Variety (Sep 1942)

B4 HOUSE REVIEWS Weilnesdaj, September 2, 1942 MUSIC HALLrW. Y. Selvxa Kaye, Carlos Sherman, Johnny Woods, Lindo Ware, Gloria Gilbert, Marina, Lonya Kalbouss, Nicholas Vasilieff and Volga Singers, Henry Calvin, Glee Club, Rockettes, Ballet Corps, Symphony Orch toith Erno Rapee; 'Talk of the Town' (Col), reuieujed in 'Variety,' July 29. In connection with the film in- dustry's September War Bond drive, the Music Hall's current show has a United Nations theme climaxed with a Minute Man pageant. Besides the boost given by the timely angle, the show Itself offers impressive talent and, even by Music Hall standards, an unusually effective production. Opening is a simulated broadcast of one of the 'Music Hall of the Air' Srograms heard Sundays on WJZ- lue. Against a radio studio setting, with a control booth (containing a •production man" but no engineer) and an announcer, the S3nnphony orchestra plays and then Selma Kaye and the Glee Club sing 'Play Gyp- sies,* from 'Naughty Marietta.' Next set is supposed to represent the nearby Center theatre and the Rockettes. togged In Penguin outats supposedly suggesting the Center's skating show, "Stars on Ice.' offer one of their better routines. Ensuing act is "Guid^ Tour,' with Johnny Woods impersonating a Radio City tour guide and quickly working into a lengthy, rather punchless imper- sonation routine. Linda Ware has the opening bit in the next scene, supposedly located in the Rainbow Room and offering a United Nations 'Salute to Our Heroes.' Miss Ware, in an almost regal costume with an over-flossy 'headdress, represents England and sings a single number, 'White Cliffs of Dover.' She has a pleasing voice, but the arrangement lacks vitality and the presence of a microphone directly in front of her mars the act. Gloria Gilbert, immediately follow- ing as the representative of China, gives anoUier display of her match- less pirouettes, topped by a mirac- ulously sustained twirl on one toe. Russian bit, with Marina, Lonya Kal- bouss, Nicholas Vasilieff and his Volga Singers, and the Ballet Corps, concludes this portion of the show. Finale Is the Minute Man bit. It opens with a tableau, with Henry Calvin as the Colonial soldier giving ■ patriotic spiel, and segues into a pageant of people marching on a moving platform in the background, with the entire company reciting a call for War Bohd purchases. Closes with quite an arousing wallop. Kobe. That's Sabotage,' 'Kalamazoo* and •Juke Box Saturday NighC last two with the Modemalres. Last tune brings takeoffs on Harry James and Inkspots that are good. Bobby Hackett, guitarist-cornetist, does one cornet solo during an arrangement of •Rhapsody in Blue* that's fine. 'Blue writing, incidentally, is perhaps the best pop-style arrangement of that tune ever done. It's the lone out- side melody in the setup. Skip Nelson, recent replacement for Ray Eberle, does 'At Last' and 'Serenade in Blue.' He's a fair singer. MiUer standards used are 'In the Mood, •Little Brown Jug,' and 'Chattanooga Choo-Choo.' latter from leader's last film. Wally Brown, double-talk artist working as a single now, is the lone outside act. He clicked solidly with his patter, capoed by a parody on •Down by the Ohio." Wood. KEITH'S, INDPLS. fndionopolts, ind., Aug. 29. 'Varietv Fashions' vsith Alphofise Berg, Slim Ttmblin, Roberta, King tt Mann, Elcola and Beatrice, Doris Du- pont. Hollj/ujood Models (10); 'You're Telling JWe' (U). FOX, B'KLYN Glenn Miller Orch (17) with Marion Hutton, Tex Beneke, Bobbv Hackett, Modemaires (4), Ship Tfel- ton, Watty Brown; 'Priorities on Parade' (Par). and Dot Fox theatre hasn't used any sort of weekly stage policy in years. It has promoted Various audience- pullers like one-night amateur shows and the current quiz program it of- fers every Friday evening for service men. Glenn MlUer^ stay this week ''n^^rie. is the opener of a band-vaude idea| that will not, however, be a steady ^se venture; when good names are avail- able they'll be booked. FoUowiru; Miller there is a void until Sept. 18. when Inkspots and Lucky tliUinder come in; after that there's nothing set. Fox Is the second largest of five major houses all congregated in the main shopping district of downtown Brooklyn. It seats slightly over 4,000 and is second only to the Paramount, which, with the Strand, is part of a three-house pool presided over by Paramount - Warner Bn^. - Fabian. Nearby is the RKO Albee and Loew's Metropolitan. Miller i.s un- derstood to be playing the house SO- SO from the first dollar. Miller wastes no time