Variety (May 1946)

60 LEGITIMATE Wednesday, May 29, 194$. Drama Critics' Selections Tabulation of choices of the N. V. drama critics for the various "bests" of the 1945-46 season, follows: Beat Performance by a Featured or Starred Actor In a Straight Play Laurence Olivier (Old Vic) ...4 Ralph Richardson (Old Vici 3 Alfred Lunt ("O Mistress Mine"). 3 Louis Calhern ("Magnificent Yan- kee") ...... 2 Paul Douglas ("Born Yesterday"). 2 Cedric Hardwicke ("Antigone").. 1 Best Performance by a Featured or Starred Actress In,a Straight .Play Betty Field ("Cream Girl"')...... 5 Lynn Fontanne ("O Mistress Mine") , 4 Barbara Bel Gcddes 0'Dccp Are the Roots") 2 Judy Holliday ("Born Yesterday") 1 Dorothy Gish ("Magnificent Yan- kee") 1 Ruth Hussey ("State cC the Union") 1 Best Performance by an Actor In a Supporting Cast Marlon Brando ("Trucklinc Cafe"- "Candida") 3 Paul Douglas ("Born Yesterday"). 2 Dick Van .Patten' ("O Mistress Mine") Cedric Hardwicke ("Antigone")... Wendell Corey ("Dream Girl")... Myron, McCormick ("Stale of the Union'') .. .. 1 Melville' Cooper ("Pygmalion")... 1 Cecil Humphreys ("Pygmalion").. 1 Yul Brynner ("Lute Song").. .1 Best Performance by an Actress In a Supporting Cast Barbara Bel Gcddes ("Deeo Are the Roots") 3 Joyce Redman ("Henry IV," part II) 3 Mildred Natwick ("Candida").... 3 Judy Holliday ("Born Yesterday"').'2' Susan Douglas ("He Who Gets • Slapped") ....; 1 Maidel Turner; ("State of the Union") ......................, 1 Evelyn Ellis ("Deep Are the •Roots") 1 Pearl Bailey ("St. Louis Woman"). 1 Best Male Performance In a Musical Ray Bolger ("Three to Make Ready") 12 Eddie Foy, Jr. ("Red Mill")..:.... 1 Charles Fredericks ("Show Boat"). 1 Best Femme Performance In a Musical Ethel Merman ("Annie Get Your Gun") : .11 Betty Garrett ("Call Me Mister"). 3 Most Promising Young Actor Marlon Brando ("Truckline Cafe") 4 Jules Munshin ("Call Mc Mister"). 3 Joseph Peyriey ("Home of the Brave") ..; ;. 3 Dick Van Patten ("O Mistress Mine") 2 ' Paul Douglas ("Born Yesterday"). 1 Ossie Davis ("Jeb").;...... 1 Most Promising Young Actress Barbara Bel Geddes, "Deep Are the Roots") 7 Judy Holliday ("Born Yesterday"). 3 Beatrice Pearson ("Mermaids Sing- ing") 2 Pamela Rivers ("Song of Berna- dette") 1 Susan Douglas ("He Who Gets Slapped") 1 Best plrector 1 Michael Gordon ("Home of the Brave") 2 Alfred Lunt ("O Mistress Mine").. 2 Bretaigne Windust ("State of the ■ Union") *2 Garson Kanln ("Born Yesterday") 1 John Burrell (Old Vic).. ; 1 Elia Kazan ("Truckline Cafe")... 1 Romney Brent ("Merry Wives of Windsor") 1 Rouben '• Mamoulian ("St. Louis Woman") 1 Elmer Rice ("Dream Girl") 1 Michael Saint-Denis ("Oedipus").. 1 Tyrone Guthrie ("He Who Gets Slapped") . 1 Best Dance-Director or Choreog- rapher Helen Tamiris ("Show Boat"-"An- nie Get Your Gun").... 6 Jerome Robbins ("Billion Dollar Baby") 5 Charles Walters ("St. Louis Worn an") 1 Best Scene Designer Jo Miclziner ("Annie Get Your Gun"-"Dream Girl") Robert Edmond Jones ("Lute Song 1 '), Donald Oenslager ("Whitman Ave- nue") 1 Lemuel Ayres ("St. Louis Woman") 1 Watson Barratt ("Flamingo Road") 1 Best Composer Irving Berlin ("Annie Get Your Gun") 9 Harold Rome ("Call Me Mister").. 2 Best Lyric Writer . Harold Rome ("Call Me Mister"). 8 Irving Berlin ("Annie Get Your Gun") '.. 4 Oscar Hammei'stein 2nd ("Show . Boat") , -2 Best Librettist Herbert and Dorothy Fields ("An- nie Get Your Gun"),. 4 Oscar Hammerstein 2nd ("Show.- Boat") 3 Adolph Green-Betty Comden ("Bil- lion Dollar Baby").......... 3 Alan Jay Lerner ("Day Before Spring") j ....... 1 70 Strawhafs = Continued' from page it s Play Oot of Town of similar lengthruns to follow. Di- rection will be under Howard Went- worlh, with production in charge of Charles Hohcin, Neil Linger and Irrna Gordon. .This theatre ran throughout the war. Morion's 'Henry' Reprise Suffcrn, N. Y„ May .28. ''Edward Everett Horton will, open the County theatre. Suffern, N . Y„ season June 17 with his old standby, '•Springtime For Henry." Comedian ' will also do the Benn Levy piny at ! John Drew Memorial theatre, East • Hampton, L: I,, this summer. The Dan«M»r Philadelphia, May 21. Allium pniiluulinii of nrw nu'Ui- ilr:nii:i In lliiw- nils liy .Millml I.owIm mill Julian I'lint. SimkpJ liy . Kviti'II SUmili-; niiiHl>- I'v 1 'itiiI hiiwti-*: iiiimIihIIhh iloslcni'il liv Miillpv. Ai Wiilnui Snvii, l'lillmlclHilii, •turn.. M:iy L'l, 10: ' £1.Ill l»i>. .