Variety (Dec 1942)

Weduesday* December SO, I9i2 4T House Reviews Continued from page 18 , ROXY, N. Y. of .r,imites of his turn consists Tresh material that has bite to_ it, but Giant, midget and average-sized fel- low, no strangers here, easily garner laughs with their dance routines. King and Arlena, boy and gal, get by handily with a couple of tap routines. Martin and Allen, in hand- a^n'^.^^'es%'^for^^^^^ balance stuff, also go iinie This consists of the imper Son of a jitterbug singer and a society songstress doing 'Jim.' Its mctty tired, but he snapc back auicUy with the duo things he does w ihStan Boss. He does vocal un- nersonations while Ross acts them ?n oanto. Of four the Uonel Bany- niore one Is best. Audience liked it Final setting starts out with the line tapping to a Raymond Scott composition, which slips into what seems like a Mexican village setting, involving more of the line and Sherman and Miss Seckler in an in- terpretative dance to moving tom- tom music. Carmen Miranda and her six na- tive musicians slip into the same set and she lives up to the reputa- tion she has built in pictures, etc. The gal is dynamite onstage in one of her blinding, trade-marked cos- tumes. She sells her stuff in a pol- ished, easy manner that keeps the customers eating out of her hand. She does "Chica Chica Boom Chic' 'South American Way.' 'Chattanooga Choo-Choo,' 'Ay Ay Ay," and 'Mia Carrah' with the Nicholas Bros. Younger of the two displays a nice voice for this tempo and he could do more of it In his own spot. In addition to her song-selling, Miss Miranda awakens frequent Kiegles with her hip-waving. t«fer- eiiees to her 'Zout Suit' and her How- eied in.stead of fruit-tray headdress. over solid. Radio Rogues sell strongly with their impersonations. The three lads let loose with some offensive double enteidte gags which should t>e cleaned up for this type of family house. Boys milk for laughs. Apol- lon, now minus his band, works with two guitarists and a bull fiddle player. He, too, is out for laughs with his gagging and rapid Are gatter. It's his mandolin playing, owever, that wins him the heavy accolades. Curley Van and Sunny Hudson get by okay with a couple of vocals. Biz good at late show Friday (25). Eck. APOLLO, N. Y. boys enough visual excitement to make even less able orchology ac- ceptable. 'Knock Me a Kiss,' with the maestress scxing the chorus vocally, starts it oK and then Stuart Foster does a socko job on There Are Such Things,' the nievitable 'White Xmas' and 'Angry,' in which Hutton joins him. Trumpet .<!Olo on 'Angels Sing' by n>-\v horn man. Roger AUeck, who 'l.nsn't sufl'iciently warmed up at show caught, precedes Marion Hutton and the Modernaires. This Hutton's a s.n. package, too, and she's smartly concentrating on voice more and antics (a la her sister, Betty Hutton) less. Paired with Modernaires, out of late band of Glenn Miller, too, the flvesome smashes across four numbers and could stick around easily for twice that many. Warm 'em up with a neat arrangement, slightly Latin- Americanized, of 'Jingle Bells,' then 'Moonlight Becomes You,' with Johnny Drake taking the lead, 'Juke Box Saturday Night,' with a swell impression of the Ink SpoLs, and ftnnlly 'Strip Polka,' a natural. Following them. Ina Ray comes out in her natty Civilian Air Patrol uniform to baton a medley of patriotic airs, with Foster coming back to sinft the army air corps song. Next to closing, Durant cleans Count Bdsie il7). ThiL.in Car- '^P with his chatter and tumbling, penter, Jimmy Rushing; Bill Bailey, I Impression of Gable and. Boyer. 