Variety (Dec 1947)

Wednesday, Dceember 114, 1947 47 New Acts ttONA MASSE¥ (1) loiii« eiu1» Ve»MtUIe», N. T. Ilona Mas«ey brings to the saloon eircuit a number of plus values Shich should put Ber-and keep her !_un there as a cafe name }n short Zder. She has blonde beauty, a trained voice, a Hollywood reP. an .nthoritatlve delivery and all the Sffie? assets that go with that sort of ? narlay,- Still remembered for her "At the Balalaika" excerpt from,a *V-vear-old Metro fllmusical, Miss Iwawev errs only in two minor Massey ^jng too fast for things. One is - - W first routine encore—resulting in ■ quite giving tV""" pnoneh. ot uu.i„ o „ them enough. V?hlch is another way of kudosing ♦he songstress, because she certainly doesn^t outwear her welccrtne. The other is the over-emphasis on her maevar background and the accent ' on Hungarian excerpts. The intro. is wrong because her f'cent is "'nil. Furthermore, her oilvwood rep transcends any Con- cental backiroimd she may have oniovcd pre-Culver City. Ihe magyar interludes'(and these should ■ limited to two) should be casual rather than dominant. But all that Js a matter of simple re-routining. She should do striking arrange- ments more along the lines of that ^hing Called Love"-" Jalousie" iuedley, which is done as a sort of wo-ply number, with expert assist rom Gilberto Isais, her Mexican composer-accompanist, and the tip- top Bob Grant orchestra which is facile in the general musical accomp. Her repertoire runs a wide gamut, «uch as "Zing Went the Strmgs" (opener), "Lily Flowers" (Hun- earian), still another magyar ex- Eerpt, thence "Balallaika." "Vienna. City of Dreams" and "Besame Mucho." For the entr'acte Isais does two competent Steinway specialties: "Clair de'Lune" and "Fire Dance." Withal, Miss Massey is OK for sight and sound in the saloon circuits. ,. Abet. f AT CUKBAN Soncf Is Mint. Collcfe Inn, Ohicafo 'Pat Curran, an Irish immigrant who's been in this country less than iiix months, is the pure quill despite h« all-too-familiar pattern of his ^discovery." Gaelic tenor was booked into the College Inn on the ba^s of a pritewinuing perfomance bn the focal Sachii Amateur Hour tadio show. Singer was introed as a cocfc on the Snerman hotel kitchen staff but his spotless chef's cap apd uniform fndieate that his pot watdiing has fieen suspended until further notice. As-A liiatter of fact, a group of chefs clustered at the stage entrance to (atch his debut. Tenor's brisk rs- ception probably caused the manage' fient to gander the help wanted Olumns. Curran has a wistful, un-h«p qual tfjr that goes well with his repertoire if Irish standards. He's no John MoCormick, but his tenoring is true 6nd flexible. He has broad range and good volume and a]9parently is 4. natural who just sings. Youngish College Inn aud surprised with ready response to "Mother Macree," ''Danny Boy" and "Rose of Tralee." Ginger is without mannerisms of any kind: and obviously, uncoached in stage presence. - Should foe okay, for niteries and vaude In the shillelagh territory, with retention d: the from-skillet-to- ttage angle. Chef's uniform is a neat touch, Baaet. dazzling spins. She's as. fast on pirouet work as any dancer around and imparts different designs in each' of her twirls. Miss Sloan at her Waldorf-Astoria preem exhibits four numbers, rang- ing from light and. fast numbers to dramatic interpretations. Topper is the "Night and Day" interpretation she did in the film which cues a big exit