Variety (Mar 1941)

50 LEGITIMATE Wednestloy, March 19» 1941 PIj^s Out of W I'D RATHER SING . •■ Hollywood. March 11. muslcnl ooiiicrty/. in , thr*p. flots ,;(fovir ■ccnesi )>y AVftyne .Lloyd Bovg; niuslc IvtIcb Mnrv-li l.i; Jlrtioi" by/Nor'nari- Phllhrlfk ;-:at A»»lHl«hc« . lilly.- tesifiVift -l^liQyhp^isC,' ■llotlyvvood.' *kis*lV%>>rQihy ■Wliltmpre. [ iutt-- Rollins;- -June/Xprla. ' Dee- llowi-lt. John Elll.'il, Cft^Ue. Ell' Pt. ; , , . • ■■• ; If multiplS^threater Wayne/: Boys would rid hiniself ~ of a ; playwnght Complex and leave alone ^'l,^ AV.,^* nidre frisky kids in this amial)lfe. hli^ Diccc of a collegiate ski team;, ^anded^in a girls schpol. he^mwj make a fib of what he prefers to call a" 'roi^ance ia mUsic.' The^ ypung^ sters have talent, verve, and- ,endur- ance, and as the. title implie^, that s what they would like to do mosi— St?IanS, -But Boy^ would have "t^otherwise. and the i)lay.will go the. way bf all .other Assistance Leagup s excepts'Meet the People;.- After gel-, ting away to a brisk start the tale takes 6n a plot, thin and incon- Suential. that bogs it down beyond ''SSoo.- it::is.:.1. ^ ^be Dee Howell, a. slip, of , a: gal . .her. •teens, displays an easy .manner, good vbicevand a command ,of .dra- matic shading. ^At least one^ studip by how ;mtist have called in John Elliott for a test. He's the juvenile tyoe that producers arie clamoring iorv sings well, and k.nOws. how ,to handle lines; June Loris and Janice Chambers also Tate ,notice for their performai)ce,. . }' ■ There may be a Noel Coward in- the-TOUgh. in the fnakeiip of Boys, lately an organist in a downto\yn cafeteria. , Some of his tunis. may linger after the play is mothballed away and rhay 6veh be its salvation. Once the plot Is thinned and the ensemble of kids given mor^. to^do with their hooves and mouths., the. ■ Up service will ipick. up,-and a run may be made of it. Definitely^ the. •piece; is worth saving, pr , at least, some portions salvaged. •there having been more than; a few- sundry revues and musical; touches cut up in the past year or so, in the smaller try-outers.' some smart producer Is going to piece together Sjb best, features of the whole and give theni a good, solid staging. Film producers do it successfully with iictis, from radio, the stage- and niteries. and the premise. Is equally fertile for the boards. The talfent is abundant and well they know that there's no better showcase around for the shoppers-after new faces from the celluloid factories. Helm. . producing effort of Jay ,Rfchard Kennedy^ and his assocliates. If they aim to continue their ^ne\v yenture,- It woiild be wise to sVelve this, one, isave the expense of a Broadway opening and invest it. iri anothet try, •Actually, therie has been no . drastic chartge: made in the plot,, since it still centers around, the- painful, de- termined effort of ni\ adole.scent boy. tb put the. brakes on his flirtatious parents. As. the story .wended its way Uirough . ■ numerous . situations tliat mostly ;mufTed their possibili- ties, the play suffered from opening- 'liight drafr and;l&;d'clO( vsag;-■. Best-sequence' cortiejs inf the sec- ond act as junior (Frahkie Thomas) interrupt.