'Pigmeat' & Jinimie Basfcetle, Apus wiU" his standard 'but can they do 4 Estrelitta; Short subjects. Biz big. Wood. RKO, BOSTON Boston, Dec. 24. Glen Gray Orch (IS), Bonnie Bdher. Georgt Tapps, Three Sailors, Lorraine Levy; 'Niohttmire' (U). The Casa Limia band has been solid in this vidnity for years and Bonnie Baker has her own special clienteL which accounts for this show's good draw. It's something of a letdown, however, for it doesn't stack up as down-the-line enter- tainment when the band isn't play- ing. As precision, smart attad c a nd massed effects are the band's strong points, it makes the most of them in such tunes as 'No Name Jive' and 'Dancing in the Dark.' the latter fcnturing trombonist Billy Ross. Most of other numbers feature vocalists. First comes Lorraine l^vy, local gal who won tlie RKO's Search tor Talent contest. She does 'Dearly Beloved' in an okay style. The Casa Loma quartet, consisting or attractive girls giving out with the usual harmonic patterns, sing 'Kille KUle.' There Are Such Things' and 'I Can't Give You Anything But Love.' goinc well with the audience. Kenny Sargent, long associated with the band, clicks heavily with three poo tunes including the in evitable 'White Christmas' and Bon' nie Baker does likewise, finishing with the equally inevitable 'Oh Johnnie." George Tapps, last here in 'Pal Joey,' dances with his customary skill but the. audience didn't know how to take his line of chatter. He'd have been much better off confining his activities to dancing. Show gets a little much-needed comedy from the usual rough-house stuff- of the ' Three Sailors, and ends on a high key with Bonnie's warm reception. Show opened day l>efore Christ mas to moderate biz. Elie. Packed house rocked Chri.stmas night with Count Basic and his ag- gi-egation maiiltaining a fas', m-the- groove pace. To meet ovci-rlow crowd, opening day had b;i!ir1 '-n for six G5-minute appearances, re- sulting in dropping of accustomed full length feature and substitution of short subjects. Mob, however, was all Basie's, and no kicks were registered at the bj>. Orch, headed by leader's fine pianoing, and spotting several in- strumentalists, opens with two Basie well-knowns, 'G and R' and 'Sand- man.' Thelma Carpenter, band vo- calist, phrases 'Why Don't You Do Right?' in catchy fashion, and then changes pace and style to clinch ^Wbite Christmas.' Gal has appear- ance and stage presence and di.splays taste in choice of material. Bill Bailey, tap dancer, reaps A-1 results from a hard-working 10- minute routine, lad never stopping to catch his breath. He skillfully scatters gag lines and comments while making difficult steps look easy. His 'impersonation of Bill Robinson imitating Bill Bailey* sells solid, as doeK band's follow up with "Red Bank Booaie.' Specialty, fea- turing Basie at keyboard, is a cinch for oalm-thumpin.;, 'Pigmeat' and Jimmie Baskette. comedians who should pay rent, being seen here almost every week, are their usual corny selves in a •preacher, gal and viper* skit that has the crowd guffawing. Pair's antics, okay for this house, are strictly for the colored trade. Jimmy Rushing sings 'Mr. Five by Five,' a tune his short squat figure is said to have insnired. in first per- son. A clickeroo. He also socks across 'I May Be Wrong' and 'Sent For You Yesterday. Here You Come Todav.' combininc cfTrctive riff man- neri.snu;. with a smooth iwir nf niocs. Joe Jones drummer, is flashv in a stint with brushes, climaxed by roil*!!"*" "fk'n thunt'^in'^ fi-.-irv ,a>^ii.s and E.strelitta. comedv duo. only weak act on bill, run through a con- zlomeralion of i^ss iinrt a soft shoe routine in meaninrles.s tnshiop. nand closes with theme 'One O'Clock Jumo.* Biz vrrv '"»n'* STATE, HARTFORD Hart/ord, Dec. 25. Val Selz. Hul Sherman, Martin k Allen, KiJip & Arlemi. CuTley Von^ Sunny Hiid.ioti, Lotue. Hitc & Stanley D^ve Apotloit, Radio Rogues (3) Sam Koplnn lioii.vc band; 'fcccapades' (Rep). this?' followed by a back-flip, over bigi as usual. For band's finish, Ina Ray comes out in a new low-cut creation that makes the music it' self at the curtain anti-climactic. Slim crowd at getaway, which was expected. Cohen. TOWER. K. C Konsa« C<tv, Dec. 25. Btllv Rose's Diamond Horseshoe Revue, ioith GiUa Gray, Aunt Jemima, Charles King, Walter Dare Wahl, The Great Yaeopia, Shavo Sherman, Laura Corbay, Harry Meehan and 'Pansy' the Horse, aui;- mented Toicer Orch; 'Behind £ipht Bate (U). consequently being more effective, One torpedo shell from a Jap bomber realistically jars the U. S. carrier, but the final shot shows the Nip planes in retreat and the American fleet sailing forward with only slight damage. It's spine-tingling and the small Christmas eve audience burst into spontaneous applause at its con- clusion. 