salvo. Encored with an inter- prietation of De Falla's "Ritual Fire Dance," which shows a slight ten- dency to, over-dramatize, thus de- tracting from the basically good danc^'design. Miss Sloan is an attractive titian. expensively wardrobed and could easily fill the dance-demands of the legit musical field as she has in pix and vaudfilmers, Jose. MARY A BOND Songs-Piano iO Mins. fiesta Boom, N. V, Mary a Bond, until recently a mem- ber of the Angie Bond Trio, one of the better femme vocal-instrumental groups,^ is now making the rounds of cocktail lounges as a single; She opened the new Fiesta Room of the Great Northern hotel, N. Y., which gives her a spot to display an all- around versatility. Miss Bond, being versed in several languages, gives a brilliant account of herself Imguistically, with Greek, French, Spanish and occasionally English tunes. She tends to over- dramatize her vocals, but. barring that defect, has good projection, and gets her numbers over nicely. Piano- wiscj she's more than okay. She can accomp herself handily, and for her breathers, does well-conceived solos. At her opening show she featured "Warsaw Concerto" which was well received. Miss Bond could essay a few live^ lier tunes instead of a steady run Of ballads. Her current modus operandi makes it more difficult for her to get across, but she accom- plishes that purpose at any-rate. .. Jose. Bernhard Hilda's orchestra includes Jane Morgan, beautifully gowned this year, and her French much im- proved, Lena Home at the same spot had all the Frenchmen wide- eyed and open-mouthed. Her style of singing is new over here, but once they caught on they kept yelling for more, or maybe they just want to stare at one of the most beautiful women ever seen on a night club floor. Whatever it is, they like it/ Those who have the money are spending it. It reminds of the days just before 1939 when everyone had the feeling something was going to happen and wanted to get the most of everything before it did. The Monseigneur is still going strong but they are taking it a little easy on the Russian music. The minute the large Gypsy band hears English spoken they segue into ■'God Bless America," feeling sure that only Americans with money can be over here at this time. A Russian singer came on the other night and a Frenchman kept re- peating he wanted to hear French no matter how badly it was sung even in "aygot" (French slang). Right no\v it's like sitting on an atomic bomb; You never know when something will blow up. . NEW YORK eiXX CiiDitol (I.) 24 Tommy Dorsey Or J.immy Bflmonilaon Church & Hale Slusli) Hall (I) U tiUGlJe Cuinmintts Myvtill & Paoaud Aci'onianlilos GaudsmitJvBros Rockettes . Cpi'iw de Ballet Sym, Ore. Varumouiit <V> 'X4 Stan Kenton Ore' June Christy Martin Bros Stump & Stumpy.' Vic Damone noxy (I) m lAnny Ross "Wlere Bros' Beatrice Craft Co HoUace . Shaw Senor Wences Strand (W) !!1 Ink Spots Ilerble FJeltls Ore Frank Marlowe Miriam LaVeUe BHONX Windsor (I) 2e-»» 5 Grays , Bobby Sargent Yank Gomedienne BBC ' Continued from vaire I; ANNTBIOLA Soma tat Martinique. N. ¥. Ann Triola, who has a backlog of nitery appearances, impresses as be- Vig, custom-built for intime spots, bftes pert and personable, well versed m comedy song delivery, and has material sufficient to take ^''if.oi l. variety of tastes. ' MISS Triola came into La Mar- imique to pinchrhit for Jan Murray, wnue latter was ill, and was signed BLf ™«r-week and options contract, XQts is.one situation where an audi- paid off, not only as far as she was concerned, but it's also a break lorDario's customers. On show caught, she did a trio of umbers, setting herself with Ber ,ns 'You Can't Get a Man With ) r^n and going in, after that, with Wnes of minute indigo content. Miss ATioia can put these numbers across ^offensively to win handsome mitts lOf her efforts. Jose. SLOAN ESTELLE Dance 14 Ming. Sert Room, N. Y. ' , ..