^ his mother's lover, in at- tempts at a hotbreathed proposal.: but geneiaily there: fs a mpnotone either ' in direction or acting,, and therevwas substantial evidence o^ inr ;sufricient-rehearealV,:,. . . in tii,e- Original -tryout Ezra Stone : staiTdd and.directed. . While Thomas matches his talehts most of ,the wayi, Sircdm does not come off so well in. a d i reefprial comparison. Two holdovers froin the summer version stand out. Charita Bauer delivers a .cornmendable. plausible interpretation bt: the adolescent girl friend -of Thomas,.. double-troubled by • the goihgsron; between ; her mother and junior's father.: - Kate Warriner, in. a minor part, .repeats her; gbbd work ;6f last season aS., a .wise aUrit of junior; ;. , Emphasis is ■ laid more oh. the mother in the revised edition, but Lily Cahill seldom makes her char- acter approach the illusion bf real-: ity/ Jayrrsssiett"' bccasibriany "sup^ teeds. but just as often underplays as Thomas'.. father, Eddie Nugent; has his moments as the tirtist-loverV but seems: to he^: groping most.of the way—Ruth Lee i^uite satisfactory as the:dbmestic«ed woman upstairs w.ho> infatuated With junior's father. ' Raymond Sovey's duplex apart ment set is so superior that It tends to: make the action within it seem more refreshing and entertaining than it Is. . Fox. •They Walk Alone,' lier ; figure >s more ample than that of a year, ago, John Moore, as the farmer, is the best of the others in the shortcast bnesettcr. ■:; ' _ , ■ . , ' Psychologically. 'They Walk Alone* seenis too improbable; ■ Pathological- ly, it's probably impossible. Ibce. 1^ DpctorV Dilennma Katliurlrie <,drncH prrsont.i ''ncrnnca- •SI'"'*'" rpvlviiL/feiiiuilnK herMcir, lliiymond Masseyj- Cliiicnce Di>rwcnt. Wlvllford -Knti*, .Kalpl; LMilioi, Colin Kelih-.loltnslon, ■ Hi-ainwoll I'Molclipr, ■O'CirUnmiilireys; .(>i>?n.lnK Ma.ioli 11. at, £»Uiil)PV.t, ,N. ;T.; ataceil 1;^^ lintlui* SlcCUhtl'r; .. hpiIIukS b.y .. P'miilrt OunHlii«er:/coiiliinicfl by Mi>lli*.Vi i-oM pre- Mer« itriiU; ^Mt) W T<f):\i\»Tly: Jli'.<l|i('nny Klnniy, S<ir (.•iilciVs.o UlilKeon;;,. Dr. Scliiiiir.in.n-hcr. S'lr J'n'U-(Mc.<'(ill('n..,; Ht. i'uilor. Wiilpoli*.... SiT itiilpK IJQiilnBlon: lll<>iil«ln'aoi).. .TfOiiiror Diibedat, I^iiilii UitUedat.'.'.. MlniiTfi -Tlawi-ll .Stanley ni"!! Alice Helniore Cllffo, ,.,. Il!iynuina,Mrtn>ioy . ..Clnn-iice' Dci weiit ......iWhllforil K.a.iu' .. .HalDh Kiirbcs ,.. .;CoplI HutuplireyH. . .ColHi: jCelth-.Iolvn.slon; .....;Kalli'aT|n«i Cfiniell ....;iliHiiiH-ii>Jl F.lelrlier ........ Mil riin rot Curtis After a pireview of 'Native Son,'; rnixed-cast driama at, the; St. .James;, N. Y., last Thursday (13J, Orson Welles arid John Housiennan; deci^ bhck the premiere, from Monday to tonight (Wed.).- . Welles, cah^ preview slated for Friday so t)iat the ckst and:crewrcouldTest, but. bto^ dress teheairsal was: given Saturday (15), There, are 10 scenes. Diebut was jset back a second tlin^ aind is ribw diated: ior next. Monday: (24). ■ ;. . One pf the corrtplieatibns from ttte postpbnemerit of 'Native Son'. iji the matter: of tickets; sold In ttdvance;. Pasteboards f or thfe ,preem ,are to -be honored regardless of the date, except for the first rbw^ .corhprlsing 29 •, spats.- ;Welles dieclded Monday <l'ir) to havie 'the. first row removed .arid,, since; there is ho record, of. who; got inost of the ■ ticketa :for the seats in-, Volvedi there krc; expected to' be numerous s.qUawks from those who come to the theatre opening night and cannot be admitted^ :'; . It is planned to glye the pierformarice without intermissions- ;Running. tinie is oniE^ Itour and. 50 miriiifes.^,' ; Ttie. Npvv«pi>l>er Mail. .i.I.i'Slle .Uiirrle .'Uuvia Orrlcli YOUR LOVING SON Comedy In three act* by Abby; Merchant; presented by Jay Richard Kennedy . In aa- ■Delation; with, Alfred BloonnlnKdale nfld Jamee ■ P. Loewl; atnifed by Arthur. Slrcom; settlns Itayihond Soyey; opened at the Plymnufh ' theatre, Bonton^ March, T, '41: »3.80 top. , tulu, .Rachol Bewail Dorcan Wlnalbw^..,........Lily Onhlll Joshua Wlnslow.,..,.