with his stage show. He gave a Jam-packed house of youngsters 40 minutes of widely recognized arrangements from his earlier days and probably every tune from his forthcoming film. That the list Included only one ballad (and that, 'At Last,' from the new picture), which made for an un- balanced stage show, apparently dis- turbed no one. Miller was selling Miller, not pop times. In short, those who came to jump Jumped and those who didn^t covered their ear.i. All in all, however, this is excellent entertainment. Miller's combination of five sdx. four trumpets, four trornbonc<; (in'- cluding leader) and four rhythm Is brilliaAt, bitingly clean and possesses a confidence born of suc- cess that few outfits can match. It still uses the corny method of point- ing trombones in different directions when playing, but kids love it. Leader himself bandies announce- ments, etc., and he has such complete control, of the mob that he doesn't let sustained ai^lause hold up pro- ceedings. He simply cuts loose the next number and they stop. Marion Hutton. and Ihe Mod- emalres ° are the mainstays of the vocal section; and. they do a swell . Job. Miss Hutton sells mightily on Vaudeville Is back on the beam at Keith's this .week with a bill which makes a doubtful gain in feminine appeal through a style show tieup with a local fur house. Quality of the acts compensates for slowdown caused by corny fashion revue in which chorus girls model tasty creations. Presence of Al- phonse Berg 'Drapa' himself on bill carries out style and beauty idea, but it's the comedy acta that get the hands and keep them coming. Slim Timblin, still doing business in blacktace at the same old stand with telephone directory, from which he takes text for 'sermon' in colored preacher routine, is going good in spite of tact plenty of cus- tomers must know his act by heart now. Audience reception first rate. Nearest thing to a showstopper is Elcola, who features xylophone hi- jinks with a Prof. Lamberti angle, not because he is screamingly ftmiay (he's not up to the professor there), but because he is smart enough to close with a rousing patriotic finale, played loud and good. Blends serv ice tunes, "God Bless America' and 'Over There,' to stir up big applause. Elcota works with Beatrice,'who cuts odd capers in ballet outfit while he fools around at xylophone. Gets laugh by playing 'Lazy Bones' sit- ting down. Comedy end is further boosted by rough-house act of Roberta, King and Mann. Girl, always in the mid- dle, gets worst of it, as usual. For a dancing treat bill Includes bright, petite Doris Dupont, who beats out some crisp taps. Chorus also is jlec- orative, sparkling in a smart mirror routine and assisting capably in fashion show and Berg's exhibit. Latter gives wonten in audience quick lesson in dressmaking made easy as he - winds yards of fancy cloth around models and turns them out in height of fashion in record time. For the men he offers sex appeal, with shapely models in STATE. N. Y. Martin & Allen, Terry Lawlor, Wesson Bros. (2), Ed Sulltt>an and Harvest Moon Dance Winners (10), Ruby Zwerling'i House Band; 'Mrs. Miniuer* (M-G). day's attendance was ,aver- Corb. RKO BOSTON Boston, Aug. Jackie Cooper, Judy Canova, Remy. Louis Primo luilh Lilyanna Caroll; W). 29. Dick Orch 'Men of Texas' The RKO Boston Is in for another large, week with this bill, which has What it takes for marquee and enter' tainment values. The Prima band apparently oper ates on the theory that if you look hot and play loud you've got what the cats want, and it spends all its time proving it. The res.ulting din is all right by the customers hut, judging by their luke-warmish re- sponse, at the first show Friday, they'd like to hear a few bars of something they could recognize as melody. There's one clever number involving Prima and his a trumpeter. But most solid with the customers is Lilyanna Caroll, the band's vocalist, whose style and looks are distinctly clicko. Jackie Cooper: who's also featured in the current film, comes bn with the old stuff about having grown up. does a tepid skit with Florence Foster, and redeems himself sitting with the band in a session at the traps, which he handles okay. Judy Canova, winding up the bill, takes over very capably with her hillbilly stuff and her strictly off- the-cob conception of 'Billy the Beaver' and 'I Ain't Got Nobody.* Her sister Annie works with her and goes over with a boogiewoogie piano solo, and they close with a comic two-piano chore on 'Dark Eyes.' The big .whammo goes to Dot and Dick Remy in their berserkish, standard acrobat stuff. .'