^stelle Sloan, one of the more ac- complished hoofers of the day, has exhibited in Warners' "Night and ttSX ,5"^ «t tl^e Radio City Music N. Y., neither of which is the gJWer, spot for evaluation as a new 2«. Miss Sloan, now, making her '".ajor cafe appearance in rta.! • a flair for literate dance ♦h, ?"?' able to maintain interest "VfUgh straight terps and heighten <«PPiause values through a set of — Continued from page 1 ss not begin until January. Anything to get away from it all. Long dresses are definitely in and and evening gowns are cut so. low I could only think what a field day Willie Howard would have, es- pecially at the couturier a la mode, Christian Dior. One is definitely "de- mode" without a "guepiere" (small corset) and must admit it does something for the figure if they are well made. However, a good one is expensive, ranging from 13,000 to 17,000 francs ($100 to $150). They even introduce them with ski clothes. Marcel Rochas features them with a heavy knitted sweat shirt, white monkey coat and green sweater. The corset forms part of the fitted top or of the pants. The wasp waist with ski clothes may sound strange, but, the effect is charming. iHow comfortable, one cannot say but don't imagine the real skiers will go for these whale- boned laced in jobs. Winter is setting in and the peo- ple of France are not looking for' ward to their unheated homes: Those with electric stoves are now the same as everyone else because of the lack of electric power—and every day seems to bring a new strike. The clubs and theatres are packed. Being in a crowd helps the morale and also warms you up. Ex- cept for the last few nights when they were ordered closed down for fear of rioting, the places of amuse- ment turn away business. The 9^ub Elysees, Maxim's and Chez Carrere go aU out for black ties: on Friday nights. They also of- fer good food and entertainment. Carrere is one of the most intimate rooms in Paris. The atmosphere gives you the' feeling of being with friends, and it caters more to a French clientele. That and Maxim's and the Club Elysees have a mixed crowd. Toujours Lcs Femmet A week ago Friday every woman turned out in a new creation: If you did not have one you just felt out of place and 6ould not wait to get to the nearest dressmaker the first thing in the morning, Last year's style over here are like last'year^S politics^passe. Maxim's hasn't any floor show but the crowd is show enough and this is where the "chic" of Paris lunch and dine and where Albert, who is probably the best known of the maitres, bows you in as in pre war years. The food^ is good and if you know Albert you can still get some vintage champagne. The Club Elysees has a good show, fluence on the kids, channeling their minds off homework, etc. Quiz Shows a Bave Quiz shows are another current rave in England, as witness the audi- .enc« pull of "20 Questions." Show is reported to be a direct carbon of the Mutual' Network "20 Questions" in, the U.S. and which has already set off legal repercussions, the