^..Jay Fussett . Caroline Bradley............Kate Warriner Joshue Wlnslow, Jr;.,,,.«.Frankre.Thomaa Roflombnd Payne..Charita Bauer William HoUlnger...........Eddie Nugeiit Muriel Payne.......'..Butti Tje» A MaM..,.'...;;....«.^,....JuIann .rivffrey Keith Vans..'...Edwin Gordon Horace Payne..........Itay mond Qrecnleaf THEY WALK ALONE Melodrama In three arts presented, at the Joh^ Golden. N. ;t., March 12. '41,; by Ben A. Boyar; Written (by Max Catto; Elsh Lanchester and VCarol Gbodner ,:featured; Btased by .Berthold Vlertel: ietllbs, tiemuel Ayera; fS.SO top, ' ; Julie Tallent.............. w.. Olive Deerlnfr Bess Stanfortll..'.Carol Gbndn<>r Robert Stanforth....'...;.;...,.Jbh|i Mobre' Mr. Tallent. ....Vt.'.;.....A. P. Kaye I.arry. Tallent...Martin Maniills. Emmy '.Randlnei...i.Elsa. Lanchester Saul'.TrevUhlck .'.........; .Ertord Gage . Since Its tryout In a nearby straw- hat last summer, 'Lour Loving Son' has been doctored by its author and adopted by ■ new piroducer. But it still shapes iip as ah unwanted child of the theatre. Most hiewsworthy angle' Is that this marks the Initial DURANT "Jaiirk' Durwit''Is compIeMj' In char- aioter ae «he btMknuullnr aireiit.": - —BIchard Watts, Jr., Helrald-Trfbtaas "Jaclir Dnrant is wonderfoHr cawt." r^Ed SaUIvan, New York Daily J^«ws Featared In .OEOROB AttBOTT'S "PAL JOEY" Barrymor* Theatre^ .Ne:vy Yoirk , SERtftUDE I^WRENGE "LADY IN TriE DARK" ALYIN THfeATRE, NEW YORK - SAMUEL FBENCH llNCt 1830 .. ,,AVTHOIir nCPRESENtATIVE PtiV* far etiH. Screes anii RSdIt IS Weil 41tli Strelit liliw Yeiii 811 Wett Hli street .Ui Asielei ; ; Record;of English murder melo- driamas on Broadway Is a'succession of goose-eggs, and the latest import is another indicated zero.' , . Despite Interest; of; perfdrmance, the first-nighters seemed to wonder why the play was presented. .At American tryoiit under the title of 'Alien . Soil' several yedrs ago- in Saratoga it- was classed as one of the psychological, murdef plays that made for a mild sort of vogue. 'Night Must Fall' appeared to be the hest of the crop, but somehow that, too, was not good enough, except in stock; It appears that when the play was shown at the Spa there was a cleiarer Idea of the perverse killer. Ther^ Is but a .slight trace of the author's conception now. The housemaid, Enuny, Is supposed to attract , men and in embrace, kills them In a vio-. lently abnormal manner, ; but it's virtually; Impossible to . convey the idea to the average playgoer;. Even were that done,-the show is on the down side in these times of world-' wide travail,' , ,' Locale is the farriihouse of a farii- ily in rural England. Emrivy, the Maid, is . engaged withoiit checking her references. She; seems decent and efficieht, but soon tragedy stalks iritd; the community. A young, man is found dead, and soon afterwards there's: another homicide, with a third and fourth offstage killing. Only Bess- Stariforth, the farmer'js sturdy wife, senses the source 6f the murders. The play's only stirring scene is. hetWeeri the two wohien, -Bess deciding to give, the maid the sack.. ;Eriimy has her revenge; her last victim'.being, the young Iman of the fariiily..- She iS eventually caught in .tht Vorgt^n loft of the nearby chapel, for it seeriis such iriusic in-- cites her strange .passion.,. The mooirS- seem' to moan while a dog mourn- fully Whines .When not, chasing homi- cidal Emniy. ^ ;. Elso Lanchester; who has not been seen in a Birbadway play since ap^ pesfring With her husband, Charles Laugnton, in. 'Pkyment Deferred.'