20th-Fox Movietone has the initial action inside heroically defended Stalingrad. Sharp editing focuses on the house-to-house fighting. So- viet signal corps cameramen obvi- ously were right in the frontlines tc grab these pictures, showing an at- tack by a drove of Nazi planes, ma- chine gunners in action, big guns roaring at the Axis hordes and snip- ers* attacking onrushing Germans. There are A' couple of distant shots which vivJIl)' illustrate how much damage tm Nazi onslaught did to the city. News of Day makes something of its 'Turn of the Tide' yarn, being a year-end summary with the North African ofTensive pointed up. The return of Eddie Rickenbacker to Washington, followed by his dra- matic story of his long vigil on a rubber life boat in the Pacific, is nicely done by Par. Par also has an impressive subject called 'U. S. Army brings greetings from global fronts.' showing .supposed Christmas services being held by American troops from Ala.-:ka to the tropics. Universal covers the South Africa front in intelligent manner with the spoken narrative'. Pathc'.; story about the "jeep plane' is excellent. Carey Longmire, doing the 'Ilingside Seat' Embassy special, is splendid with his version of China's part in the present struggle. 'Women at Arms, U. S. A.', a this is America subject (RKO-^athe) rounds out the program. Wear.. STANLEY. PITT Pittsburph. Dec. 2.1. Ina Ray Hutton Orch (15). Morion Hutton. Jack Durant. Modernaires («). Stuart Foxter. Johnny Drake: 'Gpnrqe Washington Slept Here' (WB). State this .scsh gives its patrons a neat Xmas package of entertainment wrapped up the way they want it. but, running better than an hour and 35 minutes, it becomes a bit weary. Every act on bill is standard vaude and strong entertainment with em- phasis on the laugh. Hal Sherman, Radio Rogues. Lowe. Hite and SUn- 'ey and ApoUon give out for the guffaws. Gals, tagged 'Bamba-Dears' ore^shapely, youthful and tastefully costumed. They are in three produc- "on numbers, two in a miliUry motif. The seven showgirls are l«« Plummetted Roman gladia- alr-' 1 u miniature tanks, serial bombs, cannons, planes, etc.. adornmg their tops, hra^i . ■■ ^'^ck with his standard Sh.^ °' Jusgling for socko results. SnrtIT " '°""<* it *oueh getting "n- i.^u^ ^"l' eccentric danc- ng. but between his oanto and pat- uall« .I "^"'■'^ dancing, he cvent- T^..'"'^': renction. ahiS K J'"5, Stanley, knock- hoke trio, find it easv to sell. WB deluxer has come ud with a swell holiday show. Best flesh lay- out house has had in some time, in fact. With a crack feature for a change, too, in "G. Washington Slept Here' (WB). Stanley should climb back on the cash wagon again after a succession of weekly b.o. depres- sives. If this lineup doesn't turn the trick, then all hope is gone. Ina Rny Hutton herself has always done okay here, and this time she has some name .support in Marion Hutton. the Modernaires and Jack Durant. so it all adds up to an encouraging prospect P.irticularl.v at this time. The band-leading Hutton dame is still merchandising music and .sex- appeal, and her equipment in t>oth depnrtmcnl.s is plenty and emphatic the lady's a bundle of weaves and eye-fastening motions and those backless gowns she wears, held up by almast invisible straps:, are a con- stant source of attention. What's more, and even with steady replarc- ments in the band as results of (he draft, (he orch continues lo improve and makes with the horns on the no.se. She hijs five saxes, thicc trombones, three liumpels. drums, b.iss. niano and guitar, and they take care of the car ver.v satisfac- torily while La Hiilton is giving the With augmented Tower Orch in the pit and the Billy Rose aggrega- tion on the stage, the house is headed toward one of its best posses in months. Revue rans 60 minutes, and despite unusually large com- pany which'taxes capacity of stage, the production is fast-moving and