pack^f age owners asking "how come?" As for the comedians, with the single exception of Tommy Handley, who, with his script writer, Ted Kavenaugh, still cling to the British- tempoed humor, it's a night-in- nigbt-out combination of the Benny- AUen - Hope - Skeltou - Berle gags. BBC's newest comedian with a strong foUowingi for example, is Charles Chester. Like tlte others. Exploring die Unknown Eventual emergence of FM, opening up perhaps 20 new channels in Britain, will pave the way for commercial radio and may spell the eventual doom of the current BBC operation, visitors say. It's in anticipation of Britain becoming commercial radio-minded that an ex-BBC script writer, Elkan Allen, is currently in this fomity.: Allap who arrived last week with his wife, Dorotheen (also his col- laborator) is doing research for a book, on "The American Way of Radio," which will be pub- lished in England as a compan- ion piece to another volume he's just finished on British radio called"(Sood Listening." Allan wilt spend the better part of six months here gather' ing info. He reports that, as far as knowledge of commercial radio is concerned, something approximating an iron curtain exists in England and that his book on U.S. radio will be the . first one- to circulate in Britain. his inspiration stems from bending an ear to the short wave pickups of American comedy shows. From then on it's SO-minutes of Yankee Doodle the Britishers are eating it up. The switchover of BBC radio to the American tempo—seen the di- rect offshoot of the wartime era when the Armed Forces Radio Serv- ice star-studded shows were being constantly beamed overseas — was given impetus by Norman Collins, who until recently was head of the BBC's Light Program. (Because BBC liked the job he did he's been moved over into television,! with Tom Chalmers taking over the Light Pro- gram and adhering to the same U.S. slanted policies.) Most BBC Sbows Canned Not generally known is the -fact that most alt BBC shows are now canned. No British counterpart of Petrillo has emerged and the over- whelming accent on recordings goes undisturbed. Since most of the ar- tists in the non-commercial BBC operation.'get the equivalent of sus- taining fees in America, it's strictly an economic necessity to can the shows, permitting a comic, for ex- ample, to play the Palladium while his show is going out over the air. Variety- Bills WEEK OF DIECEMBEE U Numeral* tm connection with bills below Indicate ODcnliic da» al aluni whether full or ipllt week ■ "ww Xettcr In iHinntheiea Indlcnte* otrenitt .(I) IndcDendCDti (L) Laewt <r> rnmmoaqt; (») RKO; <W) Warner Joey Bishop : Vilma Sherry ■ Carl Sands Ore I'alnce <R) 9S Jolvnny Morgan Lane Bros (two to. till) HARTirOBD State (1) 2«r28 Frankle Carlo Ore .Tack Carter Clark Bros Valley Arena (I) . 28 only Sweeth'ts Rhythm Bud Sweeney Dewey Sis Louis & Oliver The Oarnlvalea NKWARK Adamo (I) 9fi 3 Suns B Sherwood Ore Marilyn Maxwell Alan Carney Sondra Barrett 1»AT1!!US03!J Ma.te8tlc (I) «Sr28 Cordano & Corlnne Bobby Byron VlrBinia Austin 2 IN 1 R.K.O. BOSTON 3 RAYS LEWIS and VAN ;, Ihl* Week Booked by EDDIE SMITH AGENCY 1601 Broadway New York Oro M Diamond Fielder & Harriet Zlggy iLane BBOOKI.YN Flatbngta (I) ii6-%8 The Reddltigtone The Barretts Dorje F«ye A.l Ferguson Terri La FranconI Jamaica (II «4-27 Wolferds Pets Milt Douglas Co Wyman & White Chet Clark Hag«- Karr BAI.TUIORK Hippodrome (I) 24 Robert Alda Bela Lugosl ' Gordon HaeRae Ann