.Biz'at the opening sesh (Friday i.m:) was wowlsh. Elie, It had been noticeable in the past two years that the b.o. of the Har- vest Moon dancers, coming directly here from their big night at Madison Square Garden, hAI perceptibly diminished. That won't be the case this year, however, thanks to smash screen assist of •Mrs. Miniver.* which was still far from being exhausted even after 10 weeks at the Radio City Music Hall, and the good ex- ploitation behind the State's own 21st birthday celebration—an all- week event. Thus there's a strong likelihood that a new gross record will be clocked here this week. Thursday night Eddie Cantor came up to cut the birthday cake gift to the State from Bob Christent>«'ry. the Astor hotel manager. And Can- tor stuck around for virtually a full act of his own. both for the audi- ence and the three photographers. The idea of presentiiig the cake to habitual patrons of the State's vaude didn't come off as planned for some reason or other, so first Ed Sullivan, the Daily News columnist, tossed a lavish verbal bouquet at Ruby Zwerikig, the house maestro for years, with Zwerling tossing it right back at Sullivan. That was a mushy clambake, but then Sullivan brought on Cantor and a so^so entertainment took on an aura of class such as only a topflight ehtertainer can impart. Cantor cut the cake, he clowned, made fa^ at the lensers. intro- duced Ida up in the loges and then sang 'Ida,' finally topping it all off with an unrehearsed jitterbug rou- tine with a little colored girl who had coMted the lindyhop contest at the Garden. He took the house by stonn, leaving no doubt why he still holds the house gross record of $50,317 at the State. Outside of Cantor, this is not an altogether apropos birthday for the vaudeville State. Last week, when the house had Smith and Dale, Billy House, Mary Raye and IValdl, among others, would have been better. That was a vaudeville show; cur- rently it*E only half vaudeville and half novelty. Latter are the Har- vest Moon Dancers, who are ama- teurs any way you look at them— and they don't stand up under close scrutiny. Either because of the draft, or because many young light- fantastic men are in mpre serious work, the Harvest Moon dancers this year are not even as good as the amateurs of the past. Nor as good looking. There are four ofay teams, per usual, foxtrot, waltz, tango and the all-around champs, who do the rhumba here. The colored lindyhop team, however, gets the major ap- plause and were the only ones at this catebing who were forced into an encore. Unlike past years, the State has not booked any additional lindyhoppers this time. Sullivan himself is doing a straight m.c. job and doing it well except for his comedy. As a gagster he's still a columnist. Three outside acts capably take care of the vaudeville end. playing in front of Zwerllng's topflieht vaude orch, which is stationed on the stage for production effect. Martin and Allen are fair hand-to- hand balancers of the slow-motion, men-of-muscle variety. They open, with Terry Lawlor, the flashy blonde nitery singer, following. She scores high with 'Jingle. Jangle.' 'Just Like Jimmy and Me,' 'The Same Old Shillalagh* and 'One Dozen Roses. A sock applause session is turned in by the Wesson Brothers, two young mimics who have a unique routine. One does the voice imper- sonation, while the other dqes. the physical mimicry. Their takeoffs on Wendell WilUcle, Mr. and Mrs RooscVeU, Carmen Miranda. Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy drew a showstop. The nice-looking kids had to beg off. Due to the length of 'Miniver.* the stage show's running time, with all of the birthday celebration, was held down to an hour at this viewing. That's right smart cutting and tempo. Harvest Moon Damvrs will stick here two weeks, and maybe third if 'Mmiver' can st«y th«t long. If set- ting » record, the first week's biz will be all the more phenomenal In comparison with Cantor, who had July 4th holiday prices In t<is favor In 1939. 