-. MiIbkv K'imii Homy Wllklns , Anluvy SU'wini.... Tlh' . lns|i'i % rlur. Sorrel Kriiiuhii..... M:iili*lrl»r Kruiiiini' .t'ullii K^Hh-Julins-luli . . .. l.lljii vull KmiliMI ..;; I .dm l'\ikll»i\ ......r..'iHi'l -I*»lli> Ciillioiino Kra'InhiP i Helen film Piatt Sisters In 'Spirit' New Mil ford. Conn., May 28. I .1 Louise Piatt will be starred, and V: her sister Jean featured, in produc- ~ I lion: of "Blithe Spirit," with which 2 [ Theatre-in-the-Dale will reopen its 2 season here June 22. 2 Bennington's $2,000 GI Loan Salem, N..Y., May 28. GI loan of $2,000 to Harold Shaw, of Salem, will provide Ben- nington, Vt. with a summer theatre and institute, beginning June 24. Shaw, who seVved in the Air Forces, was associated with the pro. duction of "This is the Army." His theatre venture Will include schol- arship courses in theatre art and craft for high school pupils during a 10-week period, with Broadway professionals forming the nucleus of the cast. Cleve. Bow June 18 Cleveland, May 28. Cain Park's municipally operated strawhalter is unwrapping its ninth season under the stars June 16, with "Mikado" as ■ starter. Dina Rees Evans will again supervise the com- pany of localites, aided by William Winters as general manager and Gerard Gentile as technical director. Civic Shifts to Buses In Coast Rail Strike Los Angeles, May .28. Moving Vans and motor buses took the place of railroad trains in the shifting of two Civic Light Opera companies, "The Vagabond King" and "Roberta," between Los Angeles and San Francisco. Twelye vanloads of scenery and props for "Roberta" rolled south to open at the Philharmonic Audi, torium. Eight loads of "Vagabond" equipment moved north to go into the Curran theatre. Three buses bore the casts north and south. 'Maid' Merry 1216, Pitt Pittsburgh, May 28. "Maid in Ozarks" got excellent $12,500 in first week at Casino, local burlesque site. While billed at $3 top, management had town flooded with two-for-one's, which accounted for most of the heavy draft. Show was smart in eliminating mid-week ma- tinee in favor of getaway perform ance Sunday at midnight, and this brought in more than $1,700 to start it. off right. Attraction got no help from crix, who tore into "Maid" with both bar- rels, but it's the sort of thing the reviewers can't hurt. Slated for an- other stanza here; then to Balti- more before opening summer run at Hotel Chelsea theatre in Atlantic City. It'll wind up legit here. Kiepura Sues ; Continued from page 59 '; billing. Understood that court ac- tion was taken in an attempt to pre vent Equity from paying Bois until the plaintiffs received the amounts they claimed, but the award was liquidated before the complaint was served.. Previous winners of best per- formances, listed on page 62. Bloomfleld Move Balked Chicago, May 28. Exceptions of Harry Bloomfleld's attorney, Arthur Morse, to judgment of $2,500 entered against Bloomfleld in favor of Curt Bois, thesp'who re. cently won an arbitration suit over, billing vs. the producer of the de- funct . "Polonajse," were ruled out last week by Judge Elwyn Shaw here. ■ Judge ordered the coin paid Bois immediately. Field, Olivier Top Thesps Continued from page 1 This, Philadelphia's first stage preem in. over four months, im- presses as having more lilm chances than those on stage. In the first place, too much work is indicated for it to make it even a logical can- didate for this tail-end of the 1945-46 season. Sonic, rewriting and plenty of roslaging arc called for .and prob- ably a cast change. ■'The Dancer" is outside Abbott's recent .field of managerial endeavor, being