Russell Lou Wills, Jr Royal (I) tS Ella Fitzgerald Coles & Alklns Andy Kirk Oro Tondeleyo Harris & Lilette State (I) 95-!S7 The Lloyds Jules Sheer Jimmy Day ElxcesB Baggage 28'SI Val Eddy Alan Drake S Welles (one to ftlO . BOSTON . Keltlw . (B) - M Helen Forrest ,. Johnson & Owen 0 Burd & Leroy Dick Buckley CAAIDKN Towers (I) «fi-28 M ■ & L Ross Al Runkln Marvel A, Co Brookins & Van 2 Collegians Sl-1 Excess Baegage 8ld Kvoffit Arno Bennett Bobby Pinkufl Co Hal Sande Girls CHICAGO Oriental (I) 211 Harmt>nioa,ts Pearl Bailey ,Tack Owens' Sid Stone Co (one to fill) 20-Sl Leon Fields The Dunhlllfl (throe to flU) PROVIDBNCIS Jjfrle (I) 24 Cab Calloway Berry Bros Myers & Walker - Count .Leroy, BliADINO Rajah (I) 'iS-91 R McKlnley Ore Fat Hevning Connie Stevens The Dunhllls 29-81 Jerry Wald Ore Tk-Dk Hoffman Chester Dolphin Stroud' Twins ROOKFOBD ' Palace (I) 26 Xmas Gambles' Al Gordon's Dogs Jean Fields CoUette & Oalle Carl. Thoi^son Geraldlne & Jo Paul Walker Oro SAN FRANCISCO Golden Gate (»> 24 Olsen & .Tohnson Gil .Mason (two to flIlV . SPBINGFIEIiD court 841 (I) 2IS-28 Steve Murray Bob Douglas Dontnoff Sis The Simpsons Kaye . & Aldrlck Chuck Brown WASBINOTON Capitol (I.) 2S Asia Boys June Irf>rraine Pansy the Horse John Boles . Howard (I) 28 Arnctt Cobb « Oat Anderson Ore Savannah Churchill Step Bros Jellyroll & Zuzu WOONSOCKKT Capitol <I> its only Bill Brown The CarrollB 2 Valors Walter Walters Jr Hickory Nuts BRITAIN 24 BRISTOT^ Hippodrome (I) Babes In Woods Arthur Tjucan .lean Adrlenne Bert Piatt Finlay Bros Valeric Lawaon Jeanne Goddnrd ^ Josephine Anne ' Hurry Sims, Carol Lane Dorcen Davles Pamela Roye ' Rita Baker Yeoman 6 Campb'll & Rog'r'n E Flying Ballet Dasflle Bros Peggy Barnes 12 Little Olveltes , CARUIFF New Theatre (I) 26 Sleeping Beauty B'reddle Forbes NUa Cioft , Phil Strlctland Bert Murray Blllie 1-ovo Isobel Marden Jill Dunckley Leon & Kikl Hamilton Robins .Sidnev Tr»>velyan Vilna De Boer , Hobbs, 8 Globe Gis Balmoral 4 Charles Ancasier Beaton's 12 .Tuves CHIHWICK Empiro (1) t* Cinderella Freddie Foss Nancy Burne Gwyneth'Lascellea Jones & Thomns Johnny ("^avanagh Anne Wheatley Leslie Barker Alec Ifarland Helen Jutson Renee Nichols Anthony Gordon B & H NICOl Court 4 Beam's 12 Babes Lawsqn's Pontes HACKNF/Y Kmpire <T> 2« Babes in Woods Brnle Lotlnga Joan Bdmondson Chris Wortman Kenneth Jackson D Blphtnstone Vn,lerie, Turner Christine Moore Storr Bros( Leo Eno Carol Gaye .Terry Lane Sylviffe Odendaal Wizard Prangs K Empire Babes. . Ellis Debutantes XFIOBSTKR Opera House (I) 26 Humpty Dumpty Dugele ■Waketleld B Huntley-Wright Stah Little Doreen Lavender ■ Harold .Chllds Roy Jetteries Hugh Harden Little Jack D Harris & Stan Blel's 12 Juves MANGHESTBR HIppodiwme (I) 20 Goody 5 Shoes Ronald Frankau iSonny Jenks .Tack Stanford Joan JDavles Joy Raden SmetTdle Bros SHBP'RDS BUSir Empire (I> 22 Borrah Minevltch Harmonica Rascals Johnny Puleo Barr & Co Newman Twins Eddy Bayes Paul Roach fiylvin Royan ,Roper & Malsle Hamilton & Vassle Lorraine WOOD GREEN Empire (1) 26 Chuck Aladdin Freddie Frlnton Pat Taylor Johnson Clark Qwen Hayes Billy Nelson Chuck O'Nell Harold Gibson Nick Tanner David Banner Gwenda Grayson Ella Drury Erica York Pirn & Win .Spence Davles Beams is Babeii Cabaret Bills ITEW YOBK CITY Bngntello Dorothy Ross Blue Angel Amanda Lalne Kaye Ballard Pearl . Bailey Jay Marshall Hal Oooko * Three Flames • Carnival George Jessel Elsa & Waldo Graham, Sis Luba Mallna Ray Jacauemot ' Chas Irwin Chas Blackman