Variety (Nov 1941)

14 ROUSE RETIEWS Wednesday, November 26, 1941 PARAMOUNT, N. Y. Barrv lame* Bond with Helen f orrett, IKcfc ffaumes, Corhv CorhO' tan; Fronklyn D'Amor* (2), H<i« JBoqr«r; 'Sfci/larfc* (Pot), revietoed in 'variely,' Sept. 10^ A young man wiQi a sweet horn and a wdl-iounded |^d behind him are the pan^nnaists curient dishes here, and evidently veiy tas^ ones. A crowded house Wednesday nifiht (19) rocked to Harry James* musical pyrotechnics; gave Ray Bolger a great reception and a wham lendoff, and were plen^ cordial to Franklyn t>'Amoic*s staiMard aero turn. James can now be tains into ac- count K one of the leading con- tenders tor top band honors among the newer aggregattons. His musical setup is sudi as to make it applicable to almost any situation. With II pieces (tour strings i nclu d in g cdlp; four rhythm; fomr reed and six brass, which takes into account James* own trumpet),, tills band can pour it on hot, or lay it in sweet, wib JamcsT horn dways predomi- nant and likeable. Band lus two other plus factors In. Helea FOnest. fbimerty with Bony Gootbnan and one ot the t(9 ordt singers around, and Didt Haymes, aa. the 'vocals and also plen^ good. Miss Foncst ddnczs "He's I-A in the Arar,' The Uaa I Love' (in the Helei Morgan manner) and "Win You StlU Be Mine,' while Haymes sc«es with 'Minka,' Tlie Sinner Kissed an Angel' and "Old Man nivcr.' Both are on par with the crad aggregattom bdiind them, with the musical accompaniment notable for a dance band. On the orchestra's sweet side is Tliis Love of Mine' and "You Made Me Love You,' among others, and they're excellent fbr the adult night audiences; More in the groove is Trumpet Bhapsody,' naturally a romp for JamcSy and a saxophone exercise that gives l^year-old Cotkj Corkoran a diance to go to town solo on his tenor sax. Kid got immediate recognition. Bolger's spoken comedy and come- dy danring are outstanding towards the pit show's finale. He socks with his eccentric hoofing and Qien a danceolog of jazz-age rontines, start- ing with the Charleston and working up to the boogie woogie. He renains a sIiowmanIy,.stand(nit personality. Sarly in the proceedings; D'Amore; carting on liis femme partner in a potato sadc,. runs through his sur- prising acco tricks, climaxed by Iiis always surefire hand-to-feet lifts from a backbond pasition over a special chair. The blonde femme, after working In male clothes, makes a pret^ picture when stripping down while perched on CAmore^s shoul- ders; / Jtames^ band is doubling from the nearby Line<^ hotel, not too tou^ an assignment considexin^ the T.tn. coin's late start UO pjn.). Scho-. STRAND, BROOKLYN IWitchell Ayres Orch (14) loith Meredith Blake, Johnny Bond,. War-, ren Comngtoni 4 Comets;. WaUv Brotun with Annette Ames, SaXly Rand; '3 Girls About Town* (Col). There was only' one act thai meant anything in a heautifuUr lighted and staged 75 minutes of stage show here over the weekend. Wally Brown and Annette Ames,, comedy- dancing duo, stood head and shoul- ders over the remainder of the bill, Vicluding Sally Rand, who wis the tnain draw. Brown and Miss Ames ran through their familiar material, but most of this audience- apparently had never caught it before Brown's double- talk routine and the gag sequence with Miss Ames, capped by the danc- ing finish, pulled steady latighs and good bow-off response. Mitchell Ayres' band, a over, balanced cotnbo> that had been at the nearby Hotel St. (^orge for a long stretch about a year ago,, is therefore not unknown tO: E^roofclyn,. Since that date, however, Ayres has made a lot of chai:iges, none for the better. He now uses four trumpets, two trom- bones, four sax and three rhythm. When the outfit went riding on swing stuff those six brasses smothered the saxes, blacking out the