melodrama of the macabre and almost ghoulish'type reminiscent of that English thriller, "Rope", (also called "Rope's ■ End") of. some 15 •years ago. Scene is laid in postwar Paris, but war doesn't enter in nor do current European politics. Disclosed living in a certain Paris- ian .flat are Aubrey. Stewart, an Eng- lish art connoisseur and dilettante: his ■butler, Wilkins, and a mysterious Sergei Krainine. Latter turns out to be a former famed Russian ballet dancer who. had collapsed cn a Lon- don stage 15 years before, had been in a mental institution for a time, and is now almost chair-ridden, as well as speechless for three years. Reference is made to Nijinsky- and the comparison is obvious. It later develops that Stewart had formerly been wealthy and that there has been an unnatural relationship between Sergei and him which , has broken tip the dancer's marriage. At time the play starts, however, Stewart is. all but penniless and desperate. A French police inspector, visits the flat searching for evidence on the murder (by strangulation) Of a pros- titute in the same street. It appears impossible for the invalid Sergei to have committed the crime but there are suspicious angles.. Arrival on the scene of Sergei's wife (and daughter), balked in her search for him' for years because of the German occupation of France, complicates matters. She has in her possession a key to a bank vault, where he has a small fortune stored, but she doesn't know where it is. Then it's a race between her and Stewart to make the partially-de- ranged man give the information. Wife doesn t realize, however, that reference to money incites Sergei to a blood lust (her own fault orig- inally, by the way) and Stewart, working oh that angle, feeds the Rus- sian hard liquor and leaves' him alone .with his wife. As he iias fig- ured, a killing results; it is Sergei's second. Still a third occurs in Act III when . Stewart becomes desper- ate and takes too great a chance. The inspector, it is intimated, has been hep, arid might have stopped the third killing but apparently fig- ured it poetic justice or something to that Gallic effect. Flat setting is properly sinister and' there's a swell spiral stairway (en- closed) used plenty in the action, as well as two heavy doors (both sides of stage) with old-fashioned locks and bolts. Killing of wife actually takes place off stage (upstairs), but struggle starts in view of audience and could be much more authentic if re-staged. Stewart's strangulation is, however, effectively shown. A striking performance is that of a newcomer, Luis Van Rooten, as the inspector. He has three noteworthy scenes, one in each act, and scores emphatically. He'll be heard from even if the play isn't. Colin Keith- Johnston and Leon Fokine, featured are effective. Latter has a couple of ballet dance interludes (his warped mind hears orchestral music on several occa- sions) and the Bowles musical snatches (canned) are effectively eased into the tense. atmosphere. Bethel Leslie, another newcomer stepped into the role of the daughter on very short notice and does nicely all things considering, but Helen Flint, suffering from poor direction, isn t all she. should have been as the mother. In the films, with scenes showing Sergei's past ballet triumphs, his marriage, his collapse and possibly introducing the daughter's romance, and with a less staccato introduction of the meller scenes, "The Dancer" should rate a nice chance, provided, of course, the unnatural sex relation- ship is purged. It deserves consider- ation for stage revision, but there's plenty to do. : Waters, Cornell's 2& l / 2 G, D C. Washington, May 28. National was sold out for second stanza of Katharine Cornell's "An tigone"-"Candida" double bill, with boff $28,500 racked up. "Laura" currently doing a one week stand, with Olsen and Johnson moving in for a fortnight June 2, Nothing scheduled beyond that. "Dream Girl"); sparked by new luminaries in Barbara Bel. Geddes, Marlon Brando, Jules