. plays Emmy. .Hers is a Cockney type,: but "What she has to lure the male. animal ' Is open to qiiestibri.; Carol Goodner,. as the farmer's wife, is a moire positive character arid her performance impresses as the cast's best. Present part Is. quite a broad jump from, the siren ishe played in 'The Mart . Who Came to Dinner.' Miss Goodner had the same assign- ment in the . Loridori company of Katharine C 6 r n el 1.; Raymond Mas'scjv BramWell .Fletcher; Colin Kc'ith-Johnstpji. Cecil : Humphreys. Ralph Forbes. Clarence ;DerWent and Whilfofd Kane.' ■ under Guthrie Mc- Clintic's staging, .would undoubtedly make a revival of 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' a-major event, much less_ ah excerpt from Georjge Bernard Shaw. fTone the less, .this "35-year-old ,playv which the:Lunts also essayed in 1927, is pretty thin stuff for the talents of its actress-manager;: Only vlrhen. Miss Cornell is oh does it grip the interest, but iin, the main it's a yerbpse,, Sha- vian dissertation on ; smug : English rhedico niodes and mairiners. ;, • V Actually, Bramwell Fletcher^ the worthless, consumptive airtist, whom his doting wife- (Miss-Cornell) hopes to save from physical disintegration because of his brilliarice, blinding herself wholly, tb- his cadging and two-timing, is: the most vivid, tha.tr. acter. Raymond Massey is;a .savarit in that branch of medicine whom Miss Cornell persists in consulting, in the hope of saviriR her- husband's life; Thus is the romance bom. arid against which premise is contrasted the problem whether his confreres wouldn't be wiser, in concentrating on saving the life of an iriipecunious colleague, rather than that of the more, colorful reprobate .whom Fletcher portrays so skillfully. This play hais seen sundry revivals, but none, ceirtalnly, as histrionically brilliant as this. The. marquee-loaded cast should carry it for a-spell even if their superlative performances let, down-^which ■ they don't. Donald Oenslager has designed several' striking old English sets, xirca 1903. The terrace of the Star and Garter cafe Is particularly effective, while the opening set, the Massey consult- ing room In Queen Anne street, Loridori, is a . richly . warm and imaginative Iriteribr. The playing I? topnotch all the way froiri the Insolent biddy (Alice Belmore Cliffe) who ruris the jUSt knighted Sir Colensb Ridgeon's (Masse^y) household, to the assort- ment of medicos who coiriprise his iritiriiate circle. . Pai^iculariy good are Massey and Fletcher, alon|^. with Cecil Humphreys, 'Whitford Kane, Clarence DerWent and .Ralph Torbes, Colin Keith-Johnston Is the impe cunlous medico. . There was a report that the; author of 'Five Aliarm .WaltzA which pperied at .the Playhbuse, fj. V., last week, was not,Lucille Smith Prumbs, or^ else it was a peri, riartie. Mrs. Prun>bs," however. Is ia young woman who has Written twb other plays,' UriproduCed. Her mother, Sarah Smith, has been; a columnist'for The; Day, a Yiddish rieWSpaper, for the past 15 years or . more:, ^ She is currently leading the Newspaper Guild strike against the; piiblicition. .,-;;',-.:-.;: ;^: ;,,;.' ..C;" ■• .'Waltz' served to introduce Everett WUe on'Broadway, ife ishelyed. thia play: Saturday (15) after fbUr .performancesi'^^ up under ain adverse press.: Jed; Harris Intended prbducirijg" the: play arid was concerned with Wile's first, venture Into show' business wherii latter presented 'Our Town' on the Coast and 'Here Today' In Chicago.. RuSsell■ Jariney plians. a corrieback in the;managerial field next ;season, having in riiind a new operetta with a; score -by Rudolf Fririril. vForriner producer's standout attrabtion; Was 'the;Vagabond, King,* which iscored >l the Casino, 'N.; y.i nbW fazed. Several, iseasons ago he presented 'The 6'Flyriri'it the Broadwayv but it Was a fast iflop.;-;^^". ; The new Friml,score has been transcribed, pn. discs, which have been run off a number bf times, diiring conferences between Janney and the cOin-.. piisevi As yet no deal for aUthbring the f)rbposed book has been made. >; Herbert Bayard Swope attended the debut of' 'ITiey .Walk Alone' at the Golden last Wednesday ;(12) arid wondered where; he had seeri;the drama before. Jt then becariie known that the play, had'been tried out at the Spa theatre, Saratoga, in August, 1938, uriderithe; label of 'Aliefl :Earth' and the; racing.commlssion head attended then;, Linda Watkins and Phoebe Foster, played the leads at that time; The showing at the Spa was. prior, to tlie; presentation of the play in Loridon. . ' Being a limited engagement, the Cprriell-Massey fans (she's been away on a long road trek with 'No Time for Comedy,' and he's been Abe Liricoln so long it's a welcome charige to see him iri a lighter quasi-romantic role) should give this revival Its mead of b.b. support.. The play's merits certainly are eclipsed by the rostrum • talent, and they rate affectionate consideration On that scbfe alone. . Abe,l, FIVE ALARM WALTZ Cflmedy. In .three- ads presented-it tlie t'l.iylibus.e; N. r., March 18, '41. by Everett WlIc; written by-Luclllb S. Prumlia; ;HiRged by jKobert Lcnisj' eottlng, - Harry "Hornbr *.1.80' top. • MilUcent.... .Piiuta' Dupoiit Brooke March....Doulse -PlHtt Adam DoRurla........UUii;Kazati .Mine. (T.qnsliin'tlna,Uelen - Zellnska'ya ■Torry -MohhlngV...,.. inobert' Shayne: Aliiy.. ..V. .'.. ..Ann Thotnax Theodore.'..... Ilnward Frcenion D.ive. Uorhn in.............. .-Roma ti, dolitlcii ybuiiR Man....Curt; -Cohvyoy. Boy;.............. i ......., ..... Harold ijui writes letters to the editor, which is something that Saroyan does,. top. What Boguri.s thinks of the Pulitzer prize Is just about equal to. Sarbyan's idea of the'' award,' ais mentioned when latter kicked back the O-ripte sent him by the-xbmriiittee. , Boguris is wed to Brooke March, a'successful playwright, but he says her stuff is tripe. When taimted into, authoring a play he; does Just that, and it wins rave notices, even though he. describes It as drama, comedy, fantasy, . etc, with songs and dances. : A Hollywood director believes Brooke is urih'appy with the n^Ug^ and {Proposes, to .take; her away from him. Flushed with success of the show; however, Boguris brings on a- Chinese tot. saying he adopted the kid. Curtain . finds the well- groomed wife and her virtually naked mate yammering over the kid, who is also t^ing;tp say- somethings There Is a cUrioUs. assortment of characters around the Well-appbiht- ed apiartment in Suttbii Place. One is a iriodiste, a fat butlier who has a tinge of nance^ a girl whb is adver- tising baby carriages, who Boguris brings tP the apartment for inspira- tion; a peddler.of .song sheets and a legit producer .urilike any. showman on. Broadway.;. . V Ella Kazan, who made his mark With the Group Theatre. Is the vior lent Boguris. He dbubtlessly plays the part as It was conceived, with ?ilenty bf motion and lots of nri-^c; n fact, the play Is keyed similarly, including Louise Piatt as the yoUng wife who is nearly eclipsed by the boastful, egotistical husband. Ann •rbomas, as the girl from the street; is rather amUsing. She's with the Easy. Aces on radio. Howard Free- man. :.as the producer; Helen Zeliri- skaya, as a gabby dressmaker, arid Robert Shayne. the felloW who Wants to, take Brooke a'""av from It all, are best among'the others. ; ■ ■:■ .