smooth-working. Waynfe Mclntyre, aniMuncer, us- ing offstage mike, first' lolngs on Harry Median and 'Pansy* the horse, played by Mayo brattiers. Comedy business by the equine is sure fire, particularly with the juves. Next on are four show girls and a line of 10 for a pop medley. Every girl is a looker, aiid costuming an eye-full. The Great Yacopis, . teeter-board and balancing troupe, have a fast- moving turn. Aunt Jemima does a medley of earlier pons and tops them off with a neat bit of hoofing, to win a nice round of palm-whack- ing. Shavo Sherman does four im- personations, house at show caught going for one of Groucho Marx most, although others of Schnozzle Durante, Ted Lewis and Hugh Her- l)crt were okay. Following a somewhat hoky chorus of 'Irish Eyes* by Harry Meehan. Laur^-Corbay comes on for .some neat toe dancing. The big laugh-getter is Walter Dare Wahl and his partner, who is unbilled. Boys know their hand-balancing and manage lo effect the comedy busi- ne.ss and timing with standout re- sults. Charles King comes on for a medley of George M. Cohan hits and clicks solidly. Voice registers ef- fectively over the p. a. sjrstem. Clos' ing spot goes to Gilda Gray, who does some of her quivering in front of line and show girls at tables in night club sequence, and the house liked it. Aunt Jemima then back for a number, after which she intro& four oversize "beef trust* gals who do some kicking. Entire company in finale, which has plenty of flash and an accent on brass from the boys in the pit Capacity biz opening day. with well-niled houses over the week end. Eart. EMBASSY, N. Y. INEW6REELS) 0 Benny Wows 'En Continued from paicc 2 whirling tap .routines and took a fall (the apron was new and freshly finished) for a finish. But lo the happy air-minded audience, it was part of a swell act. Miss Living- stone unleashed a poem about t.ake- hurst; then Schlepperman got off a comedy song patter based on tune titles. He encored with a comedy fiddle bit with Benny and finished with a straight violin solo to sock returns. Rose Blane had 'em shouting with three jive tunes, the best of which was 'Amen.' Rochester opened do- Riilgfing Shows 1943 Prospects Still Doubtful John Ringling North has mada a number of deals for the Ringling, Bamum and Bailey circus next sea- son, but at this time it is doubtful whether the big top will go out. He said that after Washington ordered all circuses and carnivals to winter quarters by Dec. 1. there had been no further Indication whether such shows would be allowed to tour. One of the advance preparations planned was the orchestration of 'Rhapsody in Blue' and a contract for the rights, the number being slated for the elephant ballet. It would cost around S2S0,0OO to present the show in the manner planned, and no such expenditure would be made, if (here were not asstirances that the circus would be able to play dates after Madison Square Garden. North .said. Transportation, food rationing and manpower are the haz.irds which the Ringling show must face. Big top has its own railroad equipment but there Is a chance this mi'!ht be requi- sitioned by the government. Ring- ling outfit lost many laborers who went into war plants last season, show being 350 razor-backs short during the final three months. In the event the circus does not go out, North Intends becoming ac- tive in show business, and may op- erate an outdoor venture more feasible to conduct than the big top. III and Injured Coatinne* freai paKc 1 5 CotU Benny 5G Wkly, When queried as to wh;it his tour of the Army and Navy bases was costing him, Benny bru.shed aside a response, but it has been reported authoritativel.v from other sources that the figure is close to S.S.OOO for every week the outfit tours. The troupe plays service shows Monday and Tuesday nights; Benny reheai-ses his regular Sunday night broad- casts the rest of the week. Sum covers traveling and liv- ing cxpen.ses of his troupe of 2.3. including Rochester, Mary Liv- ingstone (Mrs. Bonny), Sam Hearn (Schlepperman) and Den- nis Day, plus writers, publicity men, secretary, wives