Munshin, Bea- trice Pearson and Dick Van Patten, and marked by defections from cri- tical ranks, lambasting from the out- side and quarreling among the critics themselves—the fraternity made some conspicious choices of "bests" in various categories of the theatre. Ethel Merman, of "Annie Get Your Gun," and Ray Bolger, of "Three to M;ake Ready," were chosen the best femme and male musical comedy performers. Barbara Bel Gcddes of "Deep Are The Roots," and Marlon Brando, of "Truckline' Cafe" and "Candida," got double bouquets each —as the best supporting actress' and actor, as well as the most promising young actress and actor of the sea- son, although Miss Bel Geddes had to share the fli'st honor with two others. Irving Berlin won the best com- poser laurels for "Annie" and Har- old Rome the best lyricist palm for "Call Me Mister." Each was also the other's runnerup in those respec- tive categories. Helen Tamiris led the best dance-director list for her work in "Show Boat" and "Annie," and there were ties for director and designer. Alfred Lunt, Bretaigne Windust and Michael Gordon shared the director's medal; Jo Miclziner and Robert Edmond Jones the de- signer's chevron. It's interesting to note the way "Annie" and the Old Vic came with a rush in - the final inning (in the month of May) to cop so many hon- ors. Miss Merman ■ and Berlin won prizes with the former. Old Vic's stalwarts, Laurence Olivier and Ralph Richardson, were one-two for best actor, with Joyce Redman tied for best supporting actress. Miss Merman was striding her pedestal for the second time, having won the best musical comedy actress designation in 1943 with "Something for the Boys." Alfred Lunt, best ac- tor in *43 for "The Pirate," had to content himself with runnerup this year; and then being tied with Rich- ardson for that post. No Unanimous Wlnnahs! There were no unanimous choices this season, although several win- ners were top-heavy favorites. Bol- ger had 12 out of 15 votes in his category; Miss .Merman, 11; Berlin, 9; Rome, 8; and Miss Tamiris, 6. Poll listed a new category, that of best librettist, which was won by Dorothy and Herbert Fields, for their work in "Annie." Composer and lyricist team was split up this season, resulting in wins for two shows, instead of one. Poll Included most of the N. Y. Drama Critics' Circle roster, with several defections for special causes. Critics polled consisted of Kelcey Allen (Women's Wear), Howard Barnes (Herald-Tribune), John Chapman (News), Robert Coleman (Mirror), George Freedley (Tele- graph), Robert Garland (Journal- American), Wolcott Gibbs (New Yorker), Rosamund Gilder (Theatre Arts), Louis Kronenberger (PM and Time), Joseph Wood Krutch (Na- tion), Ward Morehouse (Sun). Lewis Nichols (Times), Arthur Pollock (Brooklyn Eagle),' Vernon Rice" (Post), and Tom Wenning (News- week). George Jean Nathan (Journal- American), John Mason Brown-. (Saturday Review of Literature) and Burns Mantle (News) bowed out. Burton Rascoe (World-Telegram), who recently resigned his. post, did not file a ballot. Latter had refused to join in the year before, too. Nathan declined regretfully be- cause of his Esquire, contract involving a similar poll. Brown reneged because he's "anti-list." You can't list "bests," he said, because it's impossible to compare different interpretations and forms of expres- sion. He cited Olivier in ''Oedipus" and Cedric Hardwicke in "An- tigone," as examples. Both were acting in Greek drama, and both "were superb. But one was in char-, acter, and the other straight, in as widely divergent performances as possible. Mantle, News critic-emeritus, who does ah occasional column, felt he couldn't make up a list, having, as he says, "missed several musicals and-quite a few stinkers among the draymas. That's the advantage of being retired, son," he told VAniirrv's editor; "I say, that's an advantage." One Less to Fill, Eh? The critics had their fun as well as their uses with the poll, some (like/ Garland and Rice) making columnar capital out of it. Garland, who ran a Sunday column on his choices, admitted he got a kick out of doing it. "Selecting them," he said, "was a labor of love." But h added, "these 'bests' of mine, hand picked and prejudiced as they a » are also honest." Garland added a category of hit own to the list. "The Robert Gar land Annual Booby Prize for '45.'4c •"■ he said, "is hereby bestowed on 'ThV Duchess Misbehaves' and everybody and everything connected with it.