(WithdTfitdv: Saturday; spanned; ViTintid, for the recordX .Continued f roin page 49; priueleged Reporters ojf the Kansas . City Star. Remember tohat iwis. once said .of Harry Bestry? 'When he dies he's, going to He in state in. Brill Bros, window lor threes days' Arrayed in ttll his /incrj/ Croiise would , numb the . eye of a lidaharajah. Hia cravats, defy the spectrum,, his hose are of a multi' hued brilHoTice, his Hats . s&mer- where between a tarboosh and a . kepii The omissipii of the Crouse name ffoni this list is a challenge to ail of us-^lt who slave iand..con- nive and toiled that 'Arsenic and Qld Lace' mav not perish; in the cutrates. . As our most eloquent spokesman, as the' partner most '■ seTisitive to injustice, I think you shotild strifce .a blow,. ond- forth-^ with! Shumliri? On his oWn con-' fession he otvns.^but one hat, pttlled out of shape rbhile staging 'TI10 Corn Is Green.' Like Mr. Spinalzo, . Shumlin's but another impdster cringinfii in the window seat. And speaking of seats, the seat of the most recent Crpipe lrptiserj shines like id dead iaimon in the. , moonlight, . y . . Sullivan replied, but was purpose- ly obscene and bet a bottle Pf cham«. pagne that Maney could not land it in 'Variety. Sullivan the wlnnahl .'Virginia' CMnpbell, whp recently closed in 'Cream in the Well,' visit- ing her home In Louisiana. New producer , arid hew ; author have one. of the nuttiest of: comedies but unfortunately the show does not .provide; enough; laughs. ; .; ' ..LiiciUe S.; Prumbs, who wrote the rhysteriOusly .titled 'Five Alarm Waltz.',, must halve been reading, about William Saroyan. Or maybe she knows the. spectaculai- Coast Armenian. Adam Boguris is called a natives Bulgarian, and sometimes wheri that term is Used it sounds like vulgarian. ^ That more accurate-- ly describes the character, Saroyari-s- name is mentioned, arid it's inferred that' he isn't the one intended for car'icatijre;, : .'Anyhow, this . Boguris is a loud- rriouthed, violent giiy.. He writes things, such as ; 'The Wbrld arid Other Places,' whatever that means.- He adrriits he's gPod; if not great, 'while, frequently nibbling on assbrt-^ ed eatables. He's addicted to taking off his clothes do^vn to shPrts aS he; rants all over • the set, Adam also has retreated ib •Saratbgai ib; airisWer what. Maney . considered., a devasta- tirig Sullivan insult of Buck CirbUse. :Mariey's,- letter' follbws: 1. ■; . My pid one: 'I';. -;' , The , Mcrchonf , Tailprs- 4 ■ IJct^ ■■ signers Assbciafton, Tiiet in, sblenin ; conclave: in St. Louis on Feb. 10, naTricd T/ie, 20 Best Dressfed Men 0/ 1941.,- The sartorial score. tn- clttded Henri/ Ford,', the . two, . Adolphiis Busch, the fhr^e,' Edword ■ ;Stettirtiiis,; the,' yijunger, Winthrbp Rpcfccyeiler, Wtlltqm S.-. Kniidsew .arid, hold. dn to your hct,; Hcrmon . Shtimlin, ';, ; ''■,;' ■ - .•■■ ;;' This ndmine o/ Shurnlin is a foul ; slur on the /air iiame. df the: East Side Brummelt, Rvssel Stanislav- sky Crouse.a dandy whose raimetil has been the envy, of his. fellows ever since Ke led the Cdtillion ai: ■ Oie Annijol Bali; ojf; the Vnder- CO-STABHtNO, IN RECORD BREAKiNGv "HELLZ-A-POPPIN" ■ Oil ■■.;;■■'■ M0t.i WM. KENT me B'wjiy. Nevv Ydrfc ROSAIIND IVAN in "THE CORN IS GREEN'* NATIONAL THEATRE, N. V. PLAYWRIGHTS • . active or sllont, with . $s;O00 to.-help ilase Broadway producllbh of excellent, comedy -with irreat- tnovl'e. and;, radio lioaslbllltica, Cnventmcnt aate'BUHrdi>d. - Fijll Investi- gation .Invited;' Play haa- had tre- indndnusly - eiicceasful tryout. In Sum- mor ntnck. Write Hox 11, Variety, IM W. 4e(h St,