rhyUim. making for unsatisfying listening. Outfit did better on soft, muted tunes, where its. easy tempo showed to advantage, but those interludes were too infrequent. Meredith Blake,, girl singer, proved unexciting with' sloppily phrased versions of 'Jim' and 'Booglie Woog- lle Piggy,' but had a better 'Em- braceable You' encore. She sold 'em dull;y. Warren Covington, trom- bonist-baritone, was brutal, though he seemed terribly nervous on bis vocals. His tzomboning .out front wasn't much better. However, after *This Love of .Mine' and 'Minka,' audience demanded a song encore and got 'If It's True.' Johnny Bond, trumpeter-vocalist, clicks solidly in foggy voice with several pops of 'C^ttanooga dioo-Ghoo' ilk, and wodcs easily with Ge«-Gee, a second horn blower, on 'Skunk song. He's okay. . Four Comets, roUerskating turn, «ame up with several neat tricks, but inost of tiielr stuit is elementary and Without punch, at least ia compari- son to such contemporary acts. Stunt of one of the men simulating a skat- ing beginner another as the instruc- tor, however, provided a laugh and helped things. ^ ,. . Miss Rand's turn was full of eye- appeal In the way it was lighted and staged (she entered down center- stage staircase, Ayres band spotted bdiind that) and her fan and bubble routines were gracefully executed. Began encased in whit e eve- ning gown, which she stripped in a short stop at the wings. Bubble dance was done in short, skirted cos- tume. She allowed a few glimpses of Oe Band curves. during the fan turn and posed spotlighted on the stairs at finale of both routines, cov- ered only by net bra and g-string. K was pretty tame stuff, «nd this audlcDce reacted similarly. Only re- sponse during turn 'was femme tit- tering; Surprisingly enough she kept the Strand's balcon^tes under cover. There wasn't a mngle crack or whistle. But. since ttete Me several burlesque houses neartff, atey may be used to what she has to oOk. ^««»- KETTH'S, BOSTON Sov. ai. Bit: Brother* OX. Alten & Kent (4), The Brtoit* (», Ruth Tetm The Grc(U Falludvt (7); "Sealed Lips' «D. Ritz Brothers, opening hoe the day after Thanksgiving, had the house almost jammed for the first show, and by ttie time Siey appeared as ttie dosing act, the eager custom- ers were rcac^ for anything. Aiid tiiey got it. After that rough-house, hokum, terping performance the boys de- served a day off to recupe, but they*^ doing four and five per here and it looks, like a hefty take at the b.o. fat the vedk's run. They shoot so much stuff otec the foots, and so &st. that e'verybody was dizzy 'when they begged off. Supporting bin Is a smart assort- ment of variety that should please a maximtrnt of patrons. The Falludys open with a short, snapi? routine of teeter-board tricks, presented In a showmanly manner. Four-high somersault off the board is the big number, but all their 'work holds constant' attention. Allen and Kent dancers, deuce. In a slick'routine of modem and old- time dancing. Young couple open witii taps, then tiie old folks follow 'With Cast bucks that get a big wel- come. For the finish they mix couples and truck off after a dial- lenge routine between the two duos. The Biiants get over nicely 'with their dumb tramp act featurmg the collapsible aero comedy by one of the partners. In an otherwise itashy- action show, this turn provides i rdief. Ruth Terry, next-to-dose. sup' plies :ttte songs. While she's not so impressive musically, her fancy az- rangemenls almost solve that prob- lem. Her socko personality .'wins a big section of applauders. "Ghu Wa- Wa' and 'Chattanooga C3ioo Choo' register best, and her other two oiferings are "Ma* and 'Who.