Or Gao Ore Cafe Society (Downtown) . Rose- Murphy. Alan Melvin Dorothy Jarnac Hope Foye Diamond Horseshoe Mat* & Harl Choral Qcttet Orch Jucnger Ballet El Chlco F Del Monte Victoria Barcelo Rita & Rozino Los Fanchos ■ Hnrem Martha Raye .Beatrice Kraft DcrS' B Yost Guardsmen Frances Fays Elisa Jayne Johii Elliot Paul Remos Mack Tk-lplets Nevada Smith Fausto Curbello O Art Roman O Hotel Edison Tommy Reed Oro . No 1 FIftli Ava Phyllis Grey' Wilson & Hosley Hazel .Webster Downey & FonvlUe Ille>)llghts Belmont-Flaia Rome Vincent Jon Laurenk Hotel Taft Vincent Lopes Oro Charlie, r>rew. Havana-Msdrl4 Noro: Aforales Oro Bobby .Ca.po Joaquin Gar.ay Pann Merryman Sacasas Ora. Iceland Lynn Allison . Tiny Clark Lou Hensehet Martin .I<lne Bllmpr Blank OM China Doll Ming & Ling Wong Sis Laurie Tuont ■ Beatrice Funv Dy* H Curbello Ore Jack Prase Oco. Oppncahana Peter LInd Hayes Jet MacDonald .."' Mary Healy ■ ; Blair & Dean RAy Arnot - Michael Durso Ore Fernando Alvarefe O La Martlnlana Jan Murray Miguellto Valdes ' Ralph Font Ort ■ T & P RodrHtt»« . Ann Triola ' -' Leon «: Eddie'* Eddie Davis Art Waner Oro Mayo Bros Marlon Manners Boy Davis Rita 'Lopez W^ally" Dean Shspard Line , Old, RoumanlaM Sadie Banks Joey Dean Joe LaPorta Ora D'Aquila Oro Essex Hons* Jlrwin Kent Oro Utln tduartc* Harvey Stone ■ Campagnons Georgle Tapps Smith Sis.. Patricia Adair C & X Valdea PARK and CLIFrORD "A Melody In Motion'' ' NOW—Sophie Tucker Show BALTABARIN 8AM VJUNCIIMSO, OAUOR, Taylor Line Castlllanos Oro , Eddie Stone Ore Hotel Biltmora Russ Morgan Oro Tom Grant Oro Hotel Commodore Sonny Dunham Mel Torme Hotel Lexington Alomas Hawallans Hotel New Yorker Larry Clinton O Marshal Beard Phil. Romayne . Terry Brent . .lay Martin Helen Lee Hotel Pennsylvania Chas Splvak Oro Hotel Pierre Landre & Verna Chas Reader Oro 6 Ray Terrell Van Smith Oro Hotel Plat* Hlldegarde Hotel Roosevelt Guy Lombardo O Hotel St Marlts Edo Lublch Ore Hotel St Begll Raye & Naldl Nype & Cot* Roily Rolls Andre Andree A Bonnie Laszlo & Peplto Ted Straeter Ore J Guarneri 3 Ouenetli Omeroit, Bon Vivanta '■ Vincent TraverS' O BlTleW Billy Vino Jan Bart - Demar & fJenlsa Betty Jane Smith Tony Bavaai; Catalino Ore Rubau niea Sonia Gortls Connie Sawyer Jean Palmer Normann Paris t Wally Blacker Splvy's Splvy Thetma Carpenter Garland Wilson Versailles Ilona. Massey Bob Grant Ore ' Panchlto- Oro Vlllaire Barn Piute Pete • TonI Palmer Lou Apparetl MacArthurs Ranch Ore VUMge Van(wir« Irwin Corey Lee Wiley Max ICamlnsky t Don Frye Waldort-Astorlft Carlos Ramlres Estelle Sloan ~' ;Nat Brandwynna O. Misha Borr O'a CHICAGO . Blaekhawk Phil Levant Ray Olsen Howard Brooka Shirley White T & J Mahoney Chea Pare* Marty Gould Ore Kitty Kallen Martin & Lewla Betty Bruce Paul sydcll Hotel Itlaebstona Ray Morton Oro Victor Borge Hotel Blsraaik Pierre Cartier Benno Delson O The Stewarts (4) Tony DIPardo Oro Maurice & Maryea Uelslnga George Gobel BUI Chandler Oro PattI Page Phil D'Arcy H Edgewater Beach George Olsen Ore .Sharkey the Seal Les Canova (2) Preston Lambert Marian Fedele Song Stylists (4> D UUd Danci-S: my .Hotel Shennas Nellie Lutvher Marty Hogan Jose Hells OrO .Teanne Wllliaina Carl Marx lAtln Qnarter > Lenny Kent • June Richmond Iitttln Lnvelle,' (t}| Buddy .Shaw Oro Dk'k Hyde Vllma ahttif 1 Palmer BMsa Phil Regah Murray Arnold Or Andrea Adagio Trio- Rudy Cardenas Hotel Stetens Orin Tucker Or« Prof Lambert! Marcella Gould E & J .Slack Sootee Marsh Sensationalists ((> * Baulevar<dears ,