and hus- bands of performers. In addition there's a name band and a cou- ple of outside acts. Those named above are, of course, with Benny on his radio show, and remain standard with him throughout his tour of service bases. Benny also stands the expenses required when he broadca.sts his regular program from one of the service centers. added that he was 'suspiciously good' In the drunk scene. Ole Olacn In Rosy Too Taking advantage of a four-day pre-Chrlrtmas layoff of Sons o' Pun,' at Winter Garden. N. Y., Ole Olsen was hospitilized for two minor operations, one of a painful nature. About 10 days abed is usually re- quired In such cases, but Olsen ap- peared Jn the show when it resumed Friday (25) afternoon. He skipped some of his usual assignments, which were taken over by. Steve Olsen, Ole's brother, who closely re- sembles him. The comedian has not missed a performance for 28 years and insisted on appearing despite advice of those closest to him. Fredric March, who was out of The Skin of Our Teeth." Plymouth, for ihore than a week because of an eyeball injury suffered during a per- formance, returned to the play Sat- urday (2«). Probably the most dramatic stories of the war in 1942 make this a 'must see' ncwsreel show. Paramount's -Special on a battle t>etween U, S. planes plus a Navy task force and the-Japanese airfighter in the Pacific, and 20th-Fox deft compilation of first fighting scenes inside Stalingrad give this bill a terrific lift. U. S. Navy cameramen, presum- ably aboard a giant American air- craft carrier, give pertinent phases of the engagement in which flocks of Jap bomber.7 and fighters arc sesn biting the dust via headlong plunges into the ocean. Near-misses on the carrier are vividly .seen, tracer bui- lds gleam as they climb skyward after Jap attackers, navymen battle a bl;i/c iin the c.nrricr and then the slorv shows the final routing of Nip airli'ahtcrs. Smartly, no commentary is u.scci, the adion and .sound ofTects ing a crossfire bit with Benny anent their mythical . boarder, Mr. Bil- lingsley. followed with some Harlem humor, and segued into 'Sharp as a Tack' song, from his Par pic, 'Star Spangled Rhythm.' His eccentric hoofing was another highlight be- cause it was good and unexpected. Don Wilson, Benny and Rochester then got together on a kibitzer skit using checkers instead of cards. Lyman closed with 'Boogie Woogle Bugle Boy.' It all added up to grand entertain- ment, but on the bus-ride back to N. Y. Benny was only concerned with improving this bit, and loading up that one, t>ecau.se there are a lot of other isolated spots on the Eastern seaboard to be played yet and he wants things just right. The troupe will eventually work its way back to the Coast via the army :md navy camps and (lapects to get back to Hollywood sjinclime around the end of fiflarch. Lakes Out ef 'Rhine* Cleveland. Dec. 29. Paul Lukas. star of 'Watch on the Rhine,* checked into Cleveland Hos- pital late Sunday (27) with flu. Doc- tors report actor coming along nicely. Larry Dopkin. understudy, pinch- hit Uonday (28). Herbert Rudley, who played lead role in the Lillian Hellman drama last year at Maple- wood, N, J., with Mady Christians and Clssle Loftus. is expected to fly in by today (Tuesday) to replace Lukas for the rest of the week. 'Army' — COBUnaed from pace 2 s actors would help garner consider- ably more coin for the Army. Salatc to Dieppe ueiroii. Dec. 29, International red-tape was slashed here last week to permit 100 men and part of the orchestra of This Is The Army' to present a special free performance last Tuesday in Wind- sor, Ontario, for men and women members of Canadian active forces. The show, after special permits were rushed through from Washing- ton, played in the Windsor Voca- tional Sdiool before an audience of more than 800 soldiers, sailors, air force and women auxiliary mem- bers. Sole admission was by show- ing the 'Canada badge' indicating active duty. Officials of the Army show termed it 'Our' salute to Dieppe and the courage that the Cnnudians. our brothers jn arms, .st^ou—'l ii-prf-.'