* Larry Flint and the house band are in the pit, playing a very good opening simw. Pox. PALOMAR, SEATTLE MUSIC HALL, N. Y. Julia Gloss. Jane Courttond. Louis* Sorensen, Barbara Chodtoick, Tonla Gregor, Rose Grcgor, Violan Ritifcin. Jone Carlson. Han* Heidemonn, Sm- to3 Ojeda, Lewis Teichcr. Marcus Gordon^ Frances Costard, ICsit Davidson, Hugh Forpie, Jerry Bnm~ don. Robert Shonlcv. Hilda Kckttr. Glee Club, Roekettcs. Boltot Corps. Symphony Orch led by Srno Ropes; "Suspicion" (RKO) retiiewed to ■Variety,' Oct. 24. during a swing arrangement of the olassic, %aU of the Mountain King.' Al Baml* keepa thtm in lan^ts Witt hla mart patter, gagi. cfMncdy mnrtfm fad BktmUIT. H* OMM • Bald ttm* begging oO, Band finldiM wifli •B sv^opnata bo^^woogi* out- '''!rw«n-fl]Iei^i^»»r ttie initial dioir Friday. R«*s. TOWER, K.C TTtiusual show is offered at the Music Ball currently. Ifs particu- larly interesting as viewed from tiia lofty pnspcctive of the guest box. in the rear of the auditorium, just Underneath the culiag and bet w iean the projection booth and one at tte light booths. That Is the locattoo used by sudt attiBtEon-dodgtng cdebs as fite Duke and Ddehess at Windsor, orhj members of the house stag during dress icheaisa L &l Uils case it 'was the only spot avallaUe la a padnd house. Instead of the customary overture by the symphony ordiesba. present diow opens with a 12-piano vision of Raven "Bolero,' 'with EnM> Bapce conductinc and tti* pianos completely filling ttic pit Fuaista are Julia Glass. Jane CourSand; Louise Sorensen. Barbara Chadwick; Tooia Gregor, Rose Gregor. Vivian Rfvkin. Jane Carlson. Hans Heide- mann. Santos Qieda, Lewis Tdcfatt and Marcus Gordon. For the final bars of the piece, the curtain parts to reveal ttie orchestra on a stand at stage rear, and it joins in for fite rtSm^ir Nmober offers a novd presentation idea and is ingeniously staged, but the Bavd composition to hadmeycd and monotuious, and at the end it develops into virtually a pounding match. Pianos in tiie pit drop out of sight and the orchiestra <» stage pl^s the accompaniment for the se cond num- ber, a vocal of '^trdlita.' 'with the Gleie (3ub in randto outfits and blonde IFrances Cassard providing a rich soprano sola Floor rises out of the .orchestra pit then and be- comes an extoision of the fore-stage; providing room for tiie .Rockettes. also in Latin-American togs, to do one of their diaracteristically bril' liant precision routines. After that, with the orchestra stiU placing, the bandstand rolls acre the stage to the front and. as the selection is conduded, drops down into its regular level in the pit Then Kat Davidson and Hu^ Forgie pre- sent tiieir spectacular and enor- mously skillful badminton playing, wiSi Jerry Brandon offering ovtt- obviouS running comment. Wtirf« Krkler and the ballet corps tfai dose the show vrtth an im^ressivdy staged, sensuously - rhythmic ballet, using a revolving turntable and colorful lighting for the finale. Hobe. ORPHEUM, MPLS. Mtnnsopelis, Nov. 22. Will Rradley Orch (16) with'Ray McKinley. Terry Allen & Lynn Gardner. THzie. Lynn. Royce A Vanya, At Bemie; 'Appointment for Love' (U). KatuiuCity^lToe.XL A. B. Marcus* Continental Rnm» with Florence Hin Low. Lotosha 4 iMiranc*. Jsnodo. L«on Miller. Sterfcv Ka««. Bd McCurdu. Jocfe MooMon. Bob White k Huthburrtjl. Ttanpte Ooncefa (H>, 3 7f«v«r OdM Suefcer »>en Bnmkr cm. Tba A. & Marcus girl whirl coa- ^t^iian the Imtdy adopted policy of liriiuring onits sod stage levues to ttteXbwer stage. Tkead began sev- eral wiikn ago and several more units axe' mi the dodRt Of all that have played wad all that may c<ane. poolbQr none will have more taab. mnA ^ye-flning production than this Mkrcu* how. there's cnou^ talent included count this one among the batter popular-priced entertainment bargains; Fonnuln for this company is a se- ries of expansive girl numbers^ aometlmcs as a production around a taint