney is a pleasant; ahd interesting; solo dance item early; in the shpw. She's tapster with appearance and. style. Can play, ahwhere,, :and; would, be particularly at home in a ,good nite spot with her cleahVcut work, ; Savitt smartlymi.cs. This audi- ence epuld easily have gblten put of hand and 'prolonged the show un- necessarily, but Savitt kept the up- per-hand at all times, show always moving at a snappy pace; •., Savitt's band itself turned in. a good Thusical session;lor the swing addicts. It remains a ; strong band, not quite as satisfactory on ai stage .sis a dance floor, but nevertheless a well-rounded and worthwhile mod- ern dance aggregation that will satisfy the bulk of. the customers. Savitt has two singers; Allen DeWitt for some ;straight ballads, handled in a rather';sloppy , ntanner.: and Bon- Bon, Colored, with fine diction and a real flair for clipped vocalizing. : ^-' ■ . - Cold. )\POLLp, N; Y. Jt!llt Smiih, Spoons Brown, John Mason, JohU .Vigal, Vtuiaii Harris, Long and ; Short, Dolly •McCprTjitcfc,. Shelvierdene, Bufn/ioilt; Harris and Scott, House Line (12), Sunset Royal Band ivith Frdzien Stewart; 'Women Without JVarties' < Par).-' GHIGAGO, CHI .- Chicago, July 14. ; Jan Savitt Orch (14);. with Allen DeWitt, . Bon-Bon, Evelyn Farney, Jay and Lou Seiler, Vid Hyde; 'Andy Hardy Meets Debutante' . (M^p)., Jan Savitt turned jn a money stay at the local College Inn last month .without assistance, and curfe.ntly the gross will rise to a bright mark. But the presence of the picture is also a real boxblTice factor: In addition .to business itself, a re- rnarkable item was the enthusiasm of the audience at show caught, last one Saturday (13) . Usually, this is the tbwn's ;stiffest crowd,: but at this pafticular::''i5erfbrmance everything 'seemed little less than ■.sensational; The. acts Were good; bUt according to -the reaction of this mob, they, were terrif, Vic Hyde, for instance, has been around many times in the past few years, but he never: went over the way he scored here this tinie,; They practically tore up the seats when he played three trumpets. simultane- ously.; In fact, they even laughed at This Harlem home of hot harmony deviates from the standard this ses- sion only: in length of tirrie the shbw funs. With an appreciative audience for the considerable comedy in the bill, the presentation and encores make it something of a marathon. It runs almost ain hour and three- quarters, much too long.- Despite some almost inexcusably bad booking, the. show is strong. 'There doesn't seem to be any reason, hoWeVer, for having two such similar acts as Long and Short and Burn- ham, Harris: and Scbtt.; First cohsists- of two bbys who tefp and: harmonize; second consists of thfee boys who terp. and harmonize and add some coinedy. chatter. Lptig. and Short are recent graduates .from amateur ranks, while. B. ;H. and S. afe repeat performers.at the Apollo, ; Warbling bf L. and S. is bad. largely as the result of poor, arrang- ing. Their hoofing,, using canes for, trick steps, is better, Their apparel. Consisting of greeii - trousers, u'ltfa- long tan coats and bowties. is one of the things that, for anv devotee-of What the wellrdressed. (? ) ybung man should wear, always makes a trip to the Apollo worthwhile. However, the.pair could be dispensed with in favor of the Burnham, Harris and Scott trio. Latter aren't only superior in footwork, but their decrepit gags almost kill with laughter the sepia portions of the Apollo aUdlence. Specialty turn is Spoons Brown,' who makes a couple of tablespopns perform in a manner: that; would have any Spanish senorita and her castanets feel as helpless as a Re- publican in Chicago this week. Dolly McCormick, who's taken out of the. line to' do a Balinese dance in a Buddha setting, is one of the top fea- tures of the show. Femme's finished wig-wagging of shoulders and afms is truly a bit of Carnegie Hall. SheV followed by Shelmerdene, ofay, who does a nightmarish dance With her hands chained together. It consists principally of throwing her shoulders practically in and out of jPiht as;she brings.her arms back and forth over her head. Act would much rriofe be- fit a clinic in hideous anatomy than a stage. ■ John Mason, John Vigal 'and Vivian Harris provide a. couple, of blackout sketches. .One is guaranteed to be a most gruesome thing, with a very realistic corpse on stage' thrbughout. Winds up with the corpse getting lip, causing a deaf- and dumb man to talk and a lame one to Walk. Other skit deals with politics, President Roosevelt and God. It gives the audience a., good, oppor- tunity to demonstrate that were it up to ;Haflem alone, the President's as good as reelected. : Jeiu ;Smith,- Who warbles into A side-stage rriike to accompany the individualistic gyrations of the house ■line;-and the line itself complete the vaude portion Of the bill. Members of the chorus, always prone to dembhstrate the finer i>oiht of per- sonal freedom of action, go their separate ways this week even more abandbnedly than usual. Sunset Rbyal Band is playing a re- turn date at the house. Considerably more: versatile:; than most Negro combos, iti .arrangements and style loan more.to those of hot white out- fits than of their skin brothers. Ar- rangements ' are excellent, holding