5oho. brunet canary, pleasanfly sings 'Sky. lark', with a nice piano background by the maestro. Baa Beri, comedy juggler, tosses balls, dumbbells, etc., around; his best bit being the manip- ulation 'of tamborlnes, beating out a tune as he twirls them, *rhe romantic duet of Martha Wayne and Buddy Stewart wins ap- plause, the couple being spirited and fresh-looking. Clever in vocally imitating band theme songs, the Oxford Boys im- personate Henry Busse, Kay Kyser, Harry Owens, Fred Waring, Wayne King and Jimmy Dorsey. Especially outstanding are their effective rendi- tions of the Waring choral numbers, Busse's trumpeting, and their stac- cato impression of a push-button radio set being played by someone who can't make up his mind what program he wants. A packed house for opening show. Loop. ORIENTAL, CHI Chicago, Aug. 28. Vaughn Monroe Orch, Marilyn Duke, Ziggy Talent, Lee Sitters, Paul Winched, Johnny Barnes; 'Grand Central Murder (M-C). Typical of name bands that have found this theatre a favorite stamp- ing grounds is that of Vaughn Monroe, known locally only through his records and network appear- ances, although heralded as a real comer in the east. Tall, smiling and affable, maestro swept into the town, came, saw and conquered Chicago. Here is a really fine combo of musi- cians, with a particularly neat brass section, backed by sock novelty ar- rangements and a shiging leader who knows how to lilt a tune. Band consists , of five sax, six brass and four rhythm. The mnsic is rhythmic without being blaring, the band swingy without being Jitterbug crazy, the arrangements smart ana novel without ej^glng the fantastic. Marilyn Duke, a tell, sultry-look- ing canary with a throbbing con- tralto, does a very nice JOb on sev- eral pops. She is backed by the Four V*s, a melodious made quartet who provide nice harmony for her soloing of 'One Dozen Roses,' then give a good account of themselves with '3 UtUe SUters.' Johndy Barnes is a better-than- average tapster, his intricate ma- chine-gun tapping garnering him a hand. Especially good are his im- pressions of Bill Robinson and his imitation of a jitterbug, in which he does a jive routine in taps. The Lee Sisters, in smart, tan gabardine suits, harmonize in the dulcet, crooning style familiar to sister combos, one ^rl carrying the tune, the others lending shadow ac- companiment. They*re competent, it not outstanding. Outstanding is the irrepressible ZIggy Talent, a Jigging, swinging comedy-singer who does 'Arthur Murray Taught Me Dancing,' 'Sam, You Made the Pants Too Long' and 'Ants in His Pants' with an ecstatic, hairbrained delivery that had the audience howling. Another hit is Paul Wlnchell with his dummy, Jerry Mthoney. Wln- chell is an accomplished ventro and his comedy patter, singing and atics with his wooden stooge are still fine pieces of entertainment. The Monroe band does 'Jersey Bounce,* with Bobby Nichols i^aying a hot trumpet; then Monroe sings 'Nightingale' and 'Johnny Doughboy' in nis appealing baritone. Best of all, however, is his rendition of 'Pagliacci' in swing time, with a nifty band accompaniment. The only ordinary thing about Monroe's show is his too-tamiliar 'Patriotic Medley' finale. SUU, it's In tune with the times. Biz holding strong. Loop. TOWER, K. C. Kansas City, Aug. 28. Woodic A Betty, Carroll A Diet- rich, Wagner Twins, Ted Leary, Maurice A Maryea, Herb Six House Orch; 'Berlin Correspondents (20th) and 'United We Stand' (20th). CHICAGO, CHI Chicago, Aug. 28. Claude Thomhill Orch, Lillian Lane, Art Malvin, Buddy Stewart, Martha Wayne, Three Oxford Boys, Ben Beri, Sunny Rice; 'Footlight Serenade' (20th). Claude Thornhill's smartly- groomed band, fronted by its pianist maestro, gives out In pleas- ing fashion. Audience was plenty receptive. Sunny Rice delivers several origi- nal tap routines nicely. Especially noteworthy is her creation of a combination ballet and t%p routine, skillfully executed. Lillian Lane, Value is the word for this big combo of two features and 40-minute stage show, and the family trade is responding nicely to efforts of man' agement to provide both quality and quantity at the 30c admission price. Herb Six orch starts proceedings with pleasing arrangement of 'Strict- ly Instrumental,* and then Ted Leary comes on to double as m.c. While Leary has nice mlkeside manner, he is sadly in need of new material. First turn Is Woodie and Betty in a fast roller-skating act during which each does specialties before duo finishes with tricks on a table and some lively whirling. The sec ond spot Is taken over by Carroll end Dietrich with puppets, a real stand- out. A pair of "Discovery Night* win- ners. The Wagner Twins, then take over for a song-and-dance number in •Gay Nineties' bathing suits. At this point Leary does a splo turn, com- bining patter and two songs Into a nice enough act except that his ma- terial needs to be brought up to date. Closing spot goes to Maurice and .Maryea. a dance team which Is one of the best of Its kind seen at this theatre in years. Earl. STANLEY, PITT Pittsburgh, Aug. 28. Dick