number, sometimes as the diow itseU; Kowding the stage to the-limito with feioomes, costumes and scenery, with a few sketches to round out the hour. Five big sets ^w the girls off in Tfthitian. Jap- anese. Oriental temple, conga and cage numbers, and specialties are pa- raded before these. Top specialty is. contributed by Floraioe Tiin Low. contortionist Chinoe lass who played the house as a single earlier in the summer. Her ease of performance and degree ot accomplimment easily set her at the top of her class; as ^e heads the tunple naaabee pre mid-show. Later, hv kind of work is approached by Janada. South African-Oriental, in 'Uie trapeze and cage number toward the finale. Three Chords, in routine of vocal ^mnastics and imitations; Leon Mil- ler, in resume of past dance step favorites, and Spart? Kaye, in some eome^ bits, get over, too. Singing of Ruth Durrell, Ed McC^izdy and Bob White, and fast talk of Jack Mossman round'out specialties. An outstanding number is adagio two- some ot Tjfn«ha and Laurence, Aus- tralians, spotted mid-way as a diio specialty. A banter turn between Bob White and set of audience plants, and a record synchronized with Sparky Kaye's facial contor- tions are the smallest parts ot the hour, and some change In these could better the show. ' W. C. Fidds opus on screen is a better than a'verage film booking here and combo giving a cheery we^ at the b.o. Quin FLATBUSH, B'KLYN STRAND, N. Y. UToody Bmuuft Orch tntth Oiro> Una Grsu; BiOia ■agars ft Frank!* Carlson: Sto^etons U). Lowe. Hits ft StasOtvt ^hay IH«d wlth-^Thetr Boots On^ (WB), raoiewsd in Woody Hcnaaa'k -band continues to improve and Is now solid muTirally ail the -way. {biwkvcr, for an important Broadway date; he's madetne error ot tnduding a vocal- ist, Caroline Gray, who appears hurdly out ot the amateur 'cuss in ddivery and virtually impression- leas fai voice. The blonde \puts Her- man up against an early handicap wltti her poor adUng of "Chat- tanooga Choo Cheo^ and *Mdaneholy Bahy.' but ifs to tiie young jlva macatzo's credit that he aoon ever- comes the offbeat start, Herman's swing rates high in the band's own tnntngst while the Strand has furnished him two good acta in the riiySiin balltoom-dandng Staple- tons and ttie sight comedy ot Lowe, Bite and Stanley;, a dwarf; normal- slxed guy and a gtaat The Stqile- tona^ in net; hc^ also in ovntomlng that had start, following hnmedi- atdy afterwards witti tfadr exodlent hoofing in two routines. The male comedy trio comes late in the show and its duoentary humor scored hl^ bctbre a jammed house Friday nltftt (21)^ Herman on the clarinet and his 14 pieces bdiind him are jumping nearly all the way, also Induding a jam session by a quartet out ot the band, Fiankie Carlson at tiie drums, tile pianist; bass player and ttie lead- er's own instrumentation. Herman bills 'em as The Four Chips and they deliver the.'Chips' Boo^e Woogie^ ■very torrid. Atiout thfc only excursion into the sweet side is the dioral version of 'This 'Kme the Dream's On Me,* with Herman ^iwnatW pacing vocally and with tile licorice stick. It's neatly done and well lighted. The leader foUows^ It witii "Bhies in the Kight,' from the Warner picture ot the same name wliich follows the Strand's current show. Not to be overlooked is (Carlson's great session on the traps in the closing 'Golden Wedding.' nor the fine novelty of Billie Rogers, femme tnnnpeter-singer from tiie Xlhlver- sity of Montana, who gives out hot witii "Yes Indeed' about midway in the show. She's a nice-looking girl who could look even nicer in better costuming and smarter coiffure. Scho. Seattle, Nov. 19. Lund & Lund, Irish & Leslie. Bob JSvans. (Sil Robinson, 3 SezoQu, AI Ules House Orch (6): 'Down Mexico Woy' (Rep). ' Pit ordiestra at the Falemar has a new -leader this week, Al Dies, for- merly at the Orpheum, Portland, Ore., now wields tiie baton, dne to- former leader, Meyer Bumette, giv- ing up his theatre chores to devote entire time to his jewehy b^. Lund' and' Lund open with a neat balancing act, followed by Irish and Leslie neat littie blonde and b^. who give out with comic patter and knockabout for nice volume ot laughs. Scored heavily with a slow- motion prizefight that's nicely timed. Wind up with duet plus guitar, n.s.h. Bob Evans, In the three spot, leads off with vocal.. 