down the blare conisidefaibly. Crew also does, sbme okay: hovel ty stuff, clicking particularly well when the bandsmen step off the stand to gather 'round a side, mike and pro- vide, vocal accocnpahiment fbr warbler Frozien Stewart. Miss Stew- art, at show caught,' was singing into a dead or; near-dead mike, which made, it almost impossible to hear her, but she's a doll-like little looker and the idea was nicel; . Jferb. ■ ROXY, N Y, Ben Yost's New Yorkers f«) Jeanne Brideson, Whitey's Soutk^ erners (16), Franklyn D'Am6re (2) Coe Foster Cirla, Paul Ash Houae Orch; 'Maryland' (20th), -remeujed in VARUSti, July 3. Stage production this week swift-moving, brief and strictly a prolog arrangement for. the feature. Cpl-Phial southern mansion, cos turn-: ing,; colored southerners , (lihdy'- hoppers) and whole motif build to- wards 'Maryland.' Stage bill funs exactly.; 35 minutes plus several minutes taken by personal of Brand» Joyce, who's in the .pic, at show caught. - - .; Gae Foster girls do two slick tines, with finale merely .. reprise; elaborate ballroom background jiji.st taking place of the southern manse. Group tees, ,6ft with. half in rowdy plantation steps as other half appearii 'garbed in stately garden dresses. Flip of these long sku'ts transforms bunch into dancing . mammie.s; Novelty is clicko. Following this closely, Foster troupe returns wear-: ing : exaggerated hobpskirt outfits with yellow' skirts abbreviated ts- show white tirbuserlets. Their tap maneuvers a rouse d spontaneoui; (enthusiasm. : . Four ,acts. have; been neatly blended into this nifty production, lineup. Whitey's Southerners are iix:; at the openings Jeaiihe Bridesbn's brief violin concert pf southland.airs. comes-after Ben Yost's New Yorkers cluster about the mike for. vbcal gymnastics. Franklyn [ D'Amore. pre- sents his hand-to-hand acrobat roU^ tine, alsP in front of the -. colonial home set, > ,;..- . D'Amore bills his act as 'a and bag/ clever, comely- -fefnma: partner being carried out rolled up inside a cloth sack. Pair goes through excellent . knbckabout,: balancing • tricks, her identity not being tippedf until both strip off tramp mala clothes revealing standard aero garb. Peel dbn» while she's balanced atop his head. D'Amore has been about for some time with different. part- ners, present well-knit tUrn scoring heavily. He still winds up with that partner-lifting stUnt as he leans over back Pf proppedrup chair. Duo had sold, theihselves before they reached this. - :,;•, . ' .;■ ■ • ■ . '- ;: Yost's singing octet, here only tw» weeks :ago, handle a medle.v of old- tiihe.southern tunes; reappearing at finale with group equally divided oil opposite sides of stage. . Combo flti snugly into this shpw. Whitey's. Southerners make a flashy buildup to the ballroom climax with , their lindyhopping. Present aggregation consists of eight girls and as many boys.' all versatile and .athletic colored steppers. Last time it was caUght group was billed only as Whitey's Lindy Hoppers, with; only six in group. . Biz near caipacity; Wear, EARLE, WASH. Washington, July 14. Eight Neti) Yorkers, Betty Bruce, J^eanne Lanier, Sixteen Gae Foster Girls; 'All This, And Heaven Toa" (WB). • After discarding plans for road- showing 'AH This' as straight pic, house whipped up^pint-sized,-stretain- lined revue, held down to 20 miii- utes flat, as running mate. Staga doings are all pop, but have plenty class in talent and presentation, mak- ing nifty complement to pic. It's all singing and hoofing, without even a chattered introduction. In order to keep, total layout down tb averaga length, even weekly 'Sing,-a -Spng- With-Mike' community warble, ..one of spofs most successful stunts, i-i omitted; - Two -minute flash ■ 'Pil grimj Chorus' serves., an overture. - Eight New Yofkers are heard via. offstage mike singing 'Lady of the Everting' as curtains part on huge Spanish shawl backdrop, and line appears in senorita getups for neat • rhythmic shawl swishing. Line falls back as Betty Bruce, out of Broadway's 'Keep off the Grass,- the layoff Durante starrer,- takes center spot for rhumba tap and a fast bit tw 'Stomping at the Savoy,' both click- ing nicely. She's in modified Span- ish costume.... New Yorkers, foiic boys in white coats, and four galls in white net gowns, waltz pn. in pairs : and drift to downstage jnike- as cur- tains clpse behind -them, adding up; to nice entrance and perfect transi- tion of mood. ;: .:,,; ; Double quartet boasts satisfactpfy; voices and delivers tunb with plenty of freshness and persona lity. They do right by Gershwin medleyCLova Is Sweeping the Country,' 'S'won- derful,' 'Embraceable You.' 'Of Thea I Sing') and climax with 'Man Who Comes Around/ with eight succes- sive solb . breaks, each good for , solid laugh. Group splits four, on each side to gurgle 'Woodpecker Song^ as, line sialics oh in tophatis and tails for precision kicks and struts atop two-foot stilts. Latter are cby- ered by pants; legs and effect is plehty smart.. Jeanne Lanier; cute ha If-pint soprano, appears in middle of number, also in Johnny costume, to db solo vocal of 'Woodpecker/ Mite packs nice. voice and adds the rhythmic touch effectively. Nine voices and 16 hoofers combine for applause-winning finale. Biz big at show caught. Craig. \