- A couple of the boys cited Arnold Aucrbach, sketch-writer of "Call Me Mister," for his work, -regretting- there was . no such classification Rice, who replaced the late Wilella Waldorf in mid-seasoi), and is a youngster himself, felt that youth ought to. be served more. "Inasmuch as this season seems to be the one in which youth made its appearance on Broadway and made that appearance felt, to my way of thinking," he wrote, "Ihcre should have been a category each for 'best young playwright.' 'best young'di- rector,' 'best young producer," etc With such people as Arthur Lair- rents, Lee Sabinson. Mark Marvin and Hunt Stromberg. Jr., to name a few, all making their mark on the. main stem, the above-mentioned categories should be included next year." Pollock had something similarly in mind when he wrote:. "It seems corny to pick, the Lu:its, Ethel Mer- man and Ray Bolger, who have been good so long, but it says 'best'. I wish there were some category the Mary Martins could fit into, and one that would permit naming Judy Holliday as the 'most promising young actress,' since she was that last season and still is, and at the same time not thereby exclude a Beatrice Pearson, who began, to .be promising this season. There are. so many hew kids that deserve to be recognized." There was a little confusion among some critics about "featured" and "supporting" categories, the. Misses Holliday and Bel Geddes, and Paul Douglas, for instance, landing in both lists. A couple of critics put ' musical comedy performers into the "supporting" list, while others felt- that only straight play actors be- longed. Some by-passed various . categories; krutch picked no musi- cals winners, having missed several - tune shows. Votes were most widely scattered in the best director list, where 11 names figured. Jerome Robbins was strong runnerup to Helen Tamiris for best dance-director, and Jules Munshin right behind Brando in the most promising classification. John Golden Continued from page 5S ; atre for the ailing Chief Executive in lieu of medicine. When Bernard Baruch, then chair- man of the War Industries Board, heard from the doctor's own Hps how laughter in the theatre was deemed by him more important for the Presi- dent than any medicine, Btiruch promised . Golden that Broadway showmen need not fear a threat to close their theatres. The board, to which Golden had made a plea as the showmen's representative, had been seriously considering closing all the legitimate theatres as being un- essential to the war effort. Louis Nizer, understudying Gcorgle Jessel, and who of recent years has achieved a rep as a spellbinder, toastmastercd. The dais and guest list read like, the who's who of the arts and professions. Though, the event was ostensibly sponsored by the Jewish Theatrical Guild, of which Golden is a charter.member, actor groups of other .denominations shared in the auspices. The event was hot unlike other Golden productions. At $25 per per- son, it was a sellout. Pitt Playhouse Okayed For GI Vet Training :PltUburgh, May 28 ; ✓ Pittsburgh Playhouse, communis theatre directed by Fred Burleign. ex-GI who runs the Cohassct, Mass., strawhat during the summer, been okayed by the Pennsylvan'a Department of Instruction for dra- matic training of vets under the w Bill of Rights. . ' Courses for veterans will begin ai Playhouse next fall with opening « the .1946-47 season, and they'll oe taught. in little theatre's regular acting school, which has been under direction of J. English Smith, an? other ex-GL