'All I Want to Do Is Dance', then into chronological rou- tine of dances tliat have 'originated' in. Harlem. Sells them in a nice man- ner that got a big hand. Gil Robinson next, opening with Jokes and going on to do imitations and impressions: He tries to jam too much Into too little time, giving Fred AUen, Winchell, Ted' Lewis, Chas. Boyer, Eddie Cantor and Groucho Marx the onceover In a few minutes. Some were okay. Also, lust because Ted Lewis can sell the com is no guarantee that an imita- tion will do the same. Jokes and pat- ter could be cleaned up. Offcolbr gags and references to 'Orumble Beans' (sponsor of mythical radio program which justifies the imita- tions) are a lltUe shady for a family house. 'Ehree Rexolas wind up the SO-mln- ute show. Two boys and a girl speed through a variety of trlclis and bal- ancing acts, opening on roller s)£ates, followed by some nifty hand.and pole balancing. Reed. This is another pleasing Orpheum stage show^built on the solid founda- tion of a name band. With three apts to diversify the entertainment and provide a tnll measure ot com- edy supplementary to the Will Brad- ley musicmaking, layout has maxli- mum audience satisfaction. Ifs. Minneapolis' introduction to the Bradley in-person swing, and local jivers are eating it up. The leader wisely intersperses sweet with swing, keeps busy with his emceeing and tromljoning and gives plenty of. leeway to his madcap dtummec-vocalSst, Ray McKinley. whose prominence has preceded him here via radio and platters. "Scrub Me. Mama,' of course, ts right up the band's groove. This and several other numbers have McKin- ley vocalizing the choruses. The boys take a whirl at the sweet melo- dies when Terry Allen, male war- bler, lands solidly with 'Liza' and 'Blue Champagne,' surefire under any circumstances, but enhanced by the Bradley arrangemenb and Allen's delivery. THxie, youtliful juggler, ihrst of the acts, does some unusual and difHrult feats, such as jumping rope and juggling plates while bouncing a ball on her head. She catches a .ball tossed from the audience on a stick held In her mouth and winds up by juggling four large rubber balls while she's bouncing one on her dome. The peak of boogie-woogie attain- ments Is reached when the Six "Texas Hot Dogs, from the band, dish out 'Basin Street Boogie,' sending the hepcats into ecstasies. 'Then there's a return to musical sanity, with Allen warbling a superlative ar- rangement of 'Ghost of a Chance.' , Dance comicalities of Lynn, Royce and Vanya always click here and bear repetition. Ballroom and adagio burlesquing is strictly of bigleague calibre, Lynn Gardner, the band's feminine vocalist. Is attractive and her interpretations of "Jim' and "Tired of Waiting for You' don't let the customers down. McKinley whips It up terrifically on the drums AI Donahue Orch U4) with Jean Gordon and PhU Brito; Frances Faye. Hal Lcroy, Chester Fredericks & Gloria Lane, The onchslants (3); Weiosreets and Shorts. Lineup this week lo<As good both on stage and marquee. Al Donahue orch, combined with Hat Leroy and Frances Faye, pack plenty of head- line talent; all of which is reflected in healthy attendance. Miss Faye is one ot the two Indi- vidual standouts on the bill, tieing tiie house up with scorching ren- ditions ot such tunes as "Daddy,' Tes Indeed.' 