Jurpens Orch (13), Lynn Itoyce It Vanya, Walter Nilsson, Har- ry Cool, Buddy Moreno, Lew Quad, ling, Carl Brant, Robert E. Lee. Ed- die Kuehler, Joe Potzner; 'Jackass Mall' (M-G). First time for Dick Jurgens around here but it won't be the last. Tall collegiate-looking maestro has one of the most entertaining bands to hit the WB deluxer in some time, and that goes on every count—music comedy and novelty. Outfit has a definite personality and covers the field from screwball tMttiness to melodic brilliance, meets every re- quirement of an A-1 stage orch and ha$ In Harry Cool, Buddy Moreno and Joe Potzner a group of musical entertainers any name maestro would be happy to acou'^e. Not for- getting Jurgens himself, a clever fellow both with the baton and the talk. Mob at first show this after- noon (28) went for Jur«ens like a ton of bricks. No gal singer, with th-> ozrsonnel consisting of four saxes, three trum- pets, two trombones, bass, drums, guitar and piano, and Jurgens \<hei no time getting started on a knock- out 'Ragtime Cowboy Joe,* with comic props and a lot of horse-play among the vocalists. Following this, leader Introduces each meml>er of the band individually with a gag and the acknowledgement comes the same way, and whole thing, which could be pretty deadly, becomes an early high spot Walter Nllsson on next with his assortment of cycles and a neat trick to go with each one of them. Over big. although he could scissor his chatter a little. Some of it's pretty funny but part of it*s Just chatter. However, his stunts are 6ut of the beaten path and several of his wheels are howls in themselves even before he mounts them, particularly a wooden sphere, with a pedal on each side, which he uses for a bang-up, comedy finale. Buddy Moreno, sing- ing guitarist and a good-looking Juve, smashes across four ntimbers and bassist Joe (Zilch) Potzner hokes his inning Into a smasheroo. Harry Cool, band's featured vocal- ist, a six-foot, four-incher, with a nice, easy style and swell pipes, comes through on a brace of current pops; a trio of two fiddles and a clarinet serves up a sweet helping of first-rate schmaltz, and 'Hawauan War Chant* develops into a howl when Moreno steps out in grass skirt, false Mae Wests and bright red panties to sing it. Guy*s a pretty graceful hulaer at that, and Jurgens and the rest of the boys work the spot from behind him for a barrel of hee-ha\vs. That seta the stage for Lynn. Royce and Vanya, come<^ adagio trio that Broadway discovered be- latedly in the Eddie Cantor show, 'Banjo Eyes,' but who have been fa- vorites here for years in both the- atres and cafes. Lot 'of acts around doing the same thing these days but these three still have a little of the edge on the rest of them In class, routine and practically everything else. Cohen. CAPITOL, WASH. Washington, Aug. 28. Larry Adler, Murphy Sister^ Frank Paris, Lowe, Hite and Stan- ley, Rhythm Rockets, Sam Jack Kaufman's house orch, Art Broton. 'Crossroads' (M-G). Straight vaudeville this week for a change. Not so many hip-throwers at the opening performance but, without the presence of hey-hey bands, the applalise was substantial. Trailers open on the Rockets in a cowboy and Indian dance to •Jingle, Jangle*. Then Lowe, HIte and Stanley, a study in contrasting sizes. When these boys came to vaudeville they were as green as a Galway cabbage; the tall fellow was the carriage starter at Loew's Capi- tol in Atlanta. Today they work fast and smooth. Ten minutes of good knockabout nonsense for a mighty hand and four bows. Frank Paris Is a master of the string marionets. He puts his puppet* through ballet and dancing tricks, with best response coming for his gliding skater. Ailecn Stanley is coaching the Murphy Sisters, ami they show it. These three harmonl- zers are coming along fast. The Capitol some months ago was their first theatre date, and their three- part vocals register solidly. Larry Adler has. tricked up hit mouth organ work with some sHcK introductories, Harmonica virtuoso can handle lines and makes his mo- ments of gab hit the bullseye. Be- gins with 'Sleepy Lagoon', then a couple of Russian war songs, effec- tive because of his explanatory preface; followed with Ravels Bo- lero* on a cleverly lighted stage. Farewell Is a gesture to the bugs, 'Blues in the Night' and 'Beat Me Daddy*. ^ . Sam Jack Kaufman's house band runs through this routine smoothly, after Art Brown has put the audi' ence in jovial mood with an organ- log community sing. Attendance first show was capa- city, with a lobby lockout. Arke.