'All That Meaf and other torrid numbers in authentic Harlem style. Songstress, at piano, could have stayed ^ night Hunning close to llAiss Faye fbr top response 'was Bat Leroy. Slick tarater cabled in heavi^ with "^/^riations and Rbythms^ and •Eccentric Movements.' Wound up nicdy 'with familiar, smooth taps whue seated on chair. Qonahue band, opening with 'Con- certo,' performs witii practiced ease. Listens well luder the leader's suave^ personable fronting but could use a couple ot so^ orchestrations to dnch It Ihterpretation of Brahms' XuUaby* is goo^ and their liest Femme Jean Gordon and Pliil Brito, liand vocalists, warble pleas- antly. Latter deUvers pop tunes such as ^ou and I,' and 'How Deep Is Ocean' for solid returns. 'Shrine of Saint Cecelia,' air and disc specialty, went big also. Nonchalants, knockabout acrobats employing effective comedy tbuches, hdd audience all the way, topping off with couple of smashing bal- ancing bits. Chester Frederidcs and Gloria Lane, comedy and '<a><''ing combo, opene± The twosomer, doing knock- about and acrobatic hoofing with mild comedy interpolations. ladcs distinction. Fredericks, vdio-'s been aroUnd for years, essays a high- school jitterbug impersonation for mild returns. Girl solos with con- ventional taps: Mori STANLEY, PITT Pittsburgh, Nov. 21. Andrews Sisters. Johnnie ('Scat) Davis orch (13). Joey Rardin. Maysy & Broch. Gloria Von, Joe Martin, Tony Cabot; 'One Foot In Heouen' (WB). WB dduxer is getting to be home for the Andrews Sisters. This is third visit here in less than a year, and if the enthusiasm of the cash cus- tomers means anything—and since when hasnt it?—^the welcome inat hei^eabouts for the girls is just as bright and shiny as ever. Last time around. Fourth ot July week, they came close to setting a new house record and. with a holiday (Thanks- giving) again this time, they'll prob- ably make another strong bid. Open- ing show a pret^ good tipolT, with the house packed from top to bottom. Jukebox darlings had a little trouble with their accompaniment at getaway but that was corrected by the second show and it was smooth sailing for them thereafter. As it was. they did five numbers at the first performance and could have slapped across at least one more, maybe two. without any obvious milking. Tte Hisses Andrews warm 'em up with 'Aurora,' one of their biggest clicks, and then go through 'Sleepy Serenade,' 'Chattanooga Choo Choo,' 'Jealous' and 'Apple Blossom Time,* and over to smash propor- tions. Not surprising though since Stanley is getting to be a disc best- seller's delight, as witness the past two weeks when Ink Spots and then Jimmy Dorsey both crocked 'em. As Is usnally the case when the Andrews trio comes around, the band with them on the bill doesn't get much of a chance. (Currently It's Johnnie CScat') Davis who has to be content with about 15 minutes, and orch doesn't have much of an oppor- tunity with that brief allotment Band, however, makes the most of its quarter hour, swiftly going across with a hot drum specialty a hillbilly warbler who doubles in brass; Gloria Van, oomphy vocalist who clicks with 'Jhn' and 'Blue Skies,' and Davis himself, more florid than ever before when he pushes the valves down, taking a hot triunpet lead on 'Deep River.' Maestro, who's still well- remembered locally through his screen work for WB (in addition to that, he was a local fave a decade ago with Jimmy Joy's outfit at Eddie Klein's.old VUla Royale), packs a lot of personality into that rapidly blooming frame ot his and manages to get more out of his abbreviated session that the ordinary band leader would. Davis' orch carries five